My Kind Of Week! Yay!!

After struggling with some depression on the weekend, this week’s activities and plans have me up and going and cheerful once again! 

The sunshine and rising temperature today has been extremely motivating! After morning physiotherapy I was able to complete the house cleaning project I began yesterday. The table is set for our dinner company this evening, so all I have left to do is make a salad. My husband has the stew and the trifle fixings well in hand. It is currently +1C outside….which unfortunately likely indicates that the freezing rain we had last night will return tonight, but that is ok. Tomorrow is laundry day while my husband is over at the wood-shop helping his friends build their basement climbing wall. I don’t need to go out anywhere on the ice.

New Years Eve and Day are pretty much non-events for us so I will be free to iron clothes, create some kind of treat for us to eat, relax, work on my exercises and relax. The following evening we have reservations at a favourite restaurant with good friends. If the highways are not too icy on the weekend we are off out of town so my husband can take a church service. There is lots of room still open for spontaneity this week, but it has been great having plans with friends.

Like last evening: we were invited to dinner to the beautiful home of new friends and we shared a fabulous curry meal with a third couple who were good friends here until they moved to another province earlier this year. It was so much fun seeing them again and getting to know our hosts better. We chat in church regularly but have not shared a meal together before. What a lovely start to the week. 

I want to remember these happy events for when the weather gets miserable again and leaving home is more inconvenient and scary than exciting and fun! 

PS Today The Sun Is Shining.....

 ...and all is right with the world once again....this weather related depression at least lifts at the first sign of the sun!  YAY and Happy Day!

Today we have been grocery shopping at a couple of different stores, gone out for tomato bisque and toast at London Belle, been in touch with some relatives in Ontario and here in town, scoped out where we are to meet with friends for dinner tomorrow evening....it is a wonderful day despite the -21C with gusty winds.   It is amazing what a little bit of sunshine, even on a bitterly cold day, can accomplish for one's spirits.  I am grateful the sun is shining so that I don't feel as caged in and miserable as I have the past couple of grey, snowy days.

We got a phone call this morning in regard to a (remotely) possible rental property sometime in the new year.  It is all very tentative and has as much chance of not happening as happening, but it is a start to this coming year's search.  Details will be shared in a few weeks' time IF this actually comes about.  Prayer request? Perhaps..... 

Ding Dong Deadly Flavour!

Today I was given a slice of a chocolate and icing dessert in the shape of a Yule Log. It was commercially made for a grocery store chain.  Oh, it was so lovely with the chocolate swirls on each end made to look like tree rings, the bright green icing leaves and brilliant red poinsettia icing flowers atop the covering of snow white icing.  It was truly a thing of beauty and I assumed it was going to be, other than too sweet for me, absolutely delicious.

Oh wow....I couldn't have been more wrong.  I don't know if it was the preservative chemicals in the icing, or what, but I couldn't eat most of it.  The flavour could be described as non-existent with slight undertones of nicotine.  Gag, gag, gag!!!!  It was unbelievably horrific.  There was no chocolate flavour, there was no vanilla flavour, there was no flavour at all apart from whatever chemicals reminded me of when I tried to quit smoking fifty years ago when that nicotine taste remained in my mouth for weeks afterwards, slowly fading as time went on.  If it took me a month to be completely rid of the nicotine flavour from my taste buds back then, I am comparing today's Yule Log flavour to about week three of withdrawal from cigarettes.  Aiii yiiiii yiiii....

After pushing the remains of my dessert into the garbage, I brushed my teeth three times to get rid of that clinging taste.  Yucko! 

Guess that is good lesson to remind me not to  even try to eat commercially prepared sweet desserts from grocery store chain bakeries.  Gross!!! They apparently are not even worth trying...not even the small amount I had today.  Hope the other desserts sold by that chain are not as grisly as this one was.

Waaaaah...I Wanna Move To New York City....Waaaaah......

 There are days when being constrained to living on the Canadian Prairies is almost too much to bear.  Yes, we have our little concerts and theatre productions that occasionally my husband and I attend and mostly enjoy...but when we chat with our kids south of the border and hear of their nearly daily adventures we feel like our lives are passing us by.  

Maybe it's the weather, but when I read an email from our daughter in law just now, I felt like I wanted to explode and fly madly off in all directions.  Last night they went to see a production of "Oedipus" with some new friends....from Brussels...an art historian and a sculptor. (European artists...of COURSE those are their new friends!)  After the play they went to the Russian Samovar restaurant for some loud Russian music and Russian dancing and some excellent food. Today a few inches of soft, cling-to-the-trees-prettily snowfall arrived in NYC so they are surrounded by beauty in their heavily treed residential complex, but it isn't enough snow to prevent them from going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art tonight to see the Man Ray Exhibition and also some amazing middle 1700's paintings by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (1696-1770)  As soon as I read that I remembered our own last trip to the Met and how amazing a time we had looking at such incredible works of art.  I want to catch the next plane out of here for NYC and never come back.  

My husband grew up on a subsistence farm in northern Alberta and I grew up in a not particularly interesting middle class family in a city closer to mountains and foothills for which I had little appreciation at the time.  To read and hear about the fascinating adventures of our son and his wife is like reading a script for the dream sequence in a play or tv movie, so far removed is it from our own lives and HIS growing up years in a very small town surrounded by farms and oilfields.  It doesn't seem real and yet it is, so I WANT TO HAVE THAT LIFE TOO!!!  At least I do today...haha. When the sun comes back out? Maybe not so much??

This weather is not helping me enjoy life very much either.  We haven't seen the sun for a few days now, the sky is grey and the ground is white, it is cold and getting colder, there isn't much going on during Christmas week in this city and well, there just isn't often the kind of entertainment here that interests us. If anyone had predicted that we would be in Saskatchewan for over two decades now I would have thought they were crazy....yet here we are, bored, lacking in energy, feeling that rare brush of envy when we communicate with our kids and their rather charmed lives there that are not all that unusual for people involved in the arts scene south of the border.  

I think the other reason I am feeling this way is that I am scared this lifestyle is not going to be able to last forever for our kids. After many "dangers, toils and snares", their lives are relatively peaceful, low stress and calm, organized, with decent incomes and and an incredible place to live.  Am I secretly worried that for one reason and another things will not continue to go this well for very long?  There are seasons in life that are pretty wonderful and some most dire and terrible, and none of our seasons of life last forever.  They have  both had so many deep struggles in life and I want them to be able to hang onto the present joys for a good long time to come.  Well, for now I shall continue to live vicariously through their adventures while I spend my days doing physiotherapy and contemplating which days each week will be best for doing laundry and which days should be spent cleaning or grocery shopping or, or, or anything else on my list of plebeian daily "adventures".  

The stupid part of these feelings of being caged in is that as of the first day of spring, as I see the sun shining and the snow and ice melting, as I realize it is walking-out-of-doors season again, I will be as happy as if I was in my right mind, the prairies will once again be tolerable, I will appreciate the size of this tiny city for its conveniences....life will be just fine once again and I won't feel so trapped.

Only 4 months to go...... 

The coming week is going to be a lot of fun.  Former residents of Regina who moved westward earlier this year and who have been good friends are going to be seeing us early next week. We are all meeting for dinner at the home of other friends and it will be delightful getting caught up once again with each other's lives.   

The following night one of our fellowship groups is coming over for stew and buns and, as always I have no doubt, many many laughs!  

Another couple we just love are also picking a date to go out for dinner with us to the Fancy Fork and they are great fun as well.  

A cousin of my husband's that we rarely see wants us to come to her place for coffee and a very overdue visit the week after New Years.  She is such a nice person and is working hard on her and my husband's shared side of the Family Tree.  We have a whole album of photos to give her of her family members and my husband's that he inherited from his sister, so she is very excited about that.  

If it isn't completely iced over and freezing tomorrow morning we will try to go to church and perhaps even lunch out since I have been stuck inside since this past Monday!  Aaaah, that partly explains my mood as well....too much isolation this past week!  I am guessing if I can get out tomorrow for church, lunch and a bit of grocery shopping for the group dinner next week then life will be pretty good once again....for awhile at least....teehee..... 

