Flourishing Friday

It comes as no surprise to this Spoonie that there is still much ado about the “looming recession” and many a Social Security Retiree starting to sweat. Not me. After all, a recession is the ebb part of the natural ebb and flow of the U.S. Economy. There are lots of reasons not to fear the recession. My personal favorite is that it gives me permission to release my inner frugalista. So what did I do this week to save money?

1 The biggie – I applied for and received a new activity monitor (Fitbit Inspire 2) from my Medicare plan. Woohoo, I was thinking it was coming up on time to replace my Flex and voila, email from my plan provider advised me I am entitled to a new monitor every 2 years. Yeah BABY! And, I absolutely love it. It has really helped motivate me to get my steps in, water, etc. etc.
2 Food waste awareness February – I made luscious bone broth from a chicken carcass and vegetable scraps. Using it for soup this week.
3 Baked a batch of protein cookies for my diabetic. They nicely replace the outrageously priced snack bars we were buying for glycemic lows.
4 scored a great deal on the high fiber crackers we eat while returning from a Dr. appointment.
5 I made several art journal pages from repurposed ephemera and art supplies that I already have.
6 Took a free on-line class on Tarot cards and read e-books through my local library.
7 downloaded two guided meditations from Freegal (part of my library e-resources).

So that’s my week. How did yours go? Are you feeling any of the pinch of the recession? Doing anything different to save your personal resources?

Til next time ~Peace Peeps ~JP

Spoonie Lament – Prednisone Purgatory

So it’s been a week. Chronic cough finally reached the “I can’t take it anymore” point and off I went to the Pulmonologist. Surprise, surprise, I’m back on prednisone, a rather heavier dose than I’m accustomed to but the cough was worse than it’s been in years. Feeling much better now but anxious to get back to normal life. If you’ve ever been on steroid therapy you know that it affects every aspect of your day to day life, some good, some bad but always different. So, for now, I’m back on prednisone.

Spoonie Lament – Prednisone Purgatory

Prednisone oh prednisone you gave me
cataracts and several broken bones
but here I am right back on you
’cause the doctors don’t know
what else to do oh yeah
I’m back on prednisone

Prednisone you’re kinda hard on me
you keep me up all night when I shouldn’t be
I drink lots of water for my kidneys
but now it’s three a.m.
and I’ve gotta pee …. again
I’m back on prednisone

Prednisone oh prednisone
your side effects are bad enough alone
you may put me in an early grave
but you sure do make
my immune system behave
so for now, I’m back on prednisone

~Peace Out Peeps, I’m off for a cup of decaf tea ;-p

When Spoons are Short and Expectations are High

Winter flares are no fun, at all fatigue and fuddled thinking are a nuisance at the best of times and for me at least, holidays are NOT the best of times. I’m out of spoons and trying to do way to much. Slowing my roll, so I’ve been cavorting about on Canva again. Here is my latest doodad to remind me to deal with seasonal bluesy feelings in a positive (low spoons) way.

Til next time ~Stay Trippy Hippies ~JP

Thoughtful Thursday – September Playlist

I’ve come to the conclusion that music is absolutely, positively essential to this Spoonie’s morning routine. I skip the tunes and I’m dragging around like a half-dead-out-of-the-water Scyphozoa. Yep, gotta have the tunes. Here’s what I’m listening to on September mornings.

Something Wild ~ Lindsey Stirling
Passionate Kisses ~ Mary Chapin Carpenter
Happy ~ Pharrell Williams
Uneasy Rider ~ Charlie Daniels Band
Knock Three Times ~ Tony Orlando & Dawn
Human ~ The Killers
Wild Thing ~ The Troggs
The Little Old Lady from Pasadena ~ Jan and Dean
Time After Time ~ Cyndi Lauper
See You in September ~ The Happenings
September ~ Earth, Wind and Fire
September ~ The Shins
Changes in Latitudes ~ Jimmy Buffet
Both Sides Now – Joni Mitchell
Wake Me Up When September Comes ~ Green Day
Moonlight Feels Right ~ Starbuck

So, let’s fire up a player and get goin’. If you’d like, you can listen on Spotify here.

