The view from my window

The view from my window
The view from my window

Monday 3 August 2020

What a difference a day makes!

Or what a difference two days make really. Saturday was scorching hot and if I remember right hit 40°. They had forecast storms but we didn't get any - they were saving themselves for Sunday apparently. Even then it was fine during the day, hot enough to sit in the garden and read, and the storms hit late afternoon. It obviously rained during the night although I didn't hear it, but this morning it was so much cooler only reaching 14°C today! So a drop in temperature of 26° in just over 24 hours. I suppose it's no wonder people get sick is it!

It's forecast to head back up again starting tomorrow (I think) and then hit the high temperatures towards the end of the week. It's weird (or maybe not), but as soon as the temperatures start dropping I feel my "oomph" coming back and today was no exception. I made a point of being in bed by midnight so I would be up and running by 8 a.m. I've made a long list of all the things I neglected last week so will be trying to knock at least one of those off each day. I took a trip down to the recycling centre first thing and even though it was raining I then decided to head out to Thyez to get a walk in too. This is my "go to" walk for when I don't want to go up the mountains, and with more storms forecast I definitely didn't want to go up the mountains. So in the space of an hour I got a nice walk along the river bank and around the small lake there to add 10,000 steps to my daily challenge. Except for the fact that my hair turned to frizz it was a lovely walk and definitely the right thing to do, but then do you ever regret going for a walk? Honestly I don't know what to do with my hair because as soon as it gets damp it turns to frizz and I end up looking like a bedraggled rat. I was thinking on the way home that if I really do intend to join a local gym in September I'm going to have to come up with something to do with this mop because I don't want to end up looking like Harpo Marx having a bad hair day!


When I got home I thought "right, that's it, first task on the list - I'm gonna call the IRS". André received his stimulus cheque about two months ago but Jordan hasn't seen hide nor hair of his and has got it into his head that he won't get one now! The only thing we can think of is that he moved in November so potentially it was sent to the wrong address, the French post office didn't forward it and it was returned to the IRS. I tried tracking it through their site using both addresses but each time it comes up as "information not available". So I decided there was nothing for it but to call them. The first couple of times, after going through their spiel, they told me to hold for more information, and after five minutes of total silence I hung up. The third time I did manage to get the "more information" never-ending loop so I decided that come what may I was indeed going to hold and keep holding. In the end I finally got through to a very helpful lady after 20 minutes (so I reckon Jordan will owe me half his stimulus cheque just for that phone call as I believe 800 numbers called from outside the States are not free). But at least I got through!

The lady on the other end was not able to go into specifics so I explained what had happened and what our thinking was. She told me that the stimulus cheques were processed on the basis of 2018 filings (so they would have Jordan's old address), but since he has filed for 2019 already his address should have been updated. Apparently the "information not available" message is just a standard response and I should keep checking until I see a "processing" or "processed" response - but that could take up to Christmas as they still have millions to complete. Failing that I could fill out a form 3911 to trace it but either way it wasn't "lost", as if all else failed he can claim it when he completes his 2020 taxes next year. I know I should leave this stuff to him really but he has no idea about US taxes and I don't mind doing it anyway. Still, it's money neither of the kids were expecting so if/when it does come it will be a bonus!

Today was André's first day back in the office and he said he just sailed through in 45 minutes. I told him not to get too confident as quite a few people were still working from home and it was vacation time for many others anyway, but at least he isn't starting back to work with a nightmare commute immediately. He wants to come over tomorrow night so I can go through his divorce paperwork with him, to see if I can think of anything he has missed. He will also bring his codes for his Swiss ebanking and I will show him how to do that too. It was funny because when we all went out to lunch on Saturday he went into his bedroom and came back out with a few euros from his "spending money" and said he actually likes the envelope system I had him set up because he can see what's what and what he has available to spend. From looking at my French bank on pay day I can see that he has indeed started sending money to his French bank account (hopefully restoring his reputation with them), and putting money into separate savings accounts to save for his own place. Hallelujah, I finally got through to him - I guess the old ways still work then!

My ex called me this morning (mid-day our time, 6 a.m. his time) and I asked him what the heck he was doing up so early. He said he now goes to bed around 9 p.m. (?????) so he gets up early too. That is definitely not the man I was married to, nor is the fact that he has put on 50 lbs since he stopped smoking either, but I guess it's better to have the extra lbs than the tar stained lungs isn't it. In any case, he was so skinny anyway that he actually doesn't look bad with all that extra padding!

Like me he's delighted with Jordan and Jen's news and we chatted for a while about family. Then he told me that he might send André $1,000 "to help him out". So I said, "er I don't really want to butt in here (but I will anyway), but can I make a suggestion and encourage you to split that in two and send $500 to each kid? André on his own makes more than Jordan and Jen together, he's starting to put money into savings and he's living rent-free with Jordan and Jen - who've just told you they're expecting a baby, so don't you think they might be hurt if you send money to André and nothing to them?" He said he hadn't even thought of it that way and indeed that's what he's going to do. Damn I'm glad I caught him before he did something stupid!

