Friday, April 17, 2026
I really want to get back into the habit of blogging every night. I did it for so many years, and for some reason when I moved, I just kept lapsing. So I’m going to start right now and just go forward.
It’s Friday evening, and the sky outside is an amber sunset. It’s so beautiful. I changed my room around again, and I like the way it’s situated now because I can see out of all the windows. There are three big windows to the left of me and three in front of me, so I can see all around. I love this place so much. I still look at houses that are for sale and haven’t yet found one that I would rather have.
I just wish somebody would buy the other place so I can quit paying a mortgage on two homes and settle down to work on this one. We’ve had to lower the price so many times. I once thought I was going to make a hefty return, but right now it’s not looking so good. I’m torn between taking a huge loss and just getting it out from under me… or is it over the top of me?
Becky was supposed to come in this morning, but she wasn’t feeling well, so I missed my eye appointment. I really need to get new glasses. It’s always so frustrating having to cancel appointments because my caregiver didn’t show up or something beyond my control. I’m the one who looks like a flake, and I would really like to explain everything to the other person on the phone, but they don’t really care.
I ended up staying in bed, and it was so beautiful outside. The weather is so unpredictable. It always seems like the days I get up, it’s raining on and off, and the days I stay in bed are nice. I have a lot of things on my computer that I should be doing—deleting pictures, purging email, making appointments… stuff like that. But what do I end up doing all day? Watching YouTube and playing games.
I wish I had enough willpower to do what I’m supposed to do first and then relax. Maybe I’m too old to stop procrastinating. I keep saying, “Monday I’m going to stop procrastinating and do what I’m supposed to do before I play,” knowing all along that’s not going to happen. By the time I look up from my game and decide it’s time to get down to business, the day is over and my caregiver comes in.
Ashlyn came in, and we did some personal care. Usually I get to take a bath after, but since her husband is working later, we’ve been doing personal care on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and a bath on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday or Sunday. The shifts seem to go by really fast, but by the end of it, I’m ready to get back to my games and my drama TV.
I’m also trying to finish—or add onto—my memoir. I started it probably about 20 years ago. I’ll work on it for a while, then put it away, then bring it back out again. I keep telling myself I’d better hurry up or I’m going to forget everything. I love going back and working on different segments, and I’m amazed sometimes at what memories pop back into my head.
Same thing with my blog. When I start getting overwhelmed with life, I read back over it and realize my life wasn’t so bad.
Saturday was a great day. The sun was out, and I got up to enjoy it. Brooklyn came in, took care of the dogs, fed me, then got me dressed and up in my chair. She threw the ball out front while we watched Dude sniff around in the yard for poop—such a disgusting habit, and I wish I could break him of it.
We finally got the front yard fenced in, so I don’t have to worry about the dogs running into the street. If I had thought about how close the street was, I probably wouldn’t have bought this house, even though I loved it so much. Sometimes I get blinders on and don’t think about the consequences.
We had two one-year-olds escape a while back. They made it out the front door, past the gate that was left open, up the driveway, and into the street. I saw the footage on the cameras, and it was terrifying. The lady next door happened to be getting her mail and ran after them. When McKenzie went out to grab the kids, she collapsed in the middle of the driveway—she was so distraught. I timed it, and they were only outside unattended for four minutes, but that’s all it took.
It’s really nice now to take the dogs outside without having to watch them like a hawk or yell when they get too close to the road.
Brooklyn brought her husband TJ over, and he washed the windows. It’s so beautiful, and being able to see clearly outside is just awesome. We decided to get a storage unit because the garage is so full. There are three families living here, and it’s depressing to see all that clutter. I promised myself when I moved that I wouldn’t live like that anymore, but I’m still working on it. I’m a work in progress.
Brooklyn does double shifts on Saturdays and Sundays. She left Saturday, and a couple of hours later I started getting autonomic dysreflexia—headache, sweating, chills. I knew what it was right away, but there wasn’t much I could do. I texted her, and she rushed back as soon as she could. Sure enough, I was soaked.
At that point, I decided I might as well go to bed. My niece came in to tell me how beautiful it was outside and that I should go enjoy it, but it was too late. Brooklyn put me to bed, got the dogs settled, and then went home.
After everyone leaves, I usually pick a movie or watch a series while playing games on the computer. As I was falling asleep, I noticed my throat was really sore. I was hoping it would go away by morning.
Sunday morning, I woke up with an even worse sore throat, plus coughing and sneezing. I had planned on going to church with my brother, but I could just picture myself sitting there trying to be quiet while coughing and sniffling, so I stayed home.
When Brooklyn came in, she said the pollen count had been really high on Saturday. I haven’t dealt with allergies before, but apparently now I do. Not only am I getting older, but now I get the joy of allergies too.
As if that wasn’t enough, I ended up with two small pressure sores from sitting in urine in my chair yesterday. They’re always worse in the summer because of sweating and prolonged sitting, so I really need to be careful.
TJ came again with Brooklyn, and she brought her son Zaden. They helped move my room around so I can get ready to add a door to the dog run next month. I’m really excited about that because I’ll be able to let the dogs out more easily—or even install a doggy door so I don’t have to ask for help constantly.
I had two big kennels in my room with a butcher block on top that turned into a catch-all for everything. My room looks much better now. We removed one kennel and moved the other into the bathroom.
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