Updates from March, 2018 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

  • Noreen 4:22 pm on March 13, 2018 Permalink
    Tags: ,   

    Each day I feel energized with signs of spring. I would have liked to have hung out the bedding this morning after taking it out of the washing machine. It is not to be until a whole bunch of snow has melted. I realize how much snert there is on the windows when the sun shines on them. I just go to a different portion of the house where the windows still bring in sunlight but not directly and enjoy the view of the snow shrinking and melting.  The key is to keep the eyes up high enough to avoid seeing the slush and muck.

    Though our home is small it is still amazing how much it takes to do one room at a time or one wall at a time to qualify what Lena would have referred to as “spring house cleaning.” Never have I had many “good dishes” – meaning fancy dishes. High utility and minimal would define our home. Shelving in our kitchen allows for quick access to what we use often. The north wall of our kitchen has yet to be tackled. It is the wall of the kitchen sink and the cabinets that do take up the entire wall. I have an idea that when Dennis and I do tackle the highest of the shelves within the cabinets there is going to be big time sifting and sorting. I can’t reach those shelves without a step stool. I don’t use what is up on those shelves even when we have guests for a meal. The Epileptic organization will be coming through St. James on the 22nd of March collecting gently used clothing and household items. This has to be more of a coincidence.

    Dennis has been helping each day and we are calling it physical therapy after his carotid surgeries. The span between the right side surgery and the left side surgery did not allow Dennis to feel stable enough or strong enough to build stamina. The months before we knew he needed surgery were less than kind to Dennis. This spring, slowly but surely we have our objective . . . stamina and strength building in small doses but continual doses. The older folks on Stauffer Avenue can do this!

     
  • Noreen 4:08 pm on March 11, 2018 Permalink  

    Surprisingly, I popped out of bed without a thought that it was one hour ahead than what it was yesterday. Yesterday upon waking, according to the clock it was 7:30 a.m. This morning upon waking, according to the clock it was 7:30 a.m. I am fortunate that the process of changing our clocks does not effect me.

    Dennis and I have met our objective for the day. The corner of the kitchen that houses our refrigerator and multiple shelves above, has been tidied. Dennis also remembered that Kevin, in times past upon visiting, would offer to dust the top of the refrigerator as he knew his mom now stood considerably shorter than what he had grown to. It made both Dennis and I smile as we cleaned away.

    It was beautiful outside for most of the morning. The new fallen snow was not bothered by any amount of a breeze. The birds and their early morning songs assure me that spring is just around this last snowfall. There was very little traffic noises as most were still adhering to what is referred to as “the old time.” It gave me a feeling of peace beyond all understanding as I opened all of the window blinds in our home.

    A good day was had here on Stauffer Avenue and I wish the same for all.

     
  • Noreen 4:21 pm on March 10, 2018 Permalink  

    Snowflakes are flying. Some are small, some are large. These too shall have to land where they fall as I have retired my snow pusher for the season. It may not look like spring outside today but the cleaning bug has hit Stauffer Avenue. Today I incorporated Dennis’ occupational therapy to assist with the kitchen range cleaning. Elbow grease, a bit of the Fresh Start cleaning solution . . . and dang if the stove doesn’t look too pretty to use. When Kevin put felt pads underneath on the skids of the range it made it easy to move it away from the kitchen wall. Considering we eat 99% of our meals at home with the range a huge part of those meals, I must say that there were no splatters where they should not have been.

    Tomorrow . . . it just might be that the top of the refrigerator and all that the shelves above it hold may meet up with the wrath of the Stauffer Avenue duo. By the way, supper will be a treat that has not been fixed on the kitchen range for a long, long time . . . French toast. The secret to stay away from such goodies is to not have any syrup in the house for the last year. Yes, I caved and it found its way into the shopping cart.

     
  • Noreen 6:21 pm on March 9, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    How many crumbs can a crumb catcher in a toaster hold? A whole bunch. There are times my eyesight becomes quite keen as to what is or what has accumulated within the home. I did take a swipe at a few items today. Dennis is stable enough to have made two medical appointments here is St. James, solo. Yes . . . we are making great strides, and for that I can be patient with the stall that spring has taken. It’s either this or better.

