The Best Street Name, EVAR.

Friends!

It doesn't get any better than this.

xx  

trish

Just had to share this...

Texting for seniors

ATD – At the Doctor’s

BFF – Best Friends Funeral

BTW – Bring the Wheelchair

BYOT – Bring Your Own Teeth

CBM – Covered by Medicare

CUATSC – See You at the Senior Center

DWI – Driving While Incontinent

FWBB – Friend with Beta Blockers

FWIW – Forgot Where I Was

FYI – Found Your Insulin

GGPBL – Gotta Go, Pacemaker Battery Low

GHA – Got Heartburn Again

HGBM – Had Good Bowel Movement

IMHO – Is My Hearing-Aid On?

LMDO – Laughing My Dentures Out

LOL – Living on Lipitor

LWO – Lawrence Welk’s On

OMMR – On My Massage Recliner

OMSG – Oh My! Sorry, Gas

ROFL..CGU – Rolling on the Floor Laughing…Can’t get Up!

TTYL – Talk to You Louder

WAITT – Who Am I Talking To?

WTP – Where’re the Prunes

W2P – Waiting to Pee

WWNO – Walker Wheels Need Oil

Hope these help!

GGLKI – Gotta Go, Laxative Kicking in!

Happy Monday!!

xx

trish

A Funny!

HA!

Thanks, Kyla!

xx

trish

Fall Five Tag

Friends!

I was tagged by the Fabulous Abby to participate in a fun game of virtual tag, wherein I state five goals for Fall.

So I had a little conversation with myself.

Ego:  hmmmmm.  I'm so perfect already, what could I possibly need to do?

Id:  You sack of dog doody, you have TONS of ways to improve!  Like work on your conceitedness...you need to be nicer to people!  For example, when you come home from work--don't pick on your poor spouse if you're tired.

Ego:  OK, you got me there, I'll make a conscious effort to be cheerful when I get home.  So now I'm cool, right?

Id:  Nope.  Far from it.  When are you gonna get off your duff and go back to Pilates class?

Ego:  nyah nyah!  I already signed up for class, it starts in two weeks.  Besides, I've started eating way better and have lost weight.  So there!

Id:  Yeah, but your attempts at cooking are pathetically lame!

Ego:  Well, I did buy a book on easy Chinese cooking, it's in the mail.  I promise to learn how to make some decent vegetarian dishes that taste good.

Id:  Speaking of books, what ever happened to your resolve to start a book list on this blog?

Ego:  I don't know!  I got busy!!  Why do you keep ragging on me?

Id:  It's my job. 

Ego:  Well, you need to lay off, because my last goal is to RELAX and enjoy the lovely Fall weather out on the Catio with The Cats.

I'll keep you posted on how I do!

Oh, and I just finished reading The Hangman's Daughter, it was fantastic!  I got it for $0.99 on my Kindle with the daily deal.  (You have GOT to sign up for the Daily Deal, it rocks.)  Did you know that the job of hangman was a hereditary job in Europe?  Neither did I.

xx

trish

Question of the Day

WHY did I eat so much garlic?  
I'm offending myself!


xx  trish

The Fun that is My Life...

Friends!

The Saga of Steve continues!

Two days ago, his 88 year old Mom (Loli) stood up in the hospital cafeteria, turned the wrong way, fell, and BROKE HER LEG!  Go ahead, take a moment to digest the news.  I know I had to.

OK?

So, the rehab center gets Loli into a wheelchair, and she rolls on down to Steve's room to tell him the news--she insisted--then she was ambulanced across the street to the hospital, where she was admitted with a hairline fracture in her right femur, just below where she broke it once before...have I mentioned she's had both hips and knees replaced?  (Insert expletives here; I did!)  She's a real spitfire, the minute we arrived to see her this morning she was tossing off the sheets and pulling up her gown to show me her leg!  It looked good, too, no terrible bruising and only a little swollen, much better than I expected.  She's refused pain meds except at night to sleep, she says she needs to feel it so she doesn't OVERDO it.  My God.  What a woman.

So, Scott and I spent today conveying stuff to both invalids, and driving Loli's car back to Steve's condo.  Loli is already up, shuffling around with a walker, determined to get back on her feet as soon as possible.  Her primary care physician, by some happy twist of fate is also Steve's--and he moved heaven and earth to get her moved over to the rehab facility where Steve is--tomorrow!  So they can keep each other company and recover together.

Steve can talk now, and today I asked him why he waited so long to go to the doctor.  Long story short, he's been severely and profoundly depressed for some time, and it was only survival instinct that finally drove him out of the house to the hospital.  I haven't discussed this in the Kat's blog but he and I had a falling out some time back over his refusal to recognize that he needed help after a similar hospital episode (not as severe, obviously) a few years back.  I had to set a limit on our friendship because it gave me so much pain and anxiety over his apathy.  So we've been work friends only for some time, and of course that's one place where he was fairly "together" so I never saw how badly he had deteriorated mentally.  I mean, he hasn't had heat or air conditioning at his condo for THREE years.  Because he didn't deserve any comfort.

Fuck.

Even though I told him at the time upfront, honestly, in no uncertain terms why I was pulling back, I am wracked with guilt that I had some part in his spiral down into the abyss.  Because I've been there myself I'm exquisitely in tune with the agony that exists in the pit; and I'm having a hard time coming to grips with the situation.

