Sept is running down

Early Monday morning and it's looking cloudy and gray.  I don't mind, though.  I plan on staying inside today, and maybe the next two days as well.  Woke up to a very stiff and sore shoulder but I am having periods of no pain too.  Like last Friday after the physical therapist did some manipulation and rotated the shoulder around.  It hurt a bit but afterwards, I definitely felt improvement. I was thrilled. She still doesn't want me to do too much on my own as we have to take it slow.

The dishwasher is running and I do believe that is probably going to be the extent of my housework today.  Hunter came by yesterday (so happy I have a teenage grandson that is willing  to help his gramma.)

Both the front and back lawns look more like a dandelion yellow field but they do look somewhat better after a trim.  That should be the last cutting this season.  The deer have started to nimble along the street again. They're all over Port Angeles as I've seen them having lunch in other neighborhoods too.

Jenni stopped in for a while to chat while Hunter fixed up my living room VCR.  He never could get it to communicate with my flat screen so he moved it into my bedroom and I'll watch what I've taped in there.  It'll work fine.

Granddaughter Catie is showing a visiting Florida friend (Louie) around this week and they came over to Port Angeles for the weekend.  Sue took them to fossil beach and later, they stopped in here to say hello.

I'm going to set up one of my birthday jigsaw puzzles today.  I think I'll start with the Bob Dylan one.
I finished up my statue of liberty yesterday afternoon.

Got a phone call from this guy in Port Townsend who is coming to PA tomorrow and wanted to stop by and have me sign a Town Kid book he bought.  What a nice surprise.  I've got to get busy and start marketing the ones I have left.

I've been watching Netflix and Amazon pretty exclusively lately.  Am finding Transparent interesting as well as Finding Love.  I posted on my Leader blog Saturday but it was rejected by their security system that said I used inappropriate language and to "try again."  Their system has done that to me twice before (in error) and if it happens again, I think I'll just bag blogging on there anymoe. Too much hassle.  I sent it to the person who helps me and she should be able to post it today. If she's at her desk.

I took one of those goofy tests that sometimes come up on my homepage in Facebook.  This one asked what my old lady name was.  I don't usually do those tests but this one caught my interest.  Found out I'm a Gladys.  ha ha ha ha ha ha

Mary sent me the latest of baby Jacob. This one shows him absolutely fascinated watching daddy mow the lawn.

Andy, by the way, has the best lawn of anybody in our family.  He cares for it like a Persian rug and it is BEAUTIFUL!

A morning of doctor visits

Sure glad the morning is over.  My blood draw was quick and fairly easy so no big deal there. The physical therapist is a young woman of 20 or 30 something but seems knowledgeable and very nice. I learned things to help me tolerate the shoulder pain and I know what to expect in the weeks to come.
My surgery (and she said shoulders are one of the hardest to get through) was a total reverse shoulder replacement which means the ball and socket are opposite where they used to be.

My first appts will be her doing gentle movements but my home exercises have to be kept low key for now.  I have to massage the shoulder with vit E and continue to try and break up the scar tissue. I'll probably be going twice a week for six weeks and should progress to more active exercises as I get stronger.

She advised me to wear the sling more than I have been, to not lay on my right side in bed, and to use ice when it hurts.    I also have to buy a stress ball and use my computer chair arms to rest on when I type.

My early morning appt was with my knee surgeon.  As usual, her bedside manner was lacking.  She has no sense of humor either.  (which I already knew)  Anyhow, when I let it slip that I had shoulder surgery a month ago, she wanted to know why I didn't have her do it.  I suppose I could have told her
"Because you're a pain in the ass!"  But instead I said:  "Oh I didn't know you did shoulders.  I also told her it was so messed up, a specialist needed to be used.  She didn't like that either.  Naturally, I didn't tell her I may have to have my left shoulder done sooner or later.

At one point, I mentioned that I was still timid about walking down steps normally and I often took them one at a time. Our conversation went something like this:

Doc -- "Well, you have things working against you.  First of all, you're obese."

"Wait!  What?  I'm obese?"

"Well, how much do you think a person your height should weigh?"

