I love having a choice too- and my choice is between Mocha (2009 clubbie) and my Betty, a '68 MB 280SL... My Betty belonged to my Grandmother, who bought her new.
I know, not a MINI or a Mini, but a classic allthe same

Glad you've left the lurcher catagory and joined the mayhem here! Welcome aboard Babblingdweeb ~

 

Greetings all

I've heard good things about this thread, read a few pages so far and plan to do some more catch-up later.

I drove a classic MINI the other month when I met up with some MINIacs for a Saturday dinner in Jersey. Twas a BRG/W with bonnet stripes (stop drooling x uh oh x) and the steering wheel was on the right. The owner was gracious enough to let me take it for a spin around the parking lot. Had never shifted with my left hand before so that was an adventure. The clutch and brake pedals were way close so of course when I went to put it in first my clunky shoe hit both pedals, a trend which continued for a bit, much to the merriment of the owner who pointed to his rather narrow motoring shoes. I had a great time, and did not stall.

And delighted to hear x uh oh x's brother, who is a really cool guy, got converted to the MINIverse at MOTD.

 

Minixb- just "listening" to your posts makes me REALLY pine for a classic... sigh
I guess I would have to find some fatihful mechanic who wouldn't charge me both arms and a leg when I needed help because it would take me YEARS to get as savvy and some of you guys on here....
But I still want a classic.....are you ever asked to participate in parades? I think that would be fun...
Somewhere along this day(or two) of posting someone mentioned that you should start a thread on some of this info,, almost like a classic owners manual, or what to look for when searching to purchase that first classic... I think you would help alot of us just waiting and hoping!!

 

Well hello there Babdweeb!!! How the heck are you?? I have noticed a little pari of eyes peering over the top of my Free Classic Mini thread for a loong time now,, I would just bet it was your eyes!! Glad to see you hear and OMG how I love your name!! That fits all of us on this thread so well,,, oh maybe not Tnmm tho,,, she would be gigglingdweeb.....
You classic sounds and looks awesome...welcome!!!

 

Hi Red Dragoon!! I have read your posts on other threads so I actually thought you HAD posted here before... so glad to have you here. Please don't judge us on some of our sillier days while reading this
Just wait til you get to all of our senior pictures and crazy shots,,,, LOL

 

OH MY GOD, I LOOVVE THIS !!!!!!! (vestiges of my cheering smiley fascination of yesterday.) I now thus duly and officially title you, TNMiniMama, GIGGLINGDWEEB!!!!

 

cabwy greetings and tanks tons for the welcome. Seriously, I never ever judge silliness - I just jump sillily into it.

 

Then you, sir, are in the exact right spot. You'll just have to peruse the millions of pages in this thread to get the exact right amount of silliness.

 

x uh oh x greetings and thanks much for the advice. Good thing I'm a pretty fair quick reader.

 

I need to post some of the new ones I took -but I really need to take some more...apparently I wasn't in "photographer" mode when I tried to shoot Alex & Betty side-by-side last weekend.

I'm good thank you! After getting Betty, I thought I should revive my NAM and Michigan Mini accounts...it had been FAR too long. As for my name, let's just say I have a tendency to really REALLY ramble and I'm pretty nerdy...so it fits. If you're on Flickr/MySpace/Facebook or anything else out there and you come across the name, odds are it's me.

Betty...she's a treat. I got very lucky with her.

Choices are nice! Betty...it's so much a "classic" car name. I had a friend who named her Mini "Emma" -because (in her words) "She had to have a British sounding name...". When I got my '06 I named her Alex because I had this crazy idea that all girls named Alex were amazing and hot (although I don't think I have ever been friends with an Alex ) and I always wanted to date a girl named Alex --yeah, I'm crazy-- so I named the '06 Alex and we've been happy ever since.

Betty was a pseudo British name and reminds me of a 1940-50s girl that was playful, etc...probably from some random movie I have seen in my life. So Betty it was. Betty is a 1977 and I was born in 1977...so that actually factored into my purchase -the dealer also liked that we were both '77s.

So far, Betty has not gotten jealous of Alex...but I think Alex might be a little jealous of Betty. She's been a little temperamental since Betty came on board. It might be time to buy her some new accessories to keep the peace.

If you can't tell, I have a vivid, colorful and crazy imagination.

 

RD!!! My man!!! How ya be!!!?

*stops... reeling from the cheerful weirdness and just shakes her head* I apologize... I must stop. That was just too silly and it must not be allowed.

Good to see you on the other dark side my literary friend!

 

<giggle>

 

Sorry folks, I need to borrow V's brain for a moment, so I'm gonna change the subject briefly because my brain is so messed up that I forgot how to PM... hey V: Do you know of any anti-allergen strategies that I could be using (vitamin supplements, teas or the like)? I've tried claritin and zycam and neither are cutting through this. I haven't been able to leave my house properly for a week. My doc offered a prescription but I know it will be gone in a week.

Any ideas at all? I'm miserable and willing to try anything.

