Pretty flowers, Mary. If you potted all those yourself, a big accomplishment.
Sandy, I hope everything is ok with you.
I got the blood analysis results in My Chart and everything looks about the same except the glucose is higher, in diabetes range rather than the prediabetes range. I take two metformin pills daily but didn't take any meds yesterday morning. My appointment with the PCP is next week. We'll see what she says about the bloodwork. I had to request having it done prior to the appointment. Usually I see her or her NP and then go for bloodwork. Seems backward to me.
I just became aware that I am missing a post now and then and have to scroll a little higher.
Happy Friday to all.
Good morning. I did not sleep well last night. Weird nightmares. I have several things I want to accomplish , today, so I need to get going.
Cindy, I am from Roanoke.
Mary, Beautiful flower pictures.
Karen, My thoughts are with you.
Mary, love the photos of the flowers! I agree with Carole, that was a big Beautiful accomplishment!
Cindy, also Very Nice Photos!!!! Loved them! I love visiting old historical sites like that!
Petite, sorry to hear about the nightmares! Hope your day goes well and you get things accomplished without any issues!
illinoislady, hope you are doing well and feeling better with each and every day! When do you next see your doctor?
Karen, always thoughts of you! Is today another treatment day? If so, crossing fingers you don't feel too bad afterwards.
Sandy, miss your comments! Hope all is well with you!
Thanks to all for sharing your breakfast choices! I am going to look up Cliff bars, although I prefer to stick with natural foods, I do use High Protein Slimfast on occasion, and I am looking for something better.
Today two area high schools went virtual due to bomb threats! Kids and social media are a very bad combination sometimes! I feel so bad for all the good kids, who really care about school. There aren't as many of them as there was in past years, but they are still there. Virtual, no matter how good, is not on the same level as in person learning.
Happy Friday everyone!
The keys to growth are available to us the day we are born. They include openness, sensitivity, awareness, insight, intuition, wonder, imagination, curiosity, empathy, compassion, and creativity. These keys will unlock the doors to a rich life. What I am at ninety or what you are at your age, depends upon how we use those keys. - Wilferd A. Peterson
Treatment #7 is done. Only 9 more to go. Hematologist (and two other nurses) stopped by to see the reaction on me as well as the photo. Evidently, the reaction is unusual. If someone gets a reaction it's me. He is stopping the Velcade which is the med that is causing the reaction. My monthly appointment is next Friday. He can write a Rx a stronger anti-itch cream if it gets worse and also a stronger anti-nausea if I keep having nausea. Will wait and see. My weight is down another 1.2#. In tears when I get off the scale. My weight is way too low. I see a Dietician on Monday afternoon. I need some good suggestions. I don't think I'm eating any less at meals - just not snacking and I'm beginning to wonder if it's just not snack or the meds as well as the MM.
It's finally stopped raining after 2 days of rain. Supposed to start up again tomorrow and rain the next several days.
I have my end of the year evaluation this afternoon. I finally completed all my paperwork for it. I have to do a self appraisal - it is hard to rate myself - don't want to be too high or not high enough on my ratings The comments are easier to do.
Have a great Friday
I did five more pots for friends and put out an offer to compose a potful for anyone who supplies me with one. I want to save as many as possible.
Did not sleep well at all, last night. Walked Tippy, ate breakfast and did my meds and Tippy's and went back to bed.
I've always seen those flowers sold as winter pansies. They are planted in fall and usually persist into spring. The larger flowers are summer pansies. Winter pansies are a nice bit of color when everything else goes brown.
Nice pictures Cindy. Looks like you’re having a fun trip, lots of fun stops.
Carole - my PCP always has me do labs the day before so she can discuss with me at my appointment the next day. Most tests are done onsite. They give me a hard copy but don’t post in their portal. 🤷🏼♀️
Sorry to hear you’re have a reaction to one of your drugs Karen. I hope you’re able to control the itching. I hope the dietician can help you with your weight loss. I use to dislike performance review time. Doing staff evaluations, my own self evaluation, providing feedback, etc.
Sorry about the nightmares Petite.
