Monday, September 27, 2021

another post about things I've written about repeatedly


Saturday I did something I haven't done in decades if I even ever did it before. I washed the car. It was so dirty it looked gray instead of the sparkly dark blue it is. Now I need to clean the inside which is also very dusty which I don't understand how that happens. We rarely drive with the windows down so how does all that dust get in there?

Look how shiny!

Sunday I emptied the truck of downed branches from Nickolas and swept out the leaves accumulating in the barn and garage before the leaves really start to fall again. I'm trying to stay on top of the barn after the hard work of cleaning it out and organizing it earlier this year. Then I filled and put the bird feeders out for the fall and winter. I bring them in in the summer lest the birds forget how to forage. It took a couple of hours for a lone cardinal to find it and this morning I see the titmice and chickadees and inca doves have also discovered that it's out again. So far the squirrels are oblivious but that won't last.

Stayed up late last night finishing the book I was reading and went and got my blood work done this morning. And really, that's all I've done.

The woman who leads the yoga class I go to on Monday and Wednesday evenings won't be able to be there for several weeks and she asked me if I would lead the class while she was out of pocket and so I did agree. Last Wednesday night was the first time and so I'll also be leading the class this week and next at least until Abby can come back.

I had two surprise lilies bloom this year. Some years I get a few and some years none.

And I saw this dying dragonfly in the street last evening when Minnie and I took our little walk. I picked it up and put it on a shrub so the ants wouldn't eat it alive.


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I want to apologize for being a little testy at the end of my last post. I was just frustrated that I wasn't making myself understood, that afib and stroke are two different issues though they are connected, and maybe a little upset that y'all would think I would trust my heart to a doctor that was blasé about stroke, though I know you were just expressing your concern for me and I do appreciate that you take time out of your day to comment on and read what I write.

Some more info: People can have afib for years, not know it, never get treated for it, and never throw a clot or have a stroke. They may just feel tired all the time or out of breath. The general consensus is that afib episodes need to last 12 – 24 hours before clots may form though some doctors think the threat occurs after about 5 hours. Mine typically only lasted 2 – 7 hours so these extended episodes are new which is why I'm convincing myself to undergo the other ablation, something I'd just as soon not do, but if my thyroid isn't contributing and the medication is no longer controlling it, then that is what I will have to do. Here's another fact that I didn't know. Beside the usual triggers, sleep apnea can also be a culprit. And, the older you are, the more likely it is to develop. Fun stuff.
 



27 comments:

  1. Most of the dust in your car is skin cells that we shed continuously along with dust circulated by the air conditioning and heater.

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    1. I must be a very dusty person, er, I mean I have very dry skin.

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  2. I love that you moved that dragonfly to a safe place where it could simply die in peace. I would have done the same. Simple kindness changes the world for the better.
    It's very cool that you are leading the yoga class.

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    1. it already had a couple of ants on it and one bit me for my trouble. I hope I'm doing a fair job at the yoga class, everyone seemed happy enough.

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  3. Ha! I thought that was a new car! I think that cars can get dusty in that they are not really air tight. This is a theory. I'll have to ask my husband who knows all about cars. Like- there are vents and stuff.
    You got a hurricane lily! Mine are coming and going quick, the way they do.
    You were kind to pick up that pretty dragonfly. I hate seeing them in that dying phase. They're so beautiful. Sometimes, if I find them all the way dead, I bring them home and put them where I can see them.
    And you are right- we were all just worried about you and that is all there is to that. You are loved, Ellen.

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    1. its colors were still so bright, its green body and blue tail. I bring them home too. I had several butterflies and dragonflies in one of the drawers of my chinese herb cabinet but they turned to dust, little mites at work I guess. and thank you, thank you all for caring about me.

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  4. I did a similar moving of a mantis off of our drive and into a butterfly bush. she was on her last legs. Something amiss with her wings…one cockeyed wing at a near right angle to her body…and i just didn’t want her to be slowly cooked on the cement. I believe it is the end of the season for the cycle of the mantis, as there are lots of egg clusters in the yard.
    Anyhow, I am sorry about being in a position of having to have another ablation.
    Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just slap that heart upside the atrium and get it to just cut it out!