 

Realize that I don't know all your symptoms, nor do I know your allergies, bp, medical history, etc...
What I do (and my big allergy issues are pollen and mold, of which we're having a massive bloom of both due to the cold winter and now massive amounts of rain)... or what I did:
Allegra (took in the evening, as I'm a woos and a cheap date)
on super bad days when my nose was like a faucet and my eyes were watering so much I couldn't read the computer or watch tv- Infant Benadryl (liquid)- I would take a qtr to a half dose cause a full dose knocks me out (see cheap date comment above).

I take the hard stuff (above) when it's bad, it's really hard to get away from environmental triggers, so getting them under control is really important.

Once I got the hose (or nose) off, I could start in with the more natural methods:
NETI POT - you want to flush all that environmental crap out of your sinuses so it doesn't keep aggrevating all that sensitive tissue. I would NETI POT at least once a day.

I'm a huge believer in body work- I find (and I realize it's not for everyone) that a good chiropractic adjustment helps open up my sinuses. Also massage will help flush out toxins (even the toxins produced by your own body as it fights allergens).

Water.. drink plenty of water. Stay away from sodas and sweets while you're fighting allergies, the sugars in those things (as well as the chemicals) often aggrevate allergies.

MOVE... Exercise... it doesn't seem like it will help, but it gets your blood pumping, which helps eliminate toxins AND helps keep your lungs clear (there's a reason that people in anaphalactic shock are given epinephrine... it's to speed up your heart rate to move all the crap out of your system quickly and keep your lungs open).

Hot showers, steam, warm compresses on your sinuses...

Do not be surprised if, when all this stuff starts moving through you, you get diarreah.

Stay away from dairy products- they're mucus forming... you probably have enough mucus right now.

Hmmm... herbs and such... (ALWAYS let your MD know what herbs you're taking... some may have contraindications with OTC and prescription meds)

I like to spritz my pillow with eucalyptis oil (don't use too much)- helps keep the schnooze open- be very careful with putting eucalyptis oil in bath water or humidifiers- if you do use it in those, only use 3-5 drops. Too much can actually have negative effects. Eucalyptis tea, teas with licorice (don't take too much licorice if you have high blood pressure), stinging nettle (which you can also take in capsule form- but make sure you get the cryogenically preserved stinging nettle- I think Frontier Herbs makes some), red clover (a blood purifyer), anything that might be anti-inflammatory (rose hips, which are also full of vitamin c).

There are specific herbs that work on more specific issues, like lung support, etc. I would advise finding someone versed in herbs in your area- and make sure that person is well qualified, gets your medical history - your regular doctor may even know someone, or know something about good allergy support.

My allergies got so bad (aggrevated by working with lots of hay, which often was musty and moldy), that I went to an allergist and started allergy shots. This spring has been the worst allergy spring, so I've been told, yet mine have been very bearable. I'm no longer even taking allegra (was taking it daily). I do take SF722 when I get a bit congested, my chiro recommended it.

SF722 from Thorne Research, info as follows:
[FONT=Verdana][SIZE=1]Each Gelcap Contains: [/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Verdana][SIZE=1]10-undecenoic acid (derived from castor bean oil)[/SIZE][/FONT] [FONT=Trebuchet MS][SIZE=2] Dosage: 3 to 5 gelcaps three times a day


I truly hope you feel better soon.

[/SIZE][/FONT]

 

RandomGemini greetings and thanks much for your way cool welcome. Still have some reading to do to catch up here. In the meantime, I hope you're able to beat those miserable allergies into the ground with TNMiniMama's help.

 

RG - just thought of something else. Pull all your screens down, scrub them. Have a vent cleaning company come out and thoroughly clean your vents. Rip up any carpet, or have it deep extracted steam cleaned. Change your sheets, pillow cases and wash in hot water. look into getting an anti-allergy mattress pad. But the big thing is that you want to have your AC system and heat system completely cleaned, or the first time you use them all those lovely pollen bits will blow right into your house and you'll be miserable. When you come in from outside, immediately remove your clothes and wash them (at least while the pollen is blowing about). Run the heat/ac in Viola to get all the pollen out of her vents, then vaccuuum the hell outta her.
hope that helps- V
PS- ask Cab what she'd recommend in terms of body work. She's got that end of things covered

 

Thanks V. *big hugs* A lot of those things I already have in the house. I have to avoid adult benadryl because I'm a cheap date too, not when it comes to booze, but when it comes to allergy meds for sure. Claritin and Zycam did work without making me sleepy... but they're not working on it this year.

Doc doesn't want to do an allergy panel on me because I am not a constant allergy sufferer and he doesn't think it's worth the expense and stress it will cause me. Most years, at their worst, I get itchy watery eyes in the spring and an OTC claritin will do the job. I've never experienced anything quite this bad.

My BP is low normal. I have licorice tea in the cabinet and was already making a cup... not a fan... but I'll give it a shot and switch to water immediately afterward. I'll see how far that gets me. Maybe that will help me get through today... if I can just get through today...

