Well, that was a summer I wish I could forget!

 Has it really been 9 months since I last blogged? Holy moly, time flies! A shit ton of things have happened here.

From my last post in February to May, nothing much. On May 9th, just after 7 p.m., I got a knock on my door and a nervous young lady from the rental agency was at my door. She handed my a letter and said I had to be out of the building by 8 a.m. the next morning, orders from the city. I could hear doors opening up and down the hall as other people were getting served with the same notice to evacuate. It was chaos!

That building has 18 huge steel posts that run from the roof into the ground in the parkade on the ground level. It was built in the early 1960s and not once in those 60+ years had those posts been inspected, because there were no regulations to do so, and because they were encased in plaster (to not be bare steel eyesores). One of the plaster coverings had been found with a big crack and they assumed someone had driven into it, so they hired an engineering firm to come in and check it out to make sure it was not damaged. They removed the plaster (hello, asbestos!) and the exposed post looked okay but they decided to dig down to the concrete footing that it was sitting on to make sure it hadn't been knocked crooked.

Well. Let me tell you, the shit hit the fan when they found the buried section of that post was severely rusted. They then dug around all the other posts and found all of them to have severe to very severe corrosion, and a few of them were starting to buckle, The engineer was legally obligated to inform the city's engineers, who deemed the building unsafe for occupancy due to risk of imminent collapse. So hence the evacuation notices given to every tenant. Trying to clear out 171 suites with only 2 elevators was a nightmare!! Some people managed to rent trucks to move their furniture and get all their stuff out, but I was not able to do that. I got the important stuff. Perishables from the fridge and freezer, my meds, important documents, laptop, original artwork, clothes, the cats' food, meds, beds and one litter box.

My sister was my saviour. Without hesitation, she came over right away and helped me sort and pack up what I could take. We loaded up my car and hers, and she called friends who lived close who had a pickup truck, and they came and took boxes as well. I spend 52 days living with my sister and brother-in-law. The cats were confined to the bedroom I was using because her old decrepit dog (who was the sweetest old girl) was terrified of cats, and my three didn't know about dogs. Well, that's not quite true. Lila had lived with a couple dogs in her younger years but still not a fan. So they bounced off the walls in that one 9x10 room for the whole 52 days, and I didn't get a full night's sleep that entire time, because I have not allowed the cats in my bedroom for years.

I had already given my notice to move before the evacuation happened, as I had found a new apartment, but was not able to move into it until near the end of June, because they were do some renovations after the previous tenant moved out on May 31st. So when I did move in the last weekend of June, it was with borrowed furniture and kitchen things, as we still were not allowed in to the old building. But I had my new place and some things to tide me over.

I was able to get into the old building in early August to start packing up my stuff. The building was still not habitable but they were allowing certain numbers of tenants in at a time to pack and move out, those who didn't want to wait for the building to be repaired. Originally they were giving us only 4 days to pack and then arrange for movers to get everything out. Well, considering I had to do the packing on my own as it was weekdays 9 - 5 only, no evenings, no weekends, that was almost impossible. They did change the time to 11 - 8 and allowed Saturdays after the first week, so I just kept going and packing every day, loading up my car and taking what I could each day. I did arrange for mover for the furniture after 9 days of packing boxes and moving stuff. So on August 14th, I was finally out of that building and could wash my hands of the while debacle. There are still people who want to move back in because they have been there for decades, and all their friends lived there also, so they are living in hotels, waiting for the building repairs to be completed.

I did that entire move with no a/c, in a building that faced south, and the curtains had been open and the windows closed the entire time I was away. It was an oven. Even with the windows open, it was so hot! It was hot outside, with bright sun and daytime temps reaching over 30C. It was humid too, and often felt like close to 40C, so some days I only lasted 4 hours. Not at all healthy!

The company that owns that building had an emergency meeting the day we were out of the building, explaining what had happened. Since that time, they have made absolutely no effort to talk to the tenants except through emails that gave brief updates on the repairs. They have been absolutely mum to the many requests for comments and interviews from the press. Just no repsonse. The only thing they did was refund the balance of May's rent, plus our security deposits. And when those who chose to move out handed their keys in, they gave us each a cheque for $1000. My movers cost me over $900. All the people have been put up in hotels while either trying to find a new place (and it is expensive in most places here for people on a fixed income; a lot of the tenants were seniors on pensions) or waiting to move back in. First the Red Cross was paying for those hotel rooms, plus money for food, then the city took over, and now the provincial government has been footing the bill. Not the owner of the building. Who also owns some hotels in the city. Who didn't offer to house those tenants who needed a hotel because they did not have family or friends to stay with. While the repairs for that building must be massively expensive, that company is a multimillion dollar real estate development and construction company. I honestly hope the province and city somehow recoup at least some of their costs from them.

In that rushed move, I buggered up my right shoulder and have been going to physio for the past 6 weeks. 2 weeks ago, I had a steroid shot in the AC joint (where the collar bone join the shoulder blade) because that was one area that was sore, but that wasn't the main area of pain, as I have discovered, because that shot didn't work. So I am going back to see the sports medicine doc to have another untrasound and probably another steroid injection. I still have boxes piled around because it is hard to unpack things when your should screams at you.

The cats are happy to have room, but were much more happy now that they have their cat trees back. We live right on the ground floor and there are trees right outside the windows, so there are squirrels and birds everywhere. Live kitty entertainment! Much more fascinating than living on the 5th floor, far away from the trees.

What can I say? Life goes on.

Another spin

 Sunday was my birthday and I have a hard time believing I am now 66 and yet, my mind thinks it is in my mid 30s. My body, on the other hand, has days where it is 103! But whatever, right? Onward we go, as time relentlessly marches on, whether we try to keep up or not.

