Thursday, March 8, 2012

Good and bad....health

It has been a stressful few weeks. I had my carotid doppler...the good was actually watching. My own personal internal volcano, schussing through my veins. I didn't know it would be in living color...reds and yellows and oranges. Amazing. What was not so amazing was when I saw a section that was narrowed and asked if that was bad. The tech doing the test was not supposed to give me a diagnosis ( which technically he did not ) said, no it wasnt good. Sigh. At least I didnt have to wonder for the next week until I saw the doctor : I knew something was amiss. Apparently my high good cholestrol didnt cancel out the high bad.

Doc put me on a statin drug and after a few days I was walking on jello legs. Muscle weakness is one of those little signs letting you know the drug is not ok. Off the statin. Back to the doctor...and on to another statin ( I guess they have many, many varieties), this time a generic version of Lipitor. All of them have side effects that seem worse than the medical problem they address...." may cause heart attack, stroke or death...call your doctor immediately if you experience any of the above ".

Then there is the blood pressure. Which is high. Which is new to me...all my life I have had the opposite. And now , in a few weeks he wants to put me on medication for that too....assuming the other meds havent killed me first.

I will only briefly mention an emergency visit to the dentist...one of my teeth hurt so bad I thought my head was going to explode. After many more than the normal number of xrays ( I think I glowed in the dark that night ) he couldnt find anything. I mentioned I had been sick with a cold for over 3 weeks and Mr.Dentist decided it could be my sinuses pressuring the teeth. After a week on antibiotics...presto...no pain. Who knew your sinuses could make your teeth hurt?!

Add to all the above a puppy who thinks she needs to get up before dawn, not just to pee, poo and eat....but to play. I am not my most playful at 3:40 am ( that was her wake-up time today) and laying down on the couch to try and catch a few more winks of sleep is out of the question. Stryker's face and mine are at the same level when I recline on said couch and he feels the need, every 3-4 minutes, to lick my face, just to see if I am ok. Schatzi pulls on the blanket and Lady tries to get under it with me. Loki barks at nothing which sets off Bikki.

I am tired and cranky and wishing I could look forward to retirement....unfortunately women dont get to retire. There will always be cooking, cleaning, laundry and dog poop to clean up not to mention snow to shovel ( its snowing again so at least the flood is over for the time being ).

On the bright side, I am still breathing. Yay. Thank you Lord for small favors.

Monday, March 5, 2012

400 lbs later......





Not talking about my weight....



Although I am no scientist, I have figured out that gravity is not a suggestion but indeed a law. When you get 8-10 inches of snow and the temps are in the teens all is well...except for the layer of ice underneath. Even then it is bearable. However, when you get said snow and then temps in the high 40's and you live at the bottom of a driveway that is equal to a black diamond ski slope, that gravational law kicks in. The snow and ice melt.


The garage floods. It does not matter how much you dig ditches to "redirect" said melt and no matter how much you try and broom it away, there is more. Much, much more.


The dogs had a great time : wading pool/drinking water ( ack ) but me, not so much. I bought 8 - 50lb bags of sand with which to blockade my garage. The kid who loaded them into my car was thrilled. He wasnt here to unload them. I had that dubious pleasure. woo freakin' hoo.


It does seem to be working....the flood has mostly abated and what was left under the wood pile ( and I wonder why it won't light ) I absorbed with dog piddle pads. Just as well since baby girl Schatzi - she should have been named Schnitzel since she is such a little porker - seems to think they are for snacking on. Oh well.....


Unfortunately we are expecting a new snow storm on Wednesday. Who would ever have thought I would look forward to mud season also known in these parts as spring.