But I must, and I will.  We cried together a little bit today and resolved that the past is done.  Steve's decided he's not quite ready to die yet, and is determined to try for whatever happiness he can get out of the rest of his life; to quit chasing pipe dreams and could-have-beens.  He says he's ready for therapy to rid himself of his demons, or at least learn to live with them peacefully.  I told him he'd better not be lying to me again, or else.  Translation: I'd kick his ass.

I am wrung out, let me tell you.

Off to bed.

xx

Trish

The Psychiatrist & The Proctologist

The Psychiatrist & The Proctologist

Best friends graduated from medical school at the same time and
decided that, in spite of two different specialties, they would open a
practice together to share office space and personnel.

Dr. Smith was the psychiatrist and Dr. Jones was the proctologist;they
put up a sign reading:
"Dr. Smith and Dr. Jones: Hysterias and Posteriors".
The town council was livid and insisted they change it.

So, the docs changed it to read: "Schizoids and Hemorrhoids" which was
also not acceptable, so they again changed the sign.
"Catatonics and High Colonics" - No go. Next, they tried "Manic Depressives
and Anal Retentives" - thumbs down again. Then came "Minds and Behinds" -
still no good. Another attempt resulted in "Lost Souls and Butt Holes"
- unacceptable again!
So they tried "Analysis and AnalCysts" - not a chance. "Nuts and
Butts" - no way.
"Freaks and Cheeks" - still no good. "Loons and Moons" - forget it.
Almost at their wit's end, the docs finally came up with:
"Dr. Smith and Dr. Jones - Specializing in Odds and Ends". Everyone loved it.

Constipated?

Friends!

I want to show you some fun work stuff.

Let me introduce to you the World's Worst Coffee, guaranteed to rot your gut and clean you out.  This crap must be government surplus coffee from the 30's, it's THAT bad.

And people drink it by the gallon, mainly because it's free.Dysentery is free, too, but you don't see folks lining up for that...

I bring a cup from home.

::bowels doing happy dance::

XX. Trish

A new method

Test

Friends!

I am gonna try to be better about posting now that I have my new phone...now to figure out adding photos!

Trish. XX

I know I'm Bats but--REALLY!?!

Friends!

So, I'm at work this morning, out and about, getting samples for some lab work.  I opened the door to one of the pumping plants and almost stained my shorts when this tiny object fluttered out!  It was a Little Brown Bat.

I bet he passed a little guano, too.

He flittered down to the ground and of course my first thought was: PICTURES!

He was SO tiny and light, and his fur was silky soft.

He had translucent fuzzy wings.

Check out those tiny toes!  They were surprisingly strong.

I didn't get a photo, but when he opened his mouth I saw his teeny-weeny fangs!  Don't worry, he didn't want to drink my blood, Little Brown Bats eat insects.  In fact, there are several bat houses on the property.

He flew off after a few minutes, no doubt cussing me out for disturbing his nap.

xx

trish

Back to Work.

Friends!

You all made me weep.  Shame on you!

Thank you for you encouraging words, love and experiences. I am honored.

 I had three days off from work and indulged in an orgy of cleaning and organization, something I find very Zen and in-the-moment to do.  If I can't have ordered inner space at least my outer space is going to be spic-n-span, dammit.

I don't feel any better, but I'm not any worse.  Holding is good.

And I have some most excellent medicine to ingest later...Scott came home with a chocolate fudge cake today!  Just THINK of how many endorphins I'll get from that.

Better living through chemistry!

xx

trish

The Black Dog

Friends!

I haven't written in a while, and there is a reason for that.

Winston Churchill called his depression "The Black Dog".  It's been such a long time since I've seen my particular canine that I didn't realize it was here.  But it is.  I am depressed.

What this means for me is that life has no joy, no savor, no creativity.

I feel bleak.

Living is an effort and takes all my attention and effort.

I'm incredibly tired, yet I can't sleep, or my sleep is haunted by incredibly vivid and horrifying nightmares.

I'm confused and I can't find words, nouns, names.  It's frustrating trying to express myself.  I can't even compose a decent compound sentence, for cripe's sake.

At least I know what this is and what I need to do, and I'm doing it.  I've done it before.  But it takes time to get better, and I'm an impatient perfectionist.  I hate waiting, yet I must.

Winston Churchill said "If you are going through Hell, keep going."

I intend to keep moving.

Thanks for listening.

xx

trish

I'm Versatile!

Friends!

My fun young friend Maya, author of Butterflies Surround Me, tagged The Katnip Lounge for the Versatile Blogger award.  Thanks, Maya!  I enjoy reading your blog, and your photographs are wonderful, as well.

I decided that The Horde gets entirely too much publicity so I hijacked the award and ran on over here to tattle on myself.

Seven Facts About Me:

1.  I am clinically depressed.  

This has shaped who I am, in a good way.  

2.  Hubby is diagnosed Bi-polar II, and he tends toward the manic side of the spectrum.

Things are never dull at our house.

3.  I don't consider myself beautiful, or even pretty, but I'm OK with that.

  I like who I am.

4.  I'm handy.  I can fix stuff and build things.  

Hubby calls me "A Chick with a dick".

 And he says it with pride!

