Sunday

 This will be a brief entry, as we haven't done that much this week. Partly that's because we both are dealing with low energy.  

And partly because we did manage to start the upper cabinets painting process!  I'm so excited and happy to see this. J took down all the cupboard/ cabinet doors. We have the inside of the cabinets painted pink, and new shelf liner paper put down.

Then  we  hit Home Depot, and found the new hardware for all the cabinets and drawers,  and bought the soft-close hinges for the two window-ed cabinets. (Those really rattle and bang hard  when anyone shuts the doors, so the soft-close will really make a huge difference.)  We might add the soft-close to the other cabinets in the future, but we'll try this first.  It's surprisingly inexpensive: a small  $5 hinge. Can't wait to see this all done.

J had to custom mix the paint we bought so he could get the right shade. The shade we bought based on the little paint sample strip doesn't look like that at all; it's almost impossible to tell that it's grey. So slowly he has added enough black to make it the right shade. 

But we do have all the contents put back in, and everything now is visible as soon as you walk in the kitchen. It's an interesting look, having no cupboard/cabinet doors! Not bad at all. 

That's about all we did this week. I finished an embroidery I'd been working on, and that makes two so far--I almost like embroidery work more than cross-stitch, but maybe I just have to be in one mood or another. They both are very satisfying in different ways.

While I do my needling, I generally have an old movie on, or something I can listen to without needing to keep my eyes on it. I love retirement. There's no pressure for time anymore.

J worked on the cabinets (sanding, refining, painting twice to cover the blue, waiting while they  each dried) and next we put up the cabinet doors with their new hardware. After that we'll work on getting the hutch out of the kitchen, replacing it with a huge bookshelf. We'll paint the inside of that pink, and the outside grey as well. The hutch  will maybe go to Sis, if she wants it. Otherwise I'm just setting it outside for anyone.

I did my stretching everyday except yesterday, Saturday. There just wasn't time! After returning home from the meeting, and stopping at the other Home Depot to buy more of the hardware,   we didn't have much time before Sis, MissS, and Shannon arrived, and we watched The Two Towers, part two of our marathon. Of course it was the extended version, so it did take about 4 hours. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Shannon did the sweetest thing: she had been at a store in Orlando and they had 50% off all gluten-free products. So she bought a nice selection, and gave it to us,  for J!  All different items, and things we hadn't tried before. What a sweetheart. 

SonN texted me yesterday with photos of him, showing his massive scrapes and abrasions after a bike accident. It looks pretty awful, and I can't imaging how painful it must be.  

His daughter, my youngest granddaughter, will be 6 in a few weeks so I need to search for a birthday present. Then in early September the other two granddaughters I'm in touch with will be having birthdays also. Time is flying by.

Ok, time to go stretch. J will be joining me, and then he said he wanted to mow our back yard. Our neighbor Chris mowed the front lawn for us yesterday, having sympathy for J's age and health in this horrible humidity and heat. What a nice guy!

Love my life.

TYG

Sunday

 Sunday morning, and while I'm starting late (11:30), at least I did remember. 

It's not a usual Sunday though, so that might explain my confusion (in my own head, I mean). Yesterday was MissS's afternoon here instead of today. She is driving up and visiting a friend in StAugustine today and then staying overnight.

 So she arrived at noon just as I was finishing my stretching. And we talked and got caught up, and then watched our two episodes of Outlander. I was hoping to jump into the pool but there was too much stuff to do with getting ready for J's birthday party at 4. We decorated, and put the table together, and got various foods ready. By then Sis and BIL arrived, and we moved into the living room to cool off (the kitchen was quite warm due to the slow cooker doing its pork roast).

Then Shannon arrived, and from then on, people flowed inside and out, kitchen to living room, various combinations. Very nice to see this happening. After every bit of food was gorged on, and we sang a terrible version of Happy Birthday to J, and all the presents were opened, and the kitchen got cleaned up by MissS...then all left except MissS.  And the three of us got in the pool. It was so peaceful. 