"About what I do now."   (I kept thinking she'd crack a smile but nope.  No sense of humor)

"Well, you're mistaken and I don't agree with you.  You need to lose 70 pounds and as you get lighter, you'll become more sure of yourself going down steps."

Imagine that!    I wanted to say BITE ME!  but I am a lady, after all.  ha ha ha ha
And I won't be recommending her to anyone too soon!

Guess I'll get a few odds and ends done around here now.  Can only stay online for 30 minutes or less.

My 2nd day of being 71

Got a fun package in the mail today. Thank you Andy and Mary for my NY oven mitt and hot pad and shopping bag.  I love NY stuff.  And thanks for the Gluten for Dummies book too.  Those Penn.
scratch tickets you included gave me 4 free tickets so I'm sending them on over to Melynda.

And thank you Jen for the wonderful jigsaw puzzles of Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan.  They're really something and since they're reversible, it's like having four puzzles.  I actually have both those albums featured. (the reverse puzzles are the back of the albums)

I also love the elephant plant holder,Jen. I'm going to shop around for the perfect plant to put in it.

Congrats to Maddie for doing so well in her latest cross country meet. Here she is pictured with the group (they camped overnight at Salt Creek) She's standing next to the guy leaning down.

Looking forward to seeing Catie this weekend too. Her friend, Louie is coming up from Florida.  And thank you, Hunter, for coming over to do those little chores that are difficult for me to get at.  I got my VCR programmed here in the office so it's working just fine now.

Mary sent me over Jake's 9-month photo and as usual, he's just as cute as ever.

Daytime TV continues to be just as rotten as ever.  I'd love to see the following people disappear from the daily lineup forever -- Dr. Phil, Judge Judy, Jerry Springer, Kelly Ripa and her partner, Michael, Maury Povich, Steve Harvey, the women on "The Talk", most of the local newscasters, almost all of the old reruns they choose to show, and I could go on and on.

Got errands to run tomorrow so I've got my fingers crossed my body cooperates.  Takin' the twins to school at 8:50; doc appt with the knee surgeon at 9:40 (my one year followup), physical therapy at 11:20, and a blood draw right after as they say my red blood count is low.

Guess I'll head to the recliner now and watch Wheel of Fortune.

Still kicking after all these years

Well, I made it to my 71st birthday.  As my body continues to remind me of my advancing age and I am aware of more and more people that I know showing up in obits, I must say I don't take these final years of mine lightly.

Moved my laptop back into the office/sewing room as it was just too uncomfortable trying to type with the keyboard on a higher table.  Now I'm using the old keyboard and can keep my arms close to my body.  Have noticed an increase (I think) in shoulder pain and neck pain. Probably just as well that my physical therapy begins day after tomorrow.  I put my sling back on from time to time and have taken to using a hot pad on my shoulder when I go to bed.  Seems to help if I don't move around too much.  I keep telling myself "this too shall pass."  I'm hoping big time that when I am healed and have to look into getting the left shoulder looked at, that it will be minimal repair.  At least less than this right shoulder took.

I'm sitting here with the window open and the breeze feels pretty good. I continue to keep the hummingbird nectar fresh so at least I still have those birds coming around.

I'm thankful I can at least do a little driving now.  It's difficult hooking up the seat belt and opening the car door but I'll deal with it.  I don't go too far anyhow as I get tired.  Picked up some books at the library a few days ago on gluten and dairy free eating.  Stopped at Albertsons and bought a few items that were gluten free but it will take me a while to get "all the way there" in that category.  And I may never make it completely as everything seems to have gluten in it. Even tuna fish and tomato soup!

I did buy some almond milk and dairy free yogurt and margarine.  I want to get off sandwiches so I bought gluten free corn tortillas and hope to find some recipes I can use.  Going to look over Pinterest and the food website.  I think it will just be a matter of putting different toppings on and if I'm successful, I should be able to get off bread more easily.

I've quit coffee, chocolate, ice cream, and most sweets too.  It hasn't seemed to be a problem so far but it's early.  I'm suspecting I have IBS and that is contributing to my general fatigue and under the weather feeling that has been pulling me down.  If I have to change how I eat to be able to function in this world, then I'll do it!

