No Eyes in the Back of My Head

Sometimes I wish I had eyes in the back of my head.

I would really like to be able to take a look at my incision--just to make sure that it isn't seeping or turning ugly, angry colors, without depending on my husband, who is pretty inept at caring for me.

I knit a whole four rows on his socks last night. It was the only knitting I did all day. Between sleeping and eating, I really didn't do much at all. I bundled up and drove to the store for some goodies (chips, crackers, chocolate--you know the drill "comfort food!"), and when I came back, downed two more Tylenol and fell fast asleep until hubby came home.

He wasn't happy when I asked him to feed the sheep either, as I had no way to pull a new bale down--being that I'm not supposed to stress my incision. It wasn't like I've asked him for help with them all year--and he groused about it all the way out and all the way back in, but he shut his mouth when he found out that I'd bought some Packsi's at Meijer's. Well he shut his mouth long enough to say "mmmm", and then they were "gone".

My husband--he's so easy.

Anyway, as I was saying, I hate that this cut is on my back. I like to be able to see what's going on--even to the point of telling my hubby at the hospital--it would be kewl if they would take a movie of it and show me afterwards what it was like--See I'm not squeemish that way. Recently, my mother had her cataracts removed, and I got to watch the surgery. The only thing that bothered me was that it seemed like they were having some difficulty "getting" to the correct position to suction out what needed to be removed, and the particular movements they made looked like they would hurt. But squeem? Not me.

So I would have liked to watch my own surgery...funny as that may seem. Shoulder still hurts me a bit, but the dressing is gone now, and so I don't have that pressing on the incision--which makes the sitting back in the chair or lying down 75% easier than with the dressing! Even the pains in the chest area are going away. I'm still struggling with heartburn that gives me a headache. So instead of drinking pop (Diet Caffiene Free Pepsi), I'm drinking some caramel-flavored coffee. I actually felt well enough to fill up the dishwasher and get it going. I'm better today, which means I go to work on Friday. It's okay, I suppose. One has to get back to the routine eventually.

But I still wish I had eyes in the back of my head.

Quitting Knitting

What? ME? Quit Knitting? You've got to be joking!
No seriously, I typed in the alphabet for my Title for today, and found that I'd not used the letter Q--and all I could think of was quitting--then all I could think of was Knitting.

How can I do that when there's projects like this one out there? I can't pass this one up! The theme for February's Monthly Dischcloth is of course, the color pink. I have the yarn--I could start immediately--BUT

I won't...I won't...I won't. It will have to wait. I will put it in my queue at Ravelry. I will hope that I can make it somewhere between the two cloths already on the agenda for February. It means I'll be making 3 cloths.

What I need to do is to take all these other things that take up so much of my time--such as sleep, and work...they just take up too much of my day, and I really need to knit.

And while I knit, I must sit. This hole in my back hurts like the dickens! So I'll eat a little something, take some more tylenol and go back to bed.

Yeah, right. Me. Quit Knitting. If you believe that one, I can sell you this bridge that runs between Upper and Lower Michigan for a couple hundred.

This afternoon, I thought I would do some knitting, but I am so sore from surgery that I can barely stand it. Leaning back in the chair creates a significant pain in my back, so I've been sitting at the computer in the chair sideways--holding myself up, which also takes some effort. Add to that, while I was under they intubated me (I must have had an apnea episode, or were concerned that they MIGHT have one, so they stuck an airway down my throat.), my chest, throat and even around my lips hurt like hell.

I think that it will be a long while before I let my doctor send me to that hospital again.

Back from Surgery and sleep!

Hey Barb! My turn for a migraine!

Hold on while I take a tylenol-3 for this whopper!

The surgeon's office called to move the time up for my surgery. I was just fine. I arrived. I knit on my hubby's socks (they are taking forever!), and was called in to be admitted after about 15 minutes.

After admitting, I followed the pointy finger to the second floor, where I found the nurses station. Hubby followed me and sat in a chair while I prepped myself into the designer fashion for surgery patients. I crawled into the hospital bed and covered up with a nice warm blanket. The nurse returned and obtained all the rest of the information and signatures, put in the IV (which hurt like hell--there must have been a burr on the needle!) gave my hubby a key for a locker for my stuff, and left me with a little specimen bottle, which I took with me to the little room adjacent--and pleased the nurse.

Then I returned to bed. The surgeon arrived and told me everything that was going to go on. Then a resident arrived, and told me everything that was going to happen.
Then a student doctor arrived (before the resident left) and added that he was going to be watching--the resident was assisting.

Is it just me, or are doctors getting younger? This guy looked like I could easily be his mother!

Then the nurse came in with the anesthesiologist. She gave me something--and after that, I don't remember anymore--until I woke up in recovery with a sore throat, a cold feeling under my back (they put me on ice), and a migraine (hangover?) that would choke a horse.

Hubby helped me dress and we checked out. We stopped at a UPS store so I could send out some blocking wires, stopped for lunch at McD's, got my script and headed home.

I want chocolate like you can't know!

Right now I'm uploading a file to the band website. I am working on the band website, writing here, and reading email. I'm taking tomorrow off, too. I can't sit very long. or my back starts to throb.

