Dear Reader,
We are in New York and will move into our new home tomorrow! Here, for your pleasure, or not, is a video for the song I've had in my head all day: The Final Countdown by Europe. http://youtu.be/9jK-NcRmVcw
This last week has been really, really hard. I won't go into it. I think it's best to let my brain just let it go! I'll surely forget how bad it's been if I don't record it here. Let's just say, I got next to no sleep. At one point I got five hours of sleep in the course of three days. I have really done a purge of the house, though. I don't intend to let it ever get out-of-control like that again. I won't have kids moving in and out of the house, bringing their paraphernalia each time. And I'm not going to be working for the college, so I should be much better able to keep everything in my house cleared out in the future.
We drove twenty hours straight with all the animals. They traveled perfectly fine! We were amazed. Our daughter. Is mad at us for driving straight through because, she says, "y'all can't do that sort of thing anymore!" Well, apparently, we can!
The dogs are set up in the yard at the house, and the cat is set up in a bathroom. Were at the hotel and I'm going to sleep. Tomorrow is the last day before the new life begins. Thank goodness!
Have a great day tomorrow, and think about us!
Lisa
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Monday, May 19, 2014
Day -6 - AWFUL Day!
Dear Reader,
This has not been a good day ... at all! My plan for yesterday actually went pretty well. I even did have a very nice visit with my mother! It was 1:00 am before I got into bed, though, because I got caught up in taking care of a lot of things in my bedroom and bathroom. None of it was important, just odds and ends. But, I was tense about the movers coming this morning, and so I couldn't go to sleep until around 4:15 this morning, which is pretty bad, even for me. I left a huge list for my housekeeper to take care of as soon as she got in this morning. And then I left a note on the door for the movers telling them that no one ever got in touch with me to set things up with me, so if they got here before 10:00, they would have to wait. So ... my husband calls at 8:30 (!) and says they're at the gate and I have to let them in! Then, as I was getting into some clothes, they called saying, "Oh, we just saw your note. That's fine. We'll just wait till you're ready for us." But by that time I was already out of bed and awake, so I let them in.
Everything in our house is real tangled up with things that belong to the university, which I made clear to the company when they came in to evaluate the job. But, they aren't the ones who come in to do the work. So, I have lots of areas in the house ready to go. All of the dining room. All of the parlor, and everything in the living room except for the armoire because there are boxes set up in front of it and I cant get to it until the they were moved. I also had a lot of tea sets in the kitchen and pictures in the hall, and a lot of other things. But, then I found them just heading all over the place packing willy-nilly. So, I had to tell them that they had to only pack what I showed them and then ask me before they moved on to something else. I mean ... they were packing up my kitchen when I'm going to be living here for two more weeks! Well, one guy didn't like being told how to do things and there was a little bit of chest-butting which, well, I won ultimately by telling him he either did it my way or he had to leave. He said okay and I went on down to the basement and after a while, the boss showed up! I'm, like, wha-a-a-a-t??? So I explained to him that no one told me they were coming, this isn't a typical move and I realized that they are used to just coming into a house and following their noses, but it wouldn't work here. And, also, that the regional boss had told me that they would start with the basement, so that was what I had been working on. I could stay ahead of them, but they had to follow me, not expect me to follow them. So, we got it worked out. But I have to have the basement ready for them completely tomorrow, and it's SOOOO GROSSSSS down there! The floors are not thoroughly dry, and there's pools of water and so many spider webs and dirt everywhere and on everything! The walls are limestone and they just crumble down on everything. It's awful. I got a lot done down there today before I just couldn't stand it any longer and came up stairs. I am out of fruit, so I can't even make a fresh thing of Master Cleanse, and I decided I was too stressed out to be hungry, too. So I came up and made a bag of vegetables with black beans, green beans and carrots; and then heated up a bag of new potatoes. I wanted something sweet and found a tiny bit of gluten-free chocolate chip cookie dough in the refrigerator and cooked six little-bitty cookies.
I watched a Nashville and it's basically time to go back down into the basement. BUT I DON'T WANT TO!!! WAAAAH! And now I'm hungry and I just want to go eat a bunch of food! Oh, and ... I've chewed off most of my nails at this point, which is a pity because they were looking so good. So, that's my day and my evening. Everything's a mess and I'm a bit of a wreck.
Moving is never easy. But I've made a decision ... I'm NEVER moving again! They are going to have to pry this new home out of my cold, dead fingers!
TTYL!
Lisa
This has not been a good day ... at all! My plan for yesterday actually went pretty well. I even did have a very nice visit with my mother! It was 1:00 am before I got into bed, though, because I got caught up in taking care of a lot of things in my bedroom and bathroom. None of it was important, just odds and ends. But, I was tense about the movers coming this morning, and so I couldn't go to sleep until around 4:15 this morning, which is pretty bad, even for me. I left a huge list for my housekeeper to take care of as soon as she got in this morning. And then I left a note on the door for the movers telling them that no one ever got in touch with me to set things up with me, so if they got here before 10:00, they would have to wait. So ... my husband calls at 8:30 (!) and says they're at the gate and I have to let them in! Then, as I was getting into some clothes, they called saying, "Oh, we just saw your note. That's fine. We'll just wait till you're ready for us." But by that time I was already out of bed and awake, so I let them in.
Everything in our house is real tangled up with things that belong to the university, which I made clear to the company when they came in to evaluate the job. But, they aren't the ones who come in to do the work. So, I have lots of areas in the house ready to go. All of the dining room. All of the parlor, and everything in the living room except for the armoire because there are boxes set up in front of it and I cant get to it until the they were moved. I also had a lot of tea sets in the kitchen and pictures in the hall, and a lot of other things. But, then I found them just heading all over the place packing willy-nilly. So, I had to tell them that they had to only pack what I showed them and then ask me before they moved on to something else. I mean ... they were packing up my kitchen when I'm going to be living here for two more weeks! Well, one guy didn't like being told how to do things and there was a little bit of chest-butting which, well, I won ultimately by telling him he either did it my way or he had to leave. He said okay and I went on down to the basement and after a while, the boss showed up! I'm, like, wha-a-a-a-t??? So I explained to him that no one told me they were coming, this isn't a typical move and I realized that they are used to just coming into a house and following their noses, but it wouldn't work here. And, also, that the regional boss had told me that they would start with the basement, so that was what I had been working on. I could stay ahead of them, but they had to follow me, not expect me to follow them. So, we got it worked out. But I have to have the basement ready for them completely tomorrow, and it's SOOOO GROSSSSS down there! The floors are not thoroughly dry, and there's pools of water and so many spider webs and dirt everywhere and on everything! The walls are limestone and they just crumble down on everything. It's awful. I got a lot done down there today before I just couldn't stand it any longer and came up stairs. I am out of fruit, so I can't even make a fresh thing of Master Cleanse, and I decided I was too stressed out to be hungry, too. So I came up and made a bag of vegetables with black beans, green beans and carrots; and then heated up a bag of new potatoes. I wanted something sweet and found a tiny bit of gluten-free chocolate chip cookie dough in the refrigerator and cooked six little-bitty cookies.
I watched a Nashville and it's basically time to go back down into the basement. BUT I DON'T WANT TO!!! WAAAAH! And now I'm hungry and I just want to go eat a bunch of food! Oh, and ... I've chewed off most of my nails at this point, which is a pity because they were looking so good. So, that's my day and my evening. Everything's a mess and I'm a bit of a wreck.
Moving is never easy. But I've made a decision ... I'm NEVER moving again! They are going to have to pry this new home out of my cold, dead fingers!
TTYL!
Lisa
Sunday, May 18, 2014
Day -5 - GREAT DAY!
Dear Reader,
ok ... here goes! I had a GREAT DAY today! I got mountains of work done in the basement and have it ready for the movers to start on tomorrow. I also had my prayer time and read my Bible early today which is so much better than waiting till I'm half asleep. I kept track of my time, using my timer to measure out 45 minutes and then taking a 15 minute break to read my book, and then went to a different area of the basement to work so I didn't get caught up in just one area.
I went to see my mother this evening and we had a really nice visit. Then I came back home and inspected the shed, and my three porches and the sitting area under the oak tree in back. I've got most all of that ready for the movers to get started on in the morning. I'm guessing that they'll want to put the basement and outdoor things in first so that the household things can come out first when they get to the new home.
I took my bath at 11:00 and am in bed at 12:00 ready to call it a night! Looks like it's the Master Cleanse tomorrow, too, because I was too busy, and too dirty (!) to go to the grocery store. The best part is, I didn't get caught up on the internet AT ALL today! Last night I got real caught up in looking for a regular doctor nearby and a counselor. And, you know I've been looking for the perfect pair of shoes and a floral yellow comforter for my bedroom. No luck so far, and the internet called my name all day today, but I resisted firmly!
I had my coffee early in the day today and enjoyed it. It's crazy, but I don't have time to read up on all of the information about it because a) I stayed off the internet all day and b) I was too busy!
So ... a really good day. I'm going to bed feeling proud of myself for a change. I usually have a defeated attitude towards a day before it even begins and have a victim's mentality. But NOT TODAY! Today was great!
Okay, now .... did you buy any of that??? Because the truth is that I'm writing this at 1:00 in the afternoon before my day has gotten under way. Last night I researched forever looking for a therapist and a regular doctor. I didn't find any local doctor that looked like what I need, one that doesn't rely on medicines only, since I can't take them. I also couldn't find a counselor that seemed right. I sent one an email and she emailed me back but said that she doesn't take insurance, so I don't think I'll be using her. I was up until 2:00 am again and slept till noon, ten hours. I decided that, even though the day was not starting like I had wanted it to, I could still take hold of it right now and be in charge of it instead of being the victim of my bad choices. So all of the above is how I WANT and PLAN on the day being.
Optimism. It's a good thing!
Cheers!
Lisa
ok ... here goes! I had a GREAT DAY today! I got mountains of work done in the basement and have it ready for the movers to start on tomorrow. I also had my prayer time and read my Bible early today which is so much better than waiting till I'm half asleep. I kept track of my time, using my timer to measure out 45 minutes and then taking a 15 minute break to read my book, and then went to a different area of the basement to work so I didn't get caught up in just one area.
I went to see my mother this evening and we had a really nice visit. Then I came back home and inspected the shed, and my three porches and the sitting area under the oak tree in back. I've got most all of that ready for the movers to get started on in the morning. I'm guessing that they'll want to put the basement and outdoor things in first so that the household things can come out first when they get to the new home.
I took my bath at 11:00 and am in bed at 12:00 ready to call it a night! Looks like it's the Master Cleanse tomorrow, too, because I was too busy, and too dirty (!) to go to the grocery store. The best part is, I didn't get caught up on the internet AT ALL today! Last night I got real caught up in looking for a regular doctor nearby and a counselor. And, you know I've been looking for the perfect pair of shoes and a floral yellow comforter for my bedroom. No luck so far, and the internet called my name all day today, but I resisted firmly!
I had my coffee early in the day today and enjoyed it. It's crazy, but I don't have time to read up on all of the information about it because a) I stayed off the internet all day and b) I was too busy!
So ... a really good day. I'm going to bed feeling proud of myself for a change. I usually have a defeated attitude towards a day before it even begins and have a victim's mentality. But NOT TODAY! Today was great!
Okay, now .... did you buy any of that??? Because the truth is that I'm writing this at 1:00 in the afternoon before my day has gotten under way. Last night I researched forever looking for a therapist and a regular doctor. I didn't find any local doctor that looked like what I need, one that doesn't rely on medicines only, since I can't take them. I also couldn't find a counselor that seemed right. I sent one an email and she emailed me back but said that she doesn't take insurance, so I don't think I'll be using her. I was up until 2:00 am again and slept till noon, ten hours. I decided that, even though the day was not starting like I had wanted it to, I could still take hold of it right now and be in charge of it instead of being the victim of my bad choices. So all of the above is how I WANT and PLAN on the day being.
Optimism. It's a good thing!
Cheers!
Lisa
Day -4 - Family Day, No Time for Work
Dear Reader,
Last night was definitely rough because of the pulled muscles. I fell asleep with the lamp on, just laying over onto my husband's pillow, so "tricking" myself into falling asleep. I slept SIX HOURS without even moving! But ... from that point on, moving was definitely a problem. You have no idea how much you use your lower abdominal muscles until you injure them! There were a few times when I was worried that I was starting to actually tear something, but I don't think I did after all. They've caused me a lot of pain today, but not as bad as yesterday, for sure.
I was still in bed when I got a call from our son saying he was driving up to get his new car. About that time, our daughter came into the bedroom looking for my opinion on an outfit. So, I never got my prayer time or read my Bible. But I did enjoy visiting with my kids! Our son LOVES his new/old car. He even says he's going to keep it clean, which neither his sister nor I believe. When he opened it up he said, "It smells so good! It doesn't smell like food." Our daughter went on to her boyfriend's parents house to help the mother with a large party for high school students that she gave today.
Our son and I went to eat lunch together. I got the green beans, corn, broccoli, carrots and salad that I had earlier this week. Then we went to a sporting goods store where he sold his two 65-lb weights. They gave him enough money for them that he was able to turn around a buy a bike they had there. He plans to use it to ride from his car to the building where he works ... without a helmet. I told him there was a state law, but he is not going to wear one. Maybe he will after he gets his first ticket! The apartment situation is working out better now which is a relief.
We also went and bought him a lock for his bike and a fan for his room, which he says is pretty hot. It should provide some background noise also, because the other two stay up till about 1:00 each night.
You know I said how bored my husband was with Godzilla? Well, my son told me that "it rocked his world"! He even wanted to see it again. I mentioned that I was wanting to see it and he said we could do that during the afternoon. My jaw dropped! I even gave him a couple of opportunities to back out, but he said no each time. So we went to see it. Since I'm doing the cleanse, I just got a Coke Zero. (Yes, I know that Cokes aren't good for you and neither are artificial sweeteners. I don't care!) But, about halfway through the movie he got up and came back with a big thing of buttered popcorn. Did I resist? NO! Of course, I didn't! And it was delicious!