5.  I also can bake and sew and crochet and do needlework.

Versatile!

6.  I detest cooking, although I can put together a tasty meal.

Killer Italian pot roast, for example.

7.  Choosing between a great book and sex?
I'll never tell...

Tell me something fun about yourselves...

xx

trish

Holy Crap!

Friends!

I got the Explanation of Benefits in the mail for my hysterectomy.

Hang on to your shorts:

SIXTY-SEVEN THOUSAND DOLLARS!

I am so happy I have good health insurance; my total out of pocket expenses were under $300.  

I'm in shock, I really don't know how or what I feel about such a huge sum for removing some worn out female parts...I wonder what I could get for a kidney in good shape?

Hubby has two!

xx

trish

Why I Love My Car

Friends!

Last September Hubby decided I needed a new car.  We had planned to wait another year, but sometimes you have to go with the flow and DO stuff.  I got a 2010 Ford Escape, and it came loaded with everything except the heated leather seats.  It gets great milage, is fun to drive, and has nice get-up-n-go when I need it.  It has a decent sound system...

...and it came with a six month trial subscription to Sirius Radio.

OMG.

My morning commute isn't long, only fifteen minutes, so I don't have much time to get in a couple of good tunes to start my day.  I NEED my morning music as much as coffee.  Maybe even more.  Coming home, I want something instrumental to unwind to, a nice long jam band is perfect.

Allow me to digress.  I grew up in the Chicago area, with a vibrant music scene.  Chi-town blues & jazz clubs, the Opera House,and 492 different ethnic neighborhoods meant lots of good listening on the radio.  Free radio.  Radio stations that specialized in nothing BUT arcane one-hit wonders.  Stations devoted solely to soul.  And never less than four major stations playing current rock and alternative music.  Chicago shaped me into a picky listener, and I thought the whole world was like this, full of wonderful stimulating tunes.  

Then I moved to the cultural wasteland otherwise known as Las Vegas.  

Don't get me started on the lack of decent coffee shops, museums, and crappy overpriced restaurants.  Let's talk about the pathetic selection of free radio stations.  They suck, big time.  Nothing but angst-filled teenagers, i.e. Justin Bieber and his ilk, angry rap, and ho-ridden hip hop.  Oh, and country, which is a dirty word where I come from. (sorry!) There's one "oldies" station, featuring the top 40 from the past 50 years. Like Ive never heard "Hey Jude" before, or even worse, EVERY song ever sung by Journey.  I started listening to National Public Radio to save my sanity.  Which, by the way, is pretty interesting, but definitely not melodious.

Then along comes my new Ford, with satellite radio.

OMG.

It's Nevada living with Chicago choice!  There's stations playing stuff by bands I've never heard of--and I know my bands; Hubby has a music-related business, and we listen to everything we find that's new to us.  There's opera, alternative, blues, rock (new and classic), disco, & soul.  There's CELTIC music for crying out loud!  And three NPR stations, heh heh.

My commutes are complete.

You might ask why I don't just pop in a CD or plug in my MP3 player, and the short answer is that I want something NEW.  Like Reggae played on a pipe organ accompanied by pygmies playing oboes in 5/4 time.  You know, something interesting.

My six months are up on my free Sirius subscription, and you'de be correct if you guessed I subscribed. 

 Twelve bucks a month.

One Satisfied Listener.

Priceless.

And that's what I like best about my new car.

xx

trish

EnRaptured

No words needed.

xx

trish

Dinner

Friends!

We had a few odds-n-ends in the refrigerator, and what better way to use them than an omelette?

Sauteed onion, mushroom and ham, garnished with feta, tomatoes and fresh cilantro.

Heavenly!

xx

trish

SEX!!

Friends!

The answer to the gender of the co-worker I was talking to in my previous post was--

A man!

I am blessed to work in a great place.  We are indoctrinated endlessly with political correctness classes, which we all (mostly) attend and choose to ignore.  There's a general consensus that we're all adults here, and we'll say what we want, including telling somebody off if they make us mad.  So I wasn't threatened or demeaned or anything by a compliment, I took it at face value; this particular person thought I'd look good in a bikini.  Period.

I'm 48, and I grew up on the cusp of women's lib.  My Mom refused to quit her job at a department store when she started "showing" during her pregnancy with me, and after I was born, she worked evenings and my Dad did the parenting.  I'll never forget our fish stick TV dinners with French dressing on the fish, and Dad trying to coax me to eat the peas.  I watched my Mom go to college and have a career, and later earn her Master's degree.  So I had good role-sharing models growing up, at our house there weren't any gender based work assignments. Although  my Mom was (and is) the cleaning fiend of the two. 

We watched a lot of public television at my house, and back in the 70's that meant NOVA and other science-based shows.  In school, I gravitated towards geeky classes like chemistry and Latin.  It's funny now, the dichotomy of me--I was a good student and loved learning, yet I was, *ahem* a wild child.  Which meant I spent a lot of time with the male sex.  Actually, I've always had more male friends than female; in fact, blogging is the first time I've ever connected with so many women!  In person I gravitate to men, and it's not a sexual thing.  I simply find them interesting, perhaps since they're fairly transparent.  WYSIWYG's.  I feel more comfortable in a room full of men versus a room full of women.

