God Heard And Answered!

 My mother passed away last evening, serenely and quickly, just as we had prayed would be the case. I am forever grateful to God. Her care in the hospital was superb and the same care was given to me.

Thank you prayer warriors. My sweet, gentle mom has transitioned from this life to the next, looking so peaceful. My last view of her is a beautiful one. The cares of this world can no longer hurt her.

I will have a couple of days to grieve before the major legalities begin. I am grateful for that time. 

Decision Made

 With great sorrow and in consultation with Mom’s medical team, the decision was made this morning to put Mom into end of life care. She has been in a coma for two days now and another underlying medical issue has been discovered. I did not expect to have such peace about this, despite being so very sad. 

I will be staying mostly at the hospital for the next few days, no IPad availability, but will post when I can.

Thanks everyone for your care, concern and prayers. I apologize for not being able to email each of you personally today, but each if you will hear from me soon.

Roller Coaster

 I feel like my emotions are on either the world’s longest roller coaster or a run away train. Many of you who have been through the stresses involving elderly parents who are ill and suffering will understand what I mean. 

On the way to Calgary from Medicine Hat yesterday, (was it only yesterday???), I received a call from Mom’s doctor to tell me her reaction to the narcotics was getting worse and so that cocktail would be stopped immediately. By the time we got to the hospital Mom’s symptoms were slightly better but she didn’t know we were there, or if she did, she was unable to communicate. She couldn’t even open her eyes. We spent time just holding her hands and praying. 

We got some things taken care of at her suite, had some lunch and checked into our hotel. We took a brief walk around the area where our hotel is located, then admitted we were too pooped to eat dinner at a restaurant, so picked up groceries and made ourselves some sandwiches in the room. 

We managed to stay awake until 10pm after crashing out the previous evening at 8:30pm. We both fell asleep immediately, but just after midnight my phone rang. The overnight doctor was calling to tell me that Mom was worse again, complete unable to be awakened. So, a reversal was given along with intravenous fluids to try to move the narcotics out of her system more quickly. Blood work showed that her kidney was stressed. Another reversal may have to be given, but of course with the clearing of the narcotics from her body comes the return of the pain. I don’t think it ever left, actually, the narcotics just helped Mom not to care so much about the pain.

If Mom lives through the weekend, she will have an MRI in a few days, likely followed by an injection into her spine to try to deal with the pain. I have decided, since the doctors seem to want my input, that at that point, if this process is ineffective I am going to suggest that perhaps enough is enough. My mother will have endured more than enough suffering by then. She has been praying for death for the past few months. How long will these tests and attempts at treatment have to drag on? 

I was going to go to the suite this morning and start clearing Mom’s phone messages, but I think if she is still with us I will just spend the day at the hospital holding her hand. 

Nearly There

We had the most wonderful trip to Medicine Hat today: sunshine, rising temperatures and bare, dry roads! It was a perfect trip.  Tomorrow going into Calgary should also be good for driving. I think the reason we only drive to the Hat before stopping for the night is because from here to Calgary is the most monotonous part of the drive. What a boring three or so hours. It seems like too much to face at the end of the journey for some reason. Age, I suppose? hahaha

I talked to Mom last night and ever since I have begun preparing myself to lose her. She was mildly delirious from her meds cocktail and while it will be adjusted every few days, it seems likely nothing is going to work sufficiently well to deal with the intensity of her pain. She had a CAT scan and it revealed much more serious spinal and pelvic issues than any of her previous X-rays and tests. It simply may not be possible to control the pain. This means that at some point during the next two to three weeks Mom may be moving into end of life care.  Mom will welcome death. She has been praying for the past several months that God would take her Home. If she is going to die it will be me who is sad, not her. I can only pray that God’s will for her will be accomplished. While there is still some hope for a temporary reprieve from the pain and restoration of mobility, the hope is growing fainter in view of her most recent test results.

Well, all I can do is spend as much time with her as possible during the next week, then return home for a few days to deal with commitments there before returning to Calgary. My son is expecting to see his grandmother at the end of this month, but it may not happen. I am praying for him because that will be very hard for him to accept. Covid kept him from seeing Dad, his other grandma was only able to talk for a couple of minutes with him just before she had a debilitating stroke that left her comatose and his other grandfather died very suddenly and unexpectedly only weeks before a planned visit! My poor son! 

We had a delicious Indian meal here tonight at the Blue Flame. There weren’t many table customers but the take out orders came in steadily. Online reports on other restaurants’ websites showed a higher than usual volume of customers, but our little place was quiet and cozy. It was lovely! 

Tomorrow we will be trying out a different hotel in Calgary. Our last two stays at Grey Eagle Resort were fine, but we really missed not having so much as a microwave onsite. Eating is expensive when we stay there because of all the restaurant meals. The hotel we are in this time has a kitchenette, so that means we can pick up groceries and prepare our own meals.  It cuts down our Covid exposure as well. 

So, tomorrow I will finally get to see my Mom. Whatever state she is in mentally from all the meds, I will be very glad to see her.

Things Are Coming Together, YAY!

 I am very grateful for the way some last minute issues over our trip west have come together just this morning.  Last night  we discovered a serious problem with getting us onto Mom's hospital visiting list that was not able to be immediately resolved, the highways were looking to be in even worse condition than the day before, so these things, on top of newly erupting world events, pushed me over the edge round about bedtime.  I couldn't relax physically, I couldn't calm my  mind, I was already over tired from a couple of other short sleeps this week.  So, I emailed a friend and confessed I was feeling very rattled. It isn't like me to be having so much trouble trusting God to work things out for the best.

My friend sent me a strongly worded exhortation to remember from who and where my rattled emotions were coming from and to get talking to God until I was able to refresh my trust!  Wow, it really helped to hear that!  It was embarrassing to need to be told such things after all I have been through in life and how many things I have seen God do to take care of even the smallest details of life in the midst of turmoil.  

So, I took her words to heart.  I began to pray very simply: "Deliver me from evil." and "Thy will be done."  The peace came back very quickly and I fell deeply asleep. While I perhaps didn't sleep quite long enough, I definitely had a refreshing sleep and am functioning quite well today. God bless my honest friend and all you other praying folk.  

This morning when I woke up I knew I would have the strength from God to cope if the visitor list issues didn't get resolved to my liking and my husband and I prepared a plan for dealing with things.  A couple of hours later I got a call from the hospital and within a matter of minutes the issue was solved. My husband and I can now both go in to see Mom when we get to the hospital.  The temperature is supposed to warm up significantly tomorrow, particularly on the second half of the journey, so we will leave very late in the morning to give the traffic and sunshine a chance to melt even more of the icy sections of highway and take our time getting to our hotel.

Today my stress has been replaced by the excitement of finally getting to see Mom and to do some things for her back at her suite.  

I am not sure why this whole situation has hit me so hard.  It isn't like me to become so emotional about my family members, but I had better get used to it I guess!!  hahaha  I am getting all soft and emotionally melty in my old age!  I don't like it!!  It feels terrible! Lord deliver me from all these conflicting emotions and help restore me to the trust relationship You and I have enjoyed for so many years now. Amen!

Change Of Story!

 None of these details about Mom will matter to the rest of you, but for the sake of my own records I am posting various things about her situation as things change.

