Record Times Three

Tuesday night at nine o'clock--police procedurals and weird sci-fi shows abound on television. There's a CSI in every state of the union, the Law and Order franchise that's been around since the dawn of the boob tube, and who knows how many other gimmicky crime dramas on the cable channels. There's some serial killer who kills serial killers and--of course--a bunch of alien snakes trying to take over the Earth. My husband Milt watches every one of them--or at least he tries.

Luckily we have three TV sets--all with recording capability. One is in our bedroom upstairs, one in the living room on the main floor, and one in Milt's study in the basement. You'd think that would be enough. But no! Last night, there were evidently FOUR--count them--four shows Milt had to watch at nine o'clock. What to do? Usually, he never bothers me during the evening. He goes to his study and I retire to the bedroom. Although I would love to have him come upstairs and watch TV with me once in a while, that never happens because we have totally different tastes. We used to watch Lie to Me together before that went off the air.

Anyway, last night he informed me that he would be coming upstairs at nine o'clock to record a show. What? He quickly added that he would only be recording--not watching. I could still watch whatever I wanted at nine o'clock. I asked why. He explained that he had four shows he needed (?) to see. He would watch one in the basement while at the same time recording another. He would record a third in the living room and a fourth in the bedroom.

"And what would you do," I asked, "if I wanted to record a show at nine o'clock while watching another show at the same time?"

"You're not, are you?"

"No." He appeared greatly relieved.

"You're going to blog about this, aren't you?" he scowled. "Lots of people record TV programs and watch them later."

"Three at once?" I countered.

"Blame the networks," he argued. "It's not my fault they schedule all the good shows at nine o'clock on Tuesday."

He's right about one thing. There are good shows on at nine o'clock on Tuesday--The Good Wife on CBS, Parenthood on NBC, for example. Unfortunately, Milt didn't watch or record either of them.

Do you record TV shows for future viewing? A lot?

(photo from www.p2pays.org)

Modifications

My 89-year-old mother is finally back home in her apartment at her assisted living complex after a month and a half stay in the hospital and a rehabilitation center. Everyone is delighted she is back. Although she is still the same smart, sassy lady as before, she is finding it harder to get around and we have had to make certain modifications in her apartment and her lifestyle.

The most obvious change was getting her a new rolling walker. As I've posted previously, her old walker was defective on many counts. The brakes didn't work well and it didn't fold easily for transport. The seat was unbalanced, making it hard for her to rest when she took a long walk. She now has a shiny, new, red, open-air (they all are) vehicle that I think makes her the envy of all her friends.

We also got her a Lifeline system which I discussed in a previous post. We've trained her to use it and she now has the Lifeline button on a necklace that she wears at all times. This will provide her with a way to contact someone in case she were to fall in her apartment and not be able to get help.

There are other smaller modifications we made. We got her a small, folding walker to use in her bathroom where her rolling walker will not fit. We arranged for extended nursing care to help her get dressed and undressed each day, shower, and to get her knee brace on and off (in addition to the help she presently gets with her medications). We are going to have a handrail installed in her bathroom and get a special chair for her to use in her shower. Many of these changes and additions have been at the suggestion of her occupational therapist and her visiting nurse.

Many elderly people like my mother are placed in nursing homes and forgotten. I think that's a shame. When families, nurses, and facilities work together they can often develop various modifications to the daily lifestyles of elderly people that allow them to continue to live relatively independently--something that I know makes my mother--and I'm sure many other older people--much happier.

Do you have any elderly relatives? What modifications have you (or they) made to their lives to allow them to live independently--like my mother?

CrowdSpring

From a crowd of ideas, springs the perfect idea! That's the concept behind CrowdSpring, a website devoted to providing creative solutions for clients searching for answers to various design problems. A while ago, my business partner Diane and I used a similar service called LogoMyWay to help us create the logo for our new publishing company Cozy Cat Press. We were so happy with the results, that I wondered if a similar service might be available for other design jobs that our little upstart company might have. That's when I discovered CrowdSpring.