I also feel like I’m missing some posts. Don’t mean to ignore anyone, just missing things. Dinner with our old neighbors tonight. They’re in our area for work temporarily and living close by. Haven’t seen then since we both moved away. Have a nice rest of your day.
Carole and Cardplayer, I wish my PCP ordered blood tests prior to my visit. That seems like a logical order, but he does not! That is another reason why I am switching PCP's. I have an appointment with another at the same practice in August.
Cardplayer, sorry your glucose level is high. Mine was only ever high, as in 102, once, and that was years ago. My A1C was in the lower end of the pre-diabetic range. That was a year ago.
My metabolic panel and chem screen were all well within normal limits. My Cardiologist orders those. I see him in June. I was actually surprised since I feel I am eating less healthy foods since my surgeries. I guess I do tend to eat healthy most of the time.
Karen, as hard as I try, I can't fully comprehend how you are feeling due to low weight. I know it IS just as stressful as being obese, but having been obese all my life, or at least being on the heavier side, and I simply can't imagine having a "too low" weight.
I know you are mentally suffering, just like myself and others do at when we step on the scale. I am so sorry you are going through that, but maybe it is time to do what I do and don't ask what your weight is, and don't get on the scales at home, at least for awhile. If I am mentally upset about my weight already, I tell the nurse I am closing my eyes and please don't tell me what I weigh. They are usually good about that. Taking a mini vacation from the scale can prove to be very helpful!
Most of the time I Know exactly what I weigh as I am trying to lose weight. Sometimes, not focusing on what the scale reads but by how I feel, works better. Your constant worry about weight isn't helping you at all!
Ask the nutritionist when you see her/him if she or he, thinks it is ok to try to apply new eating strategies they suggest without knowing your exact weight all the time! I think one of your doctors, or the nutritionist, should be able to carry that burden for you! Someone else needs to monitor your weight for you! Try to relax and focus on how you feel. If you must, imagine yourself 5 pounds heavier! Hey, sometimes we need to play mind games to get well! I wish you the best, I know it is hard not to worry, but you WILL BE just fine!!!!!
I had to scroll up and find Cindy's post and pictures. When someone mentioned the pictures, I knew I had missed them.
I'm back from my hair appointment and am happy to have streaky blond hair again. My stylist had gone with a brown color lately that wasn't me at all. I've never had brown hair. I was white blond when I was a child, then streaked dirty blond in grown up years, the streaks from the sun. My natural undyed color on top now is silver but from the crown down in the back, the color is darker. I have "gone natural" a couple of times and gone back to color.
I have a good friend a couple of years older than I, in early 80's, who declares she will be buried with blond hair. LOL.
Karen, I'm in the same boat with MM. Hard to imagine tears for my weight being too low. Yesterday there was a woman at the Outpatient Center, where I went to have blood drawn, who was having weight loss for unknown reasons. I overheard her conversation with another woman. She said she kept buying new clothes knowing they would become too big for her. I thought about how my process was opposite of hers. I keep buying a bigger size because I can't stand tight clothes.
Petite, hoping you'll have a better night's sleep tonight.
Generosity does not apply only to money and material things; it is more about your spirit. You do not have to be financially wealthy to be generous. You can give love, kindness, time, listening, patience, caring, appreciation, compliments, and service. When in doubt, give.Alan Cohen
We are in the midst of a possible thunderstorm. We have had a lot of sound out of it, but while we are having a 'good' rain, it is not the drenching I thought was coming from all that noise. Hopefully, we won't get real cloudbursts.
I sprinkled some plant food pellets in my ground cover beds. You are really to dig up the soil and put it down slightly underneath. These beds were planted a couple years ago. Well, I'm hoping that some feeding might encourage more of the plants to fill in. Don't know why it wouldn't work. I've used liquid concentrate before but this actually seemed like it could be easier.
Had a strange outage on our Charter service this morning which is why I'm late. The whole system shut down and estimates from the powers that be were that we couldn't get anyone out here until Tues. I said after all the years of our payments I found that totally un=acceptable. Didn't help.