As I posted earlier today, I was told last night that Mom had a hairline fracture in her foot, causing the hip and back and leg pain.  HOWEVER, a few minutes the doctor called to say she actually has a hairline pelvic fracture, not a foot fracture and wondered where I had gotten the foot fracture information from. I told her I got it from the bedside nurse last evening so the doctor was pretty ticked off.  Whatever the communication problems the staff are having among themselves is of no consequence to me, as long as I get the skinny from the doctor herself.

We had an excellent conversation, this doctor and me.  Long story short, after watching my mother living in exteme stress all her life and never receiving much in the way of medical intervention, this doctor has decided Mom's pain must be treated in a more wholistic manner than simply pumping her full of pain killers until she is so drugged up she cannot function at all. So, for the first time in her tense life, my mother will be getting a small dose of anti-anxiety medication along with her light once daily dose of narcotics.  The doctor spent a lot of time with Mom over the past two days and truly believes that her actual physical pain is being exacerbated by stress, not uncommon in people  Mom's age.  We had quite a conversation at how the doctor arrived at this conclusion and I am satisfied that she has some good ideas about what to try for Mom.  

While the end goal is still to get Mom mobile enough to go back to her present home, it is going to take a matter of weeks rather than days to achieve it.  It is highly likely Mom will have to be transferred to a rehab unit in a couple of weeks' time and she will likely have to spend a couple of weeks there with a physiotherapist before anyone can decide if she is able to return home.

The good news is that there is a plan. The confusion for me is how I am going to fit into all of this.  For now I will resist taking the POA position.  If Mom can get home within 6-8 weeks it won't be necessary.  I can do her income taxes and return to Calgary once or twice a month to pay her bills now that spring is nearly here.  Then if she can't come home I may have to invoke POA to be sure she is properly cared for.  Praying like ten bears it won't have to come to that.  In Alberta having POA is like having a sledge hammer and puts me in the control position for every detail of Mom's life.  Trying to do that from so many miles away is more than I can bear the thought of just at the moment....implementing it requires a lot of time and just about as many trips back and forth between here and there. So my prayer is that God will heal Mom sufficiently to get her home for awhile yet before I have to take that on.  I am trying to get my husband through some more CFS symptoms right now as he is figuring out he is retired and not pressured to push himself every day of his life and my hands are a bit full just with that these days.

This is the time of life I have dreaded for the past 10 years as I saw my parents aging.  What is more difficult: losing them or trying to care for them from a distance?  It is just a hard time of life for any family.  Well, we will just have to go a day or two at a time and see how this plays out.

Finally, A Reason!

 I had the most wonderful chat with Mom last night! She sounded bright and feisty again, despite only a bit of pain relief happening thus far.  It encouraged my heart and I slept much better last night!  Hallelujah! I am feeling ALMOST functional today.

The doctor decided that Mom should have a "panorama" scan.  I am very grateful that she made that decision rather than moving immediately to the more invasive spinal checkup.  It seems the scan has revealed the main issue.  Mom has a long hairline fracture in one of the bones in her foot on the painful side of her body.  It has obviously been there for some time and it has thrown her balance and stance off. While the foot itself has only been mildly uncomfortable to walk on, it has wreaked havoc with the rest of that side of her body.  

Now we are waiting to find out what can be done about it, if anything.  I know nothing about treatments for foot bone fractures, so we will see what happens next.  I will call her again tomorrow evening for an update if I don't hear from the doctor in the meantime.  I assume this fracture will take a long time to heal.

I was able to give Mom the good news that, Lord willing, we should be there to see her at the hospital on Saturday afternoon.  Now I have to get online and find out what the visiting rules are exactly, if my husband and I can go to her room together or just one at a time.  The Premier of Alberta is going to make some sort of announcement that very afternoon about whether or not the restrictions are going to change again, so whatever......

I was also able to tell her that her grandson and his girlfriend will be coming to see her closer to the end of March.  While their final plans have thrown a monkey wrench into some long held plans for my husband and I, at least we will be able to spend a FEW days together.  Better than no visit at all!  Mom is so excited and I think it will encourage her that she has a reason to take whatever treatments or do whatever physiotherapy or to just rest and manage the pain....anything that will mean she will be able to see her grandson and meet the illustrious girlfriend will be something she will want to do!  We knew she was feeling at least somewhat better last night because her biggest beef was missing pizza day at her facility yesterday.  "Yeah, I'm still in pain, but you know what?  I MISSED MY PIZZA DAY TODAY!   I have waited a whole month for that pizza and I didn't get it." hahaha  

So, we will see how the situation develops over the coming week.  I secured permission this morning to have the staff let me into her suite when we arrive on the weekend.  That is a big relief.  We will be able to get her keys and come and go as we need to.

So glad the sun is shining brightly. Although it is still brutally cold outside the sun makes me feel cheery....perhaps I am actually cheery because I know I don't have to go outside?

Talk About Going Above And Beyond The Call Of Duty!! WOW!!

 I am trying with little success to keep from crying at the kindess of the administrator at the facility where my Mom has been living.  

She called a few minutes ago to say that the hospital had been trying to reach me to find out how Mom can get some of the pharmaceuticals that dear painful Mom finally remembered she already has back in her suite. (It seems the fellow we thought was going to pick up things for her has not been able to after all.) Apparently the hospital has called me several times only to receive a message that my number is not in service!  The administrator and I are surmising that the hospital staff is not getting the message that my number is long distance and requires them to press 1 before the area code.  Duh.....

ANYWAY: said administrator phoned me to check that my number actually is in service and proceeded to tell me that SHE is going to go into Mom's suite after work today, pick up the things Mom needs and then SHE is going to deliver them to the hospital tomorrow morning on her way to work!!!  

Can you believe there are still people like that in the world??  I am shocked, thrilled, amazed....I can't believe it.  Talk about an administrator going the extra mile for a resident.  This is an answer to your prayers for Mom prayer warrior people.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!  

Mom will now have no trouble waiting for us to arrive on Saturday to bring her some other things that she can use, but are not of immediate need.  

Thank you Lord, thank you administrator, thank you prayer warriors.  

 I also received an encouraging email from Mom's district home care supervisor telling me we can work together next week to try to decide what will be best for Mom as far as a place for her to live moving forward.  God bless her too!!

More reports have come in about the condition of the highways along our route and it is just more confirmation that we have made a wise choice to stay home today. Wow!

Thwarted!

 Our plan to leave today or tomorrow to go to see Mom has been scuttled by extreme cold warnings (-35C to -45C windchill)for the next two days and a very icy highway that stretches across the entire province.  So, we will leave instead 3 days from now when the weather has made a big change for the better.  Just to be safe we will stay overnight part way along the journey and go into the city the following day.  It seems someone has been found to get the pharmaceuticals Mom needs to have before we can get there.  She needed them today sometime and it wasn't going to be possible for us to be there in time today to get them even if it was the middle of summer.  

 

A friend has been sending me highway updates from a woman who is on her way from Regina to Calgary today and so far she is having a less than safe and happy driving experience with the long patches of ice covered roads.  I know how those patches sneak up on a person.  The road is bare for a few kilometres and then suddenly you hit a stretch of ice and go spinning into the ditch unless you have been crawling along on the dry sections as slowly as you need to be crawling on the icy sections.  We have been in that situation too many times previously and are getting too old and tired to be able to face that again.

The other complicating factor that stopped us leaving today was the realization that my husband has a prescription that he has to have by this weekend, but is not allowed to refill until a couple of days from now.  So, that cinched our decision to wait.