My sister and brother-in-law took me out for supper to a local restaurant. I knew it was SuperBowl Sunday but not being a football fan (of either the CFL or NFL), I had pretty much forgotten that fact. The restaurant, however, was determined that no one would forget it and every single tv in the bar and the dining room was tuned to the game. With the sound turned up, and the bass blasting!! It was annoying as hell. But we ate, talked loudly and enjoyed the food. The game was in the latter part of the 2nd quarter when we finished up and left. Am I disappointed I didn't get to see Usher perform? Oh hell no! Not my kind of music and I am sure it would have been way too loud.

But all the same, it was a nice day for my birthday. My sister and I visited an antiques store in the afternoon. I was looking for something to use as a door stop for my balcony door (it is a regular hinged swing-out type) because when it is open and the windows are open, it often slams shut from the breeze. And I don't want a cat getting caught in that action because... no. Too risky for injuries. Ideally the door stop would be one of those cast iron statue thingies (like the little Scottie dogs) but they had nothing like that. They did, however, have numerous old cast iron clothes irons. You know, the kind you had a little stand for that nestled over the coals in the fire, or on top of the wood stove. It's got a coating of rust and the handle is missing so when it gets nicer out (it is below freezing here in the Great White (although not so white this year as there has been much less snow than usual) North, I will take it outside and clean it off with my Dremel and wire brush attachment. I have a friend who welds, so I might talk to him about making it a handle. The little sucker is heavy (which is required for a door stop) so being able to pick it up via a handle would be advantageous. It looks like this one (the base part).

After that we went to a little cafe for some lunch. They had these breakfast buns that were excellent! The bun was made with yams and had fresh rosemary in the dough. There was cheese, a fried egg, thick cut bacon and tomato on it. Very yummy! We got cinnamon buns and little blueberry carrot cakes to take home, which I ate the next day. The cinnamon bun was sticky goodness but the carrot cake really didn't have much flavour. I was disappointed. Even the cream cheese icing on it was meh.

On the kitty front, Lila has "inflammatory allergic airway disease" (similar to asthma in humans) and is now on steroids for 2 weeks and a steroid puffer twice a day. I have been training her with treats when using the puffer. She is keen to eat the treats but not so keen to have a mask over her face for 20 - 30 seconds or so. But she will get used to it given time. She is almost 15 (birthday is late April) and she's had an occasional cough for a long time. I'm talking years. But it was just that... occasional... so I attributed it to hairballs, seeing as she is a long haired cat (although in recent years she sports a lion cut most of the time). but over the past couple of months, the cough has increased drastically. So it was a trip to the vet, chest xrays (sent to a vet radiologist to be thorough) and blood pressures. The chest xrays confirmed the diagnosis. Her blood pressure was normal. I also changed cat litters, as the clay stuff is quite dusty and that is what I had been using. Now I am using stuff made from grass seed. It is almost dust-free but I will have to see how Andi does with it, because he is Mr. Itchmeister.

Andi is going for an ultrasound of his thyroid and kidneys at the end of the month. See if he has nodules on his thyroid, and see what his kidneys are doing because his last urinalysis showed changes outside of normal. He will have repeat bloodwork and urine tests done then also. You'd never know there was anything wrong with the boy, as he is playful, runs around like a maniac (as young cats are wont to do... he will be 5 in April), eats well and is very affectionate. (He truly is a "slobber puss" as he drools like crazy when happy and purring.) He might need a thyroidectomy but the kidney issue is the one that is concerning. He is on medication to bring his thyroid levels down, and he could stay on that for years if need be as it is effective, inexpensive, and has no side effects. The kidneys are something you can't live without (unless you are a human and go on dialysis... and no, I would not do that to my cat!). So time will tell. Given his issues, I try to make his life as comfortable as possible. Because that is my job as a pet guardian... to safeguard my cats in all aspects of their lives.

Thankfully, Aska has no issues, other than a propensity for eating dust bunnies (ew) and bolting at every unusual sound or movement. (I have scars on my legs from her launching herself to safety from my lap when something startles her. *sigh*)

I continue to work one or two days a week, which is definitely helping to pay for those ongoing vet bills, plus put a little extra in the bank. I'd rather not work but since I have yet to win the lottery, my career continues.

9

So I shoved a swab into the deep dark recesses of my sinuses again today, still came up covid positive... on Day 9. This is getting pretty repetitive, that's for sure. I am down to a bit of a stuffy nose, the occasional sneeze to clear said nose, and random coughs here and there. Not much of anything. I never did hit the high temps with a fever, no aches and pains, no feeling like I was on death's doorstep. I just had a cold. And a positive covid test to go along with it.

Since I am not up on the hospital's policy of workers and covid infections, I messaged my boss to get the lowdown. Apparently the hospital does not care about your covid status, as long as you have been at least 24 hours without a fever, and wear a mask at work while you still have symptoms. Alrighty then!

Back to work for me on Wednesday, testing be damned! And just to be extra thorough, I checked my temperature today. If anything, I am a little on the cool side. 36.2C or 97.3F. Actually, that isn't chilly, it is within normal limits. So no fever. Yay.

I will continue to use my nasal rinse bottle to see if I can clear up the stuffiness. It does help. Sometimes it is amazing what comes out of there!! On Wednesday, I will head into work, wearing a mask and armed with lozenges and kleenex. I honestly hope this is the one and only time I have covid, but if I do ever catch it again, having it masquerade as a cold isn't bad. It's annoying, but not too bad. There are lots of people out there who get it much worse that what I've had.

So keep yourselves safe! Even if you just have a cold, and not covid, please stay home, look after yourselves, and wear a mask if you have to go out! You do not need to share any of your germs with others, because that is just plain rude.

Damn.

 So I got my nursing registration reinstated and started working last week. Had a shift on Tuesday, which was super busy with all day clinics, seeing patients, on my feet, talk talk talk. Wednesday morning, everything hurt (lower back, knees and feet) and my throat was scratchy! Having spent many months just chitchatting with the cats and the occasional person, my voicebox was not at all used to the verbal calisthenics to which it was subjected.

