Heat! Humidity! North America is feeling it, and other parts of the world are too. As an old gal, I am staying indoors, where the air is cool and clean by comparison. Thank goodness for the air source heat pump!!
I am well into my medical month of June now. A consultation with the Endocrinologist today calls for new medications, as the ones I am taking do not quite do the job.
The colonoscopy prep week has begun. So far so good, surgery next week.
I am still waiting for the call for my six month aneurysm scan appointment, and another for my second Shingrix shot.
All these things are getting a little muddled in my head, so I’ve had to write down what I need to do, when I need to do it, and for whom, to keep it all straight. So far so good.
Aging can be a vocation for many of us. I am finding the longer I live the more effort it takes to stay that way.
Luckily, although I am going through multiple medical experiences, I am not in pain or even discomfort. (With two exceptions: the last prep day before the colonoscopy is a doozy of a day, as anyone who has had one will know; and the second Shingrix shot will have me feeling ill for a few days!)
Well, enough of the medical stuff.
One of the things I love about June is the flowers. Currently I am surrounded by vases of peonies, lavender, and roses. The house smells divine!
One of my recent projects was my winter coat. I’ve been wearing only this coat since 1993, that is for 31 years. It is a men’s Gore-Tex parka, which I purchased on sale for over $300 at the time. It seemed like a lot at the time, but the functionality of the coat persuaded me that it was the best option. It is waterproof, breathable, wind proof, and large enough on me to accommodate my Cowichan sweater underneath when the weather is really cold. The Cowichan sweater was purchased in 1992, in Banff. It was another expensive item that was bought for functionality. The coat and sweater are a great combination. And since the cost has been spread over more than 30 years, a bargain. They are both still going strong.
However, when I machine washed my coat this spring, the stitching at the pocket finally gave way. Not bad for more than thirty years of wear and tear. The material holding the corner of the pocket had worn through, so I secured the corner with a little piece of heavy duty strap, sewn through the outer layer of material and the lining. That should hold it for another thirty years.
![](https://www.maggieturner.net/wp-content/uploads/parka-pocket-IMG_4804-2-1024x768.jpg)
![](https://www.maggieturner.net/wp-content/uploads/parka-IMG_4805-1024x768.jpg)
Another recent project was picking strawberries at a pick-your-own farm. Attila and I picked 12 litres of beautiful berries. It was the first day of picking on that farm, and we arrived just before it opened. There was a lineup of cars along the side of the road, so we took our place in the queue. It was a cool, bright, sunny morning, and very pleasant. Every year that I pick strawberries it is just a wee bit more uncomfortable. So far so good though.
That same day I canned 16 500-ml jars of strawberries, just the berries in their own juice with a quarter the amount of sugar suggested in the recipe. One jar did not seal, so for the evening meal I made strawberry sauce with it, and we enjoyed that over pancakes.
![](https://www.maggieturner.net/wp-content/uploads/steam-canners-IMG_4799-1024x768.jpg)
I have a new stainless steel steam canner. What a treat it is. However, it needed to be calibrated before the canning could begin. And that is where I discovered how tired I was. I forgot to put the water in the canner! That is a huge mistake. I could not figure out why it was not coming to temperature, why there was no steam. Finally I lifted the lid to see what was going on, and spotted my error. The pan was slightly discoloured, but escaped warping and works wonderfully.
I think I am going to have to admit to myself that, after waking at 5:00 a.m., being on my feet for the entire day, that I am too tired to tackle big projects in the evening. It is hard to admit limitations! Oh well, I will still enjoy my days to the fullest, I will just have to pace myself differently as time goes on. Life is about change.
Worldly
Weather
Updated on Wed, Jun 19, 6:37 p.m.
30°C
FEELS LIKE 43
Partly cloudy
Wind 11 SW km/h
Humidity 72 %
Visibility 24 km
Sunrise 5:23 AM
Wind gust 17 km/h
Pressure 102.1 kPa
Ceiling 9100 m
Sunset 8:54 PM
Quote
“Results! Why, man, I have gotten a lot of results. I know several thousand things that won’t work.”
Thomas A. Edison
1847 – 1931
Your coat is gray in one photo and dark green in the other. Did you do a color inversion or??? Take it easy, hope all the medical stuff goes smoothly.
Joan, the dark green is the actual colour of the coat. The close up looks gray due to the direct sunlight, I think. I didn’t alter the photograph, I think it is just the difference in lighting. Thank you for the good wishes on the medical stuff! Hope you are staying cool down there in the south, it looks hot!
“Aging can be a vocation for many of us. I am finding the longer I live the more effort it takes to stay that way.”
Maggie, thank you for this. My husband and I both laughed at the truth of it.
Wendy, shared experience, the “golden years”. Well, they are in many ways, these years of maturity, but there is a price to pay!
DH and I had no ill effects from our 2nd Shingrix vaccines. May you be as lucky!
Teri, good to know! Fingers crossed, I was very ill for about a day after the first shot, it would be lovely to have no reaction!