Saturday, May 25, 2013

I SAW A DEFINITE IMPROVEMENT IN KELLY’S HEALTH TODAY:))

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ALWAYS A TREAT TO MEANDER THROUGH RURAL SOUTHWESTERN ONTARIO

Nice to finally see clear sunny skies again with temperatures slowly on the rise. The past couple of days we have had our furnace running & the day before that we had the A/C on. It was 33F this morning when we got up & we did eventually get ourselves into the upper 40's. Always a bit colder here beside the lake but with today's sunshine it felt warm as long as one stayed out of the shade & wind.
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MORE & MORE RURAL FARMS & PROPERTIES ARE INSTALLING LARGE BANKS OF SOLAR PANELS NOWADAYS

When Kelly walked into the living room Friday morning & said she was feeling better I immediately hauled out my laptop & began my post's first paragraph of the day. I went on to say Kelly had turned a corner, the medicine was working, & she was feeling better. By the time Friday night rolled around I had to totally scrap that whole paragraph & start over again. Despite her feeling better Friday morning her day went downhill after that & by bedtime she was sick to her stomach & didn’t take the last three 200mg prescribed Ibuprofens. Sickest I had ever seen her & we both suspected it was side effects. Kelly's body is not used to taking any kind of medication & today she refused to take any of her meds at all.

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She came across this disturbing definition of her problem today .  ((Since a pleural effusion is a symptom of another disease, the prognosis depends upon the underlying illness. Pleural effusions are never normal. While they may be associated with treatable illnesses, their presence suggests that the underlying disease has advanced enough to cause significant inflammation of the lining of the lung)).

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PHEEBS & I CAME ACROSS A ROVING BAND OF WILD TURKEYS THIS MORNING

Off to a better start this morning but figured I had better hold off writing anything until the end of the day. Although feeling better again when she got up Kelly was not able to do the morning walk. I had two pain free hip days under my belt so Pheebs & I headed out the door & scampered our way around the whole trail. It was a mistake & I paid for it the rest of the day. Luckily I have a good supply of extra strength Tylenol here.  And luckily I have another good friend to help me through the days.  My cane has become my right hand best Buddy.  I couldn’t remember where or when we had picked up this cane but Kelly said she bought it at a Thrift store in Borrego Springs California about 4 years ago when she had twisted her ankle on one of our hikes.  Sure has come in handy for me this past while.

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I was low on peanut butter so figured that was as good an excuse as any for Pheebs & I to hop in the Jeep & head off through the countryside to Goderich. Walmart has the honey-peanut butter I like so that is where we headed straight-away. But ‘Oh Dear’ I hadn't realized I was in spending mode. By the time I got out of Walmart I not only had 1 jar of peanut butter, I had 2……along with 4 quarts of skim milk, 2 pkg’s of flat bread, a tub of vanilla yogurt, 3 jugs of cranberry-grape juice, a Kielbasa sausage, 2 bags of birdseed, 1 pkg of brown sugar, a Hummingbird feeder, a jug of Oriole pre-mixed bird juice, 2 bags of oatmeal & a new hat. To console myself after exiting the store Pheebs & I slid through a Tim Horton's drive-thru & grabbed ourselves a sausage breakfast biscuit, a coffee, & a carrot muffin. Took the long way home & tried to enjoy the soothing rural countryside while trying to recoup & justify my spending spree.

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LOVE THE SMELL OF NEW MOWN GRASS

I knew Kelly was feeling a bit better as soon as I got home. The vacuum cleaner was sitting out & she was on her third load of laundry.  With a few rests in between she finished the dishes I had started, gathered a few things for the Goodwill store together & I was heartened to see her in the front yard this afternoon snipping off some lilac blooms for a kitchen table bouquet.  Her cough & chest pain has lessened & she is finally able to lean forward without too much discomfort.  Sure hope we can get to the bottom of this when we see the Specialist on Monday.  As Kelly said at supper tonight, “I’m going to remain cautiously optimistic”.

