Fasting BG 2019

[skb]

Wally,

I hope there was no damage to you and yours. An earthquake is a scary phenomenon. Do take care and remember to run outdoors if it ever happens again.  The papers here are saying it was 7.1 magnitude. That's a big one.

John,

It is amazing hoe low Carb has so many definitions. A dietitian should definitely know better. I do hope your yelling had an effect. Get these people to this forum ASAP. 

[Tamagno]

386 this morning - likely time to change my insertion set...

To say that earthquakes are unsettling is a major understatement. How in the world people grow accustomed to them is incredible. There's a famous photograph of the very famous neopolitan tenor Enrico Caruso clutching a few personal belongings in the aftermath of the big earthquake of 1903 in California - while earthquakes are not uncommon in Italy and Caruso had some considerable experience with them, that photo captures well the disorientation and fear that results from a major event. No amount of money or prestige is any real protection. Hopefully, Wally you're able to stay safe.

Having kept her Toyota RAV4 over 14 years now, my wife is finally getting a new car. She's opted for a Subaru Crosstrek that I think is a great choice for her. I'm going up to the dealer with her today to offer my imprimatur and I, for one, am very happy with her choice. We rarely buy cars, so it's something of an event for us.

Have ordered a couple of new Echo devices that'll be here next week (Echo Connect and the 2nd gen Echo Show). The Echo Connect provides connection to my land line phone (great protection in case of medical emergencies) and the Echo Show will replace my alarm clock plus has a sufficiently large screen for watching video. Should be fun setting them up.

I'll now have five Echo devices plus Hue lighting. These are increasingly important in my life, especially as my mobility decreases. Seems I'm daily finding some new use that makes accomplishing things possible even when I can't move around much plus the Echo Connect will allow me to contact emergency services from anywhere in the house. I'm grateful...

[Grammabear]

89 this morning.

Tamagno - How do you get your various devices to 'sync' with each other or isn't that necessary?  I've thought about acquiring an Echo but I am not tech savvy, so am still hesitant.

Wally - Heard about the second earthquake and am hoping you are safe.

[walkerwally1]

101 this morning.  Well, it turns out that the 6.4 mag. earthquake we had on the 4th was a pre-shock and last night about 8:20 PM we had a 7.1 shaker that now is being labeled the main shock.  It was certainly stronger than the 6.4 and lasted longer.  Quite a roller coaster and lasting probably 30 second.  That is a long time when the whole house is moving back and forth.  No damage here except for some things falling off shelves.  A couple of mobile homes in the area have burned and are total losses.  We had after shocks all night a few around a 5.2-5.5 mag.  We will probably have after shocks for the next year but they should be much less intense.  I feel sorry for all of the places like the stores that worked all day yesterday picking stuff up and putting it all back on the shelves and now it is all back on the floor.  I have lived in Southern California all my life and I have been in several earthquakes so this is not new to me but many people have never experienced this before and it can be quite scary.  In the two hours after the main quake we had over 75 after shocks, some strong enough to make you take notice so kind of hard to get much sleep.  Poor dog is not happy with all of this but I hope she gets over it.  Right now she will not leave my side.  If this had happened closer to a major populated area there would have been a lot more damage.  This has been felt a long ways away, as far North as Reno and as far South as Mexico.  People in the Los Angeles area felt it quite strongly but there it had the intensity of about a 5.0 quake.  Hopefully that was the strongest and the after shocks will taper off. 
Tamagno, I don't think you get accustomed to something like an earthquake but it is something that I have been through several times and fortunately never suffered anything major so I am not too "shook up" by them.  I would rather deal with an earthquake than with a tornado or hurricane any day. 

[Grammabear]

Wally - I am relieved to know you and yours are safe.  I suppose if you've been through earthquakes before, you sort of get used to them.  However I've only been through 1 earthquake and that was enough.  I've also been through 1 tornado and that too was enough.  Just glad to come out on the other side alive and well.  Stay safe and spend some "lap time" with your dog.  She must be so frightened.

[bigskygal]

95 this drizzly morning, 105 at bedtime last night.

Earthquakes, the gift that keeps on giving! Glad you and yours are OK Wally.

Another thunderstorm rolled through this afternoon. This has been an unusual summer, lots of rain and cooler temps.

[Sweety]

105 today morning. My fasting numbers have been in the 98 - 114 range, so not so bad.

@wally, I hope you are fine and safe. The earthquake is in the news all over here. There were some fires also reported. Take care everyone in California.

@bigskygal, I had to Google waht is a skunk. We don't have them in this part of the world. Hope you are well now.

[Tamagno]

202 this morning.