Standin' On The Corner Watchin' All The Snow Blow By....

Tonight we are finally getting a nice deep cover of snow!  It will be horrible for my husband when he has to shovel us out of here tomorrow afternoon, but watching the snow accumulate on the streets and lawns as I stood outside was so serene and peaceful.  I love watching the lawns and sidewalks and streets all blending and melding together under a common blanket of deep snow.  Finally, only two days late, we are receiving our truly White Christmas!

The entire province is getting slammed with heavy fog, snow covered highways, blowing snow and poor driving visibility. I am praying for people on their way home tonight and tomorrow from out of town after their family Christmases....this was not predicted very far in advance, so a lot of people will be struggling out on the roads.

Gotta Do Better With The Proof Reading On These Posts!

I apologize that I have been rather laissez faire, lackadaisical and just plain lazy in recent weeks when it comes to proof checking these posts. Spelling errors, grammatical errors and completely missing words have decorated too many of them. 

Guess if I have a New Year’s Resolution, this is it.

Good News From Robert!

 So happy to receive a call from Robert this morning and to learn he is doing well! The stent was put in early last evening, so when I called him that certainly explains why there was no answer! He sounds well, chipper and is anxious to return home to complete his recovery. Thank you for praying for him this morning.

We began the day watching the old Charlie Brown Christmas. It is a favourite of ours and I watched the Alastair Sim 1953 version of A Christmas Carol last night…again…although I restrained myself from also watching It’s A Wonderful Life and White Christmas. Such discipline! 

We had a full hour Zoom conversation with our kids this morning. Our son finally went to the doctor to get meds for his horrible ongoing sinus infection and is feeling so much better today. Last night they were able to attend the Hanukkah dinner with his wife’s family. It had to be postponed due to his illness. Tonight they are cooking a full on Chinese dinner for friends who have traditionally hosted the annual dinner for comedians, but that event is just of many that was cancelled due to the many people in NYC ill with a bad respiratory infection similar to our son’s. The kids missed out on many parties this year as a result of the near epidemic in NYC. They did however make it to a party at the home of actor and comedian Steve Martin. His wife is on the board of our daughter in law’s theater company and she threw a lovely party for everyone. Our son was treated by Mr. Martin to a tour of his art collection, which he really enjoyed. I mention this because my son was reflecting on what it must be like for a well known celebrity to have his home filled with many complete strangers wandering about. How does such a person know when it is safe to turn off the public persona and when that persona, for reasons of personal safety, have to remain firmly in place? Our son has met quite a few so-called celebrities and while he has great respect for their abilities, their social status as such means nothing to him, so he is often privileged to have some good discussions with them. I am very proud of him and his wife for not being of that “I am a fan” mentality. NYC is a great place for such diverse groups of people to end up at the same parties through some sort of tenuous link, like in this case. 

Shortly after we finished our Zoom call there was a knock on the door. It was our Nigerian neighbour, the worship leader at the church we attended on Sunday. His wife sent us three cartons of Nigerian food which we enjoyed for lunch! The spice levels are enjoyable to us…not too hot for the meat and delicious rice with mixed vegetables plus a yummy apple and cabbage salad. What a blessing for us! 

Well, time to wash up some dishes and complete part two of my physio exercises. Then it will be time to pop the casseroles of stuffing and veggies into the oven to heat up for tonight’s dinner with our friends.

Merry Christmas to us….so many unexpected blessings today! 

Praying For A Friend This Christmas

For some, probably for many people, Christmas is a difficult time of year. Today I am wondering if you could take a minute to pray for and send positive thoughts to my friend Bret. Bret has some mental health issues, subsequent employment issues, is lonely and has been on suicide watch a couple of times in the past. He is in a pretty bad way again right now. Previous dealings with local mental health support systems have not gone well, so his family is not sure what to do for him this time. I know from personal experience what a depressing time the holidays can be when you feel alone and desperately unhappy in the midst of the surrounding joy other people seem to be privy to. Thank you for supporting Bret in prayer as you enjoy your own celebrations today, but if you too are feeling miserable about the holidays you are not alone. I find praying for others in the midst of my own bouts of depression to be helpful because it takes some of the focus off myself. I pray Bret makes it through this holiday season. 

My dear, lifelong friend Robert in his late 80’s had his hip replaced a month ago, his third surgery in as many years. He is positive in outlook, disciplined with physiotherapy and was making fabulous progress until a week ago when his legs suddenly collapsed out from under him and he ended up back in hospital. Turns out he has a blockage in an artery and was scheduled to have a stent inserted yesterday. As is not unusual these days the surgery was postponed, until tomorrow, but when I called him on his mobile last evening, twice, he did not answer or call me back. I am hoping it is because he ended up in surgery after all. Perhaps I will find out today. So, Robert too needs a prayers or two. He was our closest family friend, went with my father to the hospital when I was born….yup, a long standing friendship. 

Thanks for being willing to take a moment out of your day to pray for these two friends of mine who are having a rough time and are both living alone. Bless you.

So Much For My Grinchy, Bah Humbuggy, UnChristmasy Attitude This Year!!

 I went to bed last night unhappy and stressed about the Christmas season being upon us "already" and me unable to be completely healed, our kids not being able to come home for Christmas, the world seemingly going to hell in a hand basket and other whiny, "I feel sorry for me" nonsense!!  Oh woe was me!

This morning, after a decent night's sleep, I wandered downstairs to find my husband sitting in the armchair, the fireplace channel on the television, tea in hand, enjoying a string of mini lights he had strung up in the living room window, nicely framing the floral arrangement from our kids that was sitting on the coffee table centred under the lights.  Oh my, such peace came upon me.  

The peace lasted until just after breakfast as I was half way through the first part of my physiotherapy, when I had a complete melt down as I was about to begin the most difficult and frustrating of the exercises.  My husband showed up about then and listened with such patience to all my perceived woes.  We had the most lovely talk, I had a little cry and calmed down and guess what?  THERE WAS SOME PROGRESS WITH THAT VERY EXERCISE FOR THE first time in several weeks.  God bless my dear husband for his listening ear, calm attitude and encouraging words.  I am most blessed.

I completed my physio quite happily and after lunch we started preparing the food we are taking to the Christmas dinner at our friends' place tomorrow.  The sun shone brightly all afternoon so that certainly gave both of us a mental boost. My husband has cooked up a large casserole of stuffing. I prepared buttery rosemary carrots with red pepper garnish and a casserole filled with charred Brussels sprouts, bacon and red onions.  We are going to have a fairly relaxed morning visiting online with our kids as most of the preparation has been completed.  YAY!  

Tonight I enjoyed watching our church's Christmas Eve service on Zoom and my husband is preparing to go for a long walk over to his favourite local Anglican parish for their later evening Lessons and Carols service.  He has a good "walking stick" with an ice pick on the end of it, so I think he will be okay navigating his way over there and back on foot.  Paranoid moi has insisted he take his mobile phone and call me as he is arriving at the church and again as he is leaving as he has to walk through some kind of sketchy areas of the city.  I was so hoping the ice on the streets and sidewalks would convince him to take the car!  Oh well....I will spend his time away washing the mountain of dirty dishes from our afternoon of cooking.  It will keep me busy enough to prevent me from worrying about him. If it was another ten degrees colder I wouldn't be as concerned about who might be lurking along his route.  Our city is one of the least safe per captia of any in Canada, so....yeah, it is a bit of a stress for me when he takes these long late night hikes.

I am very excited about the zoom call with our kids tomorrow, so I hope that doesn't interfere with my sleep tonight....I am worse than a child about such things....oooh, excitement, joy, can't turn off my mind long enough to sleep....the nights before we travel to NYC to see them are the worst. I don't sleep for two nights prior to our flights.  hahaha

Well, all of you out there in blogger land, family, friends, acquaintances, lurkers, have a most wonderful Christmas and a joyous and healthy new year! 

Now That We Are Past The Winter Solstice…..

