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A View From the Field |
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November, 2018 November 30 So now November is over. Wow.
I was late last night, but not as late as the night before. I slept well, and I got up around 11:30, I think. I knitted one row - the very, very slow one. Fortunately, that's the last of that, but now I have over 700 stitches on the needle, so every row is going to be slow. That was the eighth row, though, so now I have only 9 more to go. plus the bind-off. I progress. I'm getting anxious about the next project.
I didn't do much but go to the post office and get and stash away my Schwan's order. I didn't have much time.
The weather was nondescript again. The high temperature was 34º. and the wind was under 10 mph. There was even a ray of sunshine around noon, but for most of the day it was cloudy and dull.
The guys slept. I guess Louie is n the bathroom or the bedroom - he varies - but Grayson got a lot of lap time, although not as much as he wanted. They are both put out because I don't have any of their favorite dry foods. They will just have to wait until Sunday. Sorry, guys. It's a money thing.
So that was it. I can hardly believe the year is almost over, but then, I keep reminding myself, I've lost most of the last three months. Things should be getting better now.
It's a cold, dark night in the field.
November 29 Late again. Just as I was about to go up to the north end and take my bath, I was waylaid by a crafty computer (no, not games this time) and it was a ridiculous hour before I got to bed. The nurse called around 11:30, and I got up. I knitted one row and just a few repeats on the return row. This return row is the really slow one.
The nurse came, and just as she was finishing up with me, I had an accident. Fortunately, I was standing at the time, so only my underwear got soiled, but still. It was yucky. While I was sitting in the bathroom, I did a few more repeats on the shawl, but I won't finish the row until tomorrow.
The result of the nurse visit is that I'm still not healed, so she will be coming on Monday. I see the doctor on Wednesday, and we'll go from there. There is only about half an inch of the opening that isn't healed over, so I have to believe it will close up soon. Or I hope so! I am so tired of this!
I didn't go to church. It was fine when Mary Ann called, about noon, but the forecast was dire. When Corina (the nurse) got here around 1:30, it was still all right, but before she left it had started snowing and it snowed for the rest of the afternoon. We agreed it wouldn't be a good thing to try to get down to Laurium. Mary Ann said she and Bill didn't go to church last Sunday, which made me feel better about bailing. She said it was really slippery in Copper Harbor. She has two dogs to walk, so she knows. They have to go this week, though, because Bill is deaconing. I have to go, too, because I have to shop. I don't think I can last until Wednesday.
The weather was, as I said, snowy. The temperature has finally gotten up to 33º for the past couple of hours. Earlier it was around 30º. The wind was from the southwest, but it never got over 10 mph. It was dark and cloudy. The days are so short - 8h47m - that it seems to be dark all the time anyway. No wonder I don't feel like doing anything!
Neither do the guys. They both had to greet Corina, and today Grayson supervised while she changed my dressing, although he also spent some time looking at himself in the mirror. We don't know if he knows he's looking at his beautiful self or he thinks it's another cat. Louie went off and went to sleep, and I suspect I may find him in the bathroom again.
So that was another very quiet day and now it's a cold, dark night in the field.
November 28 I guess it was about 12:30 when I got to bed last night. I slept well, except for a couple of hours in the middle of the night. I frequently have a problem getting comfortable the first time I turn onto my left side, and besides, both cats were in bed with me, and Louie was right in the middle of the bottom third of the bed. Once I turned over - after a walk - I was fine. I got up around 10:00 or so, I think.
I knitted two rows again, and I'm beginning the transition to the edging. The next row is easy, but the row after that is the one that takes the longest, with all those wrapped stitches. Fortunately, that's the last of it, and after that it's just a lot of yarn overs and decreases. I will be glad to be done with this thing, but I don't know what I'll do next and sometime I need to start planning that. I do want to do a pair of lined mittens, but I need a lace project, too, so I'll have to begin to look at my patterns. I've been working away at the socks, too, and I'm about halfway down the foot of the second sock, so that project will be ending soon, too, and I need a new pair of socks to work on. Well - I do have a pair of heavy weight socks that I can work on, but they don't take much time either. We'll see what I do next. I might even try to work on the black sweater...
I had to wash three pairs of sweat pants, but that was about all I did.
The weather was nondescript. The temperature was just about steady, with a high of 30º and a low of 26º. The wind was from the north, but it wasn't very strong and it has died down almost completely. It was very dark and dreary. Unfortunately, the forecast for tomorrow afternoon is dire, so I don't think we'll be going to church.
No matter what the weather,I have to go on Sunday, because I have to shop. I am running out of the real necessities. I will get a Schwan's order on Friday, but they don't sell things like eggs and OJ.
The guys slept. Grayson had a tummy ache, I think. He was coughing this morning, and he slept on my lap so long that I had an accident. Louie slept, too, various places around the house. He does like it in the bathroom, but it even gets sort of warm for him, too.
So it was a very quiet day, and now it's a cold, dark night in the field.
November 27 Another quiet day and I have nothing to report. I was later last night - 12:30 - but I slept fairly well, except for a couple hours in the middle of the night, I slept well. I got up around 10:30 I think. I knitted two rows and I am now in the transition from the last pattern to the edging. There are so many stitches that it's taking me a very long time to do a row. The guys don't mind - they slept in the bathroom until I finished.
I found it much nicer to dress my wound with so much less stuff this morning, and I don't have to do it again until tomorrow. There is still one small spot that isn't healed over and it drained a bit, but I think it will be healed soon. The only downside is that as the new skin grows back, I get poked occasionally as the nerves grow back. My right side is mostly numb, but I don't think that's going to be the case with the left. They have learned a few things in the past 34 years.
The weather was, um, wintry. It snowed lightly all day, although there wasn't much accumulation at least here. The temperature was nearly steady, between 23º and 26º. The wind was mostly from the northeast at around 15 mph, with occasional gusts up to 25 mph or so. It was very dark and dreary again.
The guys slept. This morning, Grayson was under my feet and Louie was under the heat lamp. Grayson got quite a bit of lap time. Louie wanted to sit, too, but Grayson was there and my lap just is not big enough to hold two cats.
So that was it, and now it's a dark, cold night in the field and maybe I can get to bed a bit earlier tonight.
November 26 Ugh. I was later last night - I didn't turn out the light until 11:30 - and I didn't sleep well. All my joints hurt and I was up several times during the night, just to move. I got up around 8:30, and that was entirely too early, but I didn't know when the heating people would be here.
It turns out I didn't need to worry; they didn't arrive until around 2:00 and they didn't do anything. The pump that was so noisy wasn't, of course. It always happens.
Anyway, I got to knit the first two rows of the edging on the shawl, which are the same as the first two rows of the last pattern.
The nurse came early, which was nice, and after she told me that the hill was a sheet of glare ice - not surprising - she said she thinks my wound is almost completely healed and they can discharge me from home care soon, maybe even on Thursday. Wow! She also bandaged it with a lot less stuff than I've been using, which is good, because my skin has been taking a beating from the adhesive. I'm sensitive to adhesive, and even though this tape they use now isn't nearly as rough as the old stuff, it still messes up my skin and leaves me with red marks. So all that was good news. I will miss her - she's a very nice person - but it will be nice not to have to plan two days a week around a nurse visit. And it means that finally I'm getting over this thing. Neither I nor the doctor ever thought it would take this long - eleven weeks! - to get over my surgery.
