And yet another new treatment!

The rites of spring

Found a place online to order these through and would get them for Mom on Mothers Day. Took her some freshly prepared shrooms up to her in hospice the year she died. I took the cover off the dish and let her get a whiff and she smiled her beautiful smile, the smell alone took her back to easier times! While it is nice to just answer the doorbell and find a couple of lb.s nicely boxed, I think it would be even nicer to see my Grandpa at the door telling me to get my boots on, we’re going shroom hunting! He was only about 5’6″ and weighed 300 lb.s so didn’t get around well anymore, I was his legs. We would take off bouncing down the gravel roads through the woods and he’d stop and point and send me up over a little ridge and tell me to check around a stump on the other side and I’d generally come back with a bag full. But the taste is still pretty darned sweet!

Back into Mr. Peabody’s wayback machine again.

The week that was

Found myself another physical/manual therapist this week, had a practice opening a new office and they had a shoulder and rotator cuff pain seminar, was impressed enough to go in for an evaluation and get some hands on work done. I’m not how they decide to keep up with the manual work or not but can tell you the best success I’ve had is with someone willing to dig in and unlock the nerves and muscles I have bound up to help me move again. Last practice I went to would only treat the area that my referral was written for (per insurance regulations.) This new practice has their own Dr. so I guess it doesn’t apply. Sam has been checking me overall, seeing how I’m moving and checking strength and has found problem areas without me having to tell him where. Am already moving more easily and not having my back spasms. Have stayed away from my workouts at the rec center but felt my legs were getting week so went back in today but modified my usual workout to add some of my assigned exercises from Sam and feel pretty good considering. Some extra pain in my right glute I’ll mention when I’m back in on Wed. and see if Sam has any ideas. Been windy and cold here so haven’t gotten the pups out to the park in over a week, not supposed to be much better this week so we’ll just hope they don’t go stir crazy on me. Was torn on watching the game tomorrow, not much interest in pro sports here of late. The Bronco’s have gotten almost too bad to watch, not much on basketball or hockey and the idiots running the Rockies just gave away a once in a lifetime player and $50 million for 4 players I’ve never heard of before . . . They aren’t gonna see any of my money for tickets or merch until we get some competent management!!!Went by a couple of small Italian restaurants/markets for something to nosh on. Calamari sticks, fried ravioli, mozzarella sticks, and sausage rolls with some of Grammy’s Sunday gravy for dipping and I’m not ashamed to say a couple of cannoli for dessert. Mahomes is fun to watch so have something there anyway.

Oh the irony!

Spent a good part of my life imbibing about any substance I could find to help alter my conscious state. Discovered after my brain bleed that I really don’t enjoy the feeling anymore so have stayed away from drink and fight my medical practitioners on any meds they prescribe, or at least I research them for myself before starting them. Got a bottle of Percoset after my shoulder surgery when I first got out and only took 2 of them, didn’t like the idea of walking down a hallway bouncing off the walls and banging the shoulder up. Have dabbled a little with our medicinal pot here to help with pain with mixed results. Found a strain that was indica that did help with my back spasms but after the first 1/8 I got the next ones had more head high to them which I can’t do anymore. Found a THC syrup a couple of years ago that would help tame my back spasms down without the head high. Went in search of a second bottle when the first was running low and couldn’t find any, even their website listed on the bottle disappeared, continued to look and found another brand that I tried, but again, when that bottle was getting low and I went in search of, I initially couldn’t find any, so did a more comprehensive internet search and found a place that carried it, turned out to be the same location as the despensary where I found the original stuff and lo and behold, they carried both types. Talked to the lady who helped me and she said that the people who made them were originally a couple who split up and both started their own companies making syrup. Tried a bottle of the original and took a slight capful as the spasms were going pretty well. Laid back on the couch to watch TV and BOOM, the head high came on. Almost fell over the coffee table when I stood up, maybe I need to go back and buy a bottle of the other brand name and see if it helps. Had found some mints listed at my usual store I buy from that were 10mg of indica per mint and had a similar experience, I just can’t do the head high anymore which is alright but I like the ones that kill the back spasms! Maybe I need to get my system back up to be able to handle the again.

In a rut!

Decided some 25-30 years back that I was more scared of being bored to death than worked to death and since then, if I woke up 5 days in a row dreading going to work, it was time for a change, not only did I change jobs a number of times but completely changed fields as well, stuck to my ideas on this and it paid off in a multitude of ways. I was always pretty happy so bosses, coworkers, and customers always loved dealing with me, somehow this translated into being better paid over the years so compensation headed up nicely! Life wasn’t perfect but it turned out pretty well until this silly stroke and bleed knocked me on my ass. My job now is to get myself better and that’s been what I’ve been working towards for 11+ years. Problem is I’m getting tired of it! Not sure what to do to shake myself out of this feeling!

