Friday, May 25, 2012

If It Ain't Broke...


Oh, but it IS broken. Took Missy M to the foot doc yesterday, and he confirmed what was suspected on her trip to the ER last Sunday: her right foot is broken. He told her "6 to 8 weeks" for the bone to heal...and because he's concerned about the tendon on the outside of her foot, he ordered a full cast...toes to just under her knee...as you can see in the picture...not the walking boot she'd hoped for. So, no weight on the foot yet, which means she's still on crutches. And no driving, which means I'm her new best friend.

Also, he tried to tell her "no work," at least until after her next appointment on June 7th...tried to get her to accept the written excuse so generously offered. Of course, she's genetically predisposed to thinking she can do anything she puts her mind to (now, where could that have come from?), so she blew that suggestion off (as well as any concerns her new BFF shared...:), and we headed her car to The Big White House (KFC's headquarters...in the picture below, along with the Colonel...:). She had to be in a meeting.


Now, don't get me wrong. She's a whiz on these crutches. I honestly don't know how she manages them so well. But, between the steps in the front of the building and general accessibility issues (you cannot just drive up to the front door and hop outta the car), and the heavy backpack (with her computer, etc.) she was carrying, and the extended period of having to sit and contribute coherently (read that: w/o enough pain medication) without having her foot properly elevated...well, maybe that doctor (and her BFF and Mom) weren't so wrong after all. Her director told her "to work from home as much as possible," and she ended up wagging home another pack of stuff to support that suggestion. By the time she got in her house, she was beyond exhausted...and more than ready for a rest.

So, it looks like I'm going to be Driving Miss Maredith for the next few weeks. And running the errands...in an unfamiliar city. I got lost twice yesterday going to the Super Target to pick up her new prescription and get our groceries...and I had the GPS map to get me there. This should be interesting.

Mr. T, on the other hand, is traveling further afield. He had to make a work-related dash back to NC on Wednesday so he could be in Charlotte on Thursday. Not all bad, though, as he is checking on our house, watering the garden, etc. He emailed me that fab picture of the first blooms of the year on the Buddleja 'Black Knight' butterfly bush in our back yard and this wonderful shot of the Kitchen Garden...looking toward the house...where you can see the beans and tomatoes in full-growth mode. Does my heart so much good! I wonder if that early Early Girl tomato will ripen while I'm away?



Meanwhile, he's picking up a few necessities we left behind in our rush to get on the road on Monday. He'll probably make more such down-and-backs between now and ...? West Virginia should be pleased, as their toll receipts will show an increase over the next month or so.

As I said, this should be interesting.



Wednesday, May 16, 2012

The Merrie Month of May

My goodness...it's the third week of May already? I started this post on the 16th...but here it is the wee hours of the 23rd before I am finally finishing it. We're just zipping right along through 2012, aren't we? Well, maybe limping along might be a better description for this year. More on that in a minute.

Yes, our Adventures have had some limitations this year...and the great casualty of the evil-twin combo of my back issues and positional vertigo has been any ability to make plans and follow through on commitments. Still, we are trying to do things we enjoy...whenever we can.

One particular thing we have enjoyed is getting our baseball fix by going to Greensboro Grasshoppers games. It's great!! Lots of fun...especially with the mascot, Miss Babe Ruth...shown in the picture below, acting as batgirl...:) And so very convenient, too!


Let's compare...

A Braves game in Atlanta? Drive for 5+ hours to get there (to the general area.) Spend the night. Drive an hour or more to get to a prepaid ($12) parking space that's still 1/4 mile from Turner Field...with more steps to go to arrive at your seat. Enjoy the game...but know that you have to reverse the process to get home...happy, but exhausted...and a good bit lighter in the wallet.

A 'Hoppers game? Leave home 30-45 minutes before game time (depending on whether you need to make any stops along the route). Easy drive down Wendover to Market to downtown Greensboro. Pay $4 to park a block away in the Grace UMC parking lot. Leisurely stroll to NewBridge Bank Park and arrive at our seats behind home plate with plenty of time to spare before the National Anthem. Enjoy the game...and usually fireworks...knowing that you will be sleeping in your own bed tonight...with dollars to spare.

OK, so maybe the calibre of play isn't as great, but the enjoyment factor is far greater in Greensboro. And I find I'm liking the Braves on our big screen TV just dandy...:). Ahem.

