Learning and understanding

Oak trees dressed in all their autumnal glory.  There were also several squirrels busily gathering acorns in preparation for winter… they’re also looking quite plump, so if the traditional lore is correct, we’ll have a snowy, cold, long winter.  It was distinctly cold this morning; wake up temperature was 1C and went all the way up to about 8.  Very chilly indeed.  Jerry is sulking at me, because he was alone for a couple of hours and he thinks that he’s gasoline.  Don’s knee continues to be painful and problematic, but somewhat better today so he was able to move a bit more easily, which is (of course) a relief to me. I had an appointment this morning with my doctor at the hospital and I did blood work at the same time, just to see how I was progressing.  I reported to my doctors about my fall on Thursday, and they checked my blood pressure to see if it dropped significantly when I changed position.  It doesn’t change dramatically so I’m not at an ele...

Ahh… autumnal weather and the cool breezes and chill nights and the need for sweaters and blankets… The thought that it will get colder doesn’t make me excited; I’m too old for Christmas weather for more than 2 days!  Jerry has been over excited today because there was a stranger here and he doesn’t approve of that in the least.  Don is ok, although his balance was a little erratic earlier and fell back on his chair, but he’s fine.  He’s been wrangling Jerry who is being a challenge… I’m hungry a lot; that CBD oil works marvels.  I’ve got meals for a couple of days, and we’re debating making a Thanksgiving dinner this weekend.  I will ask my worker tomorrow (who is a lovely, accommodating person) to help with preparing the potatoes so we can make the rest of the meal.  I don’t think she’ll have a problem; the other person has difficulty remembering to take out the trash when she leaves, among other things.  I’m getting irritated with her, as I have to ...

It’s definitely been a cool, wet day that feels like early autumn and I’m almost inclined to dig out a sweater or blanket.  Summer isn’t over yet, obviously, but at the moment I’m enjoying the cooler weather and the fact that I’m not sweating profusely.  Jerry is feeling very energetic and playful, and has unintentionally managed to leave several scratches on my leg which are very  red and sore.  He’s quite unhappy at having been evicted after he inflicted them and is now on the sofa sulking and glaring at me.  Don is feeling a little better now but is also a bit drained from the pain.  Yesterday on the way to my appointment at the hospital he was having a lot of difficulty walking because his knee “locked up”… I felt like a combination of Torquemada and Savonarola tormenting a prisoner— I couldn’t do much to help, and he was suffering badly. My appointment went as expected, and we will go ahead with chemo tomorrow.  The resident who came in to see me ...

It was a beautiful, sunny day today, lots cooler than it has been for a while.  In the sun it was comfortable, but in the shade it was sweater weather.  It was fun for the little dog to go run around the park for a while, and he used up some of his extra energy and climbed into my lap to snooze when we got back home.  He has discovered a fondness for ripe strawberries, which is not a good sign for me!  I’ll have to share them along with clementines, apples, blueberries and several other fruits.  Sneaky little thing!  Don is perkier today than he has been, I think in part because of the cooler weather and breeze, so it’s easier for him to breathe.  He almost got yelled at today as I saw that one of my episodes had disappeared off the PVR, but then I realized that it had been automatically deleted by the system, so he’s safe.   Don paid for my birthday lobster dinner, and I opted for a lobster pasta (in photo) which is smaller than my usual, mostly ...

It was a lovely day today, although somewhat overcast.  It was warm, not humid and with a lovely breeze.  My friend from Vancouver raided a garden for these lilacs and gave them to me before she left yesterday.  The house is full of the scent of lilacs and they’re wonderful!  I’m enjoying them so much!  Jerry spent his time making me into a dog bed and ball thrower for a good part of his day, and then arranged my thighs to make himself comfortable.  Because that’s what he does.  Don is doing pretty well, although we’re both having difficulty breathing.  He’s been watching the international games and was not too happy with Canada’s performance, so I’ve heard all about that!  Otherwise he’s in good spirits and I’m nervously scanning for Amazon delivery packages, as he’s received several of them lately, and they don’t seem to have anything for me in them… at least, they arrive, he opens them after I go to bed, and I see empty boxes… 😁 I slept t...

