Yesterday was definitely non-routine. I had an appointment with my doctor at the pain clinic, and was scheduled for two steroid injections into my sacroiliac joints. The weather cooperated this time, so I was able to make the drive to the city and back. I had to postpone this procedure last month due to crappy roads after the freezing rain. So, after cooking for the chickens and feeding the cats, I bathed and washed my thinning hair, which I French-braided, and dressed for public viewing with a colorful neck scarf. Off I went, alone, to the city, leaving early enough to stop at Wal-Mart to pick up my birthday gift from my daughter--two 8x10 prints, two 5x7 prints, and a mouse pad with pics from the photo session they had at the end of last November. I am so proud of these pictures!
While at Wal-Mart I bought a few items, including some varieties of Friskies canned cat food that the cats haven't had in a while (10 cans for $6), some Temptations cat treats, a couple of DVDs at $4.97ea, some colored pencils (box of 36 colors), lithium batteries for the camera, and a children's book to put up for my next box of surprises for the boys. One of the DVDs is Stanley Kubrick's 2001 A Space Odyssey, which I haven't seen for ages; the other is Me Before You/Avant toi, which I have not seen but bought on a whim. I had to rush to get to my appointment on time, and just made it.
I had to park far from the hospital in a pay lot and navigate icy sidewalks to get to the pain clinic. By the time I got there I could barely breathe, despite using my Ventolin inhaler at the start of my rushed walk. I was gasping for air for a long time, prompting concerned people to ask if I was okay. No, I was not. I had to keep using my inhaler and then, after checking in at the clinic, got a paper cup of water to sip on, as that seems to help sometimes.
A nice-looking older gentleman, probably my age (hah) tried to pick me up in the Wal-Mart parking lot as I hurried to my car. He was on his way in. He stopped, smiled, and said to me "You look great!" I stopped, surprised, and he came toward me, again saying that I looked really nice. I thanked him and said that I had to run off to an appointment but he proffered his hand for me to shake. So I shook his hand and he kept talking. He asked if I was married and I said yes. He said that he was, too. Then asked if we could have coffee. I said, no thanks, I have to get going to my medical appointment. He asked if he could call me. No, I said. He seemed truly regretful. I think it was the colorful neck scarf that drew his attention to me. My luck.
I had the injections, then slowly walked the icy sidewalks back to the pay lot, paid the $3.25 cash fee, and drove to Costco for groceries and cat litter. While there I bought, on sale for $20.99, Michael Wolff's Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House. It drew a lot of comments from other shoppers who saw it in my cart and then on the conveyor belt. One woman grinned and said she wondered if she could get her book club to read it. I told her it would no doubt create a lively conversation.
I also bought a bottle of Jamieson B12, 1200mcg tablets, hoping to feel more energetic. I took the first one this evening.
Once home, despite painful muscle spasms in my right leg and foot during the last half hour of my drive, I helped unload the car and then put away the groceries. I was in agony during the putting-away process, the anesthetic having worn off, and bending very painful, but I persevered. It was a relief to get to sit with a pillow at my back. I ate some naan and roasted red pepper hummus, took my meds, and got online. Did my French practice via several Duolingo strengthen skills exercises, did the daily jigsaw puzzle, read some emails and some news, pinned a few things on Pinterest, checked Facebook for messages, read a few blog posts and then had to go to bed, exhausted, before I could write a blog post. I read a bit more in Roxane Gay's Bad Feminist: Essays before falling asleep, waking just enough to pick up the book when it fell from my hand.
Today I was shocked upon awakening to discover that it was 4:30pm! I had slept all day. This happens occasionally and I always find it disconcerting. Vowing to accomplish something useful and not using the laptop, I cleaned the bathroom sink after washing up. A small thing but something. Back to routine stuff--email, news, French (89 day streak), jigsaw puzzle--and then a prolonged (for me) session on Facebook, reading and posting. I was just in that kind of mood. I finally ate some banana bread and took my meds around 9pm.
The phone rang around 10:15pm and when I answered I heard Grandson C telling me that he is reading a fabric book that his mama made. So sweet! My daughter got on the phone after he said "Mama, please hold Nana for a minute." He had to stop his brother from taking the fabric book away. Haha. We had a nice chat and I took notes, wrote them up and then emailed them to myself, to her and to my son, to keep him in the loop. Yesterday they took the boys to the park and then walked to the pizza place across from he park. They haven't had pizza in a while. Cai said "Oh, the pizza restaurant!"
Speaking of my son, who I miss greatly, I saw this posted today on FB and it made me cry. I saved it and sent it to my daughter with the subject line "Thinking of you, the boys, and my once-little boy.":
It is getting late, but before I go to bed I need to look at Toad's laptop. He says that it has stopped working and he hasn't been able to use it since yesterday. Lord knows what he has done to it. He always fiddles around until he gets it screwed up and then bitches at me if I say that he should not keep adding things to it, that he should leave well enough alone. He's spent most of the day in his bed, listening to the radio in lieu of being online. I am finally disposed to looking at it for him, thought he didn't ask me to--I had to ask if he wanted me to look at it for him and he said yes. The last time I had to do a factory reset and he was so grateful. Yet he had to mess until he fucked it up again.
I'm Reading: Bad Feminist: Essays, by Roxane Gay (determined to finish!)
and: Strange Meeting, by Susan Hill (about a soldier in WWII)
French sentence of the Day: Je suis vivante. Meaning: I am alive.
Photo(s)/Capture(s) of Yesterday and Today:
| Yesterday, Feb 6th |
| Today, Feb 7th |
| Artist: Tom Ryan; Captured from FB,such Artistry/Artist tree! |