Til next time ~Thank you for the music ~JP

Walkabout Wednesday – a life under construction

Our Sunday Stills prompt this week is “under construction” and I must admit, I’m not one to take pictures of construction much. It is seldom appropriate to photograph road construction between rants and building construction is generally driven right by without stopping to investigate, so I found myself somewhat stymied, until I realized that, heck, my WHOLE LIFE is under construction, or maybe re-construction, but you get the point.

piece of a hailstone from my living room

On August 27, 2021 a catastrophic hail storm hit Rapid City, SD. For 20 minutes fist sized hail stones pummeled our lives. The financial loss was significant but paled in comparison to loss of our entire way of life. It became clear that we could no longer live full-time RVing and that massive rebuilding was required. So, we repaired what we could, sold what we could, wrote off the rest and started to reconstruct our lives.

Pitching machine under construction in Kunshan, China

We turned the page and began a new adventure. A few years ago “adventure” meant traveling overseas to work with factories while the sporting goods lines we developed were under construction.

These days it’s all about those mundane adventures. Sitting on the deck and watching the goslings grow oh so fast.

or scoring pirate booty at our local farmer’s market, fresh, beautiful bargains.

Or reminiscing about our travels while exploring the Asian Grocery store in our new home town. Ahhh pineapple cake, how I have missed you my old friend.

Checking out the art at our local library. Here an exhibit of Fanell Scudder an 83-year-old local resident.

Of course, there are also family bonds under construction. Here one exhausted wanderer with son and two of the grandsons. For fifteen years they’ve seen me no more than twice a year and yet we take to each other like the geese to water. I do adore my boys.

And, as always, I watch the moon.

This post inspired by
Terri’s Sunday Stills – Under Construction
and Marsha’s PPAC # 61

Til next time ~Would you like to have an adventure now or would you like to finish your tea first? ~JP

Thoughtful Thursday – Dog Days of Summer

The breeze this morning bears a certain something. A phantom caress as I lift my face into it and breathe in the faintest lick of coolness. A sigh comes unbidden at the first hint of Autumn. As nature prepares to run her flame-colored tongue over all this green and fresh, I pause in anticipation; sensing the tingle of excitement the precedes the nuclear explosion of color that is Fall.

I seem to lose a bit of myself in summer, routines go to pot, fatigue runs amok, outing plans are lackadaisical at best and all sense of purpose seems lost in an endless litany of “what’s for dinner?”

The “ber” months may well be the most scrumptious of all, but to get there, I must slog my way through the sticky final vestiges of Summer. Those final dog days that can leave even the most resilient Spoonie exhausted and frumpy. Hair has wilted refusing to do anything other than frizz, shorts and light tee shirts have long since lost their appeal, cosmetics are comprised of nothing more than sunscreen and even a bentonite clay mask cannot restore any semblance of vigor to my lackluster complexion.

And so it is time to rest, to dream, to plan. To re-establish the structure that supports our lives. Time to plan fall outings, and winter holidays; to dig through my recipes for soups and savory muffins. Time to dream of pumpkin spice and contemplate the world over a steaming latte. Time to breathe in and pause in anticipation … Winter is Coming.

Til next time ~ Keep Calm – Fall is coming ~JP

Thoughtful Thursday – The Sounds of Summer

I’ve been thinking about Summer quite a lot. Deep summer is a tough time for most Spoonies. Pain and fatigue run roughshod over my days, crushing the heart and soul. Summer is equal parts bitter and sweet, there are farmers markets on cooler mornings, swimming pool for exercise, and I must say I’ve never been so grateful for central air ;-). I can’t change the weather or the heat but I can change the way I react to it. I can choose to let the fatigue wash over me, let myself slow down and breathe in the essence of Summer. I can write and craft and lift my spirits rather than letting maudlin anxiety over things I cannot change control my day. Today I will listen and appreciate the