 ….the days will (painfully) slowly begin giving us a bit more daylight. I read recently that the number of daylight hours once we reach the Summer Solstice in June will have increased by eight hours and twenty seven minutes; a gain of about six seconds per day. Six seconds, ten seconds, two seconds more daylight per day, whatever, I will take however many I can get! Just knowing we are past the darkest day of winter and heading back into the light cheers my heart after yet another mini blizzard late this afternoon! 

Our Kids' New Gift Giving Tradition! LOVE IT!

 Our daughter in law loves to send us flowers for Christmas and she and our son have exquisite taste in arrangements.  Gosh, what a treat to be able to look from the living room through the dining room window into the cold, icy, grey, barren "winterized" parking lot through the filter of Christmas coloured petals and leaves and a sparkling red Christmas balls.  Talk about a badly needed cheering up. Thanks so much you two...we LOVE it!!

Thank you Wascana florals for another beauty!

 

Oh so purty!!!  Merry Christmas to US!

FYI my sore leg is fine today.  I will be able to do my usual physiotherapy session with no problem.  Thanks for asking. 

Just got the list of what we are to bring to the Christmas dinner.  Apparently the turkey stuffing Dell made for this same family three years ago was quite a hit, so he is supposed to bring them once again.  I get to do some veggies, so am trying to think of something different and delicious this year that I don't normally bother with...something extra tasty.  Guess tomorrow morning we will be racing about with a few hundred other folk getting last minute items.  The mall parking lots around town yesterday were crammed with cars and people pushing loaded carts full of "stuff" for the holidays.  Yikes, so glad we didn't have to go anywhere other than one grocery store for two items that fortunately they still had in stock.  

Well the countdown to Christmas continues....kind of happy, actually totally happy that we no longer have the stress of gift buying.  You get to a point in life where it is all just too much.  We are at that point where our main focus is on the Zoom call we are supposed to have Christmas morning with our NYC family.  Praying our son will be well enough to enjoy it as he presently has that nasty respiratory infection that is flattening half of NYC. It is a virulent infection so of course our son, who catches everything respiratory, is quite ill with it.  Sigh....a bit of a prayer for him would be appreciated. Thanks..... 

Guess I Don't Have To Actually Fall Down To Injure Myself On The Ice!

 Today I discovered a new way to injure myself when walking across the ice that doesn't involve slipping or sliding or falling down....whaaaat a talent!!

Everywhere the wind has blown the snow off the sheet of ice that covers everything out of doors right now the exposed ice on the ground is as smooth as glass.  So, I am being beyond careful in placing every footstep firmly on that ice and testing it to see if my feet are going to slip out from under me before putting my weight fully on the sole of my boot.  In this snail'ish way of walking I managed to safely cross forth and back on the ice sheet at the church parking lot this morning, the strip of icy pavement between the gas pump our car was making use of and the indoor payment counter, up and down an icy ramp at the bank, almost a full block worth of parking lot ice at a shopping centre and the terrifying field of ice between our porch and the car in our own lot.  YES! SUCCESS!  Not so much as a mere slippage of a foot.

Only one problem arose after I got home and safely seated in my favourite chair to relax:  when I was walking outside I was SO tense that once I sat down and relaxed, the muscles in my operated leg threw an absolute hissy fit.  When I stood up to walk away from the chair 30 minutes after I sat down in it those muscles hurt so badly I could hardly walk!  Over 8 hours later I am still hobbling about the house, wincing at every step.  When I massage those muscles they ache and ache and ache. It is like I held myself so tensely that I bruised them.  I remember this happening a couple of times 10 years ago when I re-fractured this hip and had to hobble about after a winter time surgery....same thing. I had completely forgotten that until my husband reminded me.  My lower back and ribs are also a bit sore from holding myself so unnaturally upright while gripping my cane in a choke hold. I'm almost afraid to go to sleep tonight in case I am no better in the morning! 

Good.  Grief.

I gotta learn to relax....... 

A Good Lesson From The Postal Strike Of Late!

I am extremely grateful for one lesson learned during the postal strikes that have happened here the past two autumn seasons!

Since I still have my utility and other bills delivered by snail mail in paper form, I have learned exactly what time of each month to make phone calls to each company to ensure those bills are all paid on time during mail delivery stoppages.  Going through each company's security process to gain access to our accounts takes less time and stress than waiting for the end of a strike, or lately of watching the mailbox closely every day while waiting to find out if whatever storm has just occurred is going to mean a temporary stop work order for the delivery folk.  Bills that should have arrived by yesterday at the very latest were trapped by the stop delivery order after having two blizzards in three days.  (I do have very personal, practical reasons based on some past debacles for refusing to receive my bills online that I don't need to go into here....just in case you were wondering why I am still living in the dark ages of having bills delivered in the post.) 

There has to be some kind of good thing to come out of things like postal strikes, blizzards and other reasons for mail shut downs.  We have been told by our kids to expect a parcel delivery from them on a particular day next week, so there is just a bit of stress with that because the one delivery company sometimes delivers to the front door that we rarely use, but occasionally still delivers at the back doors that all of us tenants use the most often.  I expect I will spend the day running back and forth between doors every half hour to try to thwart the package pirates that have begun infiltrating our neighbourhood.  Hopefully I have to sign for this parcel.  We will make certain at least one of us is home that day until said parcel arrives.  This after we all promised each other there would be no gifts at all, of any kind, this year for Christmas.  Bless their  hearts. hahaha At least WE complied this year!!  (Yup, first time, I admit it.)

I Can't Sew, I Can't Sew, I Can't Sew.......Sigh.....

Yesterday after the funeral the top button on my husband's beautiful black cassock popped off. Fortunately he found it inside the protective garment bag, so today I decided I had best put it back on so he can wear it tomorrow at the Lessons and Carols service we are attending.

Weeeeelllll.....sewing of any kind is not my forte. I am fumbley fingered, my eyes struggle to see small things like the holes in the needle and today, even using the needle threader it took me nearly 10 minutes to get the danged needle threaded!!  Do you think I could persuade that stupid thread to go through the enlarged hole of the needle threader?  Nope!  I was so exasperated, but eventually the eye/hand coordination thing came together...SUCCESS!  

Weeeeeeellllll.....not so much.  I got the thread properly into the correct place on the cassock and began re-attaching the lovely fabric covered button, but after a few stitches I realized something was wrong.  Sigh....somehow I had managed to miss putting the needle back through the fabric underneath the button, so that the thread was coming from behind the button, out over the top of the cassock and then back underneath.  Aaaaaaargh....there was no choice but to cut the thread, pull out what  had already been stitched and start again.  Aiiii yiiiii.....the second attempt at threading the needle was fortunately less time consuming and labour intensive than the first go round, so this time I was meticulous about making sure I was poking that blasted needle through the proper side of the fabric. Good grief!  Finally I got the button securely attached, clipped the thread, which was now too short to tie it off by looping the needle through and pulling it into a knot. So, I cut the thread from the needle and began the first of about a hundred attempts to tie the knot by hand.  I can tie my shoelaces with no problem even with the foot on my operated leg stuck out behind me where I can't really see what I am doing, but do you think I could as easily tie a knot in two ends of that thread that was in plain sight???  Nope....it took an age.  Finally I got the knot tied and sighed a sigh of relief...prematurely as it turned out.

I then picked up the piece of foil that I poke needles into to keep them from being lost in the sewing box and started to return the needle to its rightful place.  Of course I managed to drop the needle onto the carpet....the light beige carpet where a thin, tiny silver needle is not able to be spotted very easily.  Aah, Crappers!!!   I had to go and find my good flashlight and try not to accidentally step on the needle during the search.  Fortunately I eventually located it  injury free once I convinced the flashlight battery that it could still work long enough for this one small task.  I got the needle into the foil and returned it to the sewing box sitting on my bed.  Stupidly I sat down on said bed assuming I was going to just pick  up the box and put the lid back on.  Oh of course that wasn't what happened.  As I sat down I managed to sit on the corner of the sewing box, it flipped over and all the spools of thread, needles, scissors and everything else that was in it scattered themselves all over the top of the bed, onto the floor....major discouraged sigh.  It took a minute or two but I finally got everything picked up and back in the box, the lid of the box securely fastened and the whole works put away. That was about a half hour ago.  Whew, right??

