Stuff and such and grousing

Today was a strange day for me. Nothing wrong, just odd, because it seemed that it was a grey day, you know, like it was overcast. Truth is, it was sunny. At most there might have been some light cloudiness through the day. It has just seemed to me that it was one of those overcast kind of days. The temps were nice, too, in the upper 50s.

It might be because I was inside all day. Again, nothing wrong, just busy with inside tasks and took only a couple trips to the deck. Anyway, it was just peculiar that I have the feeling of drabness.

I'm in the process of dropping the last of my prescription medications out of my life, at least for a while. The only one I have taken on a regular basis in recent years is an anti-inflammatory for mild arthritis and fibromyalgia. I started taking tart cherry juice capsules about three weeks ago. It has anti-inflammatory properties. I also have had some numbness in my left big toe for a long time, but doctors tell me it isn't gout. I think they are right, because it doesn't seem to have all the signs of gout, and I eat minimal red meat and except for coffee, few of the other foods that cause gout. BTW, I don't usually drink a lot of coffee, either, just one or two cups a day. Anyway, I thought nothing ventured, nothing gained about the cherry capsules.

Within a few days, the feeling began returning to the toe. It still isn't 100%, but it's greatly improved. So I decided to give it a try for the arthritis/fibromyalgia stuff, too. I've titrated myself down off the medication I was taking, and stopped it late last week. So far, I'm thinking it might be OK. I won't know till there is some really cold weather and/or I have a fibro flare-up. We'll see.

I take several natural supplements, and I'm really happy with how well they have worked for me. To be honest, some of them work better than the prescription medications I used to take for the inconveniences in my health. The most recent, along with the cherry stuff, is the stomach enzyme that has given me a new lease on life. Seriously, there was a little adjustment period during which the effect was off and on, but now it seems to be working fabulously! I have not had an attack of acid reflux/gas buildup in the stomach in about 10 days! Woo hoooo!

One last thing .... a combination of gripe and venting. Why is is that people seem to think it is OK to say just about anything they want on F*cebook? There are two versions of this: (1) When they say things on their own page, and (2) When people take advantage of a post on your page and just go wild.  I'll briefly address the first one.

Your page is your page. You can say whatever you want. Honestly, I still think people should be somewhat aware of the rules of general etiquette. I'm no Emily Post, but if I'm in a place where other people can hear me or read me, I'm usually going to be polite in my choice of words. For one thing, my grandchildren and other youngsters read my page. I'm a liberated woman, but I hope I'm not (totally) crude for their sake. Now, if you write something that I don't like on your page, I don't have to read it. If you continue to post things I find offensive, I can "hide" you. If that isn't enough or I am greatly offended, I can de-friend you.

Now the other one. When I post something, it is my opinion or my choice of information, or my silliness or .... well, you get it. And if you're on the other end, you read it and you don't like it, what do you do? Do you just move on, much as I described above? Or do you start an argument or a debate in which you set out to teach me something, lecture me (and my other readers), make a point? Is it just me, or is this presumptuous and rude? You see, I feel my blog and my FB page is MINE. It is like an extension of my home. Would you sit in my living room and proceed to tell me how wrong I am? I certainly wouldn't! (Well, unless I think your endangering yourself or others.) If I disagree with someone to that extent, in real life or on the internet, I simply begin to distance myself from them. I don't see any reason to be at odds with anyone in this world, and chose to continue having them in my presence! If the fit of our relationship isn't good, isn't comforting, I question why I'm staying in it.

Don't get me wrong .... there are times when a spirited debate is fun, but that is usually best reserved for a time when both/all people agree to debate. Otherwise, it is just an argument, right? And I'm not into that. I dislike disparity. I think you and I can have different opinions, and if we agree to disagree with respect for each other's opinions, that is great. Our differences balance the world, and I see it as a healthy thing that there are differences. But when it comes to someone walking in my door (real or virtual) and beginning to tell me I'm wrong, it just infuriates me.

So, what's your opinion? Is the blog and/or FB open territory? It is a public forum of sorts. Is it OK to start a disagreeable discussion in someone else's space? What do you do when this happens, your space or someone else's? Has this happened to you, or do I attract all the people who are willing to butt heads just for the fun of it? Sigh, perhaps it is just me, because I can't remember seeing it elsewhere. Maybe I'm just a controversial kind of person, inviting this into my world. The problem is I have friends and family from many different opinions, and I'd love to go through life without the righties and the lefties or the pros and the cons or the ups and the downs coming to verbal blows in my living room? And I'll leave it to your imagination where it starts, but it drives me crazy.

OK, I'm done.  And I feel much better, thank you very much!!