Hi Sean,


 RH> Quite a range of possibilities but hopefully it's something minor.

 SD> Semi-final verdict: I actually have severe lower back pain, not kidney

No fun; I fell a couple of years and hurt my back, broke clavicle also.
Still have twinges on the back if I am on my feet too long or otherwise
mistreat it but it's nothing severe.

 SD> pain.  I'll be talking to physical therapy to help me.  If not, SD>
 there can be lidocaine injections or even minor surgical procedures SD>
 to kill off the sensory nerves that cause issues.

Hopefully therapy will help, tho it may hurt more initially.

 SD> Blood being in places it shouldn't be is most likely due from being
 on SD> two blood thinners but more tests have been ordered to rule
 anything SD> else out.

Steve is on one blood thinner so was actually surprised last week when
he cut himself that the bleeding stopped fairly quickly. He did apply
pressure right away and after we got it rinsed off, put more pressure on
with the bandaging. Don't know, because I didn't go into the ER
treatment room, how much blood was on the bandaging when they cut it off
but it hadn't fully soaked thru. He'll have a nice little reminder scar
on his arm.

 SD> Next week, I will start getting shots in both eyes (one eye each for
 SD> two weeks then three weeks between injections).

That would freak me out, seeing a needle come at my eyes. I was semi
sedated for the cataract surgeries so wasn't aware of the needle coming
at me.


 RH> Since I wore the same pair almost everywhere, I carried them around, in
 RH> rooms but realised I was carrying the one pair just about everywhere so
 RH> never bothered to do so. They were most handy in the kitchen and living
 RH> room (on the computer), also the sewing room.

 SD> I have a pair in the kitchen.  I cannot cook or do the dishes without
 SD> them.  They not only help focus but help the blurriness some (diabetic
 SD> retinopathy causes my vision to be blurry one day, clear the next).

I needed them in the kitchen because the distance correction lenses from
the cataract surgery were just enough to put things about 18" to 2' away
fuzzy enough that I needed to sharpen them up. That was the distance
between my eyes and cutting something on the counter; I wanted to make
sure the knife was headed in the right spot, not a finger.


 RH> I'm trying to cut my carbs somewhat, not as severely as when I was
 RH> first diagnosed. Some days are better than others, planning pasta
 RH>  and RH> salad for supper tonight so will go heavier on the salad than
 RH>  the RH> pasta.

 SD> It's not all carbs for me.  It's what type of carbs.  Processed and
 SD> ultra-processed foods are out, as are starch veggies and grains.  All
 SD> cause inflammation and that's what's killing me, literally.  The edema
 SD> in the back of my eyes is severe enough that it might make me lose my
 SD> visionj much, much faster.

No fun--have you looked into learning Braille?

 RH> What about yogurt with active cultures--would that help? We ended
 up RH> doing farmer's style chicken the other night, a riff on
 something we'd RH> had in Germany. Had the pasta last night without the
 salad but I went RH> easy on my serving.

 SD> Unfortunately, the active cultures usually get destroyed in the
 SD> stomach beforwe it hits my gut.  My problem is that my gut is so bad
 SD> that I may need a fecal transplant.

No fun. Among other things that did my older brother in besides
uncontrolled diabetes was a C.Diff infection. I don't remember if he had
the transplant or not but have read about them.


 RH> Cooking for one--very understandable. Even when Steve was gone for
 RH> extended TDY's in the Army, I still had to cook for the girls as well
 RH> as myself. Did do a few quick and easy things like hot dog stew (can of
 RH> veggie soup and cut up hot dogs to taste) but most often it was same as
 RH> when he was home. He took cooking short cuts if he was TDY and had to
 RH> do his own meals but since he didn't usually have much of a kitchen, it
 RH> was more practical for him to do so.

 SD> I can cook if I want but it's painful for me to be standing for more
 SD> than 10 minutes so I tend to make things where they're usually quick
 SD> or I can sit down while the meal is cooking.  My right foot has been
 SD> incredibky swollen lately due to a multitude of causes but ironically
 SD> I had to cancel a podiatry appointment today as my right foot will not
 SD> fit into my prosthetic shoe right now...

Could you improvise a shoe and have somebody take you? I know standing
for long times can be hard; I have a tall stool in the kitchen that I
use if needed. Just semi standing against it is a lot easier than when I
have to be on my feet for long stretches of time. I also do a lot of
prep work thruout the day, sitting down for some of it.

 RH> We prefer the tow behind over the 5th wheel--the back of the truck
 is RH> full of other stuff.

 SD> I mainly want a fifth wheel with the bed being over the wheel and
 SD> giving me more room in the trailer.

We each have our preferences. (G)

 RH> Too bad you couldn't have kept it under some sort of shelter but do
 RH> understand the space limitations. I'm glad I have a full sized RH>
 dishwasher built in; it gets used several times a week.

 SD> The apartment I was looking at before this one I'm in now had a nice
 SD> stainless steel dishwasher in it.

Our older daughter has a Bosch, stainless steel and quieter'n a whisper.
Her family room is right off an open kitchen and you can't even hear the
dishwasher--oly way you know it is running is to see a spot of light on
the floor in front of it.


 SD>       Title: Microwave Never-Fail Fudge
 SD>  Categories: Candies, Chocolate, Microwave, Christmas, Holiday
 SD>       Yield: 1 Servings

 SD>   2 1/2 c  Sugar
 SD>     1/4 c  Margarine
 SD>     2/3 c  Evaporated milk
 SD>       7 oz Marshmallow creme
 SD>       6 oz Chocolate chips
 SD>     1/2 oz Baking chocolate

Looks good but I'd add maybe half a teaspoon or so of peppermint extract
or sprinkle crushed peppermint candies (candy canes?) on top of it.


---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net  FIDO 1:396/45.28


... Wisdom consists in knowing what to do with what you know.

--- PPoint 3.01