Sudokuaholics Anonymous 11

Seems everyone is waiting for someone else, so

I was married by a judge.
I should have asked for a jury.
- Groucho Marx

Greetings friends. I am happy to announce, pain is slowly but surely decreasing. I can be out of bed or recliner a bit. Went out very early AM for 30 min to water what I could.

Julie, no, no one asked me to phone when I got home. I was to let them know in a couple days how I was doing. My wonderful neighbor checked in on me again late afternoon. AND I have my 'fallen and can't get up' button to summon paramedics if necessary.

About the batteries, most are not batteries that have ever needed replacing. My land line tele's rechargeable batteries, been good for over 10 years, one phone needed new batteries. My flip phone cell phone would not charge. It was suggested I put battery in freezer. I tried it, worked, it took all night to recharge, but it is working. We will see how long that lasts. my smart phone now needs recharging every night, even if I have not used it. It needs new battery, huumm, wonder if it is a lithium battery and the freezer might work? My supply of hearing aid batteries, stamped good till April 2019 are flat. BUT if I take off the tabs and expose to air for 10 minuets, some do activate. Normal is no need or 1 min to make them last longer. My shark cordless batteries have been replaced once, but I cannot now remove the old battery pack, hands just not strong enough. the list goes on.

Hi all. I know I have been missing for a long time. I keep up with most people on TOS but I know a few of you have not come over to the dark side. I usually go online on my tablet and it is annoying to try to type on it. I will try to get over here occasionally.

All is well with me.

MizTricia, glad that a neighbor checks on you occasionally. The 'I've fallen' button comes in handy. Need to look into one for my mom. She has fallen a few times and I worry about her.

Heidi, hope you are feeling better soon and can have the surgery. It is not fun waiting.

Nice to see you here again, Tami!
I came back late last year after years away. I'm glad I did because this is still the place where you can say things you would never say on FB. Here is where you can share your troubles and secrets.
I do know what you mean about trying to type on an iPad. It's too touchy, any part of the screen!! I come here when I get up in the morning and have breakfast at my laptop while I catch up with the world. The rest of the day I use my iPhone or iPad if needed.

Welcome back Tami. I 'see' you on TOS, but miss you dropping in here. Come back when you can.

I watched a wonderful program about The South Island , how animals there had adapted to conditions. Saw glow worms with their strings of sticky mucus beads that reflect the luminescence, penguins that raise their young in the muddy wooded area inland from the beach, then go to the 'penguin spa' to wash mud from feathers, cause feathers loose waterproofing in mud. Saw cute baby blue ducks that swim in raging whitewater streams and so much more. I missed the first 2 hours of the series, will find them on demand later. Anyone with access to national geographic and the on demand feature , I think the name was Wild New Zealand.

Stupid stupid stupid. I took my nighttime pills instead of my morning pills. I was doing okay so i thought i was fine. I just nearly fainted buying coffee. Strangers got me a chair and I'm sitting until I've finished my coffee

Luckily it hit after i dropped alie at the train station and not while i was driving

More tests scheduled for September: cardiologist and psych evaluation. I can see progress being made.

Medication errors can happen. I too am glad you were not driving. Hope you figure a way to keep morning and evening straight.

I think I took an extra pain pill over last night, but have NO memory of it. When I looked for the one that should have been last, it was not in the bottle where I put enough meds for 24 hours. Wonder it this was because of the versed I got? Living alone, no one sees when I slip back under influence of it, can only tell if I leave Tricia tracks when I am moving about , sleep walking like. I can adjust pills to cover that one pill, and it was obviously not enough to be overdose, so I am good. But I am concerned.

I have a very sore wrist, where the doc stuck me with an 18 gauge needle for blood for blood patch. collapsed that vein, then goes for an artery. THAT hurt and is still hurting. A stick for an artery is straight down, deep. But he got his blood. I got a huge ouchy blue spot on underside of wrist

past bedtime, hope the meds kick in soon.

Just a quick Hello before I head to bed. Sending the usual positive thoughts, healing energy, , prayers, and {{{{{HUGS}}}}}

Hi all. Just a quick stop in. On my lunch break. Hate dealing with doctors. Nothing on other site so I can vent here. Hubby hurt his leg playing softball almost three weeks ago. Did it on a Sunday. By Friday did not like how leg looked and went to urgent care. They advised us to go to ER as they suspected a blood clot. No blood clot. Followed up with doctor on Tuesday. He wants an MRI, suspects a muscle tear in calf. Puts ASAP on it. Referal should take 3-7 business days. Today is day 8. Speak to referral person, finally! She did not even get it until this past Monday, almost a week later. Hubby is ready to change doctors. He likes his doctor but office staff keeps f***ing things up.

