Your most frequently used phone features in the MMP

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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I call people and talk to them on my phone. I also text. I take a few photographs. I use google maps for driving to new places, and I use All Trails for recording my trail mileage (horse). I think that’s about all. My phone is just another onerous modern burden to me. Particularly texting, which is unbearably slow and full of errors. I don’t see how people type quickly on that minuscule keypad. I occasionally try using various apps but I invariably run into some stupid snag or dead end, and I tolerate repetitive failure very poorly. Which is a shame because repetitive failure is a key feature of our inescapable technology-mediated world.

The past week it’s been all about my lame horse, who turned out to have an abscess in her hoof. It burst night before last, which was a great relief to her physically and me mentally. There’s a few days more of pain meds and soaking in warm Epsom salts, looks like. Then I might be riding again.

Today my big events are PT for my knee, which has been hurting me for months, and a trip to the feed store and the tile store, I am ordering the tile for the tackroom floor at long last. And hopefully painting. I am so ready to get all my tack and vet supplies out of the house and into their new, real home. It’s a beautiful clear cold day, 28 degrees F.

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I wish I had done that with the “doctor” who essentially killed my sister by misdiagnosing her and putting her through the hell of chemo. The difference is that I then would have hired an ambulance chaser to sue her down to her underwear. But my BIL didn’t want to take any action, the coward.

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What the hell are you doing on a ladder at your age? I spent much of my career on ladders, but you couldn’t get me on anything taller than a six-footer now.

64

Morning all. Rain expected tonight but the temperature today is due to get to the mid-70’s, so home heater may get the day off. Got billed for the balance of the Antarctica trip, more than I’ve ever paid for travel in my life, but I’ve got it covered. Gym today, may try the more conventional bikes rather than the sit-and-pedals-out-forward ones I’ve been using and see how they work.

Thanks to all for your suggestions. Forgot I have a cell phone now, may have to get in the habit of carrying it around the house. Might also look into some type of alarm system. Being me, I’ll just put it off…

Cupcakes, Baker, sorry for your losses and I’d write the same way today to the doc that almost killed my Mom years before her actual passing. But for letters like nellies, the old 'take a walk first, then edit" recommendation by Unknown is one I’ve used more than once when I was working.

Ulfreida, welcome, hope you like it here enough to stick around, albeit I have absolutely no idea what your Mumper name would be… Hope your horse is doing well and the tackroom requires pictures, of course.

OK, need to break fast here and look at the coming day. All y’all take care.

65

I’m sorry to hear about your wife’s cousin, flyboy.

Today is damp and chilly. Now that overlyboy is home and doing well, things will hopefully die down a bit; however, there is now insurance to deal with. We got a letter along the lines of, “Oh, we’re just confirming all your dependents’ eligibility for our insurance plan. Please be ready with marriage certificates, birth certificates, your tax returns and anything else that might provide proof that your dependents should be getting coverage.” Presumably they actually checked his eligibility for the insurance while they were checking medical necessity (at least the letter I got confirmed they did), but good grief.

It never ceases to amaze me how hard companies try to avoid payment, though we have given our insurance a work out this year.

Okay, off to work. After not sleeping more than a couple of hours since last Tuesday. my brain is just now starting to be able to form full sentences and complex thoughts. I should take advantage of it while it lasts.

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Don’t get me started on insurance companies. I have some stories that I won’t bore everyone here with. It’s a predatory business model from top to bottom.

And this makes me very happy. People tend to have misconceptions of what zoos are all about, based on outdated practices and a few bad actors. I take every opportunity I can to educate people about all the good we do regarding species preservation, conservation, and animal welfare.

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There comes a time in life when you are firmly in the future you were planning and saving for - the hard part is changing the mindset so you can enjoy it - at least that’s the hard part for me.

I’ve got to say I’m amazed that we’ve not gotten flack from BC/BS over any of FCD’s 10 spinal surgeries - even when he had 3 in one year! Maybe it’s because we’re insured thru my fed job/retirement. Honestly, the worst I’ve had to deal with was after I canceled Medicare PartB, getting BC/BS to pay what then thought was covered by Medicare. I think I finally got that straightened out.