CrowdSpring works much like LogoMyWay, but on a broader scale. Instead of just logos, CrowdSpring designers contract to create pretty much anything a client needs designed. In our case, we wanted a book cover for our first mystery Sounds of Murder. As soon as I signed up with CrowdSpring and posted my design project, I immediately started receiving design ideas for our book cover from designers around the world. I was amazed and delighted with the variety of designs, the quality of the work, and the willingness of the designers to please me. Our book cover contest ran for two weeks and just recently finished. It was difficult to make a decision because there were 143 total designs--quite a few of which I really liked.

Eventually I selected this design from Scott Saunders of Design 7 Studio. I love the bright colors which are perfect for a cozy mystery. Also, I like Scott's clever idea of having the cord of the headset "strangle" one of the letters in the title which reflects what actually happens to the victim in the story.

I have no idea how I would have handled creating our logo and our book covers before such design services were available online. I realize having creative work done "by committee" isn't for everyone, but it has worked well for me and I would recommend both LogoMyWay and CrowdSpring to anyone who needs to have a logo or website or any type of print work created.

Have you ever used a creative design service such as LogoMyWay or CrowdSpring?

Our Cat Should Be Named "Sorry"

A few weeks ago I asked you, my readers, to suggest names for the cat in our new logo for our publishing company Cozy Cat Press. You responded with a litter of wonderful names! My business partner Diane and I went over the list again and again and, although, we truly love the names you all suggested, we kept coming back to one name that we liked that we had thought of ourselves that wasn't on your list of suggestions. Ultimately, we realized that we would be the ones who would have to live with our kitty's name, so we have finally decided to choose the name that we believe is best for our little mascot--Cozette.

We like Cozette because the sound of it fits well with the "cozy" in Cozy Cat Press. Also, there is a literary precedence for this name. There is a character named Cosette (our cat's name will be spelled with a "z" not an "s") who appears in Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.

Even so, I feel guilty. I feel as if I've betrayed those of you who submitted suggestions. You must feel like poetess Marianne Moore felt when after suggesting hundreds of beautiful names (such as Resilient Bullet, Silver Sword, Varsity Stroke, Andante con Moto, and even Utopian Turtletop), for one of their new vehicles, Ford Motor Company ultimately abandoned Miss Moore's lyrical entries, for the totally prosaic name Edsel just because some member of the Ford family happened to be named Edsel.

Of course, I don't think Cozette is in this category, but I do feel I have given the shaft to my poetic readers who took the trouble to submit names for Cozy Cat Press's new mascot. I hope you'll all forgive me and welcome our little Cozette into the world!

(photos from www.dipity.com and www.lqart.org and www.edsel.com)

Installing Mom's Lifeline

My elderly mother will be returning to her assisted living apartment today after spending a month and a half in the hospital and in rehab. We are delighted that she will be getting back to her home, but worried whether she will be able to function on her own. Therefore, at the suggestion of a number of her caregivers, we purchased, and yesterday installed, a Lifeline system in her apartment.

The Lifeline system is operated by a button on a chain that Mom will wear around her neck at all times. If she has any problem and needs help, she presses this button and it calls the Lifeline system which can detect sound from any part of her apartment. An operator then calls to Mom over a loudspeaker in her living room. If Mom answers and tells the operator she needs help, the operator will contact someone from her assisted living complex. If Mom is incapable of answering, the operator will also contact someone.

Our only concern is that Mom has fainted several times with no warning signs. The Lifeline system only works if Mom presses the button on her necklace. If she faints in her apartment without pressing the button, no one will know. This is of great concern to us. The Lifeline people tell us that they are developing a newer system that will be able to detect if Mom faints without pressing the button. They will upgrade her unit when that system is available—which we hope will be soon.

In the mean time, we hope that Mom will feel more secure with the Lifeline system implemented in her apartment.

Do you know anyone who uses the Lifeline system?

(I have not received any compensation for this post.)

How I Lowered My Cholesterol

Last year when I saw my doctor for my annual check-up I discovered that my cholesterol was too high. My doctor prescribed one of those ubiquitous cholesterol-lowering meds which I tried and quickly discovered that I was one of those individuals who suffer some of the scary "adverse effects" that are usually noted by the voice-over announcer at the ends of those cholesterol commercials you hear on television. Let's just say, I like to be able to breathe and move--two behaviors that I found it difficult to do when taking Zocor.

At the time, I was already taking Zetia for cholesterol which was a drug that didn't bother me, so I asked the doctor if I could just take a larger dose of that. Evidently, not. Turns out, Zocor and Zetia (despite their lovely Z beginnings) are very different drugs. You can only take one dose of Zetia evidently. My doctor said that if I couldn't tolerate Zocor, it was unlikely that I'd be able to tolerate any similar cholesterol-lowering medication. My only other option was to lose weight.

So, over the last year I have been working hard to lose weight. I have been exercising and watching my food intake, particularly through portion control. On Friday, when I saw my doctor and she looked at my most recent cholesterol numbers, she was shocked. My cholesterol had plummeted! My bad cholesterol was way down and my good cholesterol was up. Losing weight (15 pounds so far and counting) seemed to have worked. My doctor said I would not need to take any additional cholesterol drug.

So, let my experience serve as motivation to any of you out there who are also trying to lower your cholesterol. You can reduce your cholesterol on your own with diet and exercise. I am living proof of that!

Have you struggled like me to lower your cholesterol? Have you succeeded? How?

(graphic from www.sfu.ca and photo from www.raevenwestern.com)

The Best Mascot Name for Your College

The Chronicle of Higher Education’s most recent edition included a list of suggested mascot names for some of our country’s institutions of higher education that really hits the mark. Having attended the University of Nebraska for my undergraduate degree and experienced the joy of being labeled a “Cornhusker,” I relish other college grads getting saddled with similar colorful mascot names for their schools.

Here are some of my favorites:

The Whitman Chocolates
The Austin Peay Standing Ups
The Creighton Barrels
The Cal Poly Unsaturates
The Bond James Bonds
The St. John’s Worts
The Coe Dependents
The Brown Nosers
The Smith & Wessons
The Pitt Stops
The Xavier Cugats
The Simmons Posturepedics
The University of Oregon Donors
The University of Buffalo Wings
The Marshall Arts
The Bates Motels

What is your alma mater? What is its mascot? Can you think of a better name for your mascot?

(photo from http://www.brianbarber.com/)

Brake Repair

My first car was a Ford Cortina and when the fan belt broke on it, I managed an emergency repair job using an old metal hanger. Ever since, I've prided myself on my ability to fix things in a pinch.

So, here is my elderly mother's rolling walker--a TuffCare. She's had it for years. Although the hand brakes work, they don't lock in place--and they should. Mom needs to be able to stop and sit down on her walker from time to time when she has to travel a long distance in her assisted living center. Obviously, if the brakes don't lock and she attempts to sit down on the walker, she could go sliding down the hallway unexpectedly. That would not be fun.

I've gone over the walker with a fine tooth comb. I can see where the brake cord attaches to the handle and runs down to the back wheels. When I squeeze the handle, the brakes clamp down firmly on the wheels and it stops. Unfortunately, the handles don't remain closed on their own. If I release the pressure on the handles, the brakes release. Obviously, Mom can't turn around and sit down on her walker while continuing to squeeze the handles.

I have contacted the manufacturer with no luck. I have contacted local supply stores. I have been working on the walker myself with a screw driver, pliers, and a wrench--all to no avail. However, I haven't given up yet.

How hard can it be to fix a defective brake handle on a rolling walker? Why won't the brakes lock? Any thoughts, my brilliant blog friends?

Your Ides of March

How will you celebrate the Ides of March? The Ides is today--March 15. Historians tell us that ancient Roman soothsayers warned Julius Caesar to "beware the Ides of March." The Ides of March was traditionally the first day of Spring in the ancient Roman calendar. Turns out, of course, that the soothsayers were right and that was the day Caesar was assassinated.

So, should we all be careful on this day, many centuries later? I say, no! I say let's celebrate today everything Ides of March related. What you ask would that be? Well, we could start by having an Italian feast tonight--maybe spaghetti! There's also that nifty new Starz television series Spartacus that takes place in ancient Rome. We could all watch that. Of course, the younger ones may wish to dress up in make-shift togas and party hearty--Roman style.

However you wish to celebrate the Ides of March--and remember, it's officially only one month until your taxes are due--make it fun. I know I will.

