http://gruggersway.today.com Retired and Restless Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:07:19 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en How much chocolate do you think a person would have to eat at a single sitting in order to have poop smell like chocolate? A stupid question you think? Perhaps so, but if you are eating so much chocolate that your poop smells "chocolate-ty," then you will might ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/06/11/poop-should-not-smell-like-chocolate/ Euthanasia is the last resort for a pet owner and rarely is it an easy decision. Again yesterday, we experienced that agonizing realization that there was nothing further to be done for our pet and the decision to release him from Earthly agony was one we reached reluctantly but with compassion. Sadly, ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/06/10/euthanasia-difficult-decision/ I have no idea why I continue to gain weight on a meatless diet. I previously discussed beer and chocolate but I adjusted for that by quitting both, at least temporarily, but the FIVE pounds I have put on just depresses me. I know that my diet is ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/06/08/meatless-month-but-weight-gain-continues/ Three weeks have passed since my resolution to eliminate meat from my diet. I was expecting it to be difficult, but so far so good. I also expected some weight loss, which would be good for me, but so far not so good. I am two pounds heavier, and ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/06/01/three-weeks-on-meatless-diet/ It's been a few days since my blog's first anniversary, and I have been running ragged with springtime chores, thus no posts for the past week. That is the longest stretch without an entry since I began this blog on May 19, 2008. As usual, summertime brings many ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/26/two-weeks-still-no-meat-in-diet/ Writing and Publishing a blog has become so commonplace that we hardly notice when new ones arrive on the scene and others seem to simply "disappear." There are, by some estimates, over 100 million blogs worldwide. That means NONE of us will ever see even one percent of all the ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/18/blog-anniversary-one-year/ One week now, without red meat or fowl. I used to think vegetarians were rare (no pun), but it seems that vegetarianism has existed for centuries! Leonardo da Vinci, Plato, Socrates, Plutarch, and Pythagoras were all vegetarians. (This is based on their writings.) Albert Einstein, Voltaire, Van Gogh, Henry David Thoreau, Albert ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/16/think-vegetarians-odd/ I wish exercise actually did "kill" appetite, but, at best, it stifles it temporarily. Perhaps the increased intake of water also fills the stomach and lessens the "eat now!" feelings. Today, I tried exercising to reduce my hunger pangs, caused in part by a meatless diet (to which) I am ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/14/exercise-to-kill-appetite/ I am weakening; I can feel it. I want to eat a chicken sandwich but I resisted the temptation while out in town today. I truly believe that I would have eaten meat today if it were not that I see this as a challenge for me; a chance to ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/13/another-long-meatless-day/ I went to bed hungry last night. Not hungry in the "World hunger" sense, but there was a nagging "emptiness" that could have been filled with a big burger. Not eating meat shouldn't be such a major dietary issue; millions of people around the World get NO meat in their ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/12/meatless-monday-was-successful/ "No More Meat" is a pretty outlandish (daring) statement for a Montanan (beef ranching etc) to make, but I am convinced that meat, particularly RED meat, is going to kill me early if I keep eating it, even in small amounts. I have been reading a LOT of material on the ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/11/no-more-meat/ At least once a week we ought to be entitled to blow off steam at some of the things that have "bugged" us during the past few days...don't you think? I could easily go on a rampage and list hundreds of types of people and activities that really annoy me, but ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/08/friction-friday/ I hate that feeling when we just “know” that something bad is about to happen. When the “Breaking News” icon comes on the television, or my e-mail notification says something like the same thing, my stomach tightens up and I prepare for the worst. Pretty much I have been this way since ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/05/waiting-for-the-other-shoe-to-drop/ During life's many ups and downs I have often wondered how I would know if I ever reached that point of no return known as Rock Bottom. Many of the events that psychologists list as life-changing are also the most stressful. I have experienced many of those events and have ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/04/rock-bottom-how-do-you-know/ We have a problem with neighborhood whitetail deer, known locally as "urban whitetail." They feed on just about everything planted into the ground. Newly planted trees, left unprotected by fencing, will be nothing but a short stick by the next morning. I saw that happen to my ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/05/01/anti-deer-potion-but-will-it-work/ On TWO SEPARATE OCCASIONS today, I did double-takes on old guys that I would SWEAR looked just like Stephen King. So that we are on the same page here, I think Stephen King has a very distinctive, almost unique look about him--especially his eyes. But, Nay, both of my look-alikes turned out ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/30/stephen-king-double-take/ I have really strange dreams from time to time and sometimes they even end up making sense once I wake up. As we get older we often have that "get up now" calling in the middle of the night. When this "emergency" occurs I am often in the middle of ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/28/stupid-underwear-dream-yes-boxers/ I had a really weird dream last night. Lots of sex, over and over, like it was a competition and we had to keep score. Nothing perverted about it, just that whoever “we” were, it was a matter of having as much sex as possible and keeping track. ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/26/why-sex-at-the-eiffel-tower/ Most all of us, by now, have read about the effects of Global Warming upon the wildlife of the World. Whatever affects the Earth affects us all, human and animal kingdoms alike. What we refer to as “habitat” is also where we live. The human race doesn’t have very good ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/22/earth-days-numbered/ Now that the hardwood floor has been refinished in the living/dining/kitchen/bath areas, we have turned our attention to how the refinished floor compares in appearance to the base board along the wall. The existing base, now 19 years old, does not measure up very well. That means NEW base board, (or ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/17/next-retiree-project-is-base-moulding/ With a hardwood floor now approaching 19 years of age, much wear, about a dozen pets, many spills, scratches and accidents, we had to ask ourselves if we should just put carpet over everything and call it good. I personally LOVE the look of a solid oak hardwood floor; it is ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/16/hardwood-floor-retire-or-refinish/ Autobiography of a Yogi is one of the most influential books to come out of the eastern spiritualism of India. The author, known as Paramahansa Yogananda, founded the Self Realization Fellowship organization in the United States and spent many years in the USA inspiring thousands of seekers to look ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/15/my-inspirations-include-spiritual-leaders/ I'm not much of a fan of shifting into Daylight Saving Time and then back to Standard Time. Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but I would be totally comfortable with leaving the clocks alone all year long. The folks who live in the lower latitudes, say below 30 degrees north latitude, ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/14/longer-days-not-more-hours/ Yesterday we completed one of those do-it-yourself home-improvement projects that does more to change the appearance than improve the value of a room in the house. The master bathroom functions just fine, but after nineteen years of looking down at the same vinyl tiled floor, my wife decided ENOUGH! We ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/13/toilet-tiling-time-for-retiree/ Some days I really struggle with finding a topic to write about. On other days, the words just flow. I was looking for inspiration when I thought about school teachers who had inspired me. I came up with four who played major roles in my life and ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/12/inspired-to-excel/ Being "RETIRED" means I often find myself searching for things to do to keep myself busy, you know, to keep my mind active. That means doing something other than picking up dog poo in the yard, washing dishes, doing laundry, and vacuuming a little. I chose "blogging" as a way ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/11/another-day-another-six-dollars-maybe-seven/ Now that I am "retired" I have the pleasure, or duty, of taking the pets to the vets for shots and medicines, etc. Today, I found out I am the "Pet Spa" driver too. I remember thirty years ago that my sons needed rides to the barber and daughters needed ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/10/pets-to-the-dog-spa-day/ Drywall work was heavy lifting and very hard work even when I was younger, i.e., in my teens and twenties, when I got PAID to do it, back in the 1960's, and I made $5.00 an hour! Back then we just called it "sheetrock" which is a brand name of the ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/09/drywall-work-not-for-profit-also-not-for-fun/ My wife and her sister, both younger than I, have great fun at my expense. Like many wives and relatives, they enjoy making fun of me and my habits, idiosyncratic behaviors, and recently, my FACIAL EXPRESSIONS. Last night they were making odd, frowny, scrunchy, toothy expressions until they got my ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/08/sense-of-humor-better-not-lose-that/ SIXTY degrees yesterday and again today. To me that means it is time to break out the TOYS OF SUMMER! That means the RV needs to be uncovered, batteries installed (already recharged), drain and flush the winterized water lines, check air pressures, and set up the MOUSE TRAPS! Yes, ... http://gruggersway.today.com/2009/04/07/the-toys-of-summer/