Which is not a bad thing when you major in biochemistry in college, because often I was the lone female in ANY of my classes.  I had a professor tell me that women didn't belong in science.  Jerk.  I got an "A" in his class.

But back to my work environment.  It's mostly guys.  The first couple of months were spent establishing personal boundaries, which was refreshingly addressed by outright asking me would I be insulted by thus and such.  Of course not, but it was polite to ask, and if I had girl things to talk about I did the same.  It's that way for everybody here.  Some of us have encountered discrimination; me in school, or racial bias, or age.  It makes for interesting discussions--two days a week I work with a guy who remembers having to drink out of "Colored" water fountains in California and going to segregated schools.  Mainly we talk about sports, he knows every player on every team (ever!) and we have a great time on shift.  And it's the same with the rest of the crew.  Sometimes, a girl in a bikini is just a girl in a bikini.

By the way, if you know a really good dirty joke, I'd love to hear it.

xx 

trish

 

What do you think?

Friends!

I have a question.

I had an interesting conversation with a co-worker a while back, it started when they asked me how I was recovering from my surgery. We got to talking about getting older, our bodies going to pot, food, diets et cetera.  At one point I said something about the bruises and scars on my stomach and that they really didn't matter to me, it wasn't like I was going to be wearing a bikini any time soon anyway.  To which my co-worker replied that no way would I look bad in a bikini, and I should wear one if I want to.  Then we sequed onto another topic.

Pretty nice compliment, I thought later.

Now, my question: 

 Would you feel any different receiving a compliment from a male or female co-worker? 

Leave me a comment and I'll reveal if my co-worker was a guy or gal in my next post!

xx

trish

How Long Will it Grow?

Friends!

In keeping with my fashion-rebellious lifestyle, last fall when it got cold (that's below 80 F for me) I decided, just for kicks, to quit shaving my legs to see what would happen, hair-wise.

Let me qualify this by saying that except for my head, I'm not terribly hirsute.  I don't have to shave the 12 lone stragglers under my arms, and the backs of my calves are bare naturally.  But the scientist in me was interested (in a sick and twisted sort of way) in  just how long leg hair would grow.  

So I hung my razor out to dry early last November.  No problem.  I'm a shaving sloth anyway.  The first couple of weeks was fine, and then it was Long Sock Season.  Hubby was vaguely aware of my "project" as I called it, but really didn't pay attention until one day in early February  when we were cruising down the highway and I said "Check out my hairy legs!  It's really getting LONG!" and pulled up my pants leg.

Scott almost drove off the road.

I ended up deforesting my legs the week before my surgery.  In four months the hair grew an inch and a half...and I think it was still getting longer.  My question is, would it have grown forever?  Or is there some predetermined terminal length?  Inquiring Scientific minds want to know.


xx

Trish

Blast from the Past

Friends!

An old Navy buddy scanned and sent Hubby some photos...

here's one of the man I married:

Scott is the handsome young buck on the left.

30 years later, he still looks the same to me!

OK, maybe not exactly the same--the coif has disappeared and the Fred the parrot has faded, but other than that...well, my heart still beats faster when I'm on the way home.

xx

trish

Horticulture at Work

Friends!

Whew, it's been a while.

First off, thank you for all your comments on my last post.  I'm honored to "know" so many intelligent and independent women.  I thoroughly enjoyed reading all your different points of view.  (Or should that be "point of views"?)  

So today I had to be at work at 3 AM, to cover the last half of grave shift and then work mine.  I knew I'd be stir crazy by noon (too right!) so I grabbed my camera on the way out the door and took a break after lunch to shoot the flowers on the grounds at work.

et voila! 

Prickly Pear cactus with Brittlebush 

The obligatory cactus flower!

I need a better macro...

Brittlebush blooms and Indigo flowers

A double blossom!

Indigo flowers.

Globe Mallow.

This flower is very tiny, only about a half inch across.

Desert Willow.

Desert Willow, the sneezy version!

Pink Penstemmon.

Tomorrow it's back to work again at 3 AM, we shall see how creative I feel by the evening!

xx

trish

Vanity, thy Name is not Trish

Friends!

I want to talk about how we women are pushed into thinking we're not that great, after all.

I know what you're thinking--"I'm great, and nobody pushes ME around!"  But think about it.  How much time and money do women spend on having their hair cut, styled and colored?   Make-up, the stuff that inevitably gives you zits and maybe cause you to scrutinize your wrinkles a little more than what's healthy--why do we wear it?  Whe do we starve ourselves, work out insanely, and have plastic surgery?

WHY?

I know that our species is prgrammed to decorate itself.  I get that.  That's what clothes are for.

I also realize that we're all competative, except for maybe the Daili Lama.  So I understand the need to stand out and be better.  But who defines "better"?  Companies that want to sell you stuff.  Often useless, sometimes dangerous, purse draining products.  And we women buy it--their stuff, along with the dream of an ultimate look, body, whatever. 

Ladies, I bought into the dream for years.  I did the hair, the nails, the make up, the starving.  In college at school I barely ate--this was the 80's and waif thin was the way to go.  How was I gonna look good if, god forbid, I weighed over 100 pounds and had bad hair and no makup and nude nails?  All the ads in magazines and on TV said I had to be a certain way to be "right".  Ads that very subtly said that if I didn't look a particular way, there was something fundamentally wrong with me.  If I got a wrinkle or forgot to tweeze my brows, it was a character fault.  If I graduated from a size 3 into a size 8 I was a hedonistic overeating slob.  A person who didn't strive to be perfect.

