Tuesday, June 6, 2023

The sun is out! But not for long so I better get my act together to take Justice for a walk potentially on the sand bars between the tide pools at the beach. DH is going golfing this morning so we will do our own thing.

Maybe I will get some hand towels to go with the navy bath towels. Yes, they propagate here too though not quite as much as there is limited space in the linen closet which appears to have old blankets and towels dating back to the early 80's when they bought this place. Alas, few decent hand towels lurk there as perhaps they became rags over the years? I suspect the nice navy towels migrated from Florida when it became overstocked there.

The shoulder verdict is in. I have severe osteoarthritis in both shoulders. Severe is apparently the fourth and worse stage with little cartilage remaining and greatly reduced function. The right one is way worse than the left. So weird as it isn't caused by weight bearing in one's shoulders nor did I ever injure them. Must be genetic mostly. I received a cortisone shot in my right shoulder and amazingly it is much better already. Maybe a placebo effect? I start PT twice a week after Aruba to try and regain a bit more range of motion. If the cortisone doesn't work or doesn't last long enough the next step is shoulder replacement. Arthroscopy to "clean it out" wouldn't work at this stage. I hope the cortisone continues to work as I really do NOT want to go through the surgery at this point. Though in a few years I may have no choice.

If I had the same situation in my knees or hips they would assume it was from excessive weight-bearing over the years. Strange that I don't seem to have it at least to the same degree (though I likely have some in my knees). Perhaps there were actually some positives in terms of osteoporosis for my hips?

The non-weight loss eating continues. Though I only ate 1/3 of a burger last night, I also had a bunch of truffle fries and some wine. Not going to lose anything that way!

Have a tutorial Tuesday!

Gosh, I don't think of cartilage in my shoulders, but so suppose being a joint there would be! That sounds very painful, I'm sorry!

Well, it was bound to happen. First scorpion in the house! No more not turning lights on to walk to the kitchen for water barefoot. I guess they can squeeze through cracks as thin as a credit card. Yuck.

Arizona wildlife is not for wimps!

This morning I have PT, then I'm not sure what I will do. Waiting to hear how my dad is doing. I guess he went to the hospital without his phone. Claudia is scheduled for an endoscopy today for stomach problems, so the family is falling apart!

I should get in the shower. Take care everyone!

All I can say is EEK!

Good morning.... Big day here as Dad is going back to assisted living. God help us all - especially him! I am beginning to understand what significant dementia "looks like". It is not a linear disease in the sense that while it never stops progressing there are days that it seems to have ebbed to give one a glimmer of hope, only to have the hope beaten away a day or two later. I think what is hardest for me at this point is to witness my once very scholarly father become a man who struggles to maintain focus while reading, has difficulty finishing "easy crosswords", and has an altered personality. He is having trouble remembering much of anything prior to his fall. He was patting himself on the back yesterday because he could remember that he was once married and could remember my mom's name. I tried to explain to him about his assisted living apartment, but he was befuddled. I showed him photos of his apartment (again) and he was pleased, but still seemed unsure of his move, e.g. "...where and with whom will I live?"

My weight is the lowest it has been in some time. I will take it. I'd actually like to continue to lose a little, so that is my focus. No tracking, no starving, no off limit foods, but working on creating a deficit that will actually promote some reduction of weight and size. Doesn't have to be much, but I want to make sure I keep heading in the direction of health, flexibility, and smaller size.

CC, your scorpion reminded me that when I look at property for retirement one of my big things I consider is rattlesnake exposure for the dogs. Though, I think in the end I will probably end up staying here. If it weren't for the number of dogs and the small kitchen, the house is plenty big enough for us. It would be nice to have guest quarters that were more generous in size, but in a house of 1430 square feet, what can one expect!

Wishing all a Trouble Free Tuesday!

You just have to take the good days as a plus and gain a sense of humor around some of the dementia fueled conversations. My SIL and I still laugh about the "chocolate wars". Paul forgot he ate his fudge (though the evidence was on the refrigerator handle) and accused his sister and I of eating it. This after a lifetime of hiding chocolate (for some odd reason) then forgetting that he had until it was too old and had to be thrown out.

I majored in speech pathology and audiology. A lot of my senior year was spent observing treatment of aphasia and dementia patients for speech losses, swallow testing, etc. Part of the reason I didn't go on to get my masters was how heartbreaking and helpless it felt to watch patients take one step forward and two bac****il there was nothing more to be done. Watching it happen in someone you love is infinitely more painful.

2 more days with students!

More bad news at work as additional support staff have been eliminated. Their job duties? The special ed teachers can absorb them. And although the news is bad, I'm not about to let it ruin my day. I resolved to pretty much work my contract hours next year. It's the admins problem if they're assigning more work than I can accomplish in my designated hours. Not mine. So I am at peace.

Scorpions, I get goosebumps looking at that picture! I got bit by one in South America and good lord, my blood turned to fire. Yes, steer clear.

Liz, so sorry about the diagnosis, but glad the cortisone is helping. My osteoporosis has progressed slower than many of my female relatives, so I also considered whether obesity had done me one good thing and made my bones stronger than they would have been.

Peps I hope when your Dad gets back amongst his things that helps his orientation. The long goodbye. I was in my late 30s when my Grandpa passed, so we had a beautiful lifetime together. I still remember the first time he looked at me, and I could tell he knew I was someone, but he couldn't place me. None of this is easy.

Greetings all

The grey fog is around. Played scrabble today. Won one, lost two. Not my best. But I decided to go to the flooring store and get on with what I started. The flooring is available in about two weeks so I will have an estimate come by soon. And they can add in to the estimate for moving stuff (the big stuff) so we can clear out the little crap. Storage unit here we come.

Liz sorry for your shoulder trouble. Cortisone is amazing though. I have had it in my thumb joint quite a few times. Lasted 4 or 5 months. So now you gotta get your kids to move stuff for you. Truffle fries!!!

Peps hoping your dad feels more together when he is back to his place. Must be frightening. Hoping he settles in and is comfortable.

Scorpion CC!!! Yikes I could not deal with that. You need a nice pair of Crocs for late night. But why would they even want to come inside a house? There are plenty of creepy things out there. Stay safe. Sorry your dad is still in the hospital. Family chaos indeed.

DD glad the school year is almost over. Yikes you were actually stung by a scorpion??!! Please don't do that again. Instead, have a great summer. What are these school admin people thinking? There will be no one left to do teaching at all. We have been watching Abott Elementary which is kind of fun.

DH is threatening to go to Costco. I will stay home. Already did the studio and got an Asian sub after the floor store. enough for me.

We started a series called "Jury Duty" last night. It's off beat but good. Kind of like "The Office".

Salmon for tonight. Maybe with tomatoes. Somewhat healthy.

Saw some pictures of my college 50 year reunion. Saw one picture of an old flame. He was using a cane and missing teeth. Oh well. So it goes.

Diane S

The scorpion thing: if I think about it or talk about it, I get goosebumps up the left side of my body. I was bit/stung on my left foot in Brazil. I was sitting in a beach chair, in someones yard, suntanning. I was on the grass, but there was a patch of dirt in front of me, and I was wiggling my toes in the dirt. Bad move! There are 4 kinds of scorpions in Brazil, some less venomous than others. My friends said it could have been worse! Lesson learned, wear flip flops at least, don't go barefoot outside in Brazil. Had to learn the lesson again with fire ants in Florida. About the worst that can happen in Minnesota is you can step on a bee, or a sticker bush.

Seems like everyone has a storage unit these days especially in Florida. A ton of these places have popped up around us .