And life moves on

Yesterday I got a phone call from a second cousin of mine. She called to tell me of the death of another cousin. This cousin, Carol, was like a sister to me around the time my parents divorced. I couldn't have been more than 3 years old. Back in the late 30s and early 40s men didn't get custody of children in divorce settlements unless the Mother was unfit. Daddy got custody of Diane and me. Before the divorce, when Daddy found us in awful conditions, no fire in the furnace in sub-zero weather and no food or milk and no Mother around, my Dad kidnapped us and hid us amongst his Sister's children. There were 11 of them and 9 were already married and away from home. Diane and I were split up and she went to another cousin's home and I was with my Auntie Anna. Carol was her daughter who soothed my fears and cuddled and loved me back to sanity. That's around the time I quit talking and I didn't start again till I was nearly 5. Of course Daddy remarried Marge who raised me with an iron fist till she died at 50.

I really felt bad about Carol but did have one thing that brought me gratitude for going to Milwaukee last September for my high school reunion. I got to see her after, Lord knows how many years, at another cousin's house and took a picture of her.


In looking at her face, I realize there is a very strong family resemblance and I am one of the tribe. That makes me feel good because sometimes, living away from home for over 40 years, it's good to remember where I come from and who I am.

In the same phone call I got other sad news about my cousin Dennis. Dennis and I are 6 months apart and we went to high school together. We were pretty close as kids and enjoyed each other after he got married. We were good friends. He was the one who jokingly defended me when one old aunt asked "Joannie, why aren't you married yet?" Dennis piped up "Leave her alone. She's the only one who's got any sense!"

Anyway (I've never been known to ramble on LOL) Dennis' daughter called to say they have found more tumors in his neck, he has nodules in his lungs and 'tissue' in his stomach. Sounds like he's loaded with it. He and his wife are going for a consultation with the oncologist on Monday to determine the course of treatment. I pray that it goes well.

Knowing how sick he is brings me closer to my own mortality. And of course I worry as far as cancer is concerned, am I next?

Now on a fun note, I went out with the young Brazilian again yesterday. He's very nice, very cute and very young (40) but for some reason he thinks I'm gorgeous (may need glasses) and wants to see me again. I've really got to be careful with this one.

Take care dear reader.

God bless you all.

Catching up - Again

I've been very lax in keeping up with my messages but there has been not too much going on.

On Friday I had a follow up with my new doctor. I was hesitant because when I saw her 3 months ago, she said she wanted me to lose 10 lbs. Realistically, it can be done, but in that period of time I have been suffering with this doggone hip and leg. We addressed that issue first and when she realized that I had daily pain she said we needed to fix that. She gave me some Celebrex samples to see if they worked. I took one when I got home and within an hour I saw relief. By mid afternoon I felt that the pain level had been cut by 70%. It was almost like magic.

She also gave me a script for some Ambien CR because I just have not been sleeping through the night. Sometimes I wake at 2 and never get back to sleep. When I get up I'm exhausted so when I get home, I'm dead. I told her with that happening and the hip pain it was impossible for me to even walk any distance. I took the Ambien on Friday and Saturday and then did some internet research and was disturbed when I found out from comments of users that it is addictive. Some of the withdrawal stories were awful and frankly, I got scared. With my addictive tendencies anyway, I don't need any more complications. I did sleep well those 2 night and caught up on some lost sleep. I have decided I'll only use it on a 'as-needed' basis. That way if I have several nights that are bad, I can take one to get caught up.

She didn't say anything about me not losing any weight. At least I didn't gain, I stayed the same. She said she wanted to tackle one thing at a time. First was to deal with the hip thing.

On Saturday I had a blind date with a young Brazilian. Very nice, I may see him again. More to follow.

Other than that, all is well.

Happy Labor Day

Labor Day weekend is supposed to be the last fun time of the summer. Well, I've got that all wrong. I've worked more in my house this weekend than I have in 6 months. Me and my new vacuum have become very close friends.

I rearranged the furniture in the living room, vacuumed behind everything that I could move and even vacuumed the furniture. I'm having a blast with this thing. I really hope the newness doesn't wear off too soon because the house hasn't been this clean since before I hurt my back.

My niece and her Dad have gone to Savannah for the weekend. He flew in from California to spend some time with her and they are staying at a B&B there. They're going to sightsee and sample some of that fine southern cooking. I think they were planning on trying to get into Paula Deen's "Lady and Sons" restaurant. I hope they were able to. I can't wait for her to get back to find out how her interviews here in Maryland went. She didn't have time before she took off to call me. I hope it went well.

I'm welcoming the upcoming 3 day week with another 3 day weekend. I could get used to this schedule, but I fear I'll have to wait another year plus before I can cut down on my hours. But with the new CDO (Consolidated Day Off) schedule we are trying out it's good to have a 3 day weekend every other week.

I hope you all have a great Labor Day.

God bless you all.

Testimonial

Well, the Dyson does what the ads say it will do. And in my opinion - and then some. I've lived in this house for 16 years and the carpet is looking very good. It has a nap to it that hasn't been there in a long time. Of course, I've sucked up 6 bins of cat hair and I'm sure there's more, but it will come out in time. I haven't even done the dining room yet because I have been concentrating on the living room and the two flights of stairs.

Once I got used to what button to push, the wand is a breeze. And the extra tools are really great. I like the fact that the main accessories are attached to the machine so I don't have to go looking for them when I want to change functions. I vacuumed the furniture which hasn't been done for a very long time. Most likely before Rosy left.

I like 'the ball' feature too. It is very easy to maneuver. It weighs over 18 lbs and I was afraid it would be too heavy, but the big wheels and the ball make it easy for me to use. Just a twist of the wrist and it gets in places that I would have to really work to get to.

All in all, I am very pleased with my purchase and I think it's well worth the money.