Fourteen-year-old Shih Tzu worried us this morning. She indicated that she needed to go outside, but before we could take her, she had a coughing spasm, causing her to flop over on her side and lose control of her bladder. She righted herself in a couple of minutes, but when Hubbie tried to pick her up, she groaned.
She's had bladder problems in the past, and I think she's probably got another infection, so Hubbie took her to the vet. He was overbooked, so he couldn't examine her. But he did prescribe an antibiotic. We'll make an appointment for her after she finishes the med.
Shih Tzu has benign tumors that protrude on her body, and I figure she has one that is causing her cough, too. She probably has them in her bladder, as well, though so far there has been no indication of malignancy. But she does have a tendency to bladder infections. Right now, she's up and trotting around, so she's reasonably comfortable, I think. Hopefully, the antibiotic will take care of her immediate problem.
Since we had nothing scheduled for today, Hubbie, Mother, and I shopped at a video/bookstore. Mother and I both had gift cards for this store. She found a craft kit to spend hers on. I found a used DVD...."Sweeney Todd," with Johnny Depp. We haven't seen the movie, yet, and some have said that Depp is no singer, but if he's as amusing in this film as he's been in others we've seen, I think we'll enjoy it. I'm saving it to watch on Halloween. Even if we don't like it, I didn't pay much for it, so it'll be no great loss.
From this store, we went to an appliance store that was holding an open house, and serving hot dogs. We registered for door prizes and then looked at HD TVs. I'd really like to get one and then give our console, which is still very nice, to Mother. Her TV in acting up, and she has been debating whether or not to get a new one. But she wants a low-tech model. Ours would suit her just fine.
The TVs at this store are on sale right now, but we need to do some measuring to see what size would fit into the assigned space in den. It takes a while for us to mull over a major purchase. Hopefully, we won't wait beyond the sale price time.
We spent the rest of the day doing this and that....lawn mowing, doing laundry, etc. For supper, I made bagel pizzas. To make them, I put provolone cheese on bagel halves, and topped them with diced fresh tomatoes, and sauteed Vidalia onions, fresh mushrooms, and bell peppers. I sprinkled the pizzas with Italian spices and mixed seasoning, minced garlic from a jar, and shredded Mozzarella cheese, and baked them about 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven. These are very tasty pizzas that are not greasy like fast food versions.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
Friday, July 18
We've had a busy day. I went to water aerobics first, but left early so I could come home and get ready to go with Hubbie and Mother to the fairgrounds around 10 a.m.
We were anxious, of course, to see how our entries fared. We got lots of blue ribbons, and a few red ones. Mother was pleased to find that one of her quick breads won a Best of Show award. Mother often wins Best of Show awards...she's gotten them for baked goods, canned goods, dried herbs, and crafts.
I've won a few grand champion awards, too, mostly in photography. But I was stunned to see that this year one of my floral arrangements won Best of Show. Mother didn't seem at all surprised, saying she'd had a dream last night that I won. She said that as she was carrying the arrangement to the exhibit area yesterday morning, she mused on how pretty it was, thinking it had country charm. All I did was arrange what flowers I could find from the yard in a Mason jar.
Our flowers suffer in the summer, but I found a few nice lavender, red, and orange zinnias, white daisies, purple cone flowers, and purple phlox, along with other flowering varieties...enough to make a full arrangement, to which I added dark purple leafy branches from one of the bushes. It was a pleasing arrangement, I thought, but I didn't dream it would catch the judge's eye to that degree. Too bad I didn't take a picture of it before it went to the fair. If I'd had any idea it'd win, I certainly would have.
Since today was Senior Day at the fair, I took along my camera and scouted out shots for our state newspaper. There were plenty of subjects for the camera, including pie contest judges sampling entries, senior queen and king winners, horse shoe pitching contestants, a very talented artist who was sketching cattle exhibits, a young man with his grand champion steer, and one of my favorites...a little girl with her baby goat.
We spent quite a bit of time touring the exhibit buildings, as well as the commercial building, where we registered for every door prize available. In past years, we've won several nice things, including a smoker, free movies from a video store, gift certificates, and cash.