So then we came home and he went to get gas and I decided to figure out how to sync my phone to the Bluetooth in my car. It came out of sync months ago, and everytime I try to fix it, it won't connect. I watched several youtube videos about it, but I still couldn't make it work. Finally, I deleted my car from my phone and got it to work. Yes! I defeated technology! During all of this, I also found a way to turn off the feature that automatically unlocks my car doors when I put the car in park. I hate that! I also figured out what's going on with my navigation system. The problem turns out to be that (gasp!) I DON'T HAVE A NAVIGATION SYSTEM! And it will cost $800 to have one installed. Or I can pay $10 a month to add it to my OnStar account, which I think I have let expire, anyway. One person said that their directions aren't very good ... but it will take seven years of OnStar to equal having it installed. So those directions would have to be pretty bad for me to not choose that route. But the only problem is that I thought this car was supposed to have navigation already. I'll have to go through my notes and see what the deal is with that. But I'm pretty sure I told the guy that I wanted heated seats, remote start, and navigation.
Oh, at the sporting goods store I came so close to buying an inversion table! They had one on sale for $125. But, then I came to my senses and decided not to get one. It was kind of funny. A cute girl was waiting on me, and she was very taken with my son!
So, that's my day. I'm pretty sure I'm going to church tomorrow. I've missed waaaay too much. I'm hungry and want to eat! I'm going to have to stay on the Master Cleanse tomorrow because I never made it to the grocery store today.
My husband texted me during the night that the movers are coming MONDAY to start packing!!! WHAT??? OH MY GOSH!!! I was told that they would probably start in the basement, so that means I have to do nothing tomorrow except work down there. I hope these muscles are okay because, otherwise, I don't know what I'm going to do!
So ... there's my world, in a nut shell.
Have a blessed Sunday!
Lisa
Last night was definitely rough because of the pulled muscles. I fell asleep with the lamp on, just laying over onto my husband's pillow, so "tricking" myself into falling asleep. I slept SIX HOURS without even moving! But ... from that point on, moving was definitely a problem. You have no idea how much you use your lower abdominal muscles until you injure them! There were a few times when I was worried that I was starting to actually tear something, but I don't think I did after all. They've caused me a lot of pain today, but not as bad as yesterday, for sure.
I was still in bed when I got a call from our son saying he was driving up to get his new car. About that time, our daughter came into the bedroom looking for my opinion on an outfit. So, I never got my prayer time or read my Bible. But I did enjoy visiting with my kids! Our son LOVES his new/old car. He even says he's going to keep it clean, which neither his sister nor I believe. When he opened it up he said, "It smells so good! It doesn't smell like food." Our daughter went on to her boyfriend's parents house to help the mother with a large party for high school students that she gave today.
Our son and I went to eat lunch together. I got the green beans, corn, broccoli, carrots and salad that I had earlier this week. Then we went to a sporting goods store where he sold his two 65-lb weights. They gave him enough money for them that he was able to turn around a buy a bike they had there. He plans to use it to ride from his car to the building where he works ... without a helmet. I told him there was a state law, but he is not going to wear one. Maybe he will after he gets his first ticket! The apartment situation is working out better now which is a relief.
We also went and bought him a lock for his bike and a fan for his room, which he says is pretty hot. It should provide some background noise also, because the other two stay up till about 1:00 each night.
You know I said how bored my husband was with Godzilla? Well, my son told me that "it rocked his world"! He even wanted to see it again. I mentioned that I was wanting to see it and he said we could do that during the afternoon. My jaw dropped! I even gave him a couple of opportunities to back out, but he said no each time. So we went to see it. Since I'm doing the cleanse, I just got a Coke Zero. (Yes, I know that Cokes aren't good for you and neither are artificial sweeteners. I don't care!) But, about halfway through the movie he got up and came back with a big thing of buttered popcorn. Did I resist? NO! Of course, I didn't! And it was delicious!
So then we came home and he went to get gas and I decided to figure out how to sync my phone to the Bluetooth in my car. It came out of sync months ago, and everytime I try to fix it, it won't connect. I watched several youtube videos about it, but I still couldn't make it work. Finally, I deleted my car from my phone and got it to work. Yes! I defeated technology! During all of this, I also found a way to turn off the feature that automatically unlocks my car doors when I put the car in park. I hate that! I also figured out what's going on with my navigation system. The problem turns out to be that (gasp!) I DON'T HAVE A NAVIGATION SYSTEM! And it will cost $800 to have one installed. Or I can pay $10 a month to add it to my OnStar account, which I think I have let expire, anyway. One person said that their directions aren't very good ... but it will take seven years of OnStar to equal having it installed. So those directions would have to be pretty bad for me to not choose that route. But the only problem is that I thought this car was supposed to have navigation already. I'll have to go through my notes and see what the deal is with that. But I'm pretty sure I told the guy that I wanted heated seats, remote start, and navigation.
Oh, at the sporting goods store I came so close to buying an inversion table! They had one on sale for $125. But, then I came to my senses and decided not to get one. It was kind of funny. A cute girl was waiting on me, and she was very taken with my son!
So, that's my day. I'm pretty sure I'm going to church tomorrow. I've missed waaaay too much. I'm hungry and want to eat! I'm going to have to stay on the Master Cleanse tomorrow because I never made it to the grocery store today.
My husband texted me during the night that the movers are coming MONDAY to start packing!!! WHAT??? OH MY GOSH!!! I was told that they would probably start in the basement, so that means I have to do nothing tomorrow except work down there. I hope these muscles are okay because, otherwise, I don't know what I'm going to do!
So ... there's my world, in a nut shell.
Have a blessed Sunday!
Lisa
Friday, May 16, 2014
Day -3 - Bad Day, But Good News
Dear Reader,
Today, started slowly, as all my days do. I have a test here that I'm supposed to do to test my cortisol and other adrenal hormones, but I keep forgetting about it. I will do it next week for sure ... I'm going to put it on my calendar in my phone right now. Done.
I worked on those receipts last night, and then some more this morning. Good progress. I have one last big set of them to go through. I found some good things. One is a receipt for a lamp that has broken, the hinge thing that holds the light up quit working so now the hooded light hangs down. Another is for an evening gown that I was unable to wear because I was so swollen that my breasts were just bulging out. It's from one of those companies (J. Peterman) that have a great return policy, so maybe they'll let me return it to them, or give me store credit, or something. There were a few other important receipts that I found, but the rest I trashed. I need to find a system for keeping receipts. I imagine that there has to be "an ap for that".
Then I got dressed and went to have lunch with a friend at the country club. I was actually on time, which I should have known meant something was amiss! Sure, enough, she didn't show up. I texted her and then phoned her and after a half an hour got up to leave. But I wound up having a nice chat with an older couple who were finishing their lunch, so it was an hour before I got in the car to leave. Right then my phone rang and it was her, horribly embarrassed. She had completely forgotten about it and was out running errands and her phone was with her, but she didn't hear my text or call. She apologized profusely and said she had never done that before. Really??? She is a very polished Southern lady, I think in her 60's, so she may be telling the truth. Me ... I've forgotten tons of things! I ordered just vegetables again and they were excellent. I had grilled asparagus, carrots, green beans, summer squash, and cherry tomatoes. So good, and I hoped that they wouldn't interfere with my cleanse too much.
Then I actually remembered, after about three months, to take a watch by a clock shop to have a couple of links replaced. It's a Michael Kors watch with white rubber around the links, really good looking, but the rubber has broken off on a couple of links, so I haven't worn it for forever and have continually forgotten to get it fixed. But it's done now, at last.
Then I went to the county clerk's place and got the new license for our son's car. I couldn't get it transferred to him without him being present, but I was able to add him to the deed so that it belongs to both of us. Then I called the insurance company to get it transferred to his policy and off of ours, but I can't change it yet because it is at the underwriter's, or something like that.
I came home, took the old license off the car and put on the new one, and then drove the old one back to the dealership to return it to the man I bought the car from. Then I came home.
Now, here's the part I haven't told you. Last night, closing the recliner I was in to stand up, I managed to pull all of my groin and lower abdomen muscles. So all of this was done with extreme pain. I could hardly move my legs to walk and getting up and down from a chair and in and out of a car was horrible. I yelled out a few times it was so bad. All these soldiers were watching me at the clerk's office, I'm sure wondering what was the matter with me. But this is not the type of injury you want to turn and say, "Oh, I'm okay. I just pulled all of my groin muscles last night!"
Then I came home and made my way up the stairs and got in bed and slept/dozed for three hours. I don't like being by myself on a Friday evening! My husband went to see Godzilla and said it was so boring that he fell asleep. But, he should never see a movie on Friday night because he invariably falls asleep! He talked to his secretary about finding churches for him to visit and so she has him first going with her and her husband to the church they attend in the Bronx. It's apparently a 30,000 member church ... which I just don't even understand!
I've stayed downstairs in the recliner (which I am going to leave open this time!) and am getting sleepy again. It's 11:47, so maybe that long nap won't have messed me up too badly. I've watched a little dab of TV while I've worked on other things. The TV remote is missing again, of course. Yesterday I couldn't find the maple syrup anywhere (did I already tell you this?) and had to call the housekeeper who said she had put it in the cabinet with the tea bags. This sort of thing happens CONSTANTLY and drives me nuts. There's no telling where the TV remote control is! I did discover, though, that it is apparently not a good idea to watch "Chopped" while you're doing a cleanse! I didn't want to have the coffee today, so I broiled some kale instead and snacked on it some. I know that's not exactly doing the Master Cleanse, but ... hey! Leave me alone! Tomorrow will be my fifth day, which is all I had planned. Then I'm going to do Jordan Rubin's 10-fast. I've got the pills in and have been using the detox fiber drink each day, so that's the plan. I think it starts out with just one fruit all day long or something. After doing the Master Cleanse, though, that seems much more doable.
I'm also interested in doing a different sort of cleanse that I've been reading about. It's a 28-day cleanse that is more of a metabolic cleanse than a gut cleanse. You are probably not familiar with a line of supplements called Xymogen. My doctor uses them and sells them because they are the most researched, purest, etc. etc. etc. This cleanse has you doing a lot of shakes that reduce your inflammation levels among other things. Let me see if I can find a website real quick for it ... here's a pretty good one: http://healthrenewmd.com/tools/28-day-cleansedetoxification/
So, the bad day today is because of the pain from the pulled muscles. Plus, waiting an hour for my friend to come and then still having lunch got me off late for other things I needed to do. I took the long nap because the pain had worn me out. So ... I didn't get anything done on the house AGAIN!!! It's like there's a conspiracy! I'm TRYING to take hold of my life and my time, but just not doing a very good job at it! Waking up at a decent time would sure help.
BUT ... here's the good news. My nephrologist called. Most of the tests are in and things look better. The tests from the 24-hour urine collection are, I think he said "strange." I'm getting used to that word. My filtration rate was 67, which is a WHOLE lot better than 45. He said he would have expected it to be around 80, so it is still reduced kidney function, but not nearly as badly reduced as the first test. Another piece of really good news is that I have absolutely no protein in my urine. Which leaves my diagnosis kind of strange. I don't actually have Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) because that includes a finding of protein in the urine. I have reduced function, but no urine which is an unusual combination. At this point he doesn't know why my filtration function is reduced, but there is one more test that he is still waiting for. The one that will measure whether or not I've got antibodies coming through. One the one hand, he would suspect that having a lot of antibodies going through my kidneys, plugging up the glomerula and killing them was what was going on because of my very messed up immune system which forms antibodies at everything. But, if that were the case, I should have protein in my urine. So ... this is a specialist at a major research university, and he doesn't understand what's going on with me. Welcome to my life! I guess that, at the moment, my diagnosis is reduced kidney function for unspecified reason. But that's still WAY better than Stage 3 Chronic Kidney Disease!
The other good news comes from some research I did online while laying in bed, afraid to get up. I found a woman who is a dietician in Manhattan who sounds like she is exactly who I need. Here's her website. I'm really liking the recipes she's got. She creates recipes for Glamour and Prevention and other magazines. http://thehealthyapple.com/gluten-free-nutrition-services/
I came across her site while looking for a functional medicine doctor in New York. She lists a few that she has worked for and one is fairly near where I'll be living. So that's all good. I still need to find a local "regular" doctor for "regular" problems.
If I can move tomorrow I hope to spend it down in the basement. I've already been through two boxes of things I've saved for grandbabies and have reduced them a lot. But it's so yucky down there! And there's SO MUCH stuff to go through, it's pretty discouraging just to think about!
I'm going to go get in a Jacuzzi for a good, hot soak. Wish I had some Epsom salts, but I think I'm out. Pulling all these muscles just closing the recliner has been pretty discouraging. I mean, good grief!
I still have to get in to see a dermatologist and an autonomic nervous system specialist, and then I think I'll be done with doctors here. Prolotherapy is this Wednesday, so I'd better get a LOT done in the basement before that, because I won't be moving much AFTERWARDS, for sure!
Cheers!
Lisa
Today, started slowly, as all my days do. I have a test here that I'm supposed to do to test my cortisol and other adrenal hormones, but I keep forgetting about it. I will do it next week for sure ... I'm going to put it on my calendar in my phone right now. Done.
I worked on those receipts last night, and then some more this morning. Good progress. I have one last big set of them to go through. I found some good things. One is a receipt for a lamp that has broken, the hinge thing that holds the light up quit working so now the hooded light hangs down. Another is for an evening gown that I was unable to wear because I was so swollen that my breasts were just bulging out. It's from one of those companies (J. Peterman) that have a great return policy, so maybe they'll let me return it to them, or give me store credit, or something. There were a few other important receipts that I found, but the rest I trashed. I need to find a system for keeping receipts. I imagine that there has to be "an ap for that".
