UPDATE - Lunch and supper today. As of now, no taste alterations. I am blessed.

UPDATE: Slept a bit better last night until 1:45 a.m. when I had a cramp in my left foot and inner right thigh--those cramps that make you think, OK, just cut off my foot, cut off my leg--the pain's excruciating and the muscles become rigid out the wazoo. I did what my little Mama always said worked for her, I licked the salt from a restaurant-size-packet off the palm of my hand. The cramps left and I decided to sleep in the recliner for a while, instead of the bed.

Still no nausea to speak of--hooray! I haven't had to take any meds for that since Sunday.

Still dealing with peripheral neuropathy, which continues to wax and wane. I talked with the oncology pharmacist about it today. She gave me an option stronger than Tylenol in case it gets so bad that I cannot sleep. Here's hoping that doesn't happen.

Thank you for your continued prayers, love and concern. They mean the world to me, y'all.



This is lunch. I decided that I wanted to try to make an egg, veggie, chicken, and cheese scramble, then put it into a flour tortilla. Yummy, so doggone yummy. Cool that I had enough for two! I love having leftovers because it makes being versatile like this easy. I drank water from my 28-ounce mug.



This is supper. More leftovers--the baked chicken, the baked sweet potato, and the steamed broccoli. I added the fresh green grapes and cherries. Believe it or not, the flavors melded in a most pleasing manner. Naturally, I drank some water with my supper.



I'm happy and full and ready to watch some more NYPD Blue episodes on Amazon Prime Instant Video. I am totally blessed. I took this photo of my TV this morning, to share with someone at work--I knew that he'd be thrilled for me to have this beauty in my apartment.

Seen on a walk during my lunch hour last Friday.

This mural is well-done. It surprised me since I hadn't walked that direction in I don't know how long. That's the Hawthorne Bridge depicted at the top of the bay door.



A bit of it in a close up, focusing on the recessed doorway.



A different perspective on the mural. That's my work building in the background on the left side of the photo.



Straight on perspective; I wish I could have found some info about the mural online. I didn't find anything after looking for about 45 minutes--now I'm tired and need to finish and get this scheduled to publish for Thursday.



Close up of the vehicle parked out front. I wondered after reading the sign on the back window if this business Green Hammer may be nearby, so I looked it up online and found that their address is in this block. I don't know if this mural is theirs since their street number is 1323 and the number inside the door of the building with the mural is 1321.

This is from their Web site: Green Hammer is a unified design-build firm.

And this, too: Stewardship: The Green Hammer Purpose

Nature is our ultimate classroom and an infinite source of inspiration. Buildings that mimic healthy living systems provide fresh air and clean water, create and conserve energy, and live in harmony with our natural world. A healthy building supports us personally while restoring the health of the planet. A smart building pays back with reduced operational costs and improved economic value.

At Green Hammer we embody the expertise, ingenuity, and passion to transform buildings where we live, work, and play. Every building is an opportunity to improve our wellbeing, financial health and relationship with nature. We create healthy and inspiring buildings, designed for people and built for life.

In the same block, Urban Timberworks. This is from their Web site:

We Listen to Clients and Speak For the Trees

The veteran Urban Timberworks team takes felled urban trees and transforms them into unique furniture pieces that tell the story of the tree and stand the test of time. We take tremendous care and consideration of each tree we process to ensure we maximize its yield and pay homage to its life by tracking and translating its story: where it came from and why it came down. We examine its unique characteristics and let it speak to us about how it is best transformed.

We match our clients’ unique desires and designs to the pieces we have in waiting. What sets us apart from other designers and woodworkers is our attention to each detail and respect for the life cycle of the tree while transforming it into a functional work of art. With our care, patience, expertise, and craftsmanship, we listen to our clients and speak for the trees to transform urban felled logs into treasured artisan furniture.

I wonder which business has this mural on it. Maybe I'll be able to find out the next time I walk that direction.

A break in covering Schreiner's Iris Gardens to show you how I'm dealing with my lunch and break food, now that I'm back at work

I'm trying to eat in small amounts at my two 15-minute breaks and lunch hour, small amounts of fruits, vegetables, cheese, nuts, boiled eggs, Ritz crackers, etc. I'd been eating like that while off from work recovering from surgery on April 24. So, on the day before I returned to work on June 1, I shopped at the Dollar Tree and found a package of 10 round containers with lids and another package of 10 rectangular containers with lids. These are small containers--a Ritz cracker fits perfectly in the round container while three grape tomatoes fit nicely into the rectangular container. I need to lose weight, so I decided that if I'm thinking about what I'm eating, I'll pay more attention to how much I'm eating. Also, I decided that if I'm opening lots of containers, I'll eat slower. However, I knew that I needed an organized way to get those containers back and forth, so I went to Joanne's Fabrics and bought two craft storage containers. I'm using the blog and Facebook and Instagram as ways to keep up with how it's going, to reinforce my efforts. Thanks for indulging my efforts. Here's my food for Wednesday, June 3.



One of the craft storage containers, the Art Bin. I have a small plastic bowl with a lid that fits in there, plus several of those small containers.



The contents of the Art Bin: I already had a small bowl; in it I've got the last of my cooked vegetables: carrots, turnips, new potatoes, and somewhere in there, bits of zucchini. Three small containers hold slices of strawberries. One has a hard-boiled egg in it, one contains four Ritz crackers, and the last one has mixed nuts, a quarter cup.



The other craft storage container--two of the trays are full size, one is split into two equal sections.



Top left, a slice of fresh strawberry. The other three containers hold small pieces of a wonderful sheep cheese from Italy--I can't remember the name of it, but my older son knows, so I'm A-OK for getting more of it.



This section is all cherries. So delicious!