Later I came in to the computer and started fiddling with it (hoping for what I'm not quite sure) and all of a sudden its working. We re-booted everything, and it has been working ever since. This was quite strange as we were given the service date because it was the office doing remote testing. They were the ones to say we had no power at all — and we didn't ???? Hopefully we keep service now.
Good Morning. Heading to celebrate DD birthday and Mother’s Day with DD, SIL, Grandbaby, DS, DIL, and DH today. We meet at DD house since she’s the same distance for us and DS from his home in Baltimore. Looking forward to seeing them and spending time with the family.
Although it rained yesterday, I did quite a bit of walking outside. In the morning, I attended a support group. The group had a trainer come provide some tips to us and then we walked about a mile on some trails next to where we met. After lunch DH and I walked in a light drizzle. Tried to watch the baseball game, but the NATS were rained out.
I hope everyone is feeling good today and has a wonderful day.
Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers. I commented to dh this morning that we both were lucky to have had a good mother. He agreed. This month my mother will have been gone three years. I still miss her but talk to her less as time goes on. The first year I had many conversations with her.
DH and I met my youngest sister (60's) and her dh at Texas Roadhouse, a place not on our list of preferred restaurants. We met at 5pm, very early for us but I thought it would be early for others, too. WRONG. The place was chockablock full of families with children of every age and the noise level was too loud to register on a noise meter. DH and I were amazed at the popularity of the restaurant. Also amazed that whole families can afford to eat out. The prices were not cheap.
Our waiter was a nice young man who gave us good service. When it was time to pay, we didn't get a paper bill but were presented with a little computerized gadget for paying with a credit card. I had the receipt sent by email. My sister said she normally refuses to pay in that manner because she resents what she sees as an effort to do away with cash.
I did some shopping at Belk's yesterday and bought shorts and blouses at a very good price. The sales were Buy One and Get Two Free. Since I had a $10 customer's reward, the price ended up being $75 for three outfits. I don't see how the store can make a profit even with everything being manufactured in a foreign country.
We're going to a music performance this afternoon. A friend sings in a professional chorus and we feel obligated to support her, especially since the auditorium is only a couple of miles away. Her husband will sit with us. They're the couple who will be going to Ireland and Scotland with us in September.
Hope all you moms have a wonderful day.
Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's here!
Cardplayer, your day sounds like it will be wonderful! Can I ask what kind of support group you belong to? I have always been worried about joining the local breast cancer group. It sounds like your group is an amazing group, and walking on trails would be something I would like to do too! I don't feel comfortable sharing with people who might actually know others I know outside the group, since I worked for a large area school district, I know a lot of people in the area. I do like that your group walks. I have a friend who has wanted to walk with me for years. I think it is time I take her up on that!
Not much new with me. I still don't feel well. Not sure why. Maybe I am expecting to feel normal too soon after two surgeries? I hurt from the abdominal liposuction, but I don't want to go back to wearing the abdominal binder. That was super uncomfortable!
Karen, I really hope this treatment is going better for you! Thought of you last night as we watched the Phillies play the Rockies. I love their green uniforms! I couldn't stay up for the end of the game, but DH did.
Sun is out again, a beautiful day! Hope the sun is shining for everyone here today!
You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be--
I had a mother who read to me.
Strickland Gillilan
Sun is peeking through after the thunderstorm yesterday so it should be all right today. I am thinking to get back to some walking — something that always meant a lot to me. It is hard to be like I am now, but all things change, even if you are not quite ready. Time to make the best of it.
I hope you all have a wonderful day. We will spend a quiet day here, doing anything that presents. I will likely make a big meatloaf for dinner later on.
Happy Mother's Day to all.
All's ok here—just had all sorts of everyday stuff keeping me from this forum, plus cat care, shopping, answering stuff on NextDoor, Quora.com, surfing the NYTimes website, AppleNews, plowing through through stuff on my DVR (which, given the WGA strike, will go much faster than usual) to free up drive space, etc.
Just ordered Pooph. Never saw the commercials, but did read ads. I also don't like the residual odor of Nature's Miracle, and the Bissell foam is messy.
