Pondering over the experiences of my Hospitalisations
With the hopes of giving my Bother-in-law Pete, a lift and laugh, while he’s in the Cty Nottingham Hospital, being spoilt by the specialists and pretty nurses!
My Medical Memories recalled and relived:
At the age of five, I got my thumb end chopped off and was taken by ambulance to the Nottingham Children’s Hospital. Put on a trolley, and got told-off for falling off of it! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
When I got shot (Working in Security in those days), they left me on a trolley in a passage and forgot about me for four-hours! General Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
When I had my ulcer done, they forgot to give me the chrystals, and I spent six hours on the Throne when I got home, in agony! City Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
When I got the hernia and was rushed into the QMC, Jane helped out my bringing things for me. Then, while repairing the hernia (Genuine bit of good luck here!), they found cancer in the bladder! Fortunately, they already had the laser and camera down my penis to deal with the rupture, so they set to and lasered the prostate cancer, at the same time! Serendipitous indeed! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
On a new-years Eve, I collapsed with high or low BP, can’t remember which now. Paramedics took me in, I fell off of the gurney going in, and lay there on the concrete floor for several minutes. QMC Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
I was told I could not be sent home with my BP so high or low, and the Warfarin level so low. I was placed in a corridor, with many other patients on trolleys, to await a bed coming free! QMC Hospital.Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Where, three hours later, I was told there is no chance of a bed, and I will have to go home! This being 00:30hrs on New Year’s day, so no buses! QMC Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
I had to walk, well hobble, all the way home in the early hours of the morning. No money for a bus or taxi, not that it mattered, I saw neither on my marathon walk back to the flats. QMC Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
When I was having the angiogram, before the heart operation, they said it would be a three-day job. Then, a day later in the morning at about 04:00hrs, they woke me to tell me the bed was needed urgently, and I will have to go home! City Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Mind you; it was Pete who saved the day, at this ungodly hour, they rang Pete, who had to come and collect me! City Hospital. As we were leaving, they handed Pete a leaflet on what happens during an angiogram, which I’d had days ago? Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
In the Morris Ward for the aorta valve replacement. A seven-day job with recovery they said (Huh!) By the fourth day, they were calling Brother-in-Law Pete to collect me again! City Hospital. Saved the day again!
Peripheral Neuropathy diagnosed. I was summoned to the hospital. A struggle in getting there, but I made it in time. I waited for three hours after the appointment time, then got in to see the Specialist. Who said, “There is nothing we can do, your neurotransmitters are dying on your right side. We cannot repair nerve ends.” Then gave me four-A4 sheets that listed the problems I could expect. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Then the most embarrassing event of my life, the Stroke. Everything in the body and I do mean everything that could leak, leaked, and I crumpled to the floor, puzzled, confused, and expecting the end had come. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Pressed the Alert Alarm, no idea what the lady said at the Nottingham City Control Room, or what I said to her. Or if I was speaking or thinking? While waiting for help, she rang back, insisting I unlock the front door to allow the Paramedics to gain entry. I had to crawl on all fours, no chance of me standing up, even while crawling, I kept falling over to my right side. There I was, in a right smelly mess, covered in front and rear releases, tears flowing, the nose running, the right ear bleeding and blood pouring from the fungal lesion, the Paramedics were shouting something through the door, and eventually I got to open the door, then collapsed again! These details were told me later. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
To the QMC Hospital, parked on the trolley in a dark room for hours. (Or so it seemed to me anyway). Up to a treatment room. I lay on the trolley in a bay for hours and started to come round a bit. A chap came to me later, told me I’d had a stroke, and said they would be transferring me to the Stroke Ward at the City Hospital. QMC Hospital. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
An hour or so later, I was collected and taken to the City Hospital. The journey was exciting, as I learned a lot about the two ambulance women who were taking me and other patients crammed in the ambulance. Their eating habits, one preferred Morrison’s the other Tesco. About their child birthing experiences. Coronation Street, and Neighbours were spoken of, and one of them was having Chilli-con-carne for dinner. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Got into the Newall Stroke Ward. Jane and Pete visited a few days later. I got a window bed, but no camera to use. So Pete took this photo on his visit a few days later. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
I was in for fourteen days, started the therapy three times a day. Then it happened again! I was told they needed the bed for an urgent admission, and I would be moved to a Residential Home (The Acorn)! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
The ambulance ladies who collected me left much of my possessions behind and took some that belonged to the patient in the next bed! I learned on the journey, gruesome details of one of the ambulance lady’s Cesarian operation, and that the other was going in for a breast reduction that months end! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
During my weeks there, I had my eyes opened. I had to make a police witness report and went for two days without being given an evening meal. But I loved it there. Has this ever happen to Pete? No! But he did take this photo when he visited me to check on my finances.
