Rusty's Ramblings

[Geo]

Hae a safe journey.

[E_T]

+1

[Rusty Edge]

Got back Sunday, well Monday because a delay for an international flight that was connecting to my second plane put us into the wee hours of the morning. The trip out was on brand new Max 8s. The trip home was on older planes. All of the actual flights were fine. 

There's a lot of catch-up work to do, laundry, taking down Christmas decorations, moving heavier stuff to different floors, restocking with greens and vegetables, and so on. 

As far as the parents go, my Dad didn't have any seizures that I know of while I was there, so that's an improvement. He's stuck in a wheel chair, doesn't have the strength and dexterity to stand, transfer, feed himself or use a portable urinal. I can't say I noticed any progress in the three weeks that I was there, although some days are better than others. He can barely lift one of his legs ( forget which one)  onto the footrest of his wheelchair. He can't propel it with his arms and feet. He can converse if you ask leading questions ( What have you been watching on TV? Which Big Ten teams are still in the tournament? ) , but mostly he's partial to one word responses such as "yes" and "true." So, he has a long way to go, but he's been there before.  Hopefully no more seizures turn the recovery clock back.

My Mom is doing better. She has realized that there is no point to spending every day with him, because he gets tired and needs to sleep. An hour and a half or so will suffice. We decided she'd drive as long as it was daylight and in county to keep her practiced. She did fine. She thinks she can get along now without one of us being there with her, just my regular spring and fall visits of about 2 weeks each.

My youngest sister re-organized the kitchen and family rooms while she was there. I was mostly doing yard and basement stuff. When I return I expect to be doing yard and garage stuff. I had Mom eating like me. She'd taken it up on my visits last year. She's still shopping and eating like me ( regular servings of greens, mushrooms and calciferous vegetables, meat as more of a garnish than an entrée).
I made a lot of soups while I was there and topped off her freezers.  So, she's in good shape. 

I had a fun time cooking for my Mom and other family while I was there, renewing acquaintances at church and the farmer's market. The down side was that I had some kidney stones migrating while I was there. They weren't too big and were tolerable with some Aleve, and without a trip to the Emergency Room. I passed another this morning, and now I feel like singing Jimmy Cliff's "I Can See Clearly Now." My healthy diet had almonds and spinach too often, and from an oxalate standpoint I shouldn't have any. Hopefully that change corrects the problem.

[Rusty Edge]

Drove to PA for a couple weeks after Easter. More of the same, although I had my wife and dog along. Better that way.

Now that I'm home in WI again, it's time to get stuff done before fishing season. Getting work done on my car, pruning and weeding my nephew's red raspberry patch, planting a dwarf tree, re-arranging my basement to make room for the sauna. Pickling some carrots, planting some greens and flowers, taking longer walks.

[E_T]

Busy...Busy...Busy...
Sounds like your getting to do some of the things that you really like to do.

[Rusty Edge]

Busy...Busy...Busy...
Sounds like your getting to do some of the things that you really like to do.

With the exception of the car, yes. I kinda like them to be reliable , and not have mystery problems. Thanks E_T, for reminding me that I'm mostly doing things I like to do and out-sourcing the stuff I don't!

[Rusty Edge]

Now that I'm home in WI again, it's time to get stuff done before fishing season. Getting work done on my car, pruning and weeding my nephew's red raspberry patch, planting a dwarf tree, re-arranging my basement to make room for the sauna. Pickling some carrots, planting some greens and flowers, taking longer walks.

All of that ended well. The car runs better than it has for a couple of years because of a replaced fuel/air sensor. Finished the raspberries ( everbearing reds), the tree is doing well, I'm enjoying the sauna, and the carrots turned out well, although I want to add horseradish next time. I'm  consistently walking 1.75 miles. Got the worms picked for the fishing trip.

As for the sauna, put it together by myself. I'd studied enough that I didn't have to refer to the manual during assembly.  I've been gradually increasing the temperature and duration. Meanwhile, I'm sweating more easily in there. I can't say that I'm losing weight, but the fat is getting thinner over the pelvic part of my lower back. That's been pretty stubborn. The real objective was relief of back pain and stiffness, and it's helping with that, not only while I'm in it. I sleep better, too. I hope it will help me fight colds, but I only had one last year anyway, so maybe that's a moot point.

