Week 21 - My New Knee

My surgery week was finally here! But first I had one last work day to get through but everything on my to do list was already done so I was ready to go.

I had a space meeting first thing on Monday and a demo that afternoon and spent the rest of the day documenting what needed to be done when I was out. I made rhubarb upside down cake to take to knitting, which would be the first sugar I'd had in 6 weeks. I had taken out a candy bar to have at lunch but couldn't do it. Knitting was fun and the dessert was delish. My last work day was done.

I had taken Tuesday off because Dottie was flying in and I needed to pick her up at the airport. Her flight was due in at 10:39 and I was there a bit early. Her flight came in but she wasn't coming out so I called her to tell her I was at the curb. Well, she was on her way to the airport in Indiana! She had changed her flight and never told me. OMG! I was not happy but decided to make the best of it so headed south to Aldi, stopping at Honda afterwards to ask how to get my money back. Because get this - 8 days after my transmission died, Honda extended the transmission warrantee to 150K miles so I could get my money back. Yay! They gave me the  number to call and a copy of my paperwork. Then I called Darla to see if she could do lunch and we met at Virginia's Cafe, which was lovely. Dottie's flight was due at 4:00 but I'd done all I had to do in Lincoln so drove back home. I went back for Dottie later and after dinner I packed and set multiple alarms. I had to be at the surgical center at 5:30 so we had to be up early. 

I slept fine. I really wasn't nervous at all. We were there on time and Dottie was allowed to stay with my while they did the IV and prepped me for surgery but was booted out when they rolled me out of pre-op. My surgery was at 8:00 so she went to Starbuck's and the French bakery for treats. She brought me coffee and a pain au raisin when I was back in my room. I was only allowed one visitor for the day so she was it. She left after a bit and I spent the day streaming and knitting between being poked and prodded by nurses. They wouldn't let me get dressed but did let me put underwear on under my johnny for my walk down the hallway. I was in the very last room, which was past a couple of offices and was an odd shape. Oh well.

The OT and PT people came Thursday morning and I was discharged before lunch. Dottie drove me home and the sitting/knitting began. I had my first real PT on Friday at 10:00 and it was like old home week seeing all the PT staff again. I made it through just fine. I was taking all the pain meds, doing all the icing like the good patient I am.

By Friday night it was hot and muggy but when I turned the AC on, it wasn't blowing cool air. I called Ed and the AC guy Ed knows but only heard back from Ed. Being the trooper he is, he came and tinkered a bit and did a temporary fix then got the AC guy on the phone and made an appointment for Saturday morning. I went to bed feeling better but Saturday was going to be a busy day.

The AC guy was there first thing as was the arborist who was taking down the enormous tree in my neighbor's yard that was over my roof. He was in and out explaining what he was doing and cleared a few things off my deck in case branches came down on my lawn. Then the tech came to drop off my bike, which is a new post surgery thing that my knee doc prescribes. It was bedlam in my house! When they all left, the peace and quiet was a treat.

I can't tell you what the rest of the weekend held. I was pretty doped up and didn't do much - sitting, knitting, icing and doing my bike 3 times a day. Dottie kept me fed and medicated. All good. It would all be downhill from here. Life is good!

Week 20 - The Final Push

It was my last full week before surgery and it was jam packed. I had a mix of the last things on my to do list plus lots of pre-surgery medical stuff, including the all important weigh in. The scale had been stuck for a few days despite doing 600/900 calorie days so I was a bit worried but there was nothing more I could do but hope.

I started Monday with a phone orientation with the surgical center then had a dentist appointment and my pre-surgery physical and weigh in on Tuesday morning. Everything went fine, including the weigh in. I came in .2 below the BMI the knee surgeon wanted me below. Good enough. I'd lost more than 18 pounds in 5 weeks. After a big training for business managers at UNO (the Omaha campus of University of Nebraska), I happily headed to Ashland for a celebratory dinner at BW's with Lori and Andrea. I started with my favorite Vanilla Bean Blonde beer, Brussels sprouts and tot-chos (nachos over tater tots) for my main course. I wasn't going to eat sweets until the following week but just to eat yummy, flavorful food was a treat after dieting so intensely for the past 6 weeks.

