Bob, my sourdough starter, was well established and living in the refrigerator between feeding and baking. I took him out  to check on him and feed him. He was bubbling along happily. I fed him and put him in the oven on the proofing setting. Then I went off to an appointment.

When I came home, I felt restless. I decided to peel apples and make apple crisp. After peeling and slicing my apples, I turned on the oven to 350⁰. I finished putting together the apple crisp with those delightful spices of cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. I opened the oven and there stood Bob. My precious starter that took me endless time and flour to make. He was hot and baked and not salvageable. I was sad. He had been a happy, successful starter that had made my English muffins. Tough.

I will reinvent Bob. Fortunately, he has nine lives. I will wait until next week. It takes  seven days to establish a new starter. Maybe I will create a backup and feed them different days. We will see.

I injected my Actemra. It comes in a pen. The needle is not visible. I don’t feel it when I inject it. I have no issue with giving myself an injection. At one time I used to draw up and inject methotrexate. Easy. But this pen would be good for those who are squeamish about needles. The engineering amazes me.

My RA is a problem at night. Shoulders, hands and feet mostly. My son bought me a jar of Hemp Cream for Christmas. It helps my shoulders. Dr R sent Lidocaine/Prilocaine cream for my feet. Both help. The creams give me something I can physically do for my joints. That in itself helps.