The Slight Downward Slope in Everyday Ramblings

I am not quite ready to give up color yet. It looks like we are finally going to get some rain in about a week. It had been mild, hazy and the air quality problematic all week. That Hunter’s Moon was big and bright though.

The painters are finally gone. Having them here for over three weeks was kind of like being occupied. My plants did not fare well with the moving inside a week at a time. The catnip plant survived, and I was so excited to have it back out where it belonged. Yesterday morning right before class, the cats were both agitated. Diego was talking, which is unusual for him.

I looked out on the patio and the local stray tuxedo cat was standing with her front paws in the pot with the catnip, chowing down. She broke off almost all the stems. That plant has been out there for 3 years! It will grow back but the irony of working so hard to keep it happy while the painters were here and then having it trashed the next day is not lost on me.

She was a happy cat though. In a slightly intoxicated way.

The day after the painters left there were ladders and pounding on my north wall. I thought maybe they were putting new siding up. It stopped and I thought I would grab the few free hours there and roast some sweet potato slices and golden beets. I was listening to a podcast (fairly loudly because I wasn’t wearing my hearing aids), the timer was beeping because the sweet potatoes needed to come out and there is a knock on the door.

I managed to get the oven off and grab a mask. It was the facilities manager, an architect and 3 of the contractors trooping through. At least they put masks on, albeit haphazardly. They crowded into the kitchen, and I couldn’t get in to turn the podcast off. They took pictures of my walls and then thankfully left. Later there was more pounding.

They are doing repairs from the water damage in the empty apartment upstairs. The plumber who was replacing the water heater up there appears to be a high functioning alcoholic. Before I realized he was working upstairs I saw him drive up and thought when he got out, this guy is too drunk to be driving.

There are lots of reasons to be grateful for the weekend.

My new student, who slipped about three weeks ago on a grandchild’s sweatshirt left on a wooden floor and broke her arm ended up having an emergency shoulder replacement. She lives in an apartment behind her daughter’s house so is being well looked after but I don’t wish that on anyone. I am glad the care was available. The recovery will be long. She is a lovely optimistic person and that will help.

Pain is so complicated.

Much to my astonishment I was cleared to get the voice assessment for medical reasons. The appointment is in two weeks. I have this long questionnaire to fill out. I am seeing a speech pathologist and a specialist ENT physician’s assistant. They might put a camera down my throat. It is worth it to find if I have vocal cord damage or if it something I can improve with breathing and vocal exercises and rest.

Yesterday I had a fancy CT scan of my mouth to see if the bone graft set okay and what will happen in my next surgery. That is early November. It is a good thing that Thanksgiving is my least favorite holiday as I will be back to pudding and protein drinks for the duration.

I saw my new friend on the way down to the dental school. She was on her porch talking on the phone, but she recognized me even with a mask on. I told her I couldn’t stop to talk but she said, ah, but now you know where I am.

This next week I need to stop talking about it and actually go to the gym. And the water gets turned off at the garden on Halloween, so I need to mulch and finish putting the plot to bed. I stand across the street from the garden center at a locally owned hardware store and plumbing supply to catch the bus home from the grocery. This morning it was empty. Soon there will be Christmas trees.

The days of this year are rolling out with what feels like a slight downward slope.

Still, I wouldn’t trade them for any other time. Diego, with his chin on my left wrist, agrees.

Last updated October 15, 2022