...another National Grid thing, like I did yesterday but I've had significantly less notice this time 'cos it starts tomorrow at 4.30pm lol
I'm gonna go for it whenever I get invited 'cos it was a way to get offline and be significantly less contactable which gave me a much-needed break from constantly supporting people like I usually do... just need to remember to charge my phones up considerably sooner before it happens tomorrow lol
...first test of my newly-restored hearing ticked off - I've just tried returning the call and they are closed so I've gotta try and remember to call again tomorrow now. I could hear every word clearly though, it's just my memory that's letting me down now but I think I know what it was about and it's already arrived so hopefully it'll only take a couple of minutes when I eventually get through to them.
Can someone remind me to re-try calling them tomorrow pretty please?
...the world is loud!
Just got back from having my ear syringed and I can finally hear again, for the first time in 3 months! The world is incredibly loud now, but my neighbours aren't partying like they were when I left and I can only put that down to being able to hear properly now!
I've got a touch of tinnitus in my ear but that's to be expected after what I've just had done.
I've had my reward (the last J2O Mocktail) and I'm utterly frozen so I'm gonna go and finish off the tub of drinking chocolate to warm up now methinks.
Next job is to try and work out how to play a voicemail on my new phone and return a call from whoever called me while my phone was completely dead.
Today's lunch was another mug of instant vegetable Cup Soup made almost entirely by my carer today! I seriously overfilled the mug with water (it was literally 1mm away from overflowing) so my carer emptied some of the soup into the sink and took over the stirring while I put my laptop onto the floor.
I decided against the mince pies today 'cos of going to a medical appointment in a couple of hours, so I'll have a Mocktail and chocolate covered peanuts and raisins when I get home as a reward, while the electric heater is warming up for a few minutes.
Here's today's lunch photo:
Monday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Monday pm - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday am - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday pm - 1 minute - did the washing up
Wednesday am - 0 minutes - sat using her phone instead of helping
Wednesday pm - 0 minutes - rearranged kitchen & used her phone
Thursday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Thursday pm - 4 minutes - made and brought in my lunch for me
Caring total of the week so far: 17 minutes
Total I'll be charged for: 4 hours
Thanks to internet connection issues and general techie problems, this photo is a couple of hours late, but it can't be helped I guess.
Today's breakfast was the same as it has been for the last few days: 2 slices of wholemeal toast with dairy-free spread and a 250ml bottle of orange juice.
Here's today's breakfast photo:
I've woken up very cold but in a really positive mood this morning! I hope it stays positive until my ear is sorted out!
I've taken my morning pills, run the daily virus scan, taken the bread out of the freezer and made myself a decaff mocha in an attempt to warm up a bit.
Gonna get my day's to-do list sorted before my morning carer arrives then depending on how cold I feel, potentially another mocha or even a drinking chocolate before I have my breakfast... although it might be better to wait until I've eaten lol
I'm proud of myself for getting through yesterday's National Grid thing... there were a few times when I felt paranoid, but I was able to stop the loopiness in it's tracks, by watching YouTube videos on my phone each time before it got too bad, thankfully.
I've almost drained my mocha and haven't even glanced at today's to-do list yet, so I'd best get going with that now, before my morning carer arrives.
Just remembered that I need to give my FitBit some juice too, so that's plugged in now too, as well as my new phone.
BBIAB!
The National Grid thing is finished so I rewarded myself with a warming drinking choccie and took my last two pills of the day. Being literally in the dark with nothing to do and no-one to talk to was really helpful to wind my brain down a bit ready for bed, so that's where I'm headed now.
Nite nite orl.
Kindle Unlimited:
Paperback:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5
If you've read my more recent book reviews, you'll already know that I start them all off in the same way, by saying that every book starts with the full whack of 5 stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will still be stuck firmly in place by the time I close the back cover. You'll also know that I always give my reasons for taking off any stars - they don't just vanish for no reason. My usual reason for taking a star off an otherwise 5 star book is 'cos of the author's use of trademarked or copyrighted things but there has been one book that has had the star replaced because of a magic little sentence right at the back and I'm always hopeful that it'll happen again.