It’s another cool spring day, with wind (which transforms the day to “need a coat”) and overcast.  More rain is forecast later this week, but right now it’s just gloomy.  I don’t mind the rain, as it leads to displays like this (from my friend’s garden in Hamilton)  Jerry is sitting contentedly watching his  support worker as she’s cooking supper.  He had a few happy wriggles and barks and got his tummy rubbed, so he’s fine with people in his space.  Don was dealing with some pain again, but it is at its worst when he first wakes up, and improves a bit through the day.  His team won the last game of the year (when it no longer matters) and he’s happy that they did. I took a sleep aid last night and slept for 9 solid hours, but I’m feeling a bit groggy today, so there’s that trade off.  We’ll try the early night again — without the pill — and hopefully it’s a successful experiment.  I had some (frozen) Chinese today — from my sister’s last vis...

Sunny, cool day, which is actually milder than yesterday!  Definitely feels like warmer weather is starting up, although I don’t want to jinx anything!  But it’s the end of March, and according to legend, we should be in the middle of storms since it was so mild at the start!  Jerry is being a cuddler today.  He climbed on my lap every chance he got, including trying to knock the phone out of my hand while I was talking with my doctor!  Don didn’t sleep well last night; his pain meds cause insomnia sometimes, so he was up until almost noon when he finally started dozing off. I slept reasonably well once I did fall asleep.  I had one of those nights when it took a while to drop off, but it was ultimately restful.  So I learned this morning that sliced smoked salmon is lox!  I always thought that lox was some sort of spread, rather like the excellent salmon-cream cheese one that I get sometimes.  I’m not a huge bagel fan, but it’s denser than o...

It snowed yesterday as I mentioned, and a few more flurries added to the overall piles — there’s a pile from our parking lot that’s over 4m high at the entrance.  I watched some small children climbing on it and shrieking excitedly as they slid down!  I just couldn’t get warm easily in the car, and that made it more challenging to breathe.  Jerry was cuddled against me in the car, and has been somewhat hyperactive all afternoon.  Don just went down to the garage to do something, carrying an empty box with him, so he’s probably taking some excess stuff out of the car.  Jerry came to complain about this unacceptable behaviour and is firmly planted on my toes, refusing to move even as I try to get comfortable.  I’m told that tonight is a “big night” as there are 2 games on — the women’s league (who I’ve commented play much better than the men) and the men, who have won 1 game in the last 3… I’ll just leave it at that, but in either case, I’m not watching the s...

I apologize for this one, people seem to like my sister’s torture devices (puns) so I’m sharing.  It’s been 🤬 cold 🥶 here the last couple of days, although it’s now officially winter, and Mother Nature seems to think she should exert some cool!  It’s been sunny and pretty, but that’s so misleading as the sun offers ZERO warmth and the cold just goes through to your bones and the wind cuts everything.  Jerry doesn’t like the cold, either.  He burrows under any blanket, throw or sweater that he can find, and curls into a ball.  I don’t blame him.  Don has started wearing his fur-trimmed moccasins around the house, just to keep his feet warmer; he’s watching a Christmas at Graceland special right now, smiling happily at all the country music stars, and especially the reruns of Elvis’s singing.  I enjoy a lot of the old songs too, so I’m happy to listen to it.  He pauses every so often to tell me some trivia from when he saw Elvis perform live a lon...

