Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from May, 2016 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Noreen 5:53 am on May 21, 2016 Permalink  

  It was hard for me to realize the time this morning. I heard the television, and by the program that was on, I knew it was past 9 a.m. Dennis knew I had a chiropractor appointment at 10:30. Bless his heart for coming in from the porch and rousing me.

  Mornings will find me at Lorraine’s apartment for a time. The pancreatic card is showing its strength. Lorraine is very jaundiced. There are no more “Let’s see if this drug will help.” Lorraine knows she is in God’s waiting room and she is doing it with grace. When she requested a chicken sandwich and a strawberry malt from McDonald’s, I was more than willing, as her appetite is less than good.

  When I came home at noon and spent some time with Dennis for a light lunch, I hit the outside where the breeze was good and the garden dirt was calling me. Out came the electric powered Mantis tiller. Dennis and I took turns wangling around perennials in our square garden. The dirt had showed the film the winter had left. The dirt needed to be broken up so it could breath.

  What can I say? The evening is here and the work in the dirt was very satisfying. We celebrated with a can of Root Beer and a York Peppermint Patty. Again I can say how wonderful life of Stauffer Avenue is as Dennis and I work, taking our time making work enjoyable.

   
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  Noreen 4:39 am on May 20, 2016 Permalink  

  This entire week has been pleasant. I have had quite a few sessions on the patio enjoying the scenery of our acre. This afternoon Dennis joined me and we shared some jelly beans celebrating a good day with the lawnmowers.

  Mowing the yard does take the two of us more time than most would need. Our yard has lots of bumps. It is great to have a rider lawnmower, but . . . the seat is a far cry from an air ride suspension seat. My push mower has the bag option, and I have been using it on the front yard. It sure makes for a tidy appearance. About the third trip that I had taken to empty the bag, Dennis flagged me to the patio and it was a break time. That happened several times. With the weed whip loaded with a charged battery, it finished the yard off perfectly. I finished the trimming while Dennis already had the leaf blower out and cleaned off the driveway and the patio area. Tidy, tidy.

  The day is drawing to a close and us older ones on Stauffer Avenue may be pooped, but it brings self satisfaction of being good stewards of our sweet home.

   
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  Noreen 5:49 am on May 19, 2016 Permalink  

  After several visits to Dr. Liemer, the back is responding well. This afternoon I was out in the yard and I admit I had lost track of where my ole cowboy was. I heard it, but couldn’t be sure. Yes, it was the Honda Goldwing, and when I looked to the back garage, the overhead door was open. I didn’t know what to expect. I had not heard that sound since last fall.

  As I looked to the backyard, Dennis was indeed on the 900 lb. cycle. As he headed down Stauffer Avenue towards the thoroughfare we live on, all I could do was blow him a kiss.

  I stayed in the yard and knew I would either be contacted by law enforcement or he would be riding back home to me. The later was the good outcome. Dennis had taken the Honda down the highway to LaSalle, which is about 10 miles from home. I was really proud of him. This cruiser of a cycle has power and it is huge. Dennis’ grandsons have told him if he happens to tip it, it will take several people to get it back on the two wheels.

  After a bit of a break, Dennis took it out again, working on a feeling of stability in idling down and doing sharper turns. I think this is just what Dennis needed: expanding his horizons with a new venue for spring and summer. Hey, it has to be more satisfying than the rider lawnmower.

   
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  Noreen 4:27 am on May 18, 2016 Permalink  

  Treading Lightly 

  

  It pays to tread lightly in my gardens. Some of the perennials have an expanse of several feet by now. It took a bit of bright sun, almost like a spot light, to showcase this hosta that is just getting started. Watching where I plop my feet is what pays off in the end.

   
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  Noreen 4:47 am on May 17, 2016 Permalink  

  It Does the Heart Good 

  

  With the sun beckoning them, the Star of David blooms make my heart feel good.

   
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  Noreen 3:38 am on May 16, 2016 Permalink  

  This Was a Great Day 

  

  It was enjoyable to be outside today. This specific garden is doing amazingly well without any help from me. I did fill up my small sprayer with Roundup and headed for the backyard to take care of some unwanted green stuff.