I read the first book in this trilogy yesterday and really enjoyed it, so I'm hoping that this will be equally enjoyable if not better now that the author has got a book under their belt.
Let's get reading shall we?
So far so good with this book and I'm hopeful that, like the first book, this will be another 5 star-er.
The first chapter was interesting and I'm grateful for the opportunity to get to know Mary... she sounds like the ideal patient to me!
The end of chapter 2 was fun and it sounds like everyone got out of a sticky situation with a good sense of humour.
No spoilers, but it's amazing what such a simple little change can make! I've had a similar result by pretty much cutting out caffeine for a different medical issue!
I've just finished 'Part One' of the book and I'll start on the second part ('Beyond The Surgery') after I've had my lunch so that I don't have to stop mid-way through a chapter.
Again, no spoilers, but 'Part Two' could have ended a lot worse (understatement of the millenium) if the doctor hadn't already been there with his emergency bag!
What a great end to a great book! Like with the first book, this is worth every penny for nosey-parkers like me!
Monday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Monday pm - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday am - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday pm - 1 minute - did the washing up
Wednesday am - 0 minutes - sat using her phone instead of helping
Wednesday pm - 0 minutes - rearranged kitchen & used her phone
Caring total of the week so far: 7 minutes
Total I'll be charged for: 3 hours
Today's lunch, like breakfast, was the same as yesterday and was my usual mug of instant vegetable Cup Soup and the last 3 mince pies from yesterday's box of 6 made and brought in entirely by me yet again.
My carer decided that it was her job to rearrange the kitchen, put my perching stool pretty much in the centre of the room then sit on it while talking to someone on her phone.
I just about managed to make the soup and wobble around her sitting with her legs out and bring it in here.
I'm seriously considering getting a couple of cameras set up in the kitchen so that people can't deny just how little the carers do each day.
Here's today's lunch photo:
Breakfast today was the same as yesterday: two slices of wholemeal toast with dairy free spread and a 250ml bottle of orange juice. I had a sneaky mocha to try and warm myself up a bit, but there's no photo of that 'cos I'd already put my laptop back on the table when I brought it in 😊
Instagram is down for me atm so I'll just be posting my meal photos here on my blog until it gets fixed.
Here's today's breakfast photo:
Monday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Monday pm - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday am - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday pm - 1 minute - did the washing up
Wednesday am - 0 minutes - sat using her phone instead of helping
Caring total of the week so far: 7 minutes
Total I'll be charged for: 2 hours and 30 minutes
It's gonna be one of those days with technology again.
A quick rant to start off the day...
You prolly already know that I'm with Freegle yeah? Well I'm with the food version of it that's called Olio too.
They've pretty recently expanded to offer non-food items and also somewhere you can sell things. Most of the Olio-ers use it properly and give/receive stuff that would otherwise end up in the landfill, which is how it's supposed to be used.
A few weeks ago someone wanted a very large (46 inch), wall mountable, working, flat screen telly. I've got no idea if they managed to get it or not, but they led the way to other people asking for a working cooker, working washing machine, working tumble dryer, working fridge, working freezer, caravan, car etc etc.
Overnight there has been another post and this person wants a new flat. For free. I haven't read the message because I'm too angry to, but I'm guessing that they want it to be fully furnished too.
I bet someone has told them that they can get things for free from this place, meaning small things like kettles and ancient microwaves and food processors and bread machines etc (all of which I've offered myself) that would otherwise end up in the landfill, and these people, especially this person, has taken full advantage of the word "free".
Tsk tsk.
Aaaanyway, enough ranting for now lol
I've taken my morning pills with my morning glass of water, the weekly virus scan is at... shit, I haven't taken the bread out of the freezer yet!
But I have now lol
The weekly virus scan is at 38% and I've had my first hot drink of the day.
This blog post is waaaaaaay too long, so I'm gonna publish it now and make a start on putting my to-do list together before my morning carer arrives.
BFN
I've had a looong 24 hours after waking up 3 times overnight and it's not a particularly early night now, but I'm heading off to beddy-byes now and I'll see you all in the morning.
Nite nite orl.
Kindle Unlimited:
Paperback:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5
I'm having connection troubles this morning so I'm gonna spend the day reading 'cos that doesn't need an internet connection. If you've read any of my other recent book reviews, you'll already know that I start them all in the same way, by letting you know that each book I read and review starts off with the full whack of 5 stars and that I'm always hopeful that they will all be stuck firmly in place by the time I close the back cover. You'll also know that I always give my reasons for removing each star and that there has been one book where I've rapidly returned a star thanks to a magic sentence right at the back.
I'm a self-confessed nosey parker so these glimpses into the life of an otherwise private profession always gets my attention. Apparently this is a biography rather than fiction so my interest is peaked even more.
Let's get going shall we?
lol typical - my Kindle is out of juice so I can't read the book on there, but my internet connection is back, so I'll see if I can start reading it on the Amazon site instead... will it be third time lucky for me?
I've managed to read the first two chapters without any more techy troubles, so I'm trying to remain cautiously hopeful. They have been good chapters and have really set the tone for the rest of the book - it's relaxed and seems to be pretty much self-contained chapters, which is an added bonus and reassuringly still all 5 stars stuck firmly in place.
Ah-ha! My Kindle has enough juice to let me read now!
Another good chapter... unfortunately there was a mention of a trademarked item, so unfortunately the first star is looking a bit wobbly, like with each of the other books that's happened with - fair's fair after all!
Chapter 4 was another good'un... this is just what I needed after all the issues I've had this morning!
The fifth chapter was interesting too... I love our NHS but everything comes at a cost to someone, somewhere!
Chapter 6 rang huge great alarm bells for me 'cos it's part of what I have and know now that I'll be on the pills for a while yet 'cos I had a similar experience (although not involving the police, thankfully) when I lowered let alone stopped my pills!!
My lunchtime carer is due any time now, so I'll finish reading there until after I've eaten and then start again until my groceries are due... it says there's an hour and 28 minutes left to finish reading the book, so I should have finished it in plenty of time before I head to bed.
Up to page 63 now and it's almost bedtime, so I'm not gonna rush it... just see how far I get and how much more there is to read by the time I take my last pills of the day.
Just finished this incredible book and it very much deserves every one of those five stars!
Today's breakfast and lunch photos are coming together 'cos of connection issues this morning and technical issues this afternoon.
Breakfast was barely toasted (because my carer adjusted the dial on the toaster without me realising while I was getting dressed) toast with dairy-free spread and an orange juice. Taking the bread out as soon as I came down was definitely a better move, so I'll try and remember to do that each morning from now on.
Lunch was a mug of vegetable Cup Soup and 3 iced mince pies made entirely by me 'cos my carer didn't know how to make the soup and was more interested in studying the packet rather than learning how to do it.
Here are today's three photos of my two meals:
Monday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Monday pm - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday am - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday pm - 1 minute - did the washing up
Caring total of the week so far: 7 minutes
Total I'll be charged for: 2 hours
Monday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Monday pm - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Tuesday am - 0 minutes - was more interested in her phone
Caring total of the week so far: 6 minutes
Total I'll be charged for: 1 hour 30 minutes
I've just been to check on how well or otherwise the bread is defrosting after exactly an hour and it's all finished, so I'll be able to have my breakfast as soon as my carer has gone after all!
Hopefully it'll be a bit softer when it's been toasted too, so that it doesn't totally grate my throat to smithereens when I swallow each mouthful!
So far so good today.
I remembered that it was the monthly virus scan this morning and I also (just about) remembered to take the bread out of the freezer this morning too, so that's OK. I took the bread out at 5.58am so we'll see if it's ready for breakfast when my carer has gone.
I've swallowed my morning pills and remembered to take my FA this morning from the right bit lol
My groceries are due this afternoon and there aren't any more slots after the Christmas one I've already booked so I might have to make the Christmas delivery a double week unfortunately.
Time to crack on with putting today's to-do list together before my first carer of the day arrives.
I've taken my last two pills of the day so I'm gonna head straight on up to bed now. Can someone remind me that I've gotta run the monthly virus scan so shouldn't open my email programmes until it's finished please? My groceries are due in the afternoon too, then I've gotta arrange for the foodbank to come and pick up the next donation at some point tomorrow too.
I'll see you all at sparrow's fart in the morning.
Nite nite orl.
...shattered, so I'm gonna take my pills an hour and a half early and head to bed now. It'll mean that I'm awake at sparrow's fart in the morning, but I don't care - my body is crying out for the extra sleep so that's what I'm gonna give it.
Just like most Monday's, today's lunch was the leftovers from my Sunday lunch which was, today, 2½ servings of a vegan family roast, 2½ roast potatoes and the rest of the runner beans.
Here's today's lunch photo:
...put the heater on this morning 'cos I haven't even used £1 of electricity so far today, so the heater is going on as soon as I've had my lunch and done my laps and I can even afford to heat the room instead of just taking the chill off it too for the first time this year!
...a mocktail!
The physio assistant has just been and gone and the stairs are off the menu now because she's happy with how I do it atm so I don't need to worry about those.
She's reduced the number of exercises for me to do, but I've gotta do them twice a day instead of once a day now.
She's seen me going up and down kerbs and has told me a better way to do it and she's gonna order me another quad cane with a wider base so that there is even more stability. She offered a wheeled walker and that was a definite no from me 'cos I tried one when I first came out of hospital two decades ago and I just didn't feel safe with it, so she then offered a second quad cane and I'm not too sure about it, but she's gonna order one and get it delivered to see how I get on with it.
She's coming again next week to try and do a bit more as long as it's not raining or snowing.
Basically this is all done at my pace and I shouldn't be afraid to say no if I don't feel safe doing it. Apparently they've already done a baseline assessment and it's "considerably lower than we'd like" so I've got her for a good while yet and she'll take things at my pace.
Breakfast today was the same as at the weekend: two slices of wholemeal toast with dairy-free spread and a 250ml bottle of orange juice.
Here's today's breakfast photo:
Monday am - 6 minutes - helped me to get dressed
Caring total of the week so far: 6 minutes
Total I'll be charged for: 30 minutes
I said in my first post of the day that I wouldn't be able to turn the heater on today 'cos of the physio assistant coming. I thought it was an afternoon appointment but I've just checked and it's a morning one so I will be able to turn the heater on this afternoon after all, which is a relief.
How's everyone doing this morning?
Me?
I'm bitterly cold, exhausted, in a great deal of pain and my mood is through the floor, but as long as I'm there for everyone else, that's OK right?
I haven't taken my Iron for the last 7 days so I'm wondering if that's why I've been struggling so much?
I've had my morning pills with my morning glass of water, so I'm all set until lunchtime now.
I can't put the heating on today 'cos my carers will open the door as wide as possible and I've got my first visit with a physio assistant so she'll want the door open too then by the time she's gone it'll be pointless putting it on because the room will only be starting to heat up by the time I go to bed. It'll be the same tomorrow 'cos of my groceries, Wednesday has the potential to be OK depending on when the foodbank come, Thursday I've got a medical appointment so won't be able to put the heating on then either, which takes us to Friday which is the other day that the foodbank might be coming. Saturday I'll have my weekly bath so it's pointless putting it on then and Sunday is pointless, so I've potentially got a week of being bitterly cold ahead of me.
The daily virus scan found an advanced issue, so I'd best get it resolved.
This first post of the day is way too long so I'm gonna publish it and make a start on putting together the first to-do list of the week.