Oh, by the way, I'm taking the pill that is supposed to shut down my estrogen production and so far I haven't had any side effects, or I don't think I have. I don't know much about hot flashes, because I never had them, and unless last night was a harbinger of things to come, I haven't had much joint pain that is worse than I had before.
The weather was nondescript but very dark and gloomy. The high temperature was 28º, but it was close to steady. The wind has been steady from the north at about 20 mph, with gusts as high as 31 mph. There wasn't any visible precip. It was just dark. I guess we're supposed to get snow tonight and tomorrow.
The guys slept. They both greeted the nurse, but Grayson was going to be standoffish, or so we thought. Then he jumped up on the dresser and sat looking at himself in the mirror and batting her butt with his tail. He wanted to be petted. They are so funny. Louie thinks she's fine and I think they will both miss her.
So that was my very quiet day and now it's a cold, dark night in the field. I am going to turn the radio off and go to bed, regardless that they're playing Mozart this hour.
November 25 So I didn't go out. I didn't get to bed until about 10:30, and that was too late to get up at 6:30. In fact, I didn't get up until after 8:00, and I could have gone back to bed. But then I wouldn't have wanted to go to bed tonight and the heating people are coming tomorrow to replace my noisy pump.
I finished the last repeat of the third chart! I knitted for 2½ hours - I had a lot of trouble with that last row - but it's done now and I can go on to the fourth and final chart. It starts out just like the third one, but on the fourth row, it begins to transition to the edging. Of course, I have 687 stitches on the needle now, so it's going to take a long time to do each row. There is one more slow row, but after that, it will just be knitting (or purling) all those stitches...
I didn't do anything else. I admit I'm kind of dragging my fanny these days. I can only hope it will get better as I finish healing, but I guess I usually do sort of drag around in the winter - and the summer, too.
The weather wasn't very good. It was windy and dull and cloudy all day. The temperature went down slowly from 37º at midnight to 27º now. The precip stopped at 1:00 AM. The highest wind gusts were 44 mph between 9:00 and 10:00 last night, but it's still windy, with sustained winds of 21 mph and gusts to 31 mph from the north. The lake is singing loudly. Well, I said the precip stopped, but it actually didn't. While I was knitting, I looked out and something - flakes or graupel or sleet or something - was coming down, just not in quantities that the weather station can detect. I was glad I stayed home. I bet it was slippery out there. A lot of the snow here is gone, though.
The guys were glad I stayed home, too. They slept in the bathroom while I was knitting, and Grayson got at least three times on my lap.
So it was a very quiet day and now it's a cold, dark, windy night in the field.
November 24 Somehow I don't seem to be able to string more than two reasonable nights together. I was late again, and I didn't get enough sleep, so I don't feel very good. I don't think I can make it into bed by my target time, but I'm fairly sure I won't be going out tomorrow, so it isn't vital.
I knitted two rows, and I have only two more rows to do in this pattern. Of course, I have almost 680 stitches on the needle, so it's cumbersome and it takes a while. Actually, there is one more slow row in the edging, but I think I can handle that. Now I have two projects - the shawl and a pair of socks - that are wrapping up and I'm beginning to wonder what I'm going to do next. I want to do more socks, but I think I may pause the shawls and do a pair of mittens instead. I'm not sure yet, though. The mittens aren't a waiting room project, because they're colorwork, to match the red and black hat I made several years ago, and when I looked at the pattern I made for the mittens, there are a lot of blank spaces where I didn't put in the stitch and row counts. I need to be making the first mitten in order to fill in the blanks.
I didn't do anything else.
The weather was pretty yucky. The high temperature was 42º, but that was between 6:00 and 7:00 AM, and it's been sliding down slowly ever since. It's 34º now, on its way to below freezing. It started raining around 6:00 AM, too, and we've had about 0.33" so far today, and it's still raining or something. Radar showed snow, but my understanding is that it shows what's happening up in the clouds, and it was all melted by the time it hit the ground. Or I hope so. There wasn't much wind until around 4:00 PM, but after noon it shifted around to the north and now it's beginning to blow, with gusts up to 35 mph. It was so dark and gray all day that I really needed lights. The temperature is going down below freezing overnight, and it may rain or snow or sleet or something for most of the night, leaving the roads slippery enough that I think I'm going to chicken out. By noon they will have treated them, but going south around 9:00 will probably be nasty.
The guys slept. Grayson slept on me and I think Louie spent the day in the bathroom. I've forgotten to mention that both of them have licked most of the fur off a spot. Grayson's is on his right hip and Louie's is down on his belly. They try to act cool, but everything that's been going on around here has made them nervous. I feel so sorry for them. They don't know whether something that happens is serious or not, so they always think the worst.
So it was another very quiet day, and now it's a cold, dark, windy and rainy night in the field. Yuck.
November 23 I got to bed about 11:00 last night, but I didn't sleep very well. I was hot, or at least I kept having night sweats. I think it's because the wind was from the south and the bedroom was warmer than usual. Anyway, I got up about 9:30, so I was in bed long enough. i knitted my two rows. I hate that 32" needle, but I need it for all the stitches. I have only four more rows and I'll be through with this chart and I can go on to the last one, which is only 17 rows long. I'm about ready to be done with this thing. I think I say that about this time in every project.
I didn't do much except wash a load of underwear. I seem to have been using a whole lot of that lately, so I thought it would be good to wash what I had. It needs to go in the dryer before I go to bed.
The weather was just as strange as it's been lately, but in a different way. The high temperature was 45º. There was a strong southwest wind, with gusts up to 31 mph. It was sort of partly cloudy. This morning, when I was up around 7:00, the full moon was shining over Lighthouse Point, so nice and big, but fuzzy. The camera caught the setting moon out of the corner of its eye. There was some sunshine this morning, although the sky wasn't really clear and there was some fog down the harbor. I guess the weekend is going to be iffy, though.
When I woke up the first time last night, both guys were at the end of the bed, quite close together. When I came back and tried to settle down, though, Louie decided he didn't want Grayson around and I had to chase him away. While I was knitting, they were both zonked out in the bathroom. I guess it's warm enough in there, because Grayson was lying on his back propped up against the side of the tub surround. Louie slept by my feet and every so often he would grunt a bit in his sleep and turn over. Grayson got a lot of lap time this afternoon, but Louie was wherever he goes - probably in the bathroom. Now that it's so warm in there, it's their favorite place.
So it was another very quiet day. I'm reserving judgment on whether I will try to go to church on Sunday. The trouble is, it is going to be warm tomorrow again and probably rain, then the temperature will get under freezing overnight, so Sunday is likely to be very slippery. I'll wait to see how it goes, but I'm not promising anything. I can't food shop for another week, but I do need to get gas the next time I'm down there.
Now it's a cloudy, warm and windy night in the field.
November 22 - Thanksgiving Day I hope that everyone had a wonderful day, with good food, good friends and family and everything you enjoy doing on a day like this.
I was ridiculously late last night. I guess I was too tired to move. Unfortunately, I had a nasty accident on my way into the bathroom, and then about 12 hours later, I had another one. This gets tiresome, but eventually it will settle down, or it usually does.
