Good Morning y’all! Whilst the morning is very nice here, it’s a sad day, a sad day indeed. We have no new members to welcome. I’m hesitant to use the word “quiet” because when I worked, we all knew anyone who wished as that word for our shift surely jinxed us and it would be anything but quiet. Hopefully we will have new members to welcome next week.
I think I know why I was thinking about my Dad so much, next week is Father’s Day here in the States but last week was also my parent’s anniversary. I always had to remind him when I was younger but the joke was I’d always get Mom’s birthday mixed up with the anniversary day, not only the days but the two months. Even after I ruptured, I continued to get them confused until my Speech Therapist told me to put it in the calendar on my smart phone! Guess what’s still there? ROFLOL And no, I’m not removing it even though they’ve been gone almost 10 years for Mom, it makes me laugh. I love laughing!
Lawdy, it’s been hotter than 40 hells this week. That’s a Southern term by the way. In California, we’d say it was so hot you could fry an egg on the sidewalk. We don’t have sidewalks here, except in the new developments and downtown due to us being in a rural area that’s quickly moving to a metro area. It was 92 d F yesterday and the real feel was 107 d F. I got it in my head that I needed to fix the wires on the big garage door down at the tractor shed. It was hot, humid and since I forgot to open the other door before turning the power off, very little breeze. Sent a text to BH saying I was getting on a ladder, 45 minutes later, sent another asking for help.
Our licensed electrician/handyman had given me these tiny, little connectors to join the wires thinking that was the problem with the sensors not working correctly. My choice was butt connectors or those solder sealed butt connectors that have solder in them that you heat up with a heat gun - easy smeasy. The connectors the licensed electrician said to use has this little round red piece that one takes off, slide the two wires together, making sure they are the proper wires and then whilst holding the wires in, one is supposed to snap that dang little red thing over the wires and into the body of the device. I kept dropping the red thing. A couple times, I thought I had it only to find that one of the wires wasn’t seated properly and came out. Then I couldn’t get the red cap back off. BH had no better luck so off I went to find the electrical tape, twisted the back together and taped them off. The dang door wouldn’t come down. We don’t want wildlife in the building, especially skunks and deer might get hurt if they get scared. It’s the connector at the sensor, I just had to move it and try the button again, down came the door and Monday morning I’ll be calling another garage door company since the guy who installed them hasn’t responded to any of my calls. BH is done with him. Hindsight being 20/20 and all that, we shouldn’t have gone with him as the pole barn builder suggested and we should’ve used the company that installed the other garage doors. Oh well.
Bad brain days are improving! I have deduced it was stress, although I really wasn’t feeling stressed, just aggravated as Hades with trying to deal with an orthopedic surgeon’s RN. It’s frustrating as I know I write better than I speak, especially after the rupture. BH says it’s always been true as I use bigger words writing than speaking. It’s very important to be understood and language skills is what makes that happen. I had to get the referring physician to talk to the specialist. The referring Sports Medicine physician is referring me to another ortho surgeon as she’s not allowed to answer the question I need since I’m a candidate for surgery.
One thing I didn’t know and wanted to pass on to all y’all is that for me, when I send a message to one of my providers, all the providers under that health care umbrella can read them! My SM MD (don’t know the correct letters) read my chart, even back to when I was in Neuro ICU! I’m impressed she’d take a gander at so many of the images and the findings as well as read what I’d been writing. Although I don’t think I’d used anyone’s names, when angry at something they’d put in I would use my favorite not nice word of “nitwit” like when someone put emphasis on my last angiogram not on what was done as usual but on the RNA that liked to kill me by not listening or having the proper medication for when I went into full blown anaphylactic shock. I went off pretty bad and insisted it be changed, it was, but now no one can see what I was so upset about. So, if you’re under an umbrella with your providers and perhaps even if you’re not, don’t use identifying names in your messages to them if you’re dogging them (putting them down). Just like here, where we don’t allow negative reviews which can result in libel issues, don’t use names in any written form. Unless you’re a lawyer, judge or part of the Clerk of Courts here in the States, I don’t believe you’ll like going to court and sitting on the stand can be nerve wracking, until you get used to it. Even then adrenaline can go up pretty high and you will definitely need to be an expert in relaxation breathing! Which of course we all should be, you are practicing your form all the time, multiple times a day, right?
On to nature, I saw a hummingbird type I have never seen in my life before and boy was it ever beautiful! We usually get the Ruby throated ones which are really nice and I do enjoy the few we get here. This new to me one had a red throat and chest! He took a few seconds staring at me before flying off. I can’t find the type on the internet but perhaps it was a Buff-bellied Hummingbird which I’ve learned go up to South Carolina. Maybe he’s an adventurous soul and looking to move a bit more north. Wouldn’t surprise me, we are fairly close to the State line and our agricultural zone has moved to a higher number. But maybe he’s as rare as we are! Wouldn’t that be something? If you like to know more about the Ruby throated Hummingbird, migration and feeding here you go https://youtu.be/-gWDBVGcbzQ?is=wQZuZg3QKXxG2Jqu
I’ll leave you with a new skill Nina our youngest of the two old pups has acquired. She has learned to open the back door when we forget to make sure the door fully closes. She pushes it open and then goes and lays down somewhere else on the patio. Rarely does she go inside. Sometimes if the door is closed fully, she’ll stand there until one of us gets over to open it. Does she go inside? Nope, she goes and lays down. We are always telling her we are not cooling off the county but since she doesn’t pay the electric bill, I don’t think she cares much.
I’m off to go write a letter, hopefully with my fountain pen or at least my nice roller ball. We don’t share nice pens as it can change the nib on pens due to the way one holds the barrel and the amount of pressure put on the nib. Cheap throw aways that don’t take refills we don’t care about. BH has a collection of fountain pens. I used to go on eBay and bid ridiculously low amounts but would win because they no longer wrote. Most times it was just being patient and cleaning them as the ink would dry out, rarely have they needed a new nib. If you’ve never written with a fountain pen, I highly recommend you try one or perhaps try your hand at Calligraphy, there’s usually fairly reasonable sets with books to learn from. BH and I have the same calligraphy kit we got when we were teenagers it helps to have something to do on those cold winter days and these hot, maybe humid as well days. Hobbies are good for us, they help us to relax and get away from some of our worries and stressors for a bit of time. I think everyone should have a hobby of some sort and practice it every day!
While you’re here help out Rosie here Surgery scheduled and looking for advice - #6 by Moltroub and take a look at goldsmith here Clipping Recovery Roadmap - #24 by Moltroub I’d get my name off it but since I responded last, I seem to be stuck with it.
Have a great week! Don’t forget it doesn’t matter which season you live in, stay hydrated, rest and eat a healthy diet. Absolutely practice relaxation breathing. Perhaps one day I will tire of reminding you, but that day is not today! Help each other out here, we all need support. I am a diehard Beetles fan because of my age but Joe did a fantastic rendition https://youtu.be/eXV4WyQMHFM?is=i2vQbU-s2VQrW1UX