Thursday, May 21, 2020 - Another Busy Day

Thursday, May 21, 2020 - A Busy, Busy Day

Surprisingly after going to bed so late I woke up at 5:15.  I didn't waste anytime this morning since we will need to leave early.  After making the coffee, I read a few posts on my phone.  When the coffee was done I drank the first cup, then headed upstairs to start getting ready.  Dean had to drink his coffee without sugar since he'll have fasting lab work today.  

It was 6:50 when we left Oswego.  It was cloudy here but the sun was coming out in Webb City, only 40 miles away.  We enjoyed a beautiful day in Joplin.  Our appointment was at 8:00, however at their request we arrived at 7:50.  Within a minute or so, the front door was unlocked and we headed in.  All of the nurses and doctors wore masks but they told us it was up to us if we wanted to wear one or not.  Since we were the only ones in the clinic at the time, we chose not to.  After signing in, we were called back.  We were both somewhat happy with our weight today.  After being in "isolation" we've probably had more comfort foods than the previous six months, so we will not complain about the couple of pounds we have gained.  It was a reminder to try and do better in the next six months.  

We talked to the nurse, then the doctor.  Afterwards, Dean went to the lab room for his fasting blood draw, while I waited for Dr. Broce to freeze a couple of spots on my back.  They were not concerning but they have been itching almost constantly, so she took care of those.  The nurse brought in my papers and told me I could go check out and make our next appointment.  They were still trying to draw blood on Dean.  Poor guy, he has the hardest time with this.  I asked Angie, the receptionist to move our appointment back a week or two so I could make sure I have my 6 month test results to give to Dr. Broce when we see her in six months, rather than send them to her after the fact.  We were finished, when Dean finally showed up.  He was not happy, as they were unable to hit a vein.  Now we have to drive to the Women's Health Center on the far side of Joplin to have it drawn at a lab there.  He was hangry....yes I spelled that right hANGRY.  We went in, had to have our temps taken and asked a series of questions.  I showed him where the lab was - as I've been there numerous times over the years - then I returned to the car to wait.

They only had to stick him twice, so he was glad that was over.  We decided to go to Cracker Barrel to have breakfast.  It was now nearing 10:30.  We went in and stood in line.  There were two couples in front of us.   There were two ladies working at the hostess station....and after 5-7 minutes no one said anything to us or the couple behind us, so we decided to leave.  As we turned around toward the door, we noticed there were people lined up behind us almost to the door.   You can tell people enjoy this place.  

Since we were near a friend's house that I needed to stop at, we did that next.  While in Mexico I purchased several bottles of vanilla.  I told her I'd bring her some and checked to be sure she would be home this morning.  I wish we had more time to stay and visit with Connie and her husband, but we still had several things to do.  Our original plan was to find some place to eat, when we left there.  Since it was now so close to 11, we decided to run another errand, then go eat lunch instead.  Our next stop was Harbor Freight.  Dean was looking for a tool and I wanted some more ear plugs.  We went in for 2 things and came out with 4, and Dean didn't even find the tool he wanted.  I bought one of those battery operated bug swatters - that looks like a small tennis raquet.  Several people we know have them and think they are great.  Dean said he would like to try using it for the wood bees we have around the garage.  He's eliminated many already but a few still show up occasionally.  We have seen a few "wasps" that may be yellow jackets.  The lot has many nuisances like this around - after sitting with no care for several years.  It takes time to clean up and rid the property of them.  It's good we won't build for a couple of years so we can eliminate as many as possible.

From there we headed to Lotus Express for some Chinese food.  We really enjoyed it last time we stopped.  It's cheap, quick and good.  I chose General chicken, and Dean wanted Cashew chicken.  The noon special is $4, for 5 large chunks of fried chicken, sauce, rice and choice of egg roll or crab rangoon, and a drink.  We pulled in to Site #2 and waited for them to bring it to us.  It was only a few minutes when they arrived at our car.  The sun was out and it was hot sitting in their lot, so we headed down 20th Street looking for a place we could pull in and eat.  I noticed a Walgreen's near Main Street, so we pulled into their parking lot near the back of the store.  Dean took the containers out and lo and behold no utensils.  Well, God must have led me to Walgreen's on purpose - I was able to go in and buy a small box of utensils with forks, knives and spoons.  We definitely needed both forks and knives.  The food was as good as we remembered too.  Just a perfect lunch size meal!  We found a place to store the small box of utensils - which means we will probably never need them again!  LOL!

We wanted a few things from Sam's so that was our next stop - only six items, so we were in and out in no time.  Then we headed to Walmart on 7th street.  Almost everything on my list was from Health & Beauty and Cosmetics.  One thing I was out of was nail polish remover.  When I FINALLY found it - I was shocked at the price.  I just emptied the bottle I've had for awhile...it expired in 2014.  It was almost $3.  (I don't paint anything except my toenails - and only during the summer months).  I also needed some new lipstick as mine was almost gone.  Lo and behold, they still had the same color.  I carefully placed it in the cart with things around it so it did not fall out.  We headed to the register and I made sure to get it on the conveyor.   When I got home, did I have it?  No.  I didn't get charged for it either, so the clerk must have overlooked it.  I should have stood watch to the end.  At least I know they have it - I'll get it next time around.

It was cloudy when we left Oswego but the sun came out as we neared Joplin and it remained sunny all day.  As we left Joplin, we took a back road through the country that I enjoy.  I was driving and didn't hurry at all - driving around 50 mph until we turned off the main country road.  After that I toodled along about 35.  The further west we went the darker the clouds became, then came big drops of rain, and the next thing I knew it was raining so hard you could hardly see.  It let up outside of Oswego.  As we pulled into the RV Park we noticed it had not rained here at all.  We had barely pulled into our parking spot when it started to sprinkle.  It wasn't long and the rain arrived full force.  Thankfully we were inside by then.

After we had rested a bit and the rain stopped around 3-3:30, Dean said I want ice cream!  What am I going to do with him?  We drove to Chetopa to the Hornet's Nest.  We both chose Stings, similar to Blizzards.  Stings are for the school mascot, the Hornet.  Pretty clever.  I chose German Chocolate and Dean had Butter Pecan.  While we were there I visited with sisters Carla and Susan.  Carla is my sister Cindy's work supervisor and Susan is Haleigh's grandma.  After Dean ordered, I started over to set with him while we waited for our Stings to be made - they were very, very busy today - when I noticed Jim and Carol Dillon in the back corner, so I had to go say hello to them as well.  Many of you know Chetopa is my old hometown, so I often see someone I know there, but today they were all people I met after moving to Oswego.  

When our order was ready, we drove to the river where we sat and ate our Stings.  They are very good and decently priced.  Around 6-6:30 Dean said he was hungry, so I made "scaled down" breakfast burritoes for supper.  By the time we ate and I did the dishes I just didn't have it in me to write the blog post.  It was a busy day.  Tomorrow I have laundry to do, and Kamron and Jaxson are coming to spend the afternoon with us, so I took advantage of the  the evening to rest.