I am leaving this morning for CCI...

On Friday Teresa, Heather and I went to see” the men who stare at goats”, it was HILARIOUS. Kind of weird and off-the-wall but absolutely funny.

Yesterday I stayed in bed but the day went by fast because it was the last day to pack everything up, I wonder what we forgot? I always make a bunch of lists and sweat at this time I will never forget anything but I always forget something, it’s not the end of the world if I do because there is a Costco six minutes away from CCI and they always have whatever I forget.

I tried to make myself go to sleep early last night so that I wouldn’t be up all night thinking about everything, even though I closed my eyes and try to shut down my mind it still went crazy. Two weeks is a really long time to be away from my house, I’m just not used to it. I am getting to the point where I can go for a cruise and not feel the urgency to get back home, I wish I knew what that was.

My goal is to leave at 10 AM and I think it takes about three hours to get there. I want to get everything unloaded and then check to see how much room I will have to store groceries in the kitchen and then go to Cosco. Teresa and Heather made some soups, stews and even some chili to freeze and they all look really KILLER. I just want to get some fruit for the mornings, a spinach salad and some bread, Heather made some really awesome chicken salad.

I’m going to bring my cell phone but I’m going to be without my computer and my TiVo, I’m pretty sure that when I get back there will be no more room on TiVo.

I’m still very excited about meeting my new best friend and I’m going to try really hard to let no one, including myself, spoil him or her rotten.

Uncle Dick said that he would come over in the morning and fill up the squirrel feeder for me So I guess I thought of everything.

Countdown, two more days...

I cannot believe that I’m leaving in two days, I have not even started packing but I do have a list so hopefully it will go smoothly. Yesterday while I was getting dressed I saw something really big out my bedroom window which is the dog run. When Teresa pulled back the curtains there was a huge raccoon eating the squirrels apples and peanuts. I talked to my uncle later on that night and he said that the night before there was two raccoons on his back porch eating dog food. Today I am going to get my fingernails/toenails painted and my eyebrows waxed and then Teresa and I are going to take Heather out for her birthday, we missed it last week. Susan came yesterday to give me a massage, that girl is wonderful. She said that she is going to be dropping off her son for camp next week in Santa Rosa and if she can she will come by Canine Companions for Independence and give me a massage, that would be awesome.

Packing for my trip to Canine Companions for Independence...

Thursday night was my first night taking a bath with soft water and I can assure feel the difference already. My caregiver said that my skin is softer and my hair is shinier, I knew this was going to be a good thing. My biggest concern was that the water was not going to harm my new service dog or my Mom’s birds and the guy assured me that it would be fine. They now use potassium instead of salt and it won’t harm the animals.
I can’t believe that in two weeks I’m going to Santa Rosa for two weeks and I will be bringing back my news service dog. My caregivers, friends and family are going to really have a hard time leaving him or her alone for a month, nobody can talk to him or her or even look at him or her and I know it’s going to be really hard for everyone.
This is the second year in a row that I accidentally found the cold water classic surfers down by the light house. I went for a cruise down to the wharf and I could hear voices across the ocean and I’d see a bunch of flags so I decided to go check it out. The weather was beautiful, a little warm but the ocean breeze made it perfect. I watch the guys and gals surf for awhile and came back home to my house smelling really amazing, Heather was in the kitchen cooking.
The other day I was sitting here watching the squirrels getting peanuts out of the peanut feeder when I saw a cat jump up and she was sniffing around and all of a sudden a squirrel came running up behind him chattering and scared him away, it was the funniest thing ever.
Today Teresa is going to help me pack for my two week stay in Santa Rosa at Canine Companions for Independence to get my new service dog. I am so excited and a little nervous, this is only the second longest stay that I have had away from my home since my injury and I am furiously making lists and hoping that I don’t forget anything... I’m sure I will.
My mom and my aunt Kathy are going to go visit their brother and sister in Arizona, I know they will have a really nice trip.
My uncle and aunt have a really good friend that can make anything out of wood and he does really amazing work. He is making me a picnic table and benches for my back porch, one that is going to be tall enough so I can actually get my chair underneath it and the legs are back far enough so I can roll under the end of the table, I have NEVER been able to do that so I am so excited to see what it looks like... he's bringing it sometime this week.

Annual neighborhood Halloween party...

Every year my neighbors have a Halloween party and it is always awesome, I have only gone to two but so far I agree. Usually they have it at their home but last night it was at the veterans hall downtown. Teresa basically made most of my costume and she did a really awesome job. Cassie and her mom came over and did my makeup, they are such cool people and they really make me feel important. Before we left my uncle and aunt came over and took some pictures and invited us to come over for a turkey sandwich with all the trimmings, I forgot how great a turkey sandwich is after Thanksgiving. We were going to walk but my uncle offered to drive us so we decided to take him up on it. We were a little nervous when we got out of the van and we could hear really loud Mariachi Music but then a very cute gentleman took us up in the elevator to the party we were looking for. When we first got there there wasn’t a lot of people but it soon filled up and the place was packed. Everybody was having a really good time and dancing, I love to watch people dance. We left kind of early because everybody was exhausted. Teresa and I have been staying up late the last couple of nights and we really needed to get to bed although we have been having a blast. It is such a nice change since usually I need to be in bed by five or 6 PM, that is what time I care to restore working. Sometimes I can have them do something else and stay up a little bit longer but most of the time I go to bed way earlier than I would like. Cassie, the girl across the street has agreed to work for me once in a while when I want to stay up late.