Hunter is coming by after tennis practice today so I'm hoping he can fix up my VCRs so I can use them.  I've got three tvs so if we hook up the VCR to a tv it can communicate with, I should be good to go.  I also need him to fix my back seat car seats.  We put the seats down when I went to Renton and now I can't get them back up in the position they need to be.  I know he'll figure it out right away.

I've been occupying myself with several Netflix shows.  Found one old tv series called Dr. Pol and I'm especially enjoying it.  He's a vet in Michigan and you go on his rounds with him.  Some of it is totally gross but I'm taking it all in.  I've seen dead calves delivered, a cow's placenta pushed back inside her, porcupine twills removed from dogs, cows checked for how far along they are  pregnancy wise (the guys arm goes all the way up the butt).  Also watched a horse autopsy. He had fallen on concrete and split upon an artery inside and bled to death.  Lots of operations on animals with broken paws or eating disorders.  Interesting as hell! Especially the emotions of the owners.

I've also started watching Hack, an old series that was on tv for a while about this ex cop who is now a taxi driver.  David Morse stars with Andre Braugher. It's amazing how many shows you can find if you dig around.  I'm over the top happy, also, that I don't have to deal with commerical breaks.

I went to Joanne Fabrics yesterday as I got it in my head I might like to have an oilcloth tablecloth like we had when I was a kid.  Well, they don't sell oilcloth like that anymore but she showed me the large rolls with oilcloth like material with flannel on the back.  $20 a yard!  What?  No thanks.
Even their fat quarters had gone up in price.  I still bought four as I wanted some in the house for when I felt I was ready to get back into sewing.

A Leanin'Tree catalog arrived in the mail this morning.  I've probably received at least 3 or 4 of them in the past few months.  I'm often tempted to place an order as their cards are so nice but the cost of mailing them would put a crimp in my budget.  Even the oversize cards (which a lot of them are) require extra postage.  Used to be a time when I sent letters and cards all the time without a bat of the eye.

Mary just called and said her flight from Newark to Seattle was delayed three hours yesterday so they didn't get home until 1 a.m.  I hope I never have to fly again.  That whole business is not user friendly...including the narrow cramped seats.
Here's some pictures she posted on Facebook during the Manhattan visit.

                                                                 Going on the subway

                                                                      At Times Square

                                                           With New York's finest

Well, that's about it for today.  I've got a Statue of Liberty jigsaw puzzle set up in the kitchen so maybe I'll see about playing around with that for a bit.

Tomorrow will be better

I finally decided to get into the doctor and find out why I can't seem to feel better.  Yesterday was a mixed bag of nausea, fatigue, achiness, blah blah blah.  Same today.  Last night I was watching The Roosevelts on PBS and got so tired I knew there was no way I was going to be able to watch until 10. I was hoping back and forth between PBS and DWTS 'cause I can't get my VCRs to communicate with my TVs right now.  Am hoping Hunter can help me.  Anyhow, at 8 o'clock I started to get ready for bed.  By 9 o'clock I perked up somehow and thought -- maybe I can stay awake longer.  Not to be, though. I hit the sack around 9:30.

At midnight I was awake again.  So awake I got up to read.  Nothing annoys me more than going to bed exhausted and not getting to stay asleep until the following morning!  At 2 a.m. Mr. Sandman made another appearance and then I kind of tossed and turned the rest of the night.  Woke up around 7 and knew darn well it was going to be a day of fatigue and feeling "off."

I had made a doctor appt the previous day and while I usually like to get in early, I knew I needed to make an appt for later in the day to see if I was going to be chained to the toilet.  I was desperate to get downtown and get my drivers license renewed because you pay a fine if you're late.  I was happy when I walked in and saw the room fairly empty of people.  I took a number and only had to wait a couple of minutes.  It was supposed to cost me $45 according to the post card I got in the mail but with their additional fees (I don't know for what) I had to pay $54.  Had I used my debit or credit card, they wanted another $3.  I wrote a check.  I sometimes wonder if I'll have to renew in five years. Sooner or later,the day will come when I realize my driving days are behind me.  The twins will have a license by then and if I'm still alive and kicking, I'm hoping they'll drive me where I need to go.