So I got up very late and I knitted the slow row. I transferred to a longer needle, too, while I was at it. I could probably have continued on the 24" needle, but it was getting very cumbersome and slowing me down even more. I only went up to a 32" needle, which is still pretty short for almost 660 stitches, but it will be a little easier. I have one more repeat of this pattern to do before I start the bottom lace. This is getting really boring, but the bottom should be more interesting.
That was about all I did, although I washed a load of bottoms that needs to be put in the dryer. I was so late, there wasn't much time to do anything. I was changing my bottoms when the talking started.
The weather was nondescript. The high temperature was 27º, which is downright balmy compared to earlier in the week. There was a lot of wind earlier in the day and it's still breezy, with gusts up to 24 mph from the southwest, That isn't enough that I can even hear it, oddly enough. It was very dark and cloudy and around noon we had a snow squall.
The guys slept. When I went to clean up after my accident, Louie was lying in the middle of the bathroom and he just did not want to move, even when I nudged him with my foot. I don't know about him. For a few days, he was getting up and running away - after I stepped on him - but now he's back to his old habits. Grayson got a nice long sleep on my lap after I got back to the computer.
I was sorry not to have any turkey today - I love turkey - but I made rice and I had a little chicken cordon bleu, which was good. The next time I shop, i am going to investigate either a half turkey or a breast. I learned a way to tie the meat from a breast into a turkey roll, and that's something I can do, even though I don't think I have a loaf pan to shape it. We'll see. I don't want too much meat of any kind, and it seems to me that the half-turkeys Pat's sells tend to be more bone than meat. I might be able to bone most of that, too, which would be interesting. If I have enough space on my kitchen counters to do it...That's a sore point I don't want to talk about.
So now it's quite early and tonight I really am going to try to go up to the north end soon and sleep long and hard. I was hopeful at the beginning of the week, and then I backslid. I must take myself in hand and not try to read or play games all night.
It's a dark, cold night in the field, but not as cold as lately.
November 21 I lost track of time again last night, and then I had to wash my hair, so I was stupidly late getting to bed. I slept well. That was partly because I was tired of being cold and I cranked up the heat in the bedroom. I was much more comfortable. The nurse called before 11:00 and woke me up, so I got up and knitted one row. The next row is the slow one and I wanted to eat before she got here, which i did.
She did the dressing and I gave her a urine sample, because I had some worrisome symptoms last week and we weren't sure I don't have a bladder infection. I don't think I do, because the symptoms went away, but I didn't think it would hurt to check. I'm waiting for results.
Other than that, I didn't do much of anything. I'm tired. I had already decided not to go to church tonight, and the nurse confirmed that the road was not very good. There is one place where there are a bunch of curves and hills where we all always slip a bit - or a lot, depending on how fast we're going. I might have gone during the day, but I did not want to go at night, and besides, the next time I go down there, I have to get gas. We'll aim for Sunday and hope. The only problem is, the temperature is supposed to get way over freezing, and it may rain, which will make it really nasty.
Debbie called around 4:30, and we talked for over 3 hours. It's been a while, because she was in California. W
The weather today wasn't very good, but the wind has died down. The high temperature was only 18º, which was another good reason to stay home. The wind has switched around to the southwest, which is why it's going to warm up - or maybe it will. There were a few light snow showers, but nothing serious. I just discovered that the camera hung up again, so I will have to fix that. It was dark and gloomy.
The guys were interested in the nurse. Louie thinks she's fine and he let her pet him and scratch his head. And Grayson has decided she's not going to hurt me, so he didn't have to supervise. While I was talking to Debbie, Louie got up on the counter, then he got on me and began to rustle around - which annoys me. He settled down and sat for quite a while before i had to move. Then he got up on the counter again and kept walking behind the monitor, messing up stuff all the way. Finally, he went over and settled down between the sewing chair and the sewing machine, on a couple of shawls and some socks that need mending, and he sat or slept there for a couple of hours before he finally went away. Grayson wanted part of my dinner, which he didn't get, because I know he wouldn't eat it.
So it was a quiet day and tonight I am going to bed, although not until the Mozart finishes. Now it's a dark, cold night in the field.
November 20 After I wrote last night, I really lost track of time and I was much later getting to bed than I wanted to be. I slept fairly well, except that I had the problem with my feet where they are warm but they feel cold. That usually doesn't last for more than four hours, though, so I did get some more sleep. I got up around 10:30, I think, and I knitted my two rows. Tomorrow, if I get to knit, will finish the seventh repeat. This is the point where I get sick of a project and I have to push myself to finish it. I'm not like some crafters, though. In most cases (not all!) I can force myself to finish, even though I may never block the result.
That was almost all I did. However, I had to go to the post office - my new pills and my new vests came - and I needed stuff at the Gas Lite. Both of them are really nice and they bring my stuff out to me. Going out decided me against going to church tomorrow.
I think I've forgotten to mention that I now have cell service, and we have it all along Woodland Road. I think it started about 6 weeks ago, and someone suggested it is because the leaves are down and the signal is getting through. I was confused for quite a while, because my phone shows both cell and wi-fi, but after both nurses got calls on their phones while they were here, I began trying to check it out. It's not an especially strong signal, and occasionally it will disappear, but most of the time it's there. There is still no service in Copper Harbor proper. Oh, if only that had been so when I got caught in the snowdrift...
It was cold. After the temperature being around 20º all day, between 6:00 and 7:00 PM, it jumped from 19º to 25º. Unfortunately, after there being moderate southwest to west winds, now the wind has switched around to the north and the gusts have gotten up to 44 mph! It snowed lightly, with no accumulation, off and on all day, but now I expect there will be some serious lake effect. Of course, it was cloudy and dull all day. Tomorrow is supposed to be very cold - high of not more than 15º - and I think I'm going to stay home.
The nurse called and changed my date to tomorrow, which is fine by me. She called because I was having some urinary problems last week and she was going to try to get an order for a urine sample. I'm sure she did, so I will see someone tomorrow and have to do that chore - I hate giving urine samples!
The guys were sleepy, of course. When I went to get my breakfast, Grayson had a coughing fit, and he clearly didn't feel very good for most of the day. However, when I got back from my trip, he started scuttling around with a twig, and then he came and slept on me for a long time, so I guess he's all right. I think Louie spent the day in the bathroom, although when I came out of the kitchen with my dinner, he was seated on the table, where he hasn't been for a long time.
Tonight I have to wash my hair. I decided to wait, just in case I did decide to go to church, so it really needs washing. I think I'm going into hibernation, though.
Now it's a dark, cold, windy night in the field and I'm off to the north end.
November 19 Oops. Lost track of time. It's not too late, but later than I should be in bed.
I think it was around 11:00 when I got to bed last night and for the most part, I slept well. I was awake around 8:30, and that didn't feel right, so I went back to bed and got up around 10:00. I knitted my two rows, and I'm on the seventh repeat now. It's about this time, after as long as I've been knitting this thing and how big it's gotten (640 stitches or so) that it gets really boring and I wish it was over. I have 10 more rows to do on this pattern before I can start the bottom edge. That's only 17 rows, but it looks like it will be busy enough to keep me interested.
The nurse came and did my dressing, and I didn't do anything else all day.
I felt sorry for the nurse. Driving wasn't fun. It was cold - the high temperature was 25º and there was a brisk northeast wind with gusts up to 26 mph. There were almost continuous snow squalls - not surprising with the wind in that direction - but I don't think there was a lot of accumulation. I was glad to be inside where it was warm and dry. Now that I have the space heater on in the studio, it's as warm here as it is in the bathroom.
