Thursday

I had trouble sleeping and was up often, which proved how much hydration was possible. I rose around 8 and started finding liberal coffee and a NYC bagel (thanks, Joyce) with cream cheese for breakfast. I took my last doses of steroids in the morning and at noon. My blood felt like it was boiling. My blood pressure was up, and my heart was beating faster. It is not at dangerous levels but uncomfortable.

I wrote the blog for the first few hours in the morning, cleaned up, and dressed. I finished the blog and decorated it with some photos. I was done just as PT arrived. Today, it was a morning visit.

My vitals, as I have mentioned, were high but not dangerous, and we went over my trip details and my balance issues, which I have developed coping strategies for. PT was happy that I was being careful and that my Bell’s Pasley seemed to be fading. We even took a tour of the roses in the backyard, which allowed PT to see me move on uneven surfaces and speak and direct at the same time. All good.

PT had me use the stationary bike for five minutes, keeping to a 50 rpm speed and low-stress usage. That is now twice a day. We also did my exercises, and PT thinks I need to build up my butt muscles if for no reason to keep my pants on. Funny! I will take my blood pressure before doing exercises (I have a cuff) to make sure I am safe (Friday=128/78, so better).

After PT, I headed to Elephants’s Delicatessen to meet Scott. Scott and I try to keep our weekly meetings. We manage about one every other week. We talked about my health, Scott’s trips, and opportunities that have arisen. It is fun to just chat and stay connected.

I returned in Air Volvo to the Volvo Cave and checked over the recipe I decided to cook. It is a spicy and messy pasta dish from the NY Times—sort of stuffed pasta that was never stuffed and thrown together. It is also bright and spicy, not the hours of cooking for the sauce to create levels of flavor. Also, I don’t have a pan I want to use for the finish, so I will move it all to a large glass dish and bake it.

I’m off to Trader Joe’s to get some things. I need a 28-oz can of peeled tomatoes and a 14-oz can of crushed tomatoes. I also found some lovely bread, wine, and fresh basil. I also got a few frozen Indian dishes, as I like theirs. Back to the house and cooking.

Spicy sausage is fried with chopped yellow pepper (just for looks). I pound fennel to release its flavor. I mix more spices, but not much; just dried oregano and sliced garlic are added. I cook all that in the now-browning meat and then add the canned tomatoes and two teaspoons of kosher salt. I cook it for ten minutes on a high simmer with three bay leaves.

In a large glass dish, I smash up dry lasagna pasta (the usual, not the no-cook version), mixing torn good mozzarella cheese. When done, I pour the meat and tomato sauce into the large glass dish, covering the cheese and the pasta. I add more than a cup of hot water to the dish to cook the pasta and be absorbed while it bakes. I finish off the mozzarella by sprinkling a handful on the top. I then take ricotta cheese and drop it all over the top. Lastly, I sprinkled the whole with more cheese, parmesan cheese.

It was good, bright, spicy, and I had a few bowls. The wine guy at Trader Joe’s recommended a $9.99 bottle as better than their $19.99 Pape wine. I opened that while cooking, and I must admit it was excellent.

At 7, Dondrea hosted Theology Pub on Zoom. The subject was the tension between Faith and Works. We discussed a drive in some Christian groups to drop Works and just focus on Faith and to treat being Reborn as the end of the voyage. In our discussion, we thought that Faith produces works according to the gifts given to the faithful. We all but rejected that Works is different from Faith, but both seem to be the same thing. But we don’t mean that everyone must become some sort of super worker, but that the faithful will find their Works, even something small. It is just a natural outcome of Faith.

We also discussed the illusion that our country was founded by conservative Christian church leaders that is claimed so often now by politicians. In reality, the founders of our nation were a mixed bag of various beliefs, some considered heretical, and all of this information is available in most books about the early USA and colonies. The USA was never founded as a Christian nation; the founders were busy trying to find a way to escape colonialism and the crushing yoke of European nations. It was a journey of survival. This came out of our discussions as we reviewed that some folks claim that Faith goes back to the old USA days; those days never happened, and claim that the US Constitution is a holy Christian document makes little sense.

We closed the Pub at 8, a little early, but it was great to talk about Faith and Works. Michael and Bob’s talk about the early USA and the history of Faith in the USA and colonies was an extra bonus, as they have studied these times in great detail.

The sudden stop of the steroids was already impacting me, and I watched Dark Sails on Netflix after we closed Theology Pub to rest a bit. The show’s story got better (I am more than halfway through season two), and the writing seemed more realistic. There were a few surprises, even a spectacular use of a fireship that had me almost jumping out of my chair–my naval historian showing. Wow!

I went to bed a bit late after showering and taking my usual pills (yay!). I tried to read some more of H.P. Lovecraft’s dream stories, but my vision was blurry after using the special drops for the night (this protects my left eye, which does not shut all the way at night). I did not sleep for a long while but finally drifted off after midnight.

Thanks for reading.