The doctor wants me to try elimination diets to see if I improve.  I'm going with dairy first as that's easier than gluten.  Gluten is in EVERYTHING!  I think I can manage dairy free okay as you still have a lot of choices.  I also bought a 2-week supply of Prilosec.  Well, I bought the generic form anyhow.  Prilosec was $20 and the generic was $8. Same ingredients too.

I came home and put a Cornish game hen in the oven and peeled some potatoes for supper.  Think I'll cook up some peas too.  I saw two people on FB (Cheri and Ann Marie) discussing Ken Follett's books so I decided to give them a try.  I had Fall of Giants on my book shelf already so I started with it.  Only thing is, it's a heavy book and it hurts my hands and arm to hold it. I've got to rig up some kind of table gadget that will allow me to read heavy books.

Joyce Lee came by yesterday and I gave her a stack of my old Leaders and People Magazines to read. She brought me a scone she made at Peninsula College. (she bakes in the kitchen up there)  She wanted me to go beach walking with her but I was feeling too punk to leave the house.  Am hoping I'm better tomorrow.

Got a picture from M&A on their plane trip to New York.  She said Jake did just fine and loved looking out the windows.  Napped and didn't cry at all.  They landed in Newark and will go to their hotel in NY for a function there.  Then they'll go visit Andy's brother and his wife in upstate NY.

Well, I gotta get up and turn the channel.  Dr. Oz's show would be a whole lot better if he didn't bring up silly gigglers from the audience to play his stupid games on stage.  What a waste of air time.

Ongoing project with a twist

As I've spent the last few weeks recuperating and found it difficult to do much of anything, I've  been
thinking on what I want to accomplish once I could get back online and start typing.  Genealogy data is the most fun for me and I've been working on various aspects of family history and how to preserve it.  I've got folders on my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other family limbs but I wanted to get busy on filling in the gaps.

I pulled out my book "The Alphabet of My Life" that I wrote seven years ago.  Such an amateur attempt at an autobiography, but it was a start and you have to start somewhere. If nothing else, it's a reference for me to improve upon.  Another book I wrote in 2002 was called "Some of my family with some of their thoughts and memories."  This is a book I'm prouder of as it's very interesting with funny stories my cousins and siblings shared.  I only wished I had saved it on disk but I was just starting out using computers and learning as I went.  As I looked over some of the entries I knew I had to include many in the folders sharing family history.

To break it down, I'm starting with my dad's siblings.  Each aunt and uncle has their own folder that includes data on their life, obits, pictures, their kids and memories.  Using my 2002 memory book, I'm going to add little tidbits to each person's folder.  Will be a nice thing to have for great great grandchildren later on down the line.

For example:  one of the questions or statements I posed was: Tell me about your parents.  Some wrote long (really great stories) and some, like my dad who was a man of few words, wrote: Dad was easy going. Mother made us tow the line. She had a strap made out of an old horse rein and if we did something we weren't supposed to do,she's use that strap on our backside.

I remember dad ALWAYS kept a belt over the back of the fridge when I was growing up and he used it on us now and again.  Now I know where he got the idea.  ha ha

Well, that's my latest project in the works.  Makes me feel good to have a goal.

I haven't  felt good all day again today.  Have decided I'm going to put away the coffee pot altogether and see if things improve with my tummy and bowels.  Sooner or later I'm probably going to have to make an appt with some kind of doctor to check things out.  Going to try and fix myself first, though; I've had enough of doctors this year!

Finished watching a 6-episode movie series on Netflex last night.  It was on the BBC channel so sometimes it was hard to follow their English dialect.  Very good show,though. I recommend it if you can find it.  Called Happy Valley.  A female cop in England.  Another movie I watched was called: Mile..Mile and a half.  About hiking.  It was more of a documentary but well worth the time.

Don't have any pictures to share but here's one in my Uncle Jim's folder showing him and my dad getting water at the pump.

Sunday morning

Had a few days of feeling pretty punk this week but hopefully, I'm on the mend again.  One day at a time is about all you can do.  I didn't take a nap yesterday (and that's unusual) so I was quite surprised when I went to bed at 9 pm and couldn't drop off to sleep.  Surprised and slightly ticked off!  At midnight I was still tossing and turning and getting more and more frustrated as I was very tired.  At 3 a.m. I opted to take an oxycodone tablet.  I've been pretty much staying off them as the pain was there but I was coping.  Last night, however, I was achy and tired and knew it would help me sleep.  I'll rethink that decision next time as I  knew it would probably give me nightmares.  And it did.