A new water softener...

On Monday I had an appointment in Watsonville at the wound treatment center, they didn’t make me a follow-up appointment and that is good news because it means that my pressure stories healing nicely and it will be gone in no time, I say it’s about time. Teresa is going to be off on Tuesdays for a while so she will be able to help me out on those days, I’m really excited because we seem to get a lot done. I keep finding somebody to do maintenance around here and then I never hear from them so I’m just going to look everything up online and get instructions on how to do and have Teresa doing, she can pretty much do anything. I had a guy come out on Tuesday to test the water and find out where to install a water softener. My skin has been so dry since I moved here and I’m really hoping that it’s because of the hard water, I have never had a hard water before. They’re going to come back on Wednesday to install it so I guess I will find out. On Wednesday Teresa, her husband and his friend and I went to the catalyst club downtown to see UFO, it was a really great show and it felt really good to get out. I hardly ever get to leave my house after six o’clock because that is usually when I have to go to bed. There was another bad they are called Zen Vendetta that opened for them and they were also really good. One of the guys came up to Teresa and I and gave us one of their CDs so we went back and had them all sign it, they were all very sweet. Today Susan, a massage therapist, came by and gave me a two hour massage and it really felt good. She really knows what she’s doing and she’s very funny so I am always looking forward to seeing her. Tomorrow is the Williams annual Halloween party. Teresa and I are going to be mermaids and of course we will be working on our costumes up until the last minute. The party is not until 7 PM but going to have to wear my costume all day so everybody is going to think I’m very strange when I take my walk down to the wharf. I know it’s really going to be a lot of fun. Last night we finally put up the last of the Halloween decorations so my morning attendant took a bunch of pictures, she did a really good job.

Monarch butterflies...

Why do creatures make some people act really weird? I got a bunch of praying mantis cocoons and put them around my garden and checked every day and I’m just now finally starting to see them, they are so cute but they freak me out. I opened my door the other day to go outside and one was right on the corner of the railing just staring at me, his little head following my every movement. I scooted by him as quickly as I could and did the same on the way back in. The next time I opened my door to go for a cruise on the wharf he was on the ground in front of my door so I closed the door and came back inside. I opened the door a little while later and this time he was on the door and before I could shut it he crawled to the top and just sat there. I decided to go ahead and go for a cruise but leave the door open so he would not get crushed. He was there for a long time and even when it started getting cold I could not close the door because I didn’t want him to get hurt. I really love watching them but always from a distance, I’m afraid that they’re going to jump on me and although I’m not sure what would happen but I try to avoid it. Stanley and Corrine came down Friday to visit for the weekend. On Saturday we went to the Spirit store, I LOVE that place. I got a bunch of little furry mice and some spiders to put in the web on the porch and Corinne got a Victorian Princess costume, he looked really cute in it. After that we decided to go down to natural Bridges Beach and check out the monarch butterflies, they are passing through Santa Cruz. I have gone down to the beach a couple of times but never down to the trails, it was so beautiful and I will definitely be back. Tomorrow I go back to the wound care clinic in Watsonville AGAIN, is this thing ever going to heal?? It seems like everything takes for ever. On Tuesday we are going to finally finish decorating for Halloween outside, we had to hold off because of the big storm but the weather is nice and again except for the very high humidity. On Wednesday I’m going to the catalyst club downtown to see UFO in concert, I can’t remember offhand what they sing but I looked them up and they did recognize a couple of their songs. Saturday is the big Williams Halloween party, they have one every year and although this is only my second everybody always has a really good time and they always make everybody feel so comfortable.

My new standing frame...

I just got back from a cruise around the wharf and that always cheers me up. People are so funny... they think that pelicans are so cute, and they are adorable, and they want to go up and stand next to them and have their picture taken. The lady that did that today will probably never do that again, I think the pelican fit her whole head in his mouth and I could not help but laugh thank goodness looking around I was not the only one laughing and I think she was the only one NOT laughing. I cannot believe that it is finally Halloween, Halloween is my favorite holiday and I am so glad that I have Teresa to help me decorate because she is so creative. Melissa has already been here and painted my windows, they look AWESOME. It’s kind of sad because after October is Thanksgiving and then Christmas and then there really isn’t anything else until Easter and then I have to wait until October again. I guess there is new years and Fourth of July. I’m finally going to get my standing frame. Here I have been saving up for it and come to find out that Medicare is going to pay for 80% of it, if I had known that I would have got it a long time ago. On my first appointment I didn’t get to stand very long, in fact I only got about halfway up, because they brought the wrong standing frame. I have to go at least two more times so they can make sure just one person can stand me up, it will be a lot easier because of my ceiling lift. They also attach a blood pressure cuff to your arm and check it every couple of minutes to make sure your blood pressure doesn’t drop dramatically. I can’t wait to stand in my standing frame and play my Wii game, I’m hoping that will make the time go by faster and I really haven’t been able to play it very much.