Heidi has begun to like her 2x/day "ear rubs." Now that she seems to have regained a little weight (or does she feel heavier because my arms are weaker?), I've increased her dose to the originally prescribed one. Seems to have no ill effects thus far (knock wood). She is a bit more lethargic, but at her age it's to be expected. Mostly, when awake and not eating or using the litterbox she demands cuddling, nuzzling and kneading on my chest or belly while she purrs up a storm. She used to extend a paw, which meant "pet me;" but now she's started to stroke me with that paw, which I figured out means "brush me." She likes the soft nylon bristle side of the brush (like the ones for human baby hair).
Betrayal, I second the recommendation for "prehab." Made a world of difference (along with 2 wks at a much better rehab center than the first time) in recovering from my L TKR, including faster weaning off Norco. Did 2/wk x3 at Athletico—which strengthened the quads and improved my balance a bit (though that Bosu sphere is scary).
We do need that landscape job—but unfortunately we also need a LOT of safety and comfort-related repairs: our indoor staircase to the 2d floor needs replacing because it's been so creaky for at least 8 yrs. (the EMTs who carried Bob downstairs in 2015 when he had that perfed-bowel chided me that it was a disaster waiting to happen). We have two cracked and peeling ceilings upstairs and a suspended ceiling in the upstairs office that was jury-rigged re-patched after a raccoon fell from the attic back in 2004. We need several windows replaced (they're Anderson awning windows that were already 5 yrs old when we moved here in 1987: one cracked, the others have leaky frames; none are well-insulated). We haven't repainted—indoors or out—since 1988! In the front room (where I spend most of my waking time and which was originally part of a full-width porch) we have drafts coming in around the crown moldings and the caulking we've done DIY looks awful and is failing. It's so cold in here that in winter I have to layer my clothes despite the rest of the house feeling toasty. So if we re-landscape first, the paint splatter and debris from window replacement/repair/frame-scraping would ruin all those lovely plantings.
Therefore, I'm going to tell our landscaper "full speed ahead" on the sidewalk and brick-paver path job but to hold off on all the flora till we've done the exterior window & paint work. And the very first job we'll tackle is to find someone competent to repair or replace the interior stairs. Fortunately, there's a Hampton Inn half a mile north where we can stay for the duration of that repair (and probably the interior re-paint job) should we not want to sleep on the first floor couches. We have enough HHonors points to stay there nearly free.
As for Jameson's, I'd never had it except muddled with brown sugar in Irish coffee. When, at the barristers' farewell banquet at Dublin's King's Inn, it was offered as an after dinner drink, I chose it over Bailey's (which I find cloying). Took two sips—and on top of all that prosecco & wine, it was more than enough. I was lucky to have enough of my wits still about me to order an Uber for the trip back to the hotel.
Oh, and Happy Mother's Day! We're going up to Froggy's late this afternoon (rain be damned) for their special menu, which we did last year. I ate so much at bedtime that I couldn't bear anything more than coffee today. Dinner's at 4:30, which is plenty early enough for me today.
Yesterday, we went to Dominican U. in River Forest for a long-postponed (since March 2020) benefit concert by Audra McDonald, who is one of Bob's favorite singers. She was magnificent, but with a quite down-to-earth stage presence, at least in a recital setting. The only reason she doesn't have an EGOT is that there hasn't been an appropriate film that would put her in the running for an Oscar. At 6 Tonys (with another nomination this year), she far and away holds the B'way record.
I made the mistake, BTW, of using the ancient and now-partly-obsolete nav system in our 2014 Outback, instead of downloading & printing the Mapquest directions (which would have taken us under an hour, all on surface streets) or using Siri (which Bob says misdirects him half the time). Because the maps haven't been updated since 2020—and no longer can be, for love or money—it doesn't "know" major lane & exit reconfigurations on interstates. Drives me nuts when it says to take a particular exit when that exit turns out to be inaccessible due to recently-divided-and-protected lanes. It's steered me wrong getting to both Lake Bluff for my derm and Madison, WI (where I need to perform this Fri.). Amazingly, it did that for THREE different exits yesterday, taking us 15 miles and 1/2 hr. out of our way—including doubling back on the tollway and then getting stuck for 15 min. at a RR x-ing for a freight train after finally exiting the tollway. We arrived in time, but shaken and in desperate need of the restrooms…which were downstairs with no elevator. Seats were great, though.