The local agency for aging offered lunches for $1.50 each, and the ticket numbers were entered for prize drawings. For about the past five years, we've won cash and prizes. One year, we won on two of our tickets...$25 each, and last year, we won a $25 gift certificate that could be redeemed at a meat packing business. This year, however, we came up empty-handed.
We were thrilled, though, when one of our women friends, who has suffered from heart problems and is now in the first stages of Alzheimer's Disease, won one of the $25 certificates. She's had a bad year, and we hope this small win provides at least a bit of joy. She deserves it.
Lunch was deli turkey, white cheese, and tomato on a soft hoagie bun, with a side of macaroni salad that included shredded yellow cheese (I'm allergic to yellow dye), potato chips (which I've given up), and store-bought chocolate chip and sugar cookies (none for me, please), plus a bottled lemon drink (containing yellow dye and 252 calories). I ate the sandwich with a bottle of water.
After we ate, we toured the horse barn to see the miniature horses, where one of the mares had a tiny colt. They were all so cute. By this time, we were hot and sweaty and ready to come home and indulge in plates of cold watermelon. It's very unusual for Mother to get hot, but in today's 95 degree heat and humidity, even she suffered.
Mother went home to rest for a while, and I uploaded snapshots from the fair to the newspaper photo editor. Later, Hubbie and I went to town, where he checked out a sale at a home store to see if there was anything he could spend a birthday gift card on. There was nothing he wanted. So we picked up a couple of items at the worldwide discount chain store next door and came home.
By this time, we were ready to call it a day.
We were anxious, of course, to see how our entries fared. We got lots of blue ribbons, and a few red ones. Mother was pleased to find that one of her quick breads won a Best of Show award. Mother often wins Best of Show awards...she's gotten them for baked goods, canned goods, dried herbs, and crafts.
I've won a few grand champion awards, too, mostly in photography. But I was stunned to see that this year one of my floral arrangements won Best of Show. Mother didn't seem at all surprised, saying she'd had a dream last night that I won. She said that as she was carrying the arrangement to the exhibit area yesterday morning, she mused on how pretty it was, thinking it had country charm. All I did was arrange what flowers I could find from the yard in a Mason jar.
Our flowers suffer in the summer, but I found a few nice lavender, red, and orange zinnias, white daisies, purple cone flowers, and purple phlox, along with other flowering varieties...enough to make a full arrangement, to which I added dark purple leafy branches from one of the bushes. It was a pleasing arrangement, I thought, but I didn't dream it would catch the judge's eye to that degree. Too bad I didn't take a picture of it before it went to the fair. If I'd had any idea it'd win, I certainly would have.
Since today was Senior Day at the fair, I took along my camera and scouted out shots for our state newspaper. There were plenty of subjects for the camera, including pie contest judges sampling entries, senior queen and king winners, horse shoe pitching contestants, a very talented artist who was sketching cattle exhibits, a young man with his grand champion steer, and one of my favorites...a little girl with her baby goat.
We spent quite a bit of time touring the exhibit buildings, as well as the commercial building, where we registered for every door prize available. In past years, we've won several nice things, including a smoker, free movies from a video store, gift certificates, and cash.
The local agency for aging offered lunches for $1.50 each, and the ticket numbers were entered for prize drawings. For about the past five years, we've won cash and prizes. One year, we won on two of our tickets...$25 each, and last year, we won a $25 gift certificate that could be redeemed at a meat packing business. This year, however, we came up empty-handed.
We were thrilled, though, when one of our women friends, who has suffered from heart problems and is now in the first stages of Alzheimer's Disease, won one of the $25 certificates. She's had a bad year, and we hope this small win provides at least a bit of joy. She deserves it.
Lunch was deli turkey, white cheese, and tomato on a soft hoagie bun, with a side of macaroni salad that included shredded yellow cheese (I'm allergic to yellow dye), potato chips (which I've given up), and store-bought chocolate chip and sugar cookies (none for me, please), plus a bottled lemon drink (containing yellow dye and 252 calories). I ate the sandwich with a bottle of water.