It’s been a rainy, shilly, kind-of-damp-that-gets-into-your-bones sort of day.  I’m wrapped in a blanket and giving some serious thought to extra socks and a sweater.  I refuse to turn on the heat just yet, but I don’t think I’ll be able to hold out for much longer!  This is where the dog would come in handy, because he generates a lot of heat… but of course  he’s nowhere near my feet now that they’re little icicles.  He’s sitting by himself on Don’s blanket, not relinquishing it, chewing on one of his toys.  Don is watching what feels like his 20th football game of the day… and don’t tell me that it’s physically impossible.  Every time I look up there’s a different set of uniforms running around a field, although I admit that there were men skating at one point so there must have been a hockey game. WOO!  Finally, I got a support worker this afternoon!  Oh, what a relief 😅 She showed up on time, I got a shower, she changed the sheets, and g...

It’s hot, muggy and very difficult to breathe today.  I’m seriously gasping for air… right now it’s 34C with very little breeze.  It’s a bit of a challenge today, but I’ll be fine.  Jerry is being a bit hyperactive, in part because I locked him out of the bedroom while I took a Zoom meeting, and partly because he’s looking forward to his walk later.  He’s now staring at the door waiting for my support worker to come back from starting laundry.  Don is much perkier today than he has been, thankfully, and is moving more freely, but is relying on a walker to get around.  That’s an improvement, so he doesn’t risk falling or staggering.  He’s not paying attention to me at the moment, because sports and “must win game” and something, something, playoff something… See how fascinated I am by his interests?  Aren’t I good?  😁 So last night when I was going to bed, my phone fell and I didn’t see where it went.  I got up to look, concluded that it...

It’s a summer Thursday so there was the weekly thunderstorm warning, which arrived about 5 minutes before almost 5 full hours of a heavy deluge!  Apparently 50mm of rain fell in under an hour!  There were flash floods on some streets and cars were stranded in deep water.  Don was driving like he was sitting on a porcupine as we went to my appointment.  We passed one car that had stalled at an unfortunate location as the rain streamed down.  Jerry was very unhappy with the storm; he curled up on my lap in the car and hid his face against me.  When we got to the hospital, I got out of the car, pushed the door and dashed in… but then realized that I’d left the door open.  Don used his cane to try and close it, the rain was so heavy.  I almost expected to see Noah loading up the animals at one point!  The temperature dropped from 27C to 15C in about 20 minutes; by the time we got home, I put on my oversized cozy and climbed into bed for a couple ...

Another birthday crown that arrived in the mail from a friend in Vancouver.  It reads “birthday princess” and is heavily bedazzled 😁  It was a difficult choice as to which one would get worn to dinner.  But my niece edged out the competition… (the judges may have been biased!)  It’s much cooler today than the last two; it rained heavily again yesterday and there were some on and off showers during the day today.  It’s overcast now, and there’s still smoke in the air from the wildfires, which makes it hard to breathe again.  The smoke is forecast to last for a few more days, and so (thankfully) is the rain, which should help with the air quality index.  Jerry was going into his zoomies  mode today, and was barking at nothing — I went to the door twice because he was sniffing at the door and looking back at me.  I made the mistake of opening the door, and he shot out and raced down the hall.  Luckily he just investigated the hall and then...

It’s a hazy, warm day today, starting to get a little humid.  It feels a little like the smoke is returning as the air is a bit acrid.  Might be just smog, or my imagination, as the news hasn’t mentioned anything about this yet; plus there’s ongoing construction in the area, so that adds to the dust and mess.  Jerry is alternating between being hyperactive and being a cuddler.  He’s been bouncing around, tossing his toy, attacking Don (thankfully not me!) and trying to climb on everything then jumping on my lap to lie back and insist on being petted.  He puts his little leg up to pat my hand back if I stop rubbing him, and he licks my hand when I’m “good”  Silly puppy.  Don ordered some club sandwiches and I ate half of one; it was so good to actually taste  food!  He finished the other half, plus his own, so he’s clearly got a healthy appetite.  His sleep is also much better, which is great, so he’s a little more alert during the day. ...

