What's everybody doing today?

[MoBookworm1957]

Well folks, sorry for not posting much lately, but my mind is elsewhere.

Wife had her 6th back surgery on Wednesday , Thursday was a good day , less back pain , she felt good.we even went out to eat.

Then Friday morning , the bottom fell out , BP went to 170/104.
She was really feeling bad , no eating or drinking , felt like crap all day.

Nurse told her to take a Losartan. Didn't help.
She's got a bad headache ,severe diaharea, looks bad. Checked her skin , some dehydration.

Saturday I called my best friend Doc, he explained what's going on with her whole body, overload of sodium saline and powerful antibiotics during surgery has her electrolytes unbalanced. Got to get her BP down first. Told her to take 2 Lasix. Worry about dehydration next.
Within an hour her BP was down to 110/70.
Headache gone. Very weak, and forced chicken broth for hydration. Very weak , BP still good at bedtime.

Sunday morning , very slight improvement, she ate 2 pieces of toast and jelly.
Drank some water, some broth. Very dizzy when standing. Doc said force more broth for electrolytes.
Doc says if she will drink the broth, and eat bananas for potassium , she'll get better.

Cutting down, tapering off the Percocet.

Doc says if she don't take in liquids now, its ER and IV liquids .She don't want that.

Her back is really much better , if that's any consolation.

Hope today is gonna improve.

Y'all keep praying for her.

I jump in and read posts some, just too occupied to spend much time right now.

Jim

Still praying Jim and Mrs. Jim.
Grimm, hope you feel better.
Peanut, sorry about the cow and calf.
Sounds like nephew needs swift kick in pants.
Listening to the wind today.
It makes me feel cold.
Spikedriver, what kind of vehicle is daughter going to be driving?
Hope everyone get well sooner than later.
I'm off for another walk to make another single cup of coffee.
It was the thought that counted I guess.
Along with coffee pot yesterday got a box of varieties of pods of coffee.
Let's just say some of them are different.
Reading forums almost all of them.
So far.

 

[snappy1]

Church this morning.
Made spaghetti with ground chicken. Thawed it by mistake so wanted to get it cooked. I had the sauce with spaghetti squash. DH with noodles.
Picked greens and gave to neighbors.
Church concert tonight.

 

[zannej]

AmishHeart, I only have two cows. Back when I was in my early teens we had a neighbor (well, he owned property nearby but didn't have a house) who owned cattle & was friends with the local chief of police. My dad was in law enforcement so they were introduced. Guy offered to help fix & maintain our fences in exchange for letting his cattle roam on our property (we've got just under 32 acres). One year he had a dummy calf that required bottle feeding so he gave her to me as a gift (I now realize he didn't want the burden of caring for her himself). I've always loved animals so I took good care of her. Fastforward to circa 2005, cow was very ill & couldn't stand up. I later learned she probably needed calcium but my vet sucks-- he got run out of Lake Charles for being a lousy vet, but the only vet that makes house calls in our area. He saw how I'd been taking care of her & how upset I was when she died. So a few months later he gave me a dummy calf- Brahma Jersey mix. He'd nicknamed her "Hamburger Steak" and the staff insisted he find a good loving home for her. I named her KwaiYing, bottlefed her, spoiled her, & she followed me around like a puppy. Sometime in 2007 a bull from another yard broke my fence & got in to breed with her & she calved in February 2008. Father was a Brangus. The mother is red with a little white on her face and the daughter is black with white on her face. Cow stopped being as obsessed with me once she had her baby, but she still likes to come over for cuddles and have me sing her favorite lullaby while stroking her face like I did when she was a baby. She also likes to play by chasing people and swinging her horns around. She's deterred a few trespassers.

Jim, I'm glad they were able to get your wife's bp down, but it sounds like she still has more recovery on the way. I hope she can stay hydrated without having to get IV fluids & hope she starts feeling better soon.