My second shift was Friday, which is a catch up on paperwork day, and prep charts for clinics in the weeks ahead. Not too busy, no patients to see, so much more relaxed. I did have to go up and down in the elevator getting my swipe card from security to be able to get into the unit, paperwork from my boss, etc. Saturday afternoon I started to cough. Sunday I tested positive for covid.

I managed to work through the whole damn pandemic without catching it!!!! But hospital policy is now you only have to wear a mask when doing direct patient care. So I didn't wear a mask in the elevator that was relatively full of other workers and visitors.

Luckily I have 6 covid vaccinations under my belt (or, in my arm, actually) so it is more like a cold. I have a barky cough so I am sure my neighbours think a seal has moved in. I am sneezing (but not stuffed up), and because this seems to be concentrated in my upper airway, each achoo tries to rip out my throat. Owie!! And I don't have much of a voice. I freaked out Aska when I talked to her because my voice was low and gravelly. She was horrified and ran away! I now have to whisper to her, which she is fine with. Goofy cat. My sister kindly picked up some things for me, including a couple of packets of losenges. That definitely helps reduce the coughing fits. No fever, no fatigue, I can still smell and taste. Mild headache yesterday, but that may have been from coughing and sneezing.

I will test every day and hopefully by Thursday I will be negative again, as I have another shift booked. This working for a living is bad for your health!

Trudging along

 I am still waiting to get my nursing license reinstated. It is a long drawn out process, with paperwork submitted to various agencies, then waiting on their processing of same. But yesterday, I finally submitted the last of the required paperwork and am now at the mercy of the College of Registered Nurses and however slow their process of approval is. Hopefully not long, as I would like to be working before the month is out. At least I know that I have a job to go to when all is said and done.

I had the Calico Kids in to the vet in October for their annual checkups and vaccinations. Andi had bloodwork and urine done to see where he's at with his health. He is a complicated little guy, that is for sure! Turns out he has hyperthyroidism, which is more often seen in senior cats. He is only 4! But the vet said it can cause overgrooming, so hopefully that is his issue with all the scratching and licking. He is now on a daily medication to bring his thyroid levels down and goes for repeat bloodwork in December. He seems to be less itchy now and, fingers crossed, that is all it is!! He is getting tired of eating rabbit every meal, as he sniffs his bowl and looks at me like "I want what they're having!", but he will eat once I pet him and stir it up a bit. I have started giving him some canned tuna (catfood) once a day when the girls get it, and that makes him very happy. He just wants some variety!! The medication is very inexpensive ($19/120 days) which is waaayyy less than the rabbit ($250/month). I would like them all to eat the same foods. Makes my life a lot easier, and the cats happier.

It is definitely the beginning of winter here. It is only about -1C (30F) but it snowed last night and today on the radio they equated it to driving through mashed potatoes. Yup, been there done that. And it is very slippery underneath. A lot of the rural highways are like skating rinks, lots of school closures, and just the advice to stay home if you don't really have to go out! So that is what I am doing. I have nothing pressing to do today so I am hunkered down inside with some hot cocoa, a good book, and cats on my lap.

Had my annual flu shot last week, the quad shot ~ 4 times the strength of the regular one. If you are over 65, it is definitely something to think about. I also got the pneumoncoccal pneumonia shot, also recommended for those 65 and up. Protects against a number of pneumonia strains. Us seniors are more susceptible to respiratory illnesses, so I am a firm believer in getting vaccinated. I am also due next month for my next covid booster. I got one in the summer prior to going to Iceland and I am quite willing to get jabbed every 6 months if that is what it takes to avoid catching that nastiness.

It's nice to see some of the US states doing things right. And I hope That Giant Tangerine Turd digs himself a hole so deep no one can toss him a rope to climb out (not that he would be able to haul his fat ass up a rope without a crane anyway...). That does not need to get into office again. I saw a clip of Hillary Clinton saying she can't imagine what the US would look like if that happens. I still think she would make a fantastic president.

Grinding of the cogs

 Well, I will be going back to my old job, the casual one I had in the Renal Health Clinic before I retired. I had coffee with the ladies there last Friday and my old supervisor was mentioning how understaffed they are but of course, the hospital will not allow additional permanent positions for the unit. And they only have one casual nurse and she is very occsional as she also works in dialysis. I mentioned that I would be interested in coming back and she said "Yes! We would love to have you back!".

I emailed the head of the department and she also said I am welcome back. So now I just have to get my nursing license reinstated. Which means navigating a brand new system at the Nursing College that went into effect yesterday.

I tried to set up an account on that system, only to find that my old account was deactivated because of my retirement and that I didn't renew for this year at all. So I have tried to contact various entities at the College trying to get it up and running again, but as they run a "hybrid" office now, most people are not actually at the College. I chatted with the online "help" person (not a bot but a live human) and after hearing my problem, I was instructed to email the registration dept at the College with my issue.

So, I have. And now I wait for their reply. In the meantime, I have filled out all the online forms for criminal record checks, vulnerable person sector checks, and adult and child abuse registry checks. All necessary here for any job that requires you to deal with people in the healthcare system.

But I can't pass up a job that I liked, working with people I like, and very good money... better than any other I could get in a post-retirement job. So I will sit here and twiddle my thumbs, waiting...

Unfortunately serious

 I have finally adjusted to being retired. Yay! It has taken me months to not feel like I am just on vacation. And now I am seriously entertaining the idea of getting a part time job because my pensions are just not enough in this world of rising costs of living. The rent on my apartment has gone up and it really is unaffordable for a nonworking single person. Totally okay for a couple who are working though, but that isn't me. Add on to that the skyrocketing cost of groceries. Maybe I need to live on ramen noodles. I spend more on Andi's catfood than on my own food.