Wednesday was the last full work day of the week because we had the All Staff Conference on Thursday morning and all day Friday. I had more demos of forms I'd created and slammed to get a few more things done. I taught my last training of fiscal year 21 on Wednesday afternoon then had my monthly Ripples meeting, which I usually enjoy but was distracted this time. Maybe subliminal stress? Not sure but after that I drove to Lincoln for the last swimming with Anne and Rene. I had been using Anne's guest passes but she had rejoined Campus Rec so her gym membership was lapsing. It was perfect timing for me and I needed the swim after such a busy week.

Thursday morning was the keynote and some panel discussions at the All Staff Conference, which was all done via Zoom. I then slammed through a few more things and at the end of the day, I drove to Lincoln for a get together at a bar near campus for one of the accountants who was leaving our department. We sat outside and it was wonderful to see my work friends in person. Last summer was the last time I'd seen most of them. 

Friday was full of break out sessions for the conference and I enjoyed most of them. Helen brought lunch over and we chatted over Mocha C's chicken salad then I had vet appointments at 1:00 for the cats. I was only able to catch 2 of the 3 so took them. The vet is still not letting anyone inside so you wait in the parking lot and they come and get your cats, do their thing then bring them back out. Just after I got there, I watched them put down a farmer's dog in the truck parked next to me. I talked to the man while they went inside to run his credit card and barely held it together. When he drove away, I burst into tears and was such a mess that I forgot to have them put the flea stuff on the cats, which I didn't remember until I got home. But they gave me the shot for Gansey (the one I couldn't catch) and all the paperwork I needed to register them. I was home in 20 minutes and back to conference sessions. I had made it through my last full work week and had crossed lots of things off my list.

I had spinning in Fremont on Saturday, which was fun. We ran our errands before spinning so were home relatively early that afternoon. I had a few things left to do in the yard as well as my regular chores. Lorri had dropped off tomato and pepper seedlings and I had a few more perennials to plant and hoses to set up. I plugged away at these over the rest of the weekend and got it all done. I felt pretty good going into my last day at work and felt ready for my surgery. Just 2 more days to go.

Week 19 - Checking Things Off

Connie left first thing Monday and since it was the first business day of the month, I got busy with reports. Cleaning was done so it was time to tackle the rest of my list. I was super productive all week but still made time for some fun.

Lorri invited me over for lunch on Tuesday but since I was a week away from my weigh in, I brought my own food. It was lovely to visit over lunch. Then Lori came over on Wednesday for tea in the afternoon. She'd gone to Aldi to get me cushions for my deck chairs. There's one right by her house so she was able to go early. There wouldn't have been any left by the time I could get there and there weren't when I stopped after swimming that night. So not only did I get my cushions but we had a lovely tea break on my deck. Nice.

I got a haircut - my first since my pre-Christmas crew cut - and called the kid for my first mow of the season so the rest of the week was spent in my yard. First up was containers. I plant lots of containers on my deck and driveway so got busy with those in the evenings after work. I didn't have enough plants for them all so on Friday after work, I went out and tilled (by hand), composted, planted and mulched (with grass from the mowing) two of my three empty veg beds - the squash and bean/cuke beds. That left just one bed for tomatoes that I'd plant later.

I called Lorri on Saturday to see if she wanted to go to Viaduct Gardens for some plant shopping. My favorite greenhouse closed at the end of last year so I was looking for a new one and Viaduct had been recommended several times. We went and I was able to fill all the gaps in my plant inventory. We got home early enough that I decided to power through the last containers and ended up spending the rest of the day finishing them all. I was dripping with sweat so went in for a shower and dinner. I was done working for the weekend.

Sunday was a true day of rest. I spent the day streaming, knitting and recharging. I had some sore muscles after all the work I'd done and was so happy with all I'd cross off my list that I wasn't stressed about taking a day off. And I needed it. I had another weekend yet before surgery but what was left was doable. I am so good with a deadline. : )

Week 18 - Cleaning and Connie

Connie was coming at the end of the week so my mad house cleaning was moved up a couple of weeks. That meant I went into high gear early in the week and got the entire house ready for company. That took the major cleaning off the list for right before surgery so was the icing on the cake of seeing Connie.

I was powering through stuff at work too - lots of training and demos of my new database. I also had house taxes due, which I dropped off after dark one night after finishing some cleaning. It was worth going out to cross that off my list. The week flew by and I got the final cleaning done during my lunch hour on Friday. Connie arrived just before 5:00 and the fun began.