She left around 8, and then J and I collapsed on the sofa and recovered. It was wonderful.

That morning we'd gone to the Meeting,  and that was great as always.  

Last week the big news for me was the whole ticket buying process/fiasco. Thankfully I did get my 3 tickets (one for Sponsee, for which she is reimbursing me), but it was an agonizing and expensive experience. There is major uproar on the outrageous cost of these tickets to shows these days using  the "dynamic pricing" method. This was the first time Springsteen has done it, and it's an unmitigated disaster.  

After watching 3 sets of 3 tickets disappear under my cursor (when it was finally my time to get a view of the seating chart and see where the seats were and gasp over how freakin expensive they were) I grabbed the next 3 I saw together, and the price was around $300 each. Gulp. Adding the various fees that Ticketmaster and the venue charge, it was just over a thousand dollars for three tickets.  UNBELIEVABLE.  I've never paid this much for any ticket anywhere. And I won't be doing it again. 

I was given an access code only for the Orlando show, not the Tampa show I wanted. Other people I know got both their desired dates, and most people did not get access codes for any show. Once you got into the site and could actually see the seating chart, that was the first  idea you  had on the prices. Normally they have been $60-$125 or so.  That's kind of what I was expecting.  So the shock was terrible.

But I am slowly adjusting to the idea that this will be my last show. Unless something drastic changes regarding the cost of tickets. I cannot justify this new process. It's heartbreaking to give these shows up, considering it's been over 6 years since he has toured and how much utter joy I receive when in attendance. 

Well, you never know. Maybe he will hear about the disaster with pricing and change the process. No tickets now are available anywhere for less than around $500, and they go up to $4000. Definitely not a show for the average working stiff,  or someone like me who is now retired and on a fixed income. So.

In other news, J is having days of up and down-ness, with his fatigue and with his energy level.  The meds worked spectacularly the first few days and now are not giving him the same boost. But some of that could be due to the foods we are eating. I'm now looking at starting him on protein shakes, or protein bars. I've ordered a couple different ones to try.

Otherwise, life is good.  

TYG

Tuesday

 I cannot believe this, but I actually forgot to write here Sunday!  There was so much preparation for our girls- afternoon- movie- plan, and I only had so much energy and time before everyone arrived.

Actually Sis and MissS arrived earlier, around noon, so we could watch the DVD MissS had brought, which contained a few minutes of our Gramma on film. ( I apparently took the ancient video camera to FL with me back in '94 when I visited her, and filmed some of the things we did, and her. Then there was another visit a few years later--'98? But that one must have been when I flew down there to help Dorothy with packing Gramma up to move to Spokane.... I don't remember any of this, but little bits of memories came back when we watched the video.)

Anyway, seeing Gramma, alive and well, speaking in that soft voice, clearing her throat in that well-remembered way-- well, it made both me and Sis get teary. How lucky we were to have her for so long!  How much we both miss her...

And by the time we were done with that emotional bath, then it was time for the real reason for the get-together: we settled in to watch LOTR, the Fellowship of the Ring, the first one in the trilogy. I have the 4-hour extended version on DVD, so that was an utter joy, watching it with my sister, daughter, and shortly after we started it, BIL's daughter joined us too.  It was wonderful.

Yesterday I was very tired, and yet found the energy to try two different recipes for gluten-free bread. So I did those in the morning, sat down for a rest, and suddenly it was time for my appt with my PCP. 

I love my visits with her. She spent the vast majority of the  50 minute visit reviewing meds and the conditions/ reasons for each med, dosing, etc. I have so many meds, and she looked up whether each had interactions with the other, and wrote it all down. She planned out a new medication schedule, and added two new meds; so mornings are now taking meds at waking time, 2 meds 90 minutes later, 1 an hour after that, and one more at 10am, then 1 at noon, and one at 2pm, then 2 more at 5, 2 at 6:30, and 2 at 9pm.  Not including the supplements: Vit D, E, calcium, and the probiotics and fiber capsules.  All of those get taken in the morning.

Then she did the physical exam, reassured me about some interesting skin issues, and put in the order for my tetanus shot to be given in October, and ordered the pneumonia vaccine. In a couple of months I will also get the flu vaccine. Today as a result of the pneumonia injection my left arm is quite sore, but nowhere near as bad as when I had the second Covid booster.

I got good news too: my repeat labs done last week showed marked improvement in both the elevated triglycerides and the bad cholesterol. Both of those improved solely because I stopped eating cheese. Sigh. Damn it! I love cheese. I hated giving it up...but those levels were quite high, and can certainly be improved with diet.

Last week:  Tuesday was J's appt with his GI, to learn the results of the labs he had done. I've never been to any of his GI appts (or any of his PCP or heart doc appts either for that matter, because of my work schedule, but now that I am not working I can accompany him). His appt was at 11:15, and it was a 35-40 minute drive, so he insisted on leaving at 10:15. Naturally we arrived quite a bit early, and after he was checked in, we sat. And sat, and sat.  At 12:25, we were brought back and put in an exam room, where we waited another 15 minutes. 

I had overheard several conversations in the waiting room about the waiting time, and the reasons for it. If we hadn't needed those results, we would have rescheduled...as it was we did choose to wait.   Although I told J that if this were my doc's office, I would be looking for another GI.   However, he likes this doc, so I shut my mouth.

The doc basically ran into the exam room, and immediately sat down and asked how things were. J slowly started to recount the past month on the new GF/wheat-free plan, and the effect it was having on his system. I caught the doc's eye at one point, and he immediately broke in and said to me, "Now, what was it you wanted me to know?"  I said, "Yes, J is somewhat better, but nowhere near what he is reporting, and  he sleeps a lot, he has no energy."   I liked that the doc was so sensitive to the patient's partner's comments.

So the results show pancreatitis. We were both surprised. (And both extremely grateful it was not the big C.)  This  can be caused by age, smoking, drinking, or "other reasons".  J's pancreas is operating at only 20% of its ability;  the remedy is a ridiculously expensive enzyme prescription he is to eat with every meal, to aid the pancreas in producing the enzymes needed to digest his food. Without it he would slowly be starving to death, because his body isn't able to absorb the nutrients. 

Oh, okay, we said, sitting in stunned silence and shock...

Now, the medication, Creon,  is $9000 every three months. We just about fell over. Obviously we cannot afford that, but this doc's office has a specialty pharmacy which deals directly with J's insurance company to force them to pay for it (because it is considered life-threatening).  So what we actually pay is still ridiculously  expensive for us at $120 month. He was given samples to use at home until the first shipment arrives, which it did Monday. 

And two days later he was remarkably improved. I was so amazed. He has his energy back, and can eat, and is spending far less time in the bathroom. While he is to continue on the wheat/gluten-free meals, the doc is pretty sure this won't be necessary for a life-time. In other words, when he goes back in a month, he might be able to return to regular food. In the meantime, we are both pretty much following this plan.

Tuesday was also our 14th wedding anniversary. We decided to splurge on a take-out meal from RedRobin, one of the few restaurants that has GF foods. That too was ridiculously expensive, reminding us why we don't normally eat out. But it was a special occasion, and we really loved the meal.

Tuesday I also received the best news: Springsteen is touring next year both in the US and overseas. We  I have been waiting anxiously for announcements of tour dates and on-sale dates, and prices. All of this was announced Tuesday: you have to go to TicketMaster's website to become a "verified fan",  (which I did promptly), and then you will hear from them as to whether you have been given an "access code". If you have won this lottery, you can try to buy tickets the next day at 10am when they go on sale. Otherwise, you have to wait until 3pm that day...by which time the tickets will be all gone, of course.