Weeeeeellllll.... just this second I happened to look over to the top of my white duvet cover and there sitting perkily atop it was a miniature spool of white thread.  Oh no.....

So, now I am going to go and root out the sewing box from the depths of my desk drawer in order to return that miniature spool.  

And that boys and girls is how to utilize a full hour to do a minor sewing project that should have taken about ten minutes from start to finish.....sigh.....

(I could blame arthritis in my fingers, but to be honest the onset of arthritis has not made my ability to sew any worse than it was before. Dang it.......) 

I Am Already Enjoying My Christmas Present!

 Today I had the chance to wear my Christmas necklace that a friend presented me with a couple of days ago.  I wore it with a black sweater and pants and received many compliments on it. Thank you dear friend for the sparkly, fun gift!!

 

 

I love that it reminds me of a Jessica Stockholder sculpture!  Merry Christmas to moi!
 

New Physio Workout!

This morning I located another page of exercises from the last surgery to add into my initial morning workout. They should help with the restoration of nerves and the tendon at the top of the hip. It was an exciting discovery and I know from previous experience that they are incredibly helpful to hip surgery recovery. Yay! So grateful to have more assistance.

Whew!!!

So relieved to find out a few minutes ago that the funeral home staff have cancelled the out of town graveside interment service after tomorrow's funeral.  Thankfully we are all saved the torment of 90 minutes of driving on highways that, while reopened this morning after yesterday's storm, are still not safe to drive on.  Thank you God for wise, experienced funeral home staff and for the family's agreement to postpone that part of the rites and rituals for a few more weeks.  Whew, whew, whew!!! and AMEN! 

As I Mentioned In My Previous Post....

 ....here is the view to the parking lot from our dining room window....a tad difficult to see much! Happy winter from Saskatchewan!

Our plant doesn't have the best view of the outdoors today!!

 

 

Voila: two views of our parking lot from the dining room. The little brownish blob in the middle of the bottom photo is our CRV!  That  CRV is coated in the same thick ice as our window....what a chore it always is after an ice storm to get it off the windshield, removed from the windshield wipers without breaking the arms or leaving bits of the rubber stuck to the windshield.  To enter the vehicle initially we are going to likely have to bring out the blow dryer from my  hair styling supplies, plug it into the electrical post by the car, blast hot air onto the door frames to melt the ice sufficiently to actually pry the doors open, then wipe down the inside of the door frames with a moisture absorbent cloth so that the melted ice doesn't refreeze!  Aaaah, the joys of prairie winter, eh?  Bet those of you who live in warmer climes wish that you too could experience all this "fun", right? HOHOHO!!!

 

PS my friend Kat got to her medical test and home again, but not without losing her car's windshield wiper system to the horrible ice from our deep freeze.  Thankful that she is okay though. Thanks for shooting up a prayer for her.

FINALLY!!!

The 3am start time for our predicted blizzard came and went this morning.  By 8am it was raining and starting to freeze on every exposed surface.  Driving on the main thoroughfares, according to my dear friend who braved the drive to come for  a visit this morning, was like driving on a curling rink: lots of sliding of the vehicles after only a slight touch to the brakes.  

The rain has continued all day thus far, with the slight mid day warming of the temperature and the hum of traffic tires on the frozen road surface melting some of that ice, but stationary things like our vehicle and back steps are carrying at least a quarter inch of ice now.  I can't see out our kitchen or dining room windows as the rain has been driven against the glass.  All I can see looking out at the parking lot from the dining room are shapeless blurs of colour where the cars are parked. 

The snowfall of up to 20cm is still to come apparently, along with 90km winds overnight and into the morning.  So, we are about 36 hours behind the original forecast of when this storm was to arrive.  Brrrrr.....while it isn't very chilly in our suite, looking outside is enough to bring on the shivers!!  We shall see if that snow arrives to cover up the ice and create a potential "broken bone trap" for people like me who are not going to be able to stay indoors until next spring when that ice finally melts away.  Although I have no right to complain about having what now is considered to be a typical prairie winter after having autumn until almost the end of November, I admit my insides are complaining most bitterly! hahaha  I know, I know....why do I continue to live on the prairies if I detest and fear winter so much?  Well, there is this little issue of affordability.....

It is nearly 4pm already. I slept in a bit this morning and was just barely ready to greet my visitor this morning, so the day has flown past seemingly more quickly than usual.  What a cheery start to the otherwise miserable next few days to have a friend come over for a nice long visit!! AND she brought me a beautifully hand crafted necklace from a pop up market she supports.  What an amazing treat!  It is completely different from any other jewellery I own AND, happily it is silver and PINK!!!!  Love the pink!  There, I have had MY Christmas and it was wonderful!  YAY! 

Well, we shall see what transpires with the weather in the next 24 hours!  I am praying for a safe drive for another friend here who finally, just this morning,  got scheduled for an important medical test she has been waiting far too long for after a medical incident WEEKS ago: at 6pm TONIGHT! She has to get the ice off her car somehow first and then navigate the streets as the temperature begins dropping again.  Please shoot up a prayer for Kat. Thanks so much.

Friends in AB have sent photos of the main highway in their south central area: closed due to blowing snow and a thick buildup of the white stuff on the highway that have resulted in multiple crashes today.  How many years did I regularly travel that highway when we lived in AB and had to drive in similar conditions?  Too danged many times is how many!!!  I am so grateful to be living in a slightly larger centre where I no longer have to leave town to access the simplest of services!  Thank you God!! 

Life is interesting in the winters here....even on days when the only fascination is the weather! 

The Theataaah, The Theataaah.....

"Happy Monkey" is the name of this font and it describes how I feel this evening....well, very early morning by the time I get this posted, haha.

At the instigation of friends, we joined them in attending the local Globe Theatre's production of Dickens' "A Christmas Carol".  It was a lot of fun and certainly one of the better productions I have seen there in times past....LONG times past actually.  I had season's tickets there for a couple of years just prior to the Covid disaster of 2020, but got tired of the minimalist props in their theatre in the round productions, as well as finding the seats narrow and uncomfortable with a severely deficient amount of leg room space between the tiers of seats.  In the meantime the theatre has undergone major renovations that have certainly improved the place....much more comfortable, wider seats but unfortunately the leg room is still not great and my taller husband suffered greatly. By intermission his legs were cramping and he ended up changing seats with one of our friends who, due to a slight curve in the row, had a moderate couple of extra inches for his legs to squeeze into.  Unfortunately, despite this excellent performance, we are not highly inspired to attend any more plays there because of the physical discomfort of being wedged into those narrow rows of seats. Our knees were not quite up around our ears like they were prior to the renovation, but wow....even a few more inches for our feet to rest on would make the experience so much better.  It surely was fun though to be there with good friends.  We are happy for an older couple that today's storm is apparently arriving one day late, as they live two hours out of the city and planned to drive home right after the play.  Wow...four hours of driving for a two hour play....can't believe our family used to do that same routine as a matter of course for decades!  What a relief to me to be living in a city again...okay, a small city, but still, I don't have to drive hours and hours to attend performances at entertainment venues.

Tonight my husband is camping out overnight in the basement. He has set up a little subterranean style sleeping room and I pray that he won't be able to hear the loose piece of siding on our building, right outside our bedrooms, that flaps LOUDLY in the wind gusts like we had all night last night. I am barely conscious of it any more, but my poor husband nearly lost his mind from the noise last night and only slept a very few hours.  Praying he can catch up between now and tomorrow morning. I admit I am kind of enjoying have the upstairs to myself. I can keyboard on my computer and sit up reading in bed, bright lights shining, as long as I want without disturbing him.  My treat for the week: staying up uber late without guilt! hahaha  Welcome to my narrow little world......

The storm is forecast to arrive around 3am, so maybe if I go to sleep right now I will be sufficiently unconscious to miss its loud, wind wailing arrival. 

Grateful For Another Good Day For Being Oot And Aboot!

Completed my physio fairly early this morning and had a nice phone chat with a friend from Vancouver Island. 