Afterward, we went to the nearby Oak Park branch of Cooper's Hawk winery (a chain where we haven't been since mid-2019, in Oak Lawn when Bob had to stay over at the Hilton before an early morning of rounds at Advocate Christ; we've also been to the Orland Park branch, and they have others in Wheeling and downtown in the "Viagra Triangle"). We should have made a res the night before, but had no idea how long the show would run. So they couldn't seat us in the dining room so we sat at the bar instead.
The bartender/servers were quite overworked and the kitchen was slammed. It was noisy. My soup was lukewarm; my mocktail arrived late and—unlike its ingredients listed on the menu—had sugary "simple syrup" (or 7-Up/Sprite instead of club soda); and when I took my fork to fish through the ice for the cucumber garnish at the bottom of the glass, I speared a mint leaf that had a HAIR hanging off it. Ugh. At least my steak salad was good and so was the suggested pairing glass of Meritage—such a big pour I gave most of it to Bob.
Happy Mother's Day to all who have children or fur babies. I am a grandmother to 3 children, 1 dog, 2 cats, 5 parakeets and 5 grand dogs.
By prehab do you mean doing PT prior to surgery? TKR today is outpatient with discharge to home the day after and not to a rehab unit. PT then is outpatient and not sure if they come to you or if you have to go to them? I am all in for having PT ahead of surgery.
Went to U of PA 50th class reunion yesterday and ended up walking nearly 11,000 steps. I met the Dean of the School of Nursing who was there to greet alumni and she was very cordial. A lot different than when I went to school when you only saw the Dean in passing, though the Dean at the time did assist me with a registration issue for which I was eternally grateful.
We marched in the class parade (DH is a graduate school alum and his 50th will be in 2 years to coincide with my 40th from grad school) and attended the luncheon for my class. It was a very nice luncheon with an open bar. Did not partake but DH did.
Knees are a bit stiff today but I was amazed at how well I did yesterday. See ortho in about 10 days so I can talk about TKR. There is another ortho in area who does custom implants meaning knee takes in to consideration how you walk, etc. Interesting concept and may explore.
Sandy, sounds like you have a full house renovation project on your hands. Window replacement usually uses existing frames but if they are older and failing they may need to be replaced. It is not cheap to have done but you will end up saving on utility bills if your home becomes less drafty. DS is having some windows replaced but can't remember name at moment. He is in IT and a customer recommended the company and it is highly rated. ,
Hope everyone has a lovely day.
Hi @chisandy,
I don't know if you have a smartphone, but if you do, I found some navigational apps that are better at protecting your privacy if that's a concern for you (in case that's why you print directions).
Mavericksmom - I actually go to two support group. The one I attended Saturday is a support group that uses creative arts as the focus. Each month is something different. I just started attending. In April we did mandala art therapy, this month we explored the healing benefits of walking and next month look at reflexology. It’s a peer led group. I have asked the integrated health coordinator at our cancer support center about doing gratitude walks. They use to offer them twice a week, but stopped when they had some personnel changes. We have beautiful walking trails at the Museum of Shenandoah Valley. I also attended a monthly Breast Cancer Support group that’s led by a social worker.
Carole - sounds like you got some bargains at Belks. Enjoy the concert this evening.
Sandy - sounds like you’ve got lots of home projects to do. Seeing Audra McDonald sounds wonderful. Glad you enjoyed her performance.
Betrayal - glad you enjoyed your reunion. Sounds like the rain held off and the parade went well.
Illinois - sounds like you had a nice relaxing day. Sounds wonderful.