After we ate, we toured the horse barn to see the miniature horses, where one of the mares had a tiny colt. They were all so cute. By this time, we were hot and sweaty and ready to come home and indulge in plates of cold watermelon. It's very unusual for Mother to get hot, but in today's 95 degree heat and humidity, even she suffered.
Mother went home to rest for a while, and I uploaded snapshots from the fair to the newspaper photo editor. Later, Hubbie and I went to town, where he checked out a sale at a home store to see if there was anything he could spend a birthday gift card on. There was nothing he wanted. So we picked up a couple of items at the worldwide discount chain store next door and came home.
By this time, we were ready to call it a day.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Thursday, July 17
Today began Phase III of Cardiac Rehab. Basically, I'm on my own to exercise. I weighed in as usual, but I didn't have to hook up to a heart monitor, and the physical therapist didn't take my blood pressure. He did monitor my pulse and oxygen saturation, though. And he gave me advice on how to stay in heart-rate target range.
I kept to my usual routine...15 minutes on the cardio-stepper, beginning with a five-minute warm-up, then increasing my speed and resistance for ten minutes, and increasing again for five more minutes. Then I moved to the treadmill, walking at a fast pace for 15 minutes, and then slowing down for five minutes. After that, I did stretching exercises, and then rested until my heart rate returned to normal.
The physical therapist commented that he wished more patients would be diligent in watching their diets and keeping to a challenging exercise routine, because to do so decreases the risk of another cardiac episode. If a diligent patient does experience another episode, not only does the chance of survival increase, but so does the ability to bounce back afterward.
Nothing of consequence happened for the rest of the morning. After lunch, Hubbie, Mother, and I decided to take a little road trip to another town to get cantaloupes and watermelons from our favorite farmer. As we were leaving the driveway, the van warned us that we were low on gas, so we detoured to the cheapest gas station, near the worldwide discount chain store.
Since we were already in town, we went by the farmer's market for more tomatoes. While there, Mother discovered that huge green and red bell peppers were reasonably priced, so she bought some to put in her freezer.
From there, we stopped by a grocery store for a couple of items, and then went on to the other town for melons. We bought two huge cantaloupes, and a couple of watermelons.
Our hearts melted when we discovered a big box with several puppies in it. One brown and tan one, a female, was adorable and loving. We all snuggled her, but resisted bringing her home. We don't need another dog, and anyway this one is destined to be a big dog unsuited to staying in the house.
Back home, I found a really, really old version of "Journey to the Center of Earth" on TV, and we watched it. It'll be interesting to compare that one with the new 3-D version now out in theaters.
I kept to my usual routine...15 minutes on the cardio-stepper, beginning with a five-minute warm-up, then increasing my speed and resistance for ten minutes, and increasing again for five more minutes. Then I moved to the treadmill, walking at a fast pace for 15 minutes, and then slowing down for five minutes. After that, I did stretching exercises, and then rested until my heart rate returned to normal.
The physical therapist commented that he wished more patients would be diligent in watching their diets and keeping to a challenging exercise routine, because to do so decreases the risk of another cardiac episode. If a diligent patient does experience another episode, not only does the chance of survival increase, but so does the ability to bounce back afterward.
Nothing of consequence happened for the rest of the morning. After lunch, Hubbie, Mother, and I decided to take a little road trip to another town to get cantaloupes and watermelons from our favorite farmer. As we were leaving the driveway, the van warned us that we were low on gas, so we detoured to the cheapest gas station, near the worldwide discount chain store.
Since we were already in town, we went by the farmer's market for more tomatoes. While there, Mother discovered that huge green and red bell peppers were reasonably priced, so she bought some to put in her freezer.
From there, we stopped by a grocery store for a couple of items, and then went on to the other town for melons. We bought two huge cantaloupes, and a couple of watermelons.
Our hearts melted when we discovered a big box with several puppies in it. One brown and tan one, a female, was adorable and loving. We all snuggled her, but resisted bringing her home. We don't need another dog, and anyway this one is destined to be a big dog unsuited to staying in the house.
