It's been a week...

It's been a good week. Interestingly enough, not only am I breathing and sleeping better, I've also gained what seems like a new set of taste buds. Things really seem to taste especially good of late. Rex and I like cottage cheese. He likes his pretty plain. I enjoy it with added pepperoncinis, tomato, chives, cracked pepper and black olives. I made it earlier this week and it was wonderful. I almost felt silly!

If a set of refreshed taste buds has been gained, I need to be very careful. I've always enjoyed the flavors of good foods and probably don't need to enjoy them any more. I just need to remain more in control. :=] (This is a side shot of my controlled, larger nasal area.)

I think I'll go play in the kitchen for a while and create something. :)

Later....

I'm Back....

It's over, the surgery that is, and I'm very glad. It certainly wasn't what I'd call any kind of fun, but I am breathing better and that's always a good sign. I think I might be sleeping better also. I slept until 8AM yesterday and for me that's very late. It's been several years since I've been able to breath through my nose and it seems to be helping.

The procedure itself wasn't too bad and not nearly as bad as I remember the other two being. I did let the problem get too bad this time, trying to avoid another procedure, and I'll try not to let that happen again.

Before I left the hospital I was given a pain pill and a prescription. In the past I think I've tried to be a little strong and avoid the meds. This time though, I decided to use them before the pain got really bad and it has helped. The afternoon of surgery was quite uncomfortable until the meds kicked in. The pain reverberated into my jaws, my eyes, my teeth and sinus area in general.

Monday was surgery and I went back to the surgeon Tuesday to have a three inch sponge removed from the nostril. It wasn't painless, but not as bad as the previous two procedures. Things have been improving ever since the removal of the sponge. Hopefully within a week or so, things will be back to normal with continued improvement.

I would strongly recommend to anyone having nose blowing concerns, don't let it persist without at least asking the question about polyps.

Any questions, just ask.

Later....

I'm thirsty!!.......

Today's the day. My "Roto Rooter" job is scheduled for 10AM. Hopefully Rex and I will be back home before too late mid afternoon. The only problem I have now is being quite thirsty. "...No food or drink after midnight, please..."

Not being able to breathe through my nose due to my nasal obstruction, makes me a mouth breather and my throat really gets dry through the night. I keep a bottle of water at my bedside for overnight sips, but not last night of course.

I also take a morning med that makes my mouth even drier. I can always tell when this "wonder drug" starts taking effect because I have a hard time speaking and have to keep my mouth lubricated. I guess my mouth gets so dry that my tongue doesn't work well and things really start to slur. If I don't keep my mouth relatively moist I sound like a real lush. Alcohol may be a small part of my pleasure, but I never touch the stuff before noon..really! It just sounds that way.

I'm not whining, just thirsty. Occasionally I take a small sip of water, swish and spit it out. The first thing I'll probably want after surgery/recovery is A DRINK OF WATER!! I hope I didn't gross anyone out with the "swish and spit" note. We're all adults and we all probably s & s at times. If you don't, you're pretty unique. :)

Yesterday was goofy. In addition to the overnight cleaning, I caught up the laundry, picked up the house a little, mowed the lawn, and did a little pre-surgical cooking so things will be a little easier for "Rex" today as I will take on the role of "patient". I'm not supposed to bend over, lift anything over 5 pounds, or do much of anything for several days, due to possible bleeding. ...Oh joy!

Being a patient is not easy for me. I don't get crabby. I just have a hard time being waited on. I guess I'd just as soon do things myself. Again, I'm not whining, or maybe I am... I consider it venting and jitters.

Later.........

Collections...

I'm exhausted!!! I had trouble sleeping last night, probably thinking about Monday's surgery. ...Not necessarily concerned, just on my mind. Anyway...I got up at 3:15AM this morning because I couldn't get back to sleep. I can't stand being in bed when I can't sleep. That just makes me nuts! I'll get up and do just about anything...write letters, clean, you name it, anything to just not lay there and look at the clock.