   
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  Noreen 3:48 am on May 15, 2016 Permalink  

  If I were still wearing bloomers for my undies, I could have taken flight today to do a neighborhood watch. Scary . . . isn’t it?

  I putzed about my sewing studio today to prepare for a time when I get serious. Finding the best cohesive stabilizer for the fabric that the embroidering will be stitched on is trial and error.

  I found a scrappy quilt pattern called The Lattice. I think it will be the next project for the boot box of scraps.

  Dennis mixed up meatloaf to bake in the oven for supper. I peeled the last of the small potatoes that were left in the 5lb. bag. The little ones always end up being pushed back. We will be adding to the fare steamed carrots. I really recommend Glad Simply Cooking Microwave Steaming Bags for preparing the pre-washed small carrots. Megan always told her mommy I made the best carrots for a meal. I didn’t think the steaming bags were a secret, but they are deemed a shortcut to cooking.

  I have taken a few meds for the lower back . . . thus I am not going to attempt anything more than putzing.

   
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  Noreen 12:49 am on May 14, 2016 Permalink  

  The winter and early spring have caught up with me and the ole body. Yesterday I knew I had to make the call to Dr. Leimer to set up an appointment for my lower back. I turned myself in this morning at 10:45. I have been to Leimer off and on for years, as I know he can help. Why I wait so long to go for help . . . I have no clue. “It will be better tomorrow.” Ya, how is that working for you?

  This afternoon, I will admit, I hurt. It was not just the exact spot where I felt the pain . . . it was a whole bunch of areas that had been trying to make up for what I was feeling by pitching in to displace the reaction of the movements that caused the pain.

  Lots of ice bags and I will be back to Leimer’s office Monday morning. The rain and cool days that are ahead will offer a good chance to take it a bit easy. I will be walking the gardens to see what has all peeked through since the weekend. I can look . . . but no touching.

   
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  Noreen 2:32 am on May 12, 2016 Permalink  

  Totally Soaked 

  From the last several days, our rain gauge topped off at three inches.  The rain is still at it and Dennis dumped the gauge and it is ready to take on more.  I am sure we are just about through the worst of the rainfall . . . until tomorrow’s forecast comes about.

  

  This was the type of day that I did not need tempting to hit my sewing studio to finish Lorraine’s quilt. Good grief!!  I was waylaid a bit as a wasp had either followed in on clothes or from the back door being open.  Gotcha! It will be a real treat to deliver it to her tomorrow. Lorraine’s granddaughter will be thrilled to receive this from her grandmother. I am going to inquire of Lorraine if there are other goodies that she intended to finish for family and friends that are in need of a bit of finishing in her sewing room. Lorraine’s will is still good, but the cancer is leaving her without a lot of stamina.

   
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  Noreen 5:33 am on May 11, 2016 Permalink  

  A trip to Mankato today for answers. Dennis’ sleep apnea machine conked out on Friday night. Friday and Saturday nights were the first nights in eight years that Dennis did not sleep with the machine. In conjunction with the heart atrial fibrillation, sleep apnea and peripheral arterial disease, it makes the sleep machine a very important appliance in our home.

  Dennis was given one on loan to use until he has had a new sleep study test. June 6th he will check himself into the hospital in Mankato with a whole bunch of electrodes hooked up to him to see how many times per hour he stops breathing. That sleep study will allow those in charge to set up his apnea (CPAP) machine that will give him a strong puff of air to start the breathing process to kick in. Yes, it is like sleeping with a gas mask on.

  In the last eight years, there may have been a change to the pros or cons in how that computer needs to be set up. Between Medicare and our Blue Cross Blue Shield supplement the cost of the rent on the machine on loan and then the new machine, will be covered. Right now the price tag on the machine on loan is $7,798.00. Wow Wee!

  I wonder in times past when someone passed away in their sleep if maybe it was actually the apnea that was the cause. The cost of the machine does seem steep. Suffering from a stroke or heart attack that may not fatal . . . horrendous.