Then I got dressed and went to have lunch with a friend at the country club. I was actually on time, which I should have known meant something was amiss! Sure, enough, she didn't show up. I texted her and then phoned her and after a half an hour got up to leave. But I wound up having a nice chat with an older couple who were finishing their lunch, so it was an hour before I got in the car to leave. Right then my phone rang and it was her, horribly embarrassed. She had completely forgotten about it and was out running errands and her phone was with her, but she didn't hear my text or call. She apologized profusely and said she had never done that before. Really??? She is a very polished Southern lady, I think in her 60's, so she may be telling the truth. Me ... I've forgotten tons of things! I ordered just vegetables again and they were excellent. I had grilled asparagus, carrots, green beans, summer squash, and cherry tomatoes. So good, and I hoped that they wouldn't interfere with my cleanse too much.
Then I actually remembered, after about three months, to take a watch by a clock shop to have a couple of links replaced. It's a Michael Kors watch with white rubber around the links, really good looking, but the rubber has broken off on a couple of links, so I haven't worn it for forever and have continually forgotten to get it fixed. But it's done now, at last.
Then I went to the county clerk's place and got the new license for our son's car. I couldn't get it transferred to him without him being present, but I was able to add him to the deed so that it belongs to both of us. Then I called the insurance company to get it transferred to his policy and off of ours, but I can't change it yet because it is at the underwriter's, or something like that.
I came home, took the old license off the car and put on the new one, and then drove the old one back to the dealership to return it to the man I bought the car from. Then I came home.
Now, here's the part I haven't told you. Last night, closing the recliner I was in to stand up, I managed to pull all of my groin and lower abdomen muscles. So all of this was done with extreme pain. I could hardly move my legs to walk and getting up and down from a chair and in and out of a car was horrible. I yelled out a few times it was so bad. All these soldiers were watching me at the clerk's office, I'm sure wondering what was the matter with me. But this is not the type of injury you want to turn and say, "Oh, I'm okay. I just pulled all of my groin muscles last night!"
Then I came home and made my way up the stairs and got in bed and slept/dozed for three hours. I don't like being by myself on a Friday evening! My husband went to see Godzilla and said it was so boring that he fell asleep. But, he should never see a movie on Friday night because he invariably falls asleep! He talked to his secretary about finding churches for him to visit and so she has him first going with her and her husband to the church they attend in the Bronx. It's apparently a 30,000 member church ... which I just don't even understand!
I've stayed downstairs in the recliner (which I am going to leave open this time!) and am getting sleepy again. It's 11:47, so maybe that long nap won't have messed me up too badly. I've watched a little dab of TV while I've worked on other things. The TV remote is missing again, of course. Yesterday I couldn't find the maple syrup anywhere (did I already tell you this?) and had to call the housekeeper who said she had put it in the cabinet with the tea bags. This sort of thing happens CONSTANTLY and drives me nuts. There's no telling where the TV remote control is! I did discover, though, that it is apparently not a good idea to watch "Chopped" while you're doing a cleanse! I didn't want to have the coffee today, so I broiled some kale instead and snacked on it some. I know that's not exactly doing the Master Cleanse, but ... hey! Leave me alone! Tomorrow will be my fifth day, which is all I had planned. Then I'm going to do Jordan Rubin's 10-fast. I've got the pills in and have been using the detox fiber drink each day, so that's the plan. I think it starts out with just one fruit all day long or something. After doing the Master Cleanse, though, that seems much more doable.
I'm also interested in doing a different sort of cleanse that I've been reading about. It's a 28-day cleanse that is more of a metabolic cleanse than a gut cleanse. You are probably not familiar with a line of supplements called Xymogen. My doctor uses them and sells them because they are the most researched, purest, etc. etc. etc. This cleanse has you doing a lot of shakes that reduce your inflammation levels among other things. Let me see if I can find a website real quick for it ... here's a pretty good one: http://healthrenewmd.com/tools/28-day-cleansedetoxification/
So, the bad day today is because of the pain from the pulled muscles. Plus, waiting an hour for my friend to come and then still having lunch got me off late for other things I needed to do. I took the long nap because the pain had worn me out. So ... I didn't get anything done on the house AGAIN!!! It's like there's a conspiracy! I'm TRYING to take hold of my life and my time, but just not doing a very good job at it! Waking up at a decent time would sure help.
BUT ... here's the good news. My nephrologist called. Most of the tests are in and things look better. The tests from the 24-hour urine collection are, I think he said "strange." I'm getting used to that word. My filtration rate was 67, which is a WHOLE lot better than 45. He said he would have expected it to be around 80, so it is still reduced kidney function, but not nearly as badly reduced as the first test. Another piece of really good news is that I have absolutely no protein in my urine. Which leaves my diagnosis kind of strange. I don't actually have Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) because that includes a finding of protein in the urine. I have reduced function, but no urine which is an unusual combination. At this point he doesn't know why my filtration function is reduced, but there is one more test that he is still waiting for. The one that will measure whether or not I've got antibodies coming through. One the one hand, he would suspect that having a lot of antibodies going through my kidneys, plugging up the glomerula and killing them was what was going on because of my very messed up immune system which forms antibodies at everything. But, if that were the case, I should have protein in my urine. So ... this is a specialist at a major research university, and he doesn't understand what's going on with me. Welcome to my life! I guess that, at the moment, my diagnosis is reduced kidney function for unspecified reason. But that's still WAY better than Stage 3 Chronic Kidney Disease!
The other good news comes from some research I did online while laying in bed, afraid to get up. I found a woman who is a dietician in Manhattan who sounds like she is exactly who I need. Here's her website. I'm really liking the recipes she's got. She creates recipes for Glamour and Prevention and other magazines. http://thehealthyapple.com/gluten-free-nutrition-services/
I came across her site while looking for a functional medicine doctor in New York. She lists a few that she has worked for and one is fairly near where I'll be living. So that's all good. I still need to find a local "regular" doctor for "regular" problems.
If I can move tomorrow I hope to spend it down in the basement. I've already been through two boxes of things I've saved for grandbabies and have reduced them a lot. But it's so yucky down there! And there's SO MUCH stuff to go through, it's pretty discouraging just to think about!
I'm going to go get in a Jacuzzi for a good, hot soak. Wish I had some Epsom salts, but I think I'm out. Pulling all these muscles just closing the recliner has been pretty discouraging. I mean, good grief!
I still have to get in to see a dermatologist and an autonomic nervous system specialist, and then I think I'll be done with doctors here. Prolotherapy is this Wednesday, so I'd better get a LOT done in the basement before that, because I won't be moving much AFTERWARDS, for sure!
Cheers!
Lisa
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Day -2 - Post Script
Dear Reader,
Happily enough I was in bed at 11:35 which is surprisingly good for me. I've had a Xanax, but I haven't finished my to-do list. The box of receipts is on the bed ready to go unless I decide to wait. We'll see.
Anyway, I forgot to tell you about a lovely experience I had today. I was pretty frazzled at the health food store because of the whole nonbeing late to the clerk's office and having to find someone to take me to pick up the car. So, after I was done with all that I drove to the store to buy the butter, and I was pretty frazzled. A young black woman checked me out and we chatted some. She had one of those knitted, large caps over her head ... I don't know how to describe it, but it's just what you might expect on someone at a health food store. After I checked out, I couldn't find my keys in my purse. I searched and finally found them, told her goodbye, and started for the car. She called to me because I had left the groceries at the checkout! So I walked back and she took my hand in hers and looked me directly in the eye for a minute and then said, "Whatever it is that is on your mind ... you need to stop and breathe! Take a deep breath." I did so, and it sounded more like a sob than a breath. She had the kindest eyes, and she kept looking at me and reminded me to breathe. If you do yoga, you know what she is talking about, using your breath to ground and center yourself. I thanked her and left because I was pretty sure I'd start crying if I kept looking at her sweet eyes!
Lisa
Happily enough I was in bed at 11:35 which is surprisingly good for me. I've had a Xanax, but I haven't finished my to-do list. The box of receipts is on the bed ready to go unless I decide to wait. We'll see.
Anyway, I forgot to tell you about a lovely experience I had today. I was pretty frazzled at the health food store because of the whole nonbeing late to the clerk's office and having to find someone to take me to pick up the car. So, after I was done with all that I drove to the store to buy the butter, and I was pretty frazzled. A young black woman checked me out and we chatted some. She had one of those knitted, large caps over her head ... I don't know how to describe it, but it's just what you might expect on someone at a health food store. After I checked out, I couldn't find my keys in my purse. I searched and finally found them, told her goodbye, and started for the car. She called to me because I had left the groceries at the checkout! So I walked back and she took my hand in hers and looked me directly in the eye for a minute and then said, "Whatever it is that is on your mind ... you need to stop and breathe! Take a deep breath." I did so, and it sounded more like a sob than a breath. She had the kindest eyes, and she kept looking at me and reminded me to breathe. If you do yoga, you know what she is talking about, using your breath to ground and center yourself. I thanked her and left because I was pretty sure I'd start crying if I kept looking at her sweet eyes!
Lisa
Day -2 - How Will I Handle My Evening?
Dear Reader,
One of these days I'm going to start out my blog by saying, "I had a GREAT day! Slept good last night, exercised today, was super disciplined, stuck to my plan for the day, got a lot of work done, and am now going to bed early!" Maybe???
Last night did not go well at all. My daughter was watching Jon Stewart and I got a little caught up in his mockery of the media who are going crazy about Beyoncé's sister attacking Jay-Zee. (Jay-Zee? J-Zee? I don't really care!) I took my bath and decided not to wash my hair. I was so tired that I felt like I was going to be sick. Then, I got in bed and turned off the light, thinking I was so tired I wouldn't need a Xanax ... and immediately got so tense that my neck is still hurting from it. I took a Xanax and then got back up. I dumped out a great big box of odds and ends in my closet and worked my way through all of them, setting most of them aside for Good Will. This is something that has been bothering me for a long time. Then I took a bunch of buttons out of their little zip-lock bags and put them in a collection I have. When I was little, I didn't have toys, but I did have access to a large collection of buttons and played with them. One was a large brass button with a star on it, and it was the sheriff. There were some pretty black buttons with a white "ruffle" around them, and they were sisters in dancing dresses. All the other buttons had their own roles in my play. Does that sound pathetic? Playing with the buttons is actually one of my more pleasant memories. So, I have always saved the extra buttons off of every item of clothing I have purchased to create a large and varied collection of my own. Then I used the little zip-lock bags to hold individual sets of earrings. I threw a bunch of them away the other day before I realized that I could use them for this. I also cleaned out some other things on my closet shelves. You can't believe how much of a mental barrier I've had to cleaning these shelves! They are a mess; so full of clutter. But I have slowly been making some headway through them. The next worst thing I have to do is dump out a huge box of receipts I've had for years and years now. When I was looking into inventorying my possessions, I read a comment by someone that she always scanned every receipt and then threw them away. That sounded like a great idea in case there was ever a fire. How could I show that that top cost $136? Or ... would I need to? My husband would say that that is a complete waste of time, and that going through this box of receipts carefully is a complete waste of time also. I'm sure he's right, so I'll probably only take a quick glance at them before I throw them away. Maybe I should start scanning the tags on clothing when I buy something new? Anyway, the Xanax didn't click in for forever and it was after 2:00 am when I finally got to sleep. I thought that I should have just curled up in bed at 7:00 pm when I felt sleepy: clothes, makeup, and all.
I have our son's new car now. I forgot to change the insurance on it to his policy and I forgot to get it transferred into his name. I forgot, in fact (I am typing this with mu cat on my chest and her tail on my keyboard! I'm actually typing through her hair, blind! I wonder how well I'm doing? I wonder if I will back up and fix this?) that I needed a ride to go pick up the car. I didn't think of it until fifteen minutes after the campus was closed. I had gone to the court clerk to get the license plate and all that, but they closed at 4:30 and I got there at 4:45. And that's when I realized I needed someone to give me a ride out to the car! I drove back to campus calling everyone I knew, but they had already left. So ... I just stood outside waiting for someone to come walking to their car! Sure enough, a couple of young women left the library and I approached them and explained who I was and asked if either of them were heading the direction I needed to go. The car lot is probably no more than two miles away. One of them was very kind and gave me a ride, even though she hadn't actually been planning on leaving campus right then!
I got the car and drove it to the health food store to buy some butter without salt in it! I got that and came home and made my coffee (maybe it would be better if I drank this earlier in the day??) and, you know what? I think it tastes better with the salted butter! This seemed pretty plain, kind of like oatmeal when it's made without salt.
I slept till ten again. I promise you I felt like a blob of ectoplasm spread out on my bed. It took almost an hour for me to fully wake up. It was like the ectoplasm was slowly drawing up and pulling itself into a creature! I was so happy to be alone today, without the housekeeper and physical plant workers. I read my Bible and had my prayer time first thing. One of the pair of shoes I ordered got here and they are FANTASTIC! Except ... they don't fit right. Darn. So, I spent a little time looking at shoes on line. There's a pair of Born gladiator sandals that come in a neutral color that I think will work as well as these shoes, even if they won't be quite so hyper-cool.
My husband knocked the socks off of people last night. They had a Baccalaureate service that he presided over. Different students were presented and their grade points were shared with the audience (I haven't been to this kind of service before, so I don't know exactly what I'm talking about. I'm just explaining it as best as I understand it at the moment.) Anyway, my husband shook their hands and congratulated each of them, using their names. This apparently just shocked and amazed the people that he did this. Ha! There's a lot more where that came from! My husband is an exceptionally gracious Southern gentleman and he's going to be amazing them for a long time!
So, back to my day. I came home and made my coffee and read a little bit. I think this butter and coconut oil mixture is supposed to put you in fat-burning mode or something like that. I looked at shoes some more and read a novel some more. It's an interesting book. There is a Jewish detective in Jerusalem and a Muslim detective in Egypt. The Egyptian has gotten the Jew to help him look into an old murder that took place in Egypt that he now thinks was solved incorrectly. So, that plot's going along. And then there's some other plot going on about Nazi archaeologists and the original Menorah that was rescued from the Temple before it was captured. This is one of those novels where you don't know how much of it is historically accurate, but in this, the Nazi's were looking for it as a weapon to use against the Jews. How they came to the conclusion that a golden item from the Temple could be used to destroy the Jews I don't know! Anyway ... between the very divergent plots, which I assume will come together before the end, and all of the foreign names (French, German, Hebrew, Egyptian) I'm having a hard time keeping track of everything.