Happily the blizzard, while still forecast to occur, has held off for now. Slipping and sliding over the icy grass this afternoon to get to the car was not fun, but with an overnight temperature of PLUS 7C that melted 2/3 of the snow on the ground, ice was expected. There was also freezing rain overnight that eventually froze in patches around the parking lot on sidewalks. Thankfully I was able to get to the hairdresser and the grocery store despite strong, cold winds as the temperature began dropping again and my husband was able to get to the computer shop to purchase his own Christmas gift: a brand new computer that will eliminate two ancient ones taking up space on his desktop. I am so happy for him. He bought me one a number of weeks ago now and I have so enjoyed it! Merry Christmas to us both! 

Friends are picking us up soon for a night at a local theatre to see a Christmas themed play. Should be fun and even more so since we don’t have to brave a blizzard to get there and back. 

The blizzard will likely not arrive until around 3am tomorrow. Now that we have a few weeks’ worth of groceries squirreled away, haircuts completed and social obligations for the week fulfilled, we can hunker down for the next couple of days and enjoy watching the storm. Hopefully there won’t be any power outages in its wake! Hopefully my friend can still make it to our house in the morning for our planned visit, but if we do get 70km wind gusts moving 15cm of snow about, it could prove tricky!  Fortunately my Thursday morning coffee buddy already cancelled our meeting for this week, so no driving hassles for her the day after the blizzard. As much as I detest prairie winters, I do love watching a blizzard as it happens.  

Preparing Well For The Next Round Of Crazy Winter Weather!

 We had no plans for this afternoon once my husband's morning meeting was over, but looking at the forecast for tomorrow and following day propelled us to a grocery store to start stocking up as we were out of a number of essential items. Hopefully the wind warning tonight will not carry on into the morning when we hope to get to one more grocery store and complete our purchases.  

We already had a smattering of freezing rain as the temperature went slightly above 0 late this afternoon and the horrendous 90km wind gusts are to coincide with the falling of a fair amount of snow beginning later tonight. Yucko!!  Oh well, storms in the great outdoors are lots of fun to watch....from the safety and warmth of the great indoors!!

On our way to the store we stopped to drop off some cartons of baked beans for various friends who enjoy getting some homemade meals when they are incredibly busy, or disabled,  and planning and cooking a meal is the last thing they need to be worrying about.  That was fun. 

Just before dinner tonight our Nigerian neighbours came over to tell us that their pastor, who we met when we were invited to their church's cultural Sunday back in August, is eager that we join them once again this coming Sunday. They are an Anglican congregation and are having the Anglican Lessons and Carols service.  Their minister would like my husband to help do the readings.  We agreed to go and hope that their congregation is not too upset about our reappearance.  Their minister is very determined they need to integrate more racially diverse folk into the congregation....a noble ambition and we do hope and pray he has a good measure of success.  It is not an easy thing to do and the reasons are completely understandable.  So...Sunday will be a most interesting day once again!

This past Sunday was a very happy day. After the church service we took out one of our senior couples...yes, even more senior than ourselves!  We took them to the Fancy Fork and they just loved it.  Our meals were excellent as expected, but what really touched their hearts was the way the young serving staff showed true care for their mobility issues. They warmly greeted them, helped get them seated, removed and stored wheel chairs, opened doors to assist them getting in and out of the restaurant.  Our one friend was in tears as she felt so very cared for.  Thank you Fancy Fork staff once again.  You have obtained what will be two new regular customers, as our friends are already making plans to return there.  

My physiotherapy results have improved slightly once again and I am not finding the prospect of doing 18 exercises each day nearly as onerous now that there has been another bit of notable progress.  Funny how that works, eh????

Tomorrow afternoon I look forward to getting my hair cut and in the evening we are going to see a live theatre production with good friends. Lots of good things to look forward to! 

I admit I am just a tad excited about our foray back into the Nigerian Anglican church on Sunday....as much as I love my own church, there is something special about being welcomed so warmly into a cross cultural church situation....terrifying in some ways to me, (I am the world's best at putting my foot in my  mouth in such cross cultural circumstances), but special nonetheless. 

 

 

 

 

Hibernating On A Chilly Day!

 It is currently -28C outside with a windchill of -38C, so I am VERY content to stay home all day today!  Thankfully there is a bit of sunshine and minor patches of winter blue sky peeping out through the thin grey clouds.

My husband has other ideas for activities on such cold days. He is currently walking over to the home of a friend to make plans for a funeral for the friend's father that my husband is officiating at next week.  He loves getting out in the bitterness, particularly on a day when there isn't such a strong breeze and the sky isn't steely dark grey.  He has so many layers of clothing on I don't know how he can walk, to be honest:  a heavy cotton long sleeved turtle necked tee shirt, covered with a long sleeved heavy brushed cotton shirt, covered in a thick blue hoodie, (or bunny hug, depending on your geographical area), covered in a down filled, fur lined hooded, parka, covered with a thin bright white snowmobile moisture protective jacket and on his head is the aforementioned hood over his warmest woollen toque.  He is wearing heavy winter work wear denim pants over sweat pants and his feet are sporting two pair of heavy socks inside his felt lined, knee high winter boots.  On his hands are a pair of cotton mittens covered with heavy leather mitts.  By the time I would get all those layers on myself I would be too exhausted to even leave the house, let alone try to walk for 40 minutes in the cold trying to keep myself upright under the weight!  God bless him....and keep him safe out there stumbling about on the ice and through the snowdrifts!  

I had a great sleep last night, perhaps medication induced from the heavy duty antibiotics I began taking yesterday, but it certainly has made me feel more mentally bright today than usual.  This morning I did the first half of my physiotherapy and am about to go and do Part Deux once this post is published.  Then I plan to finish reading a partial autobiography by Laura Lippman, "My Life as a Villainess", (meh) before starting to read "Theo of Golden" by Allen Levi, about which I have heard encouraging reports from a group of friends in a bookclub who recommended it to me and lent me a copy.  I suppose after having this day of relative leisure I will be expected to come up with some kind of dinner this evening....oh woe is me....teehee.  

Tomorrow I also plan to remain at home in even colder temperatures than today and normally in this weather, (-30C overnight into Sunday morning), I would wimpy out on church and watch the service on Zoom on Sunday AM, but since we are taking church friends out for lunch afterward, we will brave the elements and attend in person.  No problem for my husband apparently, hahaha.  ALTHOUGH, by walking he doesn't have to do the dreaded scraping of the car windshield or the warming of its interior before it is safe to drive away from the parking lot.  

Time to get back to my physiotherapy.  I love doing physio on Fridays because if I have been a good person and completed my proper weekly physio schedule, I get the weekend off!  YIPPEE!! 

Please shoot up a prayer for our neighbours on the other side of the wall this weekend. They are moving out and have such bitterly cold, miserable winter weather to contend with during their move.  Also, if you could ask the Lord to be merciful once again to us with whoever the new tenant(s) will be....how many times can we prevail upon his good grace with this particular prayer....we would really appreciate it.  We have had 8 out of 10 years of really great tenants in these less than soundproof suites. Do we dare hope for one more???   Thanks for a praying for us once again about this matter.

Our First Little Blizzard Of The Season!

 It was a chilly day mostly due to the wind rather than the air temperature, but tonight it will be heading to -24C and we won't see any temperatures warmer than that until next Monday. Today we had blowing snow, about four inches worth and the streets were covered in a thick layer of snowy "oatmeal" with a coating of ice underneath.  A few cars without proper winter snow tires were sliding somewhat sideways past our house late in the afternoon.

We were out and about in this kind of miserable weather for part of the afternoon: fellowship group and then to the pharmacy to pick up some prescriptions for me.  While we were at the pharmacy my husband picked up a fresh carton of milk and a few other necessities in case we don't feel much like going out before church on Sunday morning.  I think we might even have been tempted to wimp out and see the Sunday service on Zoom, except that we are supposed to be taking some friends out for lunch afterward.  So we have survived our first short trip through the blizzard.  I have been praying for several friends who I know are on the highway out of necessity this afternoon and asking God to help keep them safe.  For now I am just grateful we made it home safely ourselves and I look forward to a couple of days of hibernation!!

