Can we have a forum for "older" people with bc?

Wren44

Today was a circus. We got up early because the painters were coming early to finish up. They did another coat on the front and back doors, which had to stay open to dry. Then DH's doc called to say he'd had another heart stoppage and she wanted us to go to the hospital for a pacemaker today or tomorrow. They admitted him and will do the procedure tomorrow, but we're not sure what time. So the house is wide open and we had to leave. I called my SIL to come over and watch the house and the cats. I'm so happy Asians are trained to do what elders need. The painters left at 3pm and said it was OK to close the doors. He went home. I came home at 7pm to feed and medicate cats and get some rest. I'll go back early tomorrow. But the doors can stay closed when I leave. I'm hoping to get some sleep tonight.

MinusTwo

Wren - holding you & your DH in my thought tomorrow.

SoCalLisa

me too Wren...holding your hand tonight and tomorrow..Hugs

IllinoisLady

Nobody needs a smile so much as the one who has none to give.
So get used to smiling heart-warming smiles, and you will
spread sunshine in a sometimes-dreary world.

Lawrence G. Lovasik

IllinoisLady

Hope, well wishes, positive vibes and whatever else it takes to have a highly successful outcome on your Dh's pacemaker surgery Wren -- and for you too.

ChiSandy

Wren, good vibes, a mi sheberach prayer, and in your pocket for DH's successful pacer implant!

IllinoisLady

When we seek to discover the best in others,
we somehow bring out the best in ourselves.
- William Arthur Ward

IllinoisLady

Rained late yesterday. Not before a huge piece from the top of one of our trees came down and did a massive bump to our power line. Didn't cause the line to fall, thank goodness, since it stretches over a very large and full ravine, but only bounce two lines together causing a fuse ( the Ameren power man said ) to trip. So, he went somewhere up the road and restored power to all those who are on the same line as us. Gratified that it was an easy fix, and that we, nor none of our neighbors had to be too long without power.

Should be reasonable temp. wise for the next few days. More showers could be possible, but they don't do past any real prediction, just possibility. My little sitting ( cats ) job will be done on Monday. I also look forward to the finish so that I can re-start my routine around home. This sitting hasn't been actually disruptive but have been helping a friend get to appts. Her ride ( my BIL ) had to make an emergency trip to California so extras tossed in to keep things lively and interesting.

I hope ( thinking of you and hubby, Wren ) all are going to have a really nice day and nice weather too. Our rain wasn't much yesterday so I might find myself doing a little watering in the next day or two -- but we made a very pleasant start. Sure love the after rain smells.

carolehalston

Wren, I hope your husband's health is greatly improved by the pacemaker. And also that the house painting came out to your liking.

My travel from New Orleans to St. Louis and then on to Minneapolis went well on Wednesday. I came home to cool weather. Even the Twin Cities were in the high 60's yesterday for their high. The past two nights, dh and I have needed our blanket in addition to the comforter.

Today is lovely. Low 70's and sunny and not a lot of wind. Yesterday was cool and windy, pretty much an indoors day.

This morning (late morning) we went to the gym and to breakfast afterwards. DH has a muscle injury that prevented us from playing couples golf. A bit of a disappointment for me since I haven't played in weeks.

Hope everyone is having a good Friday.

IllinoisLady

Not until the creation and maintenance of decent conditions of life for all people are recognized and accepted as a common obligation of all of us. . . shall we be able to speak of humankind as civilized.

Albert Einstein

IllinoisLady

Patience is never wasted; patience is a
process through which a soul passes and
becomes precious. Souls who have risen
above the world's limitations and sorrows,
the world's falseness and deception, they are
the souls who have passed through patience.

Hazrat Inayat Khan

IllinoisLady

Good morning on this cloudy Sunday. Its okay as I think it will definitely rain a bit later. It will stay a lot cooler ( about 76 degrees ) and I'm just hoping that the humidity doesn't rear up. So, windows open for now. No wind so the rain will come straight down. Working on my last couple of days of caring for the kitties. The lady went to Alaska. She, I think, would have preferred to stay home since her oldest cat got a gum infection. So far, I've kept him eating, but not enough really. I'll be glad when the lady gets back because it will be better for all. May even help the cat get interested in doing better if possible.

So onward here. Guess what -- other than humidity backing off and the temps. going down I'm already ( in a way ) dreading Fall. I've accomplished a lot of things ( especially in our yard ) and they seem to be doing fine but I love the summer greens and to see the trees with all their clothes on. Even a freshly mowed lawn makes me feel good. So -- today I will enjoy -=- even if it rains -- all the greens that are every where right now. Will likely let the kitties stay out on the screened in porch where I'm going for a good amt. of time. Had to make them go in early yesterday as I had promised a friend to go out for lunch ( Chinese ) and to the store.

Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday.

ChiSandy

Another beautiful sunny and mild day today. Dealing with my oral situation as best I can--rinsing with saltwater, dilute peroxide, Listerine Sensitivity as instructed. My dental appt. tomorrow is 9:40 am--no way am I driving or taking the CTA. Bob can drop me off...but at 9, before the office opens; do I really want to kill time at the cafe downstairs (especially after carefully cleaning my mouth)? Guess it'll be Uber time again. Hoping it's something the dentist can quickly drain & suture, with good painkillers and a root canal & crown (had plenty of those before--as long as it keeps the tooth in place...).

Bob took pity on me last night and brought home some mango sorbet. Unfortunately, it was from that batch of Talenti that was too-tightly sealed; it took lots of brute force (trying not to torque my L arm)--including hot water, pounding with a meat bat, wrenching with a jar opener. What got it open was, after doing all of the above, wrapping it in a tea towel, anchoring it between my upper arm & armpit, and twisting hard with my R hand. (Beats what that poor old grandpa in last year's video had to do...involving a vise and reciprocating saw...).

IllinoisLady

Ah, glad you didn't have to go too far to get your ice cream Sandy. Hope you get that tooth fixed quickly and get aggravations scaled way back.

IllinoisLady

If you want to build a ship don't herd people together to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.

- Antoine de Saint-Exupery -

IllinoisLady

Started raining last night. Right as Dh was getting home from work. He is off today but has a PT appt. He likes the Dr. so that is really good. He has a habit of sloughing off a bit when it is just the PT therapists that work with him. This Dr. is in charge of the department and is very good friends with the Dr. I've worked for now for several yrs. I think maybe Dh will be more inclined to pay attention so that he gets the most from working with Dr. S that is possible.

So, it will rain some more today but I'm not sure when. It is my last day of going to the next town over to do the cats there. As usual, I will and will not miss going. I'm anxious to get my personal routine back -- but I will definitely miss the interaction with the kits. They are all gold/orange in color -- one old, and one mid-age and one slightly younger than that. They all become enjoyable to me and something I look forward to. I do think for the older ones sake though, it will be nice when their mistress is back. Cats can be quite adaptable to their 'situations' but they are creatures of habit and I know they too will be happy to go back into their long-time ( before I showed up ) daily routines.

It will stay cool ( cloudy mainly ) as long as we have rain likely and will get to keep the coolness ( maybe some slight humidity ) for most of this week. I'm glad we were able to escape watering which I was starting to have to think about doing.

Thinking about you and Dh, Wren.

carolehalston

Taking care of someone else's animals can cause some anxiety, I expect. People get so attached to pets. One year dh was feeding the neighbor's animals, which included chickens and a hawk got one of the chickens. DH felt bad about it.

We spent Saturday and Sunday at Detroit Lakes, a nice town about an hour's drive from our campground. We set up a booth at a huge flea market and offered dh's turned bowls for sale. I also put out some of my placemats and crocheted and knitted dish cloths. We made expenses and a little more but were disappointed with the sales. Once again, we didn't really "fit" into a flea market. I'll have to do some research on arts and crafts shows for next summer.

We're glad we gave the DL flea market a try. Now we know not to go back. People are mainly looking for old stuff at a flea market. One person's throwaway is another person's find. One item we saw upscale young women carrying was old windows, apparently to use in a crafts project.

I've been lazy this morning but will change and go to the gym. I need activity after so much sitting this weekend. My WW meeting is this afternoon at 5:30 in Bemidji. A 45 min. drive. Afterwards we'll treat ourselves to pizza.

Happy Monday.

ChiSandy

DDS says it's an abscess deep in the root of my front upper incisor--was able to drain a little of the palate sore. He thinks the root might have a cavity or more likely a surface irregularity that trapped plaque the floss couldn't reach. The root isn't fractured (if it were, I'd be seeing stars and swearing a blue streak), nor is the tooth; and per X-rays, there is no decay in the visible part of the tooth. So I see the periodontist on Wed.--hoping he can fill the cavity or smooth the root to save the tooth and avoid an extraction (which would trigger ONJ). At least it's not oral cancer. Meanwhile, keep on doing what I've been doing: 1000mg. Tylenol + 800mg. ibuprofen every 6 hrs., warm salt water rinses several times a day, Sensodyne toothpaste & Listerine Sensitive rinse 2X day; with the addition of clindamycin and Peridex rinse after breakfast & at bedtime.