More than once I've found myself back at the mill working at my desk and when I'm in nightmare mode, I'm struggling to get caught up on my work.  I won't go into details about the various obstacles I was facing but they were typical for my "mill dreams."  Only two loaders appeared in this particular dream -- Jerry Bundy and Ron Mosher.  As I attempted over and over again to complete a task, I finally woke up with a horrendous headache -- and a sore jaw!  I'm sure I must have been grinding my teeth.  I'm definitely going to use oxycodone only when the pain is more than I can bear. Those damn nightmares are not worth it.

Sometimes my dreams take place down near the Railroad Y area.  Often times in the grass area you used to walk through to get to the beach.  Kind of where Safeway's gas station is now.  Anyhow, more often than not, my dreamscapes are in and around Port Townsend areas.  I've had some where I was hitchhiking down the S-curve and getting rides down in the flats.  Barbara Shaw picked me up the other night in my dream and suggested we go have a drink.  It was a tall green thing called a Cool Jake.  ha ha ha  I never know who's going to show up in my dreams. Alta Nelson, for example, was there a couple nights back.  I might have missed that memory of her except a suction grab bar in the shower lost its grip and fell onto the shower floor waking me up at 3 a.m.  After looking out all the windows to see if prowlers were about, I discovered the gadget on the floor.  It's pulled that stunt before.

I've been practicing moving my arm upwards the past couple of days.  It's still slow going but I keep reminding myself that every day gets me closer to a healthy arm.  My low back and/or right hip are reminding me every now and again that another body part is wearing down.  More than one person has told me of having both hips done, one or both shoulders done, and one or both knees done.  I hope to avoid that path but if it happens, well, it happens.  I wouldn't have had surgery on my knee or shoulder if I hadn't been forced into it by extreme pain and not being able to use the limb.  Sometimes decisions are made for you.

Every day I set at least two or three things I plan to accomplish.  Today it was vacuuming, washing dishes, putting away clothes lying around in the closet, and tidying up the back deck.  Even completing little chores gives me a sense of accomplishment.  Hunter came by this morning to shake out some rugs for me, move the patio table to the other side of the deck, pack some suitcases away in the garage, and move a small table to the living room.  Later on this week or next he'll come by and cut the lawn.  Grass isn't growing up the dandelions need a good chopping.  I wanted three of my garden birds moved from the back to the front, as well, so he helped me with that.

This pretty little yellow flower bush has held up well this summer. And so easy to plant too. Bought them at WalMart in the plastic flower section.

Here's a couple pictures that Mary and Andy sent me while on their trip to Whistler.

I started driving a few days ago but only go out for short distances and then get right back home again. Yesterday it was to the Dollar Tree and Safeway.  In a couple of days I'm going to have to go downtown and renew my drivers license.  Kind of dreading that as I know it can be a long wait, depending on what time of day you get there.

I made a taco/rice casserole  yesterday.  Got the recipe from Jenni but hers turned out a whole lot better than mine.  Probably because I didn't realize I needed a can of tomatoes for the Spanish Rice box.  I can't seem to cook worth a darn anymore.  I'm lucky if things turn out even halfway okay. I think I've gotten lazy with reading directions.  Have noticed my dishwashing skills are hit and miss too.

I went to Goodwill and picked up a couple of 500-pc jigsaw puzzles so I'll have something to occupy myself if the computer is bothering me.  I seem to be getting a little better at typing, though, so perhaps I've crossed another plateau in healing.

I watched golf yesterday afternoon and have it on again today.  I find it relaxing.  On Netflix I've been watching this Discovery series called "Out of the Wild: The Alaska Experience".  Netflix also has some shows they've put together themselves that I'm enjoying.

Guess I'll head over for the recliner now.  Because of the headache I woke up with, I had to get up a lot sooner than I really wanted to.

