Walking Wounded!

I'm not too much the worse for wear since yesterday's fall.  My arm looks pretty bad but it hasn't hurt and I think I'll leave the bandage off at least until I go to bed tonight.  I haven't had the nerve to unwrap the knee, as it probably looks pretty mean as well.  It doesn't hurt although I detect a slight stiffness if I've been sitting for a while.

Today has been another beautiful day, getting up to 65 degrees.  Tomorrow will begin a long run of days in the 70's.  I did one load of laundry today but dried it in the dryer at the laundry bldg.  I think tomorrow I will hang sheets and towels on the line!

I've been assessing what I will have to do in each of my rooms for the guys to be able to install new windows.  It means moving a lot of furniture and other items around, but I'll just take one thing at a time.  I hope Steve can get over to take the measurements so we can get the windows soon.  Things never move as fast as I'd like them to, but if I want fast and right away I would have to pay about 3x what it will probably cost me to have family do it.  I hope I live long enough to enjoy the beautiful new windows without those awful cranks, and with screens that fit and can be removed easily for washing.  In order to wash the screens on these huge jalousie windows I currently have, I would have to remove the remaining window cranks (many of them were missing when I moved in) to get the screens out.  I would probably never get the cranks to work again and couldn't open or close the windows.

I'm sure it would be easier to move into a small apartment!

The dreaded fall!

Like many or most folks my age I dread falling.  It happens now and then but usually without anything too damaging.  This evening I was sitting at the table reading something on my computer, and wanted to go into the kitchen to check on my supper cooking on the stove.  I was carrying my computer and tripped over the space heater - not a terribly small device and it's a wonder I didn't see it!  I ended up with a big gash on my arm, and an even bigger one on my knee, which is really going to make walking difficult tomorrow.

On a happier note I'm looking out the front door at the most beautiful sky - all shades of red, a bit of gold and yellow, and a patch of baby blue here and there.  

I cooked some yellow beets for dinner that I had bought at the farmers market a week or so ago.  The farmer kept stressing that they were very sweet, and they certainly were very delicious.  The cooking water was also a beautiful shade of yellow!  I saved the largest of the three and will fix it tomorrow, and hope I can find the stall where I bought these beets next time I go to the market.

I got my hair cut this morning.  When I mentioned that I didn't know how long I would be able to drive to her salon, she said "Well then I will just have to come to you!   That is so sweet of her, but lord I would have to clean my house from top to bottom before I'd let her in it!

It looks like our weather is going to warm up for a few days.  I may even be able to keep the front door open and get some fresh air into the house.  I really need to go back to dealing with the weeds, but I'd first better worry that I can walk tomorrow!

 

Hungry!

I can't seem to get enough to eat today, and I've  been at it all day long.  I've eaten way more than what I usually do, and it's still early!  But I can't figure out where the energy in the food (calories) I've been eating is going if I don't gain weight.  I guess as long as I don't lose it.  I had steak last night, and I have to face it, I really don't care for steak.  It is tolerable and I'm hoping to benefit from the iron in it, but I just don't like it.  This evening I had baked beer-battered cod and it was delicious.  That is more my preference with lots of protein, but right now I'm trying to eat iron-rich foods.

I need to go back to Costco tomorrow or the next day to  buy more vinegar for the weeds.  I was there last night with Jeannie, but she went to see what kind of cell phone plan she can change over to, and I mostly sat on a comfortable outdoor couch and watched all the people going by.

Speaking of cell phones, what is the matter with most people who walk around with one in their hand?  I was going to turn into the driveway of the center where the gym is located, and a man & woman were standing on the sidewalk right in the middle of the arrow indicating "In", for vehicles of course.  The man moved, but the woman was so engrossed in looking at her phone she just stood in the middle of the drive.   I can't imagine how much further it will go until the whole thing implodes.  People can't go on like that - for one thing many of them are in potentially dangerous situations by not paying attention to what is going on around them.  And no matter how many laws have been passed outlawing their use by drivers in a moving vehicle, don't you know there are probably huge numbers of people who still do it.

Today was supposed to be rainy, but any showers that fell didn't last more than a minute or two.  The next two days look good, but who knows what will actually be.  I don't think they can forecast more than 24 hours at a time!  Evidently the really bad weather is going to bypass California, but we'll see.

We should all take heart as spring is just around the corner!

 

Still around not doing much

I spent most of the afternoon with my daughter, going to the gym, Target, and Costco.  I looked at Target for some slouchy socks that won't leave deep ridges in my right leg, but of course couldn't find any.  I haven't seen anything that I am looking for online either, so I'll have to try a specialty store, as soon as I figure out what kind of specialty I need.

I had a steak and spinach for dinner - lots of spinach, and I hope I gained a tiny bit of iron.  But dessert has been Girl Scout cookies - peanut butter patties.  There is nothing more delicious!

After spraying yesterday for grass and weeds, it rained for a few minutes in the evening, and then today on a couple of occasions.   Some of the sprayed area had already started to turn brown a short time after application of the vinegar/salt solution.  I need to get more vinegar since we will probably have to spray at least once or twice more.

I didn't take a nap today and am hoping I can get to sleep early this evening.  I may even leave the kitchen cleanup until tomorrow morning!  There really isn't much to do.

