Times, they are a changing

Sonny Boy reported the other day that he came out to his friends.  Let me back up and say in no way do I think he's gay, nor does he think he's gay, but evidently a good chunk of his school buds are believing it.

Seems Sonny Boy is catching some flak for being in wrestling as it is a "gay" sport.  Sonny Boy agrees dressing is a singlet and rolling around with another boy is suspect but doesn't really care.  Sonny Boy grinned and let the teasing pass.  Well it seems a girl that likes him has gotten bolder and is writing him "love notes" and this has become general knowledge and is causing gossip.  Sonny Boy in his pragmatic way shrugs and says he doesn't really care because he tells them he's gay to dispel the gossip.  His friends are cool with it.  This in 6 th grade.

Hubby's reaction to this story "if I'd have done that I would have been beaten up."

The maybe post

This morning the alarm clock went off at 7:00.  I have no idea why, I must have set it out of habit when I went to bed last night.  Five minutes later I got a text from Hubby with a picture of Sonny Boy in a ground blind with a pink sunrise behind him.  I was awake.  I debated getting up, coffee sounded fantastic but I had stayed up reading last night and knew that the siren song of a nap would call me, so I forced myself back to sleep to wake up at 11:00 with nice headache going.  I hate that.  Now I'm drinking coffee and hoping the ibuprofen is up to the task because if I take my migraine meds I'm pretty much done being productive today.

Another week of near daily medical appointments has passed.  Monday I took Igor into the orthotics maker guy to be casted for new shoe inserts.  Hopefully insurance will cooperated as the doctor said insurance doesn't like to pay for his specific kind of orthotic anymore.  A work around exist in the form of prescribing a bigger (and probably way more expensive) brace and then cutting it down to only the nest the needs.  I hate when insurance plays doctor,  I think my child's doctor ( who happens to be head or orthopedic surgery at the #3 ranked children's hospital in the country) is capable of determining what he needs.  I digress.   Tuesday I went to the doctor who sent me to a gynecologist on Friday with hopes of managing my night sweats.   Gynecologist played with some meds however they aren't in at the pharmacy so I have to wait till Monday to start them.  Mom had an appointment with a kidney doctor as well.  Doctor appointments are a part time job for me.

I finally ram rodded mom into hiring a cleaning lady.  I brought in three candidates for her meet and for them to give estimates on the mess.  The last service wouldn't do things like a load or two of laundry or dishes so they were ruled out.  I think the place scared them actually.  Hopefully the girl hired will work out.  I have a semi-guilt complex about forcing mom to pay somebody because in actuality I really could do the work, and I probably would if it was just the heavy cleaning but she doesn't even make attempts at cleaning up behind herself, heck my kids at least throw their garbage and recycle away (most of the time).   I also spent a good amount of time digging through a massive paperwork pile that was her dining room table finding items she swore she never got and a mess of bills that make no sense to anyone.  I still have loads of papers to dig through and organize.  I have decided I'm just going to handle all of her bills and such forward and told her that.  Honestly, I think she's so stressed by dealing with daily life it paralyzes her into inaction.  I've really started to see a decline in her cognitive skills in the last few months.  Until recently I think she could mostly pull the wool over a strangers eyes regarding her abilities but more often lately I can see people's expressions of "she's not all there is she?"

The weather has been beyond beautiful the last week.  I managed to get out and mow, and  spent a massive amount of time with the weed eater.  Hopefully today I can get out and prep my flower beds for winter so hopefully they are not too straggly.  For now though I'm going to drink some more coffee, and take an excedrin (probably give myself some caffeine shakes) and hope this damn headache slacks off.


I wrote this like two weeks ago and never posted because I thought it needed more editing that I felt up to at the time.  Now I'm just posting it warts and all because I no longer care.

Neverending list

It seems I'll never catch up with my to do list lately.  I don't really think it's because it's so lengthy (though it grows daily) I just have immense sense of inertia I need to overcome to even start it.  Therefore I decided to write a blog post, procrastination at it's best.