The photo shows a bottle of pop and a book that had yet to be returned to the rightful owner, taken there by the ambulance drivers in their rush to get me out of the hospital. They also failed to take my underwear, socks and Crossword books! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Then, the room was needed urgently, so for the third time, I was moved. Again they called on Jane & Pete to lift me home. Has this ever happen to Pete? No! Hehehe! I’d have been lost without him and Jane, though! They listed and took all of my valuables while I was away for safe-keeping, Bless him. I’ll get them back one day!
Sister Jane came to sort out my medications that were in a right state after months away. A good job too! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
I was given a carer to help me dress and put on the ankle strap, which was greatly appreciated I can tell yers!
But they were cancelled as the head-honcho woman, decided I could do it myself. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
The After-Stroke nurses came regularly, and again were very much a boon to me! They stopped coming when they arranged months of one a week two-hour physio training for me. It nearly crippled me! Haha!
Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
The now dreaded Sock-Gide was delivered, and the blood-blisters and bruised flourished. Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Now, I cannot put any bamboo or other type of socks on at all, because of the uncut toenails and failure to bleed the ankle ulcer. It’s too painful to use the deadly vicious Sock-Glide at all! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
I’m waiting for the medical departments etc. to reopen again after the appalling Coronavirus interlude. I will need, the Dentist (badly), the podiatrist (Desperately), The audio clinic for hearing aid batteries, and Opticians to get some glasses I can see through! Also, the delayed appointment with the cardiac team, to have a check on the metal ticker! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
Now I’ve been diagnosed as diabetic! Has this ever happen to Pete? No!
02:35hrs: Although the night had been entirely free of any wee-weeing, it started the moment I stirred into mock-life! I painfully fumbled my extraordinarily exorbitantly, excessive-sized wobbly body and dangly thin limbs from the £300, second-hand, c1968, broken by my brother-in-law Pete, recliner. My Xyrophobia suffering, over amour-propred Brother-in-law Pete, when he was searching the flat while I was in the hospital with the Stroke, and taking my valuables, and took a rest. Fatal! He could not resist the electrics and got out his screwdriver and toyed with them. Now, the recliner no longer works!
I caught my balance, got the walking stick, and made my way to the unused overnight, GPEB (Grey-Plastic-Emergency-Bucket), for what turned out to be a WOPT (Weak-Orange-Painful-Trickling) mode wee-wee. It took a while to get started, during which it dawned on me, what a great sleep I’d had! I reckon five-hours worth. Smug-Mode-Assumed! I left the GPEB where it was, cause I had a feeling that it might be needed again, now that the flowing has started and I’d Christened it.
Off to the kitchen, I limped. The volume of the ‘Hum’ was excessive this morning. Yet, when I opened the unliked, unloved, hard to clean, thick-framed, rain emitting, danger-to-old-folks who cannot see out and below cause of the ridiculously wide ledge, photographer-hating designed window to take these shots, it got even louder!
I got the kettle on then, but I had to nip back to the bucket. A total change this time. The bladder had complete absolute, omnipotent control over the power and flow. And boy, did it burst forth! An LHLB (Long-Hosepipe-like-Blasting) style. Surprisingly, with no pain at all? The colour had even changed back to the cloudy grey? I got the hands washed and back to the kitchen.
The readings on the hemadynamometer were looking fine today. The body temperature was showing up as 74°c.
Unbelievably, I then had to go back for another wee-wee! It was of the same model. I noticed later when I went in the Diary photo album, that the results compared to last Thursday, were very similar.
