Monday May 25 2026
Liberty came in. I took care of the dogs, got myself something to eat, and had breakfast casserole. It was so delicious! It's a nice, healthy breakfast until I add half of a bagel. I love bagels so much, and if you put cream cheese on them, they're better for you. If my blood sugar gets too high, I just stop eating them for a couple of days.
I don't understand this weather in Oregon. We get a couple of really nice days, and then BOOM… It's cold again. And then there's the sideways rain that you can't protect yourself from because it comes at you from all sides and under your umbrella.
Brooklyn came in and put me on my side for the day, another boring day stuck inside when I could be out cruising my pups around the neighborhood.
Well, I'm getting my cookbook together. ChatGPT is helping me with some diabetic-friendly, gas-free recipes, and some of them sound so delicious! A lot of people are cutting carbs and adding protein with cottage cheese. I tried it in my chicken salad, and it was pretty good! Becca made a lemon-blueberry loaf, and it was really good, too. When I see people eating good food and desserts, I get so envious. Now I will have my own desserts. I'm losing my cook again, Becca is moving on with her business, and Ashlyn is going to start cooking for me. She seems to be a good cook. I ask her every evening when she comes in what she had for dinner, and it always sounds really yummy!
It's a good thing I didn't get up, because Ashlyn also called out, deciding that her husband's schedule would keep her from coming in. I really hate to lose her, and hopefully she can find childcare in the future and come back! Brooklyn came in, picked me up, and then left. It's so nice to have somebody that you can always rely on! I always hope she knows how much I appreciate her!
I watch TV and play games for a while until I fall asleep.
Tuesday
Becky called out this morning. She is having some health problems. I hope she feels better soon. She is way too young to have problems. I don't know what to do. I really don't want to lose her either, but I need to get somebody who can get me dressed, and up so my old body doesn't deteriorate…oops, too late. Luckily, Liberty also comes in on Tuesday, so I do have coverage. I had to cancel my cardiology appointment because we missed personal care last night, and I was going to have Liberty do it, but she could only stay for two hours. At least I get to be on my side and give my butt a rest.
I called my friend Cruz, and she said she would come down and help me out for the evening! She is another one who has always been so helpful and a good friend! We have been friends for about three years, I think, and no matter what we do, we always have a great time! We did some personal care and then a nice, hot, relaxing bath. She put me back to bed, and I think I fell asleep before she left. She always texts me, so I know she made it home. I woke up when Stanley came in to put on my CPAP mask, let the dogs out, and put up their water so they don't have to go potty at 2 o'clock in the morning. Thankfully, I fell right back to sleep. When I was younger, I always envied people who could take naps, and now I can, and it's so awesome!
Wednesday
Stanley came, let the dogs out, fed them, and then got me some coffee… he makes the best coffee! Becky didn't come in again today, but Liberty agreed to come in and get me dressed and up in my chair. I can't wait to hit the open road with the pups and cruise the neighborhood to see who's out and about today. Just as we were getting ready to get me up, Chris came in and said they needed access to my room. I definitely don't want to do anything to slow down the process of my new deck, so I decided to just stay in bed and go on my side.
Liberty fixed my computer so I can print out more of the personalized recipes for my diabetes and gas. Food is so wonderful again! This time, Becca made greens and country spare ribs. She also made roasted chicken, roasted vegetables, breakfast casserole, chicken salad, and Chia pudding. Today is Becca's last day of cooking for me, and I'm really gonna miss her!
I got a text from Chris, and it looks like they're going to come today or tomorrow and finish the deck. That is the coolest project in the world, and I can't wait to have my own little private deck outback! Chris finished up the deck platform outside, and it looks awesome! There's going to be a ramp that goes down the back. I'm out of the gate, and this way I won't have to track my wheels through the house. Not to mention, I have such an awesome place to kick back at night and, during the day, hang out, watch Dude and Kona play, and figure out how to decorate my new deck.
Brooklyn came in, set me up at my computer, and I had some greens, ribs, and half of a bagel for dinner. It was so delicious! She wasn't feeling well, and she didn't sound well; she wasn't sure whether it was sinusitis or she was getting sick. I don't know which one would be worse. I'm really tired of staying in bed, especially when it's not even my idea; it's other people not coming into work. It's very frustrating! I know I'm going to get up the next two days because I have doctor's appointments. For the rest of the evening, I deleted my unwanted emails, played games, watched some cop shows, and then played more games before falling asleep while listening to an audiobook.
Thursday
Becky texted me and said she still isn't feeling well enough to come into work, which I figured. Liberty came in, fed and took care of the dogs, got me some coffee, and dressed up in my chair. I have an early appointment. I have no idea why I made an appointment so early, because I usually don't, but I think it was the only appointment I could get for a while, and I wanted to get new glasses as soon as possible.
When we got there, the lady was checking me in and said my appointment wasn't until 8:50 AM, but for some reason, I had it down as 8:00 AM. Well, at least we are here and not late. We went and sat down, expecting to wait about an hour, and after about five minutes, they called me into the room. That's always what I hope for when I'm early, and I was so glad! The doctor said my patient has changed a lot, probably because of the diabetes. I need to really start sticking to my diet because eyesight is something that I really don't want to lose, since the only way I get around is with my power wheelchair.
We came home, and it was so nice outside that I decided to sit outside and have my breakfast and another cup of coffee. We let the dogs run around in the front yard for a while, and then came back to my room so Liberty could put me to bed and go home.
Naomi texted me. Naomi is the lady who exercises, trains, and grooms my dogs. She is awesome and really knows her stuff! Kona has really come a long way since we introduced her to Naomi, and Kona loves learning as much as Naomi loves an obedient dog. I get a lot of compliments on how well Kona obeys, and it makes me feel proud. Chocolate labs tend to be really energetic and easily distracted.