So wish me well as I'm off to bed once again.

Hospital Day

Today I go to the hospital. I am tired- they moved up my time to go in. I have to be there by 5:30, so I'm leaving as soon as the dog goes outdoors to do her thing.

The cats got into the trash last night---you might know, since it's just going to LAY there all day. Good cats. You know what to do, don't you?

Okay, dog is in, I have my coat on.

Bye!

The Lady

She turned up in my draw this morning. She stands for loving family and friends and being one with yourself and the rest of the world. She heralds harmony and safety and peace. She speaks to the female body and maybe pregnancy...(well, that one isn't in the cards for me thank goodness). She's a card of being in tune with body and soul.

Right now, all I can think about is this cyst on my back, and how I'm getting it removed tomorrow. This may be a card that is telling me that by having this procedure will bring me back into "equilbrium" with my body, but I never know.

Yesterday's cards didn't turn up any money--so I'm confused! And POOR! Ratz!

I did call Ray and tell him to take care not to buy a stolen car.

I digress.

This thing on my back hurts more and more--as if it "knows" that it's leaving--I just hope that the surgury goes well and that it takes no time at all to get well again so I can go back to the office. I tell you, I take one day off and the whole place goes to heck in a handbasket.

I did a little more work on my hubby's socks last night, but couldn't get much done because all the animals seem to know that something is "wrong" with me, and they all want my attention at the same time. The dog won't leave me alone, and both cats want to sit in my lap--this is unusual in itself, because they hate each other, but there you go.

Band practice seemed to go well, but when it's just one snare drummer (me), the sound is a little "thin". Afterward, we went to battalion headquarters (da local bar) and had burgers and fries. I got the blocking wires, and dropped off a piece of music for Sammy. I took some drum music home--I can even read some of it, but I'm better at 4/4 time than 3/4 time in reading...so I'm having the guy who wrote it down to come in and work with us on it. It seems pretty easy in most places--and rather redundant, but we'll take a look at it. Perhaps it will give us some more "pieces" to incorporate into our regular 3/4--we'll see. The guys is supposed to email me a copy of the file inside Drum Note Pro--that way I can hear how it sounds without having to reinvent the wheel.

Well I have to do some editting on the band website, so I'll sign off for now. It's likely you won't see me tomorrow until after surgury, and I'm not sure that I'll be able to do much of anything coherant. Wish me luck.

Let me tell you about

My Saturday

I can believe how Saturday turned out. I had a performance in Grand Rapids, and when I returned, a party at my girlfriends--but I drew the 4 of swords reversed, which says: "enforced seclusion--perhaps even imprisonment."

To be honest, I wasn't arrested--but there was some police involvement--and it wasn't MINE, but someone else's, and yes, they are imprisoned, in a way, but not like you'd think. Allow me to elaborate:

I woke up at 7 am and took a long hot shower. I was expected at 11am at a performance in Grand Rapids at that time, and was having just a bit of sinus trouble, but nothing to hold me at home. I prepared myself and was dressed by 9am. I spent the next half-hour or so waiting for Ray to come down, as he was going to accompany me to the performance.

About 9:15am the telephone box rang. It was a strange number, and I was hesitant, but also curious, but it was too early to expect a phone call (indeed at first I thought perhaps it was Ray calling and said so to my husband, but it wasn't his #), but early enough for Ray to tell me that he couldn't come due to road conditions.

Well, it was a used car lot in St. Johns.

"Is this Tenna Draper," asked the voice on the other end.

"Yes, sure....who's this," I replied with a little miffed-ness, because I was expecting another tele-marketer salesman...

"This is (some guy) from R&H Sales (there goes my RADAR). Do you know a Ray Croisant?"

"Yes, I do." Now, I'm worried--what's Ray doing at a used car lot?

"Well, he's just been in a pretty bad accident, and he's...wait, he wants to talk to you."

(brief intermission while the phone is passed to Ray and I become hysterical)

"Hi Kid" (his euphemism for me)

"Tell me what happened...." (mother instinct)

And he proceeded to tell the tale. Apparently, he made the turn off the highway to take a shortcut around town, and the road was not yet plowed, lost control of the car and swerved into oncoming traffic and they broadsided him.

Then he asked me if I'd just take him back home.

He got a ticket. His car was totalled. What could I do.

Now keep in mind that I'm dressed in my performance gear...but I run to the car and head out with my shopping list in hand. I called the Pipe Major to let him know that the show wasn't going on for me and why, then told him the good news was that Ray hadn't been hurt, but that he didn't have a way home, and so I was taking him, because he was really shook up and....and...

So I missed the performance.

I took Ray home.

I did it all wearing a kilt.

Then I went to JoAnn's (in a kilt). Then I went to TSC (in a kilt). Then I went to Meijer's (in a kilt). Then I went to another TSC (in a kilt). Then I went home (and got out of my kilt).

And I threw away the brazziere from hell.

Put on some street clothes and drove over to my girlfriend's house--where I'd pretty much missed her party with all the shopping I'd done (and I forgot the milk, darn it!). I watched everyone pack up and leave, then watched while my girlfriend took another friend down the road to her car where she'd gotten a flat tire, and then I left and came back home and did some knitting.