I forgot how nice it is to be able to come here and vent and know the whole world won't see it. Don't want it on TOS as family does not know. Don't want his parents finding out until we know what is wrong. They are in 80's and don't want to worry them needlesly.

Exactly Tami! And people here care.
Hope it all works out well with Hubby's leg. Waiting and being held up by red tape and incompetence is the worst.
Big hugs to everyone!

Funny TOPP courtesy of Groucho Marx. Thanks, DOrA!

MizT, I'm so glad to hear that the pain level is improving. The battery situation is puzzling. It IS puzzling that so many need charging or replacement at the same time.

Tami, it's good to see you here! Welcome back! I know you're on TOS, but don't see you there very often, either. It's just proof of how busy you are. I hope all of your family is well!

MizT, the program you have been watching sounds really interesting! I should look to see if it available in my area.
'
Suzy, MizT is right. Medication errors can happen. Hubby and I try to keep tabs on each other. I get concerned when I see a stray pill on the floor or beside the sink. I don't know what all of his look like, but luckily he does. He has a weekly pill sorter with four compartments for each day. That helps us keep track.

Heidi, it's good to know that you're working through the tests that need to be completed before your surgery. Do you think it will be scheduled by the end of the year, or is it too early to guess the timing?

MizT, I hope your wrist will soon feel better!

Tami, I hope your hubby will finally get his MRI so doctor can figure out what they're dealing with. In the meantime, it's good to know that it's not a clot and hope the pain has subsided as he waits for the MRI & doctor's determination.

Thinking of ALL of our Sudoku friends. Sending {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, healing energy, , positive thoughts, and prayers for everybody!

Risky...
From a t shirt
1. Say “EYE”
2. Spell “M-A-P”
3. Say “NESS”

Sorry, childish humour

Good one! Suzy

Hello all. Good to see you back Tami - hope your hubby's leg is not serious - but a long wait for MRI doesn't help.
Suzy - I keep morning and night meds in different containers (pill box for night). This may help - glad you weren't driving and also that Alie wasn't aware of the booboo. Luckily no harm done.
You too MizT - hope the wrist is better soon - blood tests at the wrist are horrible and painful and sometimes I think unnecessary for a good phlebotomist - a lazy way to do it.
Hope your tests are done soon Heidi - and you are feeling better with the muscle problem and ear.
No 2 son still in Thailand with DVT - not able to fly for a while. On Lixiani which is not approved yet in Australia so will have to be changed to warfarin before he can come home. Don't think it is bothering him too much as he is now starting to be able to get around a bit and not stuck in Bangkok.
Hubby drove to Adelaide today and I am on my own with Truman - I thought it would be peaceful but had to come to the office. I hate having to work on a Sunday. Calling in to see no. 1 son on way home who will download 'Better call Saul' for me so I can catch up with the series and join the others on Tuesday night for the next episode. lso doing some shopping for a friend with advanced muscular dystrophy. Her hubby has gone on a six week holiday to the north of Australia with his campervan and she is on her own and unable to leave the house. We have pretty good system with a few friends to take care of her but she will be on her own at night. She lives very close to me so we are first call if needed.
Take care everyone and cheers to all.

Greetings, Everyone!

That's a good one, Suzy. (I admit I had to puzzle it out first.)

Midge I hope S#2 continues to improve and will be able to come home soon. I hope they give him at least a few days for the medication change and supervise him when the change is made. I'm glad your friend has a number of friends who help to keep tabs on her and make grocery trips. Obviously, her husband isn't too concerned about how things will go while he is away. So sorry you had to go into the office on Sunday. I hope the remainder of the weekend is relaxing!

Hoping MizT and Heidi are both improving! Take care, you two, and everyone else!

Sending healing energy, prayers, positive thoughts, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, and

Hi, Everyone! The weekend is nearly over for us Topsiders, although we have Labor Day tomorrow. Down Under gals are in Monday, I think. I hope everyone is having a great day/afternoon/evening! Stay healthy!

Sending {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, healing energy, positive thoughts, & prayers.

Tami, great to see you, hope your hubby finds out what’s wrong and is fixed soon.

Midge, I hope your son is able to either finish his holiday or come home soon. Very scary stuff.

I’m kind of astounded at the man who left his wife to take care of herself for six weeks when she needs so much care. I guess he figures she won’t divorce him so why worry.

Midge, I'm so glad your friend has some good friends who are willing to help out while her husband has a break. It is so easy to forget that the carers need to be cared for too, especially where long-term disabilities are concerned. I hope he comes home well refreshed and with lots of photos and a wealth of awesome experiences to tell his wife about.