The guys slept. Grayson slept on me, and Louie slept in the bathroom. Louie actually greeted the nurse when she came and went up to the north end with us, and Grayson didn't even supervise today. I guess they've decided she's all right and she's not going to do something bad to me.
So that was it. I was doing not much but listen to the nice music and I didn't realize how late it is, so I must get myself to bed soon. It's a cold, breezy, snowy night in the field.
November 18 Well, I've learned not to make concrete plans in the winter, and it certainly is winter.
I got to bed about 10:00 last night, later than I wanted, with every intention of going to church this morning . I didn't fill the pill dispensers, but I'll do that tonight. I slept fairly well. I woke up around 6:15 and it was clear that I'd better get up, even though I didn't want to. I was moving slowly, though, and it was nearly 9:00 when I came out of the bathroom and looked down the harbor - and saw nothing. Uh-oh. I was struggling into my turtleneck - I hate turtlenecks - when I decided I was simply not going out in that stuff. Besides, I didn't feel good. I went back into the bedroom and it was worse than before, so I went back to bed and slept for an hour and a half.
I felt much better when I got up, and I knitted the last two rows of the repeat. It's so nice and warm in my bathroom!
It's nice and warm in the studio, too, because I broke out the space heater. When I got back here, around noon, it was 64º, and that's too cold even if I was doing something active. It's certainly too cold to sit around!
Late this afternoon, Pastor sent the bulletin info for next Sunday, and I remembered that I needed to get the one for Wednesday done. So i did that after I ate, and I did a first cut at next Sunday's, too. That one is problematical, because I don't have a calendar or most of the duty roster for December yet. I think I'm not the only one December has snuck up on.
I feel like I lost six weeks, and in a way, I did, even though I was mostly here and mostly awake. I don't know where the last two months went!
Today was not a nice day outside. The high temperature was 26º, but that happened just an hour or so ago, and it was colder all day. There was a north wind for most of the day, with gusts that got up to 31 mph before noon. The lake effect machine was in motion, and we had several heavy squalls during the day, including the one around 9:00 that kept me home. We don't have very much snow, although it sort of looks like the breezeway door may be snowed in now. There has been 25" so far up at Delaware.
The guys were sleepy, of course. While I was knitting, I had one between my feet and one a few feet away. Louie is so happy now that the bathroom is warm!
So it was a very quiet day. I had intended to do some food shopping today - and the next time I go south, I have to get gas - but it seems like I can get the necessities at the Gas LIte, so I will do that either tomorrow or Tuesday when I go to get mail. There are some things I'd like to have gotten, but none of them are vital. Except for eggs and JD, I have food.
Now it's a cold, dark night in the field, and I'm off to the north end early.
November 17 I think it was just about 11:00 when I got to bed last night, and I slept well, although I did have some night sweats. I woke up around 8:00 and getting up felt right, so I did. I sat and knitted for two hours, and I finished the fourth row of the sixth repeat. Monday maybe I can finish the last two rows of that repeat, although the sixth row is the slow one. I'm going to have to splice in a new ball of yarn, too, so we'll see how it goes.
I didn't do anything much. There were a couple of things I thought about doing, but I forgot about them. Oh, I did fill the pill dispensers at the south end, and I will do the ones at the north end when I get up there.
The weather was quite wintry. One time when I was up during the night, the snow was so thick I couldn't see down the harbor, and while I was knitting, we had a squall, although it didn't last long. The temperature plunged overnight, and the high during the day was only 24º, although it was nearly steady. There was a strong north wind with gusts up to 25 mph, although it has died down almost completely now. It was mostly dark and dull and dreary, but right around sunset, there were a few rays of sunshine. The sun is setting well east of the Mountain Lodge now, but just barely inside the camera view. That won't last much longer. The days are only 9h14m long now - only 45 minutes longer than the minimum, so it's dark.
Louie wouldn't move during the night when I went into the bathroom and couldn't see him, so I kicked him - not hard - and he scratched me. I screamed. He is still on my blacklist. It was so dark, and my nightlight has gotten so dim, that I just couldn't tell where he was. Somehow, I am going to have to try to teach him that he has to move - I'm not agile enough to avoid him. He has a hard time with that, even though Grayson doesn't. Grayson got to sleep on my lap twice, so he was happy.
So that was a very quiet Saturday, and now it's a dark, cold night in the field and I'm going up to the north end very soon.
November 16 Oh, as usual I was later than I wanted to be last night, but it was, after all, a Thursday, and I don't like to go to bed right after I've eaten. It was 1:00 when I turned out the light. I slept well. I was awake at 8:00 and decided that was too early and I would have to take my chances. Fortunately, I woke up at 10:00, and by being diligent about doing what I had to, I managed.
I actually got away exactly when I wanted to - I pulled out of the driveway at 12:00. It was just as well that I did. I was afraid it would be bad driving after last night, and boy, was it! When I left, it was drizzling lightly, and the road was snow-covered and slippery all the way past Central. I had to go slowly. After the Eagle Harbor Cutoff, it was mostly just wet, but I had to be careful anyway. I do not want to wrap myself around a tree!
I made it to the hospital with time to visit the restroom and I had to wait for a bit. I met my Pastor's wife there. She was seeing the surgeon, too, and I hope it's nothing serious - I didn't ask. I gave them all the leftover supplies from the Wound Vac, which I certainly don't need and they can use.
My appointment went well. He seems to think things are progressing, and he changed the stuff I am putting on my wound to something a lot cheaper and less icky, which is what they used on the one under my right arm. I will see him again in three weeks - although I did warn him that it's dependent on the weather. If I hadn't seen him in three weeks, no way in hell would I have gone out today.
I had been planning to shop, but by the time I got back to my car, the temperature had dropped into the upper 20s in Laurium and it was getting really slippery as the slop began to freeze. So I came home, slowly and with caution. I didn't have any trouble, but I didn't go very fast, either. I got home around 3:00.
The weather was lousy. It was dark and dreary. The high temperature, 37º, actually happened early this morning and it dropped slowly and steadily after that. it was colder in Laurium. There was - and is - a strong north wind, with gusts up to 35 mph.
The guys did what they always do. Nobody greeted me when I got home, but it was afternoon siesta time and besides, they were probably mad at me. Grayson did come later and sleep on my lap for a while.
So that was my day. Nothing has changed much. I'm healing, but I'm not healed yet. Now it's a cold, dark night in the field.
November 15 I was later last night. I turned out the light around 12:30, but I had to take a bath. I slept well. I was awake around 8:30, but I decided that wasn't enough sleep, so I went back to bed and I got up around 11:00, maybe?
I was sitting and knitting across the second row of the repeat (well, purling, really) when I heard the door open and a voice I thought I recognized said, "Hello!" For sure it wasn't the nurse who has been coming, but as she kept talking, I finally realized it was my friend Nancy from church. She is employed by Home Nursing, at least part-time, and she has been wanting to come up and help me. It was so nice! We had a nice conversation and she put me together very neatly.
While she was there, Mary Ann called and we decided to go to church tonight. Everything looked good then, and even when we left it was fine. However, while we were at church, it apparently snowed (or something) lightly, so while our trip south was good, the trip home was not - slow and slippery. The only thing good was that we got out of Bible Study around 8:30, so we got home before 9:30 (a good 10 minutes later than clear and dry, even at night).
