Well, not for me necessarily. In fact, my day ended looking like this.
For Teddy, it was a horrid day that has lasted 24 hours. After a long trip in the car (four hours) and a stressful time at the vet, he was tired. So he slept until I finally started to get to sleep at 1 AM. At that point, he started drooling again. Chris got up to give him the pain meds. Not one I like the idea of. Gabapentin.
They told me to video the subsequent seizure so they could tell more about it. So I got up to follow The Tedster around. He vocalized his unhappiness with the world for a couple hours. I swear he likes to pace and chat. He told me about Mariah. Said a lot more things, and sometimes it felt like he said, ‘Anyways.’ So maybe he likes Ms. Carey’s Christmas albums or something? By the time he was circling the coffee table, it wasn’t so loud as a constant chat. He finally had said enough. He hopped up onto my lap and fell asleep. 4 AM. I’d listened and given the support that whole time. I was exhausted. But getting up from the chair was nearly impossible as tired as I was.
I managed to get back to bed. Wow! Having pets is more challenging sometimes than having human baby newborns! Or maybe that’s why Septuagenarians don’t have babies.
My son and I managed to get in a bit of walk. We didn’t make the mile because Kali got tired. I nearly had to drag her home. We stopped as she caught her breath. I gave her water. But she didn’t drink. We got back home, and she crashed on the couch. So I guess she’s next to see the vet. She doesn’t run out of energy. This is odd. Maybe Teddy kept her awake, too?
Well, maybe I should take the hint and go to bed while I can!
Growth is complicated. Sometimes what appears as growth is a different point of view. And then there are the times you feel you will never grow again, and possibly regressing when later in hind sight you find those were your biggest growth spurts of all. On this very day, I think the later is what I hope for.
I’m here with the same unfinished pair of socks as last week. Wow! Who knew I would get so little done? I did add an inch or so to the ankle and have halfway finished the cuffs.
This week has gone very fast. Every task I set up for myself got side railed and remains to be finished. I’m still learning about podcasting and now have a mic. I have a stand to hold my phone as I record. But the table and area I plan to do it all still remains a chore. But the excitement of getting it started and reading aloud to friends. Or getting to know how I will overcome the stage fright, and social anxiety, scares me. Yet seems the thing to do. So tomorrow the table will be readied, and I’ll figure a way to read while I still have the cataracts. And still no appointment for the surgery. I have excitement in me for the first time in a long time. And I’ll probably finish these socks tomorrow.
I just read and reviewed How to Die In Space. Wormholes were the thing Mr. Sutter said was the least likely item out there. Yet how would Star Trek, Farscape, or even Doctor Who get around without them? See? Case in point! They have to exist!
A little more serious. I do believe in the power of prayer. Not like I learned at church, but what I have absorbed metaphysically. When I pray, I feel I take the time to put my mind onto something or someone; I find the energy flows and have seen results. Often, I find my prayer worded so that I need to revise on occasions to be the most loving outcome for all. No, I cannot be the one that brought about the result. That means whether my hope went one way or the other, the result is out of my hands. Love is in charge. In that case, then, I believe, God/Goddess is love.
Do animals have morals? Exclude human beings from the equation please.
Here is the question that John Holton and I differ on. And from the mere observable point of view watching our cats. I suggest, like every group, there are terrific and rotten and variants between.
I had a cat who took in some other cat’s kittens. Kimberlina raised these kittens, caring for them like they were her own. With four kids in the house, she became mother number two. She would lead me to see naughtiness in the works. Many other cats we’ve had were not as morally beautiful. But in cat-world, we believe she was a saint.
Meet Kimberlina, Kimby for short. She’s the big one on the right. The kitten is a foster my son, not the one pictured, but the one who worked at a pet store brought home knowing Kimby would be good at taking care of it. Kimby came to us when she couldn’t even hold up her head. Her eyes were closed. We couldn’t find anyone with milk for her, so we used plain yogurt, and she seemed to like and thrive from it. We had her, I think, for 17 years. Through divorce and a million moves. (Exaggerate much?)