Because of his allergies, he is on freeze-dried raw rabbit. Rabbit. That's it. The one protein he doesn't react to and will eat with great gusto. I had to find protein sources that he had not been exposed to in the past. Chicken is a very common allergen in cats and dogs, so that was the first thing I cut. Even when eating the prescription food from the vet, he was still reacting terribly, so I figured it was all the stuff in commercially manufactured pet food. Which even the stuff from the vet contains. So no more canned food, no more dry kibble (all of which he loved and scarfed down like he was always starving). I tried freeze-dried venison, and pork, and even salmon. He didn't like the pork or the venison, and while he loved the salmon, he started scratching is neck bloody. Agh!! Rabbit, it is then. The freeze-dried raw food is shaped into nuggets and contains only one protein ~ whole (bones and organs included) rabbit in this case ~ and only some fruits and seeds. All of this is ground together and then freeze-dried. I don't have the freezer space for frozen raw food (which I would totally feed if I did) and this stuff is shelf stable for 30 days once the bag is opened. Just crumble a couple of nuggets into his bowl with a bit of warm water to rehydrate, and Bob's your uncle. However... a 397g (14 oz.) bag is $60!! And that lasts about 3 weeks. For one cat. I have two others. Thankfully they eat regular, much less expensive but still not inexpensive, catfood.

So I am seriously entertaining the idea of finding a part time job to make ends meet. I have come across a part time job in one of the city libraries. Years ago, before I got into nursing, I worked in a university library. I really enjoyed that work. So I am hoping this gives me a bit of an edge with my application. I will have to rework my resume to highlight that part. All the jobs I have applied for in the past 30 years have been in nursing. So wish me luck!

My niece and I (she is also single and struggling with rent) are looking for an apartment to share that allows cats. She has one. I have three. We will have to lie on the application form of wherever we end up because most places only allow a maximum of two. Her cat is a black and white ginormous boy who is very social and not at all shy. All three of mine are scaredycats, so I would only put Andi on the form. You almost never see any of mine if you come over. They all run and hide, unless it is my sister, and then Andi will come sit in the doorway, and sometimes Lila will wander out. But never Aska. 

So I am off to tweak my resume. Wish me luck! On both the job front, and the apartment hunting. Both are not what I want to do, but what I have to do.

Two weeks today...

 I will be landing in Iceland!! My sister and I leave Winnipeg on August 5th, fly to Montreal to change planes (with a 4 hour stopover but that's okay, especially if there are delays) and land in Keflavik (that's where the international airport is) Sunday morning, Aug. 6th in the land of our ancestors.

And there is an eruption happening right now! It is very small, so no worries about life and limb, or air travel interruptions. Although not far from where we will be staying (about 30 kms as the crow flies), there is no danger unless you are close to it. It does give off dangerous gases in the local vicinity, but the Icelandic gov't is very good about closing the hiking trail to the viewing area if the wind shifts. But we won't be going to see it, because I am just not up for a 20 km hike to get there!! There are lots of other things to see in beautiful Iceland.

We will be staying for 2 weeks, renting a lovely little apartment that is attached to a family's house in a community just outside of Reykjavik. They will be our hosts. We went through VRBO (vacation rentals by owner) to find it. It has everything we need: kitchen, 2 bedrooms, laundry facilities, and even a hot tub in the backyard! That will be lovely to soak away all the aches and pains after spending our days wandering around the capital area (and other areas within a day's drive). We are renting a car as well, so will venture out and about to some of the sights in the area.

I have lists and lists of what I need to take, and what I need to do before I leave. I have a pet sitter coming to live at my place while I am away, to care for the cats. There is no way I could take them to a boarding facility. I did that with one cat years ago, and he came back scarred for life from that experience. He was so terrified while he was there that they had a hard time even cleaning his kennel because he would attack them. His nickname became Psycho Kitty, and I insisted on handling him at the vet from then on, as I could tell how he would react by how he felt in my hands. It would absolutely destroy the calico kids, and I think even Lila, as not too bright as she is, would suffer. So the pet sitter is a great option!

The only places outside of Canada that I have visited are the US and Mexico. Time to explore somewhere else!

We will be meeting a bunch of people who are related to us through our great grandmother on my dad's side. I had done my DNA on My Heritage a few years ago, and last year a woman messaged me through there that we are cousins. So my great grandmother is her great aunt. There is a family gathering on Aug. 12th, so we will meet lots of people there! I hope to make some good connections with family there. My dad died years ago and his one sibling, my aunt, has severe dementia and lives in a care home, so there is no one here to talk to about the Icelandic side of the family. But either way, it will be the trip of a lifetime!!!

Iceland in summer

Iceland in Winter

One day, I would love to go to Iceland in the winter also. The northern lights, Aurora Borealis, are apparently quite spectacular! We can see them here in the middle of Canada also, but when you are so close to the arctic circle, they are so much more vibrant! While it is snowy and stormy in winter, the temps are nowhere near as cold as here in Winnipeg. Our weather in winter is similar to Siberia. Bitter cold and very dry (the static electricity in winter is horrendous... the cats shy away from pets because of the shocks). In Iceland, they get lots of storms because it sits in the North Atlantic ocean, that little rock. But our summer trip will be more about staying dry from the frequent rains. I have waterproof hiking boots, a rain suit (jacket and pants) that I will carry with me at all times in a backpack. Definitely a necessity!

I am only just a teeny bit excited....!!!!

Cut loose!

I am now officially a pensioner. As of Dec. 30th, I became fully 100% retired. And in less than a month, I turn 65. How did that creep up so fast???

What do I do with my time? Getting as much asleep as I can, which isn't saying much because I am not a good sleeper at the best of times. But there have been a couple days when I got close to 8 hours! Of course, the cats think that is too long and it is usually Lila at the bedroom door, mrrrowing incessantly. Little worm.

I sold my antique oak sideboard that has resided with me for almost 40 years. (see below) It was just too big. I live in an apartment now and it took up too much space. It was a beautiful old thing and good for storage, but I needed a desk. So I contacted a local antiques shop and they paid me cash for it. And came and hauled it away. Having moved that thing umpteen times, I know how heavy it is!!