Was in an earthquake once in Italy, but as that was during my mis-spent youth I was somewhat drunk after dinner and largely slept through it. It was, however, strong enough to open a large crack in the stone wall of the place I was living. I'd just as leave pass on any more.

For some reason, my blood pressure dropped way too low yesterday and I wound up sleeping most all day. Heart rate's still pretty high, though, so I'm staying in today. Somehow I also lost all control and ate a lot of chocolate candy (seemed like a good idea at the time and honestly wasn't very tasty). Hopefully, I'll get myself back under control today.

[Tamagno]

Forgot to mention, Grammabear, there's not really an issue syncing Echo devices. Can be a little tricky learning just how to use them, but it does work. As much as anything, I'm looking forward to being able to use it to contact EMS from anywhere in the house (no monthly fees and uses my land line). No buttons to push, just voice command.

Also can ask it for my current glucose and - nerds only here - use Dr. Who sounds and call me "Doctor."

[Grammabear]

99 this morning.

Thank you Tamagno for the Echo information.  I might look into it further if I get brave enough.  Can I tell it to play music or does it not have that feature?

[walkerwally1]

91 this morning.  A bit calmer today.  We have after shocks from time to time but most are below 3.0 mag and not felt and there have been hundreds of those.  The ones you notice are 4.0 or larger and there have been a few.  This will continue for the next year or so.  Mostly just a vibration and no shaking or rolling.  The dog does feel it though nd she is better but still wary every time it happens.  Fortunately no structural damage here but there was some elsewhere.  A couple of homes destroyed by fire and a few mobile homes that fell off their stands.  Some structural damage to some businesses and a lot of clean up for many.  This is an area that is very active with earthquakes but mostly minor shakes and not as strong as this. 

[bigskygal]

117 this partly cloudy morning, 100 at bedtime last night. Been feeling a little punk, hope I'm not getting sick...

Wally, a question about the parotid surgery. Did your ears feel stuffed up for weeks after the surgery? At my 2 week, final check up, the ENT said I had fluid in them but that it would dissipate in a while. It is still bugging me and this Wed will be 4 weeks post surgery. Maybe I should call him?

Thanks Sweety, I am healing well and it apparently is true skunks don't like citrus peels as they have vacated their den. Thank goodness!

[walkerwally1]

Barbara, I don't recall that I had any stuffiness at all but then it was over 20 years ago so I guess it was possible.  Maybe it would not hurt to give him a call.

[bigskygal]

Yeah, I'll give them a call tomorrow. Thanks Wally.

[Tamagno]

202 this morning.

Still trying to get my blood pressure and heart rate settled. For what it's worth, my new Fitbit Versa is quite accurate with heart rate and always seems to concur with that given by my blood pressure cuff. Much better than my earlier model Fitbit.

Grammabear, my Echo devices will play most any radio station, music playlists of my own design, podcasts of all sorts and all manner of nature sounds, etc., for sleeping. I also use it to look for and play tv programming; she'll also control volume for you. Also will keep track of shopping lists - plus print when I'm ready - and read me recipes (plus make measurement conversions) while cooking. It also will tell me what's on my schedule for the day (with reminders if I want them) and alerts me when Amazon deliveries have arrived. I can also use it to order groceries and make dinner reservations. Custom tasks are also easy to create so at night I tell it to turn on my preferred night lighting while turning on my preferred sleep sounds. Ditto in the morning. Combined with Hue smart lights I also now have good lighting in my closet. It can also be connected to smart thermostats for heating/cooling, control my garage doors, and doorbells with a camera, plus control outdoor lights and security systems. Speaking of Fitbit, she'll also read me my current data.

Also, if you've a mind, it'll play Jeopardy with you, tell me date and weather, give me news updates and tell jokes as well as all manner of inspirational messages. She'll also read you any e-books you've got in your library. E-mails can be dictated and sent and new one's read aloud. Currently, there are some 50,000 skills she can use.

All around, a pretty useful personal assistant. Occasionally, she'll mis-hear something or respond to something she hears on tv, but these things seem to improve the more I use it. But you can just tell her to stop if she's got something wrong. (I confess to yelling at her at some such times.) If you've got an Echo device with a screen, you can also make visual "Skype" calls with it as long as the person on the other end also has one. It uses my iOS contact list to find phone numbers. Short of a live-in personal aide, it's terrific for those of us with mobility issues.

While I know people have lots of security concerns, at present, the usefulness far outweighs any of those and I expect I'll keep expanding what I've got. Seems like every day I'm finding something new and useful for her to do. Frequently, I find myself thinking the whole affair has reached a grand level of laziness and sloth, but it's there and a huge help in so many ways.

With a modicum of tech skills, it's pretty easy and cheap to get started. Seems to me Echo is cheaper, better and easier than the similar products from Google and Apple.