Washed and wiped again, and back to the kitchenette. Made the mug of Extra-Strong Assam tea, and took the medications.
I concentrated hard, as assiduously as was possible on getting the updating of the Wednesday blog done. This is because, as I settled to start working, Saccades-Sandra and Nicodemus’s Neurotransmitter’s were behaving themselves.
I shall not keep mentioning them, but persistent and variable types (from the WOPT (Weak-Orange-Painful-Trickling) to some BOASSA (Blasting Out-and-Suddenly-Stopping-Abruptly) modes of wee-wees pestered me for hours! Too frequent to mention them all here!
I achieved my goal, and with the ailments still being kind, I made up the template for this post.
I decided to get the thin quilt in soak, ready for cleaning later on. I’ve no idea what’s going on or what I’m supposedly doing at the moment! I keep changing between tasks and forgetting what I was doing! I got the quilt washed, and left it on some fabric freshener in the sink.
I sent Jane and Pete an email, asking how Pete was going, as I hadn’t heard from him for a bit now.
Then, made a start on this diary. But, Saccades, Dizzy Dennis and Nicodemus all came to life at the same time, and progress was stunted. Saccades-Sandra eased off first. Bless her!
I went to make another brew, and have a wee-wee. The day was dawning now. And I managed to take a decent shot of the skies, that I thought looked so beautiful. But a haze soon appeared afterwards, obnubilating my nephelococcygia fun. Tsk!
The landline chirped and flashed. It was Brother-inLaw Pete ringing in response to my email. He sounded in reasonable spirits considering. He is to go into the City Hospital today. For further tests and permissioning for his trial tests on a new treatment for his melanoma. I was glad to hear this, especially that he is to go in today, at 10:30hrs! He’s part of a chosen few patients for the trialling of the treatment. We chatted for a good while, and my EQ picked up on his determination, and good spirits, that hid a fear. Naturally!
I intend to take a picture of the City Hospital from the window at 10:30hrs. Even though the mist is now falling. With the lad being a bricklayer, and having lived and worked in Australia for some years, his stripping off to show the girls his muscular body so often, might have encouraged the poor devil’s cancer. Fingers crossed, and I think he’s doing the right thing in going for experimental trials, good for him!
I’ve placed all of the photographs taken of the City Hospital this morning.
The final one went with a Good Luck Message sent through the ether for Pete. I bet Jane’s at home worrying, I’ll call her later on, try to perk her up a tad.
It’s a good sign that the mist cleared just in time for me to get a decent shot or two in.
I’ll email one to Pete when he’s out and back home, as a reminder, of good news I hope.
The ablutions are now overdue. I got the things needed and others ready to use, and hobbled without too much bother, to the wetroom.
As I got the towel off of the airer to take in, I managed to clout the back of my right hand on the heater, snap the alarm wristlet band, and knocked the heater over, catching my toes against it as it fell. Then to add insult to injury, I hit my head against the frame of the door, bending down to retrieve the towel! Grobbleknangles!
Today’s ablutions went aleatorily well! A few dropsies, there will always be them. Toothache Thomas was not happy. However; no shaving cuts, no walking into or knocking anything over. As for the showering, ready for this… only two dropsies! Fair enough, the medicating part could have gone better, yet still only two accifauxpas! I was well pleased with how it went!
I got the light-quilt out of the bowl and got it on the flat airer to help it dry off. By Jiminee I was going well! Took the evening medications early!
Then I decided on the meal for today. Red potato battered fritters, Surami sticks, tomatoes, the last sourdough muffin, buttered of course.
Then I set about sorting the last bag of so-called fresh peas podded, and in the saucepan ready. I found a lot more useable peas than in yesterdays bag. However, Dang, dang, dang… Dang! Morrison had given me some extra meat with them. It’s in the second photo, but I doubt you will be able to spot it. A maggot floated to the surface of the sweetened water in the pan! Humph!
The bottom picture shows the pea pods I had to reject unopened and throw in the waste bin! Good old Morrison’s! They short deliver me the baking trays, then give me a bonus with their rotting garden peas. I could spit! I got the maggot out, and checked all the others for interlopers, rewashed them, and returned them to the saucepan. Isn’t life a sod at times! I might grill it later. Har-har!