So then I hit up Ikea for some components to make a desk/sewing area. I have room for my printer, I have lots of drawers, and I can finally have my little Tiffany-style table lamp where it is supposed to be! I bought it last year when I bought the two floor lamps, but had nowhere to put it until now. This had always been the plan for it.

I also bought a new sewing machine. My sister bought a real fancy computerized Janome and she has been learning to use it. I was surprised she bought such a fancy one, as she has never done a lot of sewing. But she is learning! The one I bought is not computerized like hers, but still does a lot more than my old Kenmore 24 stitch machine that I bought from Sears years ago... about 15 years maybe? And I have a Babylock serger that I picked up in San Diego when I lived down there in the 1990s. The place I bought my new machine from does repairs and tuneups, so I will take the two older machines in for servicing and then will sell the Kenmore. Or maybe donate it somewhere. And eventually I will get back into sewing myself some clothes. A much better fit than from a store!

Pips is 16 now and getting frail. She definitely fits the "elderly" profile. And she has a chronic runny nose which we are treating with nose drops (that's fun to do on a cat). Andi is allergic to the cat litter I used to use (it was made from grass seed and was the best clumping litter ever!) so now I am back to using clay litter and he is not nearly as itchy. It was so bad, he had licked the hair off the inside of one hind leg and was working on his belly! Had to have 2 rounds of steroids to get that under control. Lila and Aska thankfully do not have any health concerns at the moment.

My sister and I (she is the 'baby' of the family and is 5 years younger than me) are going to Iceland in August of this year, for 2 weeks. I had done my DNA through My Heritage a few years ago and last February a woman in Iceland contacted me. Turns out we are 3rd cousins (my great grandmother is her great aunt). So through all the communications with her, and one of her aunts (my great grandmother was her aunt), we will be at a family gathering in Iceland on Aug. 12th. My sister and I will be there for 2 weeks, so plenty of time to do exploring. We have already booked our flights and accommodations. 

And to that end, I have started taking an Icelandic language course. The first level is learning the mechanics of the language. Unlike english, every letter or letter combination is always pronounced the same, with only a very few exceptions. It is very interesting! I am hoping to be able to take a couple more levels before our trip so that I have rudimentary conversational skills. But that isn't necessary, because almost everyone in Iceland speaks english. It is more for the ancestral cultural interest that I am doing this.

So far, retirement has been about catching up on rest and getting a lot more reading in. I love to read and since I can neither afford to buy all the books I want, nor have the space to store them, I have an ereader and currently have about 500 books on it. I have read a good number of those but always have a 'to be read' list that is really long!

I also bought myself a digital piano as a retirement gift to myself and am learning to play and to read music. Something I have always wanted to do!

It is still in the depths of winter here, although this month has been warmer than normal. That just means more days warmer than -15C and fewer colder than -25C. We still have a good 2+ months of winter left and it can always get much colder for that time. I'm happy I no longer need to get up at well before the sun comes up to head off to work!!

Seat yourself

 After the house sold, and I had the money in my bank account, I had gone and ordered a new sofa and ottoman from La-Z-Boy Furniture. I have a recliner made by them and it is well made and quite comfortable. For many months now, that recliner and a lawn chair have been the only seating in the house!

As of noon today, I now have proper furniture in my living room. La-Z-Boy had originally told me it could be six months before I got the couch, but late last week, I got a surprise call from them that the couch was ready to be delivered! Needless to say, I was very pleasantly surprised.

I can see on the label that these pieces were built in Tennessee. Apparently, there are only 5 factories that build the La-Z-Boy furniture, hence the long wait. I am just so excited that I can have more than one person over at a time!!

Maybe the cats will now sleep on the couch, instead of all over me. (I still prefer to sit in my recliner, because, well, it reclines!) Andi spent time having a bath on it and then a nap, and then another bath. Everyone else has been in their usual spots. Aska is on the cat tree in their room, Lila is on the window ledge, and Pips was on my chest for a bit and is now lying curled up between my lower legs.

The "sheepskin" on the back protects it from Pips.

That is her favourite area of attack.

Bath time!!

Andi approved.

Moving along

 So the house saga has ended. The new owner took possession May 13th and shortly after that, the torrential rains started. I thank my lucky stars and whatever gods there are that I do not have to deal with a leaky basement ever again! It took just shy of 3 weeks to receive the funds, but that is normal.

So now I have paid off a bunch of debt, and ordered some new furniture (the sofa will hopefully be here by Christmas... it is being custom made, in the US, and I am hoping they can be a little quicker, but whatever... I am getting what I want). I have money in the bank, a new bed, and Lila got a haircut.

But the best news of all... I am retiring on Thursday! Yep, in 2 days. After 31 years of nursing, it is time to hang up my stethescope. I got into nursing in my 30s, so I have actually been in the workforce for 46 years and I am tired. My feet are sore and my knees are swollen. I just had my knees injected with steroids (arthtitis pain) and it hasn't quite kicked in yet. In August, I am going to have some of my blood extracted and spun down to get the platelet-rich plasma, that will then be injected into the right knee (to start ~ they only do one at a time) to hopefully encourage a bit of regrowth of healthy cartilage. Even if it is not overly successful, at least I will not be on my feet day in and day out anymore.

So yay to me! I am relieved to not have to go back to work next week, but a little apprehensive about leaving a profession that is faced with critical shortages of bodies. But I have paid my dues and it is time for others to stand up.

Well, that's (almost) a wrap

 The house was on the market for one week. It sold for almost $28K above asking price. The buyer is the niece of a woman I work with. The possession date is March 13th.

All I can say is...

YIPPEEEEEEE!!!

COMPLETE!!

 Wow. No posts since January of 2021. I've been gone for a while! The past 14 months, I have been doing renovations on my house. My little crackerjack box of a house, that has been riddled with problems, causing me endless frustrations and added expenses.

