So Much for 2025...

Well, there went THAT year. And it was almost as I had predicted: EXHAUSTING. 

The chaos from the Bordello-themed Oval? Oy. DOGE, JD Maybelline's posturing, the No Kings marches, the postcards we wrote, the politicians we called and emailed. The economic slap in the chops? The loss of our rights, the disintegration of the Not-So-Supreme Court? And let's not forget the utter, utter collapse of Congress. And the Junk Drawer Cabinet full of sycophant know-nothings --- seriously, our dead canary can do a better job. 

Yeah. Something had to give last year, and the blog was the thing that gave. Sorry, folks, but choices had to be made. 

Normally, for a new year, I change the theme of the blog, but this year, I think I'll stick with this one. I figure that since I skipped an entire year, I can hang out with the same theme and nobody will complain. Heck, I'd like people to read it... 

The Health Stuff...

So, I read my last entry, and my predictions for the most part did come true. But let's focus on the health stuff. Eventually, my doc and I got the insurance stuff straight and we went with Zepbound for my weight loss. The extra hormone in there was a better choice. So just as we were getting into that groove, my doc retired! Ugh! 

In 2025, I lost my primary care and my cardiologist to retirement. I now have the nurse practitioner in my cardiologist's office; the actual MD that I see is technically the guy who does the "electrical work" on my heart, so I don't need to see him until and unless I need another roto-rooting. I also now have a new primary care person and she's lovely - she replaced my retiring one. 

Anyway. Started Zepbound and thanks to the program I'm on, I have an obesity-specialist and a dietician. The RD has helped immensely. And the doctor, while not from my area, does have family in the area, so she's familiar (and we've had enough conversations to know she really HAS been here for visits!). 

About 6 or 7 months in, Big Pharma got involved - again - and screwed everyone over. Seems that the pharmacies and insurance companies wanted to make deals, but the companies who manufacture these meds did not - particularly Zepbound. So a bunch of us were switched over to Mounjaro. Which is technically the exact same formula, but it still was very weird to fight that fight. 

I am here to tell you that anyone who says, "You're cheating" by taking these meds? Y'all are out of your ever-loving minds. The side effects are nothing to laugh at. Constipation, lack of appetite, dehydration, nausea, hair loss -- and those are just the "normal" ones. For those of us over 60, we really have to watch our protein intake - as in eat MORE protein. And I'm not a big protein eater in the first place. So that's been hard. 

I've figured out how this works for me, and slowly but surely, over 2025, I've lost nearly 45 lbs. I'm near to my goal and this is what we in the dieting world call the "hard lard," where your loss just slows down. I don't want to increase my dosage of the meds, because the loss is still going on, though like molasses in January. And I don't want to deal with the increase in the side effects with the increase in a dose for a loss of about 10-ish pounds. 

The nice thing about slow-and-easy is that I don't have "the face." I will say my arms and tummy look weird; it's a lot of weight to lose, and for now, I'm working on building the muscle back, and haven't really thought about skin-reduction surgery. But my face isn't skeletal. I have been working with resistance bands because to me weights are boring, and yeah, it's a lot harder when you're over 60. Also doing a lot of body-weight resistance stuff for core strength. My yoga students may not always be pleased, but they're benefitting from the new things I am doing. 

If I'm being honest, the worst side effect is the hair loss, to me. My hair is silver anyway, and so it's kind of "invisible" in that when you're just about 100% silver, your hair is kind of transparent. So that, on top of the thinning, is a bit of a jar. I've always had lots of hair; it's always been thick and coarse, but now, it's not as thick, and I'm having a hard time dealing with it. I don't blow dry my hair anymore, and I use a shampoo that's a lot more gentle on the
hair. 

The good news? Well, there's a lot:

1. I'm taking half of my beta blocker.
2. 
   I'm taking the lowest dose of BP meds.
3. I'm walking more, and back at the stable, heaving muck buckets and hauling hay bales. (That's my sweetie Deuce thinking that I have a treat for him!)
4. I'm fitting in the clothes in my closet that haven't seen the light of day in a DECADE. 
5. I'm breathing better. 
6. I'm back on my bike. 

Those are all positive things. I'm really happy about all of it. So I would say to anyone who's thinking about it, check your insurance and talk to your provider. It's not cheating. It's a tool... 

The Knitting...