I sorted the waste bags out, filled the three-wheeler with them, and took them to the waste chute. I noticed the Anticoagulation and Deep Vein Thrombosis clinic test results, INR, had arrived.
When I got back, I checked them. The lady from the Doctor’s reception last night with the new doses didn’t tell me the INR level was down to 1.7! Blimus and Bejeezers, I might be back on the Enoxaparin injections soon! Still, I’ve got plenty in stoke, or even stock, now.
I went on Facebooking, WordPress Reader. Link sent off. WordPress Reader.
Started the Fodder preparations. During which I found this pill had dropped on the floor! Whether it was a Furesomide, Beta-blocker or a Codeine, there was no way of telling. All three of them look so similar to each other. I cleaned it and took it. Huh!
Got the nosh on the plate, and into the recliner to nosh while watching some Law & Order episodes. The battered red potato fritters, the fresh garden peas (and perhaps the odd unnoticed maggot), the mature, stinky, tasty Stilton and Marmite cheese, piccolo tomatoes, gherkins, surimi sticks, apple, lemon mousse, and some seedless grapes made up the plate. Taste Rating: 8.5/10. Dived into it, leaving nothing on the plate!
I went to get the pots washed. Returned to the rickety, c1968 recliner, to watch some more TV with the feet up on the swivel chair.
The mangled ugly imitation Howard Hughes uncut toenails getting worse and more painful every day!
Spared a thought about Brother-in-Law Pete. The new chemotherapy preparations will have started by now. I expect him to have nurses fussing over him, and the usual for him, Private meals, a TV supplied, headphones, Sky channels etc. and so on. Makes yer sick! But I’m not jealous! Hehe!
03:00hrs: I’d had about six hours kip! But, somewhat unfortunately broken for many wee-wees of the RPD (Reluctant-Painful-Dribbling) variety, of a cloudy grey colour. But no complaints about this, for I felt a little livelier this Wednesday morning. That is of the mind, not physically, for Saccades, Sandra woke at the same time as I did. Psychologically, I was frisky, but with a mental unclarity, with certain inveterate stupefactions lingering in the background? Uncertainties, lack of confidence and unrecognisable fears.
But, I certainly appreciated getting some Sweet Morpheus in. Albeit, with some vertiginousness of mind, and a lingering unexplained nervousness and apprehension. Why? That is the question that needs an answer. Preferably with kyriolexy, and not some obscure dug-out, with vague logicality’s in the explanation, that encourages only further confusions and worries. I waffled on there a bit, sorry!
I extracted my humungous heavily-bellied body from the recliner, caught my balance, and woggled off, stick in hand, to the wet room for another wee-wee. The same mode again, and taking this, the need for the Porcelain Throne to be sat on arrived.
One of the more excruciating sessions this one! Not messy, Karki in colour. Massive, and a bit bloody. All finished in record time, though. Which is probably why it stung so much.
The pins and plates looked a little battered and bruised. But they weren’t hurting any more than usual? The pins looked like they had lost a bit of weight? The knees have not looked so good in a long time, is Arthur Itis on holiday? Hahaha! The veins seemed to be making their minds up whether to surface or not today?
I got freshened up and a new pair of PPs on, and with no injuries as well!
I did take a moment to outstare the Sock-Glide before I left the wet room. If he had eyes, they would have been glaring at me, threateningly! Desperate to draw blood and bruise me, supply my fingers with more black welts again! He must be in a right bad mood now! With the toes uncut for so long, it’s been months since I’ve been able to wear socks or shoes, it’s just too painful.
I’m dreading the Podiatrist opening, firstly the agony of having the nails cut, the ulcer bled and the corns trimmed! But mostly, the fear of having to use the sock-glide again! I still have scars from my last battle with the dreaded Sock-Glide in April. I’m wandering off-course again here! A moment of insanity mayhaps, sorry about that!
Off to the kitchen, where the twinkling lights of Nottingham greeted me through the unwanted, light & view-blocking windows. I got the kettle on and opened one of them to take these photos, and the wind was nippy as it blew in. I took the first shot in Auto mode, the second in the Night Landscape mode.
