woodrose, the Kentucky Governor's cup (and the Tennessee Governor's cup) is always awarded at Contest of Champions, at MTSU. That's the "state" I was talking about. I assume there are other contests and awards given. mama, there's a white supremacist rally that has descended on Shelbyville/Murfreesboro this weekend. 1) they're erring on the side of caution for the sake of the children, and 2) I THINK they want the MTSU campus police to help out since activities on the square are in such close proximity to the campus.

Mamma Pinky, No, he can not eat anything very thin, so he says. He can not get it in his mouth, will not use a smoothy straw even for that. Won't eat any other kind of cooked cereal, won't eat mashed potatoes with lots of gravy or broth to make it smoother. He will eat puddings, sometimes with small pieces of cake soaked into it. Won't eat any Jello. Will eat candied sweet potatoes with lots of syrup and mashed well. I do put eggs, milk, butter, bananas, cheese and such at different times in his oatmeal just to vary it. I don't even know if he tastes his food. Sometimes ice cream on top of the oatmeal. He does eat applesauce and he gets 4 nutritional drinks a day. Drinks some water and that is it. This has been going on for 3 years now. He has gotten worse since the stroke, because he would not continue his speech therapy. Speech and swallowing are sort of linked together, the muscles that is. So, that is the way it is. His speech is so terrible, most of the time I can not understand him. This was his second big stroke. He can not maneuver stairs very well, so twice a day I carry his meals up to him. He only wants to eat twice a day. We live in a bi level home, my kitchen, dining room and family room are down below. Living room and bedrooms up on the upper level, which is also ground level. I am sure there are many on here that have had to deal with a stroke patient. It also affects the mind. Sue

mmmmmmmm.....steak sounds gooooood! the mamo...not so much....lol Just got a call from a medical insurance salesperson, not Obamacare, so it carries a penalty, which she says has not gone into effect yet. I paid it last year! She said Trump has halted all penalities until further notice. lol She was lying & using scare tactics to create a sale.....so frustrating to hear that. "For 2015, the penalty for no health insurance is $325 per person or 2% of your annual household income – whichever is higher. For 2016, the fee is $695 or 2.5% of your income — whichever is higher. For many people, that's more than the yearly cost of health plans they can find on HealthCare.gov.Dec 11, 2015"

Major heat wave today - it was 96° this afternoon, and despite the hot weather, I am still recuperating from a cold that I've had for about a week now. I am also recuperating from surgery to remove melanoma, and I have to go back to my dermatologist next week and the week after that for yet more surgery, but it will be less invasive than the melanoma removal. I met with business partner this afternoon at my house (I am not supposed to drive while I have stitches), and we worked out a deal for new furniture designs that will be made in Mexico. We had a conference call with the manufacturer in Mexico, and that went well, and so now I have to do some more drawings/designs. Having this new work makes me feel better and lifts my mood, which has been depressed because of the cold and the surgery. I had planned to go to Cathedral City this week-end, but since I cannot drive, that will not be happening. It's hot enough here anyway. It's actually hotter here in Los Angeles than it is in Palm Springs, due to the Santa Ana winds, which unfortunately cause me to feel depressed. Fortunately, I had a visit today, and that helped alleviate the depression, which was not severe anyway. Because of the heat, I had to water some of my chili plants twice today. If I were able, I would repot some of them, but my doctor has told me to wait on this, as I am not supposed to lift anything heavier than a gallon of water for a week. Next week my surgery will be on my left wrist, and that will also make gardening more difficult. However, it appears that I will be getting a good crop of chocolate Habanero chilies, and I did not realize that so many of my plants were this variety, as they are difficult to grow. I am also starting some seeds for winter herbs, including scallions, Indian basil, parsley, cilantro, and dill. I can grow these in the summer, but they seem to do better in the winter.