My FB friends can check out totally adorbs videos of Toby doing Babby Aerobics then chattering at me. Or not - your choice. Hey, I was bored and he’s my sole source of entertainment at the moment! :wink:

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♫ Chicken wings Chicken wings!
Tacos and bologna!
Chips and macaroni!
Chillin’ with my homie! ♫

That’s what’s been playing on the gas pumps at the Lummi Reservation gas station & market since just before Super Bowl. This morning I resolved to capture it on video so I could share it. It seems to have been removed.

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He is truly gorgeous! And chatty.

As a completely unrelated aside with way, way TMI, one thing that hadn’t occurred to me until recently was that they probably want people up and walking after surgery because of the sheer quantities of laxatives they pump into people afterward. Thank goodness things are slowing down - overlyboy’s shoulders vaguely resemble a coat hanger. He was skinny to start with and has obviously lost weight. Luckily his appetite is coming back.

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We might want input from @BippityBoppityBoo on this, she being a nurse, but I was told after DH’s leg surgery that opioid painkillers (he got oxycodone, which he has always been super-cautious about using) have a constipating effect, so when I took him home from the hospital after round 1, we got about four different varieties of laxatives prescribed to him (honestly, I’ve used more of that load than he has, since I tend toward constipation issues anyway).

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Yep, I rubbed the ol’ pork last night. Wifey reported a little over an hour ago that she put it into the oven at 225°F, where it will sit for the next eight hours or so. (Maybe ten hours, since I won’t get home until about 18 o’clock. She may eat before I get home.)

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Definitely! I had heard that was pretty common, but the kid hasn’t had narcotics since the day of the surgery, not even his pain pump or oxy. My husband was pretty intent on continuing the laxatives regardless once we were home, but I convinced him to let me call the doc - poor kid has had so much bowel action he needs a nap afterwards. I don’t think I’ve been this “interested” in his poop since he was a baby.

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Normal heave, dropped some stuff off at Goodwill. Naptime.

So is it hard to get a horse to stand in a bucket of water? :horse:
Also, welcome!

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You’ve got it just right. Another reason why opioid pain relief needs to be short term.

Then you add in that the surgery may make you sore and you don’t want to move, much less walk around and the inactivity slowed intestinal activity then gets stacked onto the opioid constipation tendencies, leading to misery. Oh, and opioids can make some nauseous and kill appetite, less food doesn’t help healthy pooping patterns either, this is where the instructions to eat lots of fiber comes in.

This is why nurses seem reluctant to hand out pain meds willy-nilly or long term, why we push drinking lots of fluid and lots of fiber in your diet post-op and especially, mercilessly nag you to get up! get up! GET UP AND MOVE AROUND!

Constipation is much easier to prevent than cure, so drink that water, eat that oatmeal, walk up and down the hall every hour when awake and take as few pain meds as possible. Be brave, we nurses are rooting for you!

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When I had bariatric surgery it was my first time under general anesthetic, and I learned that I inherited my mother’s tendency to not want to wake up afterwards. I have a vague memory of a (male) recovery nurse dancing with me in the hallway, while I struggled to keep my eyes open, as others cheered us on. The next thing I remember is waking up in my room. I wish I’d had the werewithal before I was discharged to ask about/thank him!

I’ve decided to take my head out of the sand regarding the current state of COVID, and am currently watching a Washington Post Live event with Dr. Fauci about new variants. I’m expecting the content to be mostly optimistic. :crossed_fingers:

Very cool! About 20 years ago, when I had a lot more spare time, I volunteered with the Smithsonian National Zoo as a special events worker. That was pretty fun. The best was the annual Boo At The Zoo, where the zoo got all decorated for Halloween and kids would go trick-or-treating. I would wear a costume, and help give out candy. Good times. :slight_smile:

This is why I have a Google Nest: I can use my voice to make phone calls with it, via Google Duo. My house is small and one level, so I put the Nest in a central location and confirmed that it could hear me from anywhere in the house. I got my father and my best friend to each set up Duo accounts, and we tested my ability to make/receive calls that way. They know that if they ever get a Duo call from me, something is wrong! I’m not crazy about the “always listening” thing, but it does give me some peace of mind (and, as I’ve mentioned, Google already owns/knows everything about me). I generally have my phone with me when I move around the house, but it isn’t in the bathroom when I’m showering and I figure that’s where I’m most likely to hurt myself one day.