I don't do perfect.  I do happy.  And I work very hard on happy, every single day. 

My whole life I've been clinically depressed and anxious.  I've had a few tumbles into the abyss, one of which came perilously close to a trip to a room where the doors lock only on the outside.  And a lot of it, I see now, is my own damn fault.  First and foremost is simply being stubborn and not wanting to admit I need medication.  I'm past that.  Secondly, and more insiduously is the constant drone in the background:  "You could be Better!  You could be Prettier!  You could Improve Yourself!" the soul sucking sussuration of society.  Nowadays, I refuse to listen, and strangely enough, I have my job to thank for that.

 Work, along with providing a living, has pared me down and weaned me from self ornementation.  Some of my shedding has been practical; i.e. there's no good reason to get all dolled up for a graveyard shift.  I wear a hard hat a lot...practical ponytail to the rescue.  No fancy nails cause I get dirty sometimes.  Oh, and I wear a uniform, so no clothes worries.  Plus, I work with people who value me for my skills, not skillful make up.  After work?  Hubby loves me as I am, no matter what I look like.  And so do I.

Finally.


I would LOVE to hear your thoughts...please leave me a comment!


xx

trish


UPDATE:  Keep the comments coming!  I want to do another related post and I need your input!
Hurrah for friends!

Back to the Salt Mines

Friends!

Well here I am, back at work after a month off.  Naturally, the first day I forgot my keys and badge, but at least I remembered my lunch!  I had to mortgage my soul to Security to get entry and a spare key...who runs this place, anyway?  The security here is pants.  I hope to regain my vital essence when I turn in the key at 15:00...especially since it only opened about half the doors I needed it to.  Guess who has a note in their bag that says "KEYS!!!" on it?

So, first thing, I sat down, and couldn't remember my password to get on the computer.  No problem, there's a workaround, but then the system didn't like any of the NEW passwords I selected.  Stupid technology...when I finally got logged on there was an email from the IT team stating that the password requirements had been tightened up.  Sheesh.  No wonder I had such a hard time.

I read a month's worth of mail in about ten minutes.

I read a month's worth of log entries in another ten.

I ate my sandwich and walked around the plant.

And now I'm bored.

Before my surgery I was afraid I was going to go batshit with boredom.  The funny thing is, it didn't happen!  I dug deep and discovered heretofore unknown reservoirs of lazyness.  At first I resisted, reading books and doing small odd jobs to combat ennui, and then, as time wore on, I caved into the compulsion to nap.  From there it was just one small step to sleeping late, and a tiny nudge into wearing pajamas all day.

I was actively lazy for three weeks, and boy, was it ever great!  No deadlines, no compulsion to clean, no nothing!  Just hang out, watch the Cats, and enjoy life.
How soon to retirement?

Gutsy!

Friends!

I've got guts!  

I know, because I saw the pictures.

It was cool, I'm all pink and healthy under my skin.  It was fascinating to SEE what lurks inside of me...

I went in for a follow up with the surgeon, and he had photos of my innards...as well as the stuff that became my outards.   I had several large fibroids in my uterus, and a cyst the size of golf ball on my left ovary.  No wonder I had pain all the time in my guts!  In fact, it's kind of strange not having that constant ache all the time.  Not that I miss it, but I do notice it's no longer there.

Everything came back benign, hurrah!

So the weather here has finally turned to Spring...it's been in the 80's on the Catio in the afternoons, perfect for reading and napping on the chaise.  Yup, I've found my lazy groove.  And here I thought I was going to be bored!  Riiiiiiight.  

Looks like I have the guts to handle ennui, after all!

xx

trish

Unglued!

Friends,

This is it.

I have come UNGLUED!

Rather, my incisions have.

After two long, itchy weeks the last of the surgical glue peeled off today in the shower.  What a relief!  I still have a couple of stitches poking out which are supposed to dissolve and fall off.  We shall see how long I can put up with them poking before I do a little creative surgery myself.  Any bets?

I went to the Doc today for a check-up and as I was going into a room he went running out of the office, to attend at an emergency C-section.  I rescheduled for another day...I sure hope the Mom and baby are OK.  I was cleared to drive...which I've already done.  What a rebel, I putted over to the grocery store--pretty tame.

I finished "The Emperor of all Maladies".  An excellent book--you would think a history of cancer would be dry and boring but I was fascinated.  I've also read "Unbroken"--the life of Louis Zampirini, Olympic champion and WWII Japanese POW.  What a powerful book, I stayed up way late to finish it.  This one will go on my top 10 list for 2011.  I have some fiction written by women in the 1940's on my nightstand, more on those later.

So my convalescence is passing pretty well.  The cats are thrilled to have me home, it means another person at their beck and call all day, and usually a lap with a blanket on it is available, too.  And nothing heals better than a purring cat.

xx

trish

Yes Virginia, it DOES Snow in Arizona!

Friends!

My Mom and Dad had snow at their house three weeks ago...they live just north of Tucson.

Here's a few shots my Mom sent me:

Looking off the back patio towards the Catalina Range.