I suspect this will be a better schedule for everyone anyway.  This gives my husband a couple of more days at home to work on the Zoom class he is teaching on March 8th and it also means we can stay for a full week or more once we arrive in Calgary.  By this weekend, it is possible the doctor at the hospital will have a better idea if Mom is ever going to recover sufficiently to regain her mobility and return to her present suite or will have to be kept in hospital until we can get a place set up through her home care supervisor that has a higher level of care.  If we start all the necessary processes for her on Monday, that gives us a continuous week of "business hours" availability for all that may need to be done.  As soon as we made the decision I finally had peace, after getting only four hours of sleep overnight.

It seems that once my panic calmed down and my dear friend made me see sense about leaving too soon for the weather and road conditions, I have been able to concoct a much better plan as to how to assist Mom.  I am grateful to her and to God for restoring my peace as I finally allowed him to this morning.

Thank you so much for your prayers.  I had no idea I was going to fall apart this badly when Mom started having severe struggles with her health.  Guess I am more human, more emotional and less in control of myself than I want to admit.

Heading Out

 Guess we are on our way to see Mom either tomorrow or the next day. The next day is supposed to bring a significant positive change in the weather, so we may have to wait until then.

Mom needs some things brought in from her suite and the pharmacy and there is no one to do it for her, although she did have someone in mind to call tonight after I was able to talk to her on the phone. The nurse was able to give her a phone to use.  I was warned tonight that it is possible Mom will NOT respond to these meds sufficiently to be able to return to her suite....guess we MAY be making more than one trip to see her in the next month.

The happy news is that our kids are coming at the end of the month and will be coming to see her with us then.  Whatever happens in the meantime, that will be our joy to focus on during the other, more difficult things we will be facing in the coming weeks.

Dear Lord be with us all.

More Provision!

 It is still wickedly cold outside, but there is some degree of warmth in the sunshine this afternoon.  After lunch we went to see some friends' for a short visit and the sun had melted the thick ice from Saturday night's storm off the one side of our car almost completely.  My husband turned the car around and in less than ten minutes most of the ice had melted off the other side as well.  It gives me hope that spring will be coming eventually.

My husband has been fretting about his laptop that gave up the ghost pretty much completely last week.  It is rather elderly, so it wasn't really a surprise.  What was bothering him is that his other, good laptop is still with his brother in law in Alberta after my husband lent it to his sister a few months before she died.  Since her very complicated probate is still ongoing and she had put some financial information into that computer, the computer cannot be taken from her home until the estate is settled.  That will not be for a few months yet and who knows if his brother in law will decide he doesn't want to give it back for some reason.  In the meantime my husband has been torn about what to do now that his present lap top is not useable for what he needs.  Should he try to afford a new lap top right away, or try to hang in and wait until he finds out if he is getting back the one he lent his sister? The answer came already today!!!  The friends that we went to visit today, not even knowing his need, asked him if he could use their old lap top as they have JUST replaced all their computers with a brand new home system.  The company they purchased it from was willing to buy back their former computers, but this one is older and it wasn't scrubbed yet.  My husband was blown away.  He checked it out and it is going to work just fine for what he needs. So he is in his office now, setting up the his "new to him" lap top that seems to be working just fine.  He was given the mouse and the cords and the mousepad as well....it is like Christmas for him today and he is so grateful to God for provision and also for such amazing friends.

Tonight I will call the hospital and see if I can connect at all with Mom. SOmetimes there is a portable phone the nurse can take to her if she has a couple of spare minutes to run down with it to Mom's room....here's hoping!

We are preparing ourselves for a trip to see Mom next week as the weather forecast for NOW looks hopeful....Lord willing.... 

A Long Wait In The Offing....

 We stayed home from church today in case the hospital staff called this morning and since they did, we are very relieved with our decision.

We talked to a lovely, informative, caring doctor that is helping to take care of Mom this coming week.  We are very relieved that she has taken an interest in Mom, perhaps because she is removed geographically by about 3000km from her own mom and certainly understands the stress I am under living in a different city than my mom.

All the x-rays were redone last night and some more tests done and the good news is that Mom is pretty healthy and mentally stable overall. The pain is definitely due to a type of sciatica nerve pinching somewhere in her back.  So now the focus moves completely to pain control and physiotherapy.  She will be introduced slowly, because of her age, to the tricyclic drugs that specifically target nerves. If, after a week to ten days, there is insufficient improvement in pain relief, then she will have a more invasive scan on her back to try to pinpoint the area of the pinched nerves and an injection of pain medication given at that point. That is a last resort, but at least it is good to know there is another level of testing and medication that can be done if necessary.

The goal of this doctor is to manage the pain well enough that Mom can return to her present residence in a week or two. She feels that Mom is mentally bright enough and otherwise in sufficiently good physical health that Long Term Care should not have to be an option for her at this point in time. That is a huge relief, so my prayer is that these new drugs WILL work for her and she can return happy and mobile to her suite soon.  I pray that her treatment this week will be a wonderful as it has been for the past couple of days at the hands of these overworked, but still caring medical people.

A bonus for staying home this morning was that our son also called us. We were able to fill him in on his Grandmother's condition and find out how he is doing in his overly busy life.  Being in his 40's now is changing his ability to be quite as constantly physically active every minute of every day.  He is noticing he gets tired after work by the end of each week and that is new for him.  Since his work day is often 10 hours or more and he rides his bike through New York City traffic for 30-40 minutes each way, he is going to have to decide to become less surprised that by the weekend he needs a bit of a rest. hahaha  His girlfriend is preparing a trip to another state next week for a play her theater company is now able to publicly produce and then soon after she is on her way to California for a couple of weeks for another production of the same play. Today she is meeting with a former professor. He is impressed with the latest play she has written and is in talks to have produced.  Our son's girlfriend is very talented and slowly but surely making progress in the wonderful world of off Broadway productions and original new works.  They are a busy pair.  It is wonderful that they are both so happy! They are our light in the bordeom of prairie winter this year.

After last night's wet, heavy snowfall we have giant snowdrifts in the front and back of our building. The maintenance staff came in today to move the huge drifts off the sidewalks and carve out a pathway for the mail delivery people to do their work here tomorrow. Wow...what a lot of heavy snow to move.  Spring is going to be a complete nightmare as all these drifts begin melting and seeping into the ground and subsequently into whatever crack in our basement wall my husband has not been able to get sealed yet.  Once it is warmer we will go outside with shovels and start scooping the worst of the deep snowpiles away from the perimeter of our building's foundation. One thing about living in this crazy place is that it keeps us active...shovelling and de-icing in winter,  goose poop scooping in the spring, bailing out the basment in the summer and fall....yup, why would we want to move out of here, right?? hahahaha

Well, I am praying that the doctor's plan for Mom can come to fruition, even if it takes a long time.  If she can go home and she knows she can go home, able to make her own decision at some future date about going to long term care, it will help her with her present recovery because her attitude will be positive and she will work hard at her physiotherapy as she becomes more able to do so.  Thank you Lord that there seems to be a medical plan in place for her over the coming days.

Thanks everyone for your prayers!

Hmmmm....Yah.....Weeeeellll......

 This evening another snow squall is hitting our area.  Watching the rain that began while the temperature was still above zero gradually change to sticky, heavy snow as the temperature drops back to -20C, beautiful as it has been to behold, I know it is once again wreaking havoc on the highways and city streets. I expect the roads out of the city will be either not recommended for travel by morning, or closed completely.  I stepped out onto the back deck a few minutes ago and it was very, very slippery already.  Since it appears we may have to leave for a trip to see my Mom early next week, I am praying for the miracle that would give us safe driving conditions if we do need to travel.