I got a mug of Glengettie Gold tea poured out, and the need for a wee-wee returned, so, off to the wet room. And what a change in style this release was! A PLAVC (Long-Painful-And-Various-Coloured) mode. I swear it changed colour half-way through, from a cloudy grey to an even more cloudy orange?
The health checks were done. The Sys and Dia were a bit higher this time, the ear temp showed as ‘Low’.
I got on the computer and started to update the Tuesday post. Saccades Sandra and Dizzy Dennis bothered me a bit. But fantastically, Nocodemus’s Neurotransmitters and Shoulder-Shuddering -Shirley were both being kind to me. Confusionalising me!
With determination, I got the updating finished, but Saccades Sandra mainly, caused it to be a three-hour-plus job! I had to keep stopping to wait for the vision focusing to return. Three wee-wees were needed during this session. All three of them were of the PASL (Powerful-Apricot-Short-Lived) variety. But it makes wee-weeing a bit more interesting, not knowing what colour or how powerful things will be!
When they lasered the Cancer in the bladder, I recall the Doctor telling me that this change of colouration may initially be active. Hehehe! That was in 1982, and it’s just started!)
I went to make a brew of Thompsons Punjana tea and nibbled some seedless grapes while the kettle boiled. When I realised I had eaten such a lot of grapes, it dawned on me, I had not turned the kettle on. So I did!
I took a shot from the light and view-blocking, unliked kitchen window, to the left, and then right.
As I made the tea, I had to hobble off for another wee-wee. This time it was a rare, SFRTFC (Strong-Forceful-Reluctant-To-Finish-Cloudy) one, back to deep orange in colour. Still, it kept the interest going. What will the next one be like, I thought, TTPOT, (Thrusting Tyrian Purple Trickling mode?) Hahaha!
The ♫ I only want to be with you ♫ tune rang out from the doorbells. It was Jenny who’s left a bag of stuff for me outside. Lemon mousse and yoghourt, bless her cotton socks. She’d even given me som foil oven trays after reading yesterdays blog ♥! I rang her to thank her. An angel within my midst!
I got the potatoes from the slow cooker into the saucepan. Added some beef granules and balsamic vinegar into the remaining crock-pot liquid, and got the pod peas out to shell them. And what a tale to tell!
I opened the bag of Morrison’s 454g bag of peas, they had a 4th July sell-by date on them. Most of the big bag went straight in the waste bin as I sorted them out to find some that were at least pretend-fresh! I noticed a few that I started to open had worms and or insects in the pod. So I double-checked every one that I podded. I also looked in the water in the saucepan I’d dropped the earlier peas into, for any sneaked in insects floating or swimming in the liquid!
Part of the way through an insect crawled out on my finger. I began to investigate what it might be, it didn’t look like it had wings, but it bit my finger and flew away as I was about to photograph it!
Well, I never! I wonder if there are any entomologist(I’ll just check I’ve got the right word on Google – yes, okay), living in the blocks of flats? Hehehe!
The peas that got in the saucepan were few and far between, especially for the £1.50 they cost. I added a lot of demerara sugar to the pan and checked on the Pork Shoulder I’d put in the slow-cooker with the gravy.
I eventually made a brew, and then went on Facebooking on the TFZer and Winwood Heights pages. Had to stop, flashing picture been put up. Saccades-Sandra kicked of big-time. I couldn’t even comment on here for hours. Focusing and vision terrible. I may have to stop going on Facebook, even if I do enjoy it so much. I do not want to go through this again.
I went to get the ablutions done. But couldn’t see to shave or shower safely. Couldn’t do any art creation work either.
Struggled to get the nosh prepared. And part-way through doing so, Saccades Sandra dissipated, and boy was I glad she did! As quick as she came on.
This, I think, helped me enjoy the meal so much more. A had a bit of success with this one—worth all the faffing about and time it took to get it made. The pork Shoulder steaks were tasty, well, everything was, really. I put some butter on them and the potatoes. The Jenny-supplied lemon mousse went down smoothly afterwards, with some home-made spring water, mixed with a drop of orange cordial. Flavour Rating: 8.7/10!
This nosh and the getting free of Saccades vision problems were a double-treat!
However, the edge was taken from the sensation when I went to wash the pots! ‘Ich war a wenig ahntoisht’, when I dropped the plastic washing-up liquid bottle, and it broke as it hit my foot then the floor! Not really annoyed, but pee’d off a smidge. I got it cleaned up, I now have a clean patch of floor, surrounded by tiles that still need cleaning. Hehe!
I got settled down again eventually, and there were three on-the-trot episodes of Law & Order showing on channel 21, ‘5-USA’. I planned to stay down in the chair and enjoy them. So, I got the medications taken good and early, in case I forgot later. Then began the viewing.
I got the legs and feet up on the swivel chair. I would have used the £300, second-hand, c1968, recliner, but of course, this no longer works, after Brother-in-Law Pete broke it playing with the controls when I was in hospital as he stole my valuables while flat sitting. Hehehe!
What a farce! I kept nodding-off for a few minutes, missing or losing the plot of the story-line, for hours. Waste of time watching it!
However, after getting up for a wee-wee and resettling in the chair – Heaven! I fell asleep, and without any wee-wee interruptions, kipped for five hours straight! Fantastisch!
23:25hrs: No sleep at all, Sweet Morphious, denied me by being woken up repeatedly; callers, Toothache Thomas and Anne Gyna, all successful in ensuring I got no rest. Groggleknockers!
I decided to give up! I edged my colossally-stomached, wobbly-torsoed body and skinny-dangly legs, out of the £300, second-hand, not-working, c1968, rickety recliner. Off for a wee-wee.
Ah, things were better this time! A bit more force and less spraying. Still the green-grey colour, mind.
Off I plodded to the kitchenette, every step taken was an example of coping with pain. From the toes and feet! (A little sympathy prompting there, sorry about that!) The late-night view was difficult to photograph. I had four goes on different settings before I got a shot that was as close as dammit to what it looked like in the viewer. This one was with the Aperture Priority selected. The Night Panorama that I tried produced a black picture only?
I got the kettle on and did the first of the Health Checks.
The sphygmomanometer results were the best for ages! SYS 136, DIA 64, Pulse 80, and the body temperature was just showing up as low. (It does that, it goes from the reading to high or low, when I am insensate and not quick enough to get it out of my ear-hole to have a look, Hehe!) Ah, well!
I took the medications and made a mug of Glengettie Gold Tea. On the first sip of the brew, I started hiccuping. Two-hours later, when I got around to writing this, I was still hiccuping! I hope this did not bother Herbert above me, for they were loud and vicious disembogue’s, irritating, almost non-stop!
So annoying and frustrating! I tried the drinking of the luke-warm tea from the opposite side of the mug.
I shouldn’t have done that! Nicodemus’s Neurotransmitters failed at the wrong time, and I dropped my mug and created a picklement for myself! Bugglesworthlessness!
On the light at the end of the tunnel search: The miracle of it hitting my left knee and depositing some hot tea, down the leg as mentioned above, then bouncing off of my knee, and straight into the waste bin, pleased me! Amazingly the mug didn’t break (that’s twice I’ve dropped it in the last three days), and the mess was minimal because of where it came to rest. So, the cleaning up was more straightforward, and the foul language was not so severe as it might have been! A smidge of good luck there methinks!
I cleared up the mess and went to make another mug of tea. I got the pork shoulder steaks, with new potatoes in the crockpot cooking. I added sea salt, Light Soy sauce, some pork gravy granules, and seasoning. (Too much methinks?) I’m not sure how old the gravy and seasoning is, but it still hadn’t dissolved two hours later? Have I viliorated my meal planning? Having a feeling that this is not going to have a happy ending, and my EQ backed me up.
The day is breaking now! I updated the Inchcocks Photos widget on the blog. Replaced with all Winwood Heights people now and then. I updated the Monday post. WordPress Reader. Next, on to the Facebooking.
The wee-wees had decreased. Anne Gyna had eased off. Toothache Thomas, the feet and toes continue as the main pain-donators. Haha!
