The Positive Thread - 2023

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AbbysMom

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Let's hear something positive going on in your life. Something as small as a good cup of coffee, a sunny day or a phone call can be a small positive in your life. Remember to keep it positive. :hearthrob:

I started 2022 thinking it was going to be a rough year and that Abby wouldn't make it to the end. It was a rough year, but I got through it and Abby is still here.
 

susanm9006

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It has taken me, as I expected, most of the day to get my new PC, running Windows 11, up and running. This included a trip back to Best Buy for a new monitor cable, downloading new software for my printer and spending literally several hours just trying to find and arrange stuff in this unfamiliar new software. But I can do what I need to do now and access all my files so I consider it a big success.

For anyone thinking about upgrading their PC, one of the reasons I kept my Windows 7 PC was that I didnt want to lose or spend the big replacement dollars to get the Microsoft office suite of Word, Excel, Outlook etc. But I found a tremendous bargain on Stack Social where I could buy a permanent copy of Office 21 for $40. It seemed too good to be true but downloaded and installed without a hitch.
 

neely

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I was able to get to the roastery today for a new bag of coffee beans. :yess: And while there I had a latte w/oat milk and cinnamon on top. But my positive is that one of the owners who we like was there. We haven't seen him in awhile and he's a big feline lover so we exchanged stories about our cats. :lovecat2:
 

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My old youth pastor’s wife sent me a link to a video of a play we wrote and put on 25 years ago. I took a screenshot of my bestie and I and sent it to DD with no explanation. She didn’t recognize either one of us! (Bestie is her godmother.) People are always saying DD looks so much like me so when she asked who was who I gave her a mom look and said “I’m the one who looks like YOU!!” :flail:Bestie and I could pass for sisters sometimes; but our hair is very different shades of brown. :dunno:Teenagers are funny!:wink:

Of course I put that screenshot on social media and had some great laughs with old youth group friends and people from that church. I don’t even know who everyone is anymore. (Of course the video quality back then wasn’t as good.) But man that made my whole day!:lol:
 

susanm9006

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I had my annual eye exam this morning and it is usually an appointment I dread because I just hate having my eyes dilated and then waiting hours to see correctly afterwards. But I switched clinics this year and the new clinic has a machine that can film the entire inside and outside of your eyes so there is no need for dilation. So much easier and faster and wonderful to walk out and not need to put on sun glasses to drive home.
 

susanm9006

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We had snow showers this morning and I didn't know there was ice on the road when I left the house. My car skidded twice and once I thought it was headed for the curb but thankfully I was able to steer it away. 👍
Doesn't that feeling of not having control leave you shaking? I drove home on Tuesday in the snow and after my first stop I did a slow roll through at all the others. It was just safer than skidding at every full stop and start. Hoping for clearer roads this weekend.
 

artiemom

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Doesn't that feeling of not having control leave you shaking? I drove home on Tuesday in the snow and after my first stop I did a slow roll through at all the others. It was just safer than skidding at every full stop and start. Hoping for clearer roads this weekend.
Driving in the snow is really an 'art' unto itself. When working, I was an 'essential' employee. I really dreaded driving in the snow. I remember, when I still had my learner's permit, asking my dad, to take me to an empty parking lot, which had lots of snow and ice. I wanted the feel and attempt to learn how to drive in these conditions. My Dad; the kind person he was, did not want to take me out for this. He was afraid. This was before the time of cell phones. But I cajoled and pleaded so much that he he agreed. I do not know if I ever mastered driving in skids; but, once I became a n adult, I realized how much that one situation and my dad's love for me, and fear for himself, overtook everything.

I leave tons of space between the car in front of me.. always getting cut off by SUVs and idiots.. but I feel safer that way. I also drive in Low Drive. I feel I have much more traction that way. I live in an urban setting, so bumper to bumper traffic in snow and ice is considered 'normal' for these Yahoos! I like to glide, rather than use the gas pedal.. again, the "Yahoos' are always in a. hurry, cutting me off.

One time, coming home from work, from the train station-- a 2 mile distance, I was caught in a grid lock. It took me over an hour and a hour to get home--- 2 miles!! dam.. It was a treacherous route..