At 10:30 this evening, I received a phone call from the hospital emergency physician, after I spent quite a long time trying to locate her myself, telling me that Mom is going to be admitted to hospital from the emergency ward as soon as there is room for her on another ward. She will be hospitalized for an undetermined amount of time.

The hospital was finally able to locate the x-rays Mom had a couple of days ago and the good news is that there is no evidence of a fracture or of a tumour or other sign of cancer.  It appears she has a bad case of severe arthritis coupled with the likelihood of extremely painful sciatica. 

The bad news is that she has had and continues to have zero response to her pain control medications.  She is pretty much bed ridden in the hospital at the moment because she is in so much pain she can barely stand and wobble about for a few steps.  So, the point of admitting her is to attempt to discover what medications are going to control the pain.  That is the first step and as far ahead as anyone can look right now.

The other bad news is that if she cannot recover sufficiently to return to the independent living she has been experiencing, she is going to have to be transferred to a facility that provides more care.  If that happens, mentally and emotionally I think it will finish her off.  She and I talked about that possibility just yesterday and she told me all the reasons why she isn't ready to face that yet.  Her reasons are all valid, but her body may force her into this kind of change of accommodation long before her mind is ready for it. Sigh.....

Thus, we are preparing ourselves to drive out to see her as soon as we know what the situation is going to be for her.  

The "good" news, should she have to make a sudden move, is that the progessive care facility right in her current residence is in the almost unheard of position of having 4-5 rooms available right at this time!  SO, we are praying that if she cannot return to her present suite, the decision to move her can be made this coming week, before those precious rooms fill up again.  Oh Lord, hear my prayer......

Of course this travelling about is going to have to be arranged around my newly "retired" husband's class that he teaches and men's group that he agreed to facilitate once a week while the actual group leader is away on sabbatical.  I am kind of ticked off just at this moment about these commitments because one of the reasons he retired is to be available for my mom and for his brother-in-law.  At the same time I do not begrudge him these commitments because he needs the academic and spiritual stimulation they afford him.  So, it isn't him I am angry with, it is the situation because it is all so very stressful.

Adding to the stress is the communcation we had with our son today regarding the visit he and his girlfriend are trying to put together for the four of us here sometime between the end of March and the middle of May.  They are having a much more difficult time getting their time off together than it appeared they were going to have when this idea first came up.  In the midst of their very busy and stressful jobs, now they are also NOT having fun trying to plan a trip.....also around my husband's teaching commitment and men's group.  Aaaaaargh!!!!  Well, this too shall be worked out in time.  I just need to rant a bit about all this to make myself feel better....release the kraken....um, I mean the stress....hohoho!

I am so very grateful the hospital called me tonight. I am so grateful Mom remembered my cell phone number.  I am so grateful they are going to admit her to try to find a way to control her pain. I am grateful the doctor was so honest with me that a change of living situation COULD be imminent for Mom and that I need to be prepared to move quickly on that.  Of course I am praying it will not be necessary as once that move takes place I will have to invoke my standing Power of Attorney to pay her bills and trying to get that operating means going to all Mom's banks and pension places in person with the paperwork, then attempting to care for things each month from here where I actually live....a nightmare I don't feel capable of dealing with.  May the Lord be gracious to us all.

So this is my rant for the evening. I am frightened for Mom.  I am concerned about the possible need to drive to Calgary in the dead of winter.  I am concerned about the possible upcoming visit with my son and his girlfriend that it could be more stressful than fun for them.  Getting them home from here in time to return to work is quite a nightmare and at this point it will actually be better for us to drive them to Calgary to fly home from there!!  Well, if Mom is still with us at that point we can drive them to see her on their way to the airport.  Aaaaah, the joy of the present airline travel situation! hahaha

I am keeping in mind that God is good and will give us all strength to take care of the details in the midst of all this stress about possible near future upheavals.  Amen!  AND I thank you and Mom thanks you for your prayers.  I will stay home from church tomorrow in case the doctor calls....a much better "reason" (excuse?) than wimping out because of the slippery streets, right??? hohoho!  Posting about these kinds of stresses greatly relieves them and I am not offended at all if none of my family or friends wants to bother reading them.  These posts help me, so...there you go!

  

  

Next Step For Mom

 I spent the last few minutes talking to the EMTs who are at Mom's suite loading her up in the ambulance for a trip to the hospital.  Sigh....at least I know she will not be alone now in this horrible pain she is experiencing.

Just after lunch one of the weekend home care workers in Mom's building came to check on her and found her in even more pain than she was earlier this morning, so with Mom's permission and mine the EM's were called.  They don't think Mom has any fractures as she is able to walk, agonizingly slowly and painfully, but she can walk with her walker for support.  The EMTs contacted their own doctor on call to see if Mom's x-rays from a couple of days ago had been posted online, but they have not been.  That doctor is very concerned that since Mom already takes analgesics several times a day and has been taking narcotic pain killer several times a day for over a week now with the pain not lessening, there could be something far more serious than sciatic pain or muscle spasms going on.  So, I gave permission for Mom to be taken in for assessment at the recommendation of this doctor.  All I can do is pray that she is able to be seen and assessed over the weekend, a time when the hospitals are already overcrowded with walk ins and emergencies and of course there are the many many Covid patients as well that must be taken care of with minimal staff available for other units.  

The waiting game has now begun. I will call the hospital tonight to find out what unit Mom is in and how she is doing.  

I am praying so hard for Mom. I don't know what else to do.  The EMT said he didn't want to say if I would be allowed in to visit Mom even if we can get through the freezing rain forecast for tonight and tomorrow morning, as the rules at the hospital for visiting change often and with March 1st looming there will be provincial changes possible as well.  I guess I will wait until Monday and if she is still in the hospital I will call the desk and ask what the rules are.  If I can get in to see her, we will pray for sufficiently good weather to travel.

On And On It Goes.....

 Another beautiful saint and friend has passed away from cancer and it will leave a big hole in the hearts of all who knew her in her church and community.  We are very grateful for the strong faith of her husband and family as they grieve.  Such a gentle, patient soul who suffered badly toward the end of her life, but is now under the protection of the Lord until the day of resurrection.  May she rest in peace and rise in glory.

Mom is in a very bad way today. The back and hip pain has now progressed down her leg all the way to her ankle, making it difficult to move and to walk.  Of course this would happen on a Saturday when the home care supervisor is off for the weekend and the weekend facility staff is less than the most fantastic in knowing how to help her.  The hydromorphone is adding to her depression and she cries and cries and cannot stay calm, so she is calling me every few hours wondering what to do.  Every time she takes that stuff my phone begins to ring multiple times daily and she cannot seem to maintain even a semblance of emotional control.

My mother cannot abide any kind of physical suffering for more than five minutes without freaking out, but to have her fears exacerbated by her reaction to the pain killer that doesn't even seem to be helping, is almost more than she (or I) can bear at this point.

She thought maybe she should have the front desk staff call an ambulance, but for now I have talked her out of that.  She told me she is in excruciating pain, but had not taken ANY of her pain killers or other daily pills that she must have. Sigh..... This would make 3 days in a row that she has missed her other medications.  So, I convinced her to take them, since she was out of bed anyway, then to go back to bed for a couple of hours and see how things are at that point.  The front staff cannot help her, they can only call the EMTs will call me very upset that once again Mom has called them and then either refused to go to the hospital, or does go AGAIN, only to discover AGAIN that there is nothing they can do for her there.  She needs to await her x-ray results on Monday before anyone knows for certain how to help her.