Wow. That was random. Anyway. It's 8:00 pm. How do I handle the rest of my evening so that I go to sleep at a decent time. A "decent time" being sometime before 2:00 am. I have to wash the dishes, call my mother, feed the animals, lock up and shut down the downstairs. I HAVE to wash my hair tonight and be ready to go to lunch with a friend tomorrow. I would really like to get some more work done in the basement and I would really like to go through those receipts. I need an entirely different system of keeping track of receipts, too.
My thoughts are that I should take my bath, wash my hair and take my supplements, etc. before I do everything else, so that I CAN get into bed if I suddenly am tired. I'm used to waiting till the very last thing because I have this ridiculous thing where I cannot go to sleep if I feel the LEAST BIT sticky! And since our bedroom is not air conditioned properly and I can't get the temperature in it below 75 and we live where there is a lot of humidity ... I can feel sticky virtually immediately. But, I'm thinking that I could always just hop in a tub really quickly if I needed to at the last minute. So, here goes ... I present to you my "schedule" for the evening:
1. Call my mother while I unload the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen.
2. Get back on this blog if she drives me crazy and tell you about it immediately!
3. Feed the animals
4a. Make to-do list for tomorrow
4. Bathe, wash hair, etc. Try hard not to stay in the tub forever. (Give me some bubbles and I lose all track of time!)
5. Dry hair, skin care, supplements, etc.
6. Tidy bedroom and bathroom
7. Pick out clothes for tomorrow and set them out
8. TAKE XANAX!
9. Go through receipts and work however much more I want in my closet
10. Make my to-do list for tomorrow. Wait ... making out my to-do list can sometimes make me get nervous, so maybe I'd better do that earlier in the evening. Hmmmmm. Okay, I'm going to sneak it in after I feed the dogs.
11. Read and try to go to sleep. Maybe read something other than the novel.
So. Good plan. But, let me take another look at it. Estimating this plan conservatively, it's going to take about 3 hours to get this all done. It's 8:16 now. That would put me through around 11:30, more like 12:00. Not a vast improvement.
THIS SHOULDN'T BE SO HARD!!! I'm pretty sure that most people don't have to go to all this trouble to make sure they get to bed at a reasonable time. I think most of you just get really, really tired and go to sleep! Aaaargh!
I've given up on the study for a while. I'm down to the hard, little, niggling decisions and I've got a mental block towards finishing it at this point. That's why I'm switching to the big, awful, dirty basement and the cluttered closet instead.
I'm going to sign off now and see how well I can accomplish this.
Oh, I got a call from the nephrologist saying he hadn't gotten my test results yet. And I got a call from my doctor's office saying they didn't draw enough blood to do the angioedema test that my doctor ordered, so I have to go back on Monday to give more blood. At least this lab person is really good at drawing blood. I'll be glad when I have a better idea about the condition of my kidneys and whether or not I, FOR SURE, have the hereditary form of angioedema or the acquired form. That's what this last blood sample will tell. It won't change anything, but it will give me a little better idea about mortality rates. If it is the hereditary form, I think the statistics are that 34% to 52% die from airway obstruction. But I've been handling this for about 12 years and haven't died yet, thank goodness! I'm grateful that none of my earliest attacks were fatal. My daughter had a classmate in elementary school whose mother died from her first reaction which was to some cold medicine. It was awful.
Anyway ... on that cheerful note I will close. Unless I get back on going nuts because of calling my mother!
Cheers!
Lisa
One of these days I'm going to start out my blog by saying, "I had a GREAT day! Slept good last night, exercised today, was super disciplined, stuck to my plan for the day, got a lot of work done, and am now going to bed early!" Maybe???
Last night did not go well at all. My daughter was watching Jon Stewart and I got a little caught up in his mockery of the media who are going crazy about Beyoncé's sister attacking Jay-Zee. (Jay-Zee? J-Zee? I don't really care!) I took my bath and decided not to wash my hair. I was so tired that I felt like I was going to be sick. Then, I got in bed and turned off the light, thinking I was so tired I wouldn't need a Xanax ... and immediately got so tense that my neck is still hurting from it. I took a Xanax and then got back up. I dumped out a great big box of odds and ends in my closet and worked my way through all of them, setting most of them aside for Good Will. This is something that has been bothering me for a long time. Then I took a bunch of buttons out of their little zip-lock bags and put them in a collection I have. When I was little, I didn't have toys, but I did have access to a large collection of buttons and played with them. One was a large brass button with a star on it, and it was the sheriff. There were some pretty black buttons with a white "ruffle" around them, and they were sisters in dancing dresses. All the other buttons had their own roles in my play. Does that sound pathetic? Playing with the buttons is actually one of my more pleasant memories. So, I have always saved the extra buttons off of every item of clothing I have purchased to create a large and varied collection of my own. Then I used the little zip-lock bags to hold individual sets of earrings. I threw a bunch of them away the other day before I realized that I could use them for this. I also cleaned out some other things on my closet shelves. You can't believe how much of a mental barrier I've had to cleaning these shelves! They are a mess; so full of clutter. But I have slowly been making some headway through them. The next worst thing I have to do is dump out a huge box of receipts I've had for years and years now. When I was looking into inventorying my possessions, I read a comment by someone that she always scanned every receipt and then threw them away. That sounded like a great idea in case there was ever a fire. How could I show that that top cost $136? Or ... would I need to? My husband would say that that is a complete waste of time, and that going through this box of receipts carefully is a complete waste of time also. I'm sure he's right, so I'll probably only take a quick glance at them before I throw them away. Maybe I should start scanning the tags on clothing when I buy something new? Anyway, the Xanax didn't click in for forever and it was after 2:00 am when I finally got to sleep. I thought that I should have just curled up in bed at 7:00 pm when I felt sleepy: clothes, makeup, and all.
I have our son's new car now. I forgot to change the insurance on it to his policy and I forgot to get it transferred into his name. I forgot, in fact (I am typing this with mu cat on my chest and her tail on my keyboard! I'm actually typing through her hair, blind! I wonder how well I'm doing? I wonder if I will back up and fix this?) that I needed a ride to go pick up the car. I didn't think of it until fifteen minutes after the campus was closed. I had gone to the court clerk to get the license plate and all that, but they closed at 4:30 and I got there at 4:45. And that's when I realized I needed someone to give me a ride out to the car! I drove back to campus calling everyone I knew, but they had already left. So ... I just stood outside waiting for someone to come walking to their car! Sure enough, a couple of young women left the library and I approached them and explained who I was and asked if either of them were heading the direction I needed to go. The car lot is probably no more than two miles away. One of them was very kind and gave me a ride, even though she hadn't actually been planning on leaving campus right then!
I got the car and drove it to the health food store to buy some butter without salt in it! I got that and came home and made my coffee (maybe it would be better if I drank this earlier in the day??) and, you know what? I think it tastes better with the salted butter! This seemed pretty plain, kind of like oatmeal when it's made without salt.
I slept till ten again. I promise you I felt like a blob of ectoplasm spread out on my bed. It took almost an hour for me to fully wake up. It was like the ectoplasm was slowly drawing up and pulling itself into a creature! I was so happy to be alone today, without the housekeeper and physical plant workers. I read my Bible and had my prayer time first thing. One of the pair of shoes I ordered got here and they are FANTASTIC! Except ... they don't fit right. Darn. So, I spent a little time looking at shoes on line. There's a pair of Born gladiator sandals that come in a neutral color that I think will work as well as these shoes, even if they won't be quite so hyper-cool.
My husband knocked the socks off of people last night. They had a Baccalaureate service that he presided over. Different students were presented and their grade points were shared with the audience (I haven't been to this kind of service before, so I don't know exactly what I'm talking about. I'm just explaining it as best as I understand it at the moment.) Anyway, my husband shook their hands and congratulated each of them, using their names. This apparently just shocked and amazed the people that he did this. Ha! There's a lot more where that came from! My husband is an exceptionally gracious Southern gentleman and he's going to be amazing them for a long time!
So, back to my day. I came home and made my coffee and read a little bit. I think this butter and coconut oil mixture is supposed to put you in fat-burning mode or something like that. I looked at shoes some more and read a novel some more. It's an interesting book. There is a Jewish detective in Jerusalem and a Muslim detective in Egypt. The Egyptian has gotten the Jew to help him look into an old murder that took place in Egypt that he now thinks was solved incorrectly. So, that plot's going along. And then there's some other plot going on about Nazi archaeologists and the original Menorah that was rescued from the Temple before it was captured. This is one of those novels where you don't know how much of it is historically accurate, but in this, the Nazi's were looking for it as a weapon to use against the Jews. How they came to the conclusion that a golden item from the Temple could be used to destroy the Jews I don't know! Anyway ... between the very divergent plots, which I assume will come together before the end, and all of the foreign names (French, German, Hebrew, Egyptian) I'm having a hard time keeping track of everything.
Wow. That was random. Anyway. It's 8:00 pm. How do I handle the rest of my evening so that I go to sleep at a decent time. A "decent time" being sometime before 2:00 am. I have to wash the dishes, call my mother, feed the animals, lock up and shut down the downstairs. I HAVE to wash my hair tonight and be ready to go to lunch with a friend tomorrow. I would really like to get some more work done in the basement and I would really like to go through those receipts. I need an entirely different system of keeping track of receipts, too.
My thoughts are that I should take my bath, wash my hair and take my supplements, etc. before I do everything else, so that I CAN get into bed if I suddenly am tired. I'm used to waiting till the very last thing because I have this ridiculous thing where I cannot go to sleep if I feel the LEAST BIT sticky! And since our bedroom is not air conditioned properly and I can't get the temperature in it below 75 and we live where there is a lot of humidity ... I can feel sticky virtually immediately. But, I'm thinking that I could always just hop in a tub really quickly if I needed to at the last minute. So, here goes ... I present to you my "schedule" for the evening:
1. Call my mother while I unload the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen.
2. Get back on this blog if she drives me crazy and tell you about it immediately!
3. Feed the animals
4a. Make to-do list for tomorrow
4. Bathe, wash hair, etc. Try hard not to stay in the tub forever. (Give me some bubbles and I lose all track of time!)
5. Dry hair, skin care, supplements, etc.
6. Tidy bedroom and bathroom
7. Pick out clothes for tomorrow and set them out
8. TAKE XANAX!
9. Go through receipts and work however much more I want in my closet
10. Make my to-do list for tomorrow. Wait ... making out my to-do list can sometimes make me get nervous, so maybe I'd better do that earlier in the evening. Hmmmmm. Okay, I'm going to sneak it in after I feed the dogs.
11. Read and try to go to sleep. Maybe read something other than the novel.
So. Good plan. But, let me take another look at it. Estimating this plan conservatively, it's going to take about 3 hours to get this all done. It's 8:16 now. That would put me through around 11:30, more like 12:00. Not a vast improvement.
THIS SHOULDN'T BE SO HARD!!! I'm pretty sure that most people don't have to go to all this trouble to make sure they get to bed at a reasonable time. I think most of you just get really, really tired and go to sleep! Aaaargh!
I've given up on the study for a while. I'm down to the hard, little, niggling decisions and I've got a mental block towards finishing it at this point. That's why I'm switching to the big, awful, dirty basement and the cluttered closet instead.
I'm going to sign off now and see how well I can accomplish this.
Oh, I got a call from the nephrologist saying he hadn't gotten my test results yet. And I got a call from my doctor's office saying they didn't draw enough blood to do the angioedema test that my doctor ordered, so I have to go back on Monday to give more blood. At least this lab person is really good at drawing blood. I'll be glad when I have a better idea about the condition of my kidneys and whether or not I, FOR SURE, have the hereditary form of angioedema or the acquired form. That's what this last blood sample will tell. It won't change anything, but it will give me a little better idea about mortality rates. If it is the hereditary form, I think the statistics are that 34% to 52% die from airway obstruction. But I've been handling this for about 12 years and haven't died yet, thank goodness! I'm grateful that none of my earliest attacks were fatal. My daughter had a classmate in elementary school whose mother died from her first reaction which was to some cold medicine. It was awful.
Anyway ... on that cheerful note I will close. Unless I get back on going nuts because of calling my mother!
Cheers!
Lisa
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Day -1 - Or ... How I Mis-Spent My Day Today
Dear Reader,
so ... so much for being business-like and all that. I've done nothing today! Why? Because of my mis-spent night last night. Do you ever get "locked in" to some activities? Well, I did last night. I was going through my university email account, deleting things and forwarding important things to my Hotmail account and I got really hooked on it. But, before I continue ... is "mis-spent" hyphenated or not?? Anyway ... I neglected to say that I was doing this WHILE I was watching TV. I watched a "Chopped" and was then going to go upstairs and get ready for bed, etc. But, instead, I switched to a "What Not to Wear" episode (Tiffany? Really??) and kept working on it. But I had to keep pausing for one reason or another and was able to turn an hour-long program into at least an hour and a half. Then I was SO tired and went upstairs to go to bed. But then I realized that I had not a) read my Bible, 2) made my to-do list, 3) made the housekeeper's to-do list, which is very precise at this point and involved, or 4) written my blog. I thought about chunking it all except for my Bible and going on to bed, but then in a fit of earnestness, decided to finish everything. So ... I got to bed at 2:00 am! WHAT WAS I THINKING??? Seriously! How many times to I have to do this before I take control of myself and my evenings?!
So, this morning I had my alarm set for 10 am (ridiculous, I know, but it was 8 hours of sleep) but was so tired that I just lay there hitting the snooze button until 11:00 when I HAD to get up to meet my friend for lunch. So -- there goes the morning!
We had a really good time at lunch. I only had one glass of wine, keeping my kidneys in mind, and a vegetable plate: broccoli, carrots, green beans, corn and a Romaine salad. Not too bad considering I'm supposed to be doing a cleanse!