The weather was going to be hot on the weekend so I suggested we walk at the dam first thing, which worked for Connie since she'd been in the car all day. It was gorgeous and we walked the entire dam and back. I was totally gimpy so was slow but we chatted the whole time and it was lovely. After dinner of egg roll in a bowl, we chatted for hours before heading to bed. Connie and I never run out of things to talk about.

The plan for Saturday was to head to Lincoln to meet up with Connie's daughter, Rachele. They were getting pedicures but there was no point in me getting one so close to surgery so I was running errands until they were done. First stop was Honda, where I picked up my newly repaired car. That was $1,600 out of pocket. Grrrr.... From there I stopped at Darla's to drop something off and then I was going to hang at Anne's until their toes were done. But on the way to Anne's, I drove by Rene's community garden and she was there so I stopped for a chat. When I got to Anne's, her friend Kate was there so I sat on the deck with them. It was a lovely morning with friends.

I met Rachele and Connie at Copal, which is one of my favorite restaurants in Lincoln. I was SO good. I did eat some chips and salsa but only had half of a quesadilla appetizer. I was determined not to blow my diet. When we finished lunch, Connie and I did some plant shopping at Urban Trails and then drove through campus. Connie has been gone so long that there were lots of new buildings to show her and the gardens were beautiful. Then it was home for more chatting, streaming and dinner. I miss hanging out with Connie!

We were back to Lincoln on Sunday for the farmer's market in College View. It's small compared to the downtown Saturday market, but the Husker spring game was Saturday so doing that market wasn't an option. I didn't buy anything but we had yummy lunch from Daffodil Catering. I got such a small portion of rice and meat that the owner said it was a sample and didn't charge me. I was killing my diet! Connie and I hit Menard's for flowers and Starbuck's on the way home. Then it was back home for yet more hanging out. Nice.

Connie had wanted to stay longer but I told her I was not willing to take vacation time so close to being out for the better part of a month for surgery and since I was working from home, I needed her gone on Monday so Sunday night was our last together. It was wonderful to see her again, even if it was only for 2+ days. That's all I ever stay when I visit her so it worked for me just fine.

Like I said, I miss Connie. She was my go to for running errands together and just hanging out. It's hard to believe she's been gone from Lincoln for 12 years. She was still in Nebraska for a couple of years after that but 100 miles away in Peru. Still, I saw her a lot when she was still in the state but now it's more like a couple of times a year. Maybe I'll see her more when I retire. Just 3 more years!

And since I didn't take a single picture while Connie was here, here's a pic of my amaryllis that were in full bloom while she was here.

Week 17 - My Dead Honda

Yes, you read that right. My Honda HRV died. But I'll get to that later. Let me just say it's a damn good thing I'd had an easy, relaxing week last week because this one was a doozy!

It started out with snow on Monday. Yes, snow at the end of April. I had already put some of my over wintered plants outside so had to bring them in again. The snow didn't last long but that's just too damn cold for mid April. And of course the cold lasted until Tuesday because I had plans to be out and about.

I had already made plans to go to campus on Wednesday because I was selected for a random spit test so I scheduled it for 11:30 and then Dodie and I were going out to lunch for the first time in over a year. I could taste my fave Panera salad already! But then they announced the first mass vaccine clinic for students on Tuesday and were looking for volunteers so I signed up. I was going to be handing out free t-shirts outside in a tent.

Going out in public meant that I had to find real pants - with a zipper! - to wear. Luckily with the 11 pounds I'd lost this month, I was back at my pre-pandemic weight so something had to fit, right? It's not like I'd gone to work naked last March. I was happy to find 4 pairs of pants that fit so got dressed Tuesday morning and was on campus at 9:30. My shift was until 1:00 and the free food giveaway was in the same tent so I grabbed a Runza (for any non-Nebraskans reading this, it's a hamburger and cabbage mix baked inside dough and it's a hugely popular fast food chain here) and headed to my office. I had my spit test scheduled the next day but had to walk right by a spit hut and there was no line so I just got it done on the way to my office.