     
  • Noreen 3:23 pm on March 8, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    Lord A Mighty! What a day we have had on Stauffer Avenue. Right on target, after several days of quiet and rest, my back is 85% better. A bit more quiet should take care of the rest, and how to do that . . . do our income tax. Tax Act is just the best program for those of us who have no deductions to itemize. I believe even for those who do have multiple aspects it is a good program. Fill in the blanks and all the prompts take us to the end . . . “This is what you owe.” We saved ourselves $388 on the Federal by taking advantage of the energy improvements we made last year on basement windows and insulation within the crawl space of the basement. Whoopee! Dennis had company out in the patio porch so the house was quiet for me to muddle through the process. I had been putting it off for no good reason other than I knew I could. We do pay in to the Federal and State Income Tax, but not to a degree of causing distress. It’s just a part of life.

    As of this early afternoon, Dennis has High Definition Television in his patio porch. The Mediacom fellow who services St. James is a great representative of a company that gets a lot of grief. I know Dennis’ recovery of the carotid surgery is going to go so much better and faster as of this afternoon. I may have to have visitation rights in to the porch as he is tuned in to his favorite channels. It has been a long week for him. I will make sure to take nutrition out to him if he forgets timeframes. The sun is out and all things are right with the world here on Stauffer Avenue.

     
  • Noreen 5:00 pm on March 6, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    Last evening after the huge dump of wet snow, while we were getting supper together, our neighbor Randy was already at the end of our driveway. Watching the process of him and his huge snowblower, was like watching the snow cone machines at the county fair. When I looked, Randy’s wife was coming over and Jan moved snow away from the doorways where Randy couldn’t get close. It was very much appreciated as at that time I was feeling very much like a vulnerable adult.

    Over the weekend my back decided to buck. In thinking about it, it was last year about this same time that my back had to act up, as if to say “Pay attention to me.” Up to this instance, I have had a great winter of being able to take in stride whatever was needed whether outside or inside. Today it was my promise to myself to take it easy. No going downstairs, no lifting and taking turns with the ice pack and the heating pad on the lower back. Arthritis has a sneaky way making itself known and not by one specific act or injury. I do recall that last Saturday when I came back from Mankato I felt a bit stiff. Over the course of that day it settled into the lower back like a sock full of wet sand that was strapped onto me. Laying low for a day or two will do wonders for me and it gives me a chance to watch traffic, read a bit and watch snow melt. Knowing that Dennis’ months of having small strokes is over, surgery went well, his recovery is on tract, perhaps I had ignored the messages that my back had been giving me. It totally has my attention now.

    We did have company today. Grandson Ryan stopped in with a skid loader and took a swipe of snow away from Dennis’ garage door that faces Stauffer Avenue. A bit later Ryan came back and had great granddaughter Adison with him. A very tall 10 year old that enjoyed some Chocolate Chip cookies with Great Grandpa as Ryan took care of moving the old television set out of Dennis’ patio porch and securing the cable for television that had dislodged with all the ice that weighted it down yesterday. Dennis is totally ready to have a television to watch by Thursday evening.

    For Dennis and me it is a wonderful feeling that we have family and friends who are just several blocks away from us that willingly lend a hand. Family that is farther down the highway than just a jaunt do not need to worry as to our safety in times of freak thunder snow. I know I speak for Dennis as well as for me, it is hard to realize that we do need a bit of help from time to time.

     
  • Noreen 5:15 pm on March 5, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    What a blast of weather. Sitting on the toilet this morning, I saw a bright flash of light. I swear not long after that when the boom of thunder caught up to the lightening it made me wonder if I was sitting on a rip tide. Multiple loud booms literally shook the house. It did rain quite heavily for most of the forenoon. We had an appointment at one this afternoon six blocks from home at the VA Clinic. When we came out we had to clear the car of very wet snow.

