Open Wide

Hello, Today, my dental appointment was at 2:00 pm. I was sure of it. However, when I checked today at 10:00 am, the calendar had 10:00 am written on it. I panicked. I tried to call, left a message and raced to the car, got a block away when I realized I had not brought with me the replacement teeth that had fallen out. Turned on the next block, raced upstairs, grabbed what I needed, and hurried back out to the car. In the car, I took some deep breaths and told myself that an accident would not help. At that point, the dentist’s office called me. They said it would be alright to still come. I did not speed, but was at the limit all of the time. At the dentist’s office, he was just ready for me. He assured me that it was ok. He got right to work checking out the situation. There were still some pieces stuck to my teeth that he had to extract. Some came easily and some required drilling. Amazing how we put our trust in the hands of people who care for us. What steady hands. He did tell me that if there was any pain I should tell him. Aside from holding my mouth open for some longer periods of time, there was no pain. I realized when I left that, in spite of my lateness, he still spent an hour and a half with me. That 2:00 appointment is next week for my yearly check at the doctor. Do you think I will want to go at 10:00 am? Paula

Life Returns to Normal

Hello, Life returns to normal, but what does that mean? For one thing I was able to get a haircut. Little did I know there was a special going on. Including the tip, my haircut cost $10. It has been quite a while since that was a price. There were a lot of people taking advantage of this offer. Luckily, I could check in on line so I knew when to go. We like canned salmon. The store where we usually purchase it has not had any for some time. Since I was close, I went there after my haircut. No salmon cans to be seen. Leroy thought he would like some more meat. I was able to find some organic turkey. Hope he likes it. Another stop on the way home, at the pharmacy to pick up a refilled prescription for him. Is this guy now the pill consumer? It was not that long ago that he did not take any prescriptions. It takes a mental adjustment to get to a different phase in life. I must be too careful with some things as I do not want to be wasteful. I have some spot/stain remover in a spray bottle. It has become difficult to spray. It seemed to be about empty. I washed some rugs today. One had a spot on it. I took off the top, turned the bottle upside down and a rather large glob of gelled substance came out. At least it was on the spot. I spread it around a bit, hoped for the best, put it in the washer and started it. That rug looks so much better. We even think it lightened the entire thing. With a bit of water in the spray bottle, I should be able to use it once more. This is me conforming to the rules I grew up with. My mother would be pleased. Paula

Help At the Library

Hello, Leroy feels so much better today. He even took a short walk or two. That was between the rain events. I had to stop at the library to get books for him. He has raced through quite a number of them. They are all light reading. He thinks I do much too much serious reading. Sometimes fiction, sometimes nonfiction. I can do some light reading, but not for long. He gave me a list. I was able to find quite a few of them. Then he asked for a series which I had not heard of. I did not know who the author was, but assumed it was the one on the page he gave me. It is always nice to get help from the desk for what is what. I told the friendly person that it was my husbands writing. “Oh,” she said, “so we will blame him?” She found the series and it was indeed that author. “I will come help you look for them. Two sets of eyes are always better than one.” She identified several books in the series. When we went back to the desk, we checked out the books on my card, since I did not have Leroy’s. Then she asked if I have the library app on my phone. To my negative response she told me the value of having it. She helped me get it on my phone, got me checked in, and showed me how to use it. What great help. Now if I can just remember it when I am in the library. At home I use the computer too look up things and I do find the same information. Now I will have it with me when I wonder if I have read a certain book. I should mention that the app does not have the name of the library on it, but a set of three letters that seem unrelated to this library. Don’t know if I would have ever thought that was the library app. Paula

