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I am better. The cough is nearly gone, but the exhaustion and dizziness come on me unexpectedly, and thus I am careful. Leta, Susie’s mother, tried to reach me, I was sleeping after getting dizzy, and the phone had fallen on the floor, and I apparently slept through that call and two more. Leta, worried something terrible had happened, panicked and called Rev. Anne to check on me. I recovered after a short nap, having been on some later afternoon calls after the rest, finally noticing I had not seen my phone for a while, found it, and managed to call everyone and end the panic. I am happy that folks are checking in on me.

Moving to something less exciting, I had new earbuds delivered today. They use your skull to play the music. I figured they would work better with hearing loss, and I cannot make the ones in the ear work. I am thrilled with this new technology (new for me), but still learning how trying to clip them to my ears. It takes me a while to get them on. I saw on Amazon that there is a set with a microphone that I may order in the future if these work out. More to come, but I can notice the loss of higher notes and the tinny sound that I know is a symptom of hearing loss. I can only hear the music in my right ear. There is a tiny echo sound in my left ear.

I had reheated pasta with Italian sausage and the green beans with almonds I had made a few days ago for a dinner of leftovers. It was good. I tried to find a show to watch on cable while eating but did not find anything I would recommend.

Before this, I had a meeting at 4PM, which I was ready for after taking a break and seeing if some rest could stop the dizziness. It helped–I just need some more sleep. Scott and I walked about software development and the shoe company’s supply chain, our usual discussion.

Before this, I followed along and ordered lunch from GrubHub, a gyro from Gryro House. It was good, but after lunch, I was just tired out, as I said, and needed to stop for a bit. The flu taking one more swipe at me.

The morning was meetings from 8 to 10, all Zoom calls. I listened and tried to help. I updated my teammates on an issue that was then immediately cleared. I followed along all morning, drinking liberal coffee again with cereal with milk. I figured the problem with coffee was the flu, and the nausea was gone too. Yup.

I watered, by water can, the roses today.

The Cardinal Richelieu rose is blooming, and the dark purple of the namesake is showing.

Souvenir du Président Lincoln is still stressed, but I hope to see a lovely bloom soon.

The climbing rose, Wedgwood, also shows some stress but should bloom soon.

This was an orphaned rose (they lost its tag) and is a lovely pink rose that should bloom soon.

I lost/forgot the name; the indestructible Rugosa rose is starting to bloom. It grows so fast it sometimes snaps its canes with the weight of the flowers! Rugosa roses are salt resistant and seem to be ignored by bugs. Recommended.

Mister Lincoln, a 196os hybrid tea, is enjoying the sun today!

David Austins’s The Herbist (impossible to find now) resembles an old Gallica rose but blooms non-stop.

Old pink moss, an old rose, and once-blooming, is covered with sweat-smelling blooms.

Corwin planted the new rose from Dondrea and Z, and it should bloom in a week, Heavenly Scented. A hybrid pink tea rose that will grow into a large plant, 4 to 6 feet.

The painted rose Picasso (no longer available) with the blooms having streaks of white like the Queen had the roses painted red in Alice and Wonderland.

And Old Blush, a China rose, is through its recent blooms. More will come.

And here is the look in front of the house. You can see the redwoods in the area (these are not giant ones–yes, those are the small ones!).

Thank you for reading and indulging me with the rose pictures.

I am finally feeling better. I knew it would come to pass that I could sleep again. I either reach some point where I am too tired, or the wheezing and coughing slows, and Morpheus finally finds me with his blessing. I finally sleep fitfully, but eventually, I do, and the recovery begins. The coughing is worse but more productive, and the sore throat is improving.

I had no caffeine for a few days and had a terrible headache which drinking water did not help. I finally made a pot of tea and drank that and suddenly felt much better. I just had the last cup with toast (with low-sugar jam), which made me even feel better. The muscle pain, some intense, finally had receded, and the fog in my thinking had lifted. It appears to be some flu with a mix of allergy symptoms hiding it at first.

