It’s me Again Folks!!
No I didn’t forget about you, I’m still a rantin’ and a ravin’. But as with all things busy, Busy.
Health wise I’m doing fine, had a CT scan for my Kidneys, it was a 2 for 1 deal, check for tumors and the stones.
I tell ya’ you do not want a kidney stone attack, the pain is something that I would only wish on Osama Bin Laden and anyone with those extremist Terrorists groups. Frankly I think they deserve the pain.
By the way do ya like the picture of Gingersnap---whom I call "Evil Dog" she looks all sweetness and light but she'll take a chunk out of ya. I'm experimenting, seems I can add images to my blog, so this should be fun.
Now back to my health, So I’m drinking water, keeping things flowing (maybe too much) gotta watch those ecltrolytes (don’t ask me to spell it).
So what have I been doing since Thanksgiving’? Well working mostly, and having family members getting’ in touch with me, seems like we’se need to be in touch, find out who we came from ya know all that genealogy stuff.
Well I found in a tiny green address book, all the basic info that my Mama wrote down, had to use a magnifyin’ glass the writin’ was so small. So now me and my Hunka are going to go to the cemetery to get some more dates and such. Good thing I know where they’re buried and also can check on the headstones.
Do you know that there are some punk kids goin’ around grafitting headstones---no respect for the dead I tell ya, none at all. But don’t worry the dead is gonna get them, ya don’t mess with them. That’s what’s my Granny told me.
Anyway getting back to the kidneys (why is it when one gets old it’s always about goin’ to the bathroom?) The doc calls me said everything is O.K. the stones are small and so far staying put, and no tumors. But it’s back in the next 6 months to keep an eye on those things. But no Barium and no dye injected. And I tell ya that’s no fun.
I had to fast from midnight the night before and then get up at “Oh My God it’s Early” in the dark, shower and dress (and it was cold too) then 2 hours before my 9 a.m. appointment drink ½ of this stuff that they call Berry Barium Smoothie, look it may smell like berries, and have a little berry taste with a chalky after taste and it maybe a little bit smoother, but it’s still no fun to drink, although the berry smell and taste did make it a little bit better.
Then we’se got to get there early to find a parking space, and now it’s an hour before my appointment and I have to drink the other half, still no fun.
So then I go to my appointment, early because they need to find a vein on my arm (my veins are not good) but I do have to say at KP they are very, very nice to me, didn’t want to hurt me although they had to try 3 times to find a vein. Then they walk me to the CT machine room and helped me into that hospital gown, ‘cause the IV lock is in the vein in my hand (not comfortable but they taped it down good) then it’s my turn in the CT machine, first the saline, bit of a chilled rush in my hand and arm, then the dye, well they did warn me what to expect.
O.K if you’ve never had a CT scan with dye this is what happens, you get this metal taste in your mouth and then you get hot all over like having a major, Major hot flash only hotter, then you feel like you’ve got to go potty, but you can’t. So I close my eyes as the machine takes over and says “take a breath, hold, breathe” and repeats is several times and I’m moved in and out of this donut hole, Now I hear the medical Techs come in and say “You’re doing good” just a little more. Well me I’m ready to leave any time now.
But after a bit I stop hearing the machine whine, and it stops, but I’m inside the donut, but the techs come in and ask me if I’m takin’ any blood thinners, guess that important. So’s I tell them what I am takin’ and they say that’s fine we’re all done, but I’m still inside the donut, so I says to them “Can you get me out of this thing, it feels like it wants to make love to me” (Not bad for an old lady) well the techs laugh and say “Now that is a new one” and they very gently help me out of the machine and take out the IV lock, puts a band aid on it and helps me get dress.
Then they ask if I have someone with me (yeah Hunka), and tells me to get some protein into me and water, and then to go home and rest for a bit. Well Hunka takes me to breakfast and all I want is poached eggs and grits, and whole wheat toast, and O.J. I even asked for a second bowl of grits---now I rarely eat grits but I do like them and I very seldom have poached eggs, but poached eggs and not one but two bowls of grits?---man that is demanding major comfort food.! Then after that Hunka took me home and I slept the rest of the day. Even he took a nap---no fun getting’ up at “Oh My God It’s Early!”
I’m fine, Doc says I’m fine, and that is good.
CHRISTMAS---DICKENS FAIR
Christmas---I loved the Holiday season, Hunka and I went to the Dickens Fair and just had a Major good time, even dropped off a couple of toys for the Toys for Tots collection.
I’ve got to tell you that Dickens Christmas Fair in S.F. is somethin’ else. Where else can you meet Queen Victoria, Charles Dickens, Father Christmas, Scrooge, Fagin, Buffalo Bill Cody, Annie Oakley, the characters from a Jules Verne novel, and Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson all in one place? It’s great!
Ya go in and suddenly you are overwhelmed by the smells of baking, cinnamon, nutmeg, sausages, spicy tea, fudge and the sounds of people in a busy thoroughfare, sort of like walking down Diagone Alley in a Harry Potter story, but it’s Charles Dickens time. And of course Hunka was right in there all dressed up in his Cowboy Sunday go-to-meetins’ clothes, and me I’m dressed like a Frontier woman from
For a little while you forget your worries or cares, you just want to get into the fun of it. No problems of the 21st century, just a fairy tale of what we think the 19th century is all about. ***sigh*** Wish it were so.
Hunka and I went to Christmas eve Vigil Mass (not midnight gotta get my beauty sleep ya know), then we drove over to Christmas Tree Lane, had to park away from it because it’s so popular, so Hunka gets out my rolling Hooptie, so I can walk a bit, it was cold but the lights were so pretty. People were having their pictures taken.
