Good Saturday to you from our corner of Iowa on the last weekend in January. It has been another roller coaster ride of weather and temperatures with -36 windchills one day and temps in the thirties another. Unpredictable. That is the word for this winter's weather. Unpredictable.
Speaking of unpredictable, isn't that how life has been the past 2 plus years? And I would venture to say it taken it's toll on all of us. Have children ever experienced such upheaval in getting an education, doing normal after school activities, or just getting together with friends, etc. let alone those who have lost parents to this vicious virus. And we could add the rest of us to that unpredictable atmosphere. I know that there are those who feel this is all a conspiracy.....or an attempt to control people. And there are those who have believed our scientists and followed the guidelines to get us through this. No matter where you stand, and people do stand......we are all weary of it all. My heart hurts for the doctors and nurses who are working so very hard to stop the tsunami of death and destruction in peoples bodies. Help us God. I know more people who have had or have Covid now than when it first started. Some still have a few long term side effects from it too. And yet at the same time I see less people taking any kind of precautions to stay healthy and avoid omicron. I guess another word for how I feel would be a world my mom would use...It all "baffles" me. The whole pandemic baffles me! But then again, that applies to other things we see going on in our country too. We seem to be in a season of being baffled and bewildered. Tighten that grip on God everyone! This too shall pass!
Speaking of precautions, we headed over to Mayo Clinic on Tuesday for my yearly check up with the radiology oncologist. N95. KN95, 94, or surgical masks are required there. NO cloth masks are acceptable. We also noticed that the doctors and nurses where we were at not only wore N95's but also special goggle type glasses to protect their eyes. That was new and we found it very interesting. We had left by 6:45 that morning for the long drive, having an appointment at 9:15. We then stopped at Trader Joe's to stock up on such things as organic unsweetened applesauce, yogurt, almonds and cashews....save lots of money going there. Anyway, we were able to see the sunrise as we drove east. The windmills seemed to be dancing gracefully as they welcomed the day! Soooooo beautiful to see...God welcoming us to another day!
Speaking of doctors, my appointment went well. I gathered a bit of confirming info also. Like the weak/fractured ribs will be an ongoing issue due to radiation. The chest wall tightness and pain are chronic also. Just like the lymphedema. I will be adding range of motion exercises to my PT for lymphedema. I have mixed emotions about this appointment being my last with Dr. S. He is my favorite doctor, but I have "graduated" now and my local medical oncologist is taking over all my care. I confess after we left I shed a few tears. Dr. S. was a true gift from God during that season of my life.
It has always been my intention to share my journey through life here....the good the bad and the ugly, so I do. If the medical stuff makes anyone uncomfortable or bored, just move on....I get it!
Along with the ribs and lymphedema and chest wall issues, there are the side effects of the medication I take to suppress all the estrogen in my body. The cancer was estrogen fed so the aromatose inhibitor (exemestane) works to remove it. It is also used to treat cancer in women. The side effects I personally deal with because of that drug are weight gain, joint pain, fatigue, increase in anxiety, and once again cognitive issues. They were gone on this new med for 9 months but a week ago started up again with me pulling up random or wrong words when I am thinking and once in awhile speaking. I know right away I have said the wrong word so that is helpful. I have read a message board at Mayo Clinic Connect where other women talk about this same side effect. At this point I continue to take this necessary drug believing that the cognitive issues are minor when being compared to having cancer again. And we pray. We pray for clarity 24/7. Maybe that is too much to ask for this nearly 74 year old?! Nahhhh God has this!
Speaking of wrong words I must tell you a funny story from yesterday. Joel and I were having devotions and I was talking about how we connect with our kids and I said the word visit. Joel looked at me confused and said what did you say? I said, "visit". He said, I thought you said "zipper". My thought was, did I say zipper when I meant visit (cuz that is what happens, random words pop into my head) and Joel was thinking, did I hear zipper when she said visit? (Cuz he has hearing aids now)......I said to Joel, "We are going to have to think about what kid we are going to move closer to when our minds start to go...." I went on to say, :I'm going to tell the kids this story"......And he said, "Text them and tell them we will see one of them next week!" We laughed and laughed.....I sent this story to the kids and a couple replied with laughing....probably a defense mechanism!
Last night we watched ABC's "20-20". Not a show we usually turn to but it was about Jodi Huisentruit, a newscaster who went missing in June of 1995. We used to watch her on a local station in north central MN when we lived in that area. Then when we moved here to Mason City, IA we discovered she had taken a position here and nine months before we arrived she was abducted and disappeared from the parking lot of her apartment building as she was going in early to work. No one was ever arrested, and her body has never been found. Last night they did a two hour special on her case. It was strange to watch Mason City on national TV. How tragic for her family and friends, and to just never have answers must be so difficult. They did do a good job presenting Jodi's story.
Joel and I have been continuing in the healing school class we are taking, plus a couple of sermons from churches in IA and CA. Joel has been busy in the shop no matter the weather outside. I have been putzing inside with housecleaning, reading another fiction book, working on a winter puzzle, and walking 30-35 minutes a day indoors....in circles pretty much! If I walk from our kitchen through the large entry area;, then through the living room and then through the large entry area again and then around the dining room and once again the large entry back to the kitchen it is 90 steps and takes me almost one minute. I do that 20 times and then in the afternoon 15-20 times more. Pretty boring but I usually listen to a podcast. Any amount of walking helps us, but I am pretty excited I am up to 30-35 minutes. Haven't lost an ounce, but haven't gained either and have more energy. Yippee I decided to put a pedometer on my phone to see approximately how many steps I walk a day and was pleasantly surprised to see I walk 4500 to 6500 steps a day. That is pretty darn good for this lady in this season of my life. Grateful.
I cut Joel's hair this morning. I have been doing this for decades. Homemade soup ingredients are in the big soup pot to give us chicken and rice soup for a few meals, Alexa is playing soft music and the sun is shining into our home from our large windows. I can see the birds are out and about and so are the squirrels. One neighbor out here recently had a red fox on the front porch during the night. Deer come through on their way down to the river. Over Christmas we had 5 in the backyard. Once in awhile a coyote or racoon is spotted. We are not out in the country but close to the edge of town and nature just seems to thrive here.
It is probably time to end this weeks' scribbles. Today I am thankful for all of you who visit my blog.! Today I am giving thanks for the 10th anniversary of Joel's miraculous healing. I am grateful for good reports and caring doctors, for the healing gift of laughter, homemade soup cooking on the stove, for sunrises, for the animals that visit or share our habitat, for Trader Joe's, for getting my steps counted, for energy to walk 30-35 minutes, for Joel's new band saw, for packages that come to the door, for N95 and surgical masks, for being able to cut Joel's hair, for prayer, for texts, phone calls, emails, and so much more!
Enjoy your weekend!
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