Mom called me yesterday and asked me to come over and sort some of her meds.  She was convinced she suddenly had a new med she had never taken before.  She didn't of course, but she had several duplicate bottles of the same med, and a sorting mess.  I sorted stuff out, and laid all her pills out for the next seven days in the pill sorter she has.  I then took her Rx list, insurance cards and debit card and brought them over and set her up for a new thing I found on line.  It's called Pill Pack.  When I showed it to Hubby he was excited enough to start finding out if he could sink our savings into investing in it.  Basically it takes your prescriptions and sets them up in little baggies for the day on a roll.  In Mom's case she'd have three baggies a day with all the meds she needs to take at each time sorted all ready.  It will be fantastic, the bad part is it will take a bit for everything to pan out and end up in the packs due to prescriptions being refilled at different times etc so  I'm doomed to an even more confusing set up for the next month or so but after that it should be way simpler. 

Hubby came home from his business trip to France on Saturday and promptly packed Sonny Boy, Callie (dog) and himself up and left today to go duck hunting.  I'm not overly amused and have made a severe point that I don't think his planned deer hunting trip should occur due to finances.  I made it clear I find it silly that I worry about scrimping and saving on groceries and household stuff so we can live within our means while he schedules hunting trips.  I think he got the message.

Well I guess I should go do something, it's not like finding something is hard.

Balancing Act

I finally got the Botox injections this week. I tell ya, I didn't think the insurance and then the appointment waiting was ever going to happen.   The actual process was a piece of cake.  The needle was tiny, and while the meds stung a bit it wasn't bad all.  A couple of times it must have hit a particular sore spot or nerve and was more unpleasant, but on the scale of medical stuff it ranked unworthy of a mention.

The doctor said 5 - 7 days for full effect and I'm only two days out now.  I do think I can tell a difference in the tightness of my neck.  The huge knot that lives at the base of my skull seems smaller and not quite as hard and my range of motion seems better with less pulling.   Probably the biggest tell is the amount of neck popping, sounds like popcorn.  When the muscles are very tight my neck doesn't pop at all, I just don't have the range of motion to do it.

I've had some amount of headache unfortunately, nothing utterly miserable but certainly there, I'm hoping this will abate as the effects grow.

The week has been long.  Hubby is in France for work and with the time change and his schedule I don't think we have spoken more than 5 minutes since last Friday.  I miss him.  I don't think I've had more than few minutes of conversation with an adult since he left, my brain is mushy.  All in all the week has gone fairly smooth.  The kids fell into routine easier for this trip than in the past.  I think the kids are finally getting the idea we continue on with normal life when dad is gone.

I'm at a parenting condumdrum.  Sonny Boy is hitting the age where he should start taking more responsibility for his affairs School projects, scout stuff, hygiene, etc.  I do believe he tries pretty hard, but his ADHD brain makes this very difficult for him.   Right now most days are a series of reminders for tasks he needs to do.  Mostly things are greeted with an "oh yeah!" And he'll go do them, but give him an oral list of three things and all bets are off as the dog will wander by and a game of fetch is on.  I try to let the natural consequences of not having his act together play out, however when I do this he gets so overwhelmed and stressed things melt down into even bigger messes and the "I can't do anything right" attitude kicks in.

Damned to play his secretary/wife until he has one, or kick his self esteem to curb.  What a balancing act.

Visuals

Sitting at a football game waiting on it to start so I'm playing on my phone. I'm not a good phone typist so pictures. 

S

We've had a rash of birthdays in September.   Pretend it says Igor.

Mom had a birthday too.  It's like looking at a picture of my grandmother. 

The Cub Scouts hired a raptor program to come in for the kids.   It was really cool because we were really close to the birds.  I'm sure I liked it more than the kids. 

First day of school.   6th grade and 3rd grade 

I Must Be Nuts

They (of the all knowing) say that you can tell a lot about a person from their hands.  I suppose that's true.  My nails are ragged and torn, very short, from a bad habit I've tried to break most of my life of picking at my soft nails. Slight callouses line my palms from yard work and other chores.  Often the skin on my fingertips is stained with paint or food color from some project or another.  The skin on my hands is rough and chapped, usually begging to be greased down with some sort of hand cream.  All these things would be obvious to the casual palm reader, it wouldn't take a 120 year old gypsy to make these out.  I wonder though what people would think of my new callous.  It's the strangest thing, it is on the tips of my middle finger and pointer finger of my left hand, just on the edge of the end of my wicked short fingernail.  The pointer finger callous is less pronounced, the one on the middle finger was so thick I clipped it down with nail clippers.  It took me a bit to figure out what in the heck I was doing to form these strange callouses.  We are not talking a place on your hands where anything seems to rub on a constant basis, then in dawned on me.