So after I got up I decided to do a little cleaning. I had decorative pieces on the tops of my kitchen cabinets that had been there quite a while. They were in place as I liked them and were high enough to hide dust, so there they sat. I decided I'd take everything down and clean. I did just that. While I was washing and cleaning, I started to think about "collections". It's interesting what could become a person's collection.

I've been very much into the American Flag all of my life and enjoy collecting flag motif pieces. I don't want something just because it has a flag on it. I have to really like the item in order to purchase it. I don't have shelves full of things flag oriented or a room dedicated to the "red, white, and blue", but instead I decorate with the individual pieces throughout the house. I guess you could call that one of my collections. It's probably the most normal.

In addition to flag pieces, I also collect wishbones and bird's nests. I've collected them for years. When I cook a chicken or turkey, I always save the wishbones. If I go to a family member or friend's home for a holiday dinner where poultry is served, I'll also ask for the wishbone if no one else wants to claim it. I'm not pushy or sensitive about it, I just enjoy collecting them and have nearly 50 different sized wishbones decorating my kitchen area.

Now for the bird's nests, I have 13 of them at this point. I will not disturb birds to gain the nests. Mine have been deserted or found laying on the ground. I find it interesting what a bird will use to make a nest. I've seen plastic, feathers, hair, lint, sticks, mud, fur, leaves and many more interesting things. In addition to the nests I've found, I also have one that Cassie made when she was in elementary school. That was interesting, drying mud in the oven!

The bird's nests and wishbones are things that have caused a few raised eyebrows over the years. My daughter used to feel like she was the little girl whose mother had "bones" hanging all over her kitchen. I suppose the bird's nests could have the same effect. I also grow and dry herbs. Rex has built several drying racks for my herbs.

Interestingly enough, I'd probably have been suspected of witchcraft in years past. With wishbones, bird's nests and herbs hanging all over the place, I might have been suspect to the townsfolk.

What are some of your "collections"?

Later.....

Saturday...

It's rather early Saturday morning. I've been an early riser most of my life. I seem to accomplish more in the early morning when I'm by myself, can move at my own speed, and think clearly..before the day gets muddled up. :)

My husband on the other hand would sleep until 10-11AM most mornings if he could. He gets up earlier some times, but I'm usually to blame for that. Funny..it's the way I've always been and it's the way he's always been. Before our marriage of nearly 30 years, he was using two wake-up services to make sure he was up in time to leave for work. When we got together he eliminated that need.

Usually Saturday morning is devoted to grocery shopping. He likes to shop early before the stores get packed. I'm usually always ready to go..at least on Saturday morning. I can't vouch for being ready early (for the rest of the world) the other days of the week, but on Saturday, I'm ready to roll.

For something as non-exciting to some as grocery shopping, ours is usually sort of interesting. It has a lot to do with the differences in Rex, my beloved, and me. When I shop I like to take my time. I carefully select my produce and anything that's in the line of meat,poultry, or fish , and look for new products or ideas for meals. I can not rush this and do it well. On the other hand Rex would throw some things in a cart and be OUT of there. ...Fine for him..not for me. We compromise.

I shop better if I make a list. I usually do a small inventory before going to the store that shows me what I'm out of, what I need for particular meals, coupons to work with and the like. Generally I follow the list closely, but if I overlook something and it's six aisles behind us I always see this look of chagrin in his eyes. It's not that he's mean or anything, it's just this look that he gets and it usually cracks me up.

One thing that's very nice about Rex is his height. He's a little over 6'4" which helps me out a lot at home. I'm 5'5". One thing he always does at the grocery store, as things become obvious, is make things easier for other, shorter shoppers. If there are products on a top shelf with one item remaining and of course it's at the very back of the shelf, he will pull those things forward to make it easier for people like me. That's a plus and I give him a gold star for that.