We had a lovely lunch with the kids. Grandbaby was very well behaved, smiling and babbling. She’s doing raspberries now too, lots of fun. We ate at True Food Kitchen. They were able to make spaghetti squash plain for me so that I could eat it. Everyone enjoyed their meals, we sang happy birthday and enjoyed being together.
Have a nice evening.
I put baking soda on the carpet and vacuumed it up several hours later. Smelly because today and yesterday have been rainy. Still resisting the urge to order something expensive. I think his accidents soaked down to the padding.
I will finish up on a sewing job tomorrow. It turned out to be messy because of communication problems and departing from the original pattern in multiple ways. She is self-conscious because of saggy upper arms. I told her that nearly everyone our age has them, and this top has to have shorter sleeves because of its design. She didn't know that saggy upper arms are common among older women because she is severely visually impaired. Went half-price on the job.
Outpatient. Celebrex (sensitive stomach). He understands my concern about pain> high blood pressure> hearing loss. Will keep me reasonably comfortable. And concerns about opiate use. There are several people who have had drug problems here, and I am concerned about them trying to get access to my meds. I suspect that Tom and Laura will take me down to Beaver Dam, so as to avoid the stress.
Yes, I have a whole new set of prehab exercises. The major point of them is to memorize them now by doing them, so later with fuzzy brain they will be a routine and therefore easier. Prehab is without rehab. Most people have visiting PT services for the first two weeks, and then outpatient PT at hospital or clinic. Some people complaining about shin splints, so I am still doing the preventive exercise for that from my previous list.
A lot of switching to home-centered post-surgical care is due to the fact that there are more possibilities of exposure to germs in hospitals, rehab centers, and nursing homes. Knee replacement is especially vulnerable to that. I brought up that subject, and he made a facial expression of intense grief and agreed. I quickly changed the subject.
I've had a lovely birthday/Mother''s Day week. Steak Diane by chef Ken for me and our departing BFF's. birthday wishes from my golfing friends, dinner last night at our country club. Prime rib was overdone though so our new food and beverage manager comped our whole meal. Have demoed a few drivers. The price of golf clubs has really skyrocketed since I last bought some! DD accidentally sent her Amazon order for my occasions to herself. She's saving one until we get there this summer but had Ken buy me a "birthday pie" and sent a lovely plant.
I was most surprised and pleased by a call from BFF's daughter. Maureen hasn't done well with Larry's new love (and there is blame all around for that), but I have been filling in with some "grandparent" and "mom" tasks and it was nice to be appreciated for that.
Also had a call from my BFF from high school. My close college friends are all gone so I am especially glad to have her friendship.
Mother's Day is always bitter-sweet for me as I also remember the son we lost at 16. He should have been 52 the end of the month.
Mary, my ortho said the same thing about inpatient rehab post knee surgery. I'm glad your family will be able to help and your move sounds exciting.
Great quote today, Jackie.
Marge
Taco, I was in a local golf store last week to have some golf grips replaced on five clubs. Out of curiosity I asked if they had any women's individual clubs. The store is typically focused on men golfers so the store employee showed me only two clubs. One was a driver priced at almost $500. Too expensive for me. When I was more into golf, I bought clubs on Ebay. I've had the same ones now for 8 or 10 years. I did recently buy a beautiful new golf bag that I admire when I walk past it. LOL. I wear gloves on both hands for sun protection and am having to order from Amazon.
I am starting to feel some nerves about departing on Sunday. I will start packing cool/cold weather clothes today since we experience a range of temperatures in MN.
I will hold off a few days on checking the pantry for items to take with us.
I got a sweet text from my niece Rebecca who thanked me for being a Bonus Mom to her.
Happy Monday to all.
We’re back home, arrived about 4 pm Sunday. The yard is a disaster area. Back yard full of pine cones, and piles of tree limbs. I’ve got the pool cover draining. Front lawn is high, plus dug up from of snow plow hire. He always skims off the corner of my lawn to pile on the snow - longish narrow driveway with retaining wall on one side, house on the other. So he drags out the snow and pushes it up into a mountain on the front lawn, depending on how much snow we get. It seems worse this year and we had less snow. Go figure.