Could I have hired someone to do all the work? Sure. But I would never have been able to afford to do that. Did I have the ability to do all the work? Yup. Along the way I had help from some of my family, especially my youngest sister. And a good friend who lives close by helped me whenever I needed him to. (His wife once quipped that all he ever did was come over to talk and bullshit, until he told her to come have a look. She was surprised at the transformation!) He's a millwright by trade, so a very handy and knowledgable guy to know! And I picked his brain a lot because there were a lot of complications with almost every step of this project.

I painted every room, including ceilings (I hate textured ceilings!!). I replaced the flooring in every room. I replaced all the cabinet hardware in the kitchen. I replaced the countertop, sink and faucet in the kitchen. I replaced all the light fixtures in the entire house, including the basement. In the bathroom, I had previously replaced the toilet, sink and vanity, replaced the tub surround, put in a large mirrored medicine cabinet, and replaced all the trim (including around the window) with vinyl trim. I had put shelving into the pantry and disassembled a bifold door, moving the hinges to the outside edges so it opened in the middle for the pantry door. I painted the wrought iron railing along the edge of the kitchen and down the basement stairs. The flooring that I put in the kitchen (snap together vinyl tiles) I also put on the back door landing and down the basement stairs, with vinyl stair nosing. The front door was replaced a couple of years ago. The high efficency furnace and central air conditioner are from 2016. The front porch is from last year. There was a lot more work than just that, because there were lots of repairs and modifications done along the way to be able to finish each step.

Just as things were winding up a couple of weeks ago, the hot water heater started leaking, so on a Sunday afternoon, my friend Glen installed a new one for me while I finished the stairs. And the next day, it started warming up here, and the inordinate amount of snow we got this winter (3rd highest amount in recorded history!) started melting while the ground was (and still is) still frozen. Of course it started coming in the basement!! When I discovered that, the words out of my mouth were "FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK!!!!!"

It is not uncommon to get seepage of meltwater in basements here when the ground is still frozen. But because there was so much snow on the ground and the roof, I had water coming in in areas that had never seen water in the decade I'd been living in this house. I spent a lot of time sucking up water with the shopvac, running 3 fans and having the dehumidifier on 24/7. The furnace fan also runs 24/7 to keep the air circulating in the house. Glen has been a godsend, as he would come to the house to check the water status if I was working, and unable to come (I now live a 45 minute drive away). He would come over twice a day when it was a steady influx, and text or call with reports of how things were.

It is now mostly dry (one area, the usual suspect, is still a bit seepy) and I completed the final removal of tools and cleaning stuff today. I called the realtor and set up an appointment to list the house. I am sure it will sell very quickly, because there are not a lot of houses on the market in any price range, and this one is very affordable. I am hoping it will go for more than list price, but either way, I will do well, as my remaining mortgage is relatively low.

To not bore anyone with a bunch of photos, I did a walk-through video today. I didn't include the basement because it is mostly unfinished and not much to look at. But I am so relieved to be finished this massive project!!!

Chillin' Out

So my second Covid vaccine shot happened on Jan. 7th. I took two shifts off in anticipation of feeling like crap for a bit. That actually didn't happen at all! I was surprised, but pleasantly so. I wasn't really looking forward to running a fever, feeling achy and super tired at all, even if only for a day or so. I was told I would have 95% immunity in a week after that. So happy I was able to get the vaccine!

However...

I am just starting the 2nd of 2 weeks off work. Doctor's orders. Because I was having some pretty bad stress symptoms. He wanted me to take time off before I cracked.

Now, I am always been the "steady Eddie" kind of person. Rock solid in the face of stressful situations. Not fazed by much at all. But this pandemic, the increased stress at work (often working short staffed, having an increase in really sick patients, management saying 'yes, change is stressful but you will adapt' bullshit, etc) and the isolation from friends and family has really gotten to me.

I haven't seen my family in 10 months, other that my younger sister a handful of times. No family birthdays, no Easter or Thanksgiving dinners, no Christmas gathering, no pool parties at my nephew's in the summer. Zippo. I live alone, which usually isn't an issue. I have done it for years and actually like not having another person in the house most of the time. The cats are pretty good company. But not being able to see anyone else is a lot different than choosing to not see anyone. I miss them all desperately. I miss being able to hug someone. My family hugs a lot.

I wasn't sleeping well at all, and I was having nightmares, where I would be running for my life, or fighting for my life, there would be knives or swords or other weapons, and I would wake up with adrenaline surging and heart pounding. Try going back to sleep after that! Nope... just doesn't happen. And I was having a lot of GI symptoms. Not fun when you have to bolt to the bathroom multiple times a day. I have discovered I don't tolerate Imodium (Loperamide) to slow my gut down. It makes me feel absolutely awful, and loopy in the head. My doc tells me there is a name for the syndrome for people who do not tolerate narcotics of any kind. Of course, I don't remember what it is... he did tell me, I swear. I already know things like morphine and codeine (which include Tramadol, a synthetic codeine) make me physically ill. So the Imodium (which some people actually take because they want to get that loopy feeling ~ yay, party drugs...) is off the table for me.

So my doc gave me a letter to be off work for 2 weeks. And a script for Lorazepam 1 mg at bedtime, to help me sleep. It has been a little over a week now and I have stopped the frequent bathroom trips. I have been sleeping better and only one bad dream but after 5 days of taking the full 1 mg of Lorazepam at bedtime, I cut it back to 1/2 mg because my head was so foggy during the day. Still felt foggy with that, so know I have cut it to 1/4. The pills are so small, it is difficult to cut into 1/4s with my pill splitter, but I am doing my best. So still helping with sleep. And my head feels better too... I feel functional.