The covered road was covered with a light coating of new snow and it's warm enough that it was quite slippery, so I went very slowly, especially after the rear end broke free a bit (not much - just enough to feel). I was glad when we finally got to the harbor, although I almost turned into the little park on the corner of First Street, instead of onto First Street itself. In the dark with the road covered, I didn't know exactly where I was.
I had to eat, and I just finished that, and then I'm going to bed. For sure.
Until after dark, the weather was blah. The high temperature was 39º and the wind was from the southwest. It was a bit breezy for most of the day, but the wind has died down almost completely. It was gray and dull. The temperature is now down to freezing, so I'm glad we got home when we did. The weather station reported a measurable amount of precip between 8:00 and 9:00, which I would guess came down as about an inch of new, wet snow. Sigh.
I have to go out tomorrow to see the surgeon, and this one I can't postpone, since it's been three weeks since I've seen him. So I will have to leave early and drive slowly. I also must do some food shopping, either tomorrow or Sunday. The cupboard is getting bare.
Now it's a dark, probably snowy night in the field, and I'm off to the north end very soon.
November 14 I managed to get to bed by 11:00 last night, and I slept well until 10:30 this morning, so I caught up on my sleep. I knitted the last two rows of the fifth repeat, even though the last row takes so long.
The task of the day was the bulletin, and I got that out. Since next week is a weird one, it took some doing and I only made a couple of mistakes, which are fixed now.
The weather turned nice, except that it has probably messed up the snow mat on the roads. The high temperature was 30º and we actually had some sunshine! In fact, quite a lot of sunshine earlier in the day. Oh, it was so nice! There wasn't much wind for most of the day, although it's getting breezy now, with gusts up to 24 mph from the southwest. Whether it will be OK tomorrow and Friday depends upon whose forecast you believe, but for a few days it isn't supposed to be so cold, which is nice.
The guys slept. I'm not sure either of them feel very good, but maybe it's just that they're going into winter mode. Grayson didn't come when I put down their canned food, which is always worrisome, but maybe he had just eaten. Louie ate - a lot - but he likes that kind. Grayson got to sleep on my lap for quite a while. Louie spent much of the past 24 hours in the bathroom, sleeping on the warm floor, mostly under my feet. I actually had to use the flashlight last night, because I knew he was on the rug in front of the toilet but I didn't know where. My nightlight is dying slowly and it's not very bright in there anymore, so even though I can see Louie's spots, sometimes it's hard to see where he is, and the other night he cried out and then hissed at me, which I guess means I stepped on him.
Now it's a dark, but possibly partly cloudy, night in the field. I can't go to bed quite as early as I hoped because they have just started playing Mozart's 41st, but I'll go as soon as I can. I need to get back on a reasonable schedule!
November 13 Oh, wow! I'm more tired than I was when I was up until 4:00 AM. I think it has to do with having to drive 75 miles in the snow.
I got to bed around midnight, which is a whole lot earlier than I have been lately. I got up around 8:30 and I didn't want to. Once I got to sleep, I wanted to sleep forever. Tomorrow. I didn't knit, and in fact, I moved rather briskly for me. Then, when I was gathering my stuff to get ready to go, I had an accident and had to change out of a clean pair of jeans. I was so mad! It also made me late.
The drive down to Laurium was hard. The road is snow covered down to south of Phoenix, and between Delaware and Phoenix, there was a snow shower that approached white-out conditions. Then, when I got to the hospital, the first thing I had to do was use the restroom. The oncologist wants blood work, so I had to get my blood draw. I got up to the office at exactly when my appointment was, but he was running late, as they usually do.
I might as well have stayed home and talked on the phone. The doctor said that usually they recommend chemo with the stage my cancer was, and I said "No." He said it was my choice, but based upon what he said the last time I talked to him, I think he agreed with me and he understands my decision. Since the chemo could cause my immune system to shut down completely, for me, it's a no-brainer. I'm a short-timer anyway. I did agree to go on a medication that stops the hormones, which should keep my kind of cancer from growing.
I had toyed with the notion of doing some shopping today, but it was so nasty out that I decided to come right home. I didn't see anymore snow, but looking at the camera pictures, from about 11:15 to 1:30, we had the snow I went through on my way south. I didn't do anything for the rest of the afternoon, and I'm exhausted.
The weather was not only snowy, it was cold. It was 19º when I left here and it was 16º from about the Mountain Lodge south. That's cold. I wore my parka, and I was glad I did, even though it's dirty. I knew there was a lot more snow in Laurium than we got, and boy, was there! The plow piles are already 10' high. Even Mohawk didn't get nearly as much. That means the map I saw on the NWS website wasn't accurate, but oh, well. Not only is it cold here, it's windy. There has been a brisk wind from the north all day, and at the last reading, the gusts are up to 37 mph. Of course, it was dark and gloomy all day.
When I came home and had to change my bottoms again - that's two pairs of jeans in one day! - both guys came and sat in the bathroom looking at me, but they were glad I came home, and Grayson slept on my lap as long as he wanted to.
I just discovered that my weather station needs a new battery. Among other things, it says that the date is "000." and the time is 2156. Well, I guess that's right, but i don't set it to display military time. I'll change it tomorrow.
So that was my day, and I'm so tired I have a headache. I'll be going north soon. It's another dark, cold night in the field, and any question that winter has come is proven wrong.
November 12 Of course I was late again. I slept well and I got up around 10:30, I think. I knitted two fast rows.
The nurse came and she assured me that it looks to her like my wound is healing. I wasn't sure. From my point of view, it doesn't look like it's changed very much. If it's still open on Thursday, I'll still have to have Home Nursing monitoring it, but we'll see what the doctor says. I've learned that lesson.
I didn't do much of anything else. I washed a load of socks, which has to be hung up. That was about all.
The weather has calmed down some. The high temperature was 29º. It is breezy, with gusts up to 33 mph from the north. It was cloudy and dull and there were snow showers off and on all day, although not enough to register at the weather station. The nurse said they really got hammered on Friday and Saturday down in Mohawk, and Mary Ann called and said the same thing. The Road Commission reported 10" at Delaware. Oh, it's time to fix up my spreadsheet. They also reported 4" in October, but that was there. We didn't have much, if any, here.
The guys slept. Louie wasn't interested in the nurse today. Grayson got his lap time. Things are getting back to normal.
Now it's a cold, windy winter night in the field.
November 11 - Veteran's Day I'm waiting for another complete backup to finish. I forgot, when i got into the mess on Friday, that the system reverted to before my last backup and that totally confuses the piece of junk MS put out with Windows 7. I do have another backup program, but there is a learning curve and I've been otherwise engaged.
I was very late last night but not as late as the night before. I got up about 12:30, after having had one of the recurring nightmares I occasionally have. I'm not quite sure what brought that on, but my mind was screaming at people who were doing things they shouldn't when I came to. I knitted two rows. These are the easy ones, and it took me an hour and a half. I'm going to have to drop back to one row and probably put the shawl on a longer needle pretty soon. I have 615 stitches, I think, and that's a whole lot to have on a 24" needle, even though it's lace.
Except to wash a load of bottoms - I've been messing myself again - that needs to be dried, I didn't do anything else. I hope to wash my hair tonight.
