I'm Done, I'm Done, I'm Done!!!

Yesterday was my last radiation treatment! Whoo hoo!

Of course, I can expect the redness and swelling to continue for another two weeks. Not that it’s been all that red or swollen now. Even the techs said my skin handled the treatments pretty well.

Hmmm… Does that mean I have thick skin? Maybe being a writer helped!!

Next step in my treatment will be hormone therapy. I got my pills yesterday, but can wait two weeks before starting them.

Not that I’m looking forward to it. The side effects scare me. But I promised I would try them. I can only hope that I handle the pills as well as the radiation.

So… Are you in the path of winter storm Hunter? We are. The snow doesn’t bother me as much as the expected ice. Hubby is working from home today (and told his crew to do the same). No one needs to be driving in the ice. And thank goodness I don’t have to drive ANYWHERE!!

That’s because I’m done, I’m done, I’m done!!!

Happy Friday!

Stacy

No Wednesday Reads

See? Already behind in my reading. I’m such a slacker.

Well… actually I’m not. I’m still reviewing my box set (that’s reading!!) and a good thing, too. Some stuff wasn’t formatted quite right. But it’s getting fixed and I’m on the home stretch (and enjoying reading Blind Temptation again, too!).

I also thought I’d get a chance to read more in the waiting room before my radiation treatments, but I barely get two pages read before they call me. Guess no one was scheduled before me for most days, because I show up early!

Tomorrow is my last day of treatment, so maybe I’ll head back to the fitness center in the mornings and get some reading done while walking on the treadmill.

Except my car is now parked outside.

And it’s been FREEZING out there.

It takes awhile to warm it up.

Which wastes gas!

Okay, maybe I won’t go in the morning. I’ll go in the afternoon.

Now I’m laughing. If I don’t do it in the morning, I don’t do it. Hmmm… Maybe I can change.

Yep. Still laughing.

Happy Reading!

Stacy

We Bought a House!

Okay, actually we signed a contract to have one built. In June or July we’ll actually do the buying/closing. But we did it.

Yeah, that means we’ll be back to having house payments for awhile (since this smaller home costs more than our larger home will sell for), but it’s the right move for us. I look forward to moving day and living in a ranch house once again.

We’ll be closing right around the time we get ready to leave on our trip/cruise to Alaska. So either right before we leave or right after we get back, we’ll get the keys to our new home. Which means we’ll probably wait to move in until after our trip. Good thing we aren’t in any hurry.

I’ll take pictures of the process of it being built (which won’t start until April). But if you’re curious about the home we got, here’s a link to the home on the builder site: http://www.ryanhomes.com/find-your-home/our-communities/ohio/tipp-city/carriage-trails-the-reserves/brentwood.

Did any of you watch any sports this weekend? I was disappointed the Rams didn’t win, but still, their season this year was way better than last. Hopefully they get farther next year.

I got lucky on Friday night and was able to watch the Penguins beat the Flyers. Hubby and I had dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings and it shocked me that they were showing the game on the big screen. Hubby was okay with me staying to watch the whole game. And then last night the Penguins were on NBCSN and I got to watch them win another game, this time against Boston (sorry, Jeff!). Daughter and I were happy dancing.

So, even though my Rams didn’t do so well, at least the Penguins did.

Next weekend I get to root for the Steelers. They better not fail us!!!

Today I get radiation treatment #12 of 15 (last day is Thursday!!). I’ll be so glad when that’s all over with (and yes, I’m feeling fine). On Wednesday I find out what kind of hormone treatment I’ll be taking. And in February I’ll get another mammogram to make sure everything is hunky-dory. Keeping my fingers crossed!

So… How was your weekend? Do anything interesting?

Happy Monday!

Stacy

 

I Got Side Tracked

My goal of adding to my WIP every weekday has gotten a little side-tracked. All because I wanted to look at some condos in Beavercreek last Saturday.

We drove through the community (which has six units left to sell) and liked what we saw. So we planned on talking to them on Wednesday.

Figured Beavercreek would be a nice place to live. It’s closer to my son and the same distance from our daughter. Plus…condo!

