Peter's BDay

Those born on this day are frugal, resourceful, meticulous planners and able to concentrate entirely on one spot.  And when they are done focusing, they move on with no attachment.  How does he do that?

It was the on/off switch that woke me today.  The binary system and the rheostat.  Duality and the shades of gray.  The drop of water and the ocean.  The manifested and the matrix.  The computer and the idea of the computer.
Some live in the binary, dual place of "it either is or it isn't."
Some live in the shadows surrounding is and isn't, like the rheostat.
And a few live everywhere.  I like the idea of living everywhere.

Nov 16

The staples came out of the 5 inch incision, no mess, no fuss.  And for celebration we thought to travel to the lake for an overnight and the airport breakfast.  Even though I know I have to carry the bags,

they still fill a couch; well, a recamier, at least.
This morning I sit in the recliner before hip man is up, just to see what he sees from his chair.

Not bad.

But the overnight may have been pushing it for both of us.  I wonder if we'll try again next week.

Halfway

Daunting is the word for the remainder of November.
There are four parts to the basement, each full of its own stuffing.  The goal is to sort, toss, and simplify by December 1.

One partition contains man cave stuff.

One stores the airplane and camping stuff (and other miscellany).

One holds the yard sale collection.  The worst room is the one that is supposedly already sorted and binned.

Holy Hoarder!

I am taking myself by the scruff of the neck and giving me a shake.  Then I am putting on gloves and a dust mask and digging in.  See ya!

Nov 14

In order to clean up the yard and house, the biology class in population studies came to mind.  It is the class where the students rope off a predetermined section in a field with sticks and string, and comb through that area noting all the particular wildlife, or grasses, or the subject being studied.  In this case, the area was cordoned for cleaning and the boundaries are set in the mind; the back of the house.

What are these buckets?  What's in the bucket with the green lid?

Looks like some soft jacket filler material, a plant pot and dirt.  Wonder what that filler stuff is?

It is soft!  But what's that underneath?

Eek!  Four beady-eyed mice! 

The cleaning project has become a biology class in population studies after all. 

Nov 13

Meditation this morning produced this picture, now the background on the computer.

The pulk man led by a puffy man heading towards the shadow of Circe in the San Juans in Colorado.  Or was that El Dente?  (I'd prefer a sorceress to a tooth.)
And then the morning coughing erupted.
Chicken soup is in order, and another batch of turkey chili.  And Christmas lights on the American Yew newly trimmed outside the door.  The burning bush is now the brush pile, leaving an unattractive batch of sticks climbing the side of the house.  It's too dark for that picture.

Nov 12

The mornings are worst for coughing and sneezing.

This little gadget is supposed to help me more than anything.  It is Jim's incentive spirometer to aid in opening the small airways that tend to collapse when one is protecting their ribcage by taking only shallow breaths.  That may be true, but I've found the best help is taking a standing position, bent over a pillow to the abdomen, hand supporting the left back to cough with a noise resembling a snorting elk.

This morning the cough came during our morning walk in the driveway.  The pretty rocks in the driveway distracted me for a short time while bent over.  And to distract myself more from the disgusting anemic coughing elk, I have added one item on the to-do list today.

I will look up the best way to prune a burning bush gone wild.  It is an innocent bystander that resembles the branching airways in the lung.

Eleven Eleven Eleven

Happy Veterans Day!

The lamp is lit!

A day worthy of exclamation!

The beginning of a year-long meditation for peace, health and prosperity!

A car with snow tires!

Fuel in the tank!

Food in the cupboard!

Friends in the address book!

Money in the pocket!

Walking without a limp!

!

Nov 10

Christmas wreaths magically appear on New Hampshire roadside poles and it's only the November full moon, not even Thanksgiving.  But it's probably not so much magic as it is the beautiful autumn weather and practical New England values that lead to getting the outdoor work done before the real snow falls.

Maybe this is a cue to put up the seasonal lights on our apple tree.  With us both limping along, this might take more than Yankee ingenuity.

Nov 9

 Paid some dues on Moosilauke.

I had hoped that the snow beyond the first mountain was not the one I was climbing.

The trail was moderate with views to the south and east on the way up.

It was 3.6 miles up with the last mile through slush and snow and being careful with each step. And the summit was the very one I'd hoped not to climb. Snow covered, but doable.

- "Make every step count" -

Then at the summit, I looked up and waved at two people already at the top.  And promptly lost my footing, even with trekking poles.  I landed on a round rock just waiting for my back.  It was like Pujols' bat swung and hit.  The man and woman rushed over and made me sit awhile before getting up.
"No broken bones," I said, panting through clenched teeth.

And after a bit, I stiffly climbed to the sign where the man cut off my feet. In the photo. The show must go on.  No pictures on the way down.  Just thoughts of getting home.

Today I'm not so sure about the declaration of no broken bones. Agony to cough or sneeze. A click in the back at the top of a deep painful breath. Maybe a posterior rib?

The good thing is no blood in the urine. Is there a good thing about falling?  Only that I'm not lifting weights, jogging or hiking while recovering.

Nov 8

Beauty Day
Gone to Moosilauke Mt.

Nov 7

Ranging far and wide

The pickup required a safety sticker, long overdue.

The relay driver is unable to drive for at least 2 more weeks.

The runkeeper chimes in her mechanical voice, "Forty minutes... current pace 13 minutes 37 seconds...current distance 2.98 miles...two minutes and 23 seconds ahead of your pace".

I've eliminated half a mile by cutting through the tree nursery.  The two Jamaican guys are still working there.  I wave as I jog by their pickup.  They are happy to see me trespassing again.

Nov 6

Daylight Saving Time

Fall back.  One year, as a third year medical resident, I was scheduled to be on call at the University Hospital in Seattle. Usually a third year resident supervised four interns who did all the work of admitting patients, writing orders, taking first calls.  This particular call night was the weekend of Halloween, on the night that time shifted, during the same weekend that all the interns took off to study for their board exams.
  On that night I covered four teams, the Red, Blue, Green, and White, that is, two general medical wards, oncology and the bone marrow transplant patients, and the cardiology admissions.  It could have been disastrous carrying 5 pagers.  But as memory serves, only 5 or 6 patients were admitted, no one crumped during the night, and I got an extra hour of sleep.  I even brought my sewing that night, a flowered navy and white dress that needed hemming.
  Now that's confidence in the future.  Those were my thoughts as I changed all the clocks this morning.  At 2 AM.

Honey, I'm Home!

The healing capacity of the body is marvelous. The word "awesome" might apply here if it were allowed in our household. Two days ago it was emotionally exhausting to see a loved one in pain. Then I remembered that compassion is a requirement; pain and suffering are optional. In this, I'd prefer compassion, not empathy. To witness, not to suffer.

So the accouterments of surgery and its recovery are strewn about the house including walkers

and crutches,

signs posted at the bannisters to remind one which leg to lead with,

and tall wide-body chairs with nifty nabbers,

all for the witnessing, not grousing.

Still practicing.

Nov 4

People who live in two-story houses live longer.

Four practices will prolong life:

1) Be free of tobacco

2) If you drink, don't drive

3) Wear a seat belt in the car

4) Exercise

Truth, knowledge and lefse.

Uff da!

Nov 3

Getting ready for the bionic man to return home, there are a few adjustments to be made.  There should be no obstructions to the doorways.  Throw rugs should be removed from the floors.

Items on the floor should be moved off the floor lest they trip the walking wounded.  Daisy won't like that rule.

The man cave is impossible to fix, nor should fixing be attempted in the absence of the man, of this I have been schooled repeatedly.

I value my eyes, so I will just close the door on this room.