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"What have you eaten" Parallel Chat

Hope everyone is having/has had a lovely day. I've enjoyed a quiet one on my own, which is my preference now - I don't really "do" Christmas but I'm not all bah humbug about it either :)

I fed the birds, and really enjoyed watching them. It makes me smile and warms my old bat's heart to see them. At the moment I have a small flock of starlings - around 20 or so - who go mad for dried mealworms and suet pellets. I also have resident goldfinches and sparrows, robins, dunnocks, ring-necked doves, wood pigeons and blackbirds.

For breakfast I had the usual small carby thing, for lunch I had chicken breast, sausage, broad beans and carrot and swede mash seasoned with butter, celery salt and truffle dust (which is hideously expensive but lasts ages). It was gorgeous.

For tea I'll have some cheese, poppy seed crackers and fruit - I've got some pears and pineapple which I very rarely buy but they are lovely for a treat.
 
I also had a slice of fruit cake because I got quite hungry waiting for my dinner to come. When it did come it was a huge plate of meat and veg plus a small bowl of onion soup. I had the soup but couldn't make much headway into the main course. There was about 6 times as much as I would usually eat. Much in the fridge for using later. Very kind of them though. Along with the food came a visit from Em, her dad and Em's sister's little cockapoo pup, Peanut. Lovely little thing. Still a bit on the mad side though.
 
Christmas in the Netherlands is usually celebrated with evening meals with (extended) family on first (25th) and second (26th) Christmas day, not much happening on Christmas eve unless you attend church.
Traditionally, I have been celebrating not so much Christmas, coming from a family of agnosts and atheists, but definitely celebrating family and friendship, sharing food and a good time.

Not necessarily a given for me, being an only child without children and having lost my parents at a relatively young age.
I'm thankful to always be included in the family christmas celebration of my aunt and uncle, my 3 cousins, their 3 children, sometimes other family members or friends of family members not spending christmas with their own family.
My aunt and uncle have always welcomed everyone, and even during our worst time (my father being depressed to the point of expecting suicide, myself being addicted to heroin) we were always welcome, and accepted just as we were.

My father has died 11 years ago, and well after he'd overcome his depression, I've been off heroin and crack cocaine for over 20 years, and I still celebrate christmas with those people. My aunt and uncle are over 80 now. I hope the tradition will extend to my cousins when it's time but I think it will.

My uncle loves to cook lots of food, and each year the daughter of my cousin takes over more of the planning and cooking together with her grandfather, I expect her and her mum to be holding up the tradition, at least until the youngsters get children of their own.

So yesterday I had a wonderful meal! Too much to describe. I took a picture but it looks horrible so you'll get todays funny picture instead. :joyful:

Also traditionally, I completely forget I have to eat something on the 26th after traveling back from my family, so usually second christmas day is a low carb sandwich or with luck something impromptu with my neighbour while everyone else is feasting with the inlaws.
Not this year. I thought ahead and bought snow peas and a 'rollade' (rolled up pork with minced meat filling, often eaten at christmas), lazy version ready to put in the oven. After almost 4 hours of travelling I wasn't going to put much effort in cooking.

When I unpacked it I found a little packet of gold to sprinkle over it, so today I had a most hilarious christmas meal with my cats and dogs!
I hope that walking the dogs tomorrow will be a sparkly glittery affair! :hilarious:

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Antje77 said:
I've been off heroin and crack cocaine for over 20 years
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Extra winner for this, you are such a star and a wonderful kind, friendly reassuring presence here x

I've had another good day, did some small jobs (very small) and enjoyed some good rest too. The avoidance of takeaway/junk food and cooking fresh continues, so I'm quite proud of myself for that. I had the usual small carby thing for breakfast, sausages for lunch, and meatballs with the leftover sprouts, carrot and swede mash and gravy for tea.

I've also had some chocolate!
 
jpscloud said:
a wonderful kind, friendly reassuring presence here x
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Thank you!
That's such a kind thing to say, especially now I haven't been very active on the forum for a while.

And you've earned the right to be proud of your food choices, you are working very hard to keep it up and we all know it doesn't come easy for you.

And finally reacting to an older post from last Wednesday, half my reply has been sitting on my computer for days on one of 20 open tabs, half forgotten and needing to be finished before posting.
Annb said:
She wants to increase the dosage of Furosemide and insists I must take them daily and not skip them. I had to admit to not taking them since this flare up because of not being able to get to the toilet quickly. Nevertheless.... So that's it. I am housebound, never to leave home again other than for an early appointment
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@Annb not sure how to suggest this in a tactful way, but I'm Dutch so you all expect me to be blunt anyway.
Have you considered the freedom that incontinence products may give you? A Tena liner or pull up would allow you to do whatever you want without always being aware of where the nearest loo is and running the risk of having to be in public after an accident.
I can imagine it's a psychological hurdle. Peeing your pants is no fun, even if the pants are pull ups absorbing everything, but if it regains you some freedom it may well be worth thinking about.
I can't speak from experience, but I know that pull ups saved my father and save my aunt from a lot of stress. My aunt is almost blind and very ill, prone to coughing bouts. She tells me that waking up in the night to pee is so much better now she gave in to incontinence products. No panic, no hurry, and she can use the disability cab again for longer distances without fear of making a mess.

Life is difficult enough as it is for you with your pains, and your legs not wanting to cooperate. But maybe this issue can be solved.
 
Thanks for the advice Antje. However - that's a path long trodden. I spend about £70 a month on Tena products and it does alleviate the problem a bit, but I still have to be within a few feet of a loo all the time. I can go from no urge whatsoever to absolute flood overwhelming the Tena pad, in seconds. Lack of control may also be associated with this mitochondrial disease thing - no muscle strength.
 
Annb said:
Thanks for the advice Antje. However - that's a path long trodden. I spend about £70 a month on Tena products and it does alleviate the problem a bit, but I still have to be within a few feet of a loo all the time. I can go from no urge whatsoever to absolute flood overwhelming the Tena pad, in seconds. Lack of control may also be associated with this mitochondrial disease thing - no muscle strength.
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Tena should make products ready for your floods! Needing the loo really is a stupid reason to be limited in what you can do.
Likely a stupid question and teaching my granny to suck eggs, but I noticed you mentioned Tena pads, not the full on diaper pull ups? Those pads are great for being a little too slow to get to the loo, and whatever happens with a good laugh, no use if you need to catch the equivalent of 3 beers.

If you already tried everything, please don't be offended with my unasked for advice. I'm just frustrated on behalf of a friend, and I want you to be able to do the things you want.
 
I'm not offended, Antje. I know your advice is due to concern. I really have gone down these routes though. They don't make pull ups big enough to go round me. I really should make a fuss with my local GP practice and get a prescription for pads but the continence nurse just said I should be referred to a urologist. That never happened.

A friend here on the island suggested catheterisation but I don't think that would be suitable (manual dexterity is needed to fix that - something I no longer have).
 
I'm coming down with a bit of a cold or something - achy bones, feeling cold and fatigued, sniffles, headache etc. I'm surprised I escaped it for this long really! This is where my emergency stash of instant soups comes in, cream of asparagus is my go-to comfort food for colds and flu. Paracetamol and some sleep in the afternoon has helped a bit so I'm feeling a bit better now. Hopefully it'll be a short-lived one!
 
My cold/flu is not too bad so far - just enough to justify curling up with a hot water bottle and sleeping whenever I feel like it. I slept a couple of hours in the afternoon yesterday and then a solid 8 hours last night.

I don't have any appetite but I managed to eat the usual small carby breakfast. I'm not sure what I'll feel like for lunch or tea so I'll see how that goes later.
 
Annb said:
I'm not offended, Antje. I know your advice is due to concern. I really have gone down these routes though. They don't make pull ups big enough to go round me. I really should make a fuss with my local GP practice and get a prescription for pads but the continence nurse just said I should be referred to a urologist. That never happened.

A friend here on the island suggested catheterisation but I don't think that would be suitable (manual dexterity is needed to fix that - something I no longer have).
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Definitely avoid a Cather they are notoriously causes of infection if not properly used . A continence nurse should be able to assess you for a suitable fitting incontinence pad even if it is while u wait to be seen by a urologist. I work for the NHS and I know there is a varied range of aids and" making a fuss " at your surgery is what doctors and " nurses " are paid for.
 
Still under the influence of pain killers. Groggy. BG a bit high - that's because of the soup I had for breakfast. First time I've felt hungry in days. Left hand partially working now but right hand has swollen, red and painful knuckles. I suppose the better appetite is a good sign, but a way to go yet.

Neil cooked some mushrooms last night and left enough ready for me to put in an omelette later today if I can manage it - if not he'll make it for me.

I bought online a packet of dried shitake mushrooms which arrived in the post yesterday. The bag is about 4 times the size I expected and now Neil tells me he has a problem with shitakes! Plenty of mushroom soup for the future, I guess.
 
Breakfast was streaky bacon cut into little pieces with scissors, fried dry to produce their own fat then 2 eggs broken over the top and fried. I managed that all by myself because at last my hands are working again - painful but working after a fashion.

2nd meal - planning on something with cheese - I've just got Neil to bring cheeses and eggs from the back porch, which I still can't reach, to the kitchen, where I can. There's quite a lot of cheese there and some tomatoes plus, of course, I've now got all these dried mushrooms to make a start on. Cream there as well which I didn't know was there, so must use that before it goes off. So it will be some kind of creamy, tomatoey, cheesey, mushroomy, eggy thing that doesn't need too much chopping or grating (hands are working, but not up to that yet).
 
Annb said:
Breakfast was streaky bacon cut into little pieces with scissors, fried dry to produce their own fat then 2 eggs broken over the top and fried. I managed that all by myself because at last my hands are working again - painful but working after a fashion.

2nd meal - planning on something with cheese - I've just got Neil to bring cheeses and eggs from the back porch, which I still can't reach, to the kitchen, where I can. There's quite a lot of cheese there and some tomatoes plus, of course, I've now got all these dried mushrooms to make a start on. Cream there as well which I didn't know was there, so must use that before it goes off. So it will be some kind of creamy, tomatoey, cheesey, mushroomy, eggy thing that doesn't need too much chopping or grating (hands are working, but not up to that yet).
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So pleased to see that you are doing a bit better. I'm sorry though that you are still experiencing pain.
Happy New Year - wishing you a peaceful, content and healthier 2026.
 
jpscloud said:
My cold/flu is not too bad so far - just enough to justify curling up with a hot water bottle and sleeping whenever I feel like it. I slept a couple of hours in the afternoon yesterday and then a solid 8 hours last night.

I don't have any appetite but I managed to eat the usual small carby breakfast. I'm not sure what I'll feel like for lunch or tea so I'll see how that goes later.
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Hoping you are feeling better this New Years Eve and that 2026 is a good year for you.
There seems to be so many bugs around - I hope yours is retreating into the rear mirror!
All the best for a peaceful, healthy and content 2026.
 
Breakfast: more of the frittata/cheesecake from yesterday.

2nd meal will be steak with baked onion and tomato. The steak is much bigger than I had realised so it will do for more than one meal - possibly even 3.

Sitting here on my desk, I have a packet of a spice called mahlab. I bought it for a recipe but can't remember what the recipe was and no longer have any idea what to do with it. Any ideas anyone?
 
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