Saturday, December 13, 2025

 I went back to the clinic on Tuesday to have the electrode connections checked and everything was intact and none had come loose - thanks to the technician and to me for being careful.  They even called me to see if I wanted to come in early, as there was snow predicted and roads were expected to get nasty.  I did see some issues but not much.

Another trip to the clinic on Wednesday and I was able to get the apparatus all removed and, like Randy said, I am wireless once more!  They used acetone to get the glue off of the gauze pads that were holding the electrodes and that was stinky but didn't hurt at all.  Those technicians are going to get good reviews from me!

We had to move our cars out of the parking lot by Thursday morning so the snow removal company could come in and clean it out.  They do that whenever we accumulate around 10" of snow.  This year so far has been the coldest and the snowiest in many years around here but it looks like it will turn around starting again on Monday.  Since I had to move my car back into the lot later in the afternoon, I decided to get some groceries so I wouldn't run out of anything over the frigid weekend when temps are expected to be below zero with some even colder wind chills.  

I started working on Joey's haircut later that afternoon, as it is way overdue and I don't want it to be an issue while I'm gone over Christmas.  He does not like it at all, but he sure is a good boy about it.  I got the upper part of his body and his face done. 

I finished the job on Friday morning, it took about  two more hours but we made some progress this time in that he actually let me use the clippers on his legs, tummy, and rear end.  He's getting better about it all of the time.  A few little chunks of cheese every now and then really helps.

Monday, December 8, 2025

 Norah called yesterday, asking if we could hang out - Ben wasn't feeling good, Charlotte was with friends, and Jill and Camille had something going on.  I headed their way and we went to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum where they had over 50 Christmas trees on display, all decorated in different ways, plus the gift shop, a craft sale, and the cafe.  Norah was excited to find a gift for our Secret Santa exchange on Christmas and now has that checked off her list.  

While we were having a snack, she told me my fortune - first, that I would get good results on the EEG test that I am having today, second, that I will live a long life, and third, that Joey would settle down and be a really good dog in two years (this one is really funny)!  

I went to the clinic to get my ambulatory EEG apparatus hooked up this afternoon and it took about 2 hours to complete.  The technician  sectioned off my head, put markers in about 25 different areas, scrubbed this areas, then glued gauze pads that have the wire connectors attached to them.  She used some type of heat/air gun to set the glue.  The wires that are coming off my head are individually attached to a small box like a purse that I will carry around and that box is a recorder that will document any seizure activity.  It is not painful, just kind of awkward and I was able to get a decent night of sleep.

 

The white diagonal piece is the wire that can be seen farther back on my head - it is harnessed with all of the other wires that are connected to the recording box that is in the over the shoulder bag.

Friday, December 5, 2025

I didn't do much over the weekend, we had about 9" of snow on Saturday and it was the light, fluffy stuff.  All I had to do was clear it from my car and shovel a path on both sides of the car to get in and out without dragging the snow with me.  I did shovel an area on the side of the building where Joey didn't have to go through deep snow to go potty. I did venture out to the grocery store to stock up on a few things before the snow got too deep.

I helped out with the food shelf on Wednesday and we got a lot of extra stuff this time (probably additional donations over the holiday) and we had less helpers, so I was ready for a nap when we finished.  Mary, the pet nail trimmer came that night and I escorted her to three apartments for kitty nail trims.

Typical for this area after a snow, we got hit with a real cold spell that night and it was -6° when I woke up on Thursday morning. It was not fun to take Joey out - even with his fleece lined blaze orange jacket on, he had a hard time finding spots to go potty and the big potty had to wait until later.

I got up on Thursday morning and made ham and bean soup and delivered some to Ben for the family (he was on a work call when I got there) and I wasn't able to stick around to visit because I had an appointment.  

I saw a doctor about my right ear that has been bothering me for a while.  I had been to urgent care for it about 3 weeks ago, prescribed some meds, but not improved. She found no infection, only some fluid behind the eardrum, but since it has been persistent, she referred me to an EMT, so I'm hoping I can get in to see someone before our trip on the 22nd. 

Joey tried to wake me around 3:00 this morning but I told him to go lay down and he did - until 6:00 and I knew then that he really had to go potty. I dragged myself out of bed threw on some socks and a sweater, my coat and boots and headed outside. I really do not like getting up and moving first thing in the morning, but he really did need to take care of business.  He is so good about that kind of thing - has only made a mess in the apartment once since I got him and that was probably out of desperation. I will definitely be having a nap in a few hours.

Saturday, November 29, 2025

 My neighbor, Maria, wanted to treat me to breakfast at the Fresh Perks Cafe down the street on Monday to thank her for helping her with her MN rental refund forms this spring. We walked there and had some great conversation, getting to know each other a little bit better, learning about lots of differences in our childhood, education, and lives as adults.  I had an Italian Frittata with toast and greens that was delicious.