We had new windows installed in my office building last year so I had packed my office up before going home last March and it was time to unpack. After eating my Runza, I started cleaning the incredibly dusty surfaces and then put my cubie back in order. I went through lots of paper and filled my recycling bin. It's amazing how something that mattered 13 months ago was absolutely useless now. Anyway, my next mission was to find a place to train after lunch with Dodie on Wednesday. Alas, I totally failed. My desktop at work doesn't have a camera and I was dismayed to see that both the training room and the conference room had been stripped of all computer equipment, which I later learned was sent home with people so they could work at home. That meant that training via zoom at home would actually be easier so I called Dodie and asked to cancel lunch on Wednesday so I could just stay home. She was disappointed, as was I, but it made sense. So off I went.

I ran some errands and since I'd cancelled Panera with Dodie, I drove through and picked up my fave salad. My last stop was Nora's to pick up the plants I'd bought to support her daughter's old school. We had fun walking around her yard checking out plants and catching up. I left her house just before 7:00 and was looking forward to getting home after this long day and enjoying my salad. I was just outside Lincoln on a country road on the way to the highway when my car went nuts. I stepped on the gas after a stop sign and it wasn't accelerating. I looked down and every single light on my dashboard was lit and it said Park. So I did. I had hoped that turning the car off and on would clear it but it didn't so I got it going at half speed so I could limp to a paved road just ahead. And that's where I called AAA from.

It was just after 7:00, the sun was still out and AAA was on their way so I ate my salad and listened to the radio with the heat on. Because my engine would run. I just couldn't drive. My salad was delish (good thing I had my knitting treats bag of utensils, plates and napkins in the car because they didn't give me a fork) and I knitted away, not feeling too bad. Then it got dark. I kept calling the tow company and it was taking forever. By the time the truck arrived, it was almost 9:00. He towed me to the Honda dealership, who I'd already called to find out what to do, and Anne picked me up. I had already arranged to stay over at her house because I wouldn't know anything until I talked to Honda in the morning. She lent me a nightie and gave me a toothbrush and we both went right to bed.

I didn't sleep very well (go figure) and was on the phone with Honda before Anne got back from her workout at the gym. They told me that they were fully booked so wouldn't be able to look at it for days and also didn't have a loaner. Nor could they give me an estimate of how long I might need a car if I were to rent one. Not happy. So I called my friend Lorri, whose husband is a car guy so has several cars, and asked if she had a spare car I could borrow. Not only was she willing to lend me her car but she would come and get me. She came during my team zoom so I hung up early and we headed home. I put in some vacation time, ate lunch and was back to work that afternoon. Now to wait for Honda to call.

I was on a break between rotations but was not eating any sweets, which meant I was eating savory things that felt special. Since I had to do a deposit for Friends of the Library account and the bank is right across form Mocha C's, I went in for my regular grab and go but without the scotcheroo. I was down 11 pounds so was motivated to stay focused. The sandwich and chips tasted great. Honda called at the end of the day to say they had my car on the diagnostic computer but it wouldn't finish before they closed. It had already thrown a code for a bad transmission sensor so I went to bed that night hopeful that it would be a quick and cheap fix. Yeah, right.

They called on Friday to say that the reason the sensor died was because it was full of metal shards and I needed a new transmission, which would cost $6,200! WHAT???? My car is 5 years old and only has 66k miles! I told the service guy, who was very nice, that that was completely unacceptable. He said he'd check with Honda to see if they would help. I told him they had better because this was absolutely CRAZY. He called later to say Honda would pay 75%, which would still leave me out $1,500+. What choice did I have though so I told them to order the transmission. I then did some online research and turns out, this is a common problem on 2016 HRV's. Maybe I should be calling Honda myself to complain and see if they'll cover 100%. Time will tell.

One bit of good news was that they had a loaner for me so I called my friend Cindy to bribe her with breakfast out in Lincoln if she'd come and get me and drop me at Honda. Then I called Lorri and asked if she could come and get her car, which she did with her husband. I went to bed Friday feeling slightly better that at least there was progress.

Cindy picked me up just after 8:00 and I loaded her car with donations that I needed to drop off in Lincoln for her garage sale to benefit spaying/neutering strays. She's the one who bottle fed my cat Gansey so I like supporting her cause. Cindy and I went to Cook's Cafe, which is in a new location after a fire in their old one, and has the best sausage in town. We only waited a few minutes to be seated and then thoroughly enjoyed the special - baked strawberry French toast with sausage and scrambled eggs. Delish! Then we drove to Honda, where I picked up a bright red Honda Civic sports car. I pulled some stuff out of my car then transferred the donation boxes from Cindy's and we went our separate ways.