Anyway...back to not being able to make plans and keep commitments. I had made plans to attend the state conference of the North Carolina Master Gardener Volunteer Association this week in Asheville. Had even volunteered to help with registration...way back last Fall when I first signed up for it, and before I took that shortcut down the stairs in January. Who knew the Winter and early Spring would be so difficult? Not I.

So I reluctantly cancelled my plans for Asheville for this week because I realized it probably wasn't prudent for me to make that trip alone, much less sit for 4 hours at the Registration Table. Then we had to cancel our plans for Memorial Day/Anniversary in Atlanta because our dog sitter would be at the beach when we were to have been at the Braves. Sigh.

'All things happen for a reason,' "they" say. Of course, "they" are usually right, aren't "they?"

After a real pace-setter weekend, when we had worked like stevedores on our new Rose Garden in the Way Back...and even taking a timeout on Saturday night for a 'Hoppers game and fireworks...we were cleaning up the remains of our hamburgers-on-the-grill-&-veggies-from-the-garden Sunday supper when a call came through on my iPad. "Never a good sign when it rings after nine." That's something else "they" say.

"Mom, I think I may have sprained my ankle," said Missy M. Through the wonders of technology, she flipped the camera and showed me her swollen right foot, and I knew she was probably underestimating the damage.

Seems she had taken her dogs with her on her supper-run to Wendy's. When they got back home, Ella Rae...her little part-dachshund, part-gazelle...made a dash out of the car, still wearing her leash. Missy M gave chase, even though flip flops would not be classified as track shoes in any catalog. She stepped on the wrist-handle of the leash, rolled her foot, lost her balance...and wound up driving herself to the ER shortly after our chat.

Long story short: xrays showed avulsion fracture of the fifth metatarsal with the ankle sprain. Temporary stirrup cast, until she sees the specialist on Thursday. Currently on crutches...and dire warnings about "no weight on that foot." In short, she was in a bit of a pickle. Here's a picture she took in the ER of said pickle.


And so, that's how we found ourselves...with all our dogs (no sitter, remember?)...in Louisville. We drove up Monday after packing in record time. I harvested as much of the garden greens (photo below) as I could before we headed the car toward the mountains and the Parkway.


We aren't certain how long we will be here to help. Mr. T may even have to make another round trip there-and-back before all is said and done, probably sooner rather than later.

Still, it feels good to be able to keep a commitment. One that we made when we became parents 30+ years ago.

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Bear with me. I'm posting on my iPad with all its limitations re: attaching/sizing/captioning photos. I have loads of great pics of the new roses blooming in the new Rose Garden...and I'll post them when I get back to my trusty ol' Toshiba. Promise.




Friday, May 11, 2012

Walking in Sunshine

Yesterday was a special day for Mr. T and me.  We headed the car down Westchester Drive to Hospice Home of High Point to attend the Dedication Ceremony for the 74 newest additions to their Tribute Brick Walkway...one of which has Momma's name on it.

To be honest, I had mixed emotions about going.  It was a beautiful afternoon...abundant sunshine with Carolina blue skies, mid-70's with low humidity...you couldn't ask for more perfect weather for an outdoor function.  But, I still have a difficult time in making that drive, even after 10 months...and even after some "practice" in the past few weeks.  My neurologist's office is in the building across the street from the Hospice Home entrance, and I feel this heavy weight on my shoulders whenever I've had to keep an appointment with him.  Well, heavier than if I was just bothered by having to keep an appointment with a neurologist about my back, shall we say?

Anyway, I could feel the lump coming into my throat as we pulled into the parking lot.  Now, where is my little purse pack of tissues when I need it?

We were met by a staff person carrying a basket of daisies, and we each took one.  Then we joined the small crowd gathered at the beginning of the walk, located to the right of the front entrance to the building.  Thom Gill, the talented volunteer who played guitar and sang softly in the center of the facility (where the two main halls intersect), was playing and singing...and I was so happy to see him again.  We greeted the sweet, gentle chaplain, who was there to give the Invocation, the Rev. Jeanette Robertson, and she remembered visiting Momma when I pointed out the window to "her" room.  It made me feel surrounded by love again.

