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Tuesday, June 29, 2021

I'll see your syncope and raise you one nevus

"sign cope?", Magnum sounded out.  We were at a coffee shop when he got a text from his step mother.  His dad was at the hospital getting checked out after an episode of syncope.  

I asked him what had happened, and that's when he phoneticized "sign cope?"  

"Ah", I recalled ,"he fainted -  sing·kuh·pee"

My FIL is nearly 87 years old, active and in quite good shape for his age, but syncope happens.  He was given a thorough once over and sent home to rest after ruling out anything serious.  

But we got into pondering why we non-medical people have different words, that aren't necessarily slang, than medical people.  They say syncope, we say fainting.

Many years ago, when I was pondering ways I could both earn money and stay home with the kids, I took a medical transcription course.  I finished it but never became a medical transcriptionist, opting instead for home daycare.  I managed to remember some of the terminology though, like syncope.  



Another word I liked was "debridement" as far as fun words to pronounce go, because my particular transcription course used the French pronunciation.  Even wound cleaning sounds sensual in French.

Yesterday, I went in for my annual physical if for nothing else but our insurance puts money in our HSA if we do these things each year.  And since I was there, I asked my doctor about a mole on my shoulder that seems to have gotten bigger recently.  After taking a look, she referred me to a dermatologist.

Back at home, I contacted the skin doctor office to book an appointment while looking at the notes from my Dr. visit.  She'd listed "changing nevus" in the things we'd discussed.  Through my adroit deductive reasoning, I determined that nevus (nee·vuhs) means mole.  Yup.  

...or mole means nevus?  

Which came first, and why?

Got any medical terms to share today?


Sunday, June 27, 2021

this some good pot


I gifted myself this cutesy teapot this week.  It's the teapot I didn't know I needed.  

It holds about 28 fluid ounces. Comes with a trivet and basket infuser insert.  It's cast iron with a ceramic finish on the inside, so tea stays hot for a good long time and I can reheat it on the stove. 

Really, it's the bomb. I drink tea daily, and now with this, I may just give up coffee.

HAHAHA!... just kidding.

But still.  

I included my glasses for scale and contrast.  Contrast because I'm not as happy with my glasses as with the awesome teapot.


Supposedly, the top of my lenses are for distance vision, the middle sweet spot is for arms-length to middle distance, and the bottom portion is for close up.  

I think they work okay for distance vision, but it's a literal pain in the neck going for the arms length and closer.  Why can't I just have the eyes of my youth that worked for everything?  Is that so much to ask??

I have an old pair of prescription glasses from about 10 years ago that are better for when I'm on my computer, like now.  I'm thinking I'll bring these old glasses to work with me until I get an eye exam, for which I'm overdue, and ask for some single-vision lenses.  

The college president announced that, as of July 1st, we will no longer require masks be worn in campus buildings.  I don't plan to wear a mask anymore, and our boss said he probably won't either.  

I think one of my coworkers is a little pensive about germs, but the rest of us are ready to free our faces and work with other freed faces - coworkers and customers alike.  No more this:


.

Onto the next - clear glasses that only get fogged from my delightful hot tea.

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Linking up this week with Mama Kat for the prompt:

4. Write a blog post inspired by the word: next

Wednesday, June 23, 2021

pancake kabobs, chicken 'n' waffles, and a masterpiece

 Despite the fact that I wasn't scheduled for work until 11am and Magnum works from home, we both joined early in the fray of what is Bike-to-Work Day in Fort Collins.  Yeesh, the town gets into it!


Bacon?



There were over fifty stations, scattered all around town, at which to stop and get freebies - water bottles, bags, food...  


SO MUCH food! Seriously, if one were to pedal every route and partake of free food wherever it was offered, they would easily be in calorie surplus.


It was a beautiful morning for it - coolish and slightly overcast.  We only made a few stops, but learned of a few other businesses around town, and it was just fun being part of the circus.





Some friendly dog groomers offered these cute and tasty pancake kabobs along with other treats.  


We saw quite  few people pull up to various stations with those little trailers in tow.  Breakfast on the road today, kids!


It's not a requirement to actually be biking to work for Bike-to-Work day.  




Heading home, Magnum wanted to stop at Music City Hot Chicken for their BTW day chicken and waffles, which I could've taken or left.  But I said, okay, why not?  

Glad we did, because shortly after pulling up, some dude pulled along side me all, "What's fer breakfast?"  

It was Wolfgang.  Said Music City Hot Chicken was his favorite stop on BTW day.  He had about an hour before he had to be into work, and was going to hit a few more stops


Magnum and I really did head home at that point, but I wanted to make one more stop.  On our way out, we saw an opportunistic little kid selling his artwork by the trail.  I had to check it out!


He was the cutest little guy, around six-years-old I'd guess.  He had various drawings in plastic sleeves within a binder titled,

"Cormacs Artwork"

By the time we stopped, he had a good amount of cash in his till.  Not a bad haul for a couple hours hanging out by the bike path!