But then I did some research and saw how much they cost. Way out of our price range. And the homeowner’s fee was outrageous. Heck, we could pay someone to work on our yard for less than that. Heck, we already do! So I started wondering if buying a ranch house would be better.

And this is where I got in trouble. I love researching.

I discovered that the housing development 4 miles to the north of us has ranch homes within our price range. I’d completely forgotten about them, too! So I went up there on Tuesday and got prices and brochures. One of the houses had a three-car garage! But it was a smaller (much smaller than our) home. We spent that night (up until one am!) looking at all the options and back up plans, because you see, there weren’t but two lots that could take the ranch house we wanted.

Why is it when you think you have plenty of time, you don’t?

So on Wednesday, instead of seeing the condo place, we saw the home place. That three-car garage is gone (unfortunately), but out back-up plan was still good (and frankly, we were hooked). If a realtor gives us a number we can live with selling our current home, then it looks like we’ll be moving this summer into a new ranch.

Yeah, we could probably wait, but actually, this is the best time for us. Hubby has no intention of retiring soon, and our current home is paid for so no need to rush into moving into the new one (we can then figure out what we really want to keep and what can go). Downsizing will be difficult, but I can live with that if it means I’m getting a brand new ranch with a small yard.

I’ll keep you posted on what we decide.

So… when was the last time you moved? Are you itching to do it again or happy where you’re at? It’s been twenty-one years for us. I think this is the longest either one of us has lived in the same house. Ever! The next one will be our last, though. I don’t want to think about moving again. But I’ll be really glad to get rid of the stairs—no more basement and the upstairs is a bonus bedroom only. I don’t need to be up there if I don’t want to.

Happy Friday! Hope you're not freezing.

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and Setting Goals

Last year I set a goal to read 65 books. I did manage to reach that (and then some), but it took some real work on my part toward the end (and cheating by reading some novellas). This year I need to set a more relaxed goal, so I decided on 50. About 1 a week. And after stating that, I’m wondering if 50 will be too much. Oh, but I do have a couple of trips on the horizon for 2018, so yeah, it’s probably more than doable. I do enjoy reading in the car.

Here’s what I read this week:

Book #67

Dates read: December 19-28
Title: “Midnight Crossroad”
Year of publication: 2014
Author: Charlaine Harris
Genre: Urban fantasy
Series: Midnight, Texas #1
# of Pages: 349
Paper or plastic: Mass market paperback
How obtained: Purchased
Blurb from book: Welcome to Midnight, Texas, a town with many boarded-up windows and few full-time inhabitants, located at the crossing of Witch Light Road and the Davy highway. It’s a pretty standard dried-up western town.
    There’s a pawnshop with three residents. One is seen only at night. There’s a diner, but people stopping there tend not to linger. There’s a newcomer, Manfred Bernardo, who just wants to work hard and blend in. But Manfred has secrets of his own…
My thoughts: I expected a bit more paranormal/supernatural stuff because of the TV series (which I watched first). Then again, maybe the first season encompassed the other books in the series. Won’t know until I read those. And yes, I do plan to read them. Someday. It was an interesting story with some interesting characters.

As for my writing goal this year… I’m going to do my best to add to my WIP every weekday (which I already broke, darn it!). A word count of 500+ would be awesome, but I’m not going to press my luck. If I can add words to my WIP every weekday, then I will already surpass any goal I’ve set before. It’d be great if I could write on the weekends or holidays, but for some reason I just can’t get into the writing mood then. I save that time for newsletters and blogs, which I don’t seem to have a problem writing those then. Well… most times. Because sometimes something comes up (like it did yesterday) and blows everything out of the water—but more on that on Friday (gotta save something for then!).

So… Can you read in a moving vehicle? I used to be unable to do anything but look out the window. Even reading a map would make me sick. As an experiment, I tried crocheting during a road trip (because I could look up every now and then). When I didn’t get sick doing that, I braved reading on a bus once (where I couldn’t see outside anyway). That successful trip made me try reading in a car and I happily found I could do it without being ill. What a difference that makes in traveling, too (especially if you’re sitting in the back seat). The miles fly by (and I get a lot of reading done!).

Happy Reading!

Stacy