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Afternoon all. Got my gym work in, 30 minutes riding a bicycle the ‘normal’ way and 30 more in my usual ‘layback’ cycle, so burned a fair number of calories doing that. Also moved some weights, so about 90 minutes of workout. May take a walk tonight at the park if the rain that is predicted holds off.

Oopsie, will look into that Google Nest/Google Duo. Like I said above, I’ll prevaricate about it for ages, but I’ll keep it in the back of my head.

FCM, I’m trying to spend it as fast as I can, but still leave some for the niece and nephews to fight over… :laughing: :wink: Another job coming up in the next couple of years is replacing my driveway, it’s got a lot of cracks in it and only getting worse, so I have something to look forward to in, say, 2024…And the kid is a cutie; and I have some trouble rolling onto my side from my back, too…

There are so many responses to this…but I’ll leave them for swampy and doggio, if they wish…

OK, dishwasher has just about completed the cycle, so need to do the unloading and put-back. All y’all take care.

77

Taters I hope you can find a position that will let you transfer your benefits, pension, etc.

Poor baby. I’m glad she’s on the mend.

And the horse!!!

talky No kidding about the insurance. I hate those guys. I had written approval for a procedure last fall, and now they don’t want to cover it. It will all work out, but you just know they make it hard because some people give up and end up paying. They’re truly awful people.

I’m glad overlyboy is home again. I’m sure you’re all relieved. Hospitals get old really fast.

Oh, honey. Bless your heart.

I had the same thought(s). I’ll just walk away now…

I’ll give you guys my current medical update, because everyone wants to know all about my insides. :stuck_out_tongue: I went to see my GI doc yesterday. She agreed that there’s something going on. I’m to stop eating gluten to see if that helps. I will also be getting an endoscopy and a colonoscopy, and formal tests for celiac disease (which is not the same as gluten intolerance, come to find out). I will be tested for lactose intolerance, as well as a some gut biome issues and some parasites while we’re at it. Shits and giggles, so to speak. (It had to be done.) In the meantime, bland food, fluids, and electrolytes. A nutritionist will work with me on developing eating plans.

On the MS front, my world-class doctor (and I believe that he has that distinction) continues to not have time for me, so I begin my search for a new one.

On the neurological front, I think the CFS patch is holding, but the high-CFS pressure is not resolving. I think it can take several months, so I’m not chasing after my care team yet.

I had an infusion of the medication that seemed to help with the chronic migraine 6 months ago. I should have it every 3 months, but I had an allergic reaction. On the other hand, it helped… We waited 6 months, dosed me up on benadryl and steroids, and cut the dose by 2/3rds. I had some issues, but overall much better. Now we’ll see if it works or not.

There you go. A short booklet on the State of Sunny. Now in the actual state where Sunny is, it’s Sunny. Hot today and the rest of the week, but it looks like rain this week. We’re not getting much with each system, but we’re getting something. Anything that slows down the drying out of the state is good. It slows down fire season and we need that.

Happy Tuesday everyone

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13:30. At least four more hours until I can start pullin’ the pork.

I’ll bet the house smells delicious.

79

I scored a Bumbo for Toby for $10 from FB marketplace. They run around $50 new, so it was worth the drive to the boonies in the next county. I wiped it down with hand sanitizer when I got it home - it’s now babby-ready! Hope he likes sitting in it - Roxy loved hers. (Which Daughter loaned to a friend, and it appears said friend tossed it when she was done with it…)

I will just have Toby for half a day tomorrow. SIL has another Dr appt in the morning, and he’ll fetch the kid from me afterwards. I’ll spend the afternoon working on the liferings for the boat.

But the rest of tonight is for chillage.

80

Shortly I will be out the door and on my way to a local sports bar to meet some of my friends from Kindergarten. There are a group of ten of us that keep in touch and we get together every other month or so. Not everyone makes every gathering, but there are usually a half dozen of us. I have been working on getting one of my closest friends to come for quite a while now but he is terribly shy. I finally convinced him. It will be a great time. Taco Tuesday, beer, a good visit and maybe play a round of Keno or two.

I have been friends with these people for sixty four years…