Leroy is Home

Hello, Leroy came home yesterday afternoon. He felt fine. In the evening his stomach did not feel so good. During the night he made more than one trip to the bathroom. He is feeling better some minutes and not so much others. We learned that he did not react to the medicine, but had Noro virus. It was such bad timing for him. He probably got it because it was compromised by the surgery. I have felt fine. We are both a bit grumpy that he could feel so good when he came home and it should return to some degree. It is not as bad as it was. We have managed to keep him hydrated. That has probably helped his heart. I kept thinking that there must be something in the house that caused it. I have washed the bathroom floor three times. Sanitized this and that, more than once. Washed two loads of clothes and used the dryer for more sterilizing heat. At least that was my idea with it all. I have used up all the bleach I have in the house. I suppose I could go to the store now as Leroy seems good. Earlier I did not want to leave him in case he needed something. I am learning a little bit about being a caregiver. We are both taking seriously the dictum to wash our hands thoroughly. One article about this virus said that the sanitizers do not always take care of it. Running water is the best because it moves the germs on. We certainly want them out of here. I am treating water like an expendable commodity. Not my usual self. Paula

Update on Leroy

Hello, Leroy’s heart ablation went fine. He came home the day after the procedure. Had a good sleep and felt wonderful in the morning until about 10:00 am. Then he started to notice some aches and pains. Plus, he had to go to the toilet a lot. He then started to experience weakness. The doctor on call had us take his blood pressure which turned out to be a bit low. He suggested that he was getting dehydrated and he should stop the med that had been prescribed. Since he took it in the morning, there was not much to do about that at the moment. He still seemed fairly good so I went and did my volunteering at church with the stipulation that he should call if needed. He did not call but told me when I got home that he needed to go to the toilet again. He had trouble getting up. After he went, he just laid on the bathroom floor. I started suggesting that we go to the emergency room, but he did not think it necessary. I suggested he go lay on the bed where he could roll off more easily. With help he stood up and started moving slowly, but on his own. When we were close, I went to pull back the covers. I heard a loud thump, raced out and found him lying flat on his back. At that point, I said we needed to go to the ER. He said he felt better. In a bit he too thought we should go, but I said, “I cannot get you down the stairs we must call the ambulance.” He said, “No,” however a few seconds later he changed it to yes. They came and had a serious conversation about what was wrong, started an IV and give him a shot of something. Then they got a portable chair because our stairs is hard to navigate with a sharp curve in it. They would have to carry him down, but assured me that it would be an easy job compared to many. Leroy spent the night in the hospital and will again tonight. I think he is looking much better now and he is not hooked up to so many things. Grateful for all that can be done. Paula

Health Care

Hello, I am grateful for the health care we have available. We have two hospitals within two miles of our home. Both of them have a good reputation. Today we visited one of them for Leroy to get a test for his heart. Tomorrow he will have a procedure that is to help that heart work better. I look at all the equipment in the room for the test and marvel at the inventions and inventors that have brought all this into being. I try to remember those who do not have so much available to them. Even though we might complain about the cost, we can pay it and we do have insurance coverage so we do not pay the full price. Again, I am aware that there are people here and abroad who do not have such available to them. Course there are many countries that have access to medical care for all citizens. Leroy had to give himself some shots before this procedure since he is on blood thinner which he had to stop before the day. He was quite nervous about the shots, but it turned out not to be hard at all. When Leroy’s test was done this morning, the woman commented that he was a cheap date because he does not need much anesthesia. As it is, he ate something when we got home and he has been sleeping since. The dermatologist froze a spot on my face. I have had that done before. This time however, he did it several times to that spot or close to it. Today it is a bit swollen. Certainly nothing I want to touch, but I now know I touch my face many times for no reason in particular. Paula

Talented or what?

\Hello, Today, I went to the store for honey since I want to make granola and did not have enough honey at home. I went in for one item and came out with $32 worth of things. Am I talented or what? When I was brushing my teeth this morning, I managed to knock out my bridge in front. It had cracked about a month ago. The Dentist wanted to see if it would settle down as he could see no breaks. I had just heard a noise. Am I talented or what? After making that trip to get the honey, I forgot to make the granola this afternoon. Instead, I took a walk, read some, and watched a program on TV. Am I talented or what? Paula