I did my grocery shopping for Thanksgiving after that and cooked the cranberries on Wednesday.  

I spent a lot of time on the phone the last few days, wish people a Happy Thanksgiving and catching up on the latest news.

We had a turn of very cold weather this week, a couple of days that were down into the 20s with high winds that made it seem even colder, so walks are getting a little shorter these days.  I'm making that up with a Silver Sneakers workout and more playtime for Joey. 

Our Thanksgiving day, hosted by Lois was very nice. Ben smoked the turkey breast, Jill made dressing, apple & pumpkin pie, Lois made sweet potatoes and almond green beans, Charlotte made candied carrots, and I made wild rice dressing and cranberries.  Everything was  yummy and there was plenty to take home for the next day's dinner.

I was exhausted and went to bed shortly after getting home and had a lazy day on Friday other than doing my laundry.

Joey really ticked me off yesterday when a visitor was walking through the hallway as I was heading back to my apartment from the laundry.  When I opened my door, he scooted out and went into attack mode with her - barking, growling, attack position, and wouldn't stop or come to me when I called.  I wasn't very nice to him for a while after that - sending him away when he came near me.  It scares me, as he has behaved like that in the past with kids (mostly with black kids or just other people dressed in all black) and I wonder how to handle that situation and if I should be even having a dog, especially one that is so unpredictable. He is great around me. 

Sunday, November 23, 2025

What a busy week and when Friday came along, the only thing I had to accomplish was to do laundry and even that was a big deal because I had lots of it after putting it off for a few days.  Ben and I had talked about meeting up in the morning for a walk but his work schedule filled up and that didn't work out. I was kind of glad because I was tired of having full days. I was also supposed to meet up with a tentative dog sitter but she had been sick so that was rescheduled for Monday.

I met with the Stampin Up girls on Monday and we made a couple of cute cards and came up with a plan for our holiday pot luck that will be held at Pat's community on December 15.

On Tuesday, I had an appointment to have blood work done for a follow-up to my cardiology appointment last week as she had made a slight change to one of my meds in hopes of helping to reduce fluid retention that could be caused by the prednisone.  All good there - I got the results the next morning on My Chart (I sure do like that feature).

When I got back home, I spent over an hour on the phone, just waiting to talk to an insurance advisor regarding my health insurance options for next year and I even had an appointment.  Their advice was to continue with the Medicare Advantage plan that I currently have and when the time comes that I relocate to Stoughton, to switch to a Medicare plan plus a supplement. That's another thing that I can check off my list of things to do.

We had food shelf on Wednesday and we got less than usual, but still pretty generous donations.

I saw my ophthalmologist that afternoon because I wanted to make sure there had been no changes to my eyes since I had the seizures back in June.  I'm glad that I went because I learned that my eyes are healthy and my vision is the same, although I have noticed some strain and that is all due to spending time on screens.  His only recommendation for that was to decrease the time that I spend on my phone and iPad. 

 I went in to see Shirley on Thursday morning and she gave me a quick complimentary trim on my bangs and neck hair.  On the way back home, I stopped at American Sharpening company where I was having my dog hair clippers sharpened.  Those guys work out of their garage and are so friendly and nice. He only charged me $10 for the job - now, I hope it makes a difference when I give Joey his next haircut.

Penelope provided us with a very nice holiday dinner with all of the usual Thanksgiving fare that was well attended.  

Joey and I managed to get a nice walk in that afternoon. The weather has still been good and we have not seen any wintery stuff yet - temps are still mostly above average, 45 to 55°.

Saturday was a lazy day and I just lounged around - reading, crocheting, taking a couple of short walks, and napping. Cathy offered to make lasagna for dinner and we invited Deb and Elaine to join us. I offered my apartment because I am the only one that can seat four at my table.  Dinner was delicious and we had some good discussion about the current state of our country, politics, and lots of other stuff.

Dang - I didn't sleep well last night.  In fact, much of this was written at 2:30 am after being awake and reading at 11:30 and then again at 2:30.  Tossing and turning and an aching lower back was keeping me awake.  

Friday, November 14, 2025

 I called Rene on Wednesday to see if her visitor (Russ) arrived ok and she told me that he was there, but now he is gone.  He got there, in bad physical shape, exhausted and went straight to bed.  When she went out to check on him a while later, he was shivering and had a high fever, so she called 911.  They took him to the nearest hospital in Clinton but he needed so much more care that they transferred him to Kansas City.  It sounds like he has serious liver problems and has spent the last few days detoxing. My hope is that he goes into a rehab program after this and is able to clean up before returning to Rene's house. She was able to have a good conversation with him and he does want to get sober.  

Addiction has been such a scourge on my family and it just makes me feel so sad and helpless.  My Dad and five of my seven brothers (three have already passed) have been affected.