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NEW HUMMING BIRD & ORIOLE FEEDER IS UP SO ALL WE NEED NOW IS SOME HUMMER’S & OREOS:))

I dragged my sore hip up & down a ladder this afternoon & put our 'Bayfield Bunch' logo on Winnie's back window. Also managed to affix our flag pole holder to the rigs roof ladder.  That meant a few more trips up & down the ladder.   Hung up the Hummingbird feeder, (more ladder work) burned some trash, started up the motorcycle & let it run for a bit. All that done I took a couple Tylenol's & crashed in my chair for pretty much the rest of the day. Kelly remarked the other day that she felt sorry for Pheebs because for her it has been like living with sedentary Gramma & Granpa instead of usually active Mom & Dad.

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THAT DEVICE ON THE LADDER IS A FLAG POLE HOLDER…AND I EVEN MANAGED TO GET OUR ‘BAYFIELD BUNCH.COM LETTERS STRAIGHT ON THE WINDOW
MONTANA MIKE got himself an old tractor. It's orange with gray fenders, has a steel seat & I think it's a Ford. I've never driven a tractor, sat on a few, but never got to turn a key, slip it in gear, & drive one away. I've always had a small boy desire to have my very own tractor. There's a nice green John Deere sitting in a field by the road not far from us at the moment. Has a bucket on the front too. And a 'For Sale' sign on it. If I was a really rich guy I would go buy it & bring it home. First thing I would do is put something in the bucket & go drive around a bit looking at whatever it was I had in the bucket. And I'd look for some dirt or gravel to plow, maybe try digging a hole. Maybe put the bucket high in the air, climb up & stand in the bucket to see where I was, if in fact I was anywhere at all. I would enjoy the engine's chugging diesel tractor sound. I'd throw on my old straw hat & with one hand on the steering wheel & the other hand on the fender I'd head out into a big open field & drive around for hours plowing with my imaginary plow on the back. Maybe I'd do a little disking & rolling as well. Plant me some seeds too.  Real seeds.   Yep, I’ve always had a secret desire to have my very own tractor alright..............

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DSC_0007Oh, and about that new Walmart hat of mine. Label says it’s made of paper. Didn’t know that till I got home & read the label of course. Guess I had better stay out of the rain or I could end up looking like a paper mache head. I’ve never been a big baseball hat fan & the blue ‘Las Vegas’ one I have been wearing forever was just getting a little ‘to old hat’ so to speak. Wanted something light & airy for the summer that had a bit of style to it. Not that I’m a stylish guy by any means but figured just about anything would be better than my old blue sweat stained baseball cap. For not ever have being a hat guy decades ago I sure have worn a lot of hats these past 6 or 7 years.  I have written a few posts now & again as to why I have taken to wearing hats but to mention all that stuff here again would just be, well you know……………..old hat:))

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TODAY’S BLUE JAY

GROANER'S CORNER:((

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- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.

24 comments:

  1. I am always happy to see people embrace alternative energy sources! I am sorry Kelly has not been feeling well, I hope her condition improves soon!

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  2. I'm sorry to hear that you are both having health challenges. Do a lot of research, get 2nd and 3rd opinions, eat healthy and don't overdo when you're feeling better. That's my pearls of wisdom. God bless you both.

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  3. For a fella with a sore hip, sounds like you got a lot accomplished today. Great hat - you should go sit on the tractor with your new hat and have someone take a picture of you. Love the groaner tonight.

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  4. Sure hope Kelly continues to get better. And wish SOMEBODY would call & let you know something about your hip situation. Guess you will get an appointment SOMETIME! Good lookin' hat. Hope it doesn't disintegrate if it gets wet! That might be fun for others to watch, but not much fun for you!

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  5. Likin' the hat....Hopefully Kelly will get some answers from her doc on Monday...Knowing what you are dealing with is EVERYTHING!!

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  6. what kinds of tests will they do to help determine the cause? Right now you are treating the symptoms. She should really try to keep taking her meds.

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  7. Little by little, inch by inch is the way we like seeing Kelly improve. I am eager to hear reports of Kelly's Dr. visit. Have a great Sunday.