Morning all!
Suzy, I too was astounded about Midge's friend's husband but on reflection I guess Saltie is right, being a carer is hard work and a break is often needed.
Midge, I hope you son recovers well and can get home soon. Colin isn't allowed to fly but at least we are home.
Big hugs to all.

Hi, Everyone!

I must admit that my first reaction about the man leaving for a holiday was similar to CynB and Suzy. It seems to be expecting her friends to do a lot of care-giving. Saltie, thanks for presenting another point of view. Since none of us are familiar with the situation, we have no way of knowing which of us (or if any of us) has the correct viewpoint. At any rate, I hope both the husband and wife benefit from the situation. Sometimes it helps to have a fresh point of view.

Midge, I hope your son is feeling well enough to either finish his holiday or come home to finish his recuperation! Thinking of you and your family.

Tami, I hope your hubby is recovering or getting the treatment he needs to expedite his recovery!

Heidi, I hope all's going well and you are feeling better!

MizT, how have the doctor appointments been going? I hope you are pain-free, or at least experiencing less pain!

Sending healing energy, positive thoughts and vibes, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, , and prayers for everyone!

Hi all. Had a relaxing, rainy Labor Day. Hubby has an MRI scheduled for Wednesday evening. Hope we will know results by Friday. Still trying to get used to the new school year. Instead of 7 class periods a day, we went to a 4 x 4 block. That means today I have periods 1-4 and tomorrow 5-8. Longer class times with students for teaching but a challenge to get used to.

Hello, Friends!

WOW, Tami! So, essentially classes are twice (or almost twice) as long? Challenging for you - and the students. I'm sure there were times when you wished for more time to 'finish' a presentation or give students a bit of time to apply what you were teaching, so hopefully, it will be a good thing!

Thinking of everyone and sending , {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, healing energy, positive thoughts, and prayers! Take care, Everyone!

Tami, a school I did my practice at, and subbed at, had 4 periods a day. Okay as a science teacher as you could do labs whenever. Not as good as a sub when teachers didn’t leave enough work! I carried an emergency supply of word puzzles when I subbed there.

My pills are separated into am and pm doses in my pill box. I was just off with the fairies when I took them. I often forget the morning pills so it was doubly weird that I messed up that day.

Suzy, it's not good that you messed up your pills but it's easy to do. When you do something so repetitive it's easy to forget where you are.
I have to give Colin eyedrops and put a cream on his eyelid that coats his eyeball to stop irritation. I have to do that twice per day. We are always getting confused as to when I last did it. We are trying to work out a foolproof way of remembering without having to record it pen to paper. Sigh!

Tami, I hope all goes well with your hubby's MRI.

At my Art Class yesterday, someone mentioned Sudoku and I told the story of how I started to play online more than 10 years ago, noticed and read the comments, finally joined in and that now I consider so many of these people my dear friends even if I may never meet them. I got some doubtful looks even after telling them how many of you I have met including 5 from overseas.
My Sudoku friends changed my life for the better.

Cyn, what about putting the cream and drops in one place after you’ve used them in the morning, and another in the evening? Put them on in the morning, put them in the butter bit, in the evening, in the egg bit. I’m assuming they have to be refrigerated as many eye drops do.

Just checking in to let you know I'm still alive.

CynB, I do the pen and paper thing,since so many of my meds are 'as needed'. Not the same time every day. Even now I can sometimes forget to write it, or write it and forget to swallow it. that is why I now put the number of pills I am allowed a day into a pill bottle, too. That is working much better. I just went for my evening pain med, and did not see the one for wee hours, if needed. Then I remembered I had taken the afternoon one with me to doc appointment today, cause I might be late enough there to need it. Yep, still in my trouser pocket in zip lock snack baggie. All pills now present and accounted for.

Yesterday we had a delivery to our in house food bank. LOTS of fruit and veg and bread and pastry. the bread line was too long, went for the produce line first. I got baby bella stuffed mushrooms, enough for 3 servings. Icooked those tonight, some nice cheese in them. asparagus, need to cook that tonight, but will have to wait till morning. An assortment of fruits, a couple of bell peppers. Not much left at the bread station, saw people going out with one pack of 1 dozen cup cakes, and a whole pie and huge bag of rolls. Limit was 3 items, I think it should have been 1 large and two small items myself. Who is going to eat a whole sheet cake?? But they did not ask me how to run this hehehe. I did get half loaf of brown bread, french steak roles, a single serve blueberry cake, and a pound cake, single serve. Nice assortment of free stuff! Today there were 2 grocery carts of unusual named canned sodas. I found a cherry limeade sparkling water, it sounded good.