I managed to fill the water can and water the roses in the backyard. The bourbon rose has bloomed, but the sudden hot water has stressed it, and the flowers are not very nice. I suspect the next ones will be worth a picture. All the rose bushes, and I have many, are ready to bloom.

Returning to the beginning of the day, I was up at 7AM after sleeping many hours and the last four without interruption. After that, I felt much better but staggered and decided to work from home and attend the morning meetings. I managed to do that and followed along until the afternoon, when I began to fade. The headache was horrid, and I tried to rest a bit, but that did not help. I finally had tea, and that worked, as I said.

I called Susie and talked to her on the phone. She sounded well, but her speech, affected by the stroke, is hard to understand. It is hard for her to get the words out. But I could understand, “I love you,” which was good enough for today.

Breakfast was ginger tea (caffeine-free) and corn muffins from yesterday. I ordered lunch; I was going to make it but decided to reset more, and I had part of salad and pasta with Italian sausage from Pastagetti using Grubhub. Dinner was taking the rest of the leftover salad and adding sliced ham (locally made by Olympic Provisions and delivered to the house), olives, carrots, and celery to make a meal. Later I had tea and toast, as I said.

While eating lunch, I did my usual tour of YouTube. I watched the Discriminating Gamer’s video on a new GameFound project (GameFound is like Kickstarter but for more speculative projects). I will back the new solo game when it becomes available: Witchcraft. I sent Cody (the video maker) a $2 support as I think his channel, my first gaming channel, is fading now. I really like his stuff.

With the headache gone, I could watch some more Space Battleship Yamato 2199 animated series this evening and, likely a guilty pleasure, watched three more episodes of season 1. It has problems with the treatment of women, all of them looking like a Sailer Moon or Manga art, but I still like it. The bad guys are well-written (having the best lines), and there is actual character development.

Of course, I have looked at the model kit for Space Battleship Yamato and the lighting kit for the model. It is a lovely kit when lighted. It comes with remote control, and I would add moving the large guns, a camera, and fiber optics to the guns. So tempting.

I had to turn off the heat and start the AC. It is back to the 80F (26.7C) tomorrow after a run of 50sF (10C). Today turned sunny, breezy, and 70F (21C). I had to lock the gate (my lawn service always forgets) as the gate started to slam in the wind. I also took out the pruning shears and cut down a blackberry that slipped into my roses, as did a maple tree. Ick!

Aside: These blackberries are invaders from Asia (Himalayan blackberry) and dry out and become a prickly fire hazard. You can burn your house down if you don’t cut them next to your home! I kill them by using a weed mat and wood chips. The heat from summer from the coverage kills them. Otherwise, they are only controlled by spraying or cutting them repeatedly for about a year. Slow, labor intensive, but possible.

I am slowly feeling better, but the exhaustion hits me tonight. I need more sleep. I am hopeful for tomorrow. I missed playing with Z tonight. Next week I hope!

Thanks for reading!

 

Today I did not go to the office or work from home but put in for PTO. I have not slept in days, and it is hard to think straight. I can fall asleep for twenty minutes before a coughing jag, or wheezing wakes me.

I tried to sleep in, but calls woke me, and that was the last good sleep I had, maybe an hour or two. I also think I might have slept some as I don’t remember being awake after 1:30ish. The muscle pain and headache suggest flu mixed with allergy symptoms. Ugh!

I have cough syrup (for high blood pressure and diabetics), and I read the whole day trying to fall asleep, but never for more than a few minutes. I finished Charles Stross’s book, Season of the Skulls, and Yoon Ha Lee’s Revenant Gun. I always like Stross (Lovecraftian SciFi-Spy), and I have finished a Space Opera series by Lee. Both I would recommend, but Yoon Ha Lee’s Machineries of Empire is fantastic. 