A late, and fairly short, update tonight.  I had another interrupted night last night, and finally got 3 hours of sleep around 6am.  Not my idea of fun, you understand!  Jerry was banished so I could fall asleep without being used as a shelter, and that sort of helped until my arm gave a spasm and jolted me awake.  I was unthrilled by that!  Don also didn’t sleep too well last night, but he got several hours of sleep during the day today, then he locked himself into his computer room for a good long while as he sorted out a problem that he caused 😁  I know, it’s a bit mean to point out that he  caused the problem, but 99% of the time it’s something that he’s tried that crashes his system.  I’ve been using Apple devices now for about 7 years, and I’ve largely forgotten how to use the Windows environment; plus I haven’t used a mouse in that period and I’m very inefficient now with one!  I haven’t used a laptop in that time either, and find tha...

Sorry for skipping yesterday; I’ve had a few interrupted nights, and yesterday I just could not  keep my eyes open after 1pm!  Thankfully my 3pm appointment cancelled early, so I went off to sleep, which helped a little, but it did mean that I was knocked out when I would normally have been updating here!  Jerry has now decided that he needs  to sleep touching me, and he tries hard to burrow under me.  He’s been banned (it hurts) so instead he cuddles next to me and pats me on the tummy until he falls asleep; he’ll then startle himself awake, shake off, and climb on my belly to settle back down.  I move him, but he just rebounds… today he was a bit naughty and jumped out of the car in the grocery parking lot, wouldn’t come when called, and danced around just out of reach until he deigned to get back in the car, looking very proud of himself!  Luckily he stayed out of the driveway, and just barked loudly in the cart return area.  He climbed on Don’...

Here’s Auntie Ming and I on the same trip as yesterday’s photo.  It’s so funny how I manage to look gigantic next to them.  The good thing is that I can look back and smile even as I miss them.  My hair was often a point of contention with my mother, as it just refused  to lie flat and would pouf out unless it was taken to the hairdresser and flat ironed into submission, especially after I stopped chemically relaxing it.  Funny how the things that occupied so much of our thoughts fade into irrelevance over time, isn’t it?  Jerry is under my legs right now, sulking because I said that I was typing and my lap was full.  He doesn’t approve of that!  I had intended to take him out today, but I was falling asleep on myself most of the afternoon; I had a few appointments/calls this morning to deal with so my intentions were good, but my body “mash brakes” and decided that I wouldn’t go anywhere today.  Don managed to sell his tyres last night, afte...

Back to showing off photos sent from Trinidad again; the weather today made me think how nice it would be to be out walking barefoot on the sand at the beach and smelling the salty air!  Even better, soaking in seawater up to my neck for an hour or so.  Ahhh…🏝️🌊 wishful thinking… Jerry is still in his ‘manic’ mode, throwing his toy (which has now lost its squeaker, most of the borders and part of the fabric) at me.  I don’t mind that one, but I’m terrified of his rubber gorilla, which is actually intended for a larger dog, but which he loves to chew — and drop on my toes!  That thing is solid and I’ve tried hiding it, without success; he’s too good at hide and seek.  (No, I’m not throwing it out; it’ll probably find its way back to me!)  He’s a strong chewer, especially considering that he weighs 4kg, so only strong rubber toys last, but he has lots of fun with the unstuffed squeakers (anything stuffed lasts maybe 3 days before I throw out the scraps that...

Wishing my Muslim friends and family an Eid that’s as sweet as the sawine that’s being served.  May this be a blessed year for you.   It’s warming up for a day or two; more cool weather is on the way, apparently.  It’s cooler than forecast today, and partly cloudy, but otherwise a pleasant spring day.  I’ve been returned to my job as dog bed, with the small monster occupying my lap for most of the day.  He bounces from me to Don and back but he’s apparently in a phase where he needs to be in contact with one of us all the time.  I almost tripped over him a couple of times, not realizing that he was standing right behind me!  Don is busy trying to book vet and grooming appointments for the tiny monster, and set up some other errands including car maintenance and bloodwork.  He’s very  good at working to avoid his medical obligations.  I’m quietly reminding him of what he needs to do.  I do NOT nag! I had a very exciting afternoon tod...