Then, the Phlebotomy Nurse, Christina, let herself in the flat. She’d been pressed in by someone in the foyer. Didn’t half make me jump! Hahaha! A good job, I’d taken the wash and shave early, and had some clothes on! Gawd that would have made her jump more than her arrival made me! Pity, she was in a great rush again, that’s why she had to come so early. She still managed a bit of nattering while she took the blood, Bless her cotton socks ♥.
I felt a bit peckish, and I went to get some biscuits and made a fresh mug of Glengettie tea. Dizzy Dennis kicked off while making the brew. Humph! Two hours later, I limpingly meandered off to get the Ablutions tended to.
Ablutionalisticalisationing Report:
The need for the Porcelain Throne arrived. Much easier than yesterday. Not so messy, and far less painful! Only two dropsies.
Toothache Thomas made cleaning the teeth a grindingly, agonising job!
The shaving had a few clangers involved. Cuts were in fashion this morning. Several of them, but every one of them was tiny, yet bled a lot more than usual.
The Shaving dropsies just might have been a record. I lost count of the times the Jenny-supplied picker-upperer was used! Razors about six times if I recall rightly, the foam and the After-Shave bottle I used to stop the bleeding.
The medicationalisation went better than usual, though. Only dropped Harold Haemorrhoids cream once, the Germolid the same! I did come close to losing the Olive-Oil-dropper, but I kept control. Smug-Mode-Adopted!
The deodorant, Saccades Sandra Spray, and room freshener were all dropped several times! Humph! A final fling, as if to put it. Hahaha!
The knees looked much better, and the leg veins were shy today. Oh, I’ve just noticed, I’m no longer Hiccuping!
Off to check on the pork in the slow cooker. The seasoning I’d added, had still not dissolved? (I must be careful and make sure everything is safe before I make it into a stew).
On closer inspection, I found that the pork shoulder was already cooked, and was soft. The potatoes were still hard. And I’d forgotten to put the mushrooms in the mix.
No problem, mind you. My absent-mindedness, paramnesia, and blank-spells were ion existence before the stroke. It’s just that since then, they have taken up permanent residence within the grey-cells! As with the Peripheral Neuropathy and Nicodemus’s Neurotransmitters, they are a part of Inchcocks make-up nowadays. I took out the pork and some gravy and added them to the saucepan with the peas.
As I was pondering on whether to take another picture from the unwanted, unliked, thick-framed, thick-framed, impossible to get at to clean (without risking life and limb to use the step ladders), letting the rain in, new kitchen windows. I put the kettle on to boil again, the flats Fire Alarms sounded.
By the time I got to the balcony and opened the finger trapping end window, that also lets the rain in, well, they all do, the first of the tenders responding arrived. Followed a minute later by the second vehicle.
The crews strolled into the foyer. Judging by their casual and ambling approach, I took it that they didn’t expect the alarm to indicated there was a real fire. After all, it must be three weeks or so now, since the Winchester Court Fire. Longer since a Woodthorpe Court one. The crews were on their way home within five minutes. Thank you, lads!
When I nipped onto the balcony to see if the chaps had departed, I took a snap through the window of the end of Chestnut Walk. I didn’t want to risk injury opening the lethal metal spring clip window again. No, that’s wrong. That window is just impossible to open, too tight. The maintenance men tried for me five months or so ago, and they couldn’t do it. It was when they came to look at the plaster breaking up on the ceiling of the balcony. Naturally, they have not been back.
I opened the left end window that one works! To take the 2nd shot in the other direction. The picture looked pretty with the oh-so green trees.
Then onto CorelDraw to do some graphics.
Oops! Time for the mobile shop, it’ll be here in twenty minutes. So, I put Computer Cameron in Sleep-Mode and got the wheels, cash and down to the ground floor… well, that was the plan, anyway!
A new system has been set-up for the lifts again. Sensible, but time-consuming! As it is, we are only allowed one resident in a lift at a time. So, it can be a long wait to get the elevator at times. Now, we can only one lift, the right one is for residents & Visitors, the left one is reserved for Construction Workers Only. As I say, understandable, but so frustrating.