Tom and I had a really nice chat on the phone yesterday and we both agreed that we would like to see each other more often.  I am going to look into a visit there in February, maybe about the time of his birthday on the 27th? 

It has been beautiful here this week with temps in the upper 50s.  Yesterday afternoon when Joey and I walked past Sue's house, she was out cleaning up her yard. We hung out in the back yard and talked for quite a while - she is such a fun person to be around.  

Monday, November 10, 2025

It's been a while since writing again.  It seems that my days go by, sometimes with hardly anything to do, but yet I find ways to fill them. I'm usually busy in the mornings and by the time I take Joey out for his second walk, I'm ready for a nap.  Speaking of naps, I also wonder how I'm able to take a 1.5-2 hour nap in the afternoon, but I am.  

I totally messed up on an eye doctor appointment last Tuesday - following the directions that my GPS gave me that took me to the wrong address and I didn't arrive in time for the appointment, having to reschedule.  What I learned from this experience is that I really need to actually review the map before following the directions.  I knew where I was going but usually use the GPS to make sure I turn at the right places or avoid construction.

I was able to make it to my dental hygiene appointment the next day, Wednesday and got a clean bill of health - not a single issue with gums or teeth and great compliments from the hygienist. All good news to me.

Camille called me on Thursday night to see if we could hang out together on Friday, as they didn't have school.  So I picked her up around 10:30 and we shopped and shopped.  Most important on the shopping list was for her to choose yarn for the blanket that I will be making her and it took three different stores to find it and she ended up sticking with her first choice.  I told her that I was going to watch for sales before buying it, so it might be a while before she gets her blanket.  

I found a Celiac safe restaurant at the mall, so we went there for lunch.  It is a fast food type restaurant in the food court and we feasted on chicken nuggets, cheese curds, and onion rings.  It is so good to see more of these options coming up, as I feel bad for the girls sometimes with their diet restrictions.  Of course, while at the mall, we had to stop at a body care store - those girls are so into that kind of thing - bubble bath, scents, skin care, makeup, hair products - you name it!

After several hours of shopping, that was enough for me, I took her home and headed back home myself.  I didn't have to worry about Joey for a while, as Deb took him for a walk before I got home.

Rene called me on Saturday afternoon with some big family news. She has decided to help out our youngest brother Russell who has been homeless and living in a shelter and on the streets of Madison. She bought him a bus ticket and will let him live in her husband, Mike's, 'very nice' workshop that is on their property and has not been used since Mike passed away in August.  Rene decided to give him a chance and that it would be a good place for Russ to recover from the lonely, miserable life he has been living.  It is furnished with a sitting area, tv, bed, heat and water - he will share her kitchen/shower in the house.  

She is one big hearted gal and I sure hope that this doesn't become a burden to her. I also can't help but feel that Russ will be so appreciative, that he does the right thing.  He will be traveling by bus this week and arriving in Warsaw on Wednesday.

It has turned cold here and we are getting a taste  of what the winter will be. There have been a few snow flurries in the air and small amounts are accumulated on the ground - 23° and a cold, cold, wind on Sunday.

When I came out of the bathroom yesterday morning after getting ready for the day, I found coffee and coffee grounds pouring over the counter and onto the floor.  What a mess! Apparently, I did not have the carafe centered on the base.  What a nice way to start the day!

Norah called me in the morning and wanted to hang out, as her parents were back and forth from Charlotte's swim meet and Camille had other plans.  So I headed over to pick her up and we stopped to do a bit of shopping (thats what they always want to do) before getting to my house.  We spent the afternoon playing Monopoly and she ended up winning by almost $2,000.  All of the time we were playing, we were watching You Tube videos of her favorite singers - mostly Taylor Swift and she knew the words and dance moves to every song.  And did I mention that she ate constantly too.

We had our weekly family dinner at Lois' house yesterday - Canadian Walleye that she had in the freezer from Dennis' latest fishing trip that included is brother Don, Don's two sons and Ben.  Ben had watched him cook it several times and was able to duplicate the recipe - it was so good!  Next week is my turn to host the family, so I will have to come up with a plan for something that will work in my small apartment. I don't think I've ever had seven people in here at once. It will be interesting to see, but like Lois and I were saying - does it really matter as long as we are together?

After several attempts this afternoon, I was able to get the cover on my AC unit.  The new AC unit had a frame that was hard to remove and then just the awkward positioning made it difficult.  I was determined and kept trying different approaches and finally got it. It will keep the cold wind from getting in here.

We saw a little bit of sun today and the temps got up to the mid-30s.  Joey and I went for a walk later in the afternoon and as we were going through the park, I put my foot in a hole and came straight down and caught myself with my forearms - otherwise it would have been a face plant.  I'm glad that I have been diligent in my stretching and exercising as I was able to get back up and didn't even limp away.  I might feel it tomorrow though.