Right now I am waiting for the next phone call.  I am wondering if she has pinched a nerve.  If that is the case she will need to let the home care supervisor know on Monday so that a physiotherapist can come in to assist her with some exercises.  Why oh why do these things always seem to happen to Mom on weekends?  I have cancelled my commitments for church tomorrow so that I can be at home in case the phone calls start up again, as I am sure they will.  

Thank you for reading my rant.  I am just at a loss as to what to do.  The doctor has assured me that there is nothing I can to do for Mom if I do fight the bad weather to come out there and he is right about that.  Her meals are delivered to her room when she cannot get to the dining room, she has her walker and a cane and if it reaches the point where she cannot get to the bathroom on her own then the front desk staff will get one of the weekend home care workers to assist her.  

I just don't know what to do right now except keep calm and try to talk her off the ledge every time she calls.  My husband has a calming influence on her as well, so he has been extremely helpful to us both in the past couple of days.  In the back of our minds we are preparing to make a fast trip out to see her next week, just in case it becomes necessary to travel in the -30C weather and blizzard warnings.

So, prayers for Mom and for us would be appreciated should the Lord bring us to mind.

Thank you very much!  Gosh, I am not handling this well....my trust in God to guide me as I talk to Mom needs some strengthening or something. Aiiiii yiiiiiii.......

Losing Friends Who Are Dear To Us

 Mom called this morning with more sad news of an old friend leaving this earth.  In a way it is not so sad for the person who died: she had a devastating stroke over twenty years ago and has been in long term care for over fifteen of those years.  She is the mother of the old friend of mine who was taken by cancer only a few months ago.  My Mom has so many wonderful memories of this dear friend and her husband.  Mom, Dad and this couple travelled the world together back in the 1970's and 1980's. They had a wonderful friendship that stood the test of time.  I am sad to see another chapter of life closing as these elderly friends and even their children in my age group take their leave of us.

Mom at this moment should be having an x-ray of her very sore right side: lower back and hip have been causing her intense pain for many weeks now.  I am grateful that her home care supervisor told her yesterday she must see a doctor and get some x-rays, but mom didn't want to see the facility doctor, so she called her own doctor and he ordered immediate x-rays.  I suspect they will not show any sort of treatable issue, but if they do Mom needs to get the help right away.  She is barely able to move, to dress herself, to walk without aids....through all this pain she is managing to stay somewhat cheerful and refuses to be stopped from attending the facility special luncheons and entertainment events during the week.  She is incredible.  She could just as easily throw up her hands and refuse to do one thing to help herself, apply to move into one of the empty long term care rooms one floor below where she lives now and turn herself over to the ministrations of medical staff full time.  Thus far she has refused to do it and is daily determined to prove she doesn't need to do it.  I can only pray it isn't too much longer until the weather improves sufficiently that I can get out there and see for myself how things are going.

Way To Go Bushwakker’s!

The brewpub named above has decided to go the extra mile to keep its revenue up and accommodate all customers as the vaccination passport and masking restrictions are lifted here in a few days. Bushwakker’s is opening up its private rental dining room, but only for vaccinated customers who are not comfortable mixing with unvaccinated customers. 

I think it is a great idea. While the dining room customers will miss out on the ambience of the main pub area, it still provides the same tasty food and drink for those of us concerned about spreading Covid to unvaccinated people who could potentially become very ill with the still nasty virus. 

Vaccinated people do not have to restrict themselves to that dining area, but they can if they want to. Unvaccinated people are not being restricted to a side room and can fully enjoy the main pub area after being denied entrance to all restaurants for many months. The restaurant has the potential t to recoup lost revenue.

In my opinion it is a win-win situation for everyone. Yay! 

And Yet.......

 .....a few minutes ago all my utility and credit card bills arrived in my mail box right on schedule....hahahaha!  

POSTAL CRAZINESS! 👅

In Person Deliveries

 Despite feeling yukky still today, although my sinuses have stopped aching, I braved the knee deep snow to get out to our car this morning, and tried to pretend the wind wasn't bitterly cold as I scraped and scraped and scraped the ice off my vehicle so I could get the doors open to drive away to do errands.

I arrived at the CAA office to explain that I had mailed out a cheque for continuing my membership but that after over three weeks it had not gone through my account, so I wanted to pay in person, then go put a stop payment on that cheque.  The CAA office manager checked my paperwork and my CAA account and told me my cheque actually HAD arrived....18 days after I mailed it from right here within the city!  It will be cashed out before the end of the week.  She said she has had a steady stream of CAA clients coming into her office asking to pay in person and then planning to put stop payments on the cheques they sent earlier through the mail.  

Another cheque from the same mailing as the CAA cheque arrived at its destination yesterday, 22 days after it was posted.  Okay then.....

I am not certain of what is happening with Canada Post and all the delays...hopefully as restrictions for the pandemic are removed, they can get themselves back up to speed and return to the rather good service they have provided for many years.  I wonder how many people will be like myself now: going in person to various businesses to make payments that we either cannot pay or do not want to pay through online banking?

I have learned my lesson.  Unfortunately we are in a Catch-22 situation with Canada Post.  If the pandemic restrictions are lifted in such a way that they can straighten out their employee numbers and delivery system, I will enjoy using their services once again regularly, BUT, if we all stop using Canada Post due to the present poor state of delivery and service, they will not have reason to hire more employees or put more attention into more efficient delivery services.  Hmmmmm.....to quote from The King and I: "It is a puzzlement.....".

I just re-read my post from last night....good grief...I HAVE to stop posting so late at night when I am tired.  I actually proofed it before I published it and it is still full of spelling and grammatical errors.  Another lesson I need to learn...DO NOT post so late at night when I am tired!!

There's MY Life And Then There's My 94 Year Old Mother's Life!

 My 94 year old mother's life so far this week:

Monday:  Get up to shower and dess and prepare breakfast, plan lunch menu, spend morning with home care supervisor arranging care plan for pulled back muscles causing excruciating daily pain; go to hair appointment;attend facility Valentines Day party, visiting with friend over dinner in the dining room

Tuesday: get groceries, go out for lunch, prepare suite for housekeeper, meet with her hearing aid company representative, visit with friends over dinner in the dining room

 

My life so far this week:

Monday: wake up and look at the clock; go back to sleep for 2 hours; get up and pull Mark's Comfy Robe over my nightgown; take cartons of previously cooked food out of freezer; eat microwaved meals in front of tv; wash dishes 3 times; nap; read book; nap

Tuesday: sleep in; get up and pull Mark's comfy robe over same nightgown I have been wearing since Sunday night; decide to shower tomorrow; continue to eat prepared food; watch tv; nap; read book; talk to one friend on the phone from the comfort of the couch; wash dishes once, right before bed; sigh gustily

SIGH.....I am being beaten in the game of life by my 94 year old mother......SIGH!!!!

 

 

Some More Truth To Add To The Discussion Around Our Country's Present Situation

 A fairly balanced viewpoint from an Ontario Civics teacher in Port Dover. It has some good reminders in it:

Counting Backward.......