The Texas Ranger.

View out the front...check out the snow on the palms!

Of course it was all melted by noon...but it was pretty while it lasted.  I teased 'em and asked if they had to buy a shovel...Always the concerned daughter.

heh heh.

So you folks up north, don't feel bad, it snowed everywhere this winter!

xx

trish

Surgery for Dummies

Friends!

I'm back in the land of the living.

Here's a little account of my experience:

Hubby and I arrived at the hospital at 8:45 AM.  I had checked in and settled up the previous afternoon so we went right up to surgery, where we waited a little while, less than a half hour.  The pre-op nurse, Pam, came to get me and she did THE best job inserting an IV needle ever.  Even though it hurt going in (I think that part is the worst) I had no bruising on my hand.  She helped me on with compression hose (for blood clot prevention) and got me settled in with warm blankets.  Hubby came in to wait with me until it was time to go.

Surgery was scheduled at 10:00 and by 10:20 I was wheeled away down to the OR suites.  I saw my surgeon, Dr. Vyas, the anesthesiologist, Dr. Chuck, and my OR nurse, Bethany.  They all individually made sure I was who I was, that I was indeed born on my birthday, and what parts I was there to have removed.  I passed all the quizzes and was rewarded with more warm blankets.  Naturally, as soon as I was all warm and cozy Bethany moved me into the OR and welcomed me to "The IceBox".  (It's cold in there so the patient's metabolism slows down.)  Dr. Chuck asked me about my job as I swapped guerneys...

*

*

*

...and I woke up in recovery.

The recovery room is really nice and warm.  The nurses talk to you in loud voices, and keep waking you up.  I didn't mind; one of the times I was awake I learned how to use the PCA pump, heretofore referred to as "the Button".  The Button, when pressed, delivered unbelievably good medicine (dilaudid) into my brain.  I was in pain, but hot damn!, I just didn't care.  

The next thing I remember is my room, and the nurse fussing over me and Hubby arriving.  I was stoned out of my mind by this point...Hubby says I was pretty happy...so did my folks when I called them as well as a couple of friends.  The Button allowed itself to be pressed every 10 minutes, and by golly, I can tell time.  Hubby fed me apple sauce, and I had so much fun waiting for the plane (spoon) to arrive laden with yummy mush.

Then it was night.  Pete, my night nurse, put compression cuffs on my calves which alternately squeezed and relaxed my legs, moving the blood around.  It sounds torturous, but was actually very soothing and kept my feet nice and warm because of the forced circulation.  The nursing aide, Marcos, came in and took my vitals; he joked that he'd see the nuns in my room in the morning as my blood pressure and heart rate were so low.  In between interruptions I pressed the Button, drank cranberry juice, and slept.

In the morning I felt pretty good as long as I didn't move, which of course everybody wanted me to do.  After  breakfast--eggs, bacon, juice, coffee and a muffin--the day nurse Irma cajoled ordered me out of bed and we cruised the halls for a bit.  Dr. Oliver (another surgeon) came in to see me and give me the thumbs-up for release.  Irma removed the catheter and IV.  I went back to bed, ate an excellent lunch, and had a long nap.  I woke up in some "discomfort" and I was given a pain pill...not the Button's caliber of pain-killer, I can attest.  Another nap, and Hubby reappeared, this time to take me home.  I was a little afraid to go home, I wasn't sure I'd be OK, I was really hurting by now.  But home we went, and four days later I'm feeling fine as frog's hair.  I've got some nasty bruises around my incisions, but no stitches--the Docs glued me shut!  I took one more pain pill the night I got home and after that I haven't needed them.  I imagine by next week I'll be bored out of my mind.  Thank goodness for all of you to keep me occupied.  Thanks for thinking of me this week.  Thanks for all your cards and emails and comments.  They mean the world to me.

Thank-you Hubby, for being my rock.

And Thank-you Pam, Drs. Vyas, Chuck, & Oliver, Bethany, Pete, Marcos, and Irma for taking such good care of me when my life was in your hands.

xx

trish

A Fine Example of Frugalness

Friends!

Last Tuesday I went for my pre-surgical appointment with my Doctor to discuss stuff concerning my hysterectomy.  On the way out, he gave me two prescriptions to fill. 

DAMN.

I thought I'd escaped without having to perform the Dreaded Bowel Prep.  But no, in my hand were orders for a bottle of magnesium citrate and an enema.

DAMN, DAMN, DAMN, DAMN.

Crap.

Oh wait, that comes later!

So I'm at the pharmacy, standing in front of the (well marked and obviously displayed) LAXATIVE & CONSTIPATION AIDS aisle.  I thought at 48 I was beyond embarrassment but apparently, this is not the case.  First up, the mag citrate, one bottle.  Three flavors to choose from...which one will taste the least awful?  I went for the lemon which had a happy jaunty lemon slice on the label, to help fool you into thinking that the salty, icky poop-spewing liquid was ENJOYABLE to drink.  Like, you would choose to drink that over say, a nice top shelf margarita.  Right.

Next, the enema.

Friends, I want you to know I am NOT an enema expert.  In fact, I think I could be termed an enema novice, if not in fact an enema virgin.  (Mom, you could correct me on this one, but please don't.)  Fortunately, the pharmacy only had two to chose from, the regular and the store brand.  And here's where you get to learn how cheap I am.