Taking another run at it

Every day I've been trying to do a little more. Today I decided to take a stab at blogging. Still uncomfortable to be online for any length of time but with iboprofen, an ice pack now and then, and rest, I've been able to increase my activities.  Haven't been brave enough to drive yet but I'm aiming for next week.  Need to get down to the beauty shop as my hair is in dire need of a trim.

I made an appt for physical therapy on Sept. 24, right after my 1 year appt with my knee doctor. I'm tempted to tell her that my complaining about my shoulder the whole time she was concentrating on my knee wasn't arthritis after all.  She did x-ray and decided it was arthritis.  I probably won't say anything, though. Wouldn't accomplish a thing. I do know I won't pursue her services again. Her bedside manner left a great deal to be improved upon

My shoulder surgeon didn't want me to start physical therapy until the 3rd or 4th week of this month. He did give me a few simple exercises to do at home until then. I'm very nervous about moving the shoulder too much as I don't quite understand the mechanics involved of the new hardware that's been put in place.  I did see the x-ray and it reminded me of how a robot might look inside.

All surgeries are hard on the body.  I was thankful I had my mobility to move unassisted this time.  That knee ordeal was something I want to never have done again.  Not thrilled about this shoulder situation either but if I have to have the left side done once I heal, I'll do it.  Just too difficult to get by without the use of your arms.

I was in the recovery room for several hours but I'm not exactly sure why.  I was told I'd be back in my room in an hour or two.  Not sure if it was my blood pressure readings or what.  Hope I can remember to ask the surgeon when I go for my six week follow-up exam on October 2.

One  of the hardest obstacles to get over after the surgery was the number the operation did on my bowels.  Maybe it was the anesthetic.  Was definitely a miserable period of time.  And then there were the nightmares.  Night terrors was more like it.  And I think everybody I ever knew who has died showed up at one time or another.  That's an unsettling remembrance when you wake up.  There were ghouls and monsters and the whole works finding their way into my dreamscape.  Woke up crying hard one time.

Yesterday I pulled out my counted cross stitch and crocheting.  Haven't made a lot of progress but some.  I also have a small puzzle set up on the kitchen table along with my laptop.  I thought I would get caught up on reading but alas, that seems to put me to sleep before I get too far along.  I'm working on Walter Cronkite's autobiography right now.

I can't get by without a nap every day but I was kind of walking down that road before surgery. I've moved into the computer room/sewing room for now on my single bed with a memory foam mattress. Seems to help me rest better.

My granddaughter, Catie, gave me this flatscreen tv someone had given to her so I have it set up in the living room and put my other large television in the bedroom.  Hunter programmed the new set for me and for some reason, I'm getting a few more channels than I was before.  I pay for the very basic basic of cable but because of decimal point channels I'm now picking up, I get a couple of cartoon channels, GETTV, THISTV, the animal planet, CNN, a couple Spanish stations, and couple of sports channels.  I've looked at my other universal remote controls and they don't have a decimal point on them so I probably won't try to switch the tv remote to a universal remote which might be easier to maneuver.  The remote I have now is tricky and you have to hold down certain buttons to make the tv turn off and on.  Keeps me busy but then I mostly watch Netflix and Amazon anyhow.

Here's the latest of Jake....he loved the swing at the park.

Mary was told by her daycare that she needed to pack more finger food for lunch instead of pureed baby food as he is in the "group with bigger kids now" and they sit in a circle at lunch to eat.  He'd watch them eating with their hands and wouldn't allow the daycare workers to feed him as he wanted big kids food too.  hee hee

She sent me a video she took of him discovering the toilet paper roll in the bathroom but I haven't figured out how to copy it so I can post. Have to play around with that.

The twins started high school last week.  Hunter signed up for tennis this year and wants to try golf in the spring. Maddie returned to cross country and was pleasantly surprised to make varsity. Pretty good for a freshman.

 Hunter on his tractor he entered in the county fair

Maddie (on right) for the first day of school

My class lost under member recently. That makes three this year...Joe Kenney, Linda Wilson Farina, and now Dave Brown.

Well, I'd best give this arm a rest and retire to the recliner. Sure wish they made recliners with left side arms to pull up the footrest. I'm having to use a hassock but it still feels good to be home in my own surroundings.