The Daylight Begins to Fade

Last weekend was the summer solstice. Now the days begin to get gradually shorter until the winter solstice is upon us once again. My mother said frequently that she disliked the summer solstice. She disliked it because it meant the days would begin to get shorter. I think I must have inherited my SADS from her. I do love the sunlight especially as it shines across the green grass, the flowers, the lakes, the mountains. It seems like everything it touches has received a special blessing.

I’ve been feeling good all week. Blood work on Monday showed my sodium has remained constant through the week so the oncologist reduced my sodium tablets to two per day rather than four.  We’ll see how that worked out when I have my blood work again on Monday. Next week will be my five days of chemotherapy once again.

The ginger and the hosta

I’ve done a little gardening almost every day. This takes place in the morning when it is cooler.  It’s pleasant to be out amongst the things that are growing. Nature provides such a wonderful color palette exhibiting shades of green from very dark to chartreuse. The colors of the flowers are like little exclamation points creating excitement in the display. 

Goatsbeard in bloom

Two years ago I planted wild European ginger under the evergreen tree. I did this because it is supposed to be unliked by rabbits. Well we must have a different breed of the critters here. One even tried eating it. Now the thought occurs that I may have misunderstood. Is the plant supposed to keep rabbits away, or to keep them from eating the ginger plant? The later is the truth, obviously.  Only one leaf has been nibbled upon. One of the hostas with two ginger plants next to it has been decimated.

Ash trees grow rapidly and provide wonderful shade.  They also provide a plethora of twigs which they deposit on the driveway. Cleaning those up was one of my morning tasks.

Tradenscantia

When mowing this week and last a strange sound emanating from the lawn mower concerned me.  The battery powered lawnmower which takes care of the long grass is a favorite of mine.  I was concerned that it might be on its last legs (or perhaps wheels would be more appropriate). While mowing on Tuesday it just stopped running. Turning it over to see if the problem could be ascertained, it was obvious that the blade was about to fall off. A little work with the wrench and it was as good as new.  Several serious nicks were discovered probably caused by the river rock in the landscaped beds. Rock does not mow well. A new blade has been ordered and UPS promises it will be here next week.

Sleeping on the edge!

Last week I posted a meditation by Henri Nouwen on “Compassion.” As I reread the blog one sentence jumped out: “What we desire most is to do away with suffering by fleeing from it or finding a quick cure for it.” When I venture out to the grocery store I am amazed at the number of people who are not wearing masks. It is such a simple thing to put on and take off and provides so much protection. Does this have to do with “fleeing from it” in the quotation. If one refuses to wear a mask they are telling everyone else “I am not afraid and COVID-19 won’t get me.” Those of us who are immune compromised make every attempt to stay far away from these unmasked people. The unmasked are putting every one at risk including themselves. The “quick cure” is to pretend that the danger from the virus is over. People can be free to attend crowded events not even trying to protect themselves and others. This idea is proved totally wrong by the number of positive cases overwhelming many of the states. Will we ever learn?

Thanks for reading, for thoughts, for prayers. Hopefully your week was a good one.

Pitter-Patter

That’s the sound the rain makes when it comes down lightly. It’s the sound that I awoke to this morning. Thursday it was not pitter-patter but a thundering sound. In all about 5.5 inches of rain has been measured at my house since Wednesday evening/Thursday morning.  That’s a lot of moisture.  Needless to say everything is looking very green and healthy.

Abundant growth!

The previously planted pots on the deck have grown considerably.  The perennials in the front garden are doing very well. The hostas are enjoying the cooler weather. The rabbit is still hungry! Why don’t the rabbits like weeds? Why do the rabbits only like things you plant for which you have spent money and would really like to see grow?

A few years ago hollyhocks were spotted at the Farmers’ Market.  They brought back memories of the years of my youth.  My mother had hollyhocks in the side yard. The were an endless source of entertainment because one could make figures out of the flowers and seed pods and a toothpick. So, being a kind of sentimentalist I couldn’t resist buying some hollyhocks and planting them in the front garden.  They existed amongst the other plants for the first year.  The next years a couple of leaves reappeared but no flowers.  This year I have hollyhocks. Takes me back to the days of my youth.

This is also the time of year that the lilacs have faded away. My neighbor’s French lilac tree has come into bloom. It’s beautiful with a copious number of flowers.

My relatives from two doors down the street stopped by on their way home as I was looking at the boulevard/parking/whatever you call it, determining that I needed to acquire more rock to cover the bare spaces between the plantings. As I conveyed my thoughts to them they said “we have rock. Do you want some?” So out came the wheelbarrow and the shovels and we began to move rock.  We were grateful it was a cool day. I’m grateful that part of the offending patch of the yard has been improved. What a nice gift!