Then I came home and started trying to figure out how to pay for our son's new/old car with a credit card. Since we're buying it from an individual and not a dealership, this was new territory for me, but I figured it out. I had to go find the guy's bank, but that wasn't bad. Then I went to the dealership where he works and he signed over the title to me. But that's the problem ... I didn't think to put it in my son's name. So tomorrow I have to go pay for the license and get it transferred into his name.
I'm trying to think if I've got something to tell you about my mother tonight, but ... nope. I've got nothing! Tonight, anyway. There's always tomorrow!
I found out last night that there are two YMCAs near where well be living! And they both sound GREAT! Really neat group classes.
There's a neat website at www.bulletproofexecutive.com Interesting health ideas, very Paleo with his own twist to it. I can best explain this by telling you about his coffee. I came across his site looking for information about brain inflammation. You may already know that coconut oil is super good for inflammation. No? You didn't know that? Guess you don't have crazy high inflammation levels! Well, this guy has a lot of stuff about increasing your cognitive functions and one of them has to do with how he makes "bulletproof coffee." He adds ... wait for it ... BUTTER AND CONCENTRATED COCONUT OIL TO IT! Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YjLMdx3YZY
So, I had already bought my Kerry Gold butter from grass-fed cows, and I've been waiting for the oil and the coffee to get here, which it finally did today. So, I made it and had it in the heated blender blending when I decided to have a taste of this super-expensive butter. It tasted salty, which surprised me, and I wondered how the "grass-fed" equated "salty tasting." Hmmm. Maybe I need this special coffee even more than I thought because it took me a few seconds for me to realize that I had purchased SALTED butter! Which doesn't exactly go well with coffee. So, I saw that he said you could add cocoa and xylitol to make a mocha. I did this to disguise the salt and then drank it. And, you know what? It actually was pretty good! Crazy rich, but good. I learned something, though. Drink it while it's hot! You really don't want a cup of coffee with 2 T of butter in it to cool down! He says you can take some digestive enzymes with it if you are used to a low-fat diet. I got pretty sick at my stomach and so I took a couple which didn't seem to do anything. Will I do it again tomorrow? Yes, probably so. But I'm going to go buy some unsalted butter first!
I haven't had any more of the lemon juice because the coffee has me so full. I still have to drink a serving of Garden of Life's detox fiber blend and that will be it. I can tell, though, that the cleanse is doing something because I'm starting to have that awful taste in my mouth. Maybe this is a good time for my husband to be in New York!
And here's the interesting thing. I've only been doing the cleanse thing for two days and I'm already finding my thinking to be changing about taking control of my life and getting my body and my health back. Now I'm like, how did I reach this point??? I know very well how I reached this point. I've given the last seven years to our university! Do I regret it? That's a good question. I don't think so. When I think about the number of students whose way we have made better, it was a worthwhile sacrifice. But ... I'M DONE now, thank you very much! Hopefully in two weeks, when I leave to go up there, my mindset will really have been adjusted and I'll be raring to go. (That's "southern" for ... well, you probably already know that one.)
Now it's time for Lisa's Interesting Bit of Information for the Day. Did you know that there are a BUNCH of Nazi war criminals living in the U.S?? They are known, and we have ordered for them to be deported, but no country, including their own, will take them. We can't force a nation to take them, and we can't bring them to trial because their alleged crimes were not committed here. So they are just living here in the US, some of them even collecting social security! There's one in Queens! They have demonstrations in front of his house regularly. I'm surprised that no one has just gunned these people down, but I guess the whole point is to bring them to justice, not to just mow them down. So, now you know!
I'm going to bed now. Well, I have to bathe, take my supplements, feed the dogs and cats and then go to bed. So, in about an HOUR, I should be in bed. It's 9:45 now, so I guess this is not too unreasonable. It's certainly better than 2:00 am.
I should get a LOT done tomorrow! I don't have to go anywhere AND, my housekeeper won't be coming in tomorrow. I'm happy to be alone tomorrow and not to face constant distractions, but I'm not happy about why she won't be in. Her daughter, who is so severely disabled, has come down with a bad case of bronchitis. And, here's something else. She wasn't supposed to live past 2 years and is now 11 years old and is going into puberty. This was never anticipated and now they have to decide what to do. Cognitively she is about 9 months old. She can never have a child, but if they don't do something, she will start having periods and cramps and ... well, can you imagine her adopted father having to clean her? He helps a lot with diaper changes, but that would be really hard on both of them, not to mention the little girl. So, they are looking into medical means of stopping this. But she went to a support group and was talking about this, and she had some of them turn on her and start telling her to let her go into puberty because it was NATURAL! There is nothing natural about a 9-month old child having periods, and that is essentially what is going on here. So, my housekeeper was very upset by it. Poor thing.
Ok, that's it for me.
Have a good evening. No ... have a GREAT evening!
Lisa
so ... so much for being business-like and all that. I've done nothing today! Why? Because of my mis-spent night last night. Do you ever get "locked in" to some activities? Well, I did last night. I was going through my university email account, deleting things and forwarding important things to my Hotmail account and I got really hooked on it. But, before I continue ... is "mis-spent" hyphenated or not?? Anyway ... I neglected to say that I was doing this WHILE I was watching TV. I watched a "Chopped" and was then going to go upstairs and get ready for bed, etc. But, instead, I switched to a "What Not to Wear" episode (Tiffany? Really??) and kept working on it. But I had to keep pausing for one reason or another and was able to turn an hour-long program into at least an hour and a half. Then I was SO tired and went upstairs to go to bed. But then I realized that I had not a) read my Bible, 2) made my to-do list, 3) made the housekeeper's to-do list, which is very precise at this point and involved, or 4) written my blog. I thought about chunking it all except for my Bible and going on to bed, but then in a fit of earnestness, decided to finish everything. So ... I got to bed at 2:00 am! WHAT WAS I THINKING??? Seriously! How many times to I have to do this before I take control of myself and my evenings?!
So, this morning I had my alarm set for 10 am (ridiculous, I know, but it was 8 hours of sleep) but was so tired that I just lay there hitting the snooze button until 11:00 when I HAD to get up to meet my friend for lunch. So -- there goes the morning!
We had a really good time at lunch. I only had one glass of wine, keeping my kidneys in mind, and a vegetable plate: broccoli, carrots, green beans, corn and a Romaine salad. Not too bad considering I'm supposed to be doing a cleanse!
Then I came home and started trying to figure out how to pay for our son's new/old car with a credit card. Since we're buying it from an individual and not a dealership, this was new territory for me, but I figured it out. I had to go find the guy's bank, but that wasn't bad. Then I went to the dealership where he works and he signed over the title to me. But that's the problem ... I didn't think to put it in my son's name. So tomorrow I have to go pay for the license and get it transferred into his name.
I'm trying to think if I've got something to tell you about my mother tonight, but ... nope. I've got nothing! Tonight, anyway. There's always tomorrow!
I found out last night that there are two YMCAs near where well be living! And they both sound GREAT! Really neat group classes.
There's a neat website at www.bulletproofexecutive.com Interesting health ideas, very Paleo with his own twist to it. I can best explain this by telling you about his coffee. I came across his site looking for information about brain inflammation. You may already know that coconut oil is super good for inflammation. No? You didn't know that? Guess you don't have crazy high inflammation levels! Well, this guy has a lot of stuff about increasing your cognitive functions and one of them has to do with how he makes "bulletproof coffee." He adds ... wait for it ... BUTTER AND CONCENTRATED COCONUT OIL TO IT! Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YjLMdx3YZY
So, I had already bought my Kerry Gold butter from grass-fed cows, and I've been waiting for the oil and the coffee to get here, which it finally did today. So, I made it and had it in the heated blender blending when I decided to have a taste of this super-expensive butter. It tasted salty, which surprised me, and I wondered how the "grass-fed" equated "salty tasting." Hmmm. Maybe I need this special coffee even more than I thought because it took me a few seconds for me to realize that I had purchased SALTED butter! Which doesn't exactly go well with coffee. So, I saw that he said you could add cocoa and xylitol to make a mocha. I did this to disguise the salt and then drank it. And, you know what? It actually was pretty good! Crazy rich, but good. I learned something, though. Drink it while it's hot! You really don't want a cup of coffee with 2 T of butter in it to cool down! He says you can take some digestive enzymes with it if you are used to a low-fat diet. I got pretty sick at my stomach and so I took a couple which didn't seem to do anything. Will I do it again tomorrow? Yes, probably so. But I'm going to go buy some unsalted butter first!
I haven't had any more of the lemon juice because the coffee has me so full. I still have to drink a serving of Garden of Life's detox fiber blend and that will be it. I can tell, though, that the cleanse is doing something because I'm starting to have that awful taste in my mouth. Maybe this is a good time for my husband to be in New York!
And here's the interesting thing. I've only been doing the cleanse thing for two days and I'm already finding my thinking to be changing about taking control of my life and getting my body and my health back. Now I'm like, how did I reach this point??? I know very well how I reached this point. I've given the last seven years to our university! Do I regret it? That's a good question. I don't think so. When I think about the number of students whose way we have made better, it was a worthwhile sacrifice. But ... I'M DONE now, thank you very much! Hopefully in two weeks, when I leave to go up there, my mindset will really have been adjusted and I'll be raring to go. (That's "southern" for ... well, you probably already know that one.)
Now it's time for Lisa's Interesting Bit of Information for the Day. Did you know that there are a BUNCH of Nazi war criminals living in the U.S?? They are known, and we have ordered for them to be deported, but no country, including their own, will take them. We can't force a nation to take them, and we can't bring them to trial because their alleged crimes were not committed here. So they are just living here in the US, some of them even collecting social security! There's one in Queens! They have demonstrations in front of his house regularly. I'm surprised that no one has just gunned these people down, but I guess the whole point is to bring them to justice, not to just mow them down. So, now you know!
I'm going to bed now. Well, I have to bathe, take my supplements, feed the dogs and cats and then go to bed. So, in about an HOUR, I should be in bed. It's 9:45 now, so I guess this is not too unreasonable. It's certainly better than 2:00 am.
I should get a LOT done tomorrow! I don't have to go anywhere AND, my housekeeper won't be coming in tomorrow. I'm happy to be alone tomorrow and not to face constant distractions, but I'm not happy about why she won't be in. Her daughter, who is so severely disabled, has come down with a bad case of bronchitis. And, here's something else. She wasn't supposed to live past 2 years and is now 11 years old and is going into puberty. This was never anticipated and now they have to decide what to do. Cognitively she is about 9 months old. She can never have a child, but if they don't do something, she will start having periods and cramps and ... well, can you imagine her adopted father having to clean her? He helps a lot with diaper changes, but that would be really hard on both of them, not to mention the little girl. So, they are looking into medical means of stopping this. But she went to a support group and was talking about this, and she had some of them turn on her and start telling her to let her go into puberty because it was NATURAL! There is nothing natural about a 9-month old child having periods, and that is essentially what is going on here. So, my housekeeper was very upset by it. Poor thing.
Ok, that's it for me.
Have a good evening. No ... have a GREAT evening!
Lisa
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Day 1 - First Day for Husband.
Dear Reader,
Whew, I'm tired! I've done a lot today. I drove into the big city to see my counselor. I then went to TJMaxx to look for dog beds. I've finally decided that I don't need to fine four that match. But, you know how they put purses right where you walk in? Well, I got lost in there for a long while! I finally made my way out with a fantastic wallet which I really needed. If it had a wrist strap, it would be the perfect wallet!
I then came home to go with my mother to her follow-up neurologist appointment. She has serious sensory nerve impairment in her legs and feet, but her motor nerves are okay, which seems pretty strange to me. She also has an extremely high sedimentation rate, ten times what it should be. This can indicate cancer he said, or many other things, including a high risk of stroke. He wants her to see a rheumatologist to biopsy a blood vessel by her temple which doesn't sound like a bit of fun, and also to investigate the cause of the sedimentation rate. He has a procedure which he says helps the nerves to "rebuild." You sit with your feet in a bucket and they run electricity through the water and you also take high doses of particular supplements and minerals. Sounds crazy, but I am suspending judgment until she gives it a good try. She started in with her usual, "I've outlived my body. I don't know why God won't let me die!" Etc. I finally told her that she was going to have to quit saying that. That each day God was choosing for her to be alive and she needed to start submitting to Him in this and accepting that His will does not apparently include her dying soon, so she needs to start asking Him why she's still here and who can she be a blessing to.
It did absolutely no good, whatsoever.
She came to the house and came in and had some coffee because she was pretty upset and started crying some. I told her she shouldn't be crying because the doctor found some specific things wrong and has a plan for her. I was sweet and hugged her and all that, but I also tried to,get her to look at it positively.
I started the Master Cleanse today and have been soooo hungry!! I am realizing now the importance of having a few days of eating really clean before starting this because I was not hungry the other times I did it, but am really hungry this time. This evening I broke down and cooked some frozen Brussels sprouts and then, later, some edemame.
I've got my todo list made out for tomorrow, it's pretty intense. And I have a to-do list made out for my housekeeper. I'm going to have her work primarily in our family room upstairs deep-cleaning and getting things ready to move.
I did pretty well today. Stayed mostly business-like all day and haven't gotten sad or upset or anything. I checked and learned that there are several YMCAs right around where we live, and they sound really good! I also learned about a very complicated exercise place that is $30 per class! Yeah, I won't be going to that!
I'm working on clearing out my university email account. It turns out you don't get to keep it? I asked them to give me till the end of,the month because I had a lot of writing on it. Going backwards chronologically, I'm about halfway through 2012.
Well, that's a quick summation of my day. Im not quite sure how to handle this cleanse, because I have several lunches on my calendar to tell people goodbye. I think I'll just get vegetables and hopefully that won't mess things up too badly.
Cheers!
Lisa
Whew, I'm tired! I've done a lot today. I drove into the big city to see my counselor. I then went to TJMaxx to look for dog beds. I've finally decided that I don't need to fine four that match. But, you know how they put purses right where you walk in? Well, I got lost in there for a long while! I finally made my way out with a fantastic wallet which I really needed. If it had a wrist strap, it would be the perfect wallet!