They were on sale!  YES!

If you bought two, you could save forty cents on EACH ONE for a total savings of EIGHTY cents.  God, the things I could do with eighty cents.  And if I only purchased one, it was going to cost more than the sale price.  But what in the world do I need a second enema for?  Hubby?  A friend?  A contest prize?  Furthermore, what kind of sick bastard pharmacy puts ENEMAS on sale, for cripe's sake?  Like, there you are, reading the Sunday ads, and you see this:  "Fleet enemas, buy one, get one FREE!"  I bet the door doesn't even hit you on the ass on the way out.

But back to my dilemma; getting two cheap or one more expensively.  Friends, I splurged and only got one.  That was several days ago, and as you can tell, the whole thing is still bugging me.

In fact, it's becoming a pain in my...patootie.

Surgery Tuesday morning at 10 am PST!!

Talk to y'all soon,

xx

trish

A Weird Day

Friends!

Hubby is usually always home.  He works out of the house and herds Kats all day.  (Hard to say which one is more time consuming...)  Today though, he was GONE!  He went to help a buddy paint a rental house that the previously tenants had totally trashed.  In our former lives Hub and I had rentals and managed a couple more units, so we're old hands at turning a property in minimum time on a budget.

ANYWAY, I had the day off and it was WEIRD having the house to myself.  Quiet.  I had to go and do some pre-op stuff like bloodwork and an EKG so I was in and out, and whenever I got home there were MANY pairs of eyes on me and hundreds of toes drumming, as if to say "where have you been and why aren't you waiting on us?"

 I have new respect for the Chief Kat Wrangler at the Katnip Lounge.  These little buggers are demanding!

Six days to surgery!

xx

trish

ack! argh!!

Friends, 

I've neglected all y'all these past few days.  You know that thing, "Life"?  Well, it's been happening a lot recently and I've just been freakin' BUSY!

I have some great ideas for posts, just no time to write.

I'm actually looking forward to being laid up for a while to pursue some sedendary things; reading, writing, and SLEEPING.

I finished "The Lonely Polygamist" and was very happy with the book, I'll certainly reread it in the future.  The prose, changing points of view, as well as the loose ends (I could use my own imagination), were very satisfying. I just started a non-fiction history of cancer titled "The Emperer of all Maladies", which so far has been fantastic!  I was sucked in by the second page.

I have a Kindle (thanks Scott!) which I use for the majority of my reading...but I got some spending money for my Birthday (thanks Mom & Dad!) and I indulged in some actual BOOKS, more on those later.  As much as I enjoy a library, I love Amazon.com even more.  That "one-click shopping" is almost as good as chocolate...

One week to surgery!

xx  

trish

War is Hell...and so is Work!

Friends!

Sorry I've been MIA the past couple of days; I've been wiped out from work.

Which is atypical.

Normally, my day consists of watching several computer screens, monitoring the water treatment process, and a little light walking around to check on things.  Nothing too strenuous, mentally or physically. Just the ability to deal with a little boredom when things run right and and a splendid pair of buttock callouses.

BUT...(and you knew this was coming) one of the two treatment plants I operate has been down for yearly maintenance this past five weeks, and since I have the most experience running it (and because I opened my big mouth--when will I learn?) I "got" to start up the plant today.  Yesterday was making sure all systems were operational and today was the actual start-up; from zero to 75 million gallons per day in two hours flat.

Aaaaaiiiieeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!

Did I mention that I ALSO have excellent clenching ability in my splendidly calloused buttocks?  Starting up the plant is like grabbing a Tiger by the tail; all you can do is hold on and steer.  Really, it all went quite well and when my relief came in (we run 24/7) I was able to hand off operations in good shape.

However, I'm wiped out.

Spent.

Fork Tender!

I'm off to bed to continue reading "The Lonely Polygamist" by Brady Udall. 

 It's excellent!

xx

trish

You Girls are GREAT!

Friends!

All of you go and eat a great big piece of chocolate.  Right now.

No really...you deserve it for donating your uteri to science and reporting back to me with your experiences.

I can't tell you how reassuring it is to hear from all y'all.

Thanks!

Here's a chuckle for the upcoming Spring:

Hubby says he needs a quart...hmmmmmmm.

xx

trish

Hoping y'all can help me...

Friends!

Look who I caught napping!

My lazy bums.

Actually, Hubby is gonna be pretty busy soon--February 22 I'm having my useless lady plumbing removed (FINALLY!!) and he'll have his hands full taking care of me for a bit.

Have any of you had the procedure done?  It's gonna be laproscopic, so no big incision, and the OB/GYN is going to take my ovaries and cervix, too.  I took five weeks off of work and I'm hoping that will be enough.

BUT,

I'm a little nervous, especially the anesthesia part--the whole lack of control thing and the fear of never waking up.  Maybe I can get a hefty Demerol shot before surgery, LOL!

And what about hot flashes and stuff?  I already sweat through a few T-shirts a night so I can't imagine anything getting worse, I hope.

So, any advice?

Thanks!

xx

trish

Something Warm on Wednesday

Hello Friends!

Even though we didn't get the terrible snow here in Las Vegas, it's freezingdamncold (for us) here...only 28F at 9 AM!  I'm on the sofa with three Cats and my new snuggie and we are all cozy warm.