So functional, I have started updating my kitchen! I have one more week to get a bunch of stuff done. We will see how much I can get done in that time. I have to patch walls, paint the ceiling and walls, install new floor tiles (after ripping out the old vinyl sheet flooring) and updating the light fixture over the back landing. I got started yesterday by cutting back a cupboard so I can relocate the fridge. I discovered that this cupboard must have been painted red at some point. I cannot imagine red cupboards in this tiny kitchen!! Wish me good energy to get a good portion of this done.

One down...

One to go.

I had my covid vaccine yesterday. No big deal. A very small amount of vaccine (looked like about 0.3 ml) and a small needle. Today, no ill effects at all. I don't consider the little spot on my deltoid that feels like a little bruise an ill effect. It is less that I get each year from the flu shot.

My next appointment for jab #2 is on Jan. 7th. That is the one where I may have some ill effects. One of the doctors I work with told me that the immune response is often much stronger with the 2nd shot and taking the day off work after the 2nd one is advisable. Some of the things one may feel are nausea, headache, body aches and fever.

Guess I will find out then.

Stay safe, everyone! Be kind. Be hopeful that this is the beginning of the quelling of the pandemic. 

Struggling to get through

 We will be receiving a limited number of covid-19 vaccines in my province (enough for 900 people to start), and the government has set up a phone line to make appointments. There are strict criteria for the first candidates: you must be a healthcare worker, work in an acute care setting (hospital), and were born before Dec. 31, 1960. I fit all of these criteria, plus I have to care for covid-positive patients quite regularly. So I have been calling the phone number. It went live yesterday at noon. Yesterday, I dialed the number 114 times. I got through 6 times and was put on hold. Each of those times, after just over 11 minutes, the calls were dropped. I have called the number 16 times so far today and have been on hold twice. So far, this second time, the call has not dropped and I am at 16 minutes!

Fingers crossed, I actually get through this time.

EDIT: I finally got through after being on hold for one hour and 38 minutes. I have my vaccination appointments: Dec. 16/20 and Jan. 7/21. Yay!! I fully expect to feel like crap for a day or two afterwards (normal response to this type of vaccine) but very grateful that we are not waiting the typical 5 - 10 years for a vaccine rollout.

Oh Happy Day!

 May the healing our of sister nation beside us begin in earnest. Please let there not be violence and Trump's supporters take in this disappointment. Please stay safe, all my friends in America. Please stay safe. And may the world begin to veer away from the racist white supremacist ways that have been eating away at society across the globe. More than ever, we need, as the human race, we need to work together to reform our societies and our world into something that allows all life on this planet to flourish and to live in harmony. We all need to coexist peacefully.

We have the highest infection rate in the country...

 Winnipeg is only a city of around 750K folks. Not huge by any standard... piddly-ass nothing by New York and LA standards, but in Canada, we have the highest covid-19 infection rate per 100,000 people in the fucking COUNTRY!!! Because people have gotten stoopid and lax and just keep going out and partying, socializing, having big weddings, funerals and whatever kind of gatherings they want. It makes me so fucking mad!!

I go to work. I shop for most of my groceries online. We cancelled our family Thanksgiving dinner. We cancelled my greatniece's 14th birthday. I haven't seen some family members since January, FFS. And there are people here who insist on eating in restaurants, going to bars, doing shit that spreads that nasty everywhere. (But not anymore, because things have been locked down again starting this past Monday and masks are mandatory everywhere.)

Now, I have to admit that when I do go to to the store, I now see everyone is wearing a mask. So that is a good thing. But the majority of positive cases have been people in the 20 - 40 age group. People have gone to work with symptoms. People have gone to weddings with symptoms. Because of assholes like those, old folks are dying in care homes. There are outbreaks in many of the care homes here. There are outbreaks in northern remote communities. There are outbreaks on three wards in the hospital where I work. The strain on healthcare workers is huge. We are short staffed on any given day and overtime is soaring through the roof. One day last week, we have 15 people doing overtime, most of those doing double shifts, some 4 hours extra. We have covid positive and suspect patients we have to bring into the dialysis unit for their treatments because there is nowhere else in the hospital we can give them their treatments. We are strapped for spots for new patients. (And there are always new patients, because dialysis is a growth industry, unfortunately.) We are finding some supplies running short at times, and just today, we have a nightmare plumbing issue in one of the satellite dialysis rooms.

There is a lot of water used in dialysis. And that has to go down the drain. Today, the drain pipe in one of the satellite dialysis units became plugged. The plumbers spent a couple of hours using the snake to clean the drain. There was black sludge all over the floor, and a flood of filthy water running out into the hallway. The housekeepers had a team of 3 mini zambonis to clean up the water and try to contain the deluge. (Yeah, I know they are not zambonis [those machines used to clean the ice in hockey rinks] but they operate on the same basis, only on a much smaller push-from-behind basis, so that's what I call them.) I think they threw every flannel blanket we had on the linen cart onto the floor to soak up water before those guys arrived with their machines. I was working in the office across the hall for the day and we had to endure a lovely aroma of sewer for a good part of the afternoon. I couldn't wait to get outside and breathe some fresh air! The patients who were supposed to be dialyzed in that room obviously weren't. I am not sure what was done with them, and if the evening patients were able to come in for their treatments, but I am sure I will hear on Monday when I am back at work.

But on a much more positive note, as I drove home from work, I snapped this photo of the big prairie sky. Yes, I pulled over (it is illegal to use your phone while driving here and I sure don't need a big fine and my license suspended (which is the first offense punishment). I like taking photos of the sky. I might just print this one out one day and hang it on my wall.

Geez, I have been lax.

 I just noticed it was August when I last posted anything and we are almost at the end of September! The weather is definitely fall-like here, with interspersed days of summer heat. Last Monday was cool (I think it got up to 12C?) and Tuesday hit 30C!

I had a covid test done this morning. Very strange sensation, that. I am hoping it is just my lack of a gallbladder that is causing my gut issues, but one cannot be sure without a test these days. We do have a positive patient at work, although I didn't provide direct care to them, but they were symptomatic for several days before telling us and getting tested. And they were in that small group of patients who are crap at keeping their masks on their damn faces when in for their treatments!! Argh! So I sit at home and wait for a couple of days to get results.

