This and that...

 

I've been looking for puzzles to order online lately. So, while also planning to post a few pics taken recently, I came across this picture that my daughter took of her Great Dane, "Moose" on their porch... and thought that this would actually make a good puzzle.

This one wouldn't be too bad a puzzle either... just one I snapped as I lay on the sofa across from the fireplace. 

Then I saw this puzzle somewhere - and DH and I both liked it, but can't find it now...

Update: 

My bp problem seems to be doing OK these days. Haven't scheduled the sleep apnea test yet. I have an appointment to see my Oncologist for my annual next week. May go over it all with him and see if he has any input... 

New Grandpuppy! 

French Bulldog...  2.4 lbs, 8 weeks old

And lastly, I'm curious as to what kind of bee this is. If anyone knows I'd like to find out. They are usually hanging around my front windows.

That's it! I hope you have a good weekend. Thanks for visiting! 

Hugs (virtual), 

Rian

***Still fighting with this new Blogger format... ***

Anxious, really??

 "Are you anxious about anything"

NOW THAT'S A QUESTION THESE DAYS?"

"Only with the state of the world:

global pandemic, 

hateful politics, 

states on fire, 

back to back hurricanes,

lost my cat..."

So I answer: "not especially". 

This was one of the many questions asked me during my doctor appointment yesterday. Lucky me! I got to see both the nurse practitioner as well as our family physician. She (NP) asked him to come in after the exam, EKG, blood work, etc. And they agreed to give me a Rx to take at night to keep my bp and heart rate from spiking. And they also want me to be tested for sleep apnea.

So now we wait to see what the tests show. Guess they will take a week or so...

Told them that I wouldn't go to the ER last Friday when all this started  because I didn't think I was having a heart attack. (Luckily I was right) However I did tell DH that if I passed out at home, he could call 911.

Something strange is going on and it does involve my heart and bp, so it is scary. I don't want a repeat of these last 4 days.

It's Tuesday noon now and DH just went to pick up the Rx (it had to be ordered). Not feeling great this am... weak and a bit headachy... but no spike during the night last night so I was able to sleep. 

Drinking a little black Irish tea - in case I'm headachy missing the caffeine. 

My EKG  is always a bit strange and was again yesterday, but has been that way for years and was checked out by a Cardiologist about 5 years ago. At that time he said my heart was fine. But now if this Rx and/or sleep apnea test doesn't give results, they may send me back to a Cardiologist. Guess we'll see.

Oh, the fun and games of aging...

stranger things...

 2020 just keeps getting better, doesn't  it?  Besides the continuing saga of the Pandemic,  losing Ghost this week, the awful fires in California & Oregon, my cousin told me this morning about Tropical Storm Mary that may be developing into a hurricane and heading toward New Orleans. My good friend here in Texas just texted me that she  has a detached retina and just had emergency surgery, and I've been 'weird' for the last 3 nights...

I'll ask any of you if you are familiar with these symptoms. I have always suspected that I have sleep apnea - but ignored it. Over the years I have woken up with my heart pounding, headache, and bp high. But after I got up, walked around a bit, and had a cup of tea, it would all go away. (Normally my bp is low - about 120/70... sometimes as low as 105/59.)

But during these episodes my bp goes up to 170-199/100. It happens either late at night or early in the am, lasts for hours, and returns to normal sometime late morning. This has happened 3 nights now. Last night DH stayed up with me while I sat up on the sofa... heart pounding. 

My SIL is a nurse and she says it sounds more like nocturnal hypertension...??? Since I didn't go to sleep and the bp still rose, I'm thinking - maybe not sleep apnea? I've been told to go to the emergency room, but I'm trying to hold out to see my doctor Monday and have him or his nurse practitioner  listen to my heart and bp... and possibly tell me what's going on. 

This world is turning into a strange place...

Sorry this wasn't an uplifting post. I'll try to do better next time.

Hugs,

Rian

 

sad day...

For those of you that don't know, Ghost is our 15 year old Russian Blue (well, not a pedigreed Russian Blue - but from her appearance definitely has some in her).  She was dropped on our back porch as a kitten about 5 weeks old. Her mother and sibling left her and more than likely knew there was something 'not right' about her. 