    The Mayo clinic is across the county road and we headed there for a 2 p.m. appointment. Dennis is one week out of his surgery and keeping track of his reaction to meds and also checking the surgery site made both of these appointments important. We came out of the Mayo clinic at 2:45 and the visibility was less than a half block. Let me tell you, it has been a long time since we have been out in bad weather and having had a hard time getting through the snow on our driveway. It was wonderful to be home safe and sound. We are in March . . . right?

     
  • Noreen 5:49 pm on March 4, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    A quiet day as we are on the outskirts of winter weather. For my part, we could stay there for the duration through Wednesday. The task to take on today is walking up and down the driveway to get back strength in the ole cowboy’s legs. 180′ round trip . . . not a marathon, but a very good thing. It is nice to have a concrete driveway as Stauffer Avenue is a muddy slip and slide. Much thawing but nowhere for the slush to go. A great week coming but not for anything awesome . . . just taking each day as it comes.

     
  • Noreen 3:39 pm on March 3, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    When there has been good going for Dennis there is bound to be a set-back in his recovery. His patio porch television is no more. What is the point of having a heated patio porch if the RFD, Rural Farm Direct, the History and Discovery channels cannot be enjoyed. We started at the source of what would be needed via Mediacom. This coming Wednesday there will be a cable box delivered via UPS followed by a service call from Mediacom on Thursday. Our responsibility would be to have a television on board by Thursday. St. James actually has what is almost a full time Mediacom service fellow, Alex, and was a great support person to walk me through all this.

    This coming Monday we have two doctor appointments for Dennis. I have been keeping an eye on the weather forecast for late Monday and Tuesday. After Dennis got settled this morning, complete with his shot and meds, I left for Mankato to visit Best Buy to purchase a new television for the patio porch resident. Kevin and Jeremy had both agreed the Samsung we had purchased for the sewing studio was a good product for the money when they installed it on Thanksgiving Day. Mediacom Alex confirmed the thumbs up on the Samsung brand.

    When I returned home at 11:00 a.m., Dennis was still napping and I had a 32″ Samsung television in the car. I think it was listed as a “Smart” television with 1080P for the total of $248.10. Whatever! We are totally prepared for the install this coming week. Right now it is a bit sad to look out the east house window and see into the patio porch with Dennis in his favorite rocking chair watching . . . snow melt. The last thing he thought we needed to purchase was a new set for the patio porch. Dennis . . . sometimes the hand me down television sets have served their purpose and we need to get on board with reality. Next week at this time he will be feeling physically better and be right up to snuff on how the tractor auctions are doing.

     
  • Noreen 2:44 pm on March 2, 2018 Permalink
    Tags:   

    Dennis is showing his real colors via the… 

    Dennis is showing his real colors via the black and blue that is showing up. His neck is twice its size and is black and blue right down to his sternum. The meds that Dennis has been on are now all in review. Good blood flow may mean less meds needed to regulate his blood pressure. All meds have side effects that may not show on any pre-printed paper that comes with each one. I have taken on the job of literally cutting pills in halves and quarters.  Twelve hours apart I need to give Dennis a shot to assist in his blood to clot until the Warfarin tablets are doing their work solo.  No, I didn’t think I could do it, but there really wasn’t a choice.  Even today at the VA clinic when they took some blood from his finger it ran like a little red river.  It will take time for all to work as it should.  The VA Clinic sent us home today with a self inflating blood pressure cuff that will need to be used and charted twice a day. Dennis has always referred to me as “Doc Piddy.” By the way, as I was growing up the baby ducks were called Piddies and baby chicks were called Eeepies. Anyway . . . so Dennis’ translation is that I am “Doc Piddy – a real quack of a doctor.”

    I think all these checks and balances for Dennis are fantastic. What a great chance for him to enjoy a lifestyle with less drugs while feeling better.

    I did go down into the sewing studio this afternoon to take a peek that all was where it was left over the weekend. Yup, just like dust bunnies and dirty dishes . . . infinite patience until Stauffer Avenue returns to a semblance of normality.

     
c
Compose new post
j
Next post/Next comment
k
Previous post/Previous comment
r
Reply
e
Edit
o
Show/Hide comments
t
Go to top
l
Go to login
h
Show/Hide help
shift + esc
Cancel