My husband has a meeting tomorrow with the family member of a recently deceased soul, since my husband is taking the funeral service.  For him, bundling up in his warmest outdoor gear and walking the three kilometres to our friend's place is no big deal and he is looking forward to that possibility with great glee.  I wish him well and will be waving enthusiastically at him as we wanders off through the snow....from the relative warmth (in this building the amount of warmth is questionable) and safety of the inside of the windows in our suite!

We received a happy, enthusiastic message from our son last night:  after what appeared to be the biggest bomb of an art exhibition he has ever had, the one we attended the opening of this past autumn, his agent sold three of the seven paintings in the past week!  He and she are both delighted! Apparently a couple of more of the remaining paintings appear to be on the verge of being sold as well, so he is quite delighted....and relieved!!!!  We are thanking God for this, because not making any sales was just not in anyone's mindset. This was a big show and lots of collectors were there, collectors who have purchased his paintings more than once in the past.  In a tanking art market, it is wonderful to know there are still a few buyers out there. Thank you Lord!  He has two smaller shows in NYC in the first few months of next year, so hopefully he will do well with those too.  His wife's current play is having a public table reading this coming Sunday evening at an off-Broadway theatre company, so that is also very exciting. This particular company is quite well known, so it is a bit of a coup to receive this table reading with them.  Our kids have found their niche artistically and with their lifestyle, so we pray things can go well for them for a good long time to come.

My physiotherapy is crawling along as always, BUT there is forward movement, so that is an encouraging situation. I am most thankful for it.  This afternoon I began a week's worth of very strong antibiotics to try to take care of the last two symptoms still showing up on my lab results and then when the meds are done with, I will test AGAIN and am praying the issue is solved at last. I feel like I can't face another ultrasound after the fiasco of the last one 3 years ago!  Oh Lord, from my mouth to your merciful ears....  

Better News, I Think…..

 Hi praying friends: I ended up at the lab yesterday for more testing and of my five wonky test results discovered a week ago, three are back within range. My doctor called me early this morning to discuss the remaining two, is putting me on one round of antibiotic and leaving a lab referral with my chart at the clinic so I can be retested once the meds are done. If the remaining two sets of results are not cleared up then an ultrasound will be ordered. I am feeling good about the situation because finally something is being done!  Thanks friends for your prayers. Certain scary cells in my earlier test samples are now gone, so that is a huge relief. 

Getting Well, Step One!

 Thank you prayer partners and other family and friends!  My appointment with my GP went quite well this morning.  Although it was obvious she had not put any thought into my wonky test results prior to this morning, sigh, at least she had a good look at them while I was there. I actually asked some fairly intelligent  questions after doing some of my own research about what these test results could mean. Yay me, for once! She sent me immediately to the nearest lab for a full spectrum culture and, since the results should be in by tomorrow morning, she had me return to the front desk to set up a phone consult for tomorrow, as she is not actually leaving until the following day on her month away.  At least that is more than what has been going on prior to today.  Thankful for small mercies, right?  If I receive the test results on line but do not hear from her as planned, I will call the clinic and find out who is handling her patients in her absence and make an appointment. However, based on what she told me today, to "just come in and see whoever is here if you need help while I am gone", (seriously, of course I am going to need help unless you DO call me tomorrow to set up next steps), I am guessing I will find myself in a couple of days lined up outside the clinic in the walk in line waiting for them to open first thing in the morning.  At this point my mental energy is sufficiently restored to once again be like a dog with a bone, advocating for myself and setting up appointments with whoever I can find to get this show on the road to healing!!  Thanks for continuing to pray dear friends and family.  If this DOES happen to be a worst case scenario, I am not prepared to just sit here with these symptoms waiting for her to come back and not seeing another doctor in the meantime if necessary.

Unfortunately last night's forecast for freezing rain overnight and howling winds with blowing snow this afternoon turned out to be fairly accurate!  Drat!  My dear husband was out putting Snow Melt on the back deck and stairs so I could make it to the car. At least the barely below zero temperature outside made it easy to remove the icy covering from our car windows once we got the inside heater running.  Wow, how amazing that this is the first freezing rain of any merit we have received this winter.  What a blessing that it has taken about 8 weeks longer than usual for that miserable ice to arrive!  So, I am not going to allow myself to complain about it.

Tonight we are taking Christmas gifts and a peach pie to our fellowship group meeting.  It is going to be a cozy night, sitting in a nice warm living room with our hosts' dog going from lap to lap and the cat purring from the top of the sofa where she likes to sit and rule over her little Kingdom and we, her subjects!  Despite it meaning we have to go out driving in this weather, it isn't  that far away from home and we get to park in the driveway very close to their house, so getting to and from our vehicle will not be onerous.  It is a good day thus far!   

Be Kind, Tender Hearted To One Another....Yup, It Still Happens!!

 Saturday was an interesting day!  We attended a one day "pop up" style art fair that a friend of mine was participating in and had a great time meeting and looking at the works of local artists in her guild. I was able to purchase a couple of our friend's small card-sized paintings for gifts.  When we were done there my husband wanted to step into the building next door to see a day long pottery display.  I SAID that I had better not go with him as I am always too tempted to purchase pottery, which I no longer need...not one single piece of any kind of pottery do I need at this point in my life when I have been downsizing my beloved ceramics in preparation for a move that WILL come eventually!  I knew I was correct in making that decision, BUT of course, as my husband was headed off to the pottery displays I found myself traipsing along, zombie-like behind him, all previous wisdom discarded like a useless paper flyer in our mailbox.  Sigh.....yes, those of you who know me well, also know darned well that I, with not so much as a flicker of hesitation, purchased a small, GORGEOUS thin porcelain dish in pale white with baby blue flowers...oh, it was SO lovely, how could I leave it behind, right? My husband sighed, but was polite enough not to say anything as he was also making a purchase of a ceramic candle holder....something we actually need!  I went to the cashier, paid for my lovely wee dish, then went to join my husband as he conversed with the creator of the candle holder, whose wife is also a ceramicist and had a collection of Christmas tree ornaments that looked like gingerbread cookies with white "icing" painted on for cookie decoration.  As the conversation wound down and we turned to leave, I got my cane tangled up in the handle of the brown paper bag carrying my precious new porcelain dish....the bag fell from the tangled mess of my cane handle and slippery mittens and landed with an ear piercing BANG/CRACK onto the cement floor.  The entire room went completely silent and the dozens of other shoppers around us gazed at me with a combination of horror and pity for an old woman who couldn't hang onto an easy to carry brown bag.  I wanted that cement floor to open up and swallow me whole, but no such luck.  I picked up the bag, knowing the shattering sound I heard tucked in behind that mighty BANG was my new porcelain dish shattering into wee pieces.  The two potters we had been talking to rushed over and picked up my bag to check if my suspicion of breakage was correct.  Of course it was and all I wanted to do was grab the remains and race out of there as quickly as possible. The entire room of people seemed to be holding their collective breath until ALL could see the shattered remains of my dish. Then they exhaled and I could hear pitying whispers flying about the room.  Various people came over to tell me what kind of product I could buy to attempt to put it back together.....God bless their caring hearts and I thanked them for it, knowing all along it wasn't possible, ergo it would never happen. Eventually I managed to extricate myself from their loving concern and make my way back outside, trying to hold back the tears of embarrassment and regret that were threatening to take over the entire front of my face.  As we walked out the door my husband wrapped his arm around me to show support for my hurt feelings and my disappointment at having wasted money I should have known better than to spend in the first place.  We were nearly back to our car in the parking lot when I heard someone calling and running after us. It was the woman potter we had been talking to when the accident occurred.  She ran up to me and presented me with one of her own beautiful tree ornaments as a gift because she felt SO badly about what had happened to me.  It wasn't even one of her works I had managed to smash to smithereens!!  It was one of the other artist's pieces!   The lovely, kind, tender hearted woman knew that despite my acting fairly cavalier about my loss I was most upset and wanted to give me a gift to ease my sad heart.  She hugged the life out of me before racing back into the warmth of the exhibition building.  I could hardly believe it.  What a sweet soul!!  I got into the car and then the tears flowed freely, but now it was because someone I had never seen in my life and will probably never see again, gave me the free gift of her own pottery and took that financial loss on my account.  When we got home I realized I had not taken a business card from her and her husband's display so I have no idea who they are or how to thank them again for their caring concern for this clumsy old gal.  There ARE still good people in this messed up world and we met two more of them on Saturday!  May God bless them in some wonderful way to thank them for their generosity!  I hope I have learned yet another lesson about actually OBEYING that "still small voice" of God when he tells me NOT to do something....sigh....you would think after all these years I wouldn't have to continue learning that same lesson over and over, wouldn't you??? Aiii yiiiii.......