I've been thinking a lot about a friend named Gary from the houserepairtalk forum. Haven't heard from him in a long time. Last time he was posting his wife was going downhill fast. He was waiting for a call from the Mayo clinic. I hope they were able to help her & that he's OK, but I sort of suspect the worst. Wish he would post again & update but at this point we don't know if he's even alive still. That's why I'm glad when people here post updates so we know they are OK.

I ended up feeling like garbage and not getting as much done as I'd hoped. I always get extremely tired after I eat for some reason. Had breakfast (eggs & bacon) and then needed to nap.

My cat Mewlatto had decided that I'm the perfect bed for him right now. My brother is the one who rescued him & he used to be absolutely devoted to my brother but he decided he likes me better so he always wants to cuddle with me. I could bore the hell out of people talking about my pets... LOL.

 

[Peanut]

Another quiet day, just resting, watching the tube. Sorry, should have put yesterdays post in the rant thread... just frustrated.

I still find my vision improvement amazing, can't remember the last time I could see this well. I need to make some calls tomorrow and find out about the glasses that were mentioned by the eye surgery people. Beyond 3ft my vision is 20/20... less than 3ft not so much, especially bad about a foot away. It's much improved over 2 days ago but I still need something to help focus, so I can do things like read. This has to be what the glasses were for.

My computer screen is a 23inch flat panel about 3ft away so going online or reading posts are not a problem, still, there are a few books on my reading list I'd like to start.

No plans this evening except dinner. Need to go to town tomorrow, a few groceries and sell some eggs.

 

[Grimm]

Went to Costco. There was a line that went around the building to get inside. K didn't want to wait but I told him we would be inside before 10-20 minutes. We were in in under 10.

We got a lot of meat this trip. I had to stop K from getting beef that was $10 a pound! He swore it was the cheapest they had until I showed him the skirt steak and bottom round roasts. He put the expensive stuff back and got more of the cheaper cuts. He even got some lamb (which he doesn't normally like). We loaded up on milk and topped off our eggs and dried goods. Another 50lb bag of rice and 2 bags of dog food and 2 bags of cat food. Grabbed a 12 pound turkey and a 10 pound spiral ham. They had limits on turkeys and hams. I may go back of a second of each this week.

The idea behind this trip was to not have to go out for food (except fresh produce) til the new year. I grabbed very little non food items. Vacuum bags were the only real non food item we got.

 

[Meerkat]

Another quiet day, just resting, watching the tube. Sorry, should have put yesterdays post in the rant thread... just frustrated.

I still find my vision improvement amazing, can't remember the last time I could see this well. I need to make some calls tomorrow and find out about the glasses that were mentioned by the eye surgery people. Beyond 3ft my vision is 20/20... less than 3ft not so much, especially bad about a foot away. It's much improved over 2 days ago but I still need something to help focus, so I can do things like read. This has to be what the glasses were for.

My computer screen is a 23inch flat panel about 3ft away so going online or reading posts are not a problem, still, there are a few books on my reading list I'd like to start.

No plans this evening except dinner. Need to go to town tomorrow, a few groceries and sell some eggs.

Glad to hear your vision is so great now.

 

[Meerkat]

Well folks, sorry for not posting much lately, but my mind is elsewhere.

Wife had her 6th back surgery on Wednesday , Thursday was a good day , less back pain , she felt good.we even went out to eat.

Then Friday morning , the bottom fell out , BP went to 170/104.
She was really feeling bad , no eating or drinking , felt like crap all day.

Nurse told her to take a Losartan. Didn't help.
She's got a bad headache ,severe diaharea, looks bad. Checked her skin , some dehydration.

Saturday I called my best friend Doc, he explained what's going on with her whole body, overload of sodium saline and powerful antibiotics during surgery has her electrolytes unbalanced. Got to get her BP down first. Told her to take 2 Lasix. Worry about dehydration next.
Within an hour her BP was down to 110/70.
Headache gone. Very weak, and forced chicken broth for hydration. Very weak , BP still good at bedtime.

Sunday morning , very slight improvement, she ate 2 pieces of toast and jelly.
Drank some water, some broth. Very dizzy when standing. Doc said force more broth for electrolytes.
Doc says if she will drink the broth, and eat bananas for potassium , she'll get better.