The weather was sort of nondescript. It was cold; the high temperature was 29º. There was some light snow this morning that I saw down the harbor and wasn't enough to register at the weather station, and lately there's been a bit more that did register. There wasn't any wind. Earlier in the day, there was a little bit of sunshine, but mostly it was cloudy and dull.
Grayson slept on me for a long time this afternoon. I don't know where Louie was, but before I ate dinner, he was sitting in the doorway to the studio and mewing for some reason.
The backup has finally - finally!!! - finished, so I can go to bed when I'm done with this. With any kind of luck, I can begin doing incremental backups from now on.
So it was another quiet day. I was sorry not to get to church, but with the snow and my weird weekend, I didn't even consider it. Now it's a cold, cloudy night in the field, and maybe I can get to bed at a semi-reasonable time? Hah!
November 10 So I ended my day of stupid decisions by staying up all night. I think I was just too tired to move. Today has been a real zero. The only thing I can say I accomplished is that I finished the sixth row of the repeat on the shawl. I'll be late tonight, too, but not as late as last night. I'd decided on Friday not to attempt the snowy roads, so it doesn't matter much. I need to begin to cycle back, so that I can get to the doctor on Tuesday, but I have a couple more days to do that.
The weather subsided, but it's cold. The high temperature for the day was 29º and that was at midnight. It's been going down slowly since then, and it was 22º for a good part of the afternoon. The wind has gone almost calm. It was cloudy and dull, but we didn't have any more snow. It's hard to say how much we had, but it looks like not more than 3" or 4". i suppose there was more in the higher elevations.
The cats slept. Grayson slept on me for part of the afternoon, and Louie was - and still is, as far as I know - asleep on the scratching pad he uses for a bed out in the great room. They don't understand my weird hours, but theirs are worse, so as long as I'm here, it doesn't bother them a lot. Louie was complaining a bit before I finally went to bed this morning.
So it was a very quiet day, and now I must go and wash my hair, even though I'm not going anywhere tomorrow. Although...hmm. Maybe not.
It's a cold, cloudy night in the field, but all is quiet again.
November 9 I got into a real mess and I don't want to talk about it. It came out all right, but it took a while.
I was late last night, but not quite as late as the night before. I didn't get a lot of sleep, so now I'm exhausted. I knitted half of the sixth row, and I think it took me an hour. It's that slow going.
I ended up not doing much, mostly because I was so late. We had a power failure tonight that messed up the UPS, and maybe I've finally learned how it works and what to do about it, but it was a hard lesson. That's all I'll say about it.
The story was the weather. It snowed lightly all day, but around 5:00 it began to come down hard and the wind began to rise. The 7:00 PM report had the wind from the northeast at 38 mph with 55 mph gusts! That is a genuine gale, the first we've had in a while. The wind has died down a bit since then, but it's still snowing hard. There was no report at 6:00 because of the power failure, so I don't know exactly when it began to blow hard, but I imagine it was sometime around there. The high temperature was 33º, but it's down to 29º now and the wind chill is 13º. I am so glad I'm not outdoors! It's fun to listen to the lake, which is singing loudly, and hear the wind, even though I'm sheltered on that side. Of course it was dark and dreary all day.
The guys slept. Grayson got some lap time. I think Louie probably spent the day in the bathroom, which has become his favorite spot.
Now it's altogether too late. i think the computer is back in one piece. My moving and shaking unplugged the keyboard and the speakers, and due to the number of times I power failed it, it had to do a system repair and that reverted it to the 4th, I think, so it had to reinstall the mouse software. Norton is still screwed up, but I'll leave that going when I go to bed. Moral is, don't turn the computer off when it's in the middle of booting up. But I know that. It just takes so long that I didn't want to wait.
It's a cold, windy, snowy night in the field and we're having our Veteran's Day blizzard.
November 8 Late, as usual. I was in such a hurry to get into bed after I took my shower that I got all confused about my dressing and poked myself while putting on the glop, and it dripped. So while I'm healing - the nurse agrees with that - I'm definitely not there yet. I slept well, of course, and I got a reasonable amount of sleep. I didn't knit - I was too late for that - and I didn't do much else after the nurse left.
She is such a nice person! She is a rock hound and she was telling me about some kinds of granite that have something in them that glows under UV light, so she brought her UV flashlight and showed me. It was neat. So we had to look at all the rocks in my fireplace surround, but none of them glowed. Too bad, but I don't think it's a common phenomenon.
I didn't go to choir. Mary Ann called me before the nurse got here and said she wasn't going, and when I heard how the roads were, I decided not to go, either. And I'm not sure I'll be able to get out on Saturday. I'll just have to wait and see.
The reason is, it's started snowing. I could tell there was snow on the ground when I went to bed, and it looked to me like we had about an inch overnight. It continued to snow lightly, off and on, for most of the day. The nurse reported that the covered road was slushy and slippery, and I just couldn't see negotiating it in the dark, which it would nearly be in both directions. The high temperature was at midnight, 34º, but it was about 31º all day. That makes for very slushy, slippery snow, and it sounded like maybe the Road Commission wasn't on the ball yet. There was a north wind, with gusts up to about 25 mph, although it might be shifting around to the southwest now. We are under a winter storm warning, which is in effect now (pretty much) and is going to last until Saturday morning. We could have 8" of snow or more, depending. So I stayed home, and Sue just emailed me that she will help if I can't make it into town on Saturday. I'm not making any decisions yet, but I don't feel comfortable driving in bad conditions. Just getting timid in my old age, I guess. It was a dark and dull day.
The guys did their thing. Grayson had to greet the nurse, of course, but we were both surprised when Louie came and not only greeted her, he sniffed her legs and seemed happy to have her here. So I guess she's accepted. She's only been coming twice a week for two weeks...They are such funny critters. Louie just loves the warm bathroom floor. Most of the time, when I go in, he's laid out on one of the rugs, so comfy and so happy to be warm.
So that was my day and now it's a dark, cold night in the field and the snow is coming...the snow is coming...
November 7 I was stupidly late again last night, and as a result, I slept very well, if not long enough. I can't tell you how nice it is to have a reasonably warm bathroom! Louie thinks so, too.
I only knitted one row this morning (well, actually, afternoon). I started the sixth row, but I managed to drop a bunch of stitches, and by the time I got them arranged again, I decided not to push it.
The task of the day was the bulletin, but this one was easy to put together. That was all I did besides my surfing. Oh, well, I paid some bills, too.
The weather was rather unsettled. The temperature went down from 41º at midnight to 32º now, and it's supposed to be wintry-cold for the next couple of days, with accompanying snow. Ugh. There was a brisk north wind, with gusts up to 35 mph, that has been making the lake sing. There was light drizzle, I think, most of the day, although I didn't see any snowflakes. Of course, I wasn't really looking. It was dark and dreary. Typical winter weather. It doesn't help that our days are only 9¾ hours long now - only a little over an hour less than the minimum.
When I got up, Louie was laid out full length in the middle of the bathroom floor and that was where he stayed, although he moved around a bit. He looked sooo comfortable! He loves the heat, although during the night, he moved out into the hallway. If the heat stays on, I expect him to camp out in the bathroom for the whole winter. Grayson has his own ways of keeping warm. He got to sleep on me for a while, before I had to run to the bathroom. He always comes to see if I'll give him any of my meals, but if I don't he goes away. He wouldn't eat what I've had anyway, and I'm not going to waste my good food if he doesn't eat it.