Sunday morning I was pleased that my husband was feeling well enough to be excited about going to church. Often by Sunday mornings he is so exhausted he has to drag himself out to the services, but this Sunday he was keen to get going.  It was a Communion service and it was lovely, the pastor gave a very good sermon and we had some nice visits with other congregants before and after the service.  The snow was coming down and the wind was blowing it into long, winding drifts along the sidewalks and streets when we left the church and we were both hungry, so we opted to go to the new location of Fancy Fork here in the city.  Oh my, it was most lovely and since it was Sunday in the downtown, most of the street parking spots were empty, making parking no issue at all.  We were less than a half block from the entrance...perfect!  The menu items have changed somewhat since the restaurant relocated from Emerald Park, but the meals we ate were just as good as ever.  I enjoyed my Mexican breakfast bowl that was overflowing with a mixure of spicy beef, (NOT dumbed down spice-wise for Saskatchewan palates, which I so appreciated), grilled tomatoes, cubed potatoes, avocado slices and cheese.  The side plate contained bowls of a lightly spiced gravy, made in the restaurant tomato salsa and sour cream.  My husband ordered the chicken tikka naan and that naan bread was packed so full of the chicken, veggies and sauce that it wasn't possible to fold it together to eat. He ate it with his knife and fork quite happily.  The price of our lunch was most reasonable. We have eaten far less delicious meals for much higher prices, so that added to the treat of the experience at Fancy Fork.  It is nice to have a couple of places in the approximate downtown area to enjoy good meals on a Sunday afternoon.

Today has been a productive day for us both: my husband enjoyed a Zoom meeting with his retired Lutheran pastors and their guests for today: a retired scientist from the American Scientific Affiliate and a professor from Briercrest Seminary. This afternoon he was over at our friends' place where he has his little wood working shop to cut the pieces for a climbing wall being prepared for their children to enjoy in their basement.  Next will be monkey bars to install across the basement ceiling. The appropriate floor mats are already in place, so those kids are going to have a marvellous winter doing some of their favourite summer outdoor activities in the warmth of the indoors.  Now he is on his way to meet with one of our church families and their relatives to plan a funeral for one of their family members who passed away unexpectedly last week.  What an honour to be asked to do the service.  Our minister offered up our church space for the funeral to take place, even though he is not taking a big part, if any, in the service, so that is most generous of him.

I had my physio half done by 7am today.  It felt good to get an early start and I was able to complete the programme by 11am after doing a few house chores.  This afternoon, although my poor husband's plan to start today once again on our downloading project was scuttled by the other unexpected commitments, I spent that time sorting, shredding and recycling a large box of old papers my husband collected for me to deal with.  It felt SO GOOD to finally be able to do something to assist him in his rather lonely quest to go through all his parents', sister's brother in law's and his own "stuff".  It is so emotionally taxing for him and so very depressing that it is difficult for him to deal with any of it. FINALLY he realizes he needs help and I can go through and assess old documents, cards and letters, ancient bills etc., far more quickly than he can, then get them dealt with and out of here!!  So happy I finally get to help out.  It was a good afternoon.  I made chili as well this morning and it is all ready for my dinner tonight. While my husband is eating at a restaurant with the grieving family, I get first dibs this time on my own chili.  I will TRY to leave some for him, hahaha...no promises.....teehee.....

After a rather cold and somewhat snowy weekend, today was much warmer outside.  In fact we reached a high of about -4C this afternoon and it won't be very cold overnight into the morning. Unfortunately that has resulted in a freezing rain and storm warning....our first of this winter season, so we can't really complain, BUT its arrival appears to be coinciding with my doctor's appointment in the morning where I am to discuss my wonky test results with her before she departs for a month in her own country.  My husband cancelled his attendance at his weekly men's breakfast out in order to take me to the doctor so I have someone to hang onto getting to and from the car, bless his loving heart!  Mind you, I doubt he would have much fun trying to get even farther away to the restaurant where the guys usually go.  I am praying for mercy that either the ice storm will be much later arriving than predicted in order to protect not only us, but the many people commuting to work in the morning, OR, EVEN BETTER, (from my mouth to God's ear), NOT ARRIVE AT ALL!!!!  We shall see what happens in the morning..... 

Tired, But Oh So Happy!

 Today it is quite cold, around -20C and the sky is covered in Snowfall Grey clouds, indicating possible snowfall later today and tomorrow.  However, I am too happy to care about the weather right now.  I just completed three nights in a row of fairly decent sleep, my physio is slowly improving as the damaged nerves regenerate, (and if they never do completely and I have to walk with a cane for the rest of my life, well, other people my age are sometimes in far worse condition than I), my husband is busy this weekend with his contribution to the diocesan mentoring programme for new priests and postulants, I only have another couple of days to wait before I see my current doctor to try to get some more assistance with those wonky test results between now and February when I see my new NP.  Our son and his wife are working very hard right now and enjoying it, but I hope they do get a break of some kind over the Holiday Season....hoping they can enjoy a good Chinese restaurant on Christmas Day, as so many good New York Jewish families do.  hahaha  Although her family is Jewish and do not celebrate Christmas, she is quite happy to toddle off to church with our son on The Day.  He accompanies her to her synagogue on the Jewish Holy Days as well.  They have a good balance and she has more of a seeking heart than she had when we first met AND a great relationship with her father in law, so there will be more good discussions down the road.  

Although those test results and their implications are still hanging over my head, I have enjoyed the past week and feel very pleased about life today.  This afternoon I have to pick up a few grocery items and hope to also attend a pop-up one day art sale a friend of mine is involved in.  It is sponsored by the members of a local art guild and it is always fun time to see what the local artists are up to.  The car heater is plugged in, so I should have a nice warm drive to the arts centre.  

Not sure what to do about church tomorrow. Subsequent to the church banquet last Sunday, another bunch of people in attendance there  have come down with miserable colds and influenzas, so......since I have been unable to get a 'flu shot due to the one ongoing condition confirmed by "those test results", I have to be a bit more careful than I wish to be.  We shall see how it goes in the morning.....the bitter cold forecast for the next couple of days may play on my Winter Wimpies and keep me at home watching the service on Zoom!  

A good friend is returning from the Yukon tomorrow....I hope the cold weather doesn't hit her too hard. Not sure what the weather has been like up there, but somehow in my mind intense weather and the Yukon go together better than intense winter and the Prairies....how dumb is that? The prairies has always had intense winter weather, so why does that seem more appropriate to the Yukon??  Duh...... 

Middy’s Brain Tumour Surgery…..

 …..was yesterday, dear praying friends. We are waiting to find out the MRI results post surgery which should be shared with the family by tomorrow. At that point decisions will be made regarding future treatment if necessary. We are still asking in God’s mercy that the tumour is benign, but we pray too that if it is cancer, Middy will be able to survive for a long time and have a happy life. He bounced back amazingly quickly from yesterday’s big surgery, so may his energy be indicative of a full recovery to come. Amen! Thanks from the family for your loving prayers! Here’s hoping for good things now for Middy and his family.

Lists!

Today we have a list of errands to run: two banks for transactions, a grocery store for milk, a stop for my husband at the Synod office, a delivery of books to a church for their Christmas sale, picking up my new glasses, (for which our insurance company rebated me for less than 10% of the total, somewhat staggering cost), and a trip to our own kitchen to pull out the stove and retrieve the screw top from our pepper grinder that popped off three days ago and disappeared by rolling under it. Yes, we have been putting it off as moving that stove can be an onerous task and no, we can’t just pull out the under drawer to get the screw top because we already did that, only to discover the stupid thing trapped itself under the far edge. It will require not only a move, but a lifting of the back corner of the stove to get it out. Dang it!