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    1. I haven't seen a mantis here in a couple of years though I know they must be about.
      I try slapping my chest over where my heart is and tell it to behave but it doesn't work. as much as I don't want to go through with the ablation it will be nice to not have to take these pills. and not have a wonky heartbeat.

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  5. Just getting into a car tracks in dust. And you leave it behind when you get out.

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  6. Is that Stinging Nettle in the last photo???? I'm horribly allergic to it.

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    1. no stinging nettle. in the background...native poinsettia, datura, white phillipine lily, and something else I can't remember the name of just now.

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  7. Your car looks new. I never wash mine, just bless the rain. And it's good to move a dragon fly to a better place to die peacefully.

    Yes, the comments were all about concern for you. I didn't make one because what I wanted to say had been said and more would have been piling on, so I didn't. I do think you're operating under a strain, not surprising if you get a little short!

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    1. yes, once I got over myself, I know, and I'm grateful. and yes, it makes my stomach churn just to think about it. even though I know people get it done all the time, even me but the first one was one little spot. this one will be much more invasive.

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  8. Interested in what you have to say here re afib, thyroid, stroke, etc. Earlier enjoyed your dream account since coincidentally I had just written about a crazy one of my own. Also, was reminded of the cereus cactus we had in Arizona I miss having here in Calif. Take good care of yourself.

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    1. had another strange one last night involving my neighbor's son who is in his mid 20s (I'm 71). I woke up and what the fuck was that about! I've been trying to write them down. there's no reason you can't have a cereus in California I wouldn't think. I could send you a cutting.

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  9. Oof - the inside of my car is FILTHY. This is the right time of year to clean it - not too hot & not too cold. Perhaps I'll bestir myself to do that.

    I know you're not excited about the ablation, but if it will help then I guess that's the way to go. I think I might have sleep apnea, but since I'm Ms. Hypochondriac I'm probably going to ignore it for a bit - I've hit my quota of medical tests for the year (and hit my deductible too!).

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    1. I know it's the thing to do because this shit is getting old. and seems to me if you've fulfilled your deductible, now would be the time.

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    2. Well duh. Ha! I'll add it to the list of things to discuss at my next doctor's appointment :)

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  10. I took my car to yon car wash last week. Then, I went to San Bernard. Now, it looks like some dude's been off-roading in it out in the back 40. I guess maybe I'll do it myself this time -- or park it in a spot where it can take full advantage of this week's rain.

    I've seen more dead dragonflies on boats this year than ever before. I think part of it's that there are so many. We've had huge hatches of them. A couple of years ago, migrating dragonflies showed up in the NWS radar. Amazing, really.

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    1. I think I remember seeing that, the dragonflies showing up on radar. we usually have a lot around here what with all the open grassy pastures. it would help if we parked the car in the garage but the garage has too much stuff in it for that.

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  11. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-SWiGsBYqw&ab_channel=UTHealthEastTexas

    you have probably already seen this- makes it very clear

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  12. Poor dragonfly! I guess it's just that time of year, isn't it? I think I missed your previous post so I'll have to catch up on the controversy!

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    1. Yes, they don't last long but today as I walked Minnie I saw a female laying eggs in the standing water in a ditch.

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  13. I'm glad that you're confident in your doctor. I'm sorry I misunderstood what he was saying and then overstepped. We only want you to be well.

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    1. I do know that and I am blessed. The fault is mine.

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  14. Tried to remember when I last washed the car? We are not allowed to wash cars at home, water pollution, must go to a coin operated car wash. But I find that inside is usually much more dirty and I believe it's the stuff that gets sucked in by the aircon. My brother insists on having windows wide open for the first few minutes when the aircon is on to avoid all those toxic fumes, straight from the petrol tank, he claims.

    I find praying mantises adorable, but then we don't have them here and only see them in pretty pictures.

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I opened my big mouth, now it's your turn.