I formed them rubbing my own neck.  The pressure of the edge of my fingernail rubbing on my skin while I pressed and manipulated the muscles and tendons that leave me in pain near constantly.  Yes, I rub my neck so much with my left hand I have formed callouses.  Hard to believe I know, then I started noticing just how much I do this.  Pretty much every time  there is a pause I pushing and prodding at the spots on my neck.   Driving, waiting in line, shopping for cereal, poking at the Ipad, reading a book.  Just about anytime I don't actually need two hands to accomplish the task.  Young children that know me must think my arm is surgically attached to my neck.

There is hope for relief in the future. (hopefully very soon)  My doctor referred me to a neurologist saying she though Botox would be beneficial.  Three weeks of waiting on the appointment and I talked to the new doc and she seems to think a round of Botox would do me a world of good.  Yay, that's what I'm here for, let's do it.  Alas, insurance must be consulted, specialty pharmacies get involved and three weeks more I still don't have a firm date for the procedure.  I do see some light as I had phone calls from insurance gathering data and asking me my allergies.

My sanity though is somewhat questionable.  The Botox procedure is something like 30+ shots in my hairline, scalp, neck and shoulders.  I must be the only person the planet actively looking forward to getting shots in my head.  Constant pain will do that a person.

You never know

Two posts in one day?  I'm disturbed and need to get it off my mind I suppose.

Doing my chores today and be-bopped out to water my potted plants and grabbed the mail.  The local weekly paper arrives on Thursdays so I scanned the headline about the high school football team and tossed it on the counter to read while I ate my lunch.  Below the fold was disturbing news.  An 8 year old child was removed from his home when neighbors flagged down an officer to report he was home alone.  The child allowed the policeman in, who found deplorable living conditions, filth, overflowing litter boxes etc.   The kid told the investigators he hadn't been outside since school was out for the summer.   The kid was taken to a foster home and the mother arrested.

This in itself was disturbing, I often wonder what the hell these people are thinking letting children live like this.  This case is even more so as I was acquainted with this mother and child.  The boy was in Igor's Cub Scout group for a while.  The child's attendance was spotty at best and his mother pulled him citing she couldn't bring him to meetings and didn't have money for the expenses.

Just goes to show you that one never knows what goes on behind closed doors.

Mini-Emergency

Last night while in a dead sleep I hear the dog making retching noises, I sling the covers off of me at the same time as Hubby who had evidently heard it too.  I begin yelling "RUN Callie!" As dog and underwear clad husband trot down the hall to the stairs and toward the outdoors.  Figuring it didn't require both of us to let the dog out to puke I went to the bathroom and crawled back into bed.  Hubby joined me soon and I inquired about the dog's health.  Hubby replied she'd never barfed and said "I think she was just snoring really loud".  What must the dog think?  I bet she thought the house was on fire or something.

School has started, thank the good Lord.  The boys were making a marathon sport of video games and pestering each other until blows were thrown.  Couple that with the fact I somehow acquired two neighborhood kids that find my house way more inviting than their own.  I don't mind one of the boys, he's polite, friendly, and seems to be a pretty good kid.  The other one is more than a little odd, rides over on his bike always carrying a foam sword and uses literally like a comma.

Football is in full force as well, seems several boys from the neighborhood are involved.  The kids had a scrimmage last weekend and kid originally at center was doing worse than poorly at the job. Sonny Boy was put in the position because he'd played the position for one game three years ago.  There wasn't really a game going, just snaps from both teams on each side of the ball facing several teams.  The last team the kid guarding my 85 lb child probably weighed in the 200 lb range and was at least 6 inches taller.  Sonny Boy was shoved aside like a wet Kleenex repeatedly.  Coach tag teamed the guard with Sonny Boy and another larger kid (this kid weighs in at 120) and they still had a hard time.  Thankfully he wasn't an aggressive player, doesn't really need to be I guess.  He must be a third year 6th grader.

I must really get moving.  The last couple of days I've spent painting in an effort to finish kitchen project finally.  Hubby has finished trim so now I'm under the gun to get paint on it.  While painting no other chores have gotten done and the house appears bomb like.  I envy people with maids.