I then came home to go with my mother to her follow-up neurologist appointment. She has serious sensory nerve impairment in her legs and feet, but her motor nerves are okay, which seems pretty strange to me. She also has an extremely high sedimentation rate, ten times what it should be. This can indicate cancer he said, or many other things, including a high risk of stroke. He wants her to see a rheumatologist to biopsy a blood vessel by her temple which doesn't sound like a bit of fun, and also to investigate the cause of the sedimentation rate. He has a procedure which he says helps the nerves to "rebuild." You sit with your feet in a bucket and they run electricity through the water and you also take high doses of particular supplements and minerals. Sounds crazy, but I am suspending judgment until she gives it a good try. She started in with her usual, "I've outlived my body. I don't know why God won't let me die!" Etc. I finally told her that she was going to have to quit saying that. That each day God was choosing for her to be alive and she needed to start submitting to Him in this and accepting that His will does not apparently include her dying soon, so she needs to start asking Him why she's still here and who can she be a blessing to.
It did absolutely no good, whatsoever.
She came to the house and came in and had some coffee because she was pretty upset and started crying some. I told her she shouldn't be crying because the doctor found some specific things wrong and has a plan for her. I was sweet and hugged her and all that, but I also tried to,get her to look at it positively.
I started the Master Cleanse today and have been soooo hungry!! I am realizing now the importance of having a few days of eating really clean before starting this because I was not hungry the other times I did it, but am really hungry this time. This evening I broke down and cooked some frozen Brussels sprouts and then, later, some edemame.
I've got my todo list made out for tomorrow, it's pretty intense. And I have a to-do list made out for my housekeeper. I'm going to have her work primarily in our family room upstairs deep-cleaning and getting things ready to move.
I did pretty well today. Stayed mostly business-like all day and haven't gotten sad or upset or anything. I checked and learned that there are several YMCAs right around where we live, and they sound really good! I also learned about a very complicated exercise place that is $30 per class! Yeah, I won't be going to that!
I'm working on clearing out my university email account. It turns out you don't get to keep it? I asked them to give me till the end of,the month because I had a lot of writing on it. Going backwards chronologically, I'm about halfway through 2012.
Well, that's a quick summation of my day. Im not quite sure how to handle this cleanse, because I have several lunches on my calendar to tell people goodbye. I think I'll just get vegetables and hopefully that won't mess things up too badly.
Cheers!
Lisa
Monday, May 12, 2014
Day 2 - "Finis Pendant Origine"
Dear Reader,
"The end depends upon the beginning." This is my theme for the next sixteen days that I am on my own. No moping. No wasting time. Just getting ready to move.
And PART of that getting ready to move is buying new shoes! After all ... my life is about to completely change and walking is going to become a huge part of my life. And, so, I need good, cute walking shoes! I did the grocery shopping the other day in my flat sandals and that's when I realized that they weren't going to work walking into and about town. And you know I do hate to buy shoes! So this is going to be no fun at all! :-). Unfortunately, I have spent too much time online tonight looking at shoes. I ordered two pairs that I think will be great. The requirements are that they have to have a little bit of a heel, but not too much. An ankle strap so my bones stay in place. And look flattering to my foot and good with dresses. Piece of cake. I wish! My good patina flat pumps I have used the last two years are pretty worn looking and a big rhinestone popped off and disappeared. To my complete amazement, I found a pair to replace them today that fit like a glove. I was talking to the lady helping me and told her I was moving to New York and she immediately said, "You're going to need some serious walking shoes."
I got a manicure today also and picked out a polish for my toes that coordinates with what I've gotten for my fingernails for the summer
I decided to start with the Master Cleanse because it required the least amount of shopping at the grocery store and I know that I can handle it. So I've got my organic lemons and organic grade B maple syrup and distilled water sitting downstairs all ready to go. Unfortunately, I have to jump up and leave in the morning to go into the big city again to see my counselor. I'm hoping to find dog beds at the TJMaxx near her office to replace what I've got which are torn apart and holes in them.
My daughter and I met up for dinner in that city this evening at a very cool spot. I had a delicious coffee latte with soy milk and some mahi mahi on a grits cake with Swiss chard on top. It was very good except they used the chard as more of a garnish than anything else and I really wanted more.
I have to be back by 3:30 to go with my mother to an appointment with a neurologist to see if he has figured out what is wrong with her legs. I hope he has.
Oh, it was the funniest thing. When I bought my lunch, the guy checking me out was talking about the heat and that it was supposed to cool down later on. Since I tell people I'm moving to New York at the slightest opening, I immediately told him that I was, ahem, moving to New York! He asked me where and it turns out he has lived in that area and knows all about it and LOVES it. That's always nice to hear a confirmation like that.
Well, that's it for now. I'm so very very tired. I wish I didn't have to make the drive again tomorrow. My husband starts his new job tomorrow which is pretty exciting!
Cheers!
Lisa
"The end depends upon the beginning." This is my theme for the next sixteen days that I am on my own. No moping. No wasting time. Just getting ready to move.
And PART of that getting ready to move is buying new shoes! After all ... my life is about to completely change and walking is going to become a huge part of my life. And, so, I need good, cute walking shoes! I did the grocery shopping the other day in my flat sandals and that's when I realized that they weren't going to work walking into and about town. And you know I do hate to buy shoes! So this is going to be no fun at all! :-). Unfortunately, I have spent too much time online tonight looking at shoes. I ordered two pairs that I think will be great. The requirements are that they have to have a little bit of a heel, but not too much. An ankle strap so my bones stay in place. And look flattering to my foot and good with dresses. Piece of cake. I wish! My good patina flat pumps I have used the last two years are pretty worn looking and a big rhinestone popped off and disappeared. To my complete amazement, I found a pair to replace them today that fit like a glove. I was talking to the lady helping me and told her I was moving to New York and she immediately said, "You're going to need some serious walking shoes."
I got a manicure today also and picked out a polish for my toes that coordinates with what I've gotten for my fingernails for the summer
I decided to start with the Master Cleanse because it required the least amount of shopping at the grocery store and I know that I can handle it. So I've got my organic lemons and organic grade B maple syrup and distilled water sitting downstairs all ready to go. Unfortunately, I have to jump up and leave in the morning to go into the big city again to see my counselor. I'm hoping to find dog beds at the TJMaxx near her office to replace what I've got which are torn apart and holes in them.
My daughter and I met up for dinner in that city this evening at a very cool spot. I had a delicious coffee latte with soy milk and some mahi mahi on a grits cake with Swiss chard on top. It was very good except they used the chard as more of a garnish than anything else and I really wanted more.
I have to be back by 3:30 to go with my mother to an appointment with a neurologist to see if he has figured out what is wrong with her legs. I hope he has.
Oh, it was the funniest thing. When I bought my lunch, the guy checking me out was talking about the heat and that it was supposed to cool down later on. Since I tell people I'm moving to New York at the slightest opening, I immediately told him that I was, ahem, moving to New York! He asked me where and it turns out he has lived in that area and knows all about it and LOVES it. That's always nice to hear a confirmation like that.
Well, that's it for now. I'm so very very tired. I wish I didn't have to make the drive again tomorrow. My husband starts his new job tomorrow which is pretty exciting!
Cheers!
Lisa
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Day 3 - Last Night With My Husband For a While
Dear Reader,
I had a very nice Mother's Day and hope you did as well, if you're a mother! Our son and daughter both came over and we went to a late lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse. I called ahead and put our name on a wait list, but it felt pretty awkward when they took us on to our table right away when there were a lot of people waiting. I ordered trout and shrimp and lobster, broccoli, and rice ... and an order of their homemade potato chips, while the rest ordered a "tonion" which is sort of a Blooming Onion, but in pieces of batter-fried onion instead of a whole onion. I think that is soooo gross! I thought they would be helping me on my potato chips, but they didn't, so I ate pretty much the entire appetizer by myself. I felt so sick! I justified it telling myself that it was Mother's Day, and I wouldn't be getting a dessert. This reasoning also worked for me to get sweet tea instead of unsweetened. Needless to say, I was extremely sick before we left the restaurant!
We came home and watched about four episodes of The Office together since we all like it. Then our son left and my daughter went with me to see my mother. I made her a huge bouquet of flowers from my gardens. She was in a pretty decent mood. I remember she started onto something and I almost engaged, but decided it wasn't worth it. Yea me!
After we got home, the three of us went to see Spider-Man. I'm sorry ... but this guy is just not Spider-Man for me! I grew up on the comic books, and so have very strong opinions about this! Our daughter is spending the night here which is really nice. I have missed her a lot. She has to leave early in the morning to get to work, but I'm glad she'll be here to tell her dad goodbye. We have been through a whole lot as a family ... and I mean far more than you would probably imagine I meant. So, we are a close-knit family and this may be more difficult on is than we realize.
My husband and I didn't do well sleeping together last night. It was around 2:00 am before I finally asked him to go to the chair. I wound up sleeping till noon today! I had the most incredible dreams. Mom was with me in them and was being very pleasant and we were having a good time together. That's the first time, I think, that I've had a dream like that. Especially since she was very disagreeable on the phone that day! It's going on 1:00 am now, so I need to finish up.
Tomorrow I'll be taking him to the airport and then going to the mall to return some clothes. Then I'm going to meet up with our daughter downtown and have dinner together.
Tomorrow night I'll have to spend a lot of time getting a lot,of,things figured out about how I handle these two weeks n my own. Ideally, do you know what I'd like to do? Don't laugh, now! I'd like to get up at 5:30 each morning and drink some chai and do yoga! If I can just summon the strength of character to discipline my flesh!
Well, that's all for tonight. No progress made on any front whatsoever.
Cheers!
Lisa
P.S. And, if you're wondering whether you should go see the new Spider-Man, my advice would be to save your money and wait till it's on video. You won't be missing much at all.
I had a very nice Mother's Day and hope you did as well, if you're a mother! Our son and daughter both came over and we went to a late lunch at Longhorn Steakhouse. I called ahead and put our name on a wait list, but it felt pretty awkward when they took us on to our table right away when there were a lot of people waiting. I ordered trout and shrimp and lobster, broccoli, and rice ... and an order of their homemade potato chips, while the rest ordered a "tonion" which is sort of a Blooming Onion, but in pieces of batter-fried onion instead of a whole onion. I think that is soooo gross! I thought they would be helping me on my potato chips, but they didn't, so I ate pretty much the entire appetizer by myself. I felt so sick! I justified it telling myself that it was Mother's Day, and I wouldn't be getting a dessert. This reasoning also worked for me to get sweet tea instead of unsweetened. Needless to say, I was extremely sick before we left the restaurant!
We came home and watched about four episodes of The Office together since we all like it. Then our son left and my daughter went with me to see my mother. I made her a huge bouquet of flowers from my gardens. She was in a pretty decent mood. I remember she started onto something and I almost engaged, but decided it wasn't worth it. Yea me!
After we got home, the three of us went to see Spider-Man. I'm sorry ... but this guy is just not Spider-Man for me! I grew up on the comic books, and so have very strong opinions about this! Our daughter is spending the night here which is really nice. I have missed her a lot. She has to leave early in the morning to get to work, but I'm glad she'll be here to tell her dad goodbye. We have been through a whole lot as a family ... and I mean far more than you would probably imagine I meant. So, we are a close-knit family and this may be more difficult on is than we realize.
My husband and I didn't do well sleeping together last night. It was around 2:00 am before I finally asked him to go to the chair. I wound up sleeping till noon today! I had the most incredible dreams. Mom was with me in them and was being very pleasant and we were having a good time together. That's the first time, I think, that I've had a dream like that. Especially since she was very disagreeable on the phone that day! It's going on 1:00 am now, so I need to finish up.
Tomorrow I'll be taking him to the airport and then going to the mall to return some clothes. Then I'm going to meet up with our daughter downtown and have dinner together.
Tomorrow night I'll have to spend a lot of time getting a lot,of,things figured out about how I handle these two weeks n my own. Ideally, do you know what I'd like to do? Don't laugh, now! I'd like to get up at 5:30 each morning and drink some chai and do yoga! If I can just summon the strength of character to discipline my flesh!
Well, that's all for tonight. No progress made on any front whatsoever.
Cheers!
Lisa
P.S. And, if you're wondering whether you should go see the new Spider-Man, my advice would be to save your money and wait till it's on video. You won't be missing much at all.
Friday, May 9, 2014
Day 4 - Magical, Exhausting Final Day
Dear Reader,
I am SOOO exhausted, so this will be brief!
Today had a slightly unreal feel to it. How could this possibly be our last day of graduations? That might sound strange, but we have invested so much of ourselves into this university. Watching it change in such organic ways under my husband's leadership has been a phenomenal thing. And, while I am totally happy with our decision to move, it is still hart-wrenching at the same time. We serve a lot of low-income, first-generation students who have real challenges getting an education. Watching them graduate is always such a joy because you know that person's family tree is forever changed. I love watching the shoes go by in front of me. The ones that tug on my heart-strings are the cheap, black, fake leather shoes that were obviously bought for this occasion. For me, those shoes say it all. The financial struggles, the hardships ... then going to Payless or Wal-Mart to get these dress shoes to where to walk across the stage, to interviews, and to jobs. To wear into this shoe store when they finally get a bigger paycheck and these shoes are worn out and need replacing. I remember one of my first pair of dress sandals I had after graduation. I wore the heels down almost and nice, literally, and kept the black leather straps across the front of my foot tied together with black embroidery thread. And I REALLY remember the day the embroidery thread broke as I was crossing Main Street in the middle of downtown Houston. Since the shoes had an ankle strap, I had to stop in the middle of,the crosswalk and unbuckle my shoe and remove it, and then hobble across the rest of the street with so many people watching! I wonder what I did the rest of the day? I think I kept embroidery thread in my purse and retied the straps when I got to the office. I think I'd remember if I had to go barefoot the rest of the day!