Partners car wouldn’t start, looks like an animal chewed through the extension cord to the trickle charger on the battery. AAA came and jumped it to get it going. He had to drive around for a while to charge it, when he noticed a dashboard light on - we had to google it: Electronic throttle controller. We dropped the car off at the dealer last evening. I see $$$ dancing in my head.
Knees - in Florida they do something that is supposed to be a replica of your knee vs prefab everyone gets the same or similar based on manufacturer. Almost like a 3D printer kind of thing I’m told. They do a lot of TKR down there based on aging population.
Paint - we need the upstairs stairwell and hall ceiling and trim painted. And our bedroom needs removal of wallpaper before painting the entire room, ceiling and trim. I do not have central AC in this house and with vacations, including guests coming here, I’m thinking September or October might work. I’ll need to text the painter to book now. Sandy it’s good planning to hold off on the plantings until your other projects are completed.
Belks and Bealls - I miss them when I’m back in NY. I could always find a bargain there. We have an outlet store where I can gets shirts for as low as $7.99 - $10.99, not that I need anymore! Great deal on your three outfits.
Mary it sounds like you’ve got a good plan in place pre surgery with the PT. And I loved your pictures! I somehow miss a lot of posts, and when others mentioned how pretty they were I had to go back to find them.
Taco I’ve got my clubs stored in the attic. The price of clubs are an investment in your pleasure of use. I should get my clubs out and at least hit a bucket. I haven’t golfed in years, since my back went out and my continued fear of it going out again.
Temp says 58, but I was out wandering the back yard in my robe, it didn’t feel bad to me. Should hit 75 so they say. My FL wake up temps were about 73, with highs going into the 90’s. Too hot, so I’ll adjust to the temps here.
So much work to do and here I sit keying. I had to go back in my basement (where the spiders live) yesterday and this morning too. My niece missed tuning the circuit breaker on for the dryer; I thought maybe the dryer had died. And today I had to turn the water back on for the refrigerator. I went for my morning pint and nothing came out. Back to the basement, I just about squat when I go down there so no cobwebs get me. Have a great Monday ladies!
10 years is an eternity when it comes to orthopedic surgery advances. Add to that the pandemic’s effect on all congregate-care settings, including inpatient rehab; and the major danger of metal implants failing because bacteria like MRSA can form a “biofilm” around them. The reason I did inpatient rehab both times (discharged from hospital after 2 days) is that the post-op protocol back then was 10-14 days of TWICE-daily PT and daily OT—which would have been impossible for me due to my house being 7 steps up from street level. (Stairs were taught toward the end of inpatient PT). Insurance wouldn’t have paid for 2x/day medi-car transport to a PT clinic that would have necessitated.
But now the UK protocol of a decade ago (no formal “physio,” just self-exercises, icing and elevation) has spread worldwide. After I was finally sent home, a PT would come to my house 3x/week, along with a visiting nurse every other day to take my vitals and a finger-prick to measure INR and fine-tune my anticoagulant dose (clots are the other major complication of lower-limb surgery). Home visits were 3 weeks, then I was on my own to go to outpatient PT 3x/week (first time, the clinic would send a car for me because it was my R, “driving” leg; a year later I could drive myself because my cars had automatic transmissions so my L foot had nothing to do). The thought back then about joint replacement being essentially an outpatient surgery was that orthos who did that were “cowboys.” Now, a combination of COVID and economy has made that standard-of-care.
BTW, the first time, rehab was on an emergent basis because despite admonitions during pre-op “joint replacement school” I didn’t think I’d need it; and we had to scramble to find a center with availability that my then insurance would cover—hence the lousy facility in which I spent 10 days. The next time, even before starting pre-hab and joint-replacement-school, I researched and toured inpatient facilities and made two reservations. That’s how I ended up in a great facility with better food, activities, a restaurant-like dining room (to which I could invite guests), great therapists, nicer surroundings and mostly ortho patients. (The first one had memory-care and hospice patients on my floor, without regard to gender—old men kept wandering into my room). The 2 weeks there flew by!