Frustrations

I’ve lead a fairly blessed life, things generally came pretty easily for me, I was able to excel at most anything I picked up and got interested in. I don’t spend a whole lot of time in a pity party for myself but it still stings on occasion that I can remember how things used to come to me that I just can’t do anymore, was down to a single digit handicap golfing but balance issues and lingering problems on my left side make it hard to play all out and I don’t like giving a half-assed effort. Still work around my yard and garden, may take a bit longer to do some things but I’m really not in a hurry anymore! Always regretted not learning to play an instrument with my love of music. Inherited a couple of nice guitars from my stepdad tom when he died and tried online stuff and a couple of classes that didn’t take for me. Finally found a guy and took a few lessons and enjoyed them, he didn’t just throw books or chord sheets for John Denver songs at me, instead teaching me chords commonly used in rock and blues and had graduated to learning blues scales and learned to play along with YouTube videos. Never was able to spend the hours necessary for it to become second nature for me, too many issues with my left wrist, arm, and shoulder to practice comfortably. Still keep one of the guitars in my living room and get the urge to take it out and try again, I just can’t completely give up!

Sunday

Woke up this morning to temps in the mid 30’s and drizzle. Got my normal morning stuff done, shower, paper, soak in the spa, and breakfast and had 2 puppies eyeballing me so grabbed my rain slicker out of the closet and off we went to the puppy park. Thankfully no mud there which might have dissuaded me so zipped up and gave them their run around the fence line and chased a few balls across the center, not too many other folks there with the weather being kinda dicey. I don’t let that much bother me, too many outside jobs in my past, you just grab the right clothes and go to it. Came home and threw a nice roast in to braise with some veggies and now have to go eat some of that! It’s truly a wonderful life!!!

Final day for the farmers market this season.

Paid a visit to my favorite farmers market here today as they are shutting down for the season after today, I enjoy going and browsing and seeing what they have to offer. Have a lady that makes mini quiches of varying flavors as well as baking breads, got 3 more quiches to offset my normal bacon and eggs for breakfast and tried a loaf of her sourdough to see how it is, another baker that does different breads and some sweetbreads, she had a honey mesquite bread today which sounded interesting, says there is cheddar cheese in it with a honey glaze, I like to see what inspires such interesting combos as I do some odd seeming additions myself sometimes, she also has pumpkin breads, reg. and with chocolate chips, I mentioned my fondness for chipotle with pumpkin and saw a sparkle on her eye . . . maybe next year she’ll add that! A Mexican family that makes and sells tamales, tortillas, and salsas. Tortillas are fabulous, can’t go back to commercially produced after you’ve had homemade! Got a mole salsa from them which sounded interesting, suggested to them adding pumpkin to one. Fun to talk to the talented people that make these things! Always trying to further my education!

The continuing follies of domesticating Lady.

Got brave yesterday, went to rec center and worked out in the morning early then came home to Lady wigging out from being locked up in the house again. I can’t leave in the morning now, she thinks we’re headed to the park for her to run and play again. Felt bad about her when I got back and after sitting for a few on the couch, got her strapped in and into the car. Got brave/stupid and tried the big park closer to home for me . . . bad call, let her off the leash and she was off and running down the same path she went down on our initial trip there, a different vibe at this park, lots of people still have their dogs on leash, not a lot of ball throwing and chasing which I depend on Lady running along with other dogs after balls, she don’t do tricks like fetch, you want it, go get it yourself! Caught up to her and got her back on leash after about a mile and then headed back to the parking lot and the car to head home, my body wasn’t real happy over the double workout I’d put it through but headed home, have to stop in the driveway to get her out of the car cause my garage isn’t that big. Had the leash a little to slack in my hand and whoosh, a bunny rabbit appeared and she was off after it. Down around the circle and headed up towards the next street and a couple of neighbors were out in their front yards and saw her and tried herding her back my way. Got her headed back but she wouldn’t slow down long enough for any of us to grab the leash. She paused briefly by the driveway then was off like a flash up the other side of the circle drive we live on. Once again, had a neighbor in his frint yard who cut her off and got her headed back in my direction. I had left the garage door open and guess she’d had enough and wanted a drink so headed it the garage and waited by the door into the house. Back to the smaller park again next trip, have appointments the next two days so she won’t be getting out again til Friday at least! Even my hips hurt from so much walking yesterday.