Still Improving! 10-09-21

It was a busy day and I hardly needed my cane!  Seems like the injection is working - hope it will last for months and months.  My leg/hip/spine still hurt, but not as bad and I can step up on a curb without that stabbing pain.  

We both had our hair cut, the car washed, money from bank, See's for gifts, and, of course, our two walks.  I finished the sleeve on the "Welcome Home" quilt that is going to PIQF, but still have the label to sew on.  Stupid arthritis in my hands keeps me from hand stitching for more than about half an hour, so things go slowly.  

I am struggling with remembering what to take when I travel!  The pandemic seems to have erased my mind in places.  I know I have a list in my laptop somewhere, but wonder if it would still apply since I made it at least a decade ago.  I did get out the daily pill bottles I fill when I travel and have them set out to fill tomorrow.  Since the TIA I now take so many pills that I need an AM and a PM bottle for every day.  How did this happen to me?  I also need to take sewing to do during the days I am up in the Santa Clara area.  And my friend Liz reminded me today that I need warmer clothing for that area since a storm is coming that will close the passes over the Sierra due to snow!  I am not going over, but there may be cold rain from the coast to the mountains.    I do have KoKo's things organized.  I can't imagine what it would be like to pack for a family!  Just for KoKo there is food, treats, bed, Froggy, quilt, poop bags, carrier, paperwork, brush/comb, and...  I hope that is everything. 

I tried again to capture that "parchment curl of California gold...." and Venus, but even bracing the camera against a tree couldn't prevent the camera jiggle.  

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Doctoring 10-07-21

 

This just seems like a lovely sunset picture, but it is a little strange in that it is looking east on Palm Avenue.  Yes, east!  I was confused, however I realized that the sun was reflecting off a huge, tall pile of clouds in the east, shining under the local overcast.  There was very little sunset to the west because the sun was already below the horizon.  I have never noticed this phenomenon before. 

Today I had the third epidural for the sciatica.  It was at the Hoag Surgical Center in Irvine, across the street from the enormous Kaiser facilities - hospital and offices.  The Hoag Center is quite large also and I landed in the wrong place and had to call Dick to come to drive me around the complex to the correct location.  The signs are small (the Irvine Company influence?) and there doesn't seem to be a direct way to get anywhere.  If you ever go, be sure you have the exact address (we didn't) and use your GPS (we did).   The paperwork and the prep of my body took more than a half an hour and I'm sure I signed my name about a dozen times.  It seems they never received the FAX with my Covid test results and I think they ended up calling the doctor's office to check that it was negative.  The procedure only takes about 10 minutes, followed by a 15 minute "recuperation" period.  As instructed I have rested all day, but did have an okay to take KoKo for his evening walk.  I still hurt, but I remember that it took several days the last time for the effects to show up.  Hope they do. I would like to do some exercises, but they said to wait three days for that. 

Tomorrow I will be active again and hope to finish the final touches on my quilt to go to PIQF.  Just have the label to make and some threads to pull in and trim.  I am pleased with how it has turned out and happy that I learned some things along the way.   I will be glad to be able to sew for longer periods of time - standing at the cutting table and the ironing table and sitting with my foot on the pedal!  Soon.

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I am going to have another spinal injection tomorrow morning.  My third epidural for sciatica, which started last year about this time.  It has taken a month to get an appointment and this time it is down in Irvine.  Not good that it is for 8:30am check in - right at the high point of traffic which is always stalled on the 55 Fwy.  But I took the first appointment I could get.   I had to go to my primary doctor for a Covid test (negative) and an EKG.  While waiting for the nurse to set up I noticed this fancy, sparkly thing on the counter with the Q-tips and cotton balls and tongue depressors.  What was that doing in an exam room?  Turns out it is a "room refresher".  I could not smell it, thank the Goddess, but it didn't appear to have an opening for an odor to escape.  Weird.  

There are two new nurses in the office.  I think they are both about 14 years old!  Things have greatly changed in the 30 years I have been going to this office.  The new doctor is Uzma Ahmed and I think she is about 25!  I'm feeling really old (and cranky) these days.

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Halloween - again. 10-04-21

Halloween hasn't meant anything much to me since I was about 10, or maybe 14.  I don't understand the attraction so many seem to have with the "holiday".  Even before the 1st of the month the decorations were going up.  Some houses in my neighborhood will be heavily decorated by the time Halloween finally occurs the end of the month.  Odd. 

This fellow is very tall and I left the car in the image to show that he is actually taller than the palm trees.  Probably about 12 -14 feet!  He appeared about the 27th of September.  But I may not have seen him right away because he does blend in with the trees. 

Here is another giant, again 12 feet or more.  The wind rustles her/his robes which makes for special fright. 

This house is in the cul de sac across the street from us.  

Look  closely around the base of the tree to see silvery skulls and spikes, like cemetery gates, I guess.  

Tonight we had lightning and thunder and RAIN!  Not much, probably not enough to measure, but still refreshing.  Temp is supposed to drop from 90s to 70s for this week.  Feeling a little like autumn.  

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