Monday, April 6th
I'm not sure why, but I clearly remember seeing this movie in 1996 at the Mann National, an enormous 2000-seat theater in Westwood. This movie stars Richard Gere, Laura Linney, John Mahoney, and a young Edward Norton in a hit-making role that vaulted him to stardom. He would never be that scrawny kid again. I love this movie! And so does Mom. M, on the other hand, had never seen the movie and enjoyed it, but not for the reasons I did. That's fine. As long as you had a good time.
Tuesday, April 7th
D2 came as she does, on the first Tuesday of the month. My neighbor has been extra angry since she got back from the hospital. She had some incorrect thoughts about why she was there and what had caused her to get there. She was not completely trusting of the hospital and was literally screaming angry things for days. D2 tried to counter the negativity by being as happy and laughing as much as possible. I have a kind of invisible force field with my neighbor, and I don‘t take in anything she says. It is a lot, though.
Wednesday, April 8th
Mom came by for lunch. It's nice to have her feed me instead of my CNA because she can take her time, and I can eat a little bit slower. The CNA does not rush me, but they do need to get on to other people. Anyway, it's nice! I'm realizing more and more how having something fun to eat is one of my main ways of enjoying life right now. I have a lot of restrictions on my diet, which I don't mind, but it narrows my choices.
Thursday, April 9th
Almost one year ago, I had gone to my neurologist, and she had recommended getting Botox in my hand so that it would loosen a bit and be easier to use. Although I would never get Botox in my face for cosmetic reasons, I would consider it for medical reasons in my hand. Because there are so many people waiting and wanting to get Botox, I had to schedule my appointment with the doctor far in advance.
Now, the day was finally here! Since I made the appointment so far in advance, I took the first available slot they had, which was, unfortunately for me, 8:30 AM. Because I was a new patient, they wanted me to arrive at 8 AM. Argh! The overnight shift got me dressed and ready to go at the bare minimum. My sister showed up to help as well and got me into the taxi. Mom met us at the doctor's office.
The doctor spent a nice, long time with us explaining everything. They would get everything cleared through insurance, and then I would come in and get a shot in my arm so that Botox would relax the muscle that controlled the tendons that went to my fingers. Right now, the fingers have too much flexion, and they will not relax and extend straight. The Botox would relax the fingers, and then I would get OT and do exercises so that I could use my hand better.
The doctor said that over time, the injections would probably last longer and longer, so I could get them less frequently. We would start with a low dose and increase it if we needed to. Seems pretty straightforward to me. I'm curious to see how my hand will react. My family and I were impressed by how long and thorough the visit was. I look forward to the first injection in early May.
Back at the hospital, Dr. R showed up at her usual time, but I had told her not to bring Freddie as I would still be in my chair. Dr. R has a friend in Minneapolis/Saint Paul, and she said she would contact her friend to see where I could submit my essay to be published in Minnesota! I would be honored!
Friday, April 10th
Mom stopped by at lunch, and we watched two episodes of The Pitt. Nice! I enjoyed lying in bed after being up all day yesterday.
Saturday, April 11th
I've been having a hankering for onion rings, and my sister found a place on the way to me that had beer-battered onion rings and wings. A fine lunch, if ever there was one! It was good, but after the first few greasy, deep-fried rings, my itch had been scratched. Of course, I did not stop there until I had finished the whole order. My sister had a few as well, which helped. The wings were fabulous as well, but very rich, so I only ate one and saved the rest for later.
My sister helped me compose an email that included a link to my article in Civil Beat and a notice to save the first Saturday in December for my 60th birthday cEllenbration at the garden gazebo at Leahi Hospital. Next week, I will do the same in a text. Great!
Sunday, April 12th
Mom stopped by as usual after church, and we hung out and played a bunch of Connections. We had not played for a while, so it took us a few minutes to get back in the swing of things, but we did OK. I am so late getting this week’s blog out, I have no time to fill in for all the non-stuff I did today. Suffice it to say, nothing got done for days!
The cover photo is something I shot on Monday with Mom and M. I was finishing some apple cinnamon rice cakes that were mainly just crumbs at this point. Yummy-tasting crumbs. This is typically what I look like when I'm sitting in bed. Have a great week!
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