IllinoisLady

Well Sandy, it sounds like you have a full time job to take care of just one tooth. I would have to write down every step and check the notes often or I'm not sure I'd keep up. Glad it isn't so serious though and that getting repairs will do the trick.

Carole, flea markets here are something for everyone -- old, new, hand-made etc. I'm usually on a budget but like to 'look' at everything. Have gone to the Balloon Fest every yr. here normally ( missed last yr. ) and usually buy a piece of pottery. My cabinet is full though so not sure I'll keep doing it. I'm into small Pyrex and other types that hold maybe a little more than one serving, or maybe two. We just don't eat like we use to, so smaller has become better for me. I have more of a collection of that type then I really need, but I always look because some are so nice and in such good shape.

ChiSandy

Actually, it *could* be serious if the periodontist can't save the root and a root canal by an endodontist wouldn't save the tooth. I have till Sept. to decide whether to stop taking Prolia (or any bone strengthening meds) in the event I need an extraction and fixed partial denture. But if the adjacent teeth are also compromised I will probably need full dentures--implants are contradicted for anyone at risk for ONJ.

Wren44

Bummer, Sandy. Hope they can get this fixed up and you can keep your own teeth.

carolehalston

Sandy, I also hope you can keep your teeth. I have never wanted dentures and have invested quite a bit of $$$$ in keeping mine.

Today is my women's golf day. It has been a while since I played golf, so I'm looking forward to getting out on the golf course. Guess I'd better get moving.

Wishing everyone a good Tuesday.

IllinoisLady

A human being is a part of the whole, called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest--a kind of optical illusion of our consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. Nobody is able to achieve this completely, but the striving for such achievement is in itself a part of the liberation and foundation for inner security.

Albert Einstein

IllinoisLady

Here late today. Been a long day but that is okay. I of course, didn't have to do the kitties today. I did have a nice conversation with the lady they live with because I wanted to make sure she was home. Otherwise I would need to go and take care of them. Then I went ( after doing all of mine ) to feed the feral cats. Their is one kitten only. I'm glad it has survived and I stop up above from where I feed the feral adults. I discovered the kitten had a perfect hiding place and I live the food close to where that is.

Then on to town to take a friend out to lunch and grocery shopping. Then back home to tidy up very quick and our electrician friend came over to put up 3 lights we had. They are LED ( bright and long lasting ) which has been in boxes here for several weeks. Dh ( he is actually quite good at electrical work ) just wasn't getting to it. So, we paid him to put them up. Now to get my bedroom ceiling done. There are a couple of other things but I hope Dh will get to them since I'm getting his list a little shorter -- even if I have to pay to get it done and over with. Dave was here about an hour and part of the time we chatted a variety of things -- so it went quickly and efficiently and I know that while he could have done it --- Dh would have struggled a lot. Now he can enjoy really seeing.

The old lights were fluorescent bulbs with a long white plastic cover that curved over the base holding the light tubes. Those plastic covers were always full of dead bugs which are attracted easily where we live as there are few lights out here when it is dark. So, many of them came to my kitchen. Tiresome to look up and see "bodies". The new lights have covers with no openings. I could have just bought LED tubes -- but I really wanted rid of the bodies. Plus the light covers could be awkward to get on -- if you didn't center them just right.

Puffin2014

I have an infection in the ear with the tube. The drainage covered my whole pillow. The PA irrigated and suctioned my ear and started me on antibiotic ear drops for the last week, and I went back today. Pain and drainage are gone but ear is closed tight and I can't hear out of it. If my good ear is on my pillow in the morning I can't hear the alarm going off. This morning was my follow up appointment, even with more irrigating and suctioning he still couldn't see my ear drum. He did another test that showed my tube is plugged so the drops I've been using aren't even getting through to the other side. So now I'm on an oral antibiotic as well as the ear drops. Hope we get this straightened out soon, I have plane reservations in Sep to go birding in Oregon and don't know that I could fly with my ear like this.

IllinoisLady

That sounds like it was very uncomfortable. I do hope the response to the oral meds ( antibiotic ) kicks in very quick so that the ear drops can do their job. Sending lots and lots of prayers and hope for a speedy get well.

ChiSandy

Puffin, that sounds awful! Hope the tube eventually (sooner rather than later) works, as will the antibiotics. I've never had drain tubes placed--usually, Sudafed (before I became hypertensive) and then saline, Afrin, and Nasalcrom sprays equalized the pressure and the fluid drained into the eustachian tubes and out the throat. But I think it'll resolve w/in a month. If not, can you make Amtrak reservations in advance?