 ....and it has been seven days since my dental appointment.  No wonder I am feeling rough and my sinuses are sore.  Every six months, a week or so after dental cleanings, I get inflamed sinuses for about three days.  It started on the 5th day and today the inflammation is blossoming.  If this follows the pattern, I have two more days of this before it goes away again.  Thanking the Lord for Vick's VapoRub as it soothes the ache so much.  I feel great otherwise today, totally over the reaction to that lemon flavoured carbonated water I drank the other night.  I have energy returning, slept fantastically well last evening and find the sore sinuses more of an annoyance than a life slowing illness.  So, off to get some work done around here today.  Huge thanks for the prayers some of you have been saying for me in regard to being able to sleep well at night. Generally speaking I have done very well for the past month with only a few nights of badly disturbed sleep. Bless you!

Down For The Count!

 Wow, what a yukky day!!  I woke up at 5:30am feeling just terrible and thinking I was going to be sick to my stomach, but thankfully I wasn't.  I spent the entire day in bed until it was time for dinner this evening, then got up and ate, phoned mom as usual, did my dishes and watched a tv show, but my energy hasn't returned.  

I was certain all day that  I  must have some kind of wierd influenza, but then later today I remembered drinking a can of lemon flavoured carbonated water late last evening.  How stupid am I???  I cannot drink citrus flavoured carbonated water at any time of any day, ever!  Yet....yesterday I did!  Where was my mind at??  Guess I exhausted myself by going out for such an extended period of time yesterday....apparently returning to a more reasonable life after being so home bound and isolated for so long is going to be too much for me!!  I certainly wasn't thinking when I drank that water!

I am feeling quite tired still this evening despite having slept away the entire afternoon, but at least I can sit up now and write this post.

About once every 5 years I have a day where I crash and burn. Usually it is a simple reaction to whatever stresses I have been carrying long term and the actual crash is generally preciptated by something I ingested that I shouldn't have. I am hoping that is what happened today, that when I wake up in the morning it will all be over and I won't end up with a secondary illness like a sinus infection or some other uncomfortable problem.

It is hard to believe I am still this tired and ready for bed again after spending the entire day there!!!  So thankful for my very comfortable mattress and my Christmas present quilt!

A Small Attempt At Usefulness!

This morning I accepted an invitation to join the team of offering counters at the church. It is an easy job and will require only ninety minutes of my time twice a month, only three months per year. It is a baby step start to restoring a life of my own after a looooooong absence from doing things that fulfill ME. Health, family situations and personal circumstances have interfered for many years, but now that my husband is retired (more or less) he is now one person who requires less care from me, so it is time to step out with some degree of confidence that I can attain some degree of usefulness for awhile in other arenas of my own interests. I know being an occasional counter at the church doesn’t sound like much, laughable to most people, but for me it is a really big deal. I am excited. 

Reconnecting At Last!

 It is a "red letter" day for us:  we returned to in person church services today!  My church has not been closed to in person services for most the past year, but we have been choosing week by week not to attend in order to protect our rather fragile immune systems from Covid19 in all its various forms.  This morning we finally returned.

Yesterday we were both feeling rather cranky and depressed, despite more than a week of decent sleeps at night, healthy food, keeping abreast of our house chores and having some excellent Zoom meetings and phone calls and email exchanges with friends and family.  So, we talked about it and came to the conclusion that we are far more isolated from our church family than we can handle any more.  Since my church is still diligently practising masking, hand washing and distancing, we decided to return today.  We are so glad we did!

The Learning for Life adult pre-service class on the Book of John was far more interesting in person than it has been on line for us. At home we find it difficult to keep our attention from wandering as sometimes the microphone in the classroom doesn't pick up some of the class conversation and we often don't get to see the faces of the other online Zoom participants because they keep their cameras shut off.  That frustrates us as we find it difficult to connect with a square black space with someone's name printed on it, even if that person is speaking into the discussion.  

What a joy to see friends again this morning....in person....masked and distanced, but in person.  It was a thrill to be so joyfully greeted by so many friends and aquaintances and to have time to really talk together for a few minutes both before and after the service.  We (eventually) left the church feeling very fulfilled both spiritually and emotionally and it was lovely!  We received encouraging news at the church about the Covid hospitalizations in our city, from someone who works in the system....COULD be that we are finally beginning to move past the pandemic crisis stage of this virus and into a more endemic situation like we have with the more common cold coronavirus....hoping that is true.

My husband decided we might as well have all our weekly Covid exposures in one day, so off we went after church to DarBar for our first taste of Indian food since our New Year take out extravaganza!  There were lots of bagged orders heading out with the Skip the Dishes drivers, but no other customers inside the restaurant, so we felt pretty safe.  My husband brought home enough of his Rogan Josh platter to have his dinner tonight or lunch tomorrow, but I ate 3/4 of my platter of food.  It was just so delicious that I went ahead and ate my fill.  I didn't have any naan and I didn't eat the shell of my potato and green pea stuffed samosa and I left half my chick peas and gravy for my husband to add into his take out box, but I ate my way through 2/3 of a cup of delicate white rice, my green salad, the samosa filling, a bit of my cucumber raita, my fantastically flavourful coconut pepper chicken and my tiny portion of saffron rice pudding.  With an added cup of sugar free chai it was a filling, fabulous treat of a luncheon!  For dinner tonight I will have a small bowl of our home made baked beans and a single serving yogurt while my husband eats his Indian leftovers.  He wasn't very hungry or he wouldn't have left an entire portion to bring home.  He has been very disciplined with his appetite lately, as have I actually....until lunch today!  YUMMY!!  O wow, am I ever full....still....over 2 hours later! 

After lunch we dropped off some church giving tax receipts to a couple of other parishioners who are not yet venturing out to church, so that gave us a very brief doorside visit with one of them-icing on the cake.  

As we arrived home the wind began howling, preparing us for another possible blizzard that will be sweeping down from the north and may or may not include our city in its path.  Struggling down the icy pathway from the car to our back door a huge gust nearly blew us both over!!  Shades of our scary day in Kindersley during the blizzard there a couple of weeks ago!  So glad we don't have to go anywhere now for a few more days.

My porch visit with a friend for tomorrow morning has been postponed until warmer days arrive. She has been quite ill for the past week or more, is just now healing, and with a forecast windchill of -25C tomorrow, we decided it would be foolishness to try sitting out on a windy porch in that kind of cold.  I am thinking about how much more we will have to talk about when we finally do get together....although our conversation never lags, no matter how close together some of our visits have been over the years. She is such a good friend, considerably younger than myself, so I love getting that different perspective on life.  People like her prevent me from giving in to the pandemically inspired temptation to want to act my age!!  (not that there is much danger of that ever happening, but I delude myself sometimes into thinking it COULD happen....teehee)

Well, I will go now and do some exercise and watch the now grey sky possibly turn into another blizzard of snowfall.....ooh scratch the word "possibly"!  The snow is suddenly and forcefully slamming down everywhere!!  There must be some sleet in it as it sounds like tiny hailstones hammering the side of the building.

What a great day with this boost to our mental well being!  All that "away from home" joy and a blizzard that waited for us to be safely inside before it hit us!  YAY!!

Sunshine!

 It was quite a shock to go from +3C yesterday afternoon to our overnight low of -21C followed by a high today of -16C!!  However, with the sun shining so brightly and with the tiniest bit of warmth to it already as we get closer to spring, some of the thinnest spots of ice in our parking lot and on our sidewalks is melting just a bit.  It is the kind of treacherous day that people with osteoporosis most dread going outside...people like me!  Fortunately I don't have to go out anywhere today.  After a marathon of housecleaning the past two days, I did step out onto the back deck this afternoon for a few minutes of reveling in the fresh air and warm sun.  It was lovely, but didn't last long due to the cool temperature.