[Rusty Edge]

Then there's the matter of the genetic testing.

The good news is that there aren't any genetic disease surprises waiting to pounce. What few are there I knew were in the family, and not so serious with modern medical science.

As for the nationalities, they are all European. That's actually a surprise. Based on what I knew of conversations with my grandparents and records I've since lost in multiple moves, I believed myself to be German/English/Scotch/Irish/French/Iroquois. I took a genetic test years ago, and it said there was a fraction of genes shared with people now living on the western coast of Latin America. I assumed that was the native American trace. However, this recent test, ( and it pinpoints cities and names provinces or counties ) says Southern Germany, Rhine Valley, London, Glasgow, Dublin, and Belfast, various counties in England, and southern and other Irish counties. Then there's a broadly northwestern European group, from the same countries plus the low countries and Scandinavia, and that sounds like Viking to me, but it might be Germanic. Then there's a broadly southern European that might be Roman or something. Anyway, no native American, or  Highlanders in particular. That Latin American connection in the earlier test is more likely from a 1.6% Spanish and Portugese faction of the Southern Euro. No signs of Mongol invasion.

Of course some of this is prefaced with "in the last 200 years". Well, if that's the case there's a significant faction of Pennsylvanian that's colonial, not represented in the data. So I guess it's a hedge term instead.

It also pointed out my Neanderthal heritage. Makes sense, in that they were discovered in the Rhine valley. Me and everyone on my father's side of the family have heavy brow ridges. Apparently the main expression is a gene for straight hair.

[E_T]

hehe, ape man??

[Rusty Edge]

hehe, ape man??

Not exactly glamourous or expected, but I wanted to find out the truth. More Neanderthal than Italian or Spanish. I wonder if the Spanish is a relic of the survivors of the Spanish Armada that washed up in Ireland?

At any rate, it's probably more accurate to describe myself simply as German-Celtic.

[Geo]

hehe, ape man??

Not exactly glamourous or expected, but I wanted to find out the truth. More Neanderthal than Italian or Spanish. I wonder if the Spanish is a relic of the survivors of the Spanish Armada that washed up in Ireland?

There've been plenty of Iberian fisherman passing the Irish coasts on their way to Newfoundland's fishing banks.

[Rusty Edge]

hehe, ape man??

Not exactly glamourous or expected, but I wanted to find out the truth. More Neanderthal than Italian or Spanish. I wonder if the Spanish is a relic of the survivors of the Spanish Armada that washed up in Ireland?

There've been plenty of Iberian fisherman passing the Irish coasts on their way to Newfoundland's fishing banks.

Makes sense. Hadn't thought about that, thanks.   Do you have any other insights? 

[Buster's Uncle]

Geo's about a quarter Neanderthal himself. 

[Geo]

Geo's about a quarter Neanderthal himself. 

At least I'm not half Denisovan, eh BUncle?

hehe, ape man??

Not exactly glamourous or expected, but I wanted to find out the truth. More Neanderthal than Italian or Spanish. I wonder if the Spanish is a relic of the survivors of the Spanish Armada that washed up in Ireland?

There've been plenty of Iberian fisherman passing the Irish coasts on their way to Newfoundland's fishing banks.

Makes sense. Hadn't thought about that, thanks.   Do you have any other insights?

Found the page in my sailing vessels book where I had the thought from. According to it, it were the Basque who were already hunting whales near Newfoundland from the second half of the 16th century. So not exactly your typical mainstream Spaniard or Portugese.
In any case, cod fishing in the area started not too long after too, with more nationalities involved. And a quick view of a trade winds map makes it likely the fishermen on their return journey kinda passed the British Isles.

[Buster's Uncle]

Geo's about a quarter Neanderthal himself. 

At least I'm not half Denisovan, eh BUncle?

I wish I'd gotten you to lay down for a face mold when I had the chance.  You've got a great face.

-Those jutting brow ridges are a thing of beauty to a mask artist...