I left here at 12:45 for an appointment for a test. Home at 4:00. Long day, about an hour extra because today was a busy bus schedule. Two hours for the test once they got started. I was exhausted, and hungry and achy. I think I did afternoon meds first, then a cup of coffee, No morning coffee, bummer, then my lunch. Fell asleep soon afterward for a nice nap.

Julie, pain is less, but not gone. I remember clearly the last time I was pain free, June 6, 2015, I woke with NOTHING hurting. Oh that bed felt so god, I could just sink in and luxuriate at the comfort. Usually my bed and I fight, and I must get out of it as soon as I wake. I thought I had died and gone to heaven! Remember thinking So this is what pain free feels like!!It lasted 15 minuets, the best 15 minuets in years and years. A couple of times coming out of anesthesia, before I was fully awake,but nurses too interested in getting you awake and out of their care, so they can go home

TAMI, so sorry you had to wait so long for the MRI appointment for hubby. I have learned that I often have to 'do their work for them' and make sure the request was sent, was received by insurance and approved, then sent to test site and they received and scheduled it. So many times, 'No we have not got that yet' I have not figured out, do they just not care, or have more to do than they have time to do it. Or more li

Or more likely a bit of both. they get paid the same amount if they hurry or take their time getting work done.

Bed time, meds beginning to work. Now for my cup of warm milk and off to dream land. Huge hugs to each of you, till later.

A thought regarding cell phones....

If I woke up every morning and pulled out a bottle of whiskey from under my pillow to take a swig, then you would say I have a serious problem. However, checking my phone (which I usually keep under my pillow) before I have even put my glasses on in the morning is totally acceptable to society.

Hi, Everyone!

Suzy, thanks for sharing your experience with 4 class periods per day. I can certainly imagine it would take some getting used to. Certainly a tough kind of program to be the substitute teacher. I'm glad you brought along some 'tricks up your sleeve'/word puzzles for those occasions!

Suzy, your system for keeping track of your meds ought to work most of the time. Your suggestion for helping Cyn to keep track of Col's drops & ointment sounds workable. I hope Cyn finds it helpful!

MizT, seems like you have also worked out a good system. I'd probably go to the pen-and-paper system if I had many regular medications. I think when systems break down is when there is a change in medication or dose or when the person sorting/setting out for the week is interrupted in some way and lose concentration.

MizT, the in-house food bank is a good idea! You're right that it needs to be administered more carefully so that more people can benefit. You're right that 3 large items doesn't seem fair. Most likely, food will spoil or go to waste unless people share the larger packages.

MizT, sorry you had such a long day and so much waiting. I'm glad you were able to get a nap! I'm also glad you have figured out the 'system' trying to get appointments made and approved by insurance.

Wow, your last pain-free day was more than 3 years ago! Certainly a significant day since you remember the exact date! I hope you will have a pain-free day sometime this year!

Interesting observation, DOrA! Hubby and I usually charge our phones at night, so often don't have the phone near our bed. I guess that could ultimately be a problem if someone were trying to reach us in an emergency.

Heidi, I'm glad you dropped by to let us know you're OK. I wish you were feeling much better, but we appreciate hearing from you. Take care!

Tami, I hope your hubby is improving and nothing major is found in his MRI!

Thinking of all of our friends, whether I have mentioned you or not, and sending {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, positive thoughts, , healing energy, and prayers.

Our referral system works differently. Our doctors print out the referral and we make the appointment. Often it is in an envelope with phone numbers and addresses showing through an envelope window. Sometimes they just give it to you so you can see what is written. I usually end up having to open them anyway when I call to make the appointments.

Hello everyone. It is nice to read and catch up with you all.🌹🌹🌹🌹

Hi Viv!!! It's great to see you here!

My EGD is scheduled for 10 AM tomorrow. Unfortunately, the crappy insurance I have doesn't cover it. It'll cost me $5000.oo in cash. I'm rapidly running out of money. I hope I have enough for the surgery itself. The testing is destroying me. But I can't keep going the way I am, either.

Morning all! Hi Viv!! Nice to see you here. It would be lovely to get the whole gang back here for some lively conversation. I can remember times when I had to tear myself away from an ongoing conversation because I had other boring stuff to do, like cooking dinner.

I will try your suggestion Suzy of putting the drops in a different spot morning and afternoon. Good idea, thanks.

We have Emily here today so that she can have her first driving lesson. I feel like I'm sending her into a war zone.
I hate that they grow up and learn to drive!