How I love a clean suite!  It won't last long in this dusty old place, but it is wonderful for the first 24 to 48 hours before the dust descends once again on top of all the furniture and wool sock and sweater lint begins its relentless winter weather buildup on the carpets.  For now, things look very good in here, at least as good as it is possible for them to look with the old, mogey carpets, brutalized linoleum and paint chipping off here and there around the baseboards.  Can I stand one more year in this place?  Weeeeeellll, for the sake of my husband's ability to take time to rest, yes I can. As difficult as it is to believe when the basement is flooding, the cold air is pouring in through the insulation free walls in winter, or there is goose poop all over the grass in spring, we actually HAVE lived in worse places, hahahaha.  How quickly I forget that some days.

Our son and his girlfriend got in touch with us this morning to discuss the possibility of them coming to visit us in the early spring.  Being able to coordinate time off from their jobs together is quite  feat, but it appears it may be possible in a couple of months' time. They are going to look at flights this weekend.  We will be thrilled to see them whenever they can come and will arrange our own schedules around their time with us.  Sure hope it can work out okay for all of us.  Not sure we will be able to get them to Calgary to see my mom, but we will see what is possible closer to the time.  It would do her a world of good to have a visit with them both.  This is the first girlfriend our son has ever had that I am not the least bit worried about meeting in person.  Usually I am a basket case wondering what kind of idiot I am going to make of myself that will put the poor girl off!!  Not this time.....a real miracle, I must say, hahaha.

Mom is having a very rough time right now.  Last week she spent nearly two hours standing at her kitchen counter trying to get her bank book to balance.  She has made such a lifelong habit of standing to do any kind of  "bookwork" that she never once thought of sitting down at the table my husband bought for her last year.  So, now she has strained her back, possibly given herself a tiny fracture in her spine and she is in horrendous pain every day.  After feeling guilty for forcing her to pull all the neatly packaged cords, that are plugged into a power bar for her tv and phone, out from behind the tv to see if there was an outlet free for her electric heating pad, I am now relieved that she actually did it and found one.  Now she can use the heating pad all day while she sits in her comfortable, plushy chair.  It really helps her muscle pain.  The home care supervisor and myself worked together to convince her that she should go back on the hydromorphone 3 times a day for a couple of weeks until the pain is more under control.  A couple of weeks of that, two pills less per day than she was taking last autumn when she had a pulled hip and groin, should help considerably without her having too much trouble weaning herself off it again.  As I know from personal experience, there is little point in her going to go to the doctor and then getting x-rays.  There is nothing to be done for these types of tiny spinal fractures, if she even has one, except rest and take pain medications and be very careful when walking or moving not to zig when you should zag.  She will do more injury to her back by having to take taxis to the doctor and the x-ray lab than she will resting comfortably in her chair with the heating pad.  My mother has reached the point where she pulls muscles any time she makes any movement that is either too quick or too prolonged. Poor thing....nothing else I can do about it unfortunately, except encourage her along as she heals.  We had some good laughter going on last evening when we chatted on the phone that took her mind off her back pain for awhile.  She is still learning the fine art of distraction that she began learning when she had her heart attack at Thanksgiving in 2020.  It is terrible that she is stuck at home all day alone too many days with not much more to think about than what is hurting. She missed Happy Hour yesterday so that tells me just how much pain she is in.  Sigh..... I am so grateful to God that weekly housecleaning, twice weekly showers and all dinner meals are included in her monthly rent.  She pays a bit extra if she wants to go to the dining room for lunch and to have her laundry done by the staff every second week.  It is a great relief to me to know she is able to have this kind of help when I am so far away.

Well, my own back feels sore, either from all the housework I jammed into my morning or from the power of suggestion after talking about Mom's back problems. I am not certain which it is. hahaha So, since I have a half bottle of cucumber gin left in the cupboard and some diet tonic water in the refrigerator, I think it is time for a muscle relaxant!!

Tiny Clues

 I enjoy observing people and trying to discern what they are really thinking.  It is a hobby I have honed over the years. Sometimes I am completely incorrect in my discernment of course, but other times I find people don't realize just how obvious they are in letting others know what they really think of them.  hahaha

I had an incident like this a few days ago when talking to a new friend.  We were talking about Canadian politics and she started to talk about the paucity of knowledge involved in a certain area of political discussion in this country.  As she was speaking she came to that word and only got as far as "pauci..." before there was a split second silence and she said "lack of knowledge" instead. hahaha  I suspect she made an assumption that I wouldn't know what the word "paucity" means. hahaha  Her change of wording accompanied by a slightly uncomfortable pause told me she is unsure of my ability to comprehend language that is somewhat above the most plebian of expressions.  Since I tend to use very simple language when writing blog posts, as you have no doubt noticed, as well as when I am having usual types of social visits, it is not surprising perhaps that she made that assumption.  I was not offended by her change of word, but it was telling none the less.  Next time we talk I will have to up my conversational language game.

People often do not realize how much they are saying in such instances: a change of word part way through saying it, a split second pause or nearly imperceptible rolling of the eyes, a nearly silent "harumph", a drumming of the fingers, a pulling in of the chin in response to someone else's conversation, looking off very briefly in a different direction from the speaker, a pulling up of the shoulders....they are all tells and I hope none of the people I am thinking of as I write this are poker players because I would guess if they are they don't win very often! hahaha

Nothing is more interesting than people watching.  I wonder how many times I too give away my otherwise "secret" true thoughts by my body language or hesitation in my speech patterns.  Humans are such complicated beings, an endless source of fascination!!

So Much Grief For One Family To Cope With!

 Today I am praying for Garry, whose liver is failing, for Girlie who has Covid, for 5 year old Danny who is in hospital AGAIN while struggling with what will be a lifetime of serious, chronic health conditions, as well as for Rebecca who had deep brain surgery a couple of years ago and recently underwent a liver biopsy. What connects these requests is that all these people are members of the same extended family. What a nightmare for them and for the rest of the family. I feel ill imagining the stress and fear tempting everyone involved. Fortunately they all know the Lord very well and that will bolster their courage, especially for supporting wee Danny whose cognitive skills have also been effected by his health problems. If you feel so led, could you offer up a prayer for these dear folk? Thank you!

And So It Goes!

 Guess the Alberta Premier is as nuts as ours! In what appears to be a childish race to “be first”, many of the Alberta pandemic restrictions were lifted at midnight last night. Boom, just like that, only a few hours after the announcement. My husband and I are wondering if we should make a couple of restaurant runs between now and Sunday evening when the vaccination passports will no longer be required here. Gosh, it is going to be difficult to know how to assess the risks as the restrictions are lifted in the coming weeks because our province has now scrapped reporting of daily Covid case numbers and gone to a weekly report instead. Our premier is completely disrespectful of his own government  medical advisors and staff. They are now receiving death threats from members of the public for their ongoing restrictions stance. 

The “Bully Convoy” of truckers and the accompanying rabble rousers continues across the country. Centuries ago the Romans were mentally and physically destroyed by the lead in their drinking water. It seems we may have a similar problem  going on in North America. Is it too because of something we are ingesting or breathing in from the air around us? The spread of mass insanity and inability to listen to and heed reason and reality has me seriously wondering. 

Well, I have done enough musing on these topics. 🤐 Sorry family members but I too am allowed to have opinions and share them on my own blog, BUT I will now return to the boring, happy clappy posts you expect of me.....teehee....at least for awhile.....nyaaa haaaa haaaaa 😜

Crazy, Crazy, Crazy!!!! A t Least To Me.......