So, tonight is the night I hear whether I've won an access code. I am so anxious about this. I also have my Sponsee, and my daughter both helping: they registered also, and if either of them gets an access code and I don't, they will buy the tickets. My Sponsee is a huge BossFan also, and the three of us will be going together. Hopefully to both Tampa and Orlando. 

Currently it is raining so hard, with thunder. We desperately need it, so we are very happy to see it. I love being inside and watching the rain. It won't last long, but it's always welcome.

Well, Dad was the one today who inquired about my blog entry, and why it hadn't happened on Sunday. I can't believe I actually forgot, but that's my poor brain these days. I'm so glad he reminded me!! 

This coming Saturday is J's 84th birthday. Sis and BIL, and MissS, and Shannon and Chris are all invited to help celebrate. Bro and SIL are leaving for Vermont Friday after work so they can't make it. They'll be gone for a month this time, to be with Dad for his surgeries, and maybe even the CTscan he will be having. I am so glad and grateful they will be with him.

That about brings this up to date. 

TYG

 

 

Sunday

 We both slept in today:  me because I woke up at 3:30am and couldn't fall back asleep. J because he is not getting woken up by Sophie anymore. So he was up around 6, brought me my meds, and then started his morning routine. Meanwhile after my snack and meds, I did manage to fall back asleep, and got up at 9. Such laziness! I'm thoroughly enjoying the freedom to sleep when I need to.

We had a great afternoon with brunch/snacks and some champagne yesterday at Sis' house. This was to celebrate the arrival of Dad's piano,  which is now set up in the library part of the house off the kitchen. It looks amazing. It's the perfect size. We all took photos, and  some came out better than others.

 

  I think Dad will like the way it looks, and that it appears quite beautiful in its new home.

After the couple of hours up there (where I also got to see Mama Deer, and later Mama Deer and fawn!)  we drove home, and again noticed the strange absence of traffic. It was almost like someone said Stay Home Today, it was that empty for 90% of the way.

We got in the pool right away, and cooled off--although if the water is 92degrees, it's not really "cool".  Still it was much cooler than the air temp,  which broke a record yesterday at 97 degrees. Ugh.

My new handbag arrived yesterday!  To back up a  bit, Sis and I went bag shopping Wednesday for me; visited several stores both at Tanger outlet stores and the big box stores in the mall. Nothing really stood out, although I did buy a fabric handbag which was my far-cheaper alternative to the bag I really fell in love with at Dillard's. Why, oh why, did I go there?? If I hadn't, I wouldn't have seen this gorgeous bag which was outrageously  expensive. I'd immediately disregarded it as out of my league. But I couldn't forget about it. Nothing else was appealing.

So at home after shopping and a yummy lunch with Sis, I was telling J about it, and after much back and forth discussion, I found it online. At Dillard's website I actually found it for $40 less than it was in the store. I found it elsewhere online, but definitely not cheaper. So...I ordered it.

 J convinced me to treat myself, and I'm beginning to recover from having spent that much money on a handbag. But it is so beautiful, and just exactly what I wanted. This will probably be the last handbag I ever buy. I kept the lesser expensive fabric bag, just in case, which is perfectly ...serviceable. But I immediately transferred all my stuff to the new bag, and am completely happy. 

Next week is our 14th wedding anniversary, so I can sort of  justify this purchase as a gift; J insists he bought it for me. And he treated himself to some similar things he wanted, but which did not cost anywhere near what I spent...still. Hard to believe I can have nice things.

The dinner here Monday, July 4th, was fun.  We did  have enough pool time, and time enough to just relax and get caught up, and enjoy great food.

 BIL's daughter came too,  and was sweet and generous enough to bring a bunch of gluten free things for J to try, since she has been dealing with this issue for years herself. She also brought some neon orange  stickers, and offered to go through the items in the cupboards and mark which things were GF. 

