The Aged Mother did not recover. She died peacefully on Monday night. We are currently waiting to collect the necessary documentation from the hospital to register the death and organise the funeral.
It’s all very sad. Her house is a treasure trove of old letters and stuff which will all need sorting out. I feel relieved that she’s no longer suffering and pretending she’s not. Brave, fierce, and difficult.
That’s it I think for now.
Well now. Not sure where to start, really. I guess the biggest thing is that the Aged Mother (87) is actually in hospital now, not at all well, but insisting she’s FINE. Of course she is. Not. Further updates as they arrive. We’re visiting her tomorrow.
I’ve had cortisone injections into two of my knuckles on my right hand. The procedure was almost painless and I now have no pain or swelling there. No pain. No swelling. That’s amazing for me. I saw an orthopaedic consultant six years ago, and he said he wouldn’t replace the joints just yet. Right. Ok. So I saw a different orthopaedic consultant six weeks ago, and he said oh yes, steroid injections, that should help. And it has.
Knitting has recommenced but only in short bursts. It feels so nice though to be able to knit again. Although it had been so long that I accidentally joined the jacket I’m knitting in the round and had to undo a row. Sigh. But it’s all fine now.
Also have decided to have a go at making my own baubles for the Christmas tree with polystyrene balls, fabric and ribbon. One of the knitting group made a fabulous one at a workshop and it’s really, really lovely. So I looked on YouTube, found a couple of excellent tutorials, will take what I need from both, and just need to get some fabric and ribbon. Ordered the polystyrene balls from ebay. Yeah. Photos if they work out ok.
YD is having an excellent time in NZ. Lovely photos and videos. It’s their spring/summer time so plenty of the beach and the sea. Mm.
Finished Christmas present buying. I keep a spreadsheet so I know who’s getting what, and who got what over the past several years. Yeah, I know. Don’t care.
Writing is supposed to be cathartic so I thought I’d jot down a few notes about how I manage the depression and M.E.
Went to the osteopath today because I was in some pain. It’s part of the maintenance and upkeep. As usual after the osteopath I’m pretty low tonight and on the verge of tears. Taking regular painkillers. Can’t take Brufen because of my asthma. Big old bummer, because they are such effective painkillers. I can take Cocodamol though, and am at the doctor’s next week so might mention it then.
However I re-arranged the pedicure, which was going to be tomorrow, and have cried off the knitting get together tonight. Will see if I am able to get to the sewing course on Saturday – I’d really like to go, because it’s making a Japanese Knot Bag and matching purse, but if I’m not up to it, then I’m just not.
Such decisions sound a bit sad, but in fact once I’ve decided that I need to cancel stuff, I actually feel a bit better about things. Not exactly in control of my health, just managing it better. I don’t like to feel that it’s managing me. Even though it probably is. Mm.
I’ve been sleeping a lot. Most of Tuesday. Managed to have a shower and wash my hair on Wednesday. Then had a half hour sit down, and did my ironing. I do it every week, and hubby does his own, so it only takes about 25 minutes maximum. Then lunch, and then did the online shop. So quite a lot achieved yesterday. But the afternoon sleeps are long. At least three hours, sometimes four. Then I sleep all night too.
Might consider a bath and face pack tomorrow. Will see how I wake up. I very, very rarely have a bath. We have some nice bubble bath though and it does help relax my back.
I have two go-to authors whose books I read when I feel like this. Bill Bryson, who is just one of my favourite writers, and Tom Cox. Ditto. Can’t help smiling as I read their stuff.
Retail therapy always helps too, so have ordered a couple of tops (reduced) from Warehouse. Two different colours, and two different sizes, so we shall see if I like the colours and if they fit.
Hubby is off to a meeting tonight so I shall watch some crappy tv. No knitting mojo at all at the moment, and booked in for steroid injections into the knuckles of my right hand on Monday. Will see how things go after that.
Christmas almost organised. Thank goodness for the internet. A bit of baking to do, but nothing major. Last year I did a Yule Log which is fat free, therefore dairy free. It was delicious and both hubby and I liked it, which is a bonus. He doesn’t like fruit cake so if I made a proper Christmas cake I’d just eat it all and put on loads of weight. And am going to do some mince pies only in filo pastry as I have some in the freezer. Everybody else can eat normal ones from the shop, but the dairy free ones from the shop tend to be cheap and nasty.
Lots and lots has happened since September. We are still awaiting our new electric charger as the electricity supply needs some amendment. Don’t ask me what. It just does. That bit won’t cost us anything, then we have to wait for a quote for the actual charger, blah blah blah.
Younger Daughter, her hubby and little girl are now in New Zealand. As we approach winter here, they are in springtime and having lovely weather. Thank goodness for WhatsApp video calls and wi-fi. The last week before departure was a bit (very) fraught and the journey was long, but they are settled into their delightful temporary accommodation now.
The weekend after they all arrived in NZ, Older Daughter arrived for the weekend with her little boy. Who is delightful. Very affectionate. From time to time he wraps up his toy tiger in some sort of blanket and just climbs on to my lap for a cuddle. Yeah!
There is a garden centre 7 minutes’ walk from our house. It’s a chain, and sells all sorts of stuff apart from plants. There’s a cafe, lots of “commissions” (small shops within it) and that’s where the knitting shop is, so I am there a lot. I have a self-imposed rule never to buy their plants, though, after bad experiences in the past. Once I took back an expensive hydrangea which had died, and the reason it died was because there were two separate flowering stalks, from separate plants, stuck into the pot. They didn’t even ask, they just refunded me.
Last Thursday I broke my own rule, and am already regretting it. I wanted some winter heathers to cheer up the winter time garden. I’d looked online and couldn’t find what I wanted, so gritted my teeth and had a look in said garden centre. Found just what I wanted. Or so I thought. I’ve just potted them up, and I should have checked when I bought them, but all three of them were so badly root/pot bound I had difficulty getting them out of their pots. Then they looked like they were covered in some sort of material. Nope. More roots, all bound round the plant. So I’ve bunged them in and am hoping for the best, but fearing the worst. Hmph. We shall see. The only silver lining is that I am probably not as odd as my self-imposed rules might make me seem. Mm.
At the risk of seeming even stranger, I have to admit I have done about 80% of our Christmas shopping. Mostly on line. In fact probably all online. Still a few things to get, but really not very many. Spare room now filling up with (labelled – oh yeah!) stuff and the poor postman is laden down almost every day.
Had my flu jab yesterday. I didn’t even feel the needle, but my arm is aching now. Better that than the flu, though, hey. And because I will be 65 before the end of next March, they gave me the jab which provides better protection. Good.
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