Thursday, October 24, 2013

October 21 - 27, 2013 - AZ

Monday, October 21.  This is the week of tests that will determine if my low heart rate is a concern.  Today, I had a nuclear stress test.  The reason that I didn't have a normal stress test on a treadmill is that the left bundle branch block that my heart has could cause a false negative result.  My test consisted of an injection off some creapy radioactive stuff, an 11-minute scan for images, another injection and a normal paced walk on a treadmill, followed by an 8-minute scan.  It was pretty painless, although the injections caused my veins to expand, which also caused a very strange sensation - like very little activity was causing extreme exhaustion.

I didn't accomplish much the rest of the day, other than print some photos and frame a couple of collages of Charlotte.  Last year, I made one of her first year, so I decided to do the same thing every year.  Now, I will have to start one for the twins.

I also had to drop off photos of the house to my insurance company because of a switch in companies (and an increase in price too).  It is a much better policy with more coverage - but I'm paying a lot more for it too.

Tuesday, October 22.  This morning, I got wired with a Halter Monitor - a small electrical box that is clipped to my waist, with 5 electrodes stuck to my chest.  No biggie, just awkward.  It didn't stop me from shopping.

My shopping mission for today was to find a shower adapter for my utility sink to use for bathing Frisco.  I use it now but a handheld shower would make it so much easier.  After trips to several pet stores and a hardware store, I was unable to find what I wanted.  Good old Amazon came through for me.

Arlene joined me for dinner tonight - I had lots of Navy Bean Soup to share.  She just returned from a 4-week cruise to Alaska and then down to the Panama Canal.  It sounds like a wonderful trip, although she said it was a little bit long.

Wednesday, October 23.  The halter monitor came off this morning and that was followed by an echo cardiogram - another painless procedure.  And now I wait until Monday afternoon to hear the verdict - I'm a little anxious based on what I have read on the internet, but I'm trying to be patient and hear what the doctor has to say.  The good thing is that I am not having any symptoms.

I got to see the twins on Facetime again today.  They were asleep on the sofa - both of their arms held identically.  They had a 2-week checkup today and are both doing well and gaining weight.

I met my friend, Karen, for dinner tonight at a Richardson's Cuisine of New Mexico in Phoenix.  We had a really nice visit over $12 (little did we know) Prickly Pear Margaritas but we were both dissatisfied with the intensity of heat of our entrees.  I had Carne Adovada (smoked pork roast) that was so hot that it took away the flavor.  And I like HOT.  Not only that, it kept coming back to me throughout the night - was it liquid smoke or natural smoke flavor?  I don't think we will be going back to that place.

Saturday, October 26.  The last few days have been very social for me.  On Thursday afternoon, several women from Brentwood went to see the movie Enough Said with James Gandolfini and Julia Louis-Dreyfus.  I thought it was a fun and quite entertaining chick flick about middle age dating and relationships.  After the movie, we all went to Old Chicago for lunch and had a great time. 

I made a batch of Mini Pumpkin Pie Croissants to take to TGIF on Friday night.  It was held at Sue's patio and she arranged for some Karaoke entertainment for the evening.  I wasn't too impressed with the entertainer's choice of music (I would have liked to hear more upbeat tunes to dance to) but we all had a nice time.  I think our Brentwood Boys (Bruce, Dan, and Jim) did the best job of singing but then they are used to singing together.  The parties here are lots of fun.

I wasn't feeling  the greatest this morning - rather sluggish - I wonder why?  Could it be the last cocktail that I couldn't live without? 

Kathy called this morning to invite me to join her and Chuck for dinner tonight.  Now, Chuck is one great cook with lots of experience, as he ran a restaurant in Washington for many years.  He has the knack for putting seasonings together that are always yummy.  We had pork chops (a mountain of them), mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, and asparagus with bacon.  Talk about yummy stuff - and naturally, a bit too much of it.

I sure haven't been doing a lot of cooking lately.  And then - there's another party tomorrow.