We could see a daisy here-and-there, that a loved one had tucked in the join on a tribute brick in the path...but I really didn't begin to look for Momma's name until we were inside the walled Serenity Garden, which is located at the end of the path and just outside of the Chapel.  Somehow, I just knew her brick would be in there.  And...it was.  As I posted to Facebook when I checked in, "Momma's brick is front-and-center in the garden.  She'd be pleased."

And I do believe she would be.




Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Just Because You Think You Can...

From Dictionary.com:

set·back:
[set-bak]
- noun
1. a check to progress

=============================================
As long as I can remember, I've been told "girl, you can do anything you put your mind to." Papaw told me that whenever I would get discouraged about math problems, especially those story problems, where I would always want to know why anyone would need to know how fast two different trains from different directions were going when you can only ride on one train at a time. Ahem.

Daddy told me that whenever I dared to utter those forbidden words "I just can't do it" (whatever "it" might be at the moment). Giving up was never an option. If I've heard Winston Churchill's speech once, I've heard it 10,000 times...both the real one and the one that is often misquoted...:)

So, naturally I grew up believing I could, in fact, do whatever I put my mind to. And I'm a believer in the concept that sheer will and determination will gain you ground when everything and everyone around you are saying you are done for. Remember: put one foot in front of the other, and move forward.

But I have run into that immovable object that no amount of irresistible forcing will bend: my body. It seems that I can do what I put my mind to, only IF my body is working properly.

My mind was determined to make significant progress on our Way Back Garden in April. Well, as any gardener will attest, there's a mountain of chores on the To Do List for the first full month of Spring. And we have even more items on our lists because this is the first year of our newly revised WBG Plan, with the four gardens in play: the Orchard, the Berry Patch, the Kitchen Garden, and the Rose garden.

Things have been rolling right along, with lots of progress in all the gardens. Then, last weekend, I eagerly tackled the planting checklist for the Kitchen Garden, following the average last frost date for our area (typically quoted as being April 15). Since we had experienced a later than usual frost, I had held off on getting many of the transplants and seeds in the ground (although I had to make a mad dash one evening to cover some tender plants when I heard the weather forecast).

I'm happy to report that I got eight tomato transplants in, along with seven pepper plants. In the tomato row, I planted a German Johnson, a Marglobe, a Bush Goliath, two Early Girls, a Lemon Boy, a Bonnie Select, and a Rutgers. In the pepper row, I planted four sweet green bell peppers, a yellow bell, an early bell (which matures to red), and a Cubanelle. I still have seedlings of Better Boys, Jet Stars, Romas, and Juliets under grow lamps, along with Fish Peppers. These will all be ready to go into the garden in a couple of weeks, about the same time I plant the next four rows of corn.

I also got seeds planted for pole beans, bush beans, okra, yellow and zucchini squash, cantaloupes, watermelons, and cucumbers. I've interplanted herbs and flowers, such as basil and marigolds in the tomato row and nasturtiums with the squash...attempting to add some natural pest control. (I already have sage and onions planted with the cabbages and the broccoli.)

The blueberries and the blackberries have already flowered and are fruiting up nicely in the Berry Patch.  We knew if we wanted to have any fruit this year, we'd better get the bird nets up, so we did.  We also are seeing lots of strawberries, even though we probably should have removed all the flowers this year to let them take root...as this is a new bed from the runners of the old bed (formerly in the space now occupied by the Rose Garden)...but I ask you, who can remove the pretty flowers?  Not I.

And I'm proud to report Mr. T put the last three trees in the Orchard, and got the last order of the English roses planted in the Rose Garden. We have three more hybrid teas on order, and that should do it for planting for this year...except for the perennials and annuals for accents, of course. There is ALWAYS an "except for...," isn't there?

All was going swimmingly, until Sunday. I was wrangling the soaker hoses, trying to test them for major leaks and then place them for maximum coverage. We have to get them pinned in place before we can put the mulch down, especially in the Rose Garden. Well, after rearranging one length of hose for the third time, my head truly began to swim...and I had to yield the day to vertigo.

A day in bed to get rid of the spinning symptoms brought on my back problems again. I'm beginning to believe they are in cahoots.

Anyway, I'm taking another little break while I deal with these setbacks. These "checks to my progress." And deal with them, I shall.

Because, as anyone knows, you can do anything you put your mind to...right?

Winston would approve heartily of this plaque
from Missy M, don't you think?

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