Archive for the ‘Health’ Category

To Be Female

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

Just a few days ago, some poor woman fell onto the tracks in NYC.  Thank goodness the motorman was able to stop in time, just seventy feet from the victim.  She survived, and it was a great feel good story with front page pictures in all the city papers.  I’m sure she is grateful to be alive, but as a woman I’m also pretty sure she’s thinking she will never wear vertical stripes again.  You see, she fell forward and the photos show her draped across the tracks backside foremost.  A most unfortunate angle.  To be female is to constantly worry if one’s ass looks too big, no matter how dramatic the circumstances.  Go figure.

Contemplating Sorrows

Friday, August 27th, 2010

 

Maybe it’s the gloomy weather, but I’ve been contemplating sorrows the last few days.  We all have them; large and small, past and present.  For some of us, it’s ill health.  Or worse, health problems with our children or other loved ones.  Financial troubles, broken hearts, family estrangements and mental health difficulties, the list goes on and on.  So what do we do?  One can turn to alcohol or other substances.  REALLY bad idea, as tempting as it can be.  There’s the old Anglo-Saxon “stiff upper lip” attitude, to just tough it out.  I find this works best along with turning to one’s support system.  Talking with sisters, friends, cousins, aunts and other women folk just to sort things out can bring great relief.  Bitching, confiding, venting or even tears can act as a great safety valve. 

 

The sun eventually returns, both literally and figuratively.  So for me, I’m going to try and stop dwelling on things I can’t change, and losses that cannot be recovered.  Concentrate instead on the many positives in my life.  Like venting on this blog, and knowing that I can always turn to my emergency chocolate bar if need be…

 

New Purpose for Hot Flashes!

Friday, August 13th, 2010

plane

Well, my husband and I returned on the redeye from Seattle yesterday morning at six.  We boarded the plane at around ten pm.  Once airborne I requested a glass of wine, a large seltzer and a cure for mega-hot flashes.  Only got two out of three, but the flight attendant was amused.  A few bumpy moments ( and a heart felt prayer) led me to a xanax and a nap.  I always get an aisle seat and surrender the arm on the other side to my neighbor.  He was young, handsome and quite gay.  Obviously, he had no designs on my person but he must have been chilly.  He gravitated toward me the entire time he slept and despite my frequent nudges, kept coming over in my direction.  And so my hotflashes kept a random stranger warm and cozy for the entire flight.  Obviously, my life has not been in vain.

 

My thanks to Colleen for keeping the blog up during my absence in such an entertaining fashion.  She has a stylish way of expressing herself, and I was quite grateful not to have to blog while on the road using my husband’s laptop.  She saved our marriage, as I’m certain I’d have crashed it and lost everything on his hard drive, or whatever you call it.

 

As I’m still punchy from doing five thousand miles cross country in a non-air-conditioned 1930 vintage bus, I’ll quit here.  Hello again, good bye for now, and tra-la, tra-la…

 

 

 

 

Those Annoying Canadian Tourism Commercials (Or…just stab me with a knitting needle through the eyes and ears, please)

Friday, August 6th, 2010

 

Am I the only one who absolutely detests those television commercials from the Canada Tourism Board?  I literally cringe when one is aired!

 

I loathe the shaky camera technique, which makes me mildly nauseous.  Do they do that to give the feeling of a bad amateur video or to hopefully keep the audiences interest?  Or maybe they do it just to make people vaguely queasy while proclaiming the shaky virtues of a Canada vacation.

 

I hate the barely-human grunts, screams and guttural sounds of the audio in all the different versions of the ad as well.  Does anyone know adults that actually utter any of these sounds?

 

What were they thinking?  I was never that interested in visiting Canada to begin with…..and now this series of commercials only make me want to visit even less.

 

Happiness is a Journey, Not a Destination

Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

 

Well, Marian is on her trip to Vancouver and I hope she is having a great time.  In the meantime, you’re stuck with me — Colleen.  I received a chain email today and it is one of the very few actually worth passing along.  It extols a message worth noting and one that I am going to try to embrace much more in my own life.  Too often we feel the need to put our happiness on hold — until some future event happens.  Why do we do this when we can choose to be happy here and now — with what we have and where we are at this moment?

 

            We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another.  Then we are frustrated that the kids aren’t old enough and we’ll be more content when they are.  After that we’re frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with. We will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage.  We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, or when we retire.

            The truth is, there’s no better time to be happy than right now.  If not now, when?  Your life will always be filled with challenges.  It’s best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway.

            One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D. Souza. He said, ” For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - - real life.  But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to serve, a debt to be paid.  Then life would begin.  At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.”

            This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way.  So, treasure every moment that you have. And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time with … and remember that time waits for no one…..

            So stop waiting, until you finish school, go back to school, lose ten pounds, gain ten pounds, have kids…Until your kids leave the house, until you start work, retire, get married, get divorced….Until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off……Until spring, until summer, until fall, until winter, until the first or fifteenth…Until you’ve had a drink, until you’ve sobered up, until you die, until you are born again.  So decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy.  Happiness is a journey, not a destination. Thought for the day: Work like you don’t need money, Love like you’ve never been hurt, and dance like no one’s watching.

 

Doctor Stuff Again!

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

 

Good grief, Doctor stuff again.  Time for the old yearly eye exam.  Since I’ve been diagnosed with cataracts and have a family history of macular degeneration, it’s always a time of happiness and joy. (right).  My husband has the ability to not worry about things unless and until they happen.  He thinks it’s odd that I can’t.  I think it’s odd that he can.  This leads to eye rolling on my part and blank stares on his.  Every once in a while it occurs to me that perhaps we should communicate better.  But then I think better of the impulse.  We’ll be married 36 years next month, and maybe that’s the key.  Perhaps if we knew each other better, we’d like each other less!