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  8. Colchicine is a strong alkaline and most people can only stand 0.6mg taken once a day. No grapefruit of any kind during treatment.
    It is what I took for 4 months to stop or prevent inflammation Quick.
    If I or 3 other people I know take more than 0.6 MG a day, it is a bad ride of stomach cramps, diarrhea and barfing at the same time. You have to take a trash can to the toilet to puke in while you shit things you have not eaten yet.

    I thought about writing this when I saw you mention that drug yesterday. It is a wonder drug and poison at the same time.

    This might not have anything to do with her reaction, but sounds like it.

    My friend is a tractor restorer and I get a kick out of riding his projects around the yard. You might just see if there is one of those guys in your area.

    Wish you both the best.

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  9. Hope Kelly continues to feel better and the drs can get to the root of her problem. We'll keep thosevpositive vibes coming your way . Hey Al, that sure is a sharp lookin hat but hope that you don't end up with paper mache head, as you said, that could be a problem .

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  10. Hope you both are improving. Sorry to hear of the ? adverse effects of the medications. Praying that the treatment will be easier to handle.

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  11. Glad to hear Kelly is feeling somewhat better. Praying for some answers on Monday!!

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  12. Soon Kelly be good as new, and hopefully you too.
    I have a hat made of paper and the water does not hurt it. Get it wet and can shape it , when it dries out goes back to original shape. Is nice and light and cool too.

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  13. Hang in there, no matter what they find, now days most stuff is fixable...

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  14. It is frustrating when the cure is worse than the problem. Happy to hear that Kelly is feeling somewhat better and hope that continues. Get her fixed up and then get you a new hip and you'll be ready to roll. I'm sure that Pheebs is happy just being with you guys even if you can't take the long walks for awhile.

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  15. Yes Monday you will probably have some answers for Kelli.
    That's a pretty snazzy paper hat!! Very distinguished looking gent!
    My son had a ball rebuilding a tractor and trailer.
    Hope you will both be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel soon.

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  16. That hat looks good on you Al! We are praying that you will soon have an appointment to get your hip fixed and that the Dr.s will be able to find out exactly what's wrong with Kelly and fix it too. A few years ago I was diagnosed with H Pylori and the medicine was harder on me than the sickness. But I stayed with it and in the end all was well.

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  17. So many meds these days make you feel worse than the sickness they are suppose to cure. I hope you googled whatever Kellys's suppose to be taking.

    Like the hat and think you'd look grand on a tractor.

    Where did you get the letters for you website and how do they go on?

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  18. Glad Kelly is feeling a little better! I was worried when I saw she was taking Ibuprofen (hard on lots of people's stomachs) and Colchicine--Mike takes that when he has a gout attack and more than one dose of it really affects his stomach.

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  19. I find tractors fascinating too, and riding lawn mowers. Maybe someday (when/if we come off the road) I'll have a reason to have a riding lawn mower!

    Glad to hear Kelly is doing better. Fingers crossed for her health to improve steadily.

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  20. Denis and Sandy Letendre said... Do a lot of research, get 2nd and 3rd opinions,

    From what Al has written I think they have done that. Three opinions and three different diagnosis with a possible fourth one on Monday. A great example of why it is called 'practicing medicine'.

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  21. That is a cool hat and it would go together quite well with that 4WD tractor. The tractor could maybe come in handy in AZ too!
    Sure looking forward to you guys both feeling better soon, we're thinking of you.

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  22. Helluva thing to have you both feeling poorly! But you both are still getting done what you can, whether chores or fun activities. Would love to see you running around on a tractor and plowing a field with your imaginary plow! Keep up the optimism, and maybe all your best dreams will come true.

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  23. Just so happy and relieved to hear of Kelly's improvement!!!! Good news. thanks
    Box Canyon Mark

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  24. I'm working this summer at the Mammoth Hot Springs General Store in Yellowstone - a guy walked in yesterday who could be your twin. I told him he had a twin in Canada named Al, and he said, "My name's Al." He showed me his driver's license to prove it. He even had a hat on just like yours.

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