Took today off from work. Overwhelmed and exhausted. Just needed a day away. Only 3 weeks left, but it is a long 3 weeks.
It's been a hard two months. So much to process and understand. Still so many unknowns. I only got one of the two injections on Friday due to the reaction the previous two weeks. I felt so much better with getting just the one. Not sure if it is just a week break or will not get the Velcade anymore. I have my monthly Hematologist appointment on Friday so hope to have some answers then. Then is an oral form of Velcade, but serious nausea is a side effect - no thank you. Transplant oncologist said if take it at night, pre-med before taking it and then again in the morning, should be okay. Not Karen - I struggle with nausea with many meds and don't want to be miserable if this is presented as an option. The skin reactions are fading.
9 days till DD due date. She is feeling good but ready for the baby to make his/her entrance. We will go a week or two after baby is born as she is having a baby nurse when she first comes home. I'm limited on my travel as I need to be home for chemo on Fridays. I will go again after I finish chemo and hope to take a couple weeks FMLA when she goes back to work to take care of the baby before baby goes to daycare. Of course, I will need to work this out with work. I have plenty of sick time, so that shouldn't be an issue.
Rain last night, and more showers on and off this week. This is the wettest May in years. More rain so far for the first half the month, than the average for the whole month.
Going to go heat up homemade chicken soup for lunch. Have a good Monday.
Regan decided to chew the battery cover for my TENS unit and getting a replacement has not been easy. The company I bought it from does not offer this for sale because "it comes with the unit". Well, surely they make them separate because it is removable? Did not have the patience to deal with the online salesperson. Finally found one that I hope works where the price for the battery cover is nominal, but the shipping is 4x's as much.
Asked DH to pull out power washer so I could do the front porch. He reported it was not working so I went to check and here he had not turned the nozzle on. It works, so I did the porch deck and the ceiling where the spiders love to live. So residual cobwebs are gone and the porch is done. Waiting for it to dry so I can see if I need to do any more passes.
Waiting for porch and patio furniture to be returned by refinisher. They are wrought iron and the patio furniture was purchased over 30 years ago and when he finishes, they look brand new. Several pieces are only about 20 years old and were purchased after our first tree damage which was mostly confined to the back of the house and patio. Porch pieces are about 20 years old as well. I used to scrape them down and paint but it is a lot of work and the paint layers were getting too thick. He sandblasts them and spray paints them as if they were an auto. It has been nearly 20 years since the last painting so they were due.
DD and DSil helped reassemble patio yesterday. They got my planting table out of the shed and set it up so I could pot plants. So I got 4 large planters done and the planter for the hummingbird which contains lantana camera. The bird bath is in place as is the fountain. We still have one table and chair set on the patio so we were able to have dinner outside. The weather was so pleasant and it felt good to be able to be outside for a meal. I still have plants that need to be placed in planters, so I just need to select the pots I want to use.
Cindyny, glad to see you reached your destination. Looks like you have a "to-do" list as well of household updates.
Carole: Looks like you are approaching your launch date as well. Hope your journey is safe and pleasant.
Karen: Sorry to hear you are still experiencing SE's from your treatments. Once I was too thin and was teased about that; now I am overweight and am fat shamed about that. So it seems that there is no happy medium about weight. I think if you stop getting on the scale this might lessen the anxiety you are feeling about your current weight. If you are eating and it is healthy, that should be your focus. Indulge in foods that are higher calorie to see if this helps.
Mary: Seems you are approaching your surgery with an "all you can do" attitude to ensure a good outcome. Instead of memorizing your exercises, can you get printouts that serve as a back-up if memory decides to take a vacation. My PT's were always able to print both a written and picture of the exercises (including the steps) they wanted me to do.
Sandy: Thanks for your review of your TKR journey. Times have changed in 10 years and I can remember subjecting fresh post-op knees to CPM (continuous passive movement) machines. They were not appreciated at the time and have since fallen out of favor.
Taco: Sorry this is a tough time of year for you. I hope you are able to find some comfort in knowing that we are here for you.
It is a lovely day so I want to try to get outside again. Hope everyone has a good day.