 Word is filtering out that our premier may be making an announcement later this week regarding the pandemic restrictions.  It seems he is likely going to lift the vaccine passport requirement soon and by the end of the month he will lift the indoor masking requirement in public spaces. Sigh.....  He has been hinting at these things for awhile, but if this is actually true it is kind of frightening to us.  His former pronouncement in various recent speeches, that we will just have to learn to live with COVID, shows a great deal of ignorance as to the way viruses mutate.  It has not yet mutated to the degree where it is more endemic, like its "common cold" relative virus.  It may, but it isn't at that point yet.

Well, we shall see what comes of his announcement in a few days time.  If what we are hearing is true that is going to have to be fine, but my husband and I will be continuing to wear our masks until it is proven through a steady decline in COVID hospitalizations and deaths that we are safe to remove them when we are shopping and otherwise out and about.  We have been very patient with some of our more vocal antivaxxer friends. We have not challenged their decision to refuse to be vaccinated because they are adults and capable of making their own risk assessments, but now we hope that if the restrictions are removed, these same particular folk will be equally patient with us if it is OUR turn to refuse to complywith government health regulations.

Art Smart!

 Our son has finally completed his new website, so for those of you asking about it, or anyone of you otherwise interested, here is the link:

www.elibornowsky.com

First Day Of "False" Spring!

 Good morning fellow cheery bees!  Today we are experiencing the remnants of a huge chinook wind that blew through southern Alberta yesterday and I have to say  that despite the sloppy, mucky streets and some ice on the sidewalks from the slowly melting snowpiles on lawns, it is GLORIOUS to be alive today!  The sun is shining brilliantly and there is even a touch of spring warmth to it.  

All in all it was a wonderful day to drive out to the dentist's office for our 6 month cleaning!!  Breathing in warm air, watching the snow piles starting to melt, even knowing it won't last more than a few days before we finish off our usual prairie winter with colder temperatures once again, gave my husband and I a mental boost.  

Our dental cleanings went well and we actually were finished at the same time this time. Neither of us had to go and sit in the car while waiting for the other to be finished.  I had to have an x-ray because a tooth has been bothering me intermittently for the past few weeks, but it turns out it is a bite issue, so after the dentist came in and did some filing down of the points on three of my crowns, everything began to feel better immediately.  I have a mouth full of desensitizer and some more instructions from the dentist that will help me with my tooth sensitivity.  YAY!  It has been a productive morning.  Now I am trying to think of somewhere it might be safe to go away from home for the afternoon, but there is too much ice for walking anywhere. No worries, what a treat to get a taste of the spring to come!  I have missed the Alberta chinooks so very much since we moved to Saskatchewan.  I am not one of the unfortunate people who suffer from migraines every time those chinook winds blow, so they were always a marvellous mid winter treat for me when I lived there.

My big decision for the rest of the day is what to prepare for lunch and dinner.  My husband has claimed last evening's beef stir fry leftovers and it is too soon to have meat again for dinner tonight.  I think I will thaw some bison for tomorrow.  Just got the price list for 2022 and we will not be ordering any bison roasts this year.  The cost per pound is up to just over $45.  As much as we LOVE bison, we aren't prepared to splurge over $90 on a two pound roast.....oooh, I wish we weren't feeling quite so fiscally responsible. hahahahaha 

I need to spend part of the afternoon getting some tv shows set up to record over the next couple of weeks.  My free month of Animal Planet is coming to an end, but there are some good new zoo and veterinary shows on Discovery, so between that and Cottage and National Geographic channels, I am well supplied with programs I enjoy.

Have a blessed day everyone. I am waiting to hear of the death of Alan, and that will take a bit of the edge off my enjoyment of the day, but knowing how he loved Jesus and felt so ready to leave this earth takes worst of the sorrow out of our loss.

Another Loss At Our Church

 I just received a notice from our church that another parishioner is about to leave this earth.  Sigh....  Our minister had a funeral to do last week, has another a week from now and it is looking like he will have another such service to perform.

Please pray for the peaceful passing of Alan and for strength for his wife Eve. They are both rather elderly and Eve has some memory issues and other health issues she has been struggling with for some time.

Alan was the first person I met when I joined the church choir a few years ago.  The first thing I learned about him is that he always had a wide, welcoming smile, a little joke to tell and a story to share.  My husband and I had many happy visits with Alan and Eve at church events being held before the pandemic arrived.  Years ago they lived in the same complex my husband and I now live in and it was fascinating to hear their tales of how things used to be for tenants in these buildings.  I don't think, based on what they told us, that things have necessarily changed for the better here! hahaha

The family has been called to come and say their goodbyes to Alan.  Our minister is with him in the hospital right now. Alan is in a coma and not expected to come out of it.  I am sad. I cannot imagine what his family and all the friends he has known far longer than he has known us are feeling. What will happen to Eve after he passes? Say a prayer for her too if you would. Thank you very much.

Lord, grant Alan a peaceful passage from this earth, a gracious transition from this world to the next.  May he rest in peace and rise in glory. May light perpetual shine upon him. Amen!

Serendipitous Day Here!

 This has been a very happy day for us.  We both slept in for a change, even me.  We woke up less than a half hour before our Zoom learning class began at 9:30am, so it was quite a scramble to get dressed and eat our breakfast before class started.  I admit we did have to finish eating our breakfast online as the class started. So nice to be able to switch our camera off and on as required!

After church we were talking about our period of isolation being over today and we wished we could visit with someone.  My husband decided he would make a batch of baking powder biscuits, because there is nothing like a big helping of pure carbohydrate to assuage one's feelings of loneliness, right?  

He barely got started when the phone rang....another Zoom church couple feeling as lonely as ourselves asked us if we could please, please, PLEASE come over for lunch!!  We have visited this couple a number of times and we know they are staying at home and keeping themselves very safe, just like we have been, so we decided to go.  We brought the biscuits and jam and they provided chili and a salad.  What fun!!  Ooh, it was so lovely to be able to talk about mutual interests and forget about how the whole world seems to be "going to hell in a handbasket."  Our conversation barely touched those issues today and it was wonderful.  My husband and I were finally able to get out of our own heads long enough to rediscover some actual joy!! There IS hope after all! hahahahaha

Thank you Lord, just what we needed today!

Reposted From FaceBook Regarding These Protests

Thank you to Rev. Malcolm French, Oakville Ontario, for this post:

Yet more thoughts on #FluTruxKlan

I knew a family - Mother and Father, two kids under 10, plus Grandfather.

They came to Canada as refugees. Iraqi Christians, they escaped from a village outside Mosul about 30 minutes before Daesh arrived. (By the way, don’t call those terrorists ISIS or ISIL or IS. They wanted to be treated as though they were a real “Islamic State.” Call them Daesh. They hated that.)

In any event, this family literally fled their homes to escape terrorists. Had they not escaped in time, or had they run into a Daesh patrol while driving towards Turkey, it would have been disastrous.

* The Father and Grandfather would have been killed; shot if they were lucky, more likely crucified.

* The son would likely have been killed as well.

* The daughter was too young to rape. Maybe.

* The mother would either have been forcibly married to a terrorist or sold into prostitution.

So, just to be clear, if you want to talk to me about “tyranny,” you’d better have a story that at least comes close to this.

Because if your story of “tyranny” is about being asked to wear a mask and get a vaccination, I categorically refuse to take you seriously.