In fact, this very balcony was where she decided to see if she could fly. We were on the second story. Talk about scared! But the kids (who were late teens and early adults) found her and brought her home. She hid under my bed for a couple nights. One night I couldn’t handle it anymore. I whispered out to her. She came out. She shook it out. Jumped up on the bed with me and seemed just fine for another six years. Gosh, how we all miss her! It’s been 20 years, and we all still talk about her with tears just below the surface.
Thanks for the memories!
Is there inherent order in nature or is it all chaos and chance?
Wow! Nature prevails over the chaos and chance, I think. Chaos, like forest fires, may kill everything in the area, and yet before long new life exists in the burnt areas. Look at Chernobyl. Nature has managed what we humans haven’t. The above chaos is manmade. But hurricanes, volcanoes, earthquakes, meteors, etc., can kill everything off, but Nature brings life back.
Where is your least favorite place in the world?
I’ve not been very far in the world. But I bet I can universally narrow this down. Offices full of cubicles. I can’t think of any I could ever handle again, no matter what country or planet it resides in. I have met some really awesome people in that work environment and am still friends with them. But I couldn’t survive another moment in that kind of place.
GRATITUDE SECTION (Participation Always Optional
Feel free to share something about the seasons that makes you smile!
Growing up in Southern California, we had Summer and warm everything else. So when we moved here in Outback Oregon, we have most of the seasons. I’m smiling at the upcoming summer is showing its face. The following is probably done for a while.
But this is today:
This last picture is the same mesquite bush that was full of snow in January’s picture. Sadly, we still need to drip water at night. But I was in T-shirt while taking the greenery above and only a little chilly. Yay! Warm is coming!
As I am in the David Tenet season of Doctor Who, I look to my left and see the two socks I told you about yesterday. I didn’t get to knit much today either. I had a job to do. If I am to make read-aloud or podcasts, I need the table in my bedroom clean and ready to go. Since my son moved in, all the stuff in my hobby room got moved out into the rest of the house and never landed very neatly—a moment. Also, to my left is my green tea. Let me take a sip before continuing.
It wasn’t just the fact of his moving in and losing a whole room to store my tools and supplies for my crazy times. It was pain. And fatigue. But I am feeling so much better now. Unfortunately, there is so much piled up all over that I need to straighten up, toss, or give away that I am somewhat overwhelmed. But today, I started tackling this monster.
Ah, and one would think with the amount of time I worked, the job would be done. Nope. The top layer of stuff was heavy winter stuff that needed to be put away for summer. That meant ordering big bins to stack in my tiny closet. That meant using smaller containers, for now, just to get the clothes and blankets out of the way. Then I started throwing things into a box to sort through later; heaps of electronic bits for computers past and present. Primarily things that probably don’t work. So once the box is filled, I will bring it to the living room to go through it from a comfortable sitting.
Tomorrow the table should be clear. That table won’t be the only place clearing. I plan to move my Paint by Diamond kit on the podcast table. That brings it off the dining table. That is part of another project. My brother and I will move the dining table closer to the kitchen. The piano will go with the light from the south sun where the table will have been. The armoire will take the place of the piano. I can’t wait! That and having new eyes, I will be able to see the notes on the music.
Anyway, I recorded this momentous occasion. I captured me talking about the pile and then took pictures of the progress. It always surprises me when cleaning, how you have to make a bigger mess to clean up a mess. My bed was piled high with the incoming summer clothes and I had to figure out where to put them all. As I lose weight some of the clothes call to me to dress up a bit. Positive process happening.
Per Linda G. Hill:
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “to your left.” When you sit down to write your post, look to your left. What is the thing closest to you? Write about the memories that thing induces. Enjoy!
The above socks sans cuffs are among many projects not finished this week. Three days of appointments, two of which were out of town (two hours each way), kept me from my usual machinations. I had to look up that word. I’ll stick with it as it might make those who know me have a giggle. There are no evil schemes afoot—just my knitting, writing, and editing.
