🎉🎉🎉🎉 It’s Friday!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉

The topic of this discussion is: anything.

Anything exciting going on in your life? Things got you down? Did you try a new recipe that you’d like to share? etc.

  • waldenMA
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    13 days ago

    I’m looking forward to Thanksgiving which is next Thursday.

    We’re hosting 6 other family members, so we’ll have at least 9 people at the house (6 adults and 3 kids).

    Traditionally you eat a big turkey dinner, but since Thursday and Friday my wife is usually tired from chemo it’s going to be more of a chili pot-luck, but there will definitely be plenty of food and Pumpkin Pie!

      • waldenMA
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        13 days ago

        Thanks! She’s a trooper so it’ll be a good time.

    • gcgallant
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      13 days ago

      You do what you can. Chili pot-luck sounds pretty good to me, and I hope you have a wonderful holiday!

      • waldenMA
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        13 days ago

        Thanks, same to you!

        I made a “tester” pumpkin pie tonight and it’s killer. For Thanksgiving day we ordered one from a really good local bakery, and I’m hoping to beat it in my own unofficial pie contest.

        • gcgallant
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          12 days ago

          Good luck! You can certainly do it. I always look forward to my wife’s pumpkin pie. She goes strong on the spices. I make real whipped cream just before we eat pie and go gentle with the sugar so the creaminess and subtle sweetness blends well with the pie filling. My mouth is watering as I type this.

              • waldenMA
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                12 days ago

                The recipe doesn’t specify a crust, so it’s just whatever you want to use. You can make your own, or use a store bought. Do they sell frozen crusts in your country?

                Pumpkin Puree, at least in the USA, is the only form of canned pumpkin that I know of. This is a popular brand - https://shop.caraluzzis.com/s/1000-2073/i/INV-1000-20608. It’s sort of an apple sauce consistency, but thicker. You can buy pumpkin with the spices already added, but I prefer to add my own.

                I’m sure there’s a way to use a real pumpkin, but I’ve never tried it.

    • snooting
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      13 days ago

      I’m also looking forward to Thanksgiving next week. We’ll travel down to Southern CA to spend time with my family. My dad is also flying out from Ohio, it’ll be nice to see him.

      My sister and BIL live down there and just bought a stupid big house in Orange County. It’ll be cool to see, as they very quickly outgrew their previous house once the second kid arrived.

      Positive thoughts to your wife. Mine is in the midst of some concerning bloodwork and confusing diagnoses, we’re hoping to get some clarity for her in the next few weeks.

      • waldenMA
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        13 days ago

        Ugh. Waiting for test results is the worst. My wife getting the final “yeah, you have some cancer” was somehow relieving, because that meant we could start doing stuff to treat it instead of moping around not knowing what was in our future. Hopefully you learn something soon.

        • snooting
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          12 days ago

          The moping and uncertainty is most definitely the hardest part.

    • DaveWave94
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      13 days ago

      Hope you and your family will have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Sorry to hear about your wife’s troubles with chemo - it’s very harsh on the body in my limited experience with patients who required it. Sending out positive thoughts and vibes to both of you ✌🏻

      • waldenMA
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        13 days ago

        Thanks. She’s doing great with it overall. She has 3 or 4 treatments left of the “hard” stuff, then she does the easy stuff every 3 weeks for another 9 months.

        • DaveWave94
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          12 days ago

          Great to hear. I wish her continued success with the treatment until a full recovery. 🙏🏻
          It’s awesome that you’re so supportive, this might actually help her to get well sooner! (some people might think supporting your spouse should be normal, but trust me - I’ve seen some really bad examples of unsupportive relationships in my career so far).

  • DaveWave94
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    13 days ago

    Yesterday I returned from a short trip. It was actually nice, even though I just accompanied my mom since dad declined to come with her for health reasons.

    The hotel was directly near some interesting photo spots and was wellness focused: whirlpools, sauna, spa. Due to the shortness of our stay, there was no time for massages - but surprisingly, the water worked very well for my body. It’s naturally high in salt in that region, so it also helped with easier breathing. I even tried a steam sauna, even though that felt terrifying at first - but it was good. I really miss those things and I think I should look into local options for pools & saunas.

    Today was a pretty chill day to relax, except some online shopping (Black Friday, but unfortunately no shaving related sales). Next week it’s back to early shifts, but at least only at my usual workplace. All my external internships are done, which is good since I don’t need any additional stress before the exams next year.

    Stay safe & have a fun weekend ✌🏻

    • snooting
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      13 days ago

      Sounds like a relaxing trip! I experienced my first sauna ceremony this summer at a spa in Berlin and it was very intense and very rejuvenating.

      I should find something like that near us.

      • DaveWave94
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        12 days ago

        It was a good mix - Wednesday was full-on sightseeing, but visiting the spa area in the early evening was very comforting after being in motion all day.

        I can relate, the steam sauna was surprisingly good for my neck & shoulder tension. I definitely want to find something similar closer to me and I recommend you do the same. Wellness is beneficial for the whole body and mind 👍🏻

  • snooting
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    13 days ago

    I’m rather enjoying BBS November, although I think my skin is looking forward to a bit of a break.

    I’ve been surprised by how much my technique has improved though, especially my lathers. I’m almost always getting very slick and well-hydrated lather (apart from a fluke this week with Latha Taiga).

    I’m considering typing up some lessons learned from this month once we hit December, would this be an interesting read for y’all?

    Also, I’m planning to do DecemBOAR next month if anyone wants to join me. I need to make some progress on this new 31mm Zenith. :)