Yesterday I also reviewed my list of life surgeries as I prepare to change medical care givers: one tonsillectomy, one tubal ligation, two carpal tunnel, one dental surgery, one ankle and four hips. That is ten surgeries thus far and I know I will most likely have the other hip replaced sometime in the next year. Who knows what other such delights await in the coming years? Hahaha….no wonder my aging body is struggling with my most recent recovery. It is saying, “Enough already!!”

I also checked a list of the books I have read over the past six months: one huge and delightful anthology of world poetry, two textbooks, six tripe novels, two miserably depressing old plays, one excellent modern play (written by my daughter in law), one confusing novel that made no sense to me despite ploughing through to the end of it in hopes it would resolve (it didn’t), and two “meh” biographies. I have a half dozen unread books left in my pile of library discard purchases and one newly purchased biography to finish, then I think my Christmas gift to myself will be a trip to Indigo to look through the whole store. I will browse the shelves and buy a few books that are worth reading. Lately the community library boxes have been filled with novels bordering on the pornographic and also children’s books and I am finally grasping why the library puts the books it does on its pop up sale racks. Sigh…time to restock my book pile with books I will actually enjoy reading! 

I find lists to be a helpful tool. I particularly enjoy listing the groceries we need and then forgetting said list at home so I can utilize what remains of my once excellent memory and see how many items on the list I can forget to purchase when I arrive at the store list-less…..or listless, which is how I feel when I arrive back home short of needed products and realize I need to get back into the car and return to the store….like, seriously?? I forgot to get: “list appropriate food items here”??? (followed by dragging my listless, tired self back out to the car for a return trip to the store)

Yup lists…gotta have ‘em whether I remember to use them or not! 

Another Storm That Wasn't!

 Well, we did get a bit of wind last night and it did get quite cold overnight, but there was no more snow or blowing snow, so I guess that is good. At least we were prepared if things had gotten anywhere near as bad as predicted.  Today it is chilly but the sun is shining brightly and that certainly is a winter encouragement!!  Love the sunshine!

Had a chat with our next door neighbours: they are moving out on December 15th as they cannot afford to stay in Canada any more. They are on their way back to Sweden.  She cannot get a job in her field here with her MBA and has been working for just over minimum wage, while he has been installing siding and other sheet metal parts, but between the high rents and cost of childcare here they can't make a go of it. They are disappointed and we are too. They have been superb neighbours, SO once again we are seeking God's help in guiding yet another set of excellent neighbours to take up residence on the other side of the wall.  Praying that after over ten years of our request for good neighbours, His supply has not dried up quite yet, hahaha.  Seriously, it is always a concern in this very much less than soundproof set of suites.  

This morning I made the decision to seek out a new physician in the new year.  There are number of reasons for that and so I have my first appointment with a Nurse Practitioner with a wonderful reputation when she returns in mid February from her annual holiday.  Her clinic of multiple NP's is set up to share the patient load when vacation times happen and unlike my present doctor, this NP actually lets patients know she is going to be away!!  When I see my own GP next week to find out how to proceed with my less than stellar test results from yesterday, it is the day before she leaves for several weeks.  She didn't say a word to me about being absent at the very time my results would have to be dealt with if there were any issues and this is not the first time. It is only one reason of many and I love my GP but it is time for a change. My husband has been urging me to give this NP a try based on the experience of friends with her, so guess it is time to start the possible transition in the new year. Gulp....I don't enjoy change, particularly not such major changes, but it is time, I have to face that. My health may depend on it.

My husband has been asked to preach again at a former parish out of town the first weekend of January, so we are already praying for good weather and roads for travelling.  I would not object to having to drive there the day before and take a hotel for the night....but, that is just me...any excuse for a change of space away from home, hahaha.  

Test Results Are In Already!

 My blood glucose level is in normal range....miracle of miracles and I am beyond grateful that getting my ability to exercise back and keeping good tabs on my diet for the past few months have brought things back under control.  Hallelujah!  My cholesterol is borderline...bad me, after several very good years of cutting out foods that are bad for that condition, BUT it is right at the top of normal range and I know what to do to lower it, I just have to DO it! Most other tests have come back very good indeed.

But.... 

There are other results that are not very good.  I will see my doctor in one week to discuss some possibilities with her and she will likely get some more testing set up for me to confirm what this appears to be.  HOWEVER, FYI to those of you who know me well: I am not freaking out! Surprise, surprise, surprise!  If you think of it/me, perhaps you could say a little prayer for me to remain calm over the next week and for wisdom and help from my doctor. Thanks as always for my faithful friends, family and "extracurricular" prayer warriors. Love you all. 

The predicted gale force winds and blowing snow have not yet materialized late this afternoon....still to come over night??? Who knows?? hahaha  We shall see what happens.  Nice though for people driving home from work and for students riding the buses and their drivers. Glad there will be no serious weather related issues with transportation during this rush hour period.  

Up 'N' At 'Em!

I set my alarm for 6am today, so I could get to the lab early, but there was no need.  I was wide awake at 5:20am and ready to get moving!  I arrived at the lab at 6:30am to find two other folk who got there ahead of me already standing at the door waiting for the 7am opening.  As is usual, I ended up having a lovely visit with a couple who had lived in Kindersley in the late '90's and early 2000's, leaving for Regina shortly before our own arrival in Kindersley.  It was a nice way to pass the time on a morning that was much warmer than predicted!

Sometime in the early morning hours....earlier than my own awakening, the bitter temperature shot up to 0!  Minute flakes of snow turning to almost frozen drizzle was falling as I left our parking lot for the lab and by the time I left the lab a half hour after I got into it, the bit of fresh snow and drizzle was becoming rather slippery. By this afternoon the temperature is to fall to -11C on its way to -25C overnight, so this afternoon we will likely be sitting here watching strong wind gusts blowing freshly falling snow around and it will truly feel like winter at last. after leaving the lab I decided to pick up some fresh salad fixings at the grocery store and empty the last of our R/O water jugs at home for my husband to fill after his breakfast meeting.  It will be nice for him if he can get home before the strong winds begin blowing the snowflakes about.  Right now, at about 11am the sky is actually clearing of cloud and the sun is  making an appearance, but there are grey snow clouds coming behind the blue skies, from the west so....I am guessing this morning's forecast will be at least somewhat accurate.  By the time my husband gets home with the water jugs refilled we will both be very content to stay indoors for a couple of days if we do get the predicted weather system.  I have learned never to trust the appearance of blue sky and brief periods of sunshine on winter days because just as hope soars that a bad weather forecast is going to prove itself wrong,  BANG, here comes the storm.  

I am grateful that when I restarted my physio yesterday after a week off, I had not lost any ground.  At the moment I am drowsy from the early morning rising and racing about, but this afternoon I will do physio again while my husband is making beef stew for dinner tonight.  The low sugar banana loaf I promised him is baking in the oven as I write, so we will be well fed for the next couple of days.  

In a day or two I should have all of today's test results to read online and discover how much good and bad news I am going to have to deal with.  Once I get the results I will make my follow up appointment with the doctor and we will go from there.  Two areas of concern, so we shall see if my concerns are justified or not and if there is anything else wrong I was not expecting. Annual physicals and lab tests freak me out every time. Duh....how silly, eh?   Just grateful I learned discipline from my mother and father about getting medical tests done in a timely manner in order to receive help if required before any condition gets too difficult to treat.  God bless them for that. 

Would it be a bad, horrible, dreadful, stupid, idiotic, nasty thing to do to ask my husband...who is currently eating a delightful breakfast while meeting with friends....to pick me up a hamburger for lunch?  After all, even if the A1C is too high, I have 3 months to wear off today's and previous indiscretions...right?  Nope...NOT right....best behave myself as I have been doing pretty well over the past 3 months or more.  No point in making things worse just because I am jealous that he gets to have breakfast out today, hahaha.  How childish am I today? Right? hahaha Of course right!!  May I blame the early morning wake up time and having to go for tests???