Back home, I found a really, really old version of "Journey to the Center of Earth" on TV, and we watched it. It'll be interesting to compare that one with the new 3-D version now out in theaters.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Pretty Toadstools
The two toadstools above popped up yesterday and today. I'm fascinated with the wide variety of these growths. They range from weird, to whimsical, to beautiful. These two are very pretty, I think. I found the bright orange one under some bushes near the front porch, and the white one close to an ivy bed. I like the white one better in black and white, instead of color. The green of the grass and ivy near it detracted from it, I think.
Wednesday, July 16
Ah-h-h, the college pool was wonderfully warm this morning. It won't stay that way, of course, but it sure was great today.
While I was at the pool, Hubbie and Mother took cut flowers and the floral arrangements I put together last night to the fairgrounds. Exhibits had to be entered by 9 a.m., because judging started at 10. We won't know how our entries fared, though, until we see them on Senior Day, Friday morning.
I got a nice thank you note and a $25 check in the mail today from the plant society treasurer...a speaker's fee for my talk last Saturday night about photographing flowers. I was totally surprised by this. I agreed to do the program just to help out because the group's scheduled program had been cancelled. I certainly didn't expect any pay. So I called the treasurer and left a message that I would send the check back, because I was sure their treasury might need it. She returned my call saying no dice, she wouldn't accept the check, that the treasury was flush, and they always paid a small fee to speakers. I thought the bag of zinnia seeds, and the bag of Saturn peaches was thanks enough!
The rest of the morning was pretty relaxed. This afternoon, we all (Mother included) ran errands around town. As much as possible, we are trying to combine errand trips, though it still seems like we're spending too many days running around.
Today, Hubbie needed to stop by the John Deere business...something about the new riding mower he purchased recently. Then we stopped by the bank, and a pharmacy to pick up my prescription. From there, we dropped by the movie theater. I wanted to find out if we could use our complementary tickets to see "Journey to the Center of the Earth." No, they won't accept the tickets for this show, since they are giving no discounts for it. So on we went to a health store for a bottle of mult-vitamins. The last stop was at the worldwide discount chain store. We all needed several items from there.
One of the things I wanted from the WDCS was a timer. I've been using the kitchen timers when I soak my swimsuit in a special wash, or when I get my hair colored. Somehow, both kitchen timers are either upstairs when one is needed downstairs, or downstairs when one is needed upstairs. So I bought a timer just for myself today. It's white, so it won't be confused with the yellow one and the red one in the kitchen.
After shopping, we were on our own to do whatever we wanted for the afternoon and evening.
While I was at the pool, Hubbie and Mother took cut flowers and the floral arrangements I put together last night to the fairgrounds. Exhibits had to be entered by 9 a.m., because judging started at 10. We won't know how our entries fared, though, until we see them on Senior Day, Friday morning.
I got a nice thank you note and a $25 check in the mail today from the plant society treasurer...a speaker's fee for my talk last Saturday night about photographing flowers. I was totally surprised by this. I agreed to do the program just to help out because the group's scheduled program had been cancelled. I certainly didn't expect any pay. So I called the treasurer and left a message that I would send the check back, because I was sure their treasury might need it. She returned my call saying no dice, she wouldn't accept the check, that the treasury was flush, and they always paid a small fee to speakers. I thought the bag of zinnia seeds, and the bag of Saturn peaches was thanks enough!
The rest of the morning was pretty relaxed. This afternoon, we all (Mother included) ran errands around town. As much as possible, we are trying to combine errand trips, though it still seems like we're spending too many days running around.
Today, Hubbie needed to stop by the John Deere business...something about the new riding mower he purchased recently. Then we stopped by the bank, and a pharmacy to pick up my prescription. From there, we dropped by the movie theater. I wanted to find out if we could use our complementary tickets to see "Journey to the Center of the Earth." No, they won't accept the tickets for this show, since they are giving no discounts for it. So on we went to a health store for a bottle of mult-vitamins. The last stop was at the worldwide discount chain store. We all needed several items from there.
One of the things I wanted from the WDCS was a timer. I've been using the kitchen timers when I soak my swimsuit in a special wash, or when I get my hair colored. Somehow, both kitchen timers are either upstairs when one is needed downstairs, or downstairs when one is needed upstairs. So I bought a timer just for myself today. It's white, so it won't be confused with the yellow one and the red one in the kitchen.