This was the first of two weeks off from chemotherapy.  Labs were on Monday so not a week passed without visiting the hospital at least once! Bloodwork all looked good according to the doctor.  My red cells/platelets are still low but that is typical of a patient on chemo I’m told.

Day Lillies in bloom

The refrigerator has been repaired, sort of.  The needed part came in and was installed on Wednesday. Now I have no water or ice so there’s another wait while the repair person finds a space in his schedule to return. Items are gradually migrating from the lower level fridge to the main level. I get some exercise running up and down the stairs. I presume that’s good for me.

It’s the time of the summer solstice.  In the Scandinavian countries this is a big deal. In Sweden, as I’ve personally witnessed, a good time is had by all as the public parties through the night. I spent one midsummer with friends at a celebration in the country. There were several concerts, one of which gave a semi-religious cast to the whole affair. There were lots of dances, folk and otherwise. I think we packed it in between 3 and 4 AM.  Others were still going strong. 

Tiny little blooms on a new planting

The Church celebrates the birth of John the Baptist on the 24th. Somehow this feast became associated with the solstice. Perhaps it was John’s word in the gospel that Jesus must increase and John must decrease. Perhaps at one time the calendar set the solstice on the 24th. Christmas used to be the winter solstice festival until it “got religion.” It’s kind of fascinating to me that “pagan” holidays became Christianized and then became basically pagan holidays once again. Something to ponder.

The nation and the world are in seeming tumult over pandemics, racial equality and other issues.  One day this past week the Henri Nouwen meditation centered on compassion, one things that is demonstrated very sparingly by many. I share it with you in the hope that all of us can become more compassionate people.

“Compassion is Being With

Let us not underestimate how hard it is to be compassionate. Compassion is hard because it requires the inner disposition to go with others to the place where they are weak, vulnerable, lonely, and broken. But this is not our spontaneous response to suffering. What we desire most is to do away with suffering by fleeing from it or finding a quick cure for it. As busy, active, relevant [people], we want to earn our bread by making a real contribution. This means first and foremost doing something to show that our presence makes a difference. And so we ignore our greatest gift, which is our ability to enter into solidarity with those who suffer. . . .

Those who can sit with their fellow man, not knowing what to say but knowing that they should be there, can bring new life into a dying heart. Those who are not afraid to hold a hand in gratitude, to shed tears of grief, and to let a sigh of distress arise straight from the heart can break through paralyzing boundaries and witness the birth of a new fellowship, the fellowship of the broken.”

Somedays being cute is the best thing

It’s been a quiet week with some things accomplished so I won’t feel as though I’ve done nothing. I don’t like to feel that I’ve done nothing as the week ends. Thanks for being with me by reading this blog.  Thank you once again for your prayers and your thoughts.

The Thirteenth of June

Not an inspiring title for this weeks blog. The week has not been all that exciting.  I have been out everyday to go to the Prairie Center for my infusion Monday through Friday.

All has gone well and the infusion takes less time because the pharmacy has decided that I’m a reliable customer and will show up so my “bag” of medicine is sometimes waiting for me instead of me for it. A few days I was a patient for less than an hour.

The port site

The blood work on Monday showed that all was good. My sodium level had gone down a bit but was still in the normal range.  I have more blood work on Monday so that will tell if I am continuing to move lower or if I’m maintaining. 

The only problem this week has been my port site.  For those in need of instructions, when I began my treatment last August they implanted a port in the right side of my chest. The medical professionals use this for my infusions and blood work. When they access it they insert a small needle through the skin into the port. This allows the medication to flow directly into the heart and then into the body. It eliminates finding a vein and inserting an IV into one’s arm. Because it leads directly to the heart they must be very careful when preparing to insert the needle. The nurse puts on sterile gloves (not just regular gloves as you can buy at the pharmacy). He or she then scrubs the site with a special cleanser containing alcohol, I’m sure.  Then the needle is inserted and a large bandage is placed over the site. If I remember to apply lidocaine cream to the site before I go to the hospital it is all quite painless.

The problem this week is that I’ve evidently had a reaction to this cleansing or to the lidocaine cream.  The skin over the port has become quite red and feels very dry and crusty. It was bleeding on Thursday so they left the needle in overnight so I wouldn’t have to go through the process on Friday. I imagine we will be doing the same thing the next time around, in two weeks time. The problem is that one has to deal with the “dongle” attached to the needle through which they connect the “drip.” So if one is going to shower it must be covered with saran wrap and taped all around so it is protected from the process of cleansing oneself. It’s not bad in the hospital when the nurse does it for you. It is a little more complex when you are doing it yourself and have to rely on a mirror!