McKenzie and I got together to talk about my budget that she put together for me, and I'm really excited to get started and save money instead of wasting it like I've been doing for the last 30 years. The first thing I did was go to my Amazon cart and delete everything except what I really need. It actually felt really great! I have a bunch of lists, so my arms are so tired from deleting. I'm going to delete a lot of the stuff from my list. I just keep adding stuff.
Tonight I won't have an evening caregiver, so Stanley agreed to take care of the dogs and me.
Cruz texted me, and we talked for a while. She said that she will come in tomorrow night and give me a bath. I am excited for that!
Stanley came in at 9:30 PM, took the dogs out one last time, filled their water, and put on my CPAP machine. The machine really annoys me sometimes. I have to put Vaseline under my nose, or it doesn't seal and leaks all night long. Sometimes it drives me so crazy, I have McKenzie come in and take it off. I feel guilty because I'm supposed to use it for at least 4 hours every night, but most nights I end up using it for 8 to 10 hours. Like my sleep study doctor says, you can't wear it one night and then not wear it at all the next night.
Friday
Stanley came in this morning, took care of the dogs, and then got me some coffee. He was in bed at 6:30 AM. In fact, I was still sleeping when he came in.
Liberty came in and got me some coffee, got me dressed, and got me up in my chair. I have an appointment with my dentist at 9 AM. The last couple of mornings, I've had really early appointments, and I usually don't make them until 10 AM. I figured that since Becky comes in at 6 AM, I can make earlier appointments, get back, and have the rest of the day to play and hang out with the dogs. Unfortunately, Becky hasn't been feeling well, and Liberty was nice enough to fill in for her. Liberty got me dressed and up in my chair, and we made it to the doctor's office just in time. Everybody always remembers me and makes me feel like an old friend. I never liked going to the dentist before, but I don't mind visiting this place. The dental hygienist took X-rays, cleaned my teeth, flossed, polished, and applied fluoride. She said they looked pretty good, which surprises me because I think the last two or three times I was supposed to go, I had to cancel for one reason or another. I always leave, promising myself that I am going to make sure everybody brushes my teeth in the morning and in the evening, and this time I'm really going to stick to it! We came home, and Liberty put me back to bed on my side, and we did some personal care. She put me on my side and went home for the day. Cruz came in, got myself something to eat, gave myself a bath, and while I was taking a bath, I thought about how my house had always been really clean and orderly when I was in Santa Cruz, and I want it to be like that again. I get everybody to keep it clean and put everything back where it goes, but after a while, it starts getting sloppy again. I'm just going to have to keep on top of everybody. I hope they'll figure it out on their own, but it's obvious they're not. Cruz straightened out my bedroom and my bathroom, and then went home. For the rest of the evening, I watched movies and just did a lot of the usual stuff.
Saturday
Brooklyn and TJ came in, Brooklyn tended to the dogs, and TJ tended to the weeds. After the dogs ate, they took the dogs over to Naomi's so they could play and expend some energy. Brooklyn got me some more coffee and something to eat. It was time to go get the dogs, so they went to get the dogs and bring them back. On their way back, they decided to go by the old house and grab my Adirondack chair and loveseat I had on my porch in Santa Cruz. It was such an amazing surprise! Brooklyn asked if I wanted to take the dogs and the kids over to Mento Brown Park and go for a hike; heck yeah, I did! It was supposed to be colder, but it turned out to be a perfect day. We went for a 2-mile hike and then watched Kona swim in the water. We definitely need to do this more often! We came back, and they headed home. I leaned back in my chair, took a little nap, and then watched TV until Brooklyn came back. I ate dinner out on my new deck, and it felt so great! McKenzie, Nori, and Jude came out and sat with us for a little while. She put me back to bed and went home for the evening. I shopped online at Amazon for some stuff to add to my new porch! I love it so much, and I know I will be spending a lot of time out there!
Sunday
Sunday is one of my favorite days, and we order breakfast from the Black Bear Diner. I am obsessed with our spicy sausage, and I can't even try anything else. I ordered two eggs, which used to be poached, but they ended up with too much water, so now I just do them fried. Two sausage patties, an English muffin, and some country-fried potatoes. Because of my diabetes, I only eat half of it and usually either put the other half in the refrigerator and forget it, or have it for breakfast the next day.
TJ has been coming to work with Brooklyn, and I love it! He gets so much done! He vacuumed the couches' front porch, and they would be absolutely gorgeous! TJ and Brooklyn went back to the old house and got a tractor tire that I was using to grow cherry tomatoes. I just love that idea, and it will be great for a little planter in my backyard. We went to Home Depot to get some potting soil, fertilizer implants for the tractor tire in the backyard. We picked a nice little variety, and I am very happy with them! They filled up the planner and planted the plants, and it turned out even better than I had imagined!
They went home, and I just sat in my room, not feeling very good. I don't know if I was too hot or too cold; my body is so unpredictable because I was sweating, but I was cold. The more I swear, and the cold air hits me, the colder I get. It seems weird, and I don't know why, but the only thing that seems to help is putting a rice bag in the microwave and wrapping it around my neck. When the sweating went down, I went outside and sat in the sun, which felt better!
Brooklyn came back and put me to bed, and we did some personal care. She sat me up, got me something to eat, and fed the dogs. She went home for the evening, and I felt a little bit better, but my stomach is still so distended. While Brooklyn was getting me up this morning, I burped really loudly. I think it was the loudest I've ever burped, but I started to feel better, so I was wondering if I ate something that didn't agree with me.
For the rest of the evening, I played on the computer until I fell asleep.