It's now just after 6AM. I need to go wake Rex so that we can get ready, grab a coffee from McDonald's and hit the store/s. We usually arrive around 7Am, get the same parking space, and hit it.
All in all we have a pretty good time together. Sometimes things get sticky, but that's life.

If anything exciting crops up after this morning's shopping adventure, I'll fill you in.

Later........

Organization...

I enjoy organizing. It doesn't matter if it's a drawer, closet, garage sale, party, picnic, or what. I sometimes think I was put on this Earth to be an organizer. I've often thought that I could probably make a living by organizing for other people. I guess I just don't know how I'd market it.

This morning I decided to organize craft items and a drawer full of bows, ribbon and wrapping paper. Both are done now, look great and should stay that way quite a while.

The strange part of organizing, at least for me, is that I have to make a mess first, then begin the weeding process. I always seem to start out with a big mess but after a while I'm usually satisfied with the job I've done.

P.S....

Thank you Cassie for all of your help today.
XO

Two Days Running...

It's August 14th, Thursday and I wrote yesterday, so hopefully I'm back in the writing game. Even if I feel there's not a lot to say, at least I might be able to pass on a good thought. This is Neil Simon's, and I think it's good. "....I love life. I have some problems with my life, but living is the best thing they've come up with so far."

The end of this week is approaching and next week will be a little sticky. I have nasal polyps, have had for some time, and will undergo my third surgery to remove them next Monday. This is over a period of about 15 years. For those who don't know, nasal polyps prohibit your sense of smell as well as breathing through your nose. Nor can you blow your nose on the affected side. Lord only knows what's floating around in my head! Polyps are not painful but are real nuisance. I once suggested to my primary care physician that he write me a prescription for cocaine. They say that can clear out your nose pretty well. ....He chuckled, but didn't ask for a pen.

The two previous surgical procedures have been different. The first time I had about 20 yards of ribbon gauze pack into my nostrils. After a week the packing was removed and it felt like I was having a baby through my nose. ...No fun. The second time a glass tube bent at about a 45 degree angle was inserted in the nostril so that drops could be added several times a day. I thought or hoped that would be an improvement. However when the surgeon removed the tube, after a week, it was quite painful. I had not previously seen the tube's length due to being under anesthesia. When I saw it I was aghast! It was six inches in length. Who knows the parts of my brain that were cuddled by the tube.

ENT #3 says this procedure will be much less painful and that they shouldn't have to pack my nose with anything. The exception would be a short splint. We'll see. I'm still not expecting what I'd call fun. I have faith to believe things will go well, but would welcome any good thoughts and prayers out there. :)

On to happier things...it's a beautiful day in mid-Michigan. We're nearing the end of summer and the season is just starting to change. We'll probably have nice weather until November, but you can feel the differences now. If you've never experienced autumn in Michigan or most places in the east, I'd welcome you to visit. The colors are beautifully vibrant, the air is crisp but the temperatures usually stay quite nice. Welcome..

Later...

Where Have I Been??.....

It's Wednesday, August 13, 2008 and my last post was December 8, 2004. ....My how time flies when you're having fun!? :)

So much has changed but things are still good. I'm no longer working, except at home. The nice thing about that is that I have more time now that I'm unemployed. I'm a good cook and think I come by it quite naturally. From childhood I remember grandmothers, aunts and others being good cooks, so I guess it just rubbed off on me. I seldom use a recipe, and if one is used it's rarely used more than once. I like being creative and have only had two real failures. ...So far, so good and at 59, I don't think that's too bad.

I've also been able to get more into letter writing, though they're usually keyboarded. As I've grown older I've come to realize that a lot of the people that I've cared for down through the years are starting to dwindle. (I don't want to use the word die.) I've come back into contact with family members I've not seen in years and am enjoying the comeback. I guess I'm just taking the time, now that I have it, to do it while I can. If that sounds at all morbid I don't mean it that way. As I said before..life is good.

Later...