Russ-capade

If you knew my late Father-in-law you totally get the title.  If not I'll explain.  My FIL was the king of Murphy's law with the inevitable thing of of it could go wrong it did with every adventure he tried.  Granted much of his problems arose from poor planning and lack of maintenance on his part but he was dogged with ill luck.  Our recent camping trip followed in Grandpa's footsteps.

The problems began probably two weeks before the trip with a rash of expensive car repairs and the decision to put a hitch on the car so we could take the boat along on the trip.  The last repair had Hubby tinkering just before left and delayed us leaving town by several hours.  $1500.00 later and we thought the car was road worthy, hitched up the boat and ran.

We made it to northern Wisconsin early evening with only a vague plan of where we would camp.  We found a state forest map and plotted a course to check out several campgrounds.  We get to the first campground and as we discussing the merits of a particular campsite the car overheated.  Hubby in blind panic shut off the car and it refused to start again.  We we camping there for the night regardless.  After some redneck shenanigans of hitching and unhitching campers and the boat Sonny Boy and I pushed the car into the campsite. Hubby and I drank a beer and worried about the car engine.

The next morning the car miraculously started so we found a Ford dealership and started towards it about 15 miles away.  I was following Hubby when he swings into a parking lot with the car stalled.  Seems he lost all electrical.  We charged the battery a little with jumper cables and held our breath as we limped it to the repairs shop.  A phone call the next day and the alternator was dead, $600 later and the car was moving but the A/C wasn't blowing too well.

The rest of the trip went well believe it or not.  The boys spent hours playing and fishing from the kayaks.  Hubby fished and played and Sonny Boy and I explored a kayak trail a bit.  We had a good time despite the brutal and expensive beginning of the trip.

Of course all good times must come to and end (and I discovered I only have a week limit of camping with two kids in a very small camper) and we packed up and headed home.  The trip home was going well until about Madison and the traffic was crawling.  We had noticed the Sunday evening exodus south of Madison on our way north and decided to take another route to hopefully avoid all the Ill-anoy license plates.  Less than three miles from our exit the camper blew a tire.  Nothing like changing a camper tire on the side of a VERY busy interstate.  I'm so glad Hubby was behind me and there to do it, I might would have had a breakdown if I would have been alone.

Despite the the crazy and expensive trip, Hubby still declares this wasn't Russ-capade worthy.  Seems we need a car accident, the boat to strand us in the middle of a large lake, and a fairly serious injury to qualify.

Misc.

Sometimes you just know.  I was just reading my post and got a giggle because I predicted Sonny Boy's return home to include smelly feet.  I'm not going to tell you how bad the kid smelled after a week of no shower, but his friend wandered over today and told me that Sonny Boy took his shoes off in the truck on the way home and nearly killed them.  I'm sure it was bad as he had run out of clean socks at some point.  Pheww.

While we were gone on our epic camping trip (it deserves its own post) Mom got a wild hair and decided to go get a hair cut.  That in its self wasn't bad, I've been harassing her for months to cut her bra strap length hair mainly because she does so little with it and it was straggly.  In my mind I was urging her to say shoulder length.  Mom resisted this like I wanted her to have an arm removed.  I came home to Mom with hair shorter than most men's.  I've never, ever, ever seen her with hair that short in my memory, though there are pictures of it when I was a toddler.  Whatever, my thought is it will be easier for me to take care of the next time she lands in the hospital.

Mom finally moved to the top of the list for the senior housing place.  We went to go look at it, the apartment was small but not really all that bad, honestly I think it would have been good for her as she'd have neighbors to interact with.  Alas she turned it down because they didn't allow smoking in the building.  Imagine that, she'd pay less than half of her current living expenses but still won't give up the damn cigarettes that are causing a good chunk of her health issues that she complains about.  While we were there talking to the manager , Mom looks at her with all honesty and sincerely says "you didn't even notice my hair!"  Ha ha, that has been my tag line the last few days.

My neck is still giving me fits.  Last Friday I called my doctor, she was leaving for the day but called me in some muscle relaxers and made me an appointment for first thing Monday.  I got a referral for a neurologist who will hopefully Botox things into livable states again.  In the meantime I struggle and hang in there.