After shopping, we were on our own to do whatever we wanted for the afternoon and evening.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Tuesday, July 15
Today was the last day of Phase II Cardiac Rehab. I'll sign up for Phase III on Thursday. I was up a pound in weight today...no doubt from all the eating I did last week during our trip to the capital city. My blood pressure was a low 98/56, though, and my oxygen saturation is still 100%, so I'm in good shape.
This morning's session began with a treadmill stress test. I was asked to walk for six minutes at the highest speed I could tolerate. I walked at 4.1 mph, up from 3.1 when I had a stress test three months ago.
After that, I resumed my regular session of exercise. At the end, the staff brought out a brass gong, which I struck as a symbol of my "graduation" from the class. One of the nurses stuck a gold seal on my t-shirt that reads "Official Seal of Excellence," and there were hugs all around.
Each year, the previous year's "graduates" are invited to a big banquet and awards wing-ding at one of the local colleges. That event happened recently, but of course I wasn't yet eligible to attend. I'll be invited next summer. Hope it's at a time when I'm free to go.
The rest of the morning was pretty relaxed. After lunch, I baked a coffee cake to enter in the fair tomorrow. I've won blue ribbons for this recipe every year that I've submitted it. Hope that will be true this year, too.
At 5 p.m., I went downtown to attend an arts council meeting. There was a lot of business to be dealt with, so I didn't get home until 6:30. By then I was plenty ready for our lasagna supper, since Hubbie and I had only chef's salad and fruit for lunch.
After supper, we gathered flowers and I made three arrangements to take to the fair tomorrow. In the morning, Hubbie and Mother will gather single flowers to put into bud vases for entries.
It's 8:30 p.m. now, and I'm ready to relax in front of TV (which means I'll probably nod off in front of it).
This morning's session began with a treadmill stress test. I was asked to walk for six minutes at the highest speed I could tolerate. I walked at 4.1 mph, up from 3.1 when I had a stress test three months ago.
After that, I resumed my regular session of exercise. At the end, the staff brought out a brass gong, which I struck as a symbol of my "graduation" from the class. One of the nurses stuck a gold seal on my t-shirt that reads "Official Seal of Excellence," and there were hugs all around.
Each year, the previous year's "graduates" are invited to a big banquet and awards wing-ding at one of the local colleges. That event happened recently, but of course I wasn't yet eligible to attend. I'll be invited next summer. Hope it's at a time when I'm free to go.
The rest of the morning was pretty relaxed. After lunch, I baked a coffee cake to enter in the fair tomorrow. I've won blue ribbons for this recipe every year that I've submitted it. Hope that will be true this year, too.
At 5 p.m., I went downtown to attend an arts council meeting. There was a lot of business to be dealt with, so I didn't get home until 6:30. By then I was plenty ready for our lasagna supper, since Hubbie and I had only chef's salad and fruit for lunch.
After supper, we gathered flowers and I made three arrangements to take to the fair tomorrow. In the morning, Hubbie and Mother will gather single flowers to put into bud vases for entries.
It's 8:30 p.m. now, and I'm ready to relax in front of TV (which means I'll probably nod off in front of it).
Monday, July 14
Sis alerted me that nothing but the title of yesterday's blog published. I don't know what happened. Last night, I decided to save the blog as a draft until this morning, but I couldn't get the function to work. So I opted to shut the site down for the night and re-write the blog this morning. Somehow, though, the title went ahead and published. Go figure.
Anyway, here's my blog for Monday.
I got a late start exercising at Cardiac Rehab, thanks to a cranky heart monitor. The physical therapist tried everything: changing the batteries several times, changing the sticky pads, applying salve under the sticky pads, and tightening the leads connection. Nothing seemed to work. Finally, someone suggested the leads themselves might be dead. So the therapist changed those, and voila', after fifteen minutes of trial and error, the monitor finally worked.
While we exercised, we watched the morning show televised from our capital city. One segment featured a doctor who answered callers' medical questions. At one point, a "Maud" (not her real name) from our town called in.