Did I say, I HATE Winter!! I HATE Snow! and ICE....
I can stand cold, icy weather. I can really handle driving slowly on snow.. I can handle ice, when treated~~~ without traffic.
 

susanm9006

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A week or so ago I received dog food instead of cat food in my Chewy order and since then I have been trying to find a shelter or rescue to donate to. The first couple I found were on the other side of the metro and I would need to bring the food to them which was too long of a drive for me. Yesterday I found a rescue group in a community neighboring mine, a more reasonable drive, and left a message for the director. She returned my call yesterday and turned out she lives only three blocks away from me. Now that was an easy drive!
 

MoochNNoodles

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I remember, when I still had my learner's permit, asking my dad, to take me to an empty parking lot, which had lots of snow and ice.
I’ve always regretted not asking my dad to do that with me. He always says “You just go slow.” I was never in town where he lives when I was a teen or even young adult during the winter. Where I live we get a bit of every kind of weather; from the occasional blizzard to the occasional hurricane and tornado. I have never truly gotten comfortable driving on snow or ice so I try to avoid it. My second year of college I was driving my little Neon and I slid several times getting home from class. I was shaking like a leaf! DH isn’t phased. I even used to get rides to work at one job.

I will say; they do a much better job plowing now than when I was younger! I give them a lot of credit because they don’t get the practice other states get to learn on. I want DH to do the teaching driving when the kids are old enough. I do the rest of the homeschooling; so that’s fair! :lol:
 

susanm9006

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Driving in the snow is really an 'art' unto itself. When working, I was an 'essential' employee. I really dreaded driving in the snow. I remember, when I still had my learner's permit, asking my dad, to take me to an empty parking lot, which had lots of snow and ice. I wanted the feel and attempt to learn how to drive in these conditions. My Dad; the kind person he was, did not want to take me out for this. He was afraid. This was before the time of cell phones. But I cajoled and pleaded so much that he he agreed. I do not know if I ever mastered driving in skids; but, once I became a n adult, I realized how much that one situation and my dad's love for me, and fear for himself, overtook everything.

I leave tons of space between the car in front of me.. always getting cut off by SUVs and idiots.. but I feel safer that way. I also drive in Low Drive. I feel I have much more traction that way. I live in an urban setting, so bumper to bumper traffic in snow and ice is considered 'normal' for these Yahoos! I like to glide, rather than use the gas pedal.. again, the "Yahoos' are always in a. hurry, cutting me off.

One time, coming home from work, from the train station-- a 2 mile distance, I was caught in a grid lock. It took me over an hour and a hour to get home--- 2 miles!! dam.. It was a treacherous route..

Did I say, I HATE Winter!! I HATE Snow! and ICE....
I can stand cold, icy weather. I can really handle driving slowly on snow.. I can handle ice, when treated~~~ without traffic.
Freeway driving on icy roads is truly terrifying- my commute used to be 33 miles each way, all freeway. There is always a percentage of drivers who think they are invincible and drive way way faster than conditions warrant. And if the snow and temps are just right even four wheel vehicles can get stuck or not be able to get traction on a hill. I once had to weave around stalled vehicles, including trucks, who couldn’t get up the steep incline of an ice and snow covered four lane major interstate, knowing that if I didn’t keep moving and slowed down at all I would be joining them and also knowing that there were dozens of vehicles right behind me trying to do the same thing. The absolute most terrifying drive I ever made. After that, if a snow storm was predicted I would just get a hotel room near work rather than make the drive.
 

Furballsmom

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You reminded me of a drive my Dad made, it was sheet ice and although he always stopped to help stranded motorists, he actually didn't dare this time because he knew he'd never get going again.

In any case, on the positive side of things, my poinsettia plant still looks very good :)
 

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Back before I retired, I was driving my 4x4 on a divided highway, and the roads were snow-covered and slippery. I was doing maybe 30 when a car passed me in the right lane, and just then they lost control and slid across directly in front of me, missing by inches. They bounced off the concrete divider and slid backward across the highway, missing another car, also by inches. They went up an embankment, then back down and across in front of me again, hit the barrier again, bounced across the road again, and finally ended up in the ditch. How they managed to miss everyone, and didn't cause a chain reaction pileup is beyond me.
Meanwhile, we replaced our 17 year old gas water heater yesterday. No, it wasn't leaking, but we figured better safe than sorry. The price we were quoted was $2400, because it is a direct vent model, and they are more expensive. Well, when they comp!eted the job and handed us the bill, it was only $2000, because we paid cash, and I'm a veteran. I'll take a discount like that any day of the week.
 
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