 

But I digress.  At the Doctor’s, I updated him on symptoms.  Since the holidays my left eye has been rather watery and blurry.  Figured it was due to the cataract in my left eye, diagnosed 3 years ago.  Thought he was going to tell me stuff about surgery I didn’t want to hear, so I waited 6 months for the scheduled appointment.  Not such a good move.  Come to find out, I have a blocked tear duct.  A “simple” in office procedure can probably fix it.  Wary as I am of that sort of thing, I jumped at the plan and told him to do it before I could think too much and talk myself out of it.  Numbing drops and a small rotor rooter device in hand he started doing some rather gross but not horribly painful stuff.  A few moments later it’s over with and I’m on my way home.  Minus the feeling that my left eye was about to tear over and run down my face at any second.

 

That’s the danger of diagnosing oneself.  Sometimes you’re wrong!  In the process of my adventure I learned that I have “tiny” tear ducts.  Just my luck.  It couldn’t be a tiny waist or tiny, delicate ears or something helpful or attractive.  Oh well, as health issues go it’s very minor and I’m well aware that I’m blessed.  Besides, complaining about the small stuff keeps your mind off the more major worries, doesn’t it?

 

I don’t think I’ll watch the news tonight…

Stress In Today’s World

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

 

I seriously think that quite a bit of stress in today’s world is due to the immediacy of news reporting.  Death, trauma, environmental disaster, riots and war.  It’s all there in front of us instantaneously and in endless variation.  No wonder sleep is hard to come by some nights.  If it’s not the economy it’s another unpleasant surprise from mother nature.  No wonder the sheep I was counting last night were wearing hazmat suits and battle gear.  Good grief.

 

  

 

On the extremely pleasant news front, our daughter-in-law’s pregnancy is progressing well.  She and our son are very much at that “it can’t happen soon enough” stage.  And as the prospective Gramma, I must agree.  Baby is already a good size, and could safely arrive at any time now.  Of course baby’s have their own ideas!

 

An induction is scheduled for June 2nd, should she not arrive by the end of May.  But Mom and Dad have a feeling it will be earlier.  We shall see!  I’m still miffed I haven’t come up with any grand plans to save mankind from itself, create a safe alternative to fossil fuels or cure major illnesses.  Each new baby in our extended family has always made me feel we should have “fixed” things by now.  I see that’s especially true when it’s your own first grandchild that is waiting in the wings, so to speak.

 

CAN’T WAIT………………………

Things ARE Worse at Night . . .

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

 

Is it just me, or are things in general just worse at  night?  Storms seem louder and more fierce, worries are more worrisome and problems loom larger in the scheme of things for me.  Then there is the dreaded hamster wheel in my head which starts up.  The one  that spins endlessly with “what ifs” and “did I do the right things”? Next comes  the ever popular “where on earth did I put the _________ ? “   (fill in the blank).  To add to the festivities, Mother Nature will jump in with a killer hot flash.  The questions then becomes, can I get away with just changing my night clothes, or do I need to shower?  About then I gaze upon my peacefully sleeping husband, and have to restrain myself from clobbering him just on general principles.  Damn, I’m mean.

 

Nasty, Cold and Damp

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

 

Well, in our neck of the woods it’s once again nasty, cold and damp.  Which seems to have made me nasty, cold and damp.  So here’s some observations and complaints:

 

Although I love animals, I am not enamored of their calling cards.  Dogs are particular favorites of mine.  What they leave behind, not so much.  So how about we make an agreement?  You keep your dog in your own yard, and I won’t give crazy cousin Willie your address.

 

On the subject of laws not on the books that should be, I’ve got one that concerns azaleas and Christmas wreaths.  If you have the former blooming in all it’s glory in your yard, you shouldn’t have the latter brown and desiccated on your front door.  I’m just saying.

 

Let me preface this with mentioning I’ve raised two children, and looked after many others.  I realize that they ALL have bratty moments.  The kind that make you cringe, and wonder what you did wrong while you were bringing them up.  This regards the children that obviously rule the roost at home and make others miserable in public.  PARENTS!  Just because you pretend you don’t see or hear your child/children behaving horribly in public, doesn’t mean they aren’t misbehaving terribly and annoying everyone around them.  The worst part of all is that you are failing in your duties as a parent, and they will pay the price.  Think about it.

 

In the “What’s with men anyway?” department, here is something I’ve discussed with numerous other puzzled women folk.  Why do the same men who swing car parts, their own oversized toys and numerous other “important” stuff around with energetic abandon look at OUR suitcases when we travel and ask “Why do you need all of that?”.  As though it were hundreds of pounds of stuff we’ll never use, and they will have to rent a forklift to handle it.  Good grief.

 

There!  I’ve whined and now I feel better.  Time to go get done some of that never ending useful stuff that’s calling to me.  Have a good day ladies, but only if you feel like it!

 

The Balancing Act of Life

Friday, April 16th, 2010

 

Life is always a balancing act, isn’t it?  Much to be grateful for, but that worry list never seems to get shorter!  Will a much loved relative need painful surgery?  Will my chronically tired daughter who works too many hours and has classes start feeling better soon, or will I have to physically drag her to the Doctor?  Is my sister’s new job right for her and will it lead her to the full time work she needs?  Ditto for my BFF/Partner-in-Crime, Colleen.  Will my sinuses ever clear, or am I’m going to have to call in Rotor-Rooter?  Not to mention the return of the fashion trend of skinny jeans.  How can life be so cruel?  OK, so I’ve veered off into silly territory.  At least I didn’t assault the annoying woman in the bank today, despite the fact I briefly considered stuffing her cell phone up her nose.  I get points for that, don’t I ???