I assume he lives nearby, there was no adult there with him that I could see.  I also noticed that he didn't have a bicycle at his "shop" even though he wore a bike helmet.

He probably wore the helmet to create instant rapport.  Smartie pants!

My favorite souvenir from my first Bike-to-Work day:


One dollar.  An absolute steal.





Monday, June 21, 2021

I draw the pictures in my head of you and I

The title is a line from a song by Arizona, my latest fave music group.  I love/hate the line.  Here's the full thought...

I draw the pictures in my head of you and I
And fall in love before the ink is dry

My right brain loves the thoughtful emotion expressed, but my left brain is hung up on the grammatical error.  I draw the pictures of you and ME, dammit!

But I'll let it go, right brain wins this round.

As for me, I haven't been doing much drawing lately, but intend to get back to it.  The whole job transition, that's what I'll blame it on.  But at least I have doodled.  




Couple of the latest, letting the pen wander.  Chaos, really.

Fall in love before the ink is dry? 

Nah, but the activity is strangely relaxing.  

Try it?




I'm thinking of dipping into painting again.  Acrylics.  For now, the wandering ink pens will have to do as I currently have no paints or brushes.

And I am enjoying the new job, mainly working on getting up to speed and not being an obvious noob.  

I like my new coworkers and miss my previous coworkers.  Change - transition - is good.


During one of my last shifts at the old folks home, a coworker returned from a resident's room with an untouched meal.

"The nurse told me to bring it back.  Said Goldie's 'in transition'.  Does that mean...?"

"Yep", I confirmed.  "In transition" is one way to communicate that someone was in the final stages of dying.  Another rather oxymoronish term they would use was "Active".  as in actively dying.

The term "in transition" seems fitting.  I believe we continue to exist after death, but can't know for sure.  I had a bit of an out-of-body experience when I was a little kid.  It was during a Labor Day parade, of all things.  I didn't understand much at the time and still don't.  But maybe?

On that note, happy summer!  Happy belated Father's Day!  Any favorable transitions going on?

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Linking up a bit late with Mama Kat for the prompt:
1. Tell us about something you have been working on.



Friday, June 18, 2021

what the fudge?

No news that it's still muy caliente around here (mucho hot).  There are clouds in today's forecast that I'm so looking forward to.  Even the pets are over it.



I think Merlin's going for maximum exposed surface area for heat dissipation up there on the futon.

For my recent old job, one of the primary factors I took it was that it involved such a short commute - a little less than two miles.  My new job, while the commute wasn't as big of a factor, is also relatively close - win!  It's about two and a half miles by bicycle.  

I try to make it there without working up too much of  a sweat, and I also change my shirt from riding to working.  I take a longer, more scenic route to go home.  

One of my coworkers gifted each of us with a large chunk of homemade fudge on Tuesday.  Great!  Get it home in the heat on a bicycle?  Hmmm.

I envisioned opening my backpack at home to find a chocolate blob of melt.  This was clearly an urgent matter.

And I'm happy to report that my strategy worked.  I stuck my chunk o' fudge in the break room freezer to get good and froze by the end of the day.  I took it out at the last possible second, put it in a ziploc bag and headed out into the furnace.  Got home, and

the fudge lives!  

Maybe Penny and the Napolion the cat can fit in our freezer?  Merlin's on his own.



Monday, June 14, 2021

standing here for far too long

I worked my last shift at the Old Folks Home yesterday.  I actually started the new job two weeks ago, but I stayed at the old place for a couple more Sundays until my replacement would take over.  Thankfully, the replacer is a coworker who happily took the promotion, so it was easy to train her.  Did that yesterday, and I am now an official has been.

While I'm glad to have finished up, I'm grateful for my time there.  I gained lasting friendships and memories that were forged all the more deeply because of the COVID conditions.  And as I've confessed that geriatrics isn't my bag, I learned a lot of dietary and nutrition info along those lines as well as motivation to do what I can to prevent sh*t from happening to me as I age.

Like many other parts of the northern hemisphere, it's been uncomfortably hot here lately.  Yesterday was no exception, and I question the functionality of the HVAC at the facility.  We were dripping.  At one point, I went into the walk-in cooler, and it felt oh so good.  I immediately involuntarily struck this expression.

One of the cooks was in there, not surprisingly looking the same.  He'd taken his hat off and was just standing there all...


I'd gone in to check the jell-o inventory.  God forbid they run out of jell-o.  It's about a 10-second task, but you know I stayed much longer... and went back several times to "check inventory".

So, moving  on.  I'm liking the new job and still learning the ropes.  The college campus is pretty quiet now that it's summer, and I'm looking forward to the fall.  

Magnum and I got out for some hiking on Saturday.  Nothing very strenuous, he had new boots he wanted to break in, so I tagged along.  It was  hot then too, but a breeze and periodic shade kept us alive.