CHRISTMAS—AT BROTHER BUBBA’S
We celebrated Christmas Dinner at my brother’s house, I love the way he’s got it all fixed up, the colors of the living room and dinning room, just brings out the woodwork the way it should be. And the food, everyone brought something, me I baked yams, turned out pretty good to.
My brother Bubba, didn’t want to do the Turkey bit, so he had instead a Ham from Trader Joe’s (bone in) man, it was delicious, but big well he got a 18 pound ham for 17 people, and there was nothing left, I have to say there was nothing for left overs, and my Sister in law was expecting left overs but everyone had a good appetite.
Instead of crashing out they set up a couple of tables and everyone played different games, the kids were playing some sort of weird card games and really getting into it, some my brother, and his brother in law, Hunka and a couple of the kids were playing Squeak, Me and my sister in law her two sisters and mother we were playing Mexican dominos. We played until late, only taking breaks to much on the left overs or having desert. Hmmm come to think of it no wonder there were no left overs.
Bubba to make up for it being a “no burn” day (ya know they did that on Thanksgiving too---lots of people yelled that it was a conspiracy, but the EPA kept saying no it wasn’t---I don’t believe them) Well anyway Bubba burned candles all in holders in the fireplace and on the T.V. he had this DVD that shows a log burning in a fireplace and played Christmas music, kept it on a loop too.
And some of those Candles smelled of Cinnamon and Vanilla, felt good.
It was nice and mellow; it seems that everyone was relieved that we didn’t do a gift exchange it felt more old fashioned, more Christmassy.
At work it was slow, everyone out of town, which was fine, but next year I’m taken the week between Christmas and New Years off. I’m doin’ it out of self defense (talk about furloughs) so I’m saving up money to cover two weeks now if they only furlough one week I’m ahead of the game, if they don’t furlough at all I’m still ahead and will just let it make interest.
NEW YEARS EVE ---was something else. I mean it was a mellow New Years Eve for me and Hunka; we managed to eat out at Ta-daaaa! Carls Jr. yeah real fancy, but it’s what we wanted. As a matter of fact we met all kinds of people there, just having a late dinner before going to any parties. I was surprised at some of the evening dresses. And no they didn’t get any sauce dripped on them
Hunka and I went home and we watched a DVD of “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince” talk about a story getting’ dark and complicated. But it was good. Then we switched to the Dick Clark’s New Years event---I’m sorry but Dick Clark looked Mummified, well the poor guy had a stroke and considering his age and all he’s doing well. But still he looked mummified.
About a couple of minutes before Midnight Hunka poured two glasses of sparkling cider into our cheap wine glasses and we were bundled up in blankets and went out onto our front porch. There were a couple of parties going on, and we could hear them do the count down. Then the whistles from some ship blew nearby, we heard fireworks go off, our partiers were yelling and blowing their horns and banging pots. We knew they were happy.
Hunka and I toasted each other and drank and wished each other happy new year and kissed---I know---awwww ain’t that sweet. But wait until I tell you the rest of it----and no we didn’t do the “dirty deed” we were too tired for that.
No, what happened next is that some guy from down the block at one of the parties comes running up the middle of the street blowing a whistle and wearing nothing but his tennis shoes and his tidy whiteys’ as he got near our house he stopped blowing for a few seconds and I yelled, “don’t go onto the next street they won’t see you!” I was afraid he’d get hit by a car because we maybe a quiet street but we do have a busy cross street and we didn’t need an accident to some guy wearing tennis shoes and his tidy whiteys’.
But he runs to the street end turns around and runs back, now I have to say that took courage or a lot of beer because this guy had a gut on him that was jello in motion, it was almost hypnotizing, everyone else on their porches saw him but no cops were called----after all it is New Years. And he ran back to the cheers of his party goer friends.
I looked at my Hunka Hunka Burnin’ Love and said “Honey I think this New Year is going to be very interesting”.
And with that we finished our cider, went inside, turned off the T.V. and went to bed.
And so far the New Year has turned out to be Very Interesting---and its not even Jan.30th.
So now at work they’ve were for two days upgrading the computer systems so we couldn’t do our regular work, which in a way was good, it gave me a chance to do major clean up and organizing, got ride of 3 years worth of back log stuff, shredded tons of stuff I didn’t need any more, I was goin’ to town! Told my Boss “Hey do some more of this upgrading and I can be totally caught up”
Did I make any new years resolutions---No---Why you may ask?
Simple---I made my resolutions when I got out of the Hospital last October, I said I was going to fix myself up, wear my good clothes, make up, jewelry, perfume (yea and don’t tell me they’re people allergic to it, I’m entitled to wear it) and bit by bit, get more organized, clean out Krap, even if it’s a little at a time, and work on projects, O.K. it’s going to take more than a year to get some of this stuff done, but I’ve got to start somewhere.
So why? Well my Cousin Edna sent me via e-mail this little short story called “Someday” Seems this lady was helping her late friends’ husband pack away his wife’s things. She came across all this beautiful clothing and such that was never worn. The grieving husband said “My wife would save it for ‘Someday’ to wear, but ‘Someday’ never came”.
Well I’ve got stuff I’ve been savin’ for someday, so with everything that surgery was a wake up call, my Someday is Now!! So I’m wearing it Now! Using it Now! Because if I wait for Someday, that might never come.
Just remember that Folks, if you’ve been saving something special for Someday, Don’t. Because Someday is now, and things are special now, make yourself feel special Now, don’t wait, because if you do, Someday may never come.
Mean Kitty leavin’ you with that thought.