Well, Crafting, probably. The small Long Dog sampler is coming along, but it wasn't done for Xmas - there was a lot of life happening in this past "lost" year. I'm on the second quarter of the chart, and it's looking really good. I'm excited to see it finished, but it will likely be for Christmas 2026. 

Here is the Sophie Shawl, an extraordinarily addictive pattern. It's got a lovely I-cord edge, which is a new skill for me. I'm enjoying the knit and they're kinda like potato chips. You want to knit more of them. Any gauge, the pattern is very flexible. Petite Knits - good website. The yarn is Cascade Yarns Friday Harbor in an 80/20 blend of merino and silk. I think I'm on a merino kick! 

And I'm still working on that counted cross stitch angel for 2026. I have to figure that out yet. 

As for knitting, I did finish all my chickens, and then I got a last-minute request. That's on my list. 

Here's what I finished:

A baby layette

A "girlfriend scarf" that turned into something else... (stay tuned)

A Quiviut cowl with beads in a beautiful peacock colorway

A triangle shawl in a custom color that matches with our Zonta Says No colorway

A Sophie hood (Xmas gift)

A Sophie scarf (leftover...there's a story...)

Here's the WIP list:

The purple socks (this is my Election Day knitting)

A Sophie Shawl (I'm reclaiming pumpkin as a color in spite of the rotting mango in the Oval)

A Bison "Miss Marple" scarf, which is within INCHES of being done. This one is a blend of Bison, Merino, and Silk. And I have learned a new skill: making a pocket where the one end of the scarf pulls through to make a "tie." The yarn is from Windy Valley Muskox - I got it on their Black Friday sale, which is the only way I can afford that yarn. 

The Delayed Chicken, which I haven't started yet.

I also have the usual "finish the single socks to make pairs" thing going. That's going to be a long-term pick-up-and-knit. 

And I have the pattern for mits to match the Quiviut cowl. And yes, that has beads, too. 

No Kings...

In a total surprise, I had TWO relatives who asked to join me at one of the No Kings marches in our area. They were both newbies. My one relative up north of me was also marching, but since we had such a big gathering locally, it was easier to stay in town. 

They were amazed to see the turn-out and we people-watched, as well as did our thing with our signs. They're looking forward to the ones coming up in 2026. 

I continue to be in touch with our politicians via phone calls, and my reliable postcards. And I'm involved locally, in our League of Women Voters chapter and still doing the election judge thing. 

Other Stuff... 

I did the usual ornaments for Christmas, and then we found that we have another great-nephew -- so he'll get TWO next year. It's a fun tradition and I really enjoy doing them. 

The other tradition was the Eleventy Billion Cookies. We tried to pare down the list, but it just went back to its equilibrium: about a dozen varieties. But this year, we did a number of them as only single batches. Till the Molasses Gingersnaps. Those were a last-minute decision of mine. A bad decision, to be hones. Because I felt like we "didn't have enough cookies." Which is stupid; we had more than normal people have! And I made a double batch. A single batch is FOUR DOZEN. Coffee hour is going to have a LOT of these cookies! 

I took vacation time from the one job, and I've spent most of the time just knitting and relaxing. Work has been stressful, and I really needed this end-of-year time to recharge. 

I'm going to work on doing this blog a lot more regularly. It's something I enjoyed and I don't want to lose in the current climate of "shut up and keep slogging along." That's just not what I want to do going forward. 

One of the new decorations we put up was our "Snow Folk Choir." I think we're done adding to it, since it takes up the entire shelf below the TV. This year, I didn't write out the sections. But we added rice lights and it looks really cute. 

Decorations outside were minimal. We actually had a harsh December, with an early blizzard. I do love the snow; don't love the ice so much! 

Random Picture...

We have a grand-dog! Meet Basil. She was billed as an Elkhound, but she's not. I suspect Northern Inuit. She came to us as heartworm-positive, so the first few months she had to be kept quiet - which was a trick for a 2-year-old! But she can "dog" now, so Kid #2 is having his hands full training her. It's all good, she's charming and she's huge. 

We're currently dogless, which is probably a long-term situation. We are watching Basil when needed and our little friend Flick, the "chonker loaf" who belongs to a friend of mine. To help her out, when she needs a sitter, we take him. For a while, he was passed from house to house, but he doesn't do well that way - no dog usually does. So we're the "permanent aunt and uncle" unless we have Basil. Neither of them wants to share space - fair enough! So far, there haven't been any issues with overlap, thankfully! 

So tell me - what's your vision for 2026?