I skipped coffee and made ginger tea all day for my throat. I had cereal with milk for lunch. Reheated hot and sour soup and some leftover fried shrimp for lunch. Despite the good stories I was reading, I made dinner as I was bored out of my mind. I fried a porkchop (from the freezer) in butter and Herbs de Provence and finished it in the oven. The oven was hot as I had made cornbread cupcakes to go with it. The usual cheap box of mix, adding some frozen corn. I heated frozen green beans in a pan in a steaming basket and then finished the beans in hot butter with almonds, a dash of onion, and garlic powder in a non-stick pan.

I called Susie and talked to her for a bit. She misses me, but I think she had a good day.

I made and ate dinner watching episodes from the animated series Space Battleship Yamato 2199, buying the first three episodes. I saw a YouTube video suggesting this one was the best version. I also watched Nerd of the Rings’ new content (What if Saruman got the Ring). I can’t recommend the animated series, but I might watch some more.

That was my day. I have read and tried to sleep. I am a little better, but the loss of sleep is hard.

Thanks for reading.

Just a short story this Monday!

By the afternoon, the sore throat and cough had me lying down and reading. I emailed that I was not well to work and called the hummingbird house to let them know I was ill and would not see Susie today. I did not sleep well and could not fall asleep at any time, as I would wake up coughing or wheezing. It just sucks.

I woke at 5ish with a sore throat, used the restroom, then just dozed, repeated that at 6ish, gave up, and started at 6:30ish, and even approved a fix to design before 7AM! I microwaved a cup of yesterday’s coffee and made the ginger tea Michelle V sent me for chemo worked for a sore throat! Figured I needed both. I had a few sips of coffee and was nauseated again. I think it is coffee with my meds, and before I have eaten (I was just starting on an NYC bagel with cream cheese and capers). I drank no more coffee and had no tummy issues.

Aside: There is a conservative reader out there suggesting I had too much liberal and was nauseated. It is a good joke.

I managed to attend some Zoom meetings and follow along, but I was exhausted without sleep, my throat hurt, and I was suddenly having coughing jags–no fun! So I got out the high blood pressure diabetes cough syrup (yes, it is clear and has no sugar) and had me cough the stuff up that was trying to settle in my lungs, and then I was quiet for a bit. I could lie down and read, sitting up and nod off, but that would last only twenty minutes.

I had reheated pasta for lunch and watched a Youtube video on the new 3D models from scanning the wreck of the Titanic. The stern looks wholly exploded by the water pressure of sinking–nothing like I have seen before. The previous photos, drawings, and paintings are nothing like this scan.

Next, I sent the note mentioned above and called. I was not making out today and tried to rest and read. I think I might have slept a few times.

I ordered from Happy Panda some soups and apprizers and salt and pepper shrimp and chicken (squid is better–next time). The soups were good. I found The Great War of Archimedes, a fictional account of the competition to build the largest battleship, IJN Yamato, before WW2. It is not that good, but I liked it, and it starts with the destruction of the IJN Yamato, which is a fantastic scene. I would recommend the newest Midway film instead if you need a naval WW2 fix–it is a great film and much more aligned to actual events and accuracy, including the Pearl Harbor Attack, Doolittle’s Raid, Coral Sea Battle, and finally, the decisive Midway battle in June 1942.

I am still struggling, and the coughing is worse. Work is likely out for Tuesday, but we will see if I can get some rest. Thanks for reading!

The morning started with me with a sore throat that did not get worse or better during the day. I was awake at 6-something, proved my hydration (twice!), and checked on the data conversions (all done!). I managed to roll over a few times, but the sore throat kept me awake. So before 7:30 on a Sunday, I was up and reading emails and starting my Monday. I had cereal with milk for breakfast, thinking back to the nausea of the day before, and that cereal would not bother my sore throat. It seems to be an allergy and not a cold, as I am not constantly blowing my nose.

I read about the project in emails and Slack Channels updates, and all data conversions were completed and ramp-up running without incident. We were done early. I was free for the day!