At the end of each ceremony (we have two) they asked me to come up in stage, which I did - happily enough - without tripping! My husband and I kissed and then they said a lot of things ... kind of got lost during the emotion of the moment so I don't remember them ... gave me a bouquet of roses, and then I walked with my husband in the recessional. We then went a good ways down the back hall and then stopped and told all of the professors goodbye. This is such a special group of people! One of our students who graduated is in a wheelchair. Our provost told us about how her chair had broken and there were delays getting her a new one, and one of our math professors just went and bought her one out of his own money. That's the kind of people these are! It was hard telling each group of them goodbye!
It had been raining hard before the first ceremony and the curl came OUT of my hair and the frizz came INTO my hair! Our image was up on the huge jumbotron and I noticed! So, in between ceremonies, after a luncheon with our guest speaker, I rolled my hair again, sprayed it a lot, and it held up fine that time. For our final recessional, we were asked to lead the way out. I was carrying the roses in my arm and holding his hand ,,, and it felt like we were in a wedding!
We came home and I got in bed and slept till 7:00, then got up and finished up dinner. We ate and watched a couple of shows and are in bed. He is sound asleep of course. If he is horizontal, he's asleep!
Supper wasn't any good, but I ate too much anyway. And I ate a lot of chips preparing it. Me think it's safe to say that fatigue is one of my triggers to overeat. I feel gross right now and like I never want to eat meat again. I am very close to going back to vegetarianism!
So ... later!
Lisa
I am SOOO exhausted, so this will be brief!
Today had a slightly unreal feel to it. How could this possibly be our last day of graduations? That might sound strange, but we have invested so much of ourselves into this university. Watching it change in such organic ways under my husband's leadership has been a phenomenal thing. And, while I am totally happy with our decision to move, it is still hart-wrenching at the same time. We serve a lot of low-income, first-generation students who have real challenges getting an education. Watching them graduate is always such a joy because you know that person's family tree is forever changed. I love watching the shoes go by in front of me. The ones that tug on my heart-strings are the cheap, black, fake leather shoes that were obviously bought for this occasion. For me, those shoes say it all. The financial struggles, the hardships ... then going to Payless or Wal-Mart to get these dress shoes to where to walk across the stage, to interviews, and to jobs. To wear into this shoe store when they finally get a bigger paycheck and these shoes are worn out and need replacing. I remember one of my first pair of dress sandals I had after graduation. I wore the heels down almost and nice, literally, and kept the black leather straps across the front of my foot tied together with black embroidery thread. And I REALLY remember the day the embroidery thread broke as I was crossing Main Street in the middle of downtown Houston. Since the shoes had an ankle strap, I had to stop in the middle of,the crosswalk and unbuckle my shoe and remove it, and then hobble across the rest of the street with so many people watching! I wonder what I did the rest of the day? I think I kept embroidery thread in my purse and retied the straps when I got to the office. I think I'd remember if I had to go barefoot the rest of the day!
At the end of each ceremony (we have two) they asked me to come up in stage, which I did - happily enough - without tripping! My husband and I kissed and then they said a lot of things ... kind of got lost during the emotion of the moment so I don't remember them ... gave me a bouquet of roses, and then I walked with my husband in the recessional. We then went a good ways down the back hall and then stopped and told all of the professors goodbye. This is such a special group of people! One of our students who graduated is in a wheelchair. Our provost told us about how her chair had broken and there were delays getting her a new one, and one of our math professors just went and bought her one out of his own money. That's the kind of people these are! It was hard telling each group of them goodbye!
It had been raining hard before the first ceremony and the curl came OUT of my hair and the frizz came INTO my hair! Our image was up on the huge jumbotron and I noticed! So, in between ceremonies, after a luncheon with our guest speaker, I rolled my hair again, sprayed it a lot, and it held up fine that time. For our final recessional, we were asked to lead the way out. I was carrying the roses in my arm and holding his hand ,,, and it felt like we were in a wedding!
We came home and I got in bed and slept till 7:00, then got up and finished up dinner. We ate and watched a couple of shows and are in bed. He is sound asleep of course. If he is horizontal, he's asleep!
Supper wasn't any good, but I ate too much anyway. And I ate a lot of chips preparing it. Me think it's safe to say that fatigue is one of my triggers to overeat. I feel gross right now and like I never want to eat meat again. I am very close to going back to vegetarianism!
So ... later!
Lisa
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Day 5 - Last Graduation is Tomorrow!
Dear Reader,
It's hard to believe that tomorrow is our last graduation! We have two graduation ceremonies, one at 9:00 am and one at 2:00 pm. I've been given a big hint that they will be doing something special for me tomorrow, so you know I'm doing everything to try to look my best. Except to go to sleep early, of course. Actually, I'm completely ready for bed. Just writing this before I do.
Last night was pretty bad. I lost the allergy medicine I take at night and have been without it for a few days. It makes me sleepy and I've found that it works really well if I take it an hour or so before bedtime and then take my Xanax at bedtime. But last night, I couldn't go to sleep at all. The Xanax didn't even touch me and I was so tense my neck hurt. My husband had to give a speech this morning at 6:30 am, which I think is ridiculous! But it meant he had to get up really early and he wasn't sleeping well. So, each time I started to get out of bed to go read or something he'd hug me up and ask me to stay in bed with him! So, of course, I did! But finally around 2:00 I told him I had to get up and eat a snack and read and he hugged me up, but we didn't go to sleep for a while because we were otherwise engaged. (Now how's that for being delicate!). So ... I finally got to sleep sometime after 3:00. I was just bombed all day.
But I had lunch with a good friend who travels a lot and loves NYC, so I know I'll keep seeing her. Then met up with someone else who wanted to tell me goodbye. It was kind of strange. Her marriage has fallen apart and she has gotten a divorce. So she gave us a carved piece she had of a man and a woman sitting together holding hands. She said it had been a gift to them a long time ago, and she didn't want to keep it or throw it away. So she wanted to give it to us because we have made her believe that love can be real and lasting after all. So, I'm not sure what to d about that. She's giving me something that represents her marriage that turned untrue, but she wants us to have it because we caused her to hope again, I'm pretty sure it's not going to New York with us!
I went to my doctors office for some very specialized blood testing from the nephrologist and the genetics doctor. So specialized, in fact, that my lab didn't know anything about them and didn't have a code for them. So they took some blood for the two tests they did know, and I'll have to go back next week after they talk to the docs.
The cardiologist's office called and said they talked to my physical therapist and explained what they wanted for me, and he decided that they really weren't equipped to be able to do this sort of treatment. So, that takes care of that. I'm not going to worry further about it. I'll be in NY within three weeks and plan to start walking a lot. I'm going to need some better, but still cute, walking shoes. I did a lot of errands today and my tendon in my arch that tore a year ago started hurting really bad. This just sucks, because you know how much I hate shopping! Especially for SHOES!! :-)
The only other thing that is pertinent to my goals is I remembered to pick up the glass that I've had cut for the top of my credenza and desk.
So, that's all I can think of right now. I have been looking into cleanses. I'm kind of thinking about jut doing cleanses for the next two weeks. I've done the master cleanse before for five days and was fine with it ... except I became allergic to lemons. And there's a ten day Garden of Life cleanse that sounds good, and I like his products. But it gets some really bad reviews on Amazon from some people. Now, maybe those people were just already very toxic and so it was miserable for them. I shouldn't be very toxic at all because I eat really healthy and fresh all the time.
Oh, while I was out I was quite hungry and really wanted some french fries. But ... I resisted and ate a Luna bar I remembered I had in my purse. Then I did grocery shopping and bought some sea salt and pepper potato chips that were fried in avocado oil. They're not very good, actually because they're not very salty. But, after my husband carried the groceries in, I was so tired and just sat there eating them. I realized that I was eating mindlessly and wasn't even enjoying them, so I quit. They were not good for my body OR my taste buds, so that seemed to be a no-brainer. I bought a York mint, a little slice of heaven, to split with my husband after dinner, and forgot all about it! Dinner was really good. I made a rice mix of brown and wild rice, a huge gorgeous salad, catfish sautéed in coconut oil, and a fresh fruit salad. All of a sudden I'm loving salads again!
Well ... I think that's it for tonight. My husband has his office at his building all packed up. The movers would have done that, but they want to start remodeling in there right away. His secretaries hugged him goodbye, crying. They'll see him tomorrow, but it will be very public and very busy, so this was the sentimental goodbye.
Cheers!
Lisa
It's hard to believe that tomorrow is our last graduation! We have two graduation ceremonies, one at 9:00 am and one at 2:00 pm. I've been given a big hint that they will be doing something special for me tomorrow, so you know I'm doing everything to try to look my best. Except to go to sleep early, of course. Actually, I'm completely ready for bed. Just writing this before I do.
Last night was pretty bad. I lost the allergy medicine I take at night and have been without it for a few days. It makes me sleepy and I've found that it works really well if I take it an hour or so before bedtime and then take my Xanax at bedtime. But last night, I couldn't go to sleep at all. The Xanax didn't even touch me and I was so tense my neck hurt. My husband had to give a speech this morning at 6:30 am, which I think is ridiculous! But it meant he had to get up really early and he wasn't sleeping well. So, each time I started to get out of bed to go read or something he'd hug me up and ask me to stay in bed with him! So, of course, I did! But finally around 2:00 I told him I had to get up and eat a snack and read and he hugged me up, but we didn't go to sleep for a while because we were otherwise engaged. (Now how's that for being delicate!). So ... I finally got to sleep sometime after 3:00. I was just bombed all day.
But I had lunch with a good friend who travels a lot and loves NYC, so I know I'll keep seeing her. Then met up with someone else who wanted to tell me goodbye. It was kind of strange. Her marriage has fallen apart and she has gotten a divorce. So she gave us a carved piece she had of a man and a woman sitting together holding hands. She said it had been a gift to them a long time ago, and she didn't want to keep it or throw it away. So she wanted to give it to us because we have made her believe that love can be real and lasting after all. So, I'm not sure what to d about that. She's giving me something that represents her marriage that turned untrue, but she wants us to have it because we caused her to hope again, I'm pretty sure it's not going to New York with us!
I went to my doctors office for some very specialized blood testing from the nephrologist and the genetics doctor. So specialized, in fact, that my lab didn't know anything about them and didn't have a code for them. So they took some blood for the two tests they did know, and I'll have to go back next week after they talk to the docs.
The cardiologist's office called and said they talked to my physical therapist and explained what they wanted for me, and he decided that they really weren't equipped to be able to do this sort of treatment. So, that takes care of that. I'm not going to worry further about it. I'll be in NY within three weeks and plan to start walking a lot. I'm going to need some better, but still cute, walking shoes. I did a lot of errands today and my tendon in my arch that tore a year ago started hurting really bad. This just sucks, because you know how much I hate shopping! Especially for SHOES!! :-)
The only other thing that is pertinent to my goals is I remembered to pick up the glass that I've had cut for the top of my credenza and desk.
So, that's all I can think of right now. I have been looking into cleanses. I'm kind of thinking about jut doing cleanses for the next two weeks. I've done the master cleanse before for five days and was fine with it ... except I became allergic to lemons. And there's a ten day Garden of Life cleanse that sounds good, and I like his products. But it gets some really bad reviews on Amazon from some people. Now, maybe those people were just already very toxic and so it was miserable for them. I shouldn't be very toxic at all because I eat really healthy and fresh all the time.
Oh, while I was out I was quite hungry and really wanted some french fries. But ... I resisted and ate a Luna bar I remembered I had in my purse. Then I did grocery shopping and bought some sea salt and pepper potato chips that were fried in avocado oil. They're not very good, actually because they're not very salty. But, after my husband carried the groceries in, I was so tired and just sat there eating them. I realized that I was eating mindlessly and wasn't even enjoying them, so I quit. They were not good for my body OR my taste buds, so that seemed to be a no-brainer. I bought a York mint, a little slice of heaven, to split with my husband after dinner, and forgot all about it! Dinner was really good. I made a rice mix of brown and wild rice, a huge gorgeous salad, catfish sautéed in coconut oil, and a fresh fruit salad. All of a sudden I'm loving salads again!
Well ... I think that's it for tonight. My husband has his office at his building all packed up. The movers would have done that, but they want to start remodeling in there right away. His secretaries hugged him goodbye, crying. They'll see him tomorrow, but it will be very public and very busy, so this was the sentimental goodbye.
Cheers!
Lisa
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
Day 6 - How Am I Going to Leave My Kids??
Dear Reader,
I saw a slight hiccup in our plans today. We're leaving our kids behind! Of course, this has been an issue since we started this journey, but it hit me fresh today. I love that our daughter has gotten her own apartment and moved out. She's 23 and this is a natural progression. Our son is ready to move out if the recovery house and is talking with some friends about sharing an apartment. This, also, is a good thing and a natural progression. And he will do well to become more independent and more self-reliant. The two of them are having lunch together sometimes downtown. So that's good, too. But I'm afraid I'm going to get up there and suddenly miss them horribly and freak out! Our daughter wants to come up as soon as I'm at least a little settled. I know she'll LOVE everything about it!
I called the cardiologist again and left a detailed message about why she needed to call the physical therapist. And I called today to see if some cars they are waiting on got in yet, but they haven't. They're still being worked on. I got virtually nothing done in the study today because we had a farewell reception this afternoon that took up about three hours. But I did get a dab done ... and ... I EXERCISED! And it was AWFUL!! I've already lost a lot of strength in just a couple of weeks! I've been hurting a lot this evening and have spent some time in the tub this evening going between hot and cold water. I love being in the bath ... I love water in general. I can't believe I'm going to gave a pool! That is just an amazement.
So, I pushed four balls forward a bit: calked the doctor, worked on study, called about the car, and exercised.
An exciting thing happened last night: I fell asleep without a Xanax OR using the headphones and listening to music. I didn't want to get up again this morning. Mostly because I'm what I call "peopled out." I need to retreat to being a hermit for a while after all this is said and done,
It's all starting to hit all of us: me, my kids, and my mom. This is happening! Friday is my husbands last day and he leaves Monday! Oh, my!
Well, on that cheerful note I will bid you goodnight.
Whoops. No, I won't.