The Vets told us that they thought she had diabetes insipidus as well as genetic kidney problems, and possibly some neurological issues. They didn't give her a good prognosis. Told us that they would be surprised if she made it to her first birthday. 

Well, we kept her on KD (Rx Kidney diet) and over the years she has had some 'issues' that had to be taken care of, but in general she survived much better than anyone expected. She has always drank an enormous amount of water and passed huge quantities of urine. She also has a strange anatomy... in that she is very wide across the shoulders and walks with a bit of a bowlegged front. 

We've never been sure if she sees well as she has developed this habit of coming to us when we wag our hands at her. And she has never tried to climb or swat at things like other cats do. She does hear - as loud noises (like thunder) frighten her... and she's never been a lap cat but loves brushing and petting. All in all, she has been a sweet (albeit a bit odd) member of our family for 15 years.

But this weekend she seems to be failing. We will bring her to the Vet ASAP and see what is going on. But more than likely she is in kidney failure (with her age and underlying genetic conditions). We are bracing ourselves for this diagnosis as we have seen the signs too often lately. After losing both Tux and Julie last December and January, the end signs are not hard to read. I guess we should be happy that we had her this long... and we are. 

But still... 

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

it's cooler now... and other things

Sitting here at my laptop with my Dunkin Donut Mocha coffee thinking about what to post about today. With this 'sheltering at home' - there's not a lot of 'new' going on.

I'm sure summer isn't over here in Texas, but this week we're cooler... in the 70's in the mornings, going into the 80's in the afternoon and evenings. And we also have rain! Makes for a nice break. 

Other things:

Finished "The 5th Wave" and decided to try to finish "Educated"... which I read part of a while back and lost interest. It's a very 'strange' story. Continuing it last night only confirms this belief. But I will keep reading. 

Has anyone out there read "The Reckoning" by John Grisham? Finished that not too long ago too and was very disappointed at the ending. Anyone else feel that way?

My favorite books are Irish trilogies, home-town cozies (like Jan Karon's), cozy themed mysteries, and some historical fiction (Lady of Hay by Barbara Erskine and Galway Bay by Mary Pat Kelly). But if push comes to shove, I will read almost anything.

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A change of subject

I like rocks...

I have 2 favorites: this green and this flat black

I have no idea where the green one came from - but it feels so wonderful to rub my fingers across

and the flat black one I found on a beach on the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland:

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Question: Has anyone ever looked up the old house they grew up in? I'm sure many of you have.  I recently did this and was astonished that it was still around... and had been re-structured as such.

It was a a small house right off of Canal Street in New Orleans. It had a ceiling fan and a floor heater and one of those 'in the wall' gas heaters in the one bathroom. It wasn't shotgun, like many - but more of a double shotgun... with front room, dining room, and kitchen all following each other on the left... then a bedroom, bath, and 2 more small bedrooms. Dad built a long den across the back.

Anyway, it's still there... and the asking price is unbelievable. It is in a great location - right off Canal St with the streetcar lines still running and only about 10 minutes to downtown and the French Quarter. But still...

The house my dad built after that one was out by the lakefront... not on Lake Pontchartrain proper, but only a short bus ride down to it. In high school, my friend and I used to ride down there after school sometimes and do our home-work by the water. That house is no longer there. Katrina was the end of it. But I believe another was built on the same lot since then. 

I do miss being close to water. We had Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississiippi... and of course we had/have family who live in Waveland and Biloxi (only a short ride away) so we spent a lot of time on the Gulf coast in the summers. Good memories.

Hope I didn't bore you too much with my reminiscing...

I'm going to close this with 2 things; a new crochet weave pattern I'm trying  and an old Irish saying that I like.

This new blogger that was forced on me today is giving me fits...

(couldn't figure out how to make the crochet pic larger or how to add labels... oh well, at least I can insert this: 😝😡)

But thanks for visiting anyway. Hope you are having an easier time of it. Could be that I just don't need one more frustration these days.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian