November 7, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. Getting Better.

How do you know if you are getting better?  Years ago, I had the flu and I stayed home in bed.  One day, Ken came home from work and asked me how I was doing.  So I told him that I was still resting in bed.  He asked me is I had a fever and I said no.  So he told me that I had been sick long enough to have recovered.  So he urged me to get out of bed and start regular activities.  Much to my surprise, he was right.  I was fine.  But Ken is not here to tell me anything.  So I must figure it out on my own.

Portia, my helper told me today that my cough is still the same as Friday.  Not good.  I am still blowing my nose especially after a bout of coughing.  I still have no fever.  My legs continue to be weak and shaky.  I am taking two naps a day.  I struggle to get any walking done in the day.  Last week, I cancelled all my engagements which did not please me.  On Wednesday, friend Lisa will come for coffee so I will see how I manage.  

So I have no idea what is the matter with me.  And I have no idea when I will get better.  Where is Ken when I need him? 

November 6, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. Rain.

There is nothing better than hearing rain falling in the middle of the night.  I don't mean heavy rain.  I mean lightly falling rain.  I do not enjoy storms with thunder and lightning with pouring rain.  Those storms in the middle of the night make me fearful.  But just the pitter patter of the rain  in the middle of the night brings pleasure.

The same is true doing an afternoon nap.   No better nap than when it is raining.  This week I have had both.  The other night it rained during the night and yesterday it rained in the afternoon.  Our problem here is that the rain did not last very long.  We are dry.  Normally, Mississippi gets 52 inches of rain each year.  I had never lived with that much rain.  But the rain here comes in torrents.  And then it stops.  But not this year.  The Mississippi River is so low that the barges can not navigate.  Since we lived here, he River has flooded three times.  But this is the first time that the River was too lacking in water.

Next week, Chris and I will drive to Natchez to see the River when the flow is low.  So I especially love to hear the rain at night because I know we need the rain.  But we need more.  In Texas, at church, they pray for rain.  Normally that is not necessary here.  But perhaps the churches will begin to ask people to pray for rain in Mississippi.  .  We need it.

November 5, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. A Champion Again.

The Houston Astros won the World Series tonight in the 6th game of the series.  They won 4 to 1.  All the action took place in the 6th inning.  The bullpen has been perfect the whole playoffs so they put down the last 9 batters in record time.  And once again, the Astros had won the World Series.  They last won in 2017.  Only 6 of the same players had been on the roster for 2022 so the team has changed including the manager and the director of operations.

Everyone was happy for Dusty Baker to win the series.  In all his years as a successful manager, he had never won the World Series.  But now he has.  And all the players are delighted.  This team has been a good team.  I had watched them several times this season and my observation was that the team has no glaring deficiencies.  Every part of that team was excellent so it was a pleasure to watch them win.

I always enjoy watching grown men bouncing around with glee as if they were 8 year old boys.  They are like pin balls, bouncing up and down.  I worried that the players bounced around Dusty so strenuously that I was afraid he might fall over.  After all, he is 74.  But now the party begins.  These players worked very hard this season.  Now they have won the World Series.  Congratulations to the Houston Astros players and coaches.  Champions Again.

November 4, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. Taking a Rest.

 When Ken was recovering at home in Mississippi, after his illness in Mexico, he commented that getting better seems the same as watching paint dry.  You know it is happening but it is difficult to notice.  This week, Christina mentioned that I could try to get more rest.  I am not in love with resting but I decided to give it a try.  On Thursday  morning, while I was still eating breakfast, I fell asleep while reading so I decided to go to the recliner and put up my feet.  I slept for 2 hours.  Then I returned to finish my breakfast.

By then, it was time to have a real nap so once again, at 3:30, I took to the recliner.  And I slept for another 2 hours.  Next up I drank my orange drink, meta mucil.  And I watched baseball and ate a bowl of chicken noodle soup later in the evening.  I only walked to get around the house.  I did no exercises or sustained walking.  In other words, I took a rest most of the day.  Today I felt the same as yesterday so again I did nothing strenuous.  And I cancelled all appointments this week.  Christina will also bring brunch to my house so I can continue to rest.  But by Monday, I will stop this resting business.

The rain has just started to fall and tomorrow we are supposed to rain all day.  The oncologist thinks  I have a bad case of allergies so perhaps the rains will send all the allergic things away.  I have stopped taking the meds given to me by the neurologist because it made my legs shaky.  I am still not recovered.  But with the rain coming, the air will be clean.  Perhaps I will stop coughing.  I have had just about all the rest that I can tolerate.

November 3, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. A Close Game.

 This was a great baseball game.  The score was close the whole game.   My friend SaraLou turned off her light and went to sleep in the bottom of the 8th inning when it seemed as if the Phillies were mounting a rally.  She wanted the Astros to win and hated to watch the Phillies go on to win the game.  But the Astros won the game with a score of 3 to 2.  Wonderful defense by the Astros in the 8th and 9th inning which allowed them to win the game.

This game had everything.  Good pitching.  Timely hitting.  Good defense by both teams.  Just a wonderful game to watch.  And of course, the series returns to Houston for game number 6 with the Astros ahead 3 games to 2.  I will be here watching.

November 2, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. The Doctor Appointment.

This morning I had an appointment with Dr.Sheehan, my oncologist.  Two weeks ago, I started on a new chemotherapy plus a new hormone.  Neither of my old ones were working.  Unfortunately, I had come down with a bad cold so I got checked over.  Fortunately, I had no Covid.  Also no flu.  And my chest X-ray was clear.  I have no fever.   So that was good.  My sugar numbers were high.  And of course, my white cells are low, 2.1 today so I must continue to be careful around lots of people.

I have no idea how I caught a cold.  I have not seen anyone since I arrived in Mississippi.  And I have never been around people.  But I am coughing and sneezing so I cancelled my activities this week.  I had a busy week ahead of me too.  I have seen Christina and the girls on Sunday at brunch.  And I see Portia on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  But they are all healthy.  And when I went to my doctor appointments I wear a mask.  Who knows how I caught a cold?  With my immune system, the nurse suggested that my cold may take awhile to recover.  Today I felt miserable.

But I am counting on feeling better tomorrow.  After all, it is a week since I first had symptoms.  My doctor appointment went well  although I have lesions in my mouth from the chemo.  My observation has always been to get another appointment from the one today.  First I had my nose swabbed to check for Covid and the flu.  And I had to have a chest X-ray.  My appointment was for 8:50.  We got home at 1:00. So my  question is this: if everything checked out negative, why do I feel so miserable?  The good doctor had no answers.

November 1, 2022. Madison, Mississippi. Winning & Losing.

 I have never understood why you feel bad when your favorite team does not win.  Or why you are elated when your favorite team wins.  After all, nothing happens to you whether or not your team wins or loses.  I do not bet so I have no reason to care.  But we do.

I talked with my friend Carolyn last week.  She attended college at LSU and she was born and raised in Baton Rouge.  So I asked her if she follows LSU football.  And she does.  She watched their games unless they are losing.  Then she switches channels.  She loves to watch them win but refuses to watch if they are not winning.  

This Saturday was a bonanza of winning.  Baylor won.  Ol Miss won.  Jackson State won.  Houston Astros baseball team won.  Everyone I knew was happy.  It did not make a dimes difference whether these teams won or lost but we all feel happier when our teams win.  It makes no sense.  But who cares.