It is really much more pleasant to be back at the Prairie Center for appointments and treatment. It is a purpose built building, filled with art and other amenities for the patients. The staff is happy to be back as well.

One of the pieces of glass art at the Prairie Center

Last year one of the great city projects began. Twenty-sixth street, only two blocks from my house, is a major east west artery particularly for those living on the “east side” and those commuting from the bedroom towns to the east and from Minnesota and Iowa. The infamous gravel train crosses the street a few blocks from my house. The train is long and conveniently travels between 7:00 and 9:00, 11:00 and 1:00, and 4:30 and 6:00. Its travel through the intersection prevents ambulances from reaching the hospitals and people getting to and from work and others who just want to get someplace else in the city. So the city decided to solve the problem by raising the street over the tracks. 

One never thinks about all that is necessary to do such a project particularly since it also involves crossing over an interstate highway. There is a cross street just before the track which had to be raised thirteen feet to accommodate the “fly over.” Power poles needed to be moved. Access to a day camp and a greenhouse had to be provided.  An entire park was moved across the river because access would exist no longer.

Feet wet drinking position

This past weekend we were finally allowed to drive over the half that flies over the tracks. No more will that pesky train impede the movement of the populace! Now work has begun on the other side which involves rebuilding the cross street and raising it, etc.  The project was to be finished by the end of 2020. I believe they are now predicting summer of 2021.  They have kept their word by keeping the street open through the whole process. Sometimes you wondered where exactly you were driving but somehow you got through.

Trying not to get the feet wet position.

Sophia is inclined toward drinking from the faucet.  She is allowed to use the downstairs bathroom sink although she has tried to gain access to others. Sometimes it doesn’t matter if she gets her feet wet in the process. Other days she chooses not to dampen her paws. Getting her drink then involves quite a balancing act!

Thanks for reading, keeping in touch and praying. It all helps, believe me.

Another Week Off

The second of my two weeks of chemo-free life is ending.  Monday I have labs and the first of five infusions. I’m not complaining. I’m rejoicing.  This chemo is working according to the scans I had last Monday. The lesions in the lung have virtually disappeared. The liver lesions are a little smaller. My sodium is still above normal! All the prayers on my behalf have been effective. I’ve felt well all week. I could not ask for more.

Several years ago one of my parishioners declared that red was “my” color. She said this after a Mass which was celebrated in red vestments. A bit later she hosted a dinner party for which I was decked out in red.  Since then I’ve worn the red outfit on Pentecost. Even with no where to go last Sunday I was all in red. 

Summer has arrived in Sioux Falls. Two days this week we hit 95º. Today the high is 80º. We need rain again. Those high temperatures just destroy the moisture. 

Now that the planting is completed there is not much gardening to do, just weed control.  The weeds grow very well in hot weather and they don’t seem to mind the lack of moisture.

One part of the garden I seldom mention is the back garden.  I don’t know why. Perhaps I don’t consider it as colorful as the front. It is mostly hostas of various kinds and this year they seem quite beautiful. They are also delicious according to the resident rabbit population. Every hosta that doesn’t have a fence around it is missing a few chunks from one or more leaves. Location must have something to do with it as well. Those under the ash tree are not snacked upon as often as those under the spruce tree. I don’t know what the difference is.  

Last year I planted wild ginger which is supposed to repel rabbits. One of the critters snacked on a wild ginger plant.  So much for that theory. I have removed most of the fences and have left it up to the process of natural selection to determine whether the rabbits or the hostas win. Lest the back garden feel slighted I’ll include some pictures of that part of the landscape today. 

Another truth has manifested itself. I’m sure you are familiar with the absolute fact that shortly after the extended warranty expires the appliance, car, whatever will die. I noticed last night that the gelato was soft. I checked the temperature in the freezer and it wasn’t all that cold. The ice maker refuses to make its product. I called for service this morning and was informed that the extended warranty expired in April. The appliance purveyor is so inundated with service calls that the earliest available is 4:00 on Friday. The scheduler was concerned that I have another place to keep the food so it doesn’t spoil. I said I did but it was full as well as the offending freezer. So—you know how cleaning out the freezer is one of those projects easily postponed to another day? Today was the day for cleaning out not one but two freezers! By disposing of three garbage bags of frozen lumps I’ve made room for the food worth keeping or that which is at least recognizable as something I might eat. I count this as my achievement for the week!

Now I just heard one of the ice makers deposit its product. I wonder what that is all about. Perhaps it was all a conspiracy to get me to clean out the freezer! Well, it worked.

Thank you for all your prayers and good wishes. I hope your week has been as good as mine.

The very picture of total exhaustion!