So while I had an enforced "imprisonment" where I really didn't get to do what I'd wanted to do all day, it wasn't really an imprisonment of the kind that I imagined. In fact, I would say that my friend Ray has a worse imprisonment--noting that without a car, you are basically "Home Bound". I'm hoping that he gets some sort of transportation during the week, because he has tickets for the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards playing at the Wharton Center on this coming Friday, and my son and I are supposed to join him.

And there is practice today, although I know that he won't make that.

So the entire day for both of us was one of "you aren't going to be able to do the things that you expected to do over the weekend.

Today, I pulled the 9 of pentacles reversed. Entitled "gain", you would think it would be an indicator of "loss" instead, but usually, Tarot doesn't work that way. No, this one means financial gain from tainted sources (after paying my car repair bill, I'm tempted, believe me, to take whatever comes my way!) or obtained by theft (I don't have any rich friends!) or embezzlement (that's not even possible). You are either fully aware that it's suspect or you suspect--and it's up to your own conscience whether you accept it or not...but that I should remember there is a price to pay for everything. Rut roh!

So I ask where this $$ is going to come from...and drew the 10 of cups--labelled "reward".

Now, both of these are suspect cards--because I have no one of shady enough character who would offer me tainted money, and I'm not the type to steal or embezzle, no matter how much I need some this week, but to tell me it's from a reward of some sort--well, that's just not possible! I haven't done anything to deserve a "reward". However, perhaps it's all referring to Ray.

He was talking to his lawyer about freeing up some money from his sister's estate, left for him for such purposes--he was going to wait until spring, but the crash of his car has put him in relatively dire straights. I don't think of this as embezzlement, though, so where is the connection?

The 10 0f cups is also considered the "wish card", meaning that I will get my wish. The two cards together make no sense at the moment, other than I'm hoping that he will have a car by this coming Friday so that he can go to the performance at Wharton. I'm wondering if the car he obtains is known to be stolen or suspected?

And of course, these cards may have no connection whatsoever to Ray, or to each other, but thinking has never been my strong point. I'm a "do-er", not a "thinker".

So, I'll talk a bit about my knitting. I got the life lines and the waste yarn in for my afterthought heel--the pattern is meant for two socks on two circs, but I did it ala Magic Loop. I did, however have to put in a little "extra" step to get me back around to the heel to finish knitting after the waste yarn was put in--that means "slipping the instep stitches for one row". This will work out once I remove the waste yarn and pick up my life line rows to work the heel after finishing the cuff. Here's what it looks like now:

You see the pins on the toes? Well the pink ones mark the edge to put the bunion. The silver coilless ones tell me it's the back/sole of the sock.

The waste yarn is yellow. The life lines are a bright neon yellow green--It's dmc thread, but it's got too much nylon in it, I think--splittier than all "get out".

I'm doing the cuff in ribbing first 2x2, then I'll increase to 3x3 for the calf, because he has such big calves!

You'll see!

Enough is Enough is Enough

I've been sending emails to my mother in law. The computer on her end belched and quit--so her email was lost.

Her slipper pattern for two needle slippers (well, not HER pattern, but the one she's been hunting for) is HERE. Now I have you, my pretty, and to make sure I don't lose you again, I'm going to TAG you, too.

So I'm running right along, sold some knitters blocking wires to one of the women in Knitting Beyond the Hebrides, and have Paypal all set up. Just have to put my link over there on the right side so that you guys can order from me!

Beyond that, I am spent. The week (even though it was only four days) has just simply drained me. I still have to set up a UPS account and eat...hmmm...nothing sounds good except for sleep!

Our lights went out again last night, did I tell you that this morning? Goodness. I can't even remember what I was doing this morning. Okay, give me a minute to read my blog...LOL! I have to read my own blog to know/remember what I did this morning. Something is VERY wrong.

Okay, I guess I didn't tell you!

So the lights go out about 11pm last night, and I'm right in the middle of trying to set up Paypal--and the battery comes on--well this machine doesn't run well on battery, so as I'm getting ready to shut things down, the lights come on again.

So I start another button click, and pow, the lights go off again. I'm turning off the internet, and the lights come back on---it's a race to see who can shut down fastest, you see.

So I get started shutting down. The lights beat me to it. Everything died but the battery, and I safely shut things down, set my cell phone alarm clock and went to bed.

My husband wants a new clock that runs on a battery--just in case the lights go out in the middle of the night--so that the alarm will still go off at the proper time. I don't even know if there IS such a thing. I suppose there is, but I bet it's expensive, and he's asking this at a time when I have to pay him $360 for fixing my car.

I don't think he's going to get a new clock anytime soon. Losing electric power isn't something that he can control--unless he wants to buy himself a little wind up clock--which is perfectly acceptable--but don't expect ME to buy it. Then HE should be the one to keep it loaded with batteries--since HE is the one who wants it that way.

Why do I sound upset and angry?

Might have something to do with the fact that I'm tired and hungry, and he's not willing to take me out to dinner. This is what I get for skipping lunch in order to get my PayPal set up.

Sheesh.