One of the nurses perked up. "I hope that isn't my Aunt Maud," she said.
When she heard the lady's voice, though, the nurse exclaimed, "Omigosh, it is Aunt Maud! Here she has a nurse in the family, and she's calling a doctor on TV!"
"How old is your aunt," I asked.
"Well, she's really my great aunt, and she's in her 70s. She's very active for her age, but somewhat of a hypochondriac."
The other incident that happened was a bit embarrassing. One of the male patients, a very large man, wore knit shorts that hit him about the middle of his upper legs. After resting during his cardio-stepper exercises, he had a totally revealing wardrobe malfunction when his damp-from-sweat shorts clung to his leg as he lifted it to a peddle. Unfortunately, I was on a treadmill directly across from him, though I pretended I saw nothing. There are full length mirrors all around the walls of the exercise room, however, so I'm sure he was aware of the problem, because he scrambled to adjust his clothing. This morning I noticed he was wearing shorts that came down to his knees. I wonder, though, is there no underwear in his size?
After I got home, Hubbie and I ran errands to the farmer's market, the bank, a grocery store, a dollar store, a health store, and finally to the worldwide discount chain store. At the farmer's market, we bought a huge locally grown cantaloupe. Since the cantaloupes are out, we know that the watermelons are ready, too. So we'll be wanting to travel to a nearby town to get one or two from our favorite farmer. His melons will be available in our town, too, but they are best right out of his field.
Nothing more eventful happened for the rest of yesterday, until it was time to take 34 houseplants to the fairgrounds to be entered for judging. Before we went to the fairgrounds, we baked sweet potatoes to have for supper with leftover sliced cold pork tenderloin, mixed vegetables, and sliced tomatoes. The potatoes were done before we left, and we turned the oven off to keep them warm until we returned.
Anyway, here's my blog for Monday.
I got a late start exercising at Cardiac Rehab, thanks to a cranky heart monitor. The physical therapist tried everything: changing the batteries several times, changing the sticky pads, applying salve under the sticky pads, and tightening the leads connection. Nothing seemed to work. Finally, someone suggested the leads themselves might be dead. So the therapist changed those, and voila', after fifteen minutes of trial and error, the monitor finally worked.
While we exercised, we watched the morning show televised from our capital city. One segment featured a doctor who answered callers' medical questions. At one point, a "Maud" (not her real name) from our town called in.
One of the nurses perked up. "I hope that isn't my Aunt Maud," she said.
When she heard the lady's voice, though, the nurse exclaimed, "Omigosh, it is Aunt Maud! Here she has a nurse in the family, and she's calling a doctor on TV!"
"How old is your aunt," I asked.
"Well, she's really my great aunt, and she's in her 70s. She's very active for her age, but somewhat of a hypochondriac."
The other incident that happened was a bit embarrassing. One of the male patients, a very large man, wore knit shorts that hit him about the middle of his upper legs. After resting during his cardio-stepper exercises, he had a totally revealing wardrobe malfunction when his damp-from-sweat shorts clung to his leg as he lifted it to a peddle. Unfortunately, I was on a treadmill directly across from him, though I pretended I saw nothing. There are full length mirrors all around the walls of the exercise room, however, so I'm sure he was aware of the problem, because he scrambled to adjust his clothing. This morning I noticed he was wearing shorts that came down to his knees. I wonder, though, is there no underwear in his size?
After I got home, Hubbie and I ran errands to the farmer's market, the bank, a grocery store, a dollar store, a health store, and finally to the worldwide discount chain store. At the farmer's market, we bought a huge locally grown cantaloupe. Since the cantaloupes are out, we know that the watermelons are ready, too. So we'll be wanting to travel to a nearby town to get one or two from our favorite farmer. His melons will be available in our town, too, but they are best right out of his field.
Nothing more eventful happened for the rest of yesterday, until it was time to take 34 houseplants to the fairgrounds to be entered for judging. Before we went to the fairgrounds, we baked sweet potatoes to have for supper with leftover sliced cold pork tenderloin, mixed vegetables, and sliced tomatoes. The potatoes were done before we left, and we turned the oven off to keep them warm until we returned.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)