BELATED UPDATE

Here I am again, finally. I can’t seem to keep up to everything. Here’s a little update:

• My son is feeling great, has been off the pain medication for 2 weeks. Like his mom, he does not do well with medication. He went back to get the staples out and through more tests, and the surgeon wants to see him on June 16^th. Then we will get the results of the surgery itself, including the biopsy they did on the tumor. Hopefully they can give a positive note for the liver too. In the meantime, he is enjoying the days not working by spending time with our Little Flea, who is quite content to have daddy around to spoil her.
• I was scheduled 6 days this week, which was a surprise. They are presently installing 4 electronic cashes, and things are a bit upside down in the store at the moment. Customers keep asking us if some will lose our jobs. We’re not sure. I’m the last one in, and because I am part-time, they do not need to give me any notice if they decide to cut down on staff. Time will tell.
• Obviously, reducing expenses right now is a must. What I get in salary for a week is equivalent to what I was making in a day and a half. The first step was to disconnect my residential phone. Most of the calls coming in on it are robot calls anyway, so off with it!! Just saved 60$/month, and many irritating moments of having to block out-of-space numbers from call centres. Cellular reception out here has improved immensely in the past year, so cellular is the only phone needed.
• The TV channels will be next to go. Only the news and sports will stay. Anything else we (rarely) want to watch can be cast from our laptops or cellular to the screen, so easily another 60$/month saved.

Like last year, Karen has been planting flowers and veggies. So many people are doing that now obliging seed companies to show ‘SOLD OUT’ on all their sites.  The cost of food is rising…rising…and it breaks my heart to see the elderly come into the store and purchase strict necessities, often telling me they eat one meal a day because they can’t afford any more than that. Their rent and/or mortgage payments have gone up, gas is costly, medication is also more expensive, as is electric power. Meanwhile those companies – grocery stores, pharmaceutical companies, power providers, banks – are posting outrageous profits.  GRRR….

I’ll get off my soapbox now, because I haven’t yet figured out how to fix any of this. There is no use spouting problems without offering solutions, is there?

That’s it for today, folks. In spite of it all, I’m still SMILING, and sending y’all a share to hopefully brighten up your day!!

LUV FROM THE BUSH IN QUEBEC.