And finally, talking of losing weight (we were weren't we), I am indeed going to join a gym in La Roche in September (when it's cooler) because I want to learn how to use the weight machines properly. I can do all that at the work's gym and pretty much have the place to myself but driving into Geneva obviously isn't working out so well so I think it'll have to be La Roche instead. Anyway, having got in a one hour walk today and been careful with what I was preparing for food, I decided to log it into Myfitnesspal to see if I was calculating calories/portion sizes properly (I'm getting better at it, but it's surprising how the "little things" can add up too). Anyway, once I input all my info and hit save, Myfitnesspal indicated that if the next five weeks were like today I would lose eight pounds - so there you have it! Just gotta keep going for the next eight weeks to find out!

18 comments:

  1. We have cooled off a hair ....mostly because a hurricane uis passing by .... luckily, we're on the so-called'good side' and will get mostly rain.

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    1. I went through one hurricane in Florida years ago - and I was fascinated because I'd never seen anything like it. The reality of living with them every year, on the other hand, and maybe losing your life and/or everything you own is a lot less "fascinating". Stay safe!

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  2. You have such good common sense-it is nice when our kids see us as the smarty pants that we are! So now that you committed in your blog and I have, I better get serious, I skipped a muffin for brekafast and ate a sensible cereal. I cut up fruit and avoided choclate today! My walk was light, but my knee was really sore, but I didn't skip it at least. I'm also proud that i fgured out your temperature becaem 67 degrees fahrenheit, down from 104 Fahrenheit. I have to get these European things down if I am going to be an international retiree some day.

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    1. Let's hope we don't end up with egg on our faces at Christmas then. To be honest, I don't think I have a chance in hell of making 40 lbs (it was just an off-the-cuff remark) but anything would be a plus. And you made a good start at least right? I'm used to the centigrade measures now - or at least I know when it's damn hot, but then that should be easy too right? If you're going to become an international retiree you'll have a damn shock when you try cooking though - all grams and litres and not a "cup" in sight. That took me ages to get used to as I was still thinking in lbs and ounces from when I lived in the UK all those many years ago! (And what the hell is a "stick" of butter?)

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    2. 40 pounds! Hah-I took you up on that off the cuff remark hoping it might inspire me to reach 10! I just like the idea of a buddy partner-but one who wouldn't see my little foibles.

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  3. Congratulations on the new baby! Grandparenting is the best gig in the world!
    I am blaming COVID for the excess pounds I seem to have found. It can't be that I have been eating badly, right?

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    1. It's early days for Jen as yet but they were so excited to tell me so now I'm in it for the long haul, although with her showing already it would have come out sooner rather than later anyway. And for the excess pounds, I think the boredom nibbling and bum-sitting during lockdown has an awful lot to answer for don't you!

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  4. I live in hope that one day MFP’s prediction and my weight loss might converge

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    1. I find the problem always occurs when I'm cooking my own dishes - not just salads but real cooking. It's hard to note every single thing you put into a dish and then divide by the number of portions, so that's when things go haywire and I give up. Hell if MFP was always right I'd be about 9 stone by now!

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  5. That's quite some temperature drop! And I was complaining that it dropped from 25 on Saturday to 15 today! Not to mention its absolutely pouring with rain again!
    It's nice you can talk with your ex and he's happy to take your advice! Your sons are lucky you can negotiate the USA tax system, I hear its pretty complicated!
    Good luck on the weight loss, exercise regime! I feel your pain! xx

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    1. I can only negotiate the US tax system because in my sons' cases it's pretty simple. Otherwise I think they'd have to pay to get them done. And oddly enough my ex and are I ok now - I think the days of pure hatred (on my part at least) are over because it's like drinking poison and expecting them to die!

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  6. Men definitely font think the same as women (my opinion). My husband helps one daughter who is divorced far more regarding diythan the other who is married. I say it would be nice to ask if they need a hand with anything instead of presuming all the time. I get quite cross about it. I hope the IRS sort out the addresses and a windfall finds it's way to your son.

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    1. I think just because Jordan and Jen seem to be making it work my ex forgets - but then he's not here to see it either is he. André and Lily made 5-6 times what J and J made but things are very different between Switzerland and France. I'm a Libran (no surprise there right?) so try to see both sides. My ex would never have tried to favour one or the other son but I don't think he was capable of seeing both sides either!

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    2. I think just because Jordan and Jen seem to be making it work my ex forgets that it isn't easy for them - but then he's not here to see it either is he. André and Lily made 5-6 times what J and J made but things are very different between Switzerland and France. I'm a Libran (no surprise there right?) so try to see both sides. My ex would never have tried to favour one or the other son but I don't think he was seeing both sides either!

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  7. In a lifetime I could not accomplish what you have in one or two days.

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    1. Of course you could. Put me in your weather/climate situation and I would just roll over. I can't take the heat because I'm not used to it. Stick me with the cold and bingo!

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  8. My hair's about 1/2 inch long... I never have to worry about frizz.
    I'm set up for direct deposit so my check went in right away, though I have a friend who was going through a divorce and has no idea where his check went. I understand there are quite a few who didn't get one and that's terrible. They're the ones who need it the most.

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    1. A buzz cut is very tempting I have to say right now. As for your friend he can track his cheque on:

      https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-payment#_blank

      or put a trace on it with a form 3911. They are way behind in issuing the cheques although I would have thought someone in the US would have gotten then before someone overseas. My kids weren't expecting them anyway so it will definitely be a bonus for Jordan as he earns so little!

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