Cutting down, tapering off the Percocet.

Doc says if she don't take in liquids now, its ER and IV liquids .She don't want that.

Her back is really much better , if that's any consolation.

Hope today is gonna improve.

Y'all keep praying for her.

I jump in and read posts some, just too occupied to spend much time right now.

Jim

We always do ,hope this is just a bump in the road for her.

 

[phideaux]

Looks like my patient seems to be showing signs of improvement.
She is drinking OJ, broth and water.
Eating a little, mostly bananas, toast and jelly, cookies.

If I can force her to continue this, I think she'll turn the corner tomorrow.

She almost was ready to give up.
She's been thru hell since August.

Daughter comes over and helps out with laundry and food.

I'm about useless.

Jim

 

[Bacpacker]

Great news Jim.

 

[Meerkat]

Very good news Jim.

 

[Weedygarden]

Looks like my patient seems to be showing signs of improvement.
She is drinking OJ, broth and water.
Eating a little, mostly bananas, toast and jelly, cookies.

If I can force her to continue this, I think she'll turn the corner tomorrow.

She almost was ready to give up.
She's been thru hell since August.

Daughter comes over and helps out with laundry and food.

I'm about useless.

Jim

Sounds like she is improving and what a relief that must be. You might feel useless, but times like this are challenging. You are there as an encourager and support.

 

[Patchouli]

Sounds like she is improving and what a relief that must be. You might feel useless, but times like this are challenging. You are there as an encourager and support.

@phideaux you are the one keeping her going. You are her encourager. Her positive force. I don't know about anybody else but a pair of kind hands, understanding demeanor, and the strength of a mountain have kept many of us on the high road.

 

[zannej]

Glad to hear that Jim. The potassium from the bananas should help.

Peanut, both of my parents had the surgery where the got lenses put in. My father later regretted getting ones for nearsightedness bc he had to wear glasses to read. He'd had very bad cataracts. He also had a weird thing where the pigments in his eyes was flaking off and clouding up the fluid. He said if he'd had to do it over again, he would have had the lenses done so he could read without glasses but still use glasses to see far away. Insurance wouldn't pay for the two-way lenses that did both.

Mom later had hers done & after about a year they developed a film that made her vision cloudy. But the procedure to fix it was simple & covered by insurance. She went in & they used a laser to take off the film & it was less than 2min (they let me watch a tv screen of it). She's starting to have a little age related degeneration, but she is 70ys old now.

 

[MoBookworm1957]

Looks like my patient seems to be showing signs of improvement.
She is drinking OJ, broth and water.
Eating a little, mostly bananas, toast and jelly, cookies.

If I can force her to continue this, I think she'll turn the corner tomorrow.

She almost was ready to give up.
She's been thru hell since August.

Daughter comes over and helps out with laundry and food.

I'm about useless.

Jim

Great news Jim.
But will continue praying.

 

[Meerkat]

I had to take a break from politics and newsfor awhile its too much plus isolation.

Talked to daughter as usual then tried to send pictures to other daughters daughter grandaughter in prison. She ask for some old pics of us with them plus new ones of her Papa and I aka Mr.Meer .Her mom said she is upset ,crying guards sprayed them with mace for no reason. Guards are acting worse than inmates,not ure qhr happnd but just wished she would have never been on drugs that led her to do a very vey costly act that took away her freedom for a very long time.

I'm trying to heat potatoes we froze after cooking them, so far they look ok, not thawed out in pan yet.
Hope all have a good day

 

[MoBookworm1957]

It is a wonderful day here today.
Strawberry has been walked early this morning.
She has been outside several times too.
She got to bark excessively for 10 whole minutes this morning while I was outside with her.
Next door neighbor got rude awaking this morning.
When she went to yell at Strawberry for barking.
I didn't see her and threw a dish pan of cold water out the back door.
Was aiming for Strawberry, got the neighbor instead( which was the intent all along).
Didn't have my new glasses on, couldn't see her.
Strawberry came when called, we went back inside my place.
Left neighbor out side dripping wet.
Went back outside, swept the cat food up off my back porch.
I have allergy to cats, so I'm not feeding it.
If you want to feed feral cats, that's your business.
Just feed them on your back porch not mine.
Threw the cat food in the trash bag I had brought outside to put in trash can for pick up tomorrow.
Dishes are done, floors are swept.
Will steam mop the floors, have a sticky spot on living room floor.
Oh well it needed steam mopped anyhow.
Will cook in a bit.
Have no clue what, but if I want to eat, have to cook.
Dug out my 5 cup coffee pot.
Have to go somewhere and get a decent size coffee pot sooner than later.
Laundry is sorted will do that tomorrow.
Crocheting on blanket for Christmas present.
Looking at dog sweater patterns for Strawberry for Christmas.
Listening to the silence.

 

[Amish Heart]

Hey Mo, you can descale with vinegar just as well.

We spent 2 hrs at motor vehicles dept. Tags for 2 vehicles. Had to have one inspected first. $1400.00 later......
Went to chic fil a drive thru afterwards. Just picked up little granddaughter from school, and then stopped at Amish store. They had a big display of bulk Christmas candy. Yummy stuff. Someone is coming by to look at the motorcycle we have for sale in a while.

 

[LadyLocust]

It is a wonderful day here today.
Strawberry has been walked early this morning.
She has been outside several times too.
She got to bark excessively for 10 whole minutes this morning while I was outside with her.
Next door neighbor got rude awaking this morning.
When she went to yell at Strawberry for barking.
I didn't see her and threw a dish pan of cold water out the back door.
Was aiming for Strawberry, got the neighbor instead( which was the intent all along).
Didn't have my new glasses on, couldn't see her.
Strawberry came when called, we went back inside my place.
Left neighbor out side dripping wet.
Went back outside, swept the cat food up off my back porch.
I have allergy to cats, so I'm not feeding it.
If you want to feed feral cats, that's your business.
Just feed them on your back porch not mine.
Threw the cat food in the trash bag I had brought outside to put in trash can for pick up tomorrow.
Dishes are done, floors are swept.
Will steam mop the floors, have a sticky spot on living room floor.
Oh well it needed steam mopped anyhow.
Will cook in a bit.
Have no clue what, but if I want to eat, have to cook.
Dug out my 5 cup coffee pot.
Have to go somewhere and get a decent size coffee pot sooner than later.
Laundry is sorted will do that tomorrow.
Crocheting on blanket for Christmas present.
Looking at dog sweater patterns for Strawberry for Christmas.
Listening to the silence.

We just had to get a new coffee pot too. Figured out the warming plate wasn't working on the "Mr Coffee" pot that is only a year or two old. Got a Black N Decker this go round and so far it seems to brew better than the MC ever did and doesn't have the annoying beep once it's brewed.

 

[snappy1]

Walked myself.
Fed and walked dogs
Did laundry
Wrote several EBay drafts.
Slow day!

 

[phideaux]

My patient is still taking baby steps in improving.
She is taking in more liquids today and eating a little bit more.
She is very very weak though.
Now she says her surgery area is very uncomfortable, but I think that's because she has almost stopped the Percocet, down to only 5 mg a day. Tylenol helps a little.

Its going to take time.
She has an appointment with the surgeon on Thursday...that's iffy.

I'm just hanging around waiting on her.

Hopefully she can get back to normal soon .

Jim

 

[MoBookworm1957]

Hey Mo, you can descale with vinegar just as well.

We spent 2 hrs at motor vehicles dept. Tags for 2 vehicles. Had to have one inspected first. $1400.00 later......
Went to chic fil a drive thru afterwards. Just picked up little granddaughter from school, and then stopped at Amish store. They had a big display of bulk Christmas candy. Yummy stuff. Someone is coming by to look at the motorcycle we have for sale in a while.

Descale what??

 

[Bacpacker]

Prayers for you guys Jim.
Talked to mom on my way home from work. She hasn't felt too good last couple days. Her heart rate has been in the 90's last 3 days. They changed her BP med after surgery and may need to adjust that somemore. Its been in the 120's /70's. Today was 145/85. Dr don't want her BP under 120, but seems 145 is high and heart rate is high as well. Well from what little I know. Please keep her in your prayers.

 

[MoBookworm1957]

Prayers for you guys Jim.
Talked to mom on my way home from work. She hasn't felt too good last couple days. Her heart rate has been in the 90's last 3 days. They changed her BP med after surgery and may need to adjust that somemore. Its been in the 120's /70's. Today was 145/85. Dr don't want her BP under 120, but seems 145 is high and heart rate is high as well. Well from what little I know. Please keep her in your prayers.

You got it Backpacker.

 

[Amish Heart]

The coffee pot, Mo. Just use vinegar.
Had an old biker come take a ride on the Harley. He's thinking about it. He's thinking his brother is thinking about it because his brother has a sportster and it's kinda small. Not fun for a passenger anyway.

 

[Peanut]

Went to town today, did a little early Christmas shopping. I got some thumb drives, 50% off. Mostly just checked prices, getting some ideas. The real discounts won’t post until black Friday.

I had eggs to sale also, sold 3 cartons but couldn’t get another regular customer on the phone. Next I stopped at the little produce stand. The lady who owns it was very excited to see me, she’d lost my card. She does a lot of baking for holidays and had told me a month ago she’d need eggs. She bought my last 4 cartons.

Actually we traded. I was out of jam’s and jellies, opened my last jar of blackberry jam a week ago in fact. There was something new in stock. Amish Wedding brand peach jam. I got a couple of jars plus the blackberry jam and a couple more goodies.

I stopped at a chinese restaurant on the way out of town, picked up an order of “combo” fried rice with some egg rolls. I knew I’d be too tired to cook dinner at home…

 

[LadyLocust]

Prayers for you guys Jim.
Talked to mom on my way home from work. She hasn't felt too good last couple days. Her heart rate has been in the 90's last 3 days. They changed her BP med after surgery and may need to adjust that somemore. Its been in the 120's /70's. Today was 145/85. Dr don't want her BP under 120, but seems 145 is high and heart rate is high as well. Well from what little I know. Please keep her in your prayers.

They didn’t want Dad’s over 145. Why not below 120?

Well since Pa (my dad) was in the hospital and we were feverishly grasping at our sanity both at work and home, we weren’t able to go get firewood for the folks. Yesterday there was some cherry wood listed for sale on Craigslist so I headed over and loaded up a cord by myself. The guy selling it just said “Sorry I can’t help you load” and left. I’m feeling it today but Pa and Ma were sure glad to get it. (Hubby wasn’t home and felt bad when I told him I did it.) I like going to the woods to get firewood better.

 

[zannej]

Meerkat, I hear you on the politics. Sometimes I need a break from it. Sorry to hear about the granddaughter in prison. Drugs are a terrible thing. We need some reform in that area. I'd say rehab, but unfortunately forced rehab doesn't always work. People have to want the help. I'm not surprised to hear about her being maced sadly. They did some psychology studies & found that something about a prison environment where you set people as guards tends to turn the guards cruel. Not with all people of course, but some. They start to view the inmates as sub-human & feel the need to exert control & lose perspective & sometimes get some sort of violent/bully streak. That's another reason why we need reform and careful monitoring. It's an imperfect system. I've heard the term 3 hots & a cot but found out that the prisons where I live don't give hot meals to inmates unless they have $ to pay extra for it. They get bread and water but nothing more unless they pay-- and many of them can't pay bc they don't have jobs. This goes for people who are pending bail, pending trial, etc- not just convicted criminals.

Jim, glad to hear your wife is slowly getting better.

Backpacker, I hope your mom's bp can get under control.