I thought I'd better post something warm and cheery--

Mister Bee Pollinating in the Lemon Tree!

Stay safe and warm.

xx  

trish

Sublime

I had a zen moment this morning, driving to work in the dark, just me, the crescent Moon, and Venus rising.   The radio on, rockin' out to Led Zepplin's "Kashmir".  Eight minutes and thirty-two seconds of perfection.

I am so happy to be alive today, my birthday.  Forty-eight years on Earth in this form and almost 14 billion years in existence for my elements.  And who knows what they've been in between...

I'm enjoying the journey.

Kashmir

Oh let the sun beat down upon my face
With stars to fill my dream.
I am a traveler of both time and space
To be where I have been.

To sit with elders of a gentle race
This world has seldom seen.
They talk of days for which they sit and wait
When all will be revealed.

xx

trish

A Blast from the Past

The Happy Van

My Hubby painted this van in 1999, back when we lived in Illinois.

We're a couple of hippy dippy dudes, for sure!  We had a blast driving it around town, I've never had so many offers to go smoke a doob in my life from strangers.  Too bad I don't smoke...

You can't see the plate in this photo but it read FLSHBCK.  I'll hunt around for some more pics, this thing was a trip!

 We sold it when we moved to Vegas, on eBay.  Two guys from Eau Claire Wisconsin came down to pick it up--a good eight hour drive each way from our old house.  I guess they were hippy dippy dudes, too.

Have a great Sunday!

xx  

trish

My Secret Vice

Friends, I have a confession to make.

I love Ru Paul's "Drag Race"!

There.  I've admitted it.

And if you want some unbelievably campy fun, watch the show!

xx

trish

Day Off

So I took a day off from work, only to be a total SLAVE at home!

My plan for the day:

sleep in--check

leisurely breakfast--check

read for a couple hours...

Here I deviated.

What I did today:

laundry, 3 loads

emptied, filled, and emptied dishwasher

changed sheets

cleaned up various kitty-related messes

alphabetized and filed apx 500 cassette tapes  for our business

How does this take up an entire day?

At least I had a couple of cups of excellent coffee for fuel and Hubby and I went out for dinner, wood-fired hamburger and home-made potato chips...YUM!

I'm off for the next three days, we'll see if I actually sit down and rest.

xx

trish

Monday, Monday

Although today is my Tuesday, I have to deal with folks and THEIR Monday today at work.  Buncha whiny crankypants!  Try getting up at 4:30 AM on Sunday...then we'll talk.

Da Bears lost their bid to play in the Superbowl.  I am so disappointed but not really surprised.  I'm a Chicago Cubs fan too so I'm used to being *this* close and then losing; the Cubbies haven't won a pennant in over 100 years.  Not that I've been alive that long.  Yet. 

I'm gonna root for the Steelers to win in two weeks.  Lousy Green Bay Packers, grumblegrumblegrumble.

The "new" Great room's feng shui is good!  All of Saturday's hard work paid off.  Felix is starting to accept the changes, he's a hard nut to crack.  May Ling and Sweet Pea have called a temporary truce until they can figure out the best ways to stalk and attack one another.  But the BEST part is this:  the remote that controls the TV's sound system Does Not Work from where Hubby sits--so I get to control the volume!!!  He claims he's not deaf but you would never know it...

My desk is against the green wall...and please note the Cat bed on the table!

xx  

trish

Deranged

So, I had a wild idea yesterday and said, "What if we move the dining table..."

AND THEY'RE OFF!!

Hubby and I spent three hours rearranging our Great room.  We do all our "living" there, it's a combo kitchen, living room, and two offices.  We swapped our two desks, moved the dining table, shifted the sofa and chairs, and wore ourselves out after three hours.  Needless to say everything got dusted and mopped and vacuumed in the process; and we had ALL kinds of helpful Cats except during the vacuuming.

Felix and Johnny slept through the entire process out on the Catio (it was 70 here in the afternoon) and when they woke up to come in for supper there was much rubbernecking...obviously if the furniture had moved there were MONSTERS in the house.  They looked like a couple of feline cobras assessing if it was safe.

Oh, I forgot to mention the feeding station was moved too, much to Johnny's consternation!  Once he found that he was cool with the changes.  Felix, on the other hand, made several passes through the area that evening, flicking his tail in obvious displeasure.  Change equals Bad in his world.

Hubby and I however, like the new arrangement, and Felix spends most of his time on the Catio...so it's all good!

Reverend Spooner

One thing I love is wordplay.

I've always enjoyed reading and writing, but I never did a lot of verbal wordplay until I got together with my Hubby, who is a huge talker and punster and introduced me to the joys of Spoonerism.

On my other blog, there was a great comment on the cat's potty habits post;  the ever witty Old Kitty Spoonerized "sturdy tools" into "Turdy Stools" which is CLASSIC, on so many levels.

(I gotta admit, I love poop jokes.)

Hubby and I have a few favorites:

Slow Moving becomes Mo Slooving

Taking a shower...Shaking a tower...or just "shake"

That band The Black Crows?     Crack Blows!!

and the coup de grace--

Slacking off on the Job...Jacking off on the Slob...bwahahahaha!

xx

  trish