I intended to hit Aldi, which is right near Honda, but missed the turn off so went to Trader Joe's instead. Then I dropped the donations and had a nice chat with Becky before heading towards home. On the way north, I remembered St. Theresa's thrift store, which is only open on Saturdays during Covid and so I hadn't been there in over a year. I popped in and hit yarn pay dirt, even finding some ever elusive sock yarn - Kroy Socks FX, which I love knitting with and it's even orangey. I was home just after noon with grocery shopping done so was ready for my weekend. I spent more time sorting and shifting yarn. The spare bedroom was nearly ready and the front room was looking much better.

I had my normal Sunday morning of news shows and chatting with my sister and it was approaching noon when the phone rang. Connie was calling to say she really was coming to visit and asking if it was the next weekend or the one after that. We talked options and decided the next weekend would work best so I hung up and madly started cleaning. I'd been slogging through stuff for weeks but hadn't cleaned a thing so I started at the ceiling with cobwebs and worked my way down to the floors. I worked like a dog all afternoon and into the evening, stopping when I was too tired and sweaty to keep going. I had a few small things left to do but felt good about my progress and the house was in good shape. Yay!

So how's that for a full week to contrast with last week's mundane one? I am still in shock that my relatively new and well maintained car has died. They just don't make things like they used to. How's that for sounding old? Oh well. Hopefully next week will be less eventful. I live in hope.

Week 16 - A Mundane Week

It was a pretty uneventful week and that's not all bad. 

Work was uneventful and I spent lots of time inside slogging through stuff inside in preparation for my sister coming after my surgery. I'll admit that not having anyone come in my house during the pandemic has not been good for keeping my house picked up and I've only done the bare minimum of cleaning. At least I made some progress this week and started pulling stuff to donate and organizing yarn, putting bins down in the basement and such.

On Saturday, we had in person spinning in Fremont at the library annex. There had been one in person meeting in February but I'd opted out. Now that I was as safe as I could be (2+ weeks after shot #2), I was up for it. I took my laptop and set up a zoom for a few of the people who were still staying home. Although it was a pretty tense meeting as we discussed making some changes to how we operate, it was still nice to get back to in person meeting and was fun to see people in person. Then we hit the Estate Dispersal Store, which is only open 1 weekend per month. I only bought a jar of buttons but it was fun to shop in the newly expanded store.

John came and did my first mow of the year and I spent Sunday finishing up sorting yarn and getting chores done. All in all, it was a quiet week. Here's a random shot of a tulip in my garden. Happy spring!

Week 15 - Surgery and Sushi

It was a great week with some good news and a milestone then was capped off with more spring gardening, which is always a happy thing. 

First for the good news - I scheduled my surgery! The nurse called back and I assured her that I was good to lose the weight before mid-May and we scheduled it for May 19th. The deal we made was that my GP would calculate my BMI at my pre-op physical on the 11th and send it to my knee doc. I had already lost 6 pounds since starting rotating and have no doubt that I will lose 10 more pounds on time. I was very excited to resolve this and my sister booked her flights so it's all set to go. I am really looking forward to getting my other knee fixed so I can walk like a normal person.

It was a miserably cold week - the kind of damp, bone numbing cold of England in winter - so I didn't get out much. I certainly didn't get my usual grab and go lunch (can't eat that on a 900 calorie Tuesday!) and pretty much stayed in all week. By Friday I needed a break. 

Andrea gets out of work early on Fridays so I took a couple of vacation hours and we headed to Fremont. We got there early enough to hit the Habitat Restore but didn't find much. Then it was on to Goodwill, Aldi and Dollar Tree. Since I was 8 days after my 2nd shot, I was feeling pretty safe so we decided to check out the sushi restaurant. I told Andrea that I would only eat there if there weren't too many people so I was happy that the tables were far apart and there weren't many people inside. We ordered 2 different sushis and it tasted like heaven! It also felt relatively normal to be sitting inside a restaurant for the first time since last summer in Rhode Island. I'll call it my first step on the road back to normal.

I got back out into the garden on the weekend, raking the last 2 beds. The compost from the previous week had compacted enough that I could pile on the last of the leaves. And look who I found in the compost heap - Pixel! I think it's been her warm outside spot all winter and she was basking on the back of the pile where I hadn't dug in yet. Cute.

So I ended the week happy in my garden, with my surgery scheduled and having eaten out with a friend. All good. Things are looking up!