I am tired of the covidiots out there risking everyone else because it inconveniences them. I wish we could just stick them all on their own island and let nature take its course. We could give them Trump as their very own head hack. Seems they all think like him anyway.

Leaf raking season is starting, but I am going to wait a couple more days before starting. One tree out front is virtually naked while its neighbour hasn't started dropping leaves yet, despite being golden yellow. The backyard trees have definitely started but the big Chinese elm is still as green as can be. It is notorious for not deleafing until after the snow has fallen, meaning I can't rake until the spring and then it is a sodden mess of half rotten leaves.

This will be the last fall for me in this house. I am going to sell in the spring and move back into the big city. Okay, so Winnipeg isn't all that big (750K or thereabouts) but it is many times larger than the 10K city I live in right now, just to the north. I already have my name on the waiting list for a suite in the apartment block I want to live in. Easy to get to work from (before I retire), close to my sister (8 minute drive or 30 minute walk, per google maps) and there is a mall across the street with most of the amenities I will need for day to day living, including the pet store chain I usually shop at for the cats. Hopefully this all comes together nicely but if not, I will move temporarily into another apartment that allows cats and also allows month to month rentals (for $100 extra per month :-\ ).

I had Andi outside with me for a bit today. He spent a lot of time rolling around on the patio amongst the leaves, looking gorgeous, so of course, his portrait is below. (Okay, so I put up two photos, because why not!)  He also ate some grass and had to puke it up once back in the house. It's only taken him 6 months to figure out how to eat the grass and not just pull bits out of the ground and then spit them out. lol!

Wishing all of you a pleasant (as can be) fall. Be well, stay safe, and wear a mask if you have to go out!

Good to Go

The past 2 1/2 months have been filled with sitting on my bum in my recliner, keeping Andi contained. That shattered leg has meant the majority of his time was spent in a dog kennel, with litter box, soft bed, toys and a hamster-style water bottle. It meant he wore a harness and leash whenever I got him out of the kennel, to keep his activity severely limited. All to allow the bones to heal as best possible.

And that effort has paid off. A week and a half ago, he had the 8 weeks post-op xrays to see how his leg was healing. My vet and the surgeon were both very pleased with how well the bone has healed. Andi got the go-ahead to start having some free time loose in the house. I was cautioned that because he had spent two months with no exercise, he would have muscle wasting and would need to gradually build up his strength.

Post-Op Xray day of surgery - look at all those little pieces!

8 Weeks Post-Op - lots of new bone formation!

They never watching him do flips in that kennel, and drag himself around the litter box, squeezed between it and the walls of the kennel with a catnip toy clutched in his mouth, with me cringing as I could see in my mind's eye that leg getting twisted and bent in all that frenetic play. But it never did. He jumped around, kicked at toys, scratched his ear (as soon as the splint was off) with that foot, and had been weight bearing on that leg from day one after surgery. What did happen was he kept his muscles in good condition.

For the most part, Andi was very well behaved with his incarceration. He didn't like being in the kennel, or wearing the harness and leash, but he tolerated it as few one year old boy cats can.  He would chirp and trill when I opened the door of kennel and he would stretch out, extending his front legs and toes, bowing as he slunk out, with his back legs following, poking straight out behind him one at a time as his hind end stretched and stepped out. He would go to the carpet and start scratching, giving those claws a good stretching too. While he did that, I would fasten the harness around his neck and chest, standing on the 4' leash so he couldn't get away unexpectedly.

After the 4 week xrays showed the bones were healing he graduated to eating in the kitchen instead of in the kennel. I would tie the leash to the handle of the oven, so he was in his usual spot. He was "loose" but not loose. He could move around in a very small space and that made him happy. He got to eat with the other cats, so a bit of normalcy in his upended life. He would get short walks into the living room, or into the bathroom with me. I would carry him down to the basement when I went to clean the big litter boxes, one foot on the leash to keep him captive. I would carry him to my bedroom to snuggle on the bed with Lila for grooming and a nap, while I sat there and scrolled through facebook on my phone. I would stand at the cat tree in the front room so he could sit on it, in the open window, to smell the fresh air and watch the birds and squirrels. I would take him to the water bowl for a big drink of water (because that water bottle in the kennel is for the occasional sip, not a good thirst quenching draught of clean cold water from a big bowl). Then I would carry him to the recliner and we would sit. He would lie down, groom himself, play with the leash, sleep under his blanket and generally be good. (How I don't have callouses on my bum, I don't know... I spent so much time sitting down, I think I am the one with muscle wasting.) 

So the 8 week xrays show good new bone formation and he has the go ahead to start his 'gradual return to normal activities'... which I labelled GR2F (Gradual Return to Freedom). The vets wanted him to have 15 - 20 minutes loose a couple of times a day, and for this program to gradually increase over 2 - 4 weeks. For the first few days, he got a couple of hours loose, in the morning and then after work in the evening. He was cautious with stairs and jumping, very smart of him, such a good boy. He ran though, on the flat, thrilled to not be tied down. Aska was very happy to have someone join in on the chase, as the old aunties aren't really into that anymore and she was tired of doing all the running alone. Which she did anyway, because a young cat needs to, but it is so much more fun with a partner in crime, you know.

After one week, he was loose all day long and spent a couple of nights in the kennel. Now he is out and back to normal. He still has some weakness in that leg, but not much and it is getting stronger every day. And we are all so much happier. And he has grown, stuck in that kennel! He is noticeably taller and longer than all the other cats. Lila is still heavier, as she is much stockier than he is. Andi is all lean and lanky, all long legs and whip thin. Not skinny, mind you, just lean. He eats 1/3 more at each meal than all the others do. Just a healthy young guy without any extra fat. He looks good.