I ended up doing that  myself Tuesday morning while J was taking an earlier than usual nap. We didn't need to give away too much stuff, and I did keep all the canned soups (which are not GF), but he knows he cannot eat them.  I still need to go through the fridge and freezer.

I will be grateful when he sees the GI doc for a follow up visit, and we learn if this is truly a wheat sensitivity, or whether something else is going on. He is not really noticing a big difference yet.  He is so fatigued, and finally has a clearer understanding of what I've been dealing with for months, myself. 

We tried adding fiber capsules to his routine which had no effect, so he stopped those; we added a probiotic, which may be helping.  He's not eating  any dairy products, and all food is GF. We've both basically adopted this meal plan, although I don't notice any real improvement in myself as well.  Because much of his night-time snacking is now impossible, he is losing weight. But when he does snack, he chooses sherbet, which, while fat-free, is definitely not sugar-free--and boy does that have an effect on him. So far he is not willing to give that up, despite the price he pays.

I have my bang trim   scheduled for Tuesday, and he has an appt with someone too this week. One night we will go out to eat, for our anniversary. Just need to investigate which restaurants are safe for him.

And we might go to a matinee; I'd really like to see the new Elvis bio. 

Life is good. We are blessed.

TYG

 

Sunday

 Well, we slept well, despite the quantity of fireworks going off all around us. This was only Saturday night. Imagine how it'll be on Monday night. Sigh.

So it's Sunday morning, and it's cooler than it has been; by "cool" I mean it's 83 with the humidity not as bad (86%). Rain and thunder and lightening is expected for this afternoon, so MissS and I will have to pop in the pool earlier than usual.

I already have a running list of things to do. J is outside doing some of those.  My list involves house prep and clean up for tomorrow's get together here with Sis and BIL. Bro and his wife are out of town, so they can't make it. The house only needs dusting and vacuuming, really.

J's GI issues are not really settling down, despite our best efforts to be wheat -free. I found two recipes for home made GF bread, and tried one of them Friday when I finally had all the GF ingredients. Sadly, although it tasted..not bad...it never rose the way it was supposed to. I got tired of waiting for it to, and tossed it in the oven after 90 minutes. It smelled good, but since it didn't rise, it wasn't able to be used for sandwich/toast bread the way I'd planned. 

So I will try the other recipe. Interestingly, both recipes called for using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment,  not the bread dough attachment. I do not have a stand mixer, so I just used my regular hand mixer. So the failure to rise could have been related to that, or maybe the yeast had a problem, or maybe the fat-free Lactaid milk wasn't the best to use (in place of plain milk, which we don't use)...this is why I don't like doing breads. Too many reasons why they don't work.  And these GF ingredients are much more expensive--when recipes don't work this makes it much more painful in my heart because it freakin cost so much to try. Sigh.

Well, the other recipe might work, and maybe J will do it. He loves baking bread. He used to be wonderful at it, too, and for some reason we stopped eating home-made bread. 

Recently, I've been wondering: what if my stomach issues for the past 12 years have been related to a wheat sensitivity/allergy? We ordered a wheat-free cook book from thriftbooks, and I'm excited to try these recipes, because they all look totally do-able. But the list of symptoms related to an allergy or sensitivity  to wheat is disconcerting. I have most of these symptoms, despite being on multiple stomach meds. Which would make sense if I do have the problem with wheat.

So we are both trying these recipes. But so far I haven't thought of it as a big deal if I have a "slip" now and then, because after all I'm not going to die from this slip, I'll just end up in the bathroom. And while that's not pleasant, sometimes it is worth it, depending on what the food is (that had the wheat). 

I might just have to go whole hog into this wheat-free thing.