My son just got back from a trip to western MT, and stayed in Fargo the first night. A few years back, my singing partner & I had library gigs near Denver (into which we flew) and in Cheyenne, WY. Our turnaround point was a music conference in Eugene, OR. We tossed a coin--we could either go up into UT and cross the desert in northwestern NV and eastern OR, or drive up to & across MT, the ID panhandle (Lake Coeur d'Alene), Spokane and then down the Snake & Columbia (through the Horse Heaven Hills) rivers, along the Columbia Gorge (stopping to tour, taste and play at Maryhill Winery in Goldendale, WA), and then hanging a left at I-5 from Portland down to Eugene. Then after the conference we went up through the Willamette Valley wine country to Portland, from which we flew home. Both routes were equal in length & duration. But no contest--the northern route was fantastic and I'd do it all over again. If you could make the time, it's terrific and you'd probably see some beautiful birds & great scenery en route. (You really do feel closer to the sky in the WY and MT Rockies).

Meanwhile back at the (dental) ranch, I'm finding that the "Bonesmart Cocktail" (1000mg. acetaminophen + 800mg. ibuprofen every 6 hrs.) works better on tooth pain than does Tylenol #3, and lasts a couple hrs. longer. Supposedly tougher on the upper gut, but so far so good--and no constipation. I won't be on it much longer if the periodontist & endodontist can work their magic. Of course, Norco works far better than either of them--but I need to save what's left of my post-op stash for before physical therapy sessions (that's what the regimen was in rehab after my knee replacement surgeries). I will find out tomorrow when that will start--dreading it, because when I take the cast-brace off for showering, my wrist is insanely stiff & sore (even with the warm water cascading over it), and if I accidentally bend or rotate the tiniest bit too far, the pain is extremely sharp. I'm doing great with finger exercises, though.

Just found out that i.o. (formerly Improv Olympic--one of the incubators for many an SNL cast member) would like me to do a "Musical Armando" show or two some time this fall, and that would require guitar-playing. ("Armando Diaz" is the name of a long-form improv program comprised of several different sketches, with variations on a common theme but an ending that resolves the first sketch). What I'd be doing is playing something, then the company would riff a sketch off that, then repeat the cycle twice more before flipping the arrangement with they doing their final sketch and me adding music to it. At Gordy's former company, pH Comedy Theater (now Big Shoulders), this was called "pHusion." At i.o., the actors don't just act but also improvise music (i would get to "cheat" and play my existing songs except at the end). Sure hope that physical therapy, while initially painful, gives me enough mobility to play guitar by Oct. (I have another gig in Sept., but I can get away with singing & harmonica because it's a duo gig--for the Musical Armando I'd be playing solo).

carolehalston

Good health wishes for Puffin and Sandy. We don't appreciate good health and absence of pain until we develop a health issue. I hope you both recover and are able to follow through with plans.

I'm feeling a little stiff and creaky this morning. My project for the day is doing laundry, which will involve much walking back and forth to the laundry room. I suspect there will be three or four large loads. For some reason, I never mind the laundry detail, especially at home where I have handy racks for hanging clothes.

DH is playing golf with a "co-ed" group today.

It's overcast and cool this morning, low 60's, and is supposed to stay cool all day. Fine with me.

Jackie, what a rough life for a kitten, to be without a home on its own. The kittens don't stay with the mother cat?

IllinoisLady

"Life is too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so love the people who treat you right, forget about the ones who don't, and believe that everything happens for a reason. If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it."

-- Harvey MacKay

IllinoisLady

Add my well wishes to both Puffin and Sandy once again. We ( I'm sure ) are all so grateful to be ' kicking ' but sometimes a few less bumps to it all could and would be highly appreciated.

Carole, the kitten is I think old enough to be on its own pretty much, but looks quite small. This may be due to having had a very small mother. Because of the mother's size it I likely she only had one or two kittens and were any male it likely would have been found and done away with by tomcats not wanting competition which happens often in the wild. I have no idea of the age of this kitten -- but I know who the mother is and I'm sure she would not ignore it if it 'needed' her. I do feel compelled to make sure that the little one has food where it hides until it is older and a bit stronger --- and I'll know that when as it gets braver about spending more time in plain sight. I have seen sm. ( babies but obviously far larger than the kitten ) raccoons over where I feed it, so the minute they start coming out again I'll have to get clever maybe. Fingers crossed.

Nice here but it will warm now so no more leaving the windows open. Drat -- but its summer and good weather comes and goes and unfortunately time for it to move on. We may get more rain though -- have to see, but no matter what it will heat up.