We stopped at one of the educational plaques to learn about Ponderosa Pines, but really just wanted to hang out in the shade for a while.







Saturday, June 5, 2021

all the things!

This week, Mama Kat includes the prompt:

6. Answer all of the writing prompts in one post.



Okay, let's do it!









1.  Tell us about something you did or participated in that a new friend might find hard to believe.

I always have trouble with these tell-us-something-surprising-about-you questions.  That I grew up in the sex change capital of the world is old.

2. Write a blog post inspired by the word:  peace.

Okay, meditation.  Have you tried it?  Do it on a regular basis?  I've been making concerted efforts to make it a regular practice lately.  It's thankfully helping me deal with Malcolm's tragic, unexpected death.  Yesterday, I decided to try a guided meditation from some dude on YouTube.  This particular guidance didn't help me.

See, as I was there getting all centered and eyes closed in the moment and listening, the meditation guide gently prompted, "imagine being in a field of flowers..." , and it was over for me.

I, for one, don't find fields or flowers particularly calming and peaceful.  In my mind, I saw something like this:


This makes me feel itchy and sneezy and hot... and a little paranoid that a bee will come and end me as I have no Epi pen.    

Please, no fields.  No flowers.  No fields with flowers.  I've had other guided meditations that tell me to picture myself at the beach.  Now, I don't have a lot of beach references having mostly lived and played around mountains.  Try as I might to picture a serene beach setting, I usually end up here:




Yup, the ending scene of Planet of the Apes.  

Conclusion:  meditation = good.  Guided meditation = not so much.


3.  What six words would your spouse use to describe you?

I asked Magnum while we were at the coffee shop this morning, and here's what he sez:
  • Smart
  • Organized
  • Funny
  • Fit
  • Artistic
  • Sincere
Okay, I guess we can stay married.


4. 90's fashion is making a trendy comeback.  What were you wearing in the 90's?




My 90's were a lot of this →→
Won't be making a comeback in this house.

I'm on board with the returned popularity of mom jeans, however.  Just please, no shoulder pads, K?  











5.  Write about something you think you would have been good at if only you had explored that talent more.


Welp, I was a pretty fast runner in high school, from very little effort on my part, I admit.  I've heard that, while distance runners are made, sprinters are, for the most part, born that way.  I'm no physiologist, but I think it has to do with muscle fiber types, much of which are genetic. Such was the case with me.  I could run fast without really training.  


I mean, I was on the track team and did the "workouts", but our girl's team was very small.  We didn't
have enough participants to rack up a competitive amount of team points, so we just did our thing in pretty laid back fashion.  In fact, we didn't even have a girls team my senior year.  

I think if I would have been more focused, I might have been a state qualifier and/or maybe a scholarship contender. I had a decent ribbon collection that is long gone now. 

To be clear, I have no regrets that I was a lazy ass when it came to "training" and track team participation.  Mainly, we just had a lot of fun together and got an early start on our tans. I don't have a strong competitive streak, and I don't think a college scholarship would've suited me or been a good investment.



Friday, June 4, 2021

adulting, working, and hair

Looking back on the week.  What did I do? 

  • Celebrated Meego's 21st birthday a couple of weeks after the fact.  He was doing celebratory things with some friends for the actual birthday.  Can't imagine what those kids would do for a 21st birthday...
  • Started the new job and I'm really liking it. I'm still going to work a couple more shifts at the old job as they're very short staffed, but then it's, "buh bye!"
  • Got a horrible haircut, then went to a different stylist to fix it.  Happy now.

So yeah, not a bad week.  We managed to find a block of time for the five of us to celebrate Meego's arrival 21 years and a couple of weeks ago.  We went to a restaurant, and I think it was my first time in a restaurant since before pandemic times.  Like riding a bike.

I am enjoying the new job and my new coworkers.  They've got some funny I-caught-this-one-person-cheating stories (we administer various test, we're not private I's...).  And I like the feel - the vibe- of the college campus too.

I'm challenged with having to wear work clothes again.  The old folks job provided uniforms, and the pandemic somewhat removed the need for going-out clothes.  I'm managing to scrounge some mix 'n' match, but I think a small shopping trip is due.

And yep, got a horrible haircut a week ago.  I was due and had a franchise coupon.  Tip:  maybe don't go to a franchise on a coupon day?  It was traumatic, but I needed to get out of that chair.



I've had some bad haircuts in the past, but this was the first time it was so bad that I went to 2nd stylist to fix the bad one.  Well worth it!  In fact, I think I should've given stylist #2 a bigger tip.  Moving on...

As I was blambling (blog rambling?) along here, we had a power outage.  Not sure the cause, but I walked a dog, and now it's back.  

I'm appreciating family gatherings, pleasing workplaces, good hair, and functioning utilities!