Here's the thing. When you don't HAVE to get up, how do you make yourself get up and start your day? I'm always so tired, waking up is so hard, two of my dogs and my cat are always sleeping in bed with me, sometimes on me. I could lay there and think and dose for a very, very long time! I realize that I don't have the normal cortisol morning surge that most people have, so maybe after I'm moved and better rested and more relaxed I'll start getting my adrenal hormones working again and the problem will resolve itself.
Oh, I lost the lab test orders from the nephrologist! I looked for them so long that I was late getting to the doctor's office before the lab techs had left. Turns out they leave early. So, I returned to the house, along with my 24 hour urine collection which is back in the refrigerator! But here's something interesting. Well ... at least to me! In 24 hours I only peed not quite 8 cups. I drank WAY more than that. So, what's up with that? I guess I am retaining water after all. I wonder if I can blame all ten pounds n that, though? Oh, heck. Why not?!
Cheers!
Lisa
I saw a slight hiccup in our plans today. We're leaving our kids behind! Of course, this has been an issue since we started this journey, but it hit me fresh today. I love that our daughter has gotten her own apartment and moved out. She's 23 and this is a natural progression. Our son is ready to move out if the recovery house and is talking with some friends about sharing an apartment. This, also, is a good thing and a natural progression. And he will do well to become more independent and more self-reliant. The two of them are having lunch together sometimes downtown. So that's good, too. But I'm afraid I'm going to get up there and suddenly miss them horribly and freak out! Our daughter wants to come up as soon as I'm at least a little settled. I know she'll LOVE everything about it!
I called the cardiologist again and left a detailed message about why she needed to call the physical therapist. And I called today to see if some cars they are waiting on got in yet, but they haven't. They're still being worked on. I got virtually nothing done in the study today because we had a farewell reception this afternoon that took up about three hours. But I did get a dab done ... and ... I EXERCISED! And it was AWFUL!! I've already lost a lot of strength in just a couple of weeks! I've been hurting a lot this evening and have spent some time in the tub this evening going between hot and cold water. I love being in the bath ... I love water in general. I can't believe I'm going to gave a pool! That is just an amazement.
So, I pushed four balls forward a bit: calked the doctor, worked on study, called about the car, and exercised.
An exciting thing happened last night: I fell asleep without a Xanax OR using the headphones and listening to music. I didn't want to get up again this morning. Mostly because I'm what I call "peopled out." I need to retreat to being a hermit for a while after all this is said and done,
It's all starting to hit all of us: me, my kids, and my mom. This is happening! Friday is my husbands last day and he leaves Monday! Oh, my!
Well, on that cheerful note I will bid you goodnight.
Whoops. No, I won't.
Here's the thing. When you don't HAVE to get up, how do you make yourself get up and start your day? I'm always so tired, waking up is so hard, two of my dogs and my cat are always sleeping in bed with me, sometimes on me. I could lay there and think and dose for a very, very long time! I realize that I don't have the normal cortisol morning surge that most people have, so maybe after I'm moved and better rested and more relaxed I'll start getting my adrenal hormones working again and the problem will resolve itself.
Oh, I lost the lab test orders from the nephrologist! I looked for them so long that I was late getting to the doctor's office before the lab techs had left. Turns out they leave early. So, I returned to the house, along with my 24 hour urine collection which is back in the refrigerator! But here's something interesting. Well ... at least to me! In 24 hours I only peed not quite 8 cups. I drank WAY more than that. So, what's up with that? I guess I am retaining water after all. I wonder if I can blame all ten pounds n that, though? Oh, heck. Why not?!
Cheers!
Lisa
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Day 7 - Hanging Up My First Lady Hat!
Dear Reader,
I am DONE entertaining!! I showed the house to the last candidate today and gave my last dinner tonight! I'll still give dinners and receptions in New York, but far fewer. I was not happy about giving the dinner last night or tonight, but I will admit that I had a very good time. Both dinners were with people I care very much about and so I enjoyed spending time with them. My husband's secretary says she is in complete denial! Oh, the new secretary contacted her to find out what my husband is like as a boss, and she told her that they think he walks on water!
Pe
I've been doing the 24 hour urine collection and I am not peeing much at all. Definitely not nearly as much as I'm drinking. So, that's strange! My bottle is not even a third of the way full.
I had to cancel my Prolotherapy appointment today because this candidates tour got changed from yesterday to today, but I didn't think to reschedule my appointment. They are getting me in later in the month, but my husband will be gone and my friend can't take me on Wednesdays, so my daughter's going to take me. I don't know how well that's going to work because she's pretty squeamish. We'll see.
I only have two more meetings with my counselor, but it seems like there's still so much work to do! I really think I need to do EMDR regarding the memories of my husband breaking up with me in college before we were married. I'd really like to quit having these bad dreams so frequently about that!
I got a tiny bit more work done on filing. Pretty much all that's left is to get a special box for our daughter's memorabilia that I've been collecting for her.
Oh, I haven't told you the bad news yet. I have put on a solid TEN POUNDS since October! Three . PPP.ppover the holidays and seven since the start of the year. This equals two inches on my waist and two inches on my gut. This is enough to put me out of some of my main clothes. And, the underwire in my favorite bra broke, and I'm sure you know how much trouble it is finding a new bra that fits! The trials!!
I am apparently never going to finish the study. I don't think I'm going to get to work in there at all tomorrow. I have to take my urine specimen to my doctors office, which is a good twenty minutes away. As long as I'm going that way, there are several errands I need to run. Then there is a farewell reception for us at the university that lasts two hours. Then Friday is commencement activities all day! Where has the time gone??
Still trying to find a car for our son. One place has two possibilities that should be ready for me to look at tomorrow. He has decided to move out of the half-way house and into an apartment with two other recovering addicts that he has known for a good while. The woman was in recovery when he was and has stayed sober, too. And the man, her boyfriend, has been sober for ten months. Slightly scary for him ... and for us! But he can't stay in a half way house forever and this place is only about three minutes away from his AA meeting place, so that's good.
I talked to the physical therapist today. He still has not heard from the cardiologist. We talked some more about what I needed. He wasn't sure that a physical therapist was my best choice. But when I told him that I have hired a trainer before and, the second time I saw her, she had me do something that injured my wrist for more than a year, he understood why I was looking for a physical therapist to help me.
By the way, I actually felt good of several hours yesterday. It was great! I'd like for that to happen again!
Cheers!
Lisa
I am DONE entertaining!! I showed the house to the last candidate today and gave my last dinner tonight! I'll still give dinners and receptions in New York, but far fewer. I was not happy about giving the dinner last night or tonight, but I will admit that I had a very good time. Both dinners were with people I care very much about and so I enjoyed spending time with them. My husband's secretary says she is in complete denial! Oh, the new secretary contacted her to find out what my husband is like as a boss, and she told her that they think he walks on water!
Pe
I've been doing the 24 hour urine collection and I am not peeing much at all. Definitely not nearly as much as I'm drinking. So, that's strange! My bottle is not even a third of the way full.
I had to cancel my Prolotherapy appointment today because this candidates tour got changed from yesterday to today, but I didn't think to reschedule my appointment. They are getting me in later in the month, but my husband will be gone and my friend can't take me on Wednesdays, so my daughter's going to take me. I don't know how well that's going to work because she's pretty squeamish. We'll see.
I only have two more meetings with my counselor, but it seems like there's still so much work to do! I really think I need to do EMDR regarding the memories of my husband breaking up with me in college before we were married. I'd really like to quit having these bad dreams so frequently about that!
I got a tiny bit more work done on filing. Pretty much all that's left is to get a special box for our daughter's memorabilia that I've been collecting for her.
Oh, I haven't told you the bad news yet. I have put on a solid TEN POUNDS since October! Three . PPP.ppover the holidays and seven since the start of the year. This equals two inches on my waist and two inches on my gut. This is enough to put me out of some of my main clothes. And, the underwire in my favorite bra broke, and I'm sure you know how much trouble it is finding a new bra that fits! The trials!!
I am apparently never going to finish the study. I don't think I'm going to get to work in there at all tomorrow. I have to take my urine specimen to my doctors office, which is a good twenty minutes away. As long as I'm going that way, there are several errands I need to run. Then there is a farewell reception for us at the university that lasts two hours. Then Friday is commencement activities all day! Where has the time gone??
Still trying to find a car for our son. One place has two possibilities that should be ready for me to look at tomorrow. He has decided to move out of the half-way house and into an apartment with two other recovering addicts that he has known for a good while. The woman was in recovery when he was and has stayed sober, too. And the man, her boyfriend, has been sober for ten months. Slightly scary for him ... and for us! But he can't stay in a half way house forever and this place is only about three minutes away from his AA meeting place, so that's good.
I talked to the physical therapist today. He still has not heard from the cardiologist. We talked some more about what I needed. He wasn't sure that a physical therapist was my best choice. But when I told him that I have hired a trainer before and, the second time I saw her, she had me do something that injured my wrist for more than a year, he understood why I was looking for a physical therapist to help me.
By the way, I actually felt good of several hours yesterday. It was great! I'd like for that to happen again!
Cheers!
Lisa
Monday, May 5, 2014
Day 8 - Still Can't Wake Up in the Mornings
Dear Reader,
I don't know what I'm going to do about waking up in the mornings. I still just can't hardly do it. My alarms went off at 8 this morning, but it was 10 before I could fully rouse myself. By the way, have you noticed that spellcheck is getting bizarre? I put in a wrong letter in "rouse" and it substituted "Roosevelt" for the word!
I used a stop watch to time myself on things this morning and learned that things take me a lot longer to do than I thought. Like I thought it took me 20 minutes to get dressed, put on my make up and fix my hair. But this morning it took thirty minutes, and that was with just putting my hair in a bun and not rolling it or anything. Good to know.
I went with my mother to a neurologist today. She was in a pretty cranky mood when I got there and she came Clifton (okay, there, I was writing "close" but pushed the space key before I hit the "e", so it turned it to "Clinton"!). Anyway! I got her to stay and! thankfully! he seems to be a really good doctor and even had her laughing! And that is a FIRST!
I got home and had two hours to get some work done. Decided to tackle all the filing in my study. Emptied out boxes and sorted everything on my son's bed. Had to leave it in a million stacks because we were hosting a dinner.
I went downstairs and talked with the chef who told me he had lamb chops for me to eat. I've been allergic to lamb for years and it's on every single list. The person in charge of the dinner went to some lengths to get all of my allergies for him, but apparently he didn't look at anything and just decided to wing it. I couldn't believe it. He started saying, well, I was told you were allergic to beef and pork, but that was all ...ime it's my fault that I'm allergic to lamb! I just said, well, the fish store is right up the street and you can use my kitchen and I'll leave you to figure it out. He did go get me some fish and cooked it somewhere. C'mon, people! This is a life-threatening condition! It's not like I do this just to inconvenience you or because I just don't LIKE something!
The dinner was great, though, and we had a wonderful visit with many members of our faculty which was wonderful. Before I went to bed I tried to get the filing, which was still all over the bed, finished up since I have to show the house tomorrow again. But my husband wanted me to come on, so here I am. Finishing my bath and writing this in the tub so I, hopefully, don't wake him up.
At this rate I am neither going to be ready to move IR have my life rebooted! Although I am at least making progress towards finding out about health problems. I called and left a message with my cardiologist about calling my physical therapist and that time is of the essence, so hopefully that will get moving. And I did do a little more towards finding our son a car. So, altogether, not a great day or a wasted day. I have to give another dinner tomorrow night, so not a whole lot will get done, but I'm going to give a big push to exercise and finish the dad gum study!!!
Cheers!
Lisa
I don't know what I'm going to do about waking up in the mornings. I still just can't hardly do it. My alarms went off at 8 this morning, but it was 10 before I could fully rouse myself. By the way, have you noticed that spellcheck is getting bizarre? I put in a wrong letter in "rouse" and it substituted "Roosevelt" for the word!
I used a stop watch to time myself on things this morning and learned that things take me a lot longer to do than I thought. Like I thought it took me 20 minutes to get dressed, put on my make up and fix my hair. But this morning it took thirty minutes, and that was with just putting my hair in a bun and not rolling it or anything. Good to know.
I went with my mother to a neurologist today. She was in a pretty cranky mood when I got there and she came Clifton (okay, there, I was writing "close" but pushed the space key before I hit the "e", so it turned it to "Clinton"!). Anyway! I got her to stay and! thankfully! he seems to be a really good doctor and even had her laughing! And that is a FIRST!
I got home and had two hours to get some work done. Decided to tackle all the filing in my study. Emptied out boxes and sorted everything on my son's bed. Had to leave it in a million stacks because we were hosting a dinner.
I went downstairs and talked with the chef who told me he had lamb chops for me to eat. I've been allergic to lamb for years and it's on every single list. The person in charge of the dinner went to some lengths to get all of my allergies for him, but apparently he didn't look at anything and just decided to wing it. I couldn't believe it. He started saying, well, I was told you were allergic to beef and pork, but that was all ...ime it's my fault that I'm allergic to lamb! I just said, well, the fish store is right up the street and you can use my kitchen and I'll leave you to figure it out. He did go get me some fish and cooked it somewhere. C'mon, people! This is a life-threatening condition! It's not like I do this just to inconvenience you or because I just don't LIKE something!
The dinner was great, though, and we had a wonderful visit with many members of our faculty which was wonderful. Before I went to bed I tried to get the filing, which was still all over the bed, finished up since I have to show the house tomorrow again. But my husband wanted me to come on, so here I am. Finishing my bath and writing this in the tub so I, hopefully, don't wake him up.
At this rate I am neither going to be ready to move IR have my life rebooted! Although I am at least making progress towards finding out about health problems. I called and left a message with my cardiologist about calling my physical therapist and that time is of the essence, so hopefully that will get moving. And I did do a little more towards finding our son a car. So, altogether, not a great day or a wasted day. I have to give another dinner tomorrow night, so not a whole lot will get done, but I'm going to give a big push to exercise and finish the dad gum study!!!
Cheers!
Lisa
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