I got up early, cleaned up, tried to put a dent in mom's garbage pile (she's been throwing empty water bottles and other trash across the room). Pile is up to my waist now. She wanted my brother to pick it up since it's his job to take out trash but he refused. I kept waiting for him to do it even though deep down I knew he wouldn't. Couldn't muster the motivation and energy to tackle it. Finally pushed myself and got 2 contractor bags full but still have probably 5+ more bags to go. It's a bit annoying to me that she just chucks trash across the room. I'd been taking her trash out when she put it in trash bags, but for some reason she got a bug up her butt that it had to be my brother so she started throwing the stuff across the room instead. She's always been a bit of a slob but it's gotten worse over the years.

After cleaning I needed a nap. Brother woke me around noon & I was too tired to move so he gave me another hour (upon my request). Then we went to the grocery store and post office. They still don't have a lot of the frozen meals my mom likes so I have to check other stores later, but for now we have some stuff I can make for her. She gripes that I don't cook 5 star restaurant quality food but she forgets that she never taught me how to cook. She never had the patience. She wouldn't even let me watch-- she would shoo me away. Anytime I tried to learn, she'd get impatient & take the spoon and bowl (or whatever I was trying to use) away from me and tell me to leave the kitchen. It's weird bc she had the patience to do flash cards & teach me to read but not to cook or clean. I digressed, LOL. Anyway, after grocery shopping I needed another nap & then had to make dinner. Then back for another nap. Not sure how long thyroid meds take to kick in or if the dosage still isn't strong enough, but I have so little energy. It's frustrating.

My brother got a call that he needs to fill in teaching EFL at the VITA center bc the main teacher for Tuesdays is quarantining for Covid. Her son is a doctor & may have unintentionally exposed her.

 

[Grimm]

Went to a different Costco this morning. Got the items I couldn't find yesterday along with a second turkey and ham. The Costco I went to is out by Palm Springs and mostly seniors. When I went to get toilet paper an older man grabbed every last package they had. This pissed everyone off that wanted just one package. I told him there was a one package limit and he threw a tantrum like a child that that was 6 months ago. Once he got belligerent I just looked at him and said, "I'm not going to fight with you. Enjoy your toilet paper fort." I walked away while everyone else jumped in to give the guy a hard time. Sucks to be him because the cashier gave him crap when he rolled up with his cart loaded with toilet paper. "Limit of one per membership!" That is when I got my one package- the employees took all of his t.p. but one and I snagged a package from their restocking area (I was told it was okay).

After the girls and I got home I made my normal call to my mom to give her the heads up on how picked over the stores are. We live in the sticks so if we are hit hard my folks have it worst living in a metro hub. I reminded her to get her turkey this week if not today.

I still need to find a Hobby Lobby that has the craft plywood in stock. I am revamping a doll bed for Roo's American Girl doll for Christmas. Not really an American Girl doll but an 18" Gotz doll I got used and cleaned up. I never had an American Girl doll growing up but got myself a small collection of them used when I worked at a doll hospital. I spent my paychecks restoring those dolls. Roo and Juju have never seen them. I am afraid they will get trashed if I take them out of storage. Same with my Chatty Cathy collection and my Gene dolls (not to mention my vintage Barbies that are older than I am). I have been thinking of selling a few off to add to our raw land fund.

Nevermind. I'm rambling.

 

[UrbanHunter]

Now that the kitchen is done and all the main floor construction stuff is cleaned up, I pulled out the robo-vacuum that my son bought me for father's day... Set it up and after it had charged sent it out to learn the house. Wife doesn't care for it, it's unpredictible movements "spook" her. I had to laugh as it chased her down the hall...

 

[snappy1]

Today, after walking and pet chores, I am making sweet potato treats for dogs.
Will write 3 more eBay drafts.
Will pick mustard greens and radish greens (for me this time) and cook.
Will make hot water cornbread.
Will finish last bag of clothes in closet--switching summer for winter-ish.
That is probably it

Forgot to mention that my new stovetop cooks a lot hotter than the old one. Didn't think about it and warped one of my pressure canners. Guess I will get another one of those as PCing dog food would take two days with just one. DH will try to hammer it flat again with a towel and a 2 x 4 but the metal has been compromised - is what I have been told. I have two months to save money for a new one as I won't use the money for chest freezer. Money...