So that was another very quiet day and now I have to go and wash my hair. It's a cold, dark, probably rainy night in the field.
November 6 I think it was about 10:30 when I turned out the light. I slept fairly well, although I was up several times. I was up around 5:15 and when I got back into bed, I turned off the alarm. I woke up at 8:00 and I had to rush a bit to get dressed (including my wound, of course), but as it turned out, the heating people didn't arrive until almost 9:00. I thought they wouldn't, but I also knew that if I counted on them being late, they would be early.
So I ate and they worked. I think I have heat in my bathroom now, but the noisy pump wasn't while they were here, and it wasn't until about half an hour after they left that it started acting up. I will listen to it overnight and tomorrow before I call.
After they left, I went back up to the north end and knitted my two rows. I did my surfing, and the new mouse has been an instant success. It takes much less movement of my wrist to move the pointer and it's much more accurate. Now if it will just hold up for more than 18 months!
I forgot that I had to go out, so before I went to vote, I had to change my pants. I did vote and I got a rather large bundle of mail, a lot of which was flyers from the candidates. Are Chris and I the only people who noticed that on all the flyers for candidates, none of them said what office the person was running for? Come on, guys! If I did want to vote for you, don't you think I might want to know where on the ballot to look? While I was stuffing them in the recyclables bag, I got a nasty paper cut on the tip of one finger.
It seems that very quietly, the current state regime made several changes to the voting process. Yes, Michigan IS one of those states that requires a photo ID. I didn't see that coming, but then, I don't get very much state news. And they also did away with straight party voting, where you can mark one box for all the candidates in one party. It's a pain to have to mark all those boxes, and it isn't easy, either, because the party affiliation is in VERY small type. i despair for those people. They clearly do not believe in representative democracy. Well, maybe, just maybe, we can do something to begin to reverse this. If we can't, I'm going to be very happy I won't be around for many more years. This is not the America I was brought up in and I believe in.
The weather wasn't very good for an Election Day. It was dark and cloudy and spitting drizzle, at least when I was out. The temperature was steady at 43º and there was a bit of a north to northwest breeze, around 15 mph. We had a measurable amount of rain between 6:00 and 7:00 PM. Yuck.
So the guys thought, too. Louie ran downstairs to his hiding place when the guys came, of course, and Grayson was more careful than he sometimes is. He slept on my lap for a long time. There are papers on the floor in the studio, and Louie has picked that as his sleeping place. I don't know why he prefers to sleep on something, even paper, but every cat I've ever known has felt the same.
So that was my day. Now they're playing the last movement of Beethoven's Ninth, which, of course, I have to hear, but then I'm off to the north end. It really is better when I get to bed early.
It's a dark, probably rainy night in the field.
November 5 Oh, late again, but i got up around 10:00 anyway. Tonight I will be earlier, because I decided not to wash my hair, even though it needs it. I knitted my two rows. Five of the six rows of a repeat are easy, but the sixth makes up for all of it.
I didn't do anything again. Yesterday I was thinking about trying to go downstairs and do cat pans, but when I got going today, I decided against it. I went out into the breezeway to get some bread and I decided to bring in my grapes. Well, the bag broke, and the next thing I knew I had grapes all over the floor. I finally had to get the broom and dustpan to get them all back in the bag, but now I'm going to have to wash them all. Then, right before the nurse got here, I had an accident, and a fairly nasty one, so I guess my gut is back to its old tricks.
The nurse agrees that my wound is still healing well and looks good and she also agrees that I have cellulitis on my left shin. Sigh. By the time she left, I was already tired.
Tomorrow I have to get up early to be up when the heating people get here (hopefully), so I'll be going right up to the north end when I finish this.
Debbie called just about the time I was thinking about dinner, but we didn't talk long and I got to make my dinner while we did. She is fine and overall she likes her new job, at least a whole lot more than the old one.
The weather was blah. The temperature actually got up to 49º, but it was between 10:00 and 11:00 AM and it's gone down slowly since. It was very humid, and there was a tiny bit of rain between noon and 1:00. It was windy overnight, although not as bad as they predicted, but the wind had died down by 11:00 AM. It may have been worse out in the lake; sometime around midnight or so last night, I checked the live ships map and there were two lakers anchored off the North Entry to the Portage Canal. I don't believe I've ever seen that before, but this wind was mostly from the south.
The guys slept. Grayson had to come while the nurse was changing my dressing, just to make sure she didn't do anything bad to me. When I came back to the studio after cleaning up from my accident, Louie was laid out on the floor, and I had to nudge him to make sure he hadn't died (he hadn't). Ever since Jasmine, I've been oversensitive to cats lying full length on their sides.
So that was about all. I sure hope the heating people do come tomorrow and they fix the heat in my bathroom, as well as the failing pump that has gone bad in the last week or so. Oh, the joys of the happy householder!
My new mouse came today, and so far I'm happy with it. It's the same shape as the one that died, except that they eliminated the button that put it into smooth scrolling mode, which I didn't like and never used. Only this one doesn't have a cord - it has two batteries instead, and an itty-bitty thingie that plugs into the USB port. The only thing is, it's another Logitech device, as was the last one. I have had very bad experiences with Logitech devices, going back at least 20 years, probably longer. They have never lasted very long for me. I will give this one a try, but if it only lasts 18 months (or even 2 years), I will never buy another Logitech device again. It's too bad, too, because ergonomically, they're great. My trackballs were both Logitech, and it's only too bad that they're not supported in the later versions of Windows. I liked those things. We'll see how it goes.
Now it's a cool, dark night in the field and I'm off to the north end.
November
4
Anyway, I did my thing, although I was a bit later than I wanted to be, mostly because I changed my wound dressing. That seems to take at least 15 minutes, and I haven't gotten used to it yet. Hopefully, it won't be too many more weeks before I don't have to worry about it anymore.
Church was good. I think we sang all right, although we forgot all the phrasing we talked about on Thursday. In some hymns, the poetry and the tune just don't phrase together, and #679 is one of those. It's a hymn none of us had ever heard before, so I think we did fairly well on it.
Then I had to get gas. Well. It was beginning to precipitate when I left church, and when I got to the gas station, something partly hard was blowing horizontally from the east, and before i was through filling my tank (which was empty) it was snow. I had forgotten I might need a hat, so I was cold before I finally got back into the car. It rained and/or snowed almost all the way back home, although there wasn't as much here as there was further south. A sad harbinger of things to come, I guess.
I ate lunch when I got home and I didn't do anything else for the rest of the afternoon. In fact, I went into zombie mode and I didn't even eat until around 11:30 PM. So nothing I need to do got done. Sigh.
The weather, as I've mentioned, was bad. The temperature was 31º when I left for church, and it finally got up to 43º around noon. It was colder in Laurium. So far, we've had 0.77" of something here, mostly rain, I think. It was dark and gloomy all day. Not nice at all.
I think the guys slept. Nobody slept on me, and I didn't see much of anybody after Grayson figured out that I wasn't going to give him any of my lunch. When I went out into the breezeway to get some paper goods, they were both interested, but nobody tried to get out.