How will you celebrate your Ides of March?

(photos from www.byrnesenglish12ap.blogspot.com and www.washingtonpost.com)

Olympic Plunging

With the recent conclusion of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, I guess I'm primed to see Olympic events in all of my daily endeavors. For instance, this morning when the toilet in my second floor bathroom became clogged and I had to unclog it with my trusty plunger, I realized that toilet plunging is truly an Olympic event if ever there was one.

I mean, you really have to be in good shape for Olympic plunging, especially your upper body strength. After about fifteen minutes of that up and down pulling motion, I could really feel my arm muscles. My back was throbbing. I was panting. My husband Milt was playing solitaire on the computer--totally oblivious to my athletic endeavors.

Olympic plunging is sort of like downhill ski racing. You know--how the skiers grab those poles and plant them firmly in the snow as they maneuver around those little flags (I think they call them "gates"). Each time that plunger went down into the water-filled bowl, I imagined myself swooshing down a snow-covered peak on Whistler Mountain, cameras rolling, and sportscasters providing the excited play-by-play. I mean, my toilet is white and I do have a vivid imagination.

"And Patricia rounds the dreaded 50/50 curve!" they yell, meaning the water level is no longer up to the brim but is actually half-way down the side of toilet bowl. "She's still hanging in there! Will she clear the toilet and have it running again before she collapses?" What excitement! I can really get into household cleaning when I have motivation.

I believe you need to find the thrill of victory in each mundane household task, otherwise you will surely suffer the daily agony of defeat. Just to let you know, my toilet is now running smoothly. I am an Olympic plunger!

Do you have any Olympic household chores at which you excel?

(photos from www.thisnext.com and www.terrylove.com and www.zimbio.com)

Birthday Bombardment

I was pleasantly bombarded with birthday greetings when I opened my Facebook page this morning! Hurray! What a nice way to start my day (even though it is raining here in the Chicago suburbs). Thank you to all my wonderful friends and family!

My husband Milt is taking me out for a romantic lunch somewhere yet to be determined. So, if you live in my area and see an older couple spooning over their noon day meal, don't disturb us!

That's it for now. I'm off to celebrate!

(photo from www.smartertravel.com)

Name That Cat!

I don't typically repeat posts from one of my blogs to the other, but today I'm going to because I am so proud of our new publishing company Cozy Cat Press' new logo. Here it is!

My business partner Diane and I love it. We think the kitty just personifies our stated qualities of mystery, whimsy, and coziness! Thank you, Eagle (our designer) and thank you, Logo My Way, the wonderful website that helped us find our perfect mascot.

We're holding a contest to name our cozy cat. What do you think we should name it? Just send me your suggestion in a comment and we will send the winner either a copy of our first book or 1000 EC credits.

Name that cat!

Don't Quit Your Day Job

I've been blogging for several years now. As much as I love writing my daily posts on my two blogs and interacting with other bloggers from around the world, I'll admit that as a retiree living on a pension and Social Security, it would be nice to make a little money from my blogs. After all, I spend a whole lot of time blogging so it's like a job to me.

Social Security, of course, says I can't make over a certain amount of income in order to continue to draw my benefits from them. They needn't worry. The amount of money I make from blogging is not going to threaten that limit anywhere in the near future. Let me give you the details in the spirit of full disclosure.

For you non-bloggers out there, bloggers typically make money by placing advertisements on their blogs. There are a number of online blogger advertising services that provide this service to bloggers. Some bloggers are so successful with their ads that they make enough money to support themselves by blogging. I am no where in that category.

You will notice a variety of ads on my blogs. The first ads I installed were those from Google's Adsense. In the two years or so I have shown these ads on my blogs I have reaped the amazing total profit of eight cents. Yes, eight cents.

I have done much better with some other advertisers. Project Wonderful ads presently are showing a running total for both of my blogs of $18.86. That's for about the last six months. I cashed in my PW account once a while back when it got to about $20. Wow!

Adgitize and CMF ads are fairly new for me. I've been with Adgitize about six months and recently got my first check from them for $13. Yippee! My CMF account shows a little over $4 at present.