Sounds of Summer

The discordant buzz of cicadas
as they begin their mating songs

the vibration of wind singing
across the rim of my sun hat

the whine of a distant trimmer
a quantum of electromagnetic flux on the breeze

The sounds of summer
stir heavily through the sultry air

No industrious activity as the world
lies in lethargic somnambulance

Too hot to move
too moist to breathe

Til next time ~drink iced coffee ~JP

Thoughtful Thursday – Coping with Residual COVID

It has been over a month since COVID-19 descended upon my Castle Serenity. The virus itself was mild and over quickly. But, my lungs didn’t clear fully so it was on to a round of steroids and then, of course, the pursuant oral thrush. ARGHHHH!!! Stupid Covid! Now, I seem to have developed Long-haul COVID. I’m still dealing with fatigue, headaches, cough, loss of sense of smell, brain fog and anxiety. I mean seriously? Anxiety from a virus? What’s up with that like I didn’t have enough anxiety issues?

Now here’s the question, how much of this is long-covid and how much is just my wacky immune disease? How much is just summer weather? I have no idea and frankly it doesn’t matter. I have appointments scheduled discuss the most distressing of the residual effects of brain fog, anxiety and my missing sense of smell with my PCP. In the meantime, I’m using more “lists” for anything I need to remember. Although, by the time I pick up a pen, the thought is already gone. Still if I can get it to the paper I stand a pretty good chance of remembering it. And hopefully, within a few months all will be right again.

That’s it for this rant til next time remember:
The grass is always greener over the septic tank ~Erma Bombeck
~Peace ~JP

Coping with Covid – Day 1

On Tuesday July 5, 2022, I tested positive for COVID. Herein is my attempt at documenting the process for a 65 year old spoonie with multiple chronic autoimmune diseases.

Tuesday morning I woke up feeling excessively fatigued. Since Superhubs tested positive for COVID on Friday, on the advice of my Nurse, I tested myself with the quick at-home COVID test. WOW! The positive line popped up in like 10 seconds. I let the test sit as instructed for 15 minutes and, sure enough it’s positive. My symptoms include:

Fever – only 98.5 on my at-home thermometer but since I normally run no more than 97, that’s a fever. Plus I DO NOT run fevers, like ever. The last time was, well when I had the stupid Delta Variant in 2021. OK so apparently I do run fevers, just not much and not often.
Chills – wow, seriously, we have a heat advisory going on, my home thermostat reads 75 indoors and I’m shivering? Are you kidding me?
Congestion – I can’t breath through my nose at all, I’m constantly blowing and sniffing and sneezing … oh my.
Cough – Deep, racking, productive cough; painful but not busting capillaries
Body aches – holy moly every single muscle and joint in my entire body hurts
Headache – pounding, throbbing tight band around the skull, Aleve helps, acetaminophen is pretty much useless
Fatigue/exhaustion – by afternoon, I can barely move

I decided that somebody on my medical team should know about this so I put in a call to my Pulmonologist. Got a prompt response from my Nurse, and was offered Paxlovid and steroids. I declined both for the time being. I am moving air fine, my peak-flows are over 300 (400 is “good” for me). I have reservations about drugs that are “investigational” and only authorized for the EUA (Emergency Use Authorization) from the FDA. Nobody really knows about the drug interactions and, folks, I take a LOT of routine medications. As for the steroids, I have to be a lot sicker than I am before I’m willing to put myself through Prednisone Purgatory. I was advised to stay in, don’t leave the house unless it’s to go to the emergency room and be mindful of my breathing. If it gets worse, get my hiney in to the ER.

Superhubs is on day 5 of COVID, improving slowly. Symptoms have begun to lessen, except for Blood Glucose readings which are annoyingly high, not panic time but put in a call to his diabetes specialist.

So that’s it for today, we’ll see what tomorrow brings.

Til next time ~Stay safe, Stay sanitized ~JP

Friday Flashback – I left early

“I came, I saw, I left early”

~ Every Spoonie I’ve ever known at a “function”

The “Holiday” is nearly upon us, time to batten down the hatches and ride out the storm of inevitable sensory overload. We’ll be staying in as usual it’s too peopley out there!

Counting Flowers on the Wall ~Nancy Sinatra

Inspired by Fandango’s Flashback Friday and originally posted 7/1/2020 in response to Linda’s One Liner Wednesday.

Til next time ~Peace ~JP