So that was my day, and I've stayed up too long again. I've been starting to read the Trine stories again, and they're interesting enough that I forget the time. Now it's a cold, windy and probably rainy night in the field, and a good one to sleep long and hard.
November 3 I was late last night, but not nearly as late as earlier in the week. I slept good and got up around 10:00, I think. I was knitting the last two rows of a repeat, and while the fifth row is easy, the sixth row is not, and it's a real pain. I think it took me over an hour to do that one row. I don't like the way it looks, either, but I've already done three repeats, and I don't want to rip that many stitches.
I had some plans, but I ended up not doing anything again, of course. Maybe tomorrow. I'm getting tired of having to wash each dish as I use it.
The weather was nondescript again. When I was up in the night, it was clear enough to see Polaris, but not really pristine. Usually, at this time of year, Cassiopeia is shining brightly, but not last night. It was there, but not bright. The high temperature was 43º and mostly there wasn't much wind. There was a bit of sunshine off and on, but mostly it was cloudy. The sun is low enough in the sky now that it shines in the south windows for two or three hours and makes it hard to see the computer screen, so sometimes I'd rather it was cloudy. On the other hand, I like to soak up the rays...we get so few of them...
The guys were sleepy, of course. Grayson slept on my lap for a very long time until I peed my pants. I don't know where Louie was this morning, but Grayson got to sit under my feet for a while, but he prefers to take his morning siesta in my bed. Today he was curled up against the body pillow, looking so comfy. Louie did get some loving, but not as much as usual.
So it was another quiet day, and I'm going to be very early to bed tonight, I think. I'm in the process of changing the clocks. That starts with changing the time on my calculator/clock (this one gains time, unlike the first one, which was quite accurate) and using that to set the other ones. I set both clocks in the kitchen, which means, unfortunately, that we will probably have a power failure during the gales tomorrow night. Anyway, when I go up to the north end, I will change both clocks up there. The new one in the bathroom will be hard; I've only changed it once after I set it, and I can't remember exactly how to do it. It's counterintuitive, at least as far as I'm concerned.
Then I can take my bath and do the dressing on my wound. I think it's healing up, but I inadvertently stuck my swab into it today and it drained a bit. The nurse did the same thing on Thursday. If it's all healed up by the time I see the doctor on the 14th, it will surprise me. It still looks healthy, but I think I must squeeze it while I'm asleep and it hurts in the morning...or when I stick a swab into it. At least I'm making progress and I'm feeling better every day. If I could get enough sleep, I'd feel even better. I will be working on that.
Now it's a dark, cloudy night in the field.
November 2 I pulled an all-nighter last night. I still have no clue why I do that; I certainly was tired enough. I got up around 11:30 and knitted my two rows, so I was late eating breakfast and even later eating dinner. This must stop, but it's so hard for me to take myself in hand!
I was late enough that I didn't do anything. I didn't finish my surfing until well into the talking, which I guess means I didn't pay much attention to either. Better not, to the news.
Oh, yes, I was awakened at 9:15 this morning by a phone call, and evidently the heating people are going to be here Tuesday morning. Well, they're usually pretty reliable, but I'll believe it when I see them. Of course, I'll have to work around them to vote, but I wasn't about to say, "No, don't come that day!" it could be another year before they'd come. I have a failing pump and I need service.
The weather was undistinguished. It was cloudy and dull and the high temperature was 42º. There wasn't much wind and the humidity was down, too.
The guys slept. Louie sat between my feet and purred while I knitted and Grayson got to sleep on my lap for a long time. For much of the morning, Louie was asleep on the rug, where he'd been all night, I think, and Grayson was curled up at the end of the bed. I have to say they seem to want to stay closer to me than most of my cats.
So I guess that's all. I had a thought about something, but it's gone now. It's a cold, cloudy night in the field.
November 1- All Saints' Day I noticed. just now when I was doing my month-end tasks (moving the journal entries to another file), that today is the beginning of the 19th year that I have written this thing. There were a few entries in October, 2000, because I started when I was starting the prep for the stem cell transplant, but November is the first full month. At the beginning, I didn't write every night, but once I got to Copper Harbor, I found that if I didn't I couldn't remember what the weather was and I wanted to be able to go back and see what the weather was like on this date in prior years. All the files are still out on the website.
For a long time, I converted every month to a Word document and sorted it so the first of the month was on top, but it appears that I stopped doing that in 2013. My original idea was to print and bind each entry into a book, but It got old. Now I don't think I could remember how I did it. An early reader told me how to do the sorting and formatting, but it's been so long I'd have to start over from scratch. It's picky anyway - mark the days, remove all the paragraph marks, convert to a table, sort, put all the paragraph marks back in and convert back out of the table...I think that was the order. Way too much work, especially now that I have 5 years of files to do.
I was late again last night, and I had to wash my hair. I slept well, although after the second time I got up, I didn't get back into a deep sleep and then my feet got twitchy. So I got up and knitted my two rows. 575 stitches. Even though the first five rows of the pattern are easy, it takes a while.
The nurse came and it was the same one I had last week, which I appreciate. She opined that my wound is healing very nicely. Then she mentioned that she is a rockhound, and she is very interested in my fireplaces, so we had a nice conversation about that.
I was doing my surfing and minding my business when all of a sudden the mouse didn't work. It's been going in and out intermittently for weeks, but usually I could get it to recover. Not this time. I tried all the usual things (I didn't reboot), but nothing worked, and when I plugged in my backup mouse, it was fine, so I concluded that the mouse is dead. I've only had this one about 18 months or so, so I'm not real pleased. Part of the problem may be the number of times the cord has gotten tangled up in my feet, so I decided to try a cordless one. My backup mouse isn't a five-button one, which I need. If I ever get the laptop running again I may have to get another five-button mouse for it - they are as cheap as $8, although the one I got is a bit more expensive. Anyway, I should get the new mouse by Tuesday, so in the meantime, I will have to use the buttons at the top of the browser page to go back and forth. I just remembered that I do have to reboot, so I may try that and see if the old mouse works, but I doubt it will, since it's been dying for so long.
Choir practice and Bible Study were tonight. I am enjoying that Bible Study - we are studying Hebrews. and it is a very deep book with frequent references to the Old Testament. In choir, we are singing Christmas music, among other things. Ack! Not yet! But we have to practice...
The weather was so-so. There was some sunshine and some rain, but not much. The high temperature was 43º and the wind was very light from the north. Of course, it's 30º now, the first real below-freezing night that I remember this year.
We encountered three or more cats trying to run across the streets down in Calumet and Laurium. I so wish people would keep their cats inside! All of them made it, but at least in one case, it was by a hair. Both my guys got their loving. Louie has been content to sit between my feet when I'm knitting and purr, because he knows that when I'm through, he'll get a good petting. Grayson slept on my lap for quite a while before I had to get up. Grayson was at the door when I came home, but he didn't try to get out. The last time he did that, Ron was in the breezeway and he's fast enough that he caught Grayson and threw him back inside the house. Of course, eventually, he'll forget that and get out again, but I just ignore him when he goes, until he gets cold and wants to get back in. Sometimes he does catch a mouse or two, though, and that's good. The mice have been brazen lately, running around in broad daylight.
Anyway, that was my day and now it's a dark, cold night in the field. There might be a star or two, at least early in the evening.
Last updated 12/01/18 07:44 PM Copyright S. I. Smith, 2000-2018
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