I actually briefly thought I had swineflu... but itchy watery eyes aren't usually a symptom of the flu. No fever, no coughing. Sinus congestion and itchy watery eyes only... my doc doesn't seem to think I have swineflu and didn't ask me to come in for testing so I'm guessing it's unlikely... but this is so bad... I just really didn't want to believe it was my allergies until I left the house the other day and opened the sunroof and then my eyes just started watering and felt like sandpaper after just a few minutes...

It was awful V... I've never felt anything like it, not even when I've actually had a sinus infection has the sinus pain been this bad. I could not imagine going through this every spring... I feel so horrible for people who have it worse than I do this year... it's all I can do to sit in front of my laptop today... what other folks must be going through... my heart goes out to them.

 

RAWWWR!!!! RIP up that nasty carpet!!! RAWR!!! *oops....use inside voice!!*

 

Already on top of that. At least one half of the couple that built our house was an allergy sufferer, they planned for allergy season in the very construction of the heating and air system... and the whole house humidifier... it's really swanky, but has to be serviced every April without fail, otherwise... it does.

Was thinking about changing Viola's cabin a/c filter.. but I just gave her a good vacuum and as long as I leave the windows closed... I seem to be okay... at least better than I would be if the windows were open.

I'll try vacuuming and doing the bedding today. Just steam cleaned the carpets two weeks ago. (I have to do this every spring otherwise my dog breaks out in hives. His allergies are worse than mine, go figure... ) The other nice thing about the house is the vac system, the filter container is in the garage so I don't have to empty it. The husband can take care of it for me... so it should be safe for me to vacuum.

Thank you so much V! *big hugs* I hope something works... I'm so ready to get on with my life now.

 

Wow....I learned a lot, V!!! I'm not a chronic allergy suffferer, but it may come in handy some day.

fwiw, I was once out on the hills up above the Taos Pueblo and one of the tribal guys pointed out a native plant that has always been used to help clear out ones sinuses. We tried it, chewed on it as instructed...it sure worked!!!! Gotta love that indigenous knowledge of native plants.

 

Um...Johnny...did everything in the world seem...a little fuzzy or off-kilter? This may be why you get along with Skuzzy so well, eh? !!!!

 

OK Johnny, I'm jealous. Last weed walk I went on was with a Tribal Chief from Ohio, and I was in Meigs County Ohio at a Native Medicinal Herb Conference.
I really want to go spend some time in the SouthWest with someone who really knows their "weeds"... there are some I'm specifically looking for, one of which was made illegal by the Feds (FDA) because people were using it the wrong way and 2 people died.. and maybe not even from the herb, but from reactions within the herb and other stuff. This specific herb is best used for asthma/bronchitis issues... and believe it or not, stomach issues (ulcers I think- I always used it for asthma/bronchitis)... anyway, a subsequent legal ruling allowed the herb to be used in teas and as a nutritive medicinal herb, but none of the herb companies want to touch it... so I need to find it and create my own concoctions from it...

A lot of "natural" medicine is just using common sense... if you're sick or have allergies, get rid of the source and then work from there. Sounds to me like RG is on the right track, and was already doing a lot of the stuff... ya know... if there's a wall between where you are and where you want to be, you can either keep running into that wall and hope it falls down, or find a different route around it.. or go somewhere else (tee hee hee).

 

I feel for you RG... I just hate that feeling myself. Hence, I keep that infant benadryl in our med cabinet. Rarely use it, but man oh man, when I need it, being able to dose down and not take a full dose is such a relief (I'm allergic to bee stings... If I were to take a full dose of benadryl, I wouldn't make it to the hospital cause I'd pass out).
If you don't like the straight up licorice tea, head over to your local health food place and look for some of the blends. Traditional Medicinals and Yogi teas both make blends for "symptoms"... and they're drinkable (I actually even like some of them, LOL). Breathe Easy is one I use a lot- I think it has licorice, eucalptus, passionflower, and some others in there... used to be really good, but the FDA removed the main ingredient (damn them, I mentioned this in teh post to GKR too).
You can also get loose leaves, roots, berries etc and make your own- just look at the ingredient list on one of those premade blends...
And while you're at it, look at some books. I'll try to dig up some of mine, and give you some titles... one of my favorites is just a simple book with "grannies" recipes. mostly teas, poulstices and the like... uses garden herbs/food herbs.
Really truly hope you feel better soon- hugs

 

Son just called from school. His math teacher, the guy that made my kid start doing well in math again... was just notified that his contract is not being renewed for next year.

He's the only math teacher that school has, and the kids get good grades and succeed in his class. They said his teaching methods were unorthodox and the district did not approve... it makes me want to write nasty letters and call lawyers. It's not right!

 

I have a cup of breathe easy next to me... it's not THAT bad... it's not like being forced to eat a box of good n' plenty... (do they even make that anymore?) which is good

Thanks hon. You've been a godsend today. I feel better just having the information at my disposal to do something... anything at all about how miserable I've been feeling.