Monday, December 12, 2011

Wash day (and a knee update)

Or "worsh day", as some of my aunts used to say.  It's cloudy and around forty degrees, heading for a high in the mid-forties.  I'm doing laundry and hanging clothes on the line.  My fingers got a little nippy, but otherwise it isn't too bad a day for handling wet clothes.  Google tells me it costs thirty to forty cents to dry one load of clothes in an electric dryer, so at most, I will save $1.50.  Oh well, it's something.  A penny saved is still a penny earned.  
I am down to thirty bucks in my grocery envelope with nine days until Cliff's payday.  I have a list that will probably use $20 of that, but I still think I'll manage without robbing other envelopes.  I'm also making a list of things I'm getting low on that I will buy after we've gotten our funds again.  These are things I would buy this week if I had an unlimited amount of money, but they can wait a few days:  Toilet paper, facial tissues, and so forth.  I think four rolls of toilet paper will last us nine days.  I buy that thin, cheap stuff, you know, but it lasts a long time.
   
I hate to throw food scraps away, and back when I had chickens or hogs, I didn't have to; those critters would eat almost any sort of table scraps except potato peelings.  It occurred to me a couple of weeks ago that the barn cats would probably eat most of our garbage.  We don't have that much.  Well, I've found out they'll eat anything a pig would eat.  This morning I took out a couple of bread heels and two left-over biscuits, and the three cats actually fought over them!  
We've lost two of our feline stalkers; the young cats now stay at the barn when we take our morning walks.  Leave it to the younger generation to fizzle out and let the older folks carry on.  Only Mama Kitty still accompanies us on our walk, when she's at home.  She was gone for three days last week; I can only hope she wasn't out tomcatting.  Of course, that's going to happen some time or other.  You should have seen her devouring her food the morning of her return!  


Here's an update on my knee, for those of you contemplating a knee replacement:  I feel pretty much normal now; the knee no longer swells, even when I'm on my feet a lot, and I haven't needed so much as an aspirin for quite a while.  Cliff says he forgets I ever had surgery, since I'm very much back to my old routine and actually, I sometimes out-walk him.  The only time my knee gets stiff is when we ride for long distances, but all it takes is a few steps to get the stiffness out, once I'm out of the car.  At this point I have no problems and no complaints.  I'm supposed to see the orthopedist in February, but I'm going to cancel, since all she ever does is have a couple of x-rays taken, have me stretch out my leg, tell me to continue my exercises, and ask if there are any problems.  Then I end up with a bill for $50 because Medicare Plus doesn't pay for all of it, and I'm left thinking, "Why am I going back?"  
My right knee, which used to give me as much trouble as my left one, is obviously afraid it's going to be replaced, because it doesn't give me the slightest twinge of pain these days.  One of my home therapists told me this sometimes happens:  You get one knee replacement and the other knee gets better!  Doesn't make sense to me, but so far, so good.  

13 comments:

  1. It's funny you mentioned the doctor visit. I just cancelled my doctor visit for my knee last week. All he's going to do is poke at my knee (three days recovery time after he 'checks it') and then tell me it looks about the same as last time. Tsk. Thanks for that observation.

    'Worsh day' - it made me think....my grandma was pretty frugal, but as soon as she got a clothes dryer, she never ever dried clothes out on the line again.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I wonder if having the "bad" knee fixed takes some pressure off the good knee so it doesn't have to work so hard for you? Makes sense to me, LOL.

    I use an automated car wash near my office in the winter and the voice on the speakerphone tells me, "You have chosen the regular worsh!" Cracks me up every time. =)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Everyone in my town says "worsh". I thought it was just a Texas thing.....

    ReplyDelete
  4. There's nothing better than the smell of fresh laundry hung out doors to dry. I haven't got a place here at my house to do that. I do miss it. Glad that knee is feeling so good. In your case it was worth the operation . I know some that didn't do as well. Hope your Monday is a great one!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Okay, Dollar General has toilet paper for a buck. I think you get 4 rolls (or is it 6?) and it's 2-ply.

    Just saying.

    You likely know the best bargain you want but thought I'd mention it. Wally World has it, too.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Yes, exactly--so what if you're only saving $1.50 on the drying. The outdoors smell is far better, especially, I think, on bedsheets and blue jeans.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I love "worsh" hanging out on the line. The smell of fresh air on your clothes and sheets... ain't nothing like it. LORDY. We have to use EXTRA strength toilet paper around here to get the job done. Two ply at least. Maybe we eat more ruffage? LOL Glad your knee has healed completely. My neighbor had his done right after you and is still having problems. Are you going to NAME your Mama Kitty since she's the one hanging around.

    ReplyDelete
  8. LOL here... my mom used to say "worsh" the clothes! Now am wondering do you call your aunts "ants" or "awnts"? I grew up with "ants". Glad your knee is getting better. One reason why the "bad" knee gets better after the other one is replaced is that the pain-free walking changes how you walk and eliminates stress or weird walking pattern that causes pain. I dunno for sure, of course, just my 2-cents worth.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks for the update on the knee. I have been wondering. I wish I were as disciplined as you when it comes to money.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You might have been favoring the bad knee, thus putting more pressure on the good one? Your high beat our high. I can't believe how cold it's been here. Not awful, but 20s and 30s which is about 10 degrees cooler than normal. BRRRRR!

    ReplyDelete
  11. You know, I was twenty-one and out of my little hometown when the thought occured to me...

    There's no R in wash. Or washrag. Or Washington. =)

    My, oh my. I had to re-train myself on certain things that I had grown up with and never really throught about.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Lindie9:11 PM

    It does make sense that your other knee is better because you are not favoring it since your surgery. I am having my right knee replaced in January and will not be able to drive for quite some time. How did you get home health and therapists to come to your house? My surgeon wasn't very helpful when I asked. Maybe his staff will be.

    ReplyDelete
  13. My Mom used to say "worsh cloth" when I was little, and even then I hated it. She stopped saying it at some point. She would also say dreen instead of drain, as in "I'll just leave the dishes there to dreen." I look at things like that differently than I used to though. I think it's a nice piece of our own cultural heritage; quit possibly the way that generations of our ancestors pronounced things.

    ReplyDelete

I love comments!