The Construction Workers lift kept coming and the door opening, repeatedly. I leant in, and pressed the ground floor button, then pushed the call button (Which works for the nearest lift). The Workers lift kept coming back up and tempting me to be naughty, but I resisted! This happened three times. Would I make it down in time to catch the mobile shop? Dang, dang, dang… Dang! Hehehe!
By the time I’d got down to the ground floor, the electronic sign informed me I had a minute to get outside before the ETA of the shop.
Luckily, it was a few minutes late in coming. It was nice to have someone to natter to, even from a safe-distancing way away.
It was windy out there, one gal had not got a jacket on either. Brr! I took this picture while awaiting my turn. I got some bits, about three, the chap had not the other three items I fancied. Can’t be helped!
As I said my farewells and got back into the flats, it dawned on me how much I’d spent to buy this few items? I purchased four tomatoes as well. Had to tell him that two were rotten and gone soft. He changed them for me. Well, the chap is new to the game, and a life-saver at times, so no complaints from me. He was a used-car salesman before the danged Coronavirus arrived. His missus doesn’t come out with him anymore, here is the entrepreneurs’ story link: Car Salesman starts Mobile Shop.
Josie came in behind me and insisted I take a pint of semi-skinned milk for the one I let her have on Friday. I said, “I don’t use semi skinned, I prefer to use whole milk, but less of it.”- “Why did you have it in then?” – “I kept it in reserve with it being long-life, just in case” Anyway, she forced it on me. Hehehe!
We got up to the flats, and Josie held the door open for me to get in with the trolley, bless! I got in with the bits bought – £6 something for these. The apples were of particular interest. The label read, Product of France. The apples look tasty, so I got one out to nibble. The stick-on tag on the fruit read, Grown in New Zealand. I took a couple of the seedless grapes to try, and noticed there were a lot of bare fruitless stalks! Hahaha!
I’m getting a smidge tired now, nearing my usual nosh and head-down time. But, I need to stay awake for the Morrison delivery arriving late on. So, back to the CorelDrawing for a while. Hello, a phone call coming in, I hope it’s Sister Jane to tell me how she and Pete’s coping.
Nope! It was the Morrison delivery man Julian, saying he might be arriving early. So I saved the work, turned off Computer Cameron, and got ready for him arriving. I took a peep outside to see if I could see the van…
I thought at first, it was the Morrison van. But on a closer look, I’m afraid it was the Emergency Ambulance. Oh, dear!
A few minutes later, and the fodder arrived. The chap put the carriers in the hallway for me, I thanked him, slipped him a can of G&T, and took them through to the kitchen and stored them away.
Well, they made a right mess of the oven trays I’d ordered. They charged me for 1×2 large trays and sent just one (Crushed) individual one! And 2×4 small trays and I didn’t get any, but the label that goes on them, was in a carrier? I’ll be so glad when I can get out and buy food for myself. Humph! The two packets of sweet potato pancakes were one! I was all confused!
And muggings here thanked them and gave him a treat! Frangleklops!
I got the stuff put away, and got the meal served up. At least this turned out alright. Made even tastier with the two Sourdough muffins dipped in the gravy! A stew of sorts. Onions, mushrooms, pork shoulder, all overseasoned with Soy sauce, Balsamic vinegar, tasty juices, canned potatoes and garden peas. Flavour Rating: 7/10.
Got the washing in the bowl to soak overnight. And down into the £300, second-hand, rickety recliner, in search of sleep. Which surprisingly came sharpishly.
The landline flashed. I hazily of mind, struggled up to answer it. It was the Doctor’s surgery, with the new dosages for the Warfarin, from the Anticoagulation, Deep Vein Thrombosis Unit. Tue 2½, Wed 2, Thur 2½, Frid 2½, Sat 2½, Sunday 2. There was no number for Monday? Unless, in my half-awake state, I missed it. Which is a possibility? The next blood test is in on Tuesday 7th June.
I wrote the figures down, thanked her, and climbed back into the none-working, sickeningly beige-coloured, c1968 recliner. In search of Sweet Morphious once more.
This time with a lot more success!
Apart from several disturbances to have wee-wees. (All of the RPD (Reluctant-Painful-Dribbling) variety, I must have got, ready for it… six hours kip in between! Great!