Meanwhile in other news, the new toilet seat lid replacement (isn't this a great change of topic??!) hasn't helped at all. J cannot manage to tighten this enough to prevent slippage. The previous seat lid didn't slip; the only reason I replaced it was because it was scratched up and I couldn't get it clean anymore. It was plastic, so I got a replacement made of plastic also. Unfortunately J saw the price, and convinced me to try a cheaper one.   And this is the one that isn't working out. So it makes sense to me to try a better quality seat... which will be arriving today in the Amazon delivery. Yes, it was more expensive. But if it works, it will be totally worth it.

We looked into replacing his whole toilet, because it is wobbly, and broken at the lid's hinge. But the price to do so from one recommended plumber was $750, and that's if we buy the actual toilet and he installs it. If he buys it and installs it the price is $1850. Good God. 

Our usual AC repair company also does plumbing, but they want $50 just to come and look at it first, before they give us a quote. So all of this is on  hold for now. I found multiple toilets on Facebook Marketplace for far less than $100, so I'm not worried about that; when the time is right or if we have to replace it in an emergency situation, we'll have no problem finding one. It  is just the installation we are both concerned with. Since this is an older home, and we have no idea how old these current toilets are, it seems to make more sense to hire a professional to do this, just in case of any unpleasant surprises. Otherwise J could certainly do it.

On Monday we both did more pruning outside, and J dragged it all to the curb for pick-up on Wednesday.  I had a semi-annual tooth cleaning appt Monday afternoon, and that went well.

On Tuesday we/I puttered, nothing in particular.

Wednesday I had my second Covid booster.  My former employer, who is my health insurance, only gives the Moderna brand, and since the CDC is okay with mixing doses, I went for it too. All my previous injections were Pfizer. My appt was at 1:30, and I got caught up with my former manager, who was delighted to see me. She thought I looked great, and "much younger", which was nice to hear. 

Anyway the injection went fine, I had no problem, and in fact didn't even feel it going in. By around 7pm my arm was starting to be a bit sore. And by first thing in the morning something had hit me: I had no appetite (for my early AM snack so I can tolerate my antibiotics), and I had a whopper of a headache, nausea, my arm felt like fire and iron at the same time. And the fatigue!

 Well, after my meds I went right back to sleep, waiting for the headache medication to kick in. I woke at around 11 feeling dizzy, and couldn't walk without holding onto the walls. It was a wasted day: I just watched three movies in a row, not even stitching while watching. Couldn't focus, couldn't concentrate.  Wasn't interested in food. It rained heavily that afternoon so I couldn't get in the pool.  Couldn't bear to move my arm, so did not do any stretching at all.

By Friday it was much better. I managed to do most of my stretching exercises, and the headache was mostly gone. I had enough energy to try making the new GF bread recipe.

 I also had enough recovery that J and I used the pet razor on both dogs, shaving them down to an inch of fur. First I held Murphy while J shaved him, then his wrist issue prevented him from the last bit, so I took over.  Murphy does seem much happier. He normally only goes outside to pee, or if I'm in the pool he wants to be out there with me. But the heat is awful for him. This new cut will help, and hopefully it'll all grow back. At his age of 14, I'm not so sure it will, but we'll see. 

And of course since Murphy got a cut, Missy wanted hers done too; I'd done her not too long ago, but I trimmed her up a bit, did her chest area where her fur grows fastest. She adores being outside, racing all around the yard,barking and shrieking like a banshee, and even lying in the garden area, and rolling in the sandy soil.  She also joins J for his early morning walks. 

Yesterday was a good day: Meeting in the morning, hugs collected from dear friends, then returned a  handbag to Kohl's, and picked up a new pool pump motor.  Then to MissS' for J to help her install a wall-mounted TV. That was a job!  

Home for me meant pool time, and re-potting a couple of plants, rinsing off the deck. J woke up from his nap and joined me; we both are doing exercises in the pool now too.

A quiet evening watching a James Bond movie I swear I've never seen.  And falling into bed by 9, exhausted. 

It's a wonderful life. "Isn't life INteresting!", my grandmother used to say. Someone said something similar in the meeting, and I do agree...

 

TYG