The split section holds grape tomatoes on one side and a combo of blueberries and raspberries on the other.



My frig and microwave, both important in the scheme of things.



My morning break, along with some cold water. I always get the cheese out in time for it to get to room temperature--that makes it taste even better, makes the texture more enjoyable.



My lunch. I heated the veggies in the microwave and enjoyed the rest of it cold, along with a glass of cold water.



I almost ate the entire afternoon break's portions without taking a photo. More room temp cheese and cherries. Yummy!



I did eat everything for supper without taking a photo. I had one Hebrew National beef hot dog cut in half with each half placed in a King Hawaiian hot dog bun with a bit of mayo on each bun, plus a few Juanita tortilla chips, and the leftover blueberries, raspberries, and cherries. For dessert, one Popsicle stick's worth of sugar free Fudgsicle. Afterwards, I wondered about a small container of leftover cheese which I hadn't opened at supper time. Had I eaten it earlier and forgot about it? Hmmmm. I planned to leave some of the nuts for the next time.



When I went into the kitchen to wash and dry the lunch containers, I discovered those last two bits of cheese. I enjoyed eating them with strawberries as I packed the next day's lunch and break goodies. There will be variety, but there will be repetition until I've finished an item, then I'll have an equally good substitute.

ESHT 2014 - Sights around Llangollen, No. 1 - plus a perfect lunch

The railroad station made me want to find some lunch quickly and walk back to the bridge, at least, so that I could take some photos.



The Buttered Crust, right across the street from where Tommy parked the coach, proved to be the perfect spot of a delicious, quick, and fortifying lunch.



The clean, bright, spacious downstairs dining area. We almost had to go upstairs to find a table, but just as we were discussing it, a couple got up from their table by the window. Yea for us!



How about that statement hanging across the fireplace? I liked it just as much as I did the message on the chalkboard: Please take a seat ... a member of the staff will be with you shortly. That's exactly what happened. That's a bookstore attached to the Buttered Crust.



A roll to butter, the butter pat wrapped in foil and waiting right there. Hot, tasty, satisfying leek soup. Yummy. Both of us got the same thing and ate all of it.



For the rest of lunch, both of us ordered jacket potatoes and salad. Once again, hot and tasty--the potato, crispy and tasty--the salad.



Next up, walking the streets to see as much as possible in the limited time we had. I couldn't pass up taking this photo of these sunflowers--I love sunflowers!



Wide shot to put the location of the sunflowers in perspective. Creative problem solving in the parking on the narrow street.

ESHT 2014 - We jump ahead a bit on October 9 in order to participate in the City Daily Photo Theme Day Post - Workers

Click here for the Monthly Theme Day Gallery at City Daily Photo.


A delicious lunch, prepared and served by the excellent workers at the Buttered Crust in Llangollen, Wales. If my memory serves me, that Vin on the left, James on the right, and Kayte is out of sight in the kitchen. (Two more photos, scroll down a bit, please, to see them. Thanks!)

From their Web site: Welcome to Buttered Crust Cafe, Llangollen

Located in the heart of historic Llangollen, Buttered Crust can be found opposite the main entrance to the large car and coach park on Market Street. Our cafe is open for breakfasts, lunches, snacks and tea & coffee and all visitors are sure to receive a warm and hospitable welcome from the Buttered Crust staff.

At Buttered Crust we are proud to say that our fresh bread, fruit, vegetables and meat are all purchased very locally - all from retailers on Llangollen's own Castle Street. In addition, all of our tea, coffee and hot chocolate is certified Fair Trade.

I can't share the photo of these workers without sharing two others which show the fruits of their labor.



My tasty roll with a foil-wrapped pat of butter waiting to be spread on it. My homemade soup; I'm 99.99% sure it's leek. I know for certain that it totally hit the spot as the beginning dish of lunch at Buttered Crust.



The rest of my totally satisfying lunch, a butter-melting jacket potato and fresh salad. A light, yet filling meal, the perfect lunch to enjoy before walking along the streets of a lovely Welsh village and then getting back on the coach to head for our next stop.

2014 Festival of Flowers, No. 4

The mailman eating his lunch on the park bench caught my eye. And made me wonder, "What's a mailman doing working on Saturday? With something that looks like delivery as his job? About the time I got to the end of that thought, I noticed the sort of photo bomber with the sunglasses, waving at me like we were long lost friends. Never seen him before. Turns out I got another guy eating a slice of pizza on a park bench--he's backed up to the mailman. I like how the photo turned out. Hope you enjoy it.

May 22, 2009--look at that sunshine!

If my allergies would leave me alone, I could have been out and about at lunch on Wednesday, May 14, 2014, and found a sight much like this one that I happened upon years earlier in downtown Portland. No kidding. It was a record-breaking 91 today here in Portland. And it should be a similar temp tomorrow. Maybe the allergies will have settled some and I can get out at lunch without ending up having a sneezing fit. If so, I'll have my camera with me.

Lunch, Saturday, August 3, 2013

Strawberries, sheep cheese, Traditional Chex Mix and sweet iced tea. Arranged on a colorful tray I lucked into at Joanne's last Saturday when I had the Zipcar for hours and hours of errands. A 70% off sale on outdoor dining items. Besides the tray, I got the cup, too. So, they're meant for children, but I don't care. It's a way to exercise portion control, don't you know?



Artsy HDR-effect close-up.



As far as I'm concerned, the best sheep cheese, ever. With Sole di Sardegna in my life, I don't miss cheddar cheese. This stuff is so fine, eaten at room temperature as it was at lunch yesterday, with various complimentary foods. Shredded for tacos or burritos or chili or spaghetti and meatballs. Or melted as the insides of divine grilled cheese sandwiches.