As you can see, I don't need to worry about going over my Social Security limit any time in the near future. I know that many bloggers do much better than I do making money with their blogs. I commend them. I'd like to make more money blogging, but not at the expense of making my blogs what I truly want them to be--an expression of myself and communication with others.

Any thoughts, bloggers and non-bloggers? Can you (should you) make money with your blogs?

(graphic from www.blogkori.com)

Hidden Dangers of Cell Phones

No, not radiation that could give you brain cancer! Not getting in a serious automobile accident because you are texting while driving! There's an even more insidious danger lurking around the corner for cell phone users--and my husband Milt discovered it the other day.

He was out in his car running his daily errands. I was at home when our land line phone rang. I answered it and I heard Milt talking, so I responded. He seemed to be engaged in a violent argument with another man and oblivious to my voice. As I continued to listen, I soon realized that he was driving in his car conversing with a talk show radio host. I'm used to these discussions that Milt has with politician commentators because he has them regularly in front of the television as well as in the car with the radio.

It was obvious that Milt had inadvertently pushed our home phone number on his cell phone speed dial and had no idea that I was listening to him talk to the unnamed radio host (initials RL). My goodness, he was worked up! Swear words were flying! Insults were thrown at various government officials! Finally, I got his attention and he answered me. He was baffled as to how he had managed to call me.

It's a good thing that Milt's unintentional phone call to me proved to be so innocuous. I mean, he could have been on his way to visit a mistress, or a bunch of buddies at a bar, or out buying contraband (in his case, that would be maple eclairs). He wasn't. My loyal hubby was just venting his political views to himself while driving. But let his experience serve as a warning to all cell phone users out there. Be careful what you say when you have your cell phone with you; you never know when you might accidentally hit speed dial and reveal information that you would rather keep secret.

Have you ever made an unintentional call on your cell phone?

(photo from www.weblogs.baltimoresun.com)

Wheelchair Yoga

When I visited my Mom at rehab yesterday, she was down at the gym doing wheelchair yoga! Yes! Believe it or not, they have yoga exercises for people in wheelchairs. Here's a photo of Mom at her yoga class. Years ago, when I fell in a pothole in a parking lot and broke my right ankle and sprained my left ankle, I spent several weeks in a wheelchair, so I know how difficult it is to get any exercise while sitting in one all day.

You may wonder how wheelchair bound individuals can do yoga positions. Here's a great website that demonstrates the various yoga positions, adapted for the wheelchair. The photos below show the cat, the cow, and the eagle positions. Just because someone is wheelchair bound doesn't mean they can't get exercise.

(photos fromhttp://mayallbehappy.org/wheelchair-yoga/)

March Roars in with Accolades

This lion is welcoming March by roaring his gratitude for all the many visitors to Subjective Soup during the month of February. Thank you, specifically to my Entrecard compatriots who dropped by frequently. Here is a list of those who helped warm up the soup during those cold February days.

1. Mommy's Little Corner

2. As the Crackerhead Crumbles

3. Yummy as Can Be

4. Fledgling Blogger

5. The Ad Master

6. The Simple Life

7. Ba-Bootie

8. Life's Sweets and Spices

9. Mutual Love

10. Picture to People

Also, many thanks to Jane at The Dance of Life for sending me The Beautiful Blogger Award. Jane, I bet you'd like to know seven things about me, and the names of some other bloggers who should receive this award, wouldn't you? First, I'd like to pass the award on to the ten Top Droppers listed above.

Second, seven things about me that you don't already know....hmmm. My life is an open book, it seems. What weird idiosyncrasy do I possess that I haven't confessed to on this blog already? I know. Let's do physical attributes today.

1. I am double jointed in my arms. That is, when I press my palms on a flat surface, my elbows stick out the opposite direction. Gross, right?

2. My daughter says I have a bald spot on the back of my head, although the beautician says I don't.

3. I have a metal plate and five screws in my right ankle (I fell in a parking lot once and broke my ankle).

4. I have a torn meniscus in my left knee.

5. I have all of my molars.

6. Although I am an old retired lady, I am still a natural blonde.

7. I have recently lost 15 pounds and I'm still trying to lose another 15.

Welcome, March! Congratulations, Top Droppers and award recipients!

(photo from cgpslionsroar.blogspot.com)