Dare I say this? COVID19 has made doctor visits more efficient. I take along reading material and knitting for those sitting times. So far, that hasn’t happened at all. Walk-in. Temp check. Empty room with empty chairs to fill out forms. Then call to a solitary room—everyone with masks and lots of hand sanitizer. I felt safe, and the jobs were done quickly and like a well-oiled machine. And no uncomfortable waiting in a room of ill people. It is as though they have figured out how to take care of individuals. I think that is a good thing. Now, will they be able to maintain the good when things go back to ‘normal?’
Still, no time to sit and read or edit or knit or write while waiting. Talking with my husband and singing happened. Those don’t have a finish line, do they? I hope not. Well, soon enough, I will have new eyes, and I will be able to read real books. I miss the tree books!
Well, back to knitting as I watch Doctor Who. Did you know that the first of Christopher Eccleston’s Who is on HBO Max? He was my first Doctor Who. Though David Tenet is my favorite. Had better writers been used, Jodie Whittaker would have been. The actress did the best she could with what she was given.
By the way, if the URL shows up in the podcast, I’m sorry. I’m still learning how to do this.
Duh! I hoped above hope that the reason I couldn’t read anything online or otherwise was a cataract. The symptoms started like my husband’s with halos around lights. In fact, when I would take Kali out at night, the small amount of light out here looked like a bunch of Ferris wheels. That was with the left eye. The right eye needed correction, I felt. I have my medical background, Grey’s Anatomy, ER, The Good Doctor, New Amsterdam, ER Untold Stories… Yes, I’m an addict. Hello, my name is Darlene…
Oh, back to the main story. So for the second time this week, I went to the big city (snerk). This time my husband drove me. I knew I would need him to drive me home; dilated eyes shouldn’t drive.
Coffman Visual Clinic was marvelous. Clean and safe in every way. Doctor Guyle was my doctor. He’s a writer, too.
So we hit it off. Oh, the eyes? Yeah. You know that biggest E on the chart? My left eye can see the color white and the black blob. My right eye is doing better than with glasses. Just not arm’s length away. I was worried. I do have a mild case of diabetes. I take Metformin. I plan to reverse that with my fasting diet. Dr. Guiley looked into my eyes, and both have cataracts. He couldn’t even see into my left eye. It is so bad. Best diagnosis I could hope for. This is fixable with surgery. I know several people that have better eyes than ever because of the surgery. So the system is setting me up with the surgeon and dates.
The trip home was fun. Oh, I forgot, the trip there, no music. We were having such fun conversations that we just didn’t need it. Coming home, the windows were down, and so conversing was out. So Savage Garden sang us home. My friend and my younger adult children got to see them in concert when they were still Savage Garden. My only rock concert ever—that from a Baby Boomer. Loud music was never my thing, even classical, if loud does me in. But these guys were great!
We had to nap since being home. My dilated eyes were tired. My body was tired. That trip takes it out of me. But the promise that I will soon have eyes that can read other peoples’ blogs and real tree books instead of listening to text-to-speech or Audible gives me the energy to do a dance. Don’t watch!
Went to my PCP today. Guess what? I’ve lost 6 pounds! Yay! It’s working. And becoming less work as I learn. I’ve picked up the paper copies of The Diabetes Code, The Obesity Code, and The Complete Guide to Fasting, all by Dr. Jason Fung. I read The Diabetes Code and The Cancer Code. You can click on the underlined titles to see my reviews. I’m getting ready to read The Obesity Code. Dr. Jason Fung can write a thought-provoking book while displaying a sense of humor.
Intermittent Fasting using low-carbs high fat or keto is proving to be easier and easier. I seem to be doing quite well on one very healthy meal a day. That means a 20 or like today 22 hours of fast and a two to four-hour window to make sure I’ve eaten well.
I was delighted that my team at the doctor’s office knew about and encouraged this method of achieving better health.
Working on my series: Haven.
Doodler (zendoodle.com)
Music major: voice and piano
Mom of four great adults
Reiki II practitioner
I have been on disability/retired for 10 years now from depression, anxiety and fibromyalgia.
Books, games, music, and life — filtered through the mind of a writer, drummer, and philosopher who thinks too deeply about all of it. If it moves something in your chest, I'm interested.
Darswords 
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