I wrote the Saturday blog and considered doing some work on the radio project, but I decided to rest a bit and read. I found it hard not to fall back to sleep; not helpful. I got dressed and headed out. I stopped by McDonald’s and got Dad’s favorite, two cheeseburgers, plus fries and a Diet Coke (I did not finish the Diet Coke–not sure I should order them anymore). I ate that while Air Volvo took me to the local Ace Hardware (I want to get new hoses and coiling things for them), but I discovered it was not open until noon on Sunday (old school). Monday’s task now.

I reached Susie’s place near noon. It was now overcast and no warmer than 65F (18C), which was quite a change from the previous days. Unfortunately, it is too early in the year for heat lows and high-pressure heating events from the Coastal Mountain Range. This is a thermal process where the air is compressed against the Coastal Mountains by an inflow wind and decompressed over the valley (here). The decompression causes heating (it is how AC works, actually). We will see this in August and get those 110F (43C) days.

I arrived at the hummingbird house in Portland (Tigard) at Allegiance Senior Care LLC, 9925 SW 82nd. Ave. Portland (Tigard), OR 97223; phone (503) 246-4116. The traffic was light, and Susie was napping in her recliner in the shared living room. Another resident had a birthday, and more family was visiting. Susie and I decided on John Wick as a movie for today (being too cold for Susie to head into the park today) in her room. The new film, unimaginably called John Wick 4, is not yet available on cable, so we watched it (rented for $3.99).

Susie likes these comic-book-styled violent movies with Mr. Wick wearing an expensive Italian-made bulletproof suit (He holds up his coat to resist bullets–pure fantasy). We both like the series, and Susie enjoyed watching it again. I nodded off a few times but saw the majority of the movie. Susie then asked to be moved from her rocking chair (her butt hurt) to her bed and, like this, curled up and slept while I sat next to her.

(with the roses from Linda Wild sent to me–Susie has them now in her room)

I got my Apple computer and read stuff and managed not to buy anything excellent for board games from Etsy. Susie was dead asleep soon. She slept for about an hour.

Susie woke and, through her broken words, managed to ask to go home with me tonight–she did not know where she was and was worried. I reassured her that she was safe, and she said she felt safe there and was happy to be there. Susie showed signs of confusion, and I did not know if she was awake. It broke my heart as I told her she should stay at the hummingbird house. I explained that she could not walk and care for herself, so she was good here. I pointed out the decorations in the room, and she began to recognize them, and I could see her suddenly feeling relieved. I tried to remember all of the calming techniques for memory-challenged people. Susie calmed down and accepted that she would rest there tonight and that I would be back on Monday. I left with a kiss, and Louis promised to check on her a few times so she was not alone for very long. They will get her up for dinner at the table.

I headed to McMinnimums Oak Hills Pub and had soup, coffee, and some fries for a light dinner. Dungeons and Dragons is at 5:30 tonight. I wrote the blog this afternoon/evening and will finish it late tonight. My throat is sore still, but I think it is not worse, and I was not coughing.

Next, I headed to Cory’s house. We play the Dungeons and Dragons 5E version from 5:30 to 9PM Spell Jamming campaign. We are a low-level group of five 6th-level characters and Matt as DM. We are flying in spaceships that resemble steampunk versions of flying sailing ships to horrors from outer space crossed with Tolkien at his darkest. Our group of adventures is heavy combat focuses (previously, we played a group that was skirmishers and thieves), and we fought and overcame some large bad guys in this play. We also failed almost every social encounter, and that was really funny. So it was a fun night.

Some updates on my roses:

 

Mister Lincoln has bloomed, a hybrid tea from the 1960s and still available.

The Cardinal Richelieu has also bloomed. It is showing less stress. The watering and fertilizer helped. An near impossible-to-find once-blooming rose from the 1840s.

Souvenir du Président Lincoln is also blooming. The first time for multiple blooms, and planted last year. This is a bourbon rose from 1865. You can see a little of the black spot stressing it. It needs more watering.

Well, thank you for reading!