 

Attacking the weeds!

It has been cloudy off and on all day and was supposed to rain today and tomorrow, so I was surprised when Steve called and said he would come over with his helper (Liam) and treat the weeds in my yard.  The grass and weeds have grown like they are on steroids with all the rain we've had this year.  I pulled a few by hand, but since my gallbladder operation a couple of years ago I can't lean over forward for very long, and that's what I have to do to grab the weeds and pull!

Liam and I did pull a lot of the stuff along the back fence, and Steve helped as well.  By the time he left we could see parts of the grass and plants had already started to turn brown.  He will definitely have to come back and spray again.  We used vinegar, salt, and a bit of dishwashing detergent (to better make the solution stick to the weeds).

He talked to me about replacing the all the windows in the house.  They are all the old jalousie type windows and don't fit tightly to begin with.  Many of the cranks have been lost over time, and the ones that are still on the windows don't work very well, which means I open them in the beginning of summer and don't close them until late fall.  That allows a lot of dirt and dust to blow in, so I think a new style of window that is easier to open and close, plus screens that will be easier to clean, will make my life a lot better.  Most of the windows are very large which helps when buildings are so close to each other and block out the sunlight, but most people who replace the old windows seem to opt for much smaller ones.  I think I convinced Steve I need the light.

He and Joe will come over "soon" and haul all the junk away in the laundry room.  At one time it was an open porch which the owners tried to close off and make a ceiling to hide the aluminum porch cover.  It wasn't a good job to begin with, but I understand how it must have worsened over time.   So we will clean everything out and they will try to put a new ceiling up.  I have 220 electric coming into the room, so I would like to replace the old washing machine and add a dryer.  That will make life a lot easier for me when doing laundry, as I wash it here and carry the baskets across the street to the laundry room to dry and fold.  I will probably continue to line dry my sheets and towels, but might just accept using a dryer for everything else.  We'll see how long it takes for this to happen, and I understand they both have families of their own.  They both are excellent fathers who spend a lot of time with their children, and I don't want to cut into that time unnecessarily but will appreciate anything they can do. 

 

Waiting

I think I'm going to Costco this evening with Jeannie, and I'm waiting to hear from her.  We went to the gym last night and told me that Donald has "walking pneumonia" and was on 5 days of antibiotics.  I knew he wasn't feeling up to his cheerful self, but didn't realize it was that serious.

I'm going to get only healthy stuff to eat, which means I have to bypass a couple of aisles that hold products that are tempting to me.  As I drove to the gym this morning to walk on the treadmill, I made up my mind that I am going to get my health back asap.   They say the mind is very powerful, and I will just have to pit the power of my mind against wanting to sit back and feel sorry for myself because I'm not up to par.  I FEEL GREAT!  My current outlook is a happy one so I'll live or die happy - whichever happens!

Have a good evening everyone.

More of the same!

The highlight of my week so far was going to the gym with Jeannie last night.  I feel a lot better when I work out, but don't think I'll make it today.

I had appointments with my dentist and chiropractor this morning.  The dentist has done a beautiful job of getting rid of the sore spots and while it's not like having natural teeth, I'm amazed that I've gotten used to the lowers as quickly as I have.  It's only been about a week and I have heard many horror stories about people not ever being able to wear them comfortably.  The cost is just about double what I've know some people to pay for a full set of dentures, so it wasn't cheap by any means, but if it works and I can use them then I will try to not complain.

My chiropractor explained some of my blood test numbers as they relate to Hashimoto's.  I haven't yet heard from Endocrinology, but the dr. said to give them two weeks to get back to me.  In the meantime, I'm thinking about how I will treat the low iron with diet rather than iron pills, as well as other dietary changes I need to make.  Actually, if I could get back to my old way of healthy eating I think I'd be a lot better off.  I've missed my green vegetables and have already begun to eat them - I'll get a good supply on a trip to the market and to Costco within the next few days.

Evidently the Hashimoto's is not as bad as it could be, nor have I probably had it for over a year.  That's my estimate because a year ago I felt like I was on top of the world, and blood tests from 2 years ago show that I was, in fact, in very good condition.  All my other thyroid functions are great.  I really don't understand much about it, but that's what they tell me.

One of the things I need to quit eating is ice cream, so in the interest of getting it "out of sight, and out of mind", I finished the whole container.  I will pay for it before the end of the day!  It really doesn't help my digestion.

Because I've been reading how dark chocolate is so good for you I bought a bag of dark choc. chips as well as a bar of dark chocolate.  I note that I've been craving chocolate more in the last 2 or 3 months.

I hope things turn around for me soon because there are a lot of things I've left undone for a while.  And I want to get back to sketching and painting, if the weather will just warm up a bit more.  I can't do anything when my fingers are cold.

My son, Steve, was born in 1975 on Mar. 1, and Mike was born in 1971 on Mar. 2nd. It doesn't seem that long ago.  Happy birthday to my "boys"!

I had said I wouldn't write any more about health issues, and I apologize.  I just want to explain in advance that when I miss writing a blog or two it's because I'm just not feeling up to it.  I appreciate all the good wishes coming my way.