After we were yanked free of the culvert this morning, and spent the morning tending hungry goats and playing with newborn goat kids, we joined forces with the Eldest celebrating his 22nd today.
We went to Augusta and went to lunch in Hallowell at our favorite Chinese restaurant, Lucky Garden. The restaurant sits on posts along the banks of the Kennebec (wide water) River, an open post and beam high-ceiled room, with windows along three sides with expansive views of the River.
The posts are covered in hanging planters and trained vines of Golden Pothos, and the buffet is humble but was immediately refreshed with our favorites within minutes of our arrival.
The host greeted me by name, the waiter was a little incoherent so I had to translate for the kids. I was very pleased to be out on the town with my three beautiful children!
We also hit the Starbuck's counter at Barnes & Noble and the eldest had a chance to spend some of his birthday cash replacing some books he lost in a fire a few years ago.
An aspiring writer...two books by Bukowski and a nice hardcover Dictionary.
Cake at home afterwards-a lame store bought one, since our power was out and I couldn't bake him a scratch one in my electric oven. But I did have plenty of candles (and all the numbers but 2, of course) so 22 candles went on his cake, and I was worried the thing would melt before we could finish a refrain of "Happy Birthday, " so we sung it double-time.
We stayed up late the night before philosophizing by candlelite, he saying it was the type of light like sitting around a bonfire.
Cherish the moments.
"my memories are like smoke drifting around the room,
and when they dissipate as I try and grab them,
I think...
"it doesn't matter." "
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Yay Saturday
Happy April!
Mother Nature had such an Aprils Fool's joke in store for us that we didn't pull any tricks this year. No one I knew did, and that is the first year ever.
We had a blizzard. At least a foot of wet snow in six hours. Last Friday I was in a t-shirt. This Friday I took a ride to the bucks with a co-worker since he had a truck with four wheel-ed drive.The roads were scary. White Out conditions. I wished I hadn't made it to work, because now I had to get home.
The kids were sending reports via cell phone:
"A big tree fell and almost hit the house"
When you're my age you don't get too worked up about almos;, there's a lot of almost in your life...
Then, "The power went out."
Yes, the power was out 24 hours, and when I called the power company an hour later, and they started with Augusta (the state capital) and finished with Yarmouth (a southern town) and listed every town-but mine-alphabetically in between, I knew we would be out three days. So a nice surprise to be 26 hours.
However, when I tried to pull out the end of the driveway in the morning, the car kept spinning sideways, the big ditch and culvert inching closer. The snow was so wet and saturated the car just wanted to slide sideways.
Finally my prayers were answered, as a 4WD came down the road and I walked around pathetically clutching the snow shovel.
A neighbor I didn't know, he hooked on with a chain and yanked me out, and yes, the rear end did jump the ditch and clipped the mailbox-in-a-bucket-full-of-rocks (because this time last year someone broke my post, lol) but that was an easy -just tip the bucket back up, although mail didn't come today, lol.
***.Lots of baby goats at the farm, Lori delivered yesterday and went into labor in collar and chain in a blizzard. I kicked Lillemore out of her pen and set Lori up with the best leafy second cut hay in the loft and she _yumm-yumm-yummed mouthfuls of hay in between contractions, stretched out on her side and straining with no visible result.
All of us, except Boss, kept checking her, and her mother, Lois, tried to climb over the bars of the pen to get closer to little Lori during her labor. That was really impressive to see.
I was worried about complications the way she was straining,and being her first kidding, but we moved off to the Hill with Boss's encouragement not to stand over her (although I think Lori liked me and her Mom being there for her, lol) and when we came off the Hill, there was beautiful white Lori spattered with birth gore ,(chewing a mouthful of hay) and the biggest single grey buckling I have ever seen. He's as big as the two week old single doelings. He's a monster and he's beautiful and clever and of course he will be a great Champion! :)
The kids and I rented the Grown ups, I would talk about goats all night otherwise. I will have to get some pix up soon.
Mother Nature had such an Aprils Fool's joke in store for us that we didn't pull any tricks this year. No one I knew did, and that is the first year ever.
We had a blizzard. At least a foot of wet snow in six hours. Last Friday I was in a t-shirt. This Friday I took a ride to the bucks with a co-worker since he had a truck with four wheel-ed drive.The roads were scary. White Out conditions. I wished I hadn't made it to work, because now I had to get home.
The kids were sending reports via cell phone:
"A big tree fell and almost hit the house"
When you're my age you don't get too worked up about almos;, there's a lot of almost in your life...
Then, "The power went out."
Yes, the power was out 24 hours, and when I called the power company an hour later, and they started with Augusta (the state capital) and finished with Yarmouth (a southern town) and listed every town-but mine-alphabetically in between, I knew we would be out three days. So a nice surprise to be 26 hours.
However, when I tried to pull out the end of the driveway in the morning, the car kept spinning sideways, the big ditch and culvert inching closer. The snow was so wet and saturated the car just wanted to slide sideways.
Finally my prayers were answered, as a 4WD came down the road and I walked around pathetically clutching the snow shovel.
A neighbor I didn't know, he hooked on with a chain and yanked me out, and yes, the rear end did jump the ditch and clipped the mailbox-in-a-bucket-full-of-rocks (because this time last year someone broke my post, lol) but that was an easy -just tip the bucket back up, although mail didn't come today, lol.
***.Lots of baby goats at the farm, Lori delivered yesterday and went into labor in collar and chain in a blizzard. I kicked Lillemore out of her pen and set Lori up with the best leafy second cut hay in the loft and she _yumm-yumm-yummed mouthfuls of hay in between contractions, stretched out on her side and straining with no visible result.
All of us, except Boss, kept checking her, and her mother, Lois, tried to climb over the bars of the pen to get closer to little Lori during her labor. That was really impressive to see.
I was worried about complications the way she was straining,and being her first kidding, but we moved off to the Hill with Boss's encouragement not to stand over her (although I think Lori liked me and her Mom being there for her, lol) and when we came off the Hill, there was beautiful white Lori spattered with birth gore ,(chewing a mouthful of hay) and the biggest single grey buckling I have ever seen. He's as big as the two week old single doelings. He's a monster and he's beautiful and clever and of course he will be a great Champion! :)
The kids and I rented the Grown ups, I would talk about goats all night otherwise. I will have to get some pix up soon.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Vernal Equinox
Beautiful day out today! A couple days ago we had 65F in the shade, then flurries the next morning. Still getting below freezing at night.
Yesterday was the first day in ages I left the fire out all day.
My driveway collapsed. It ate a Jeep Wrangler. The passenger side axels and bumpers were resting on the still frozen driveway. The passenger tires were no where to be seen. There was water pouring under the driveway on that side; the top frozen layer gave way.
That was the worst case of stuck I ever saw anyone in my driveway. My Hay guy came over the next day with his 4WD pickup and a chain and I got to learn how to drive a standard in reverse, except the Jeep didn't budge.
Three jacks, digging, and chopping the frozen ground free of the tires, and digging two diversion trenches to try and drain the stream flowing through the tire rims away, and several more attempts and we got it out! Yay!
I really wanted to get pictures but the batteries for the camera were flat!
I found it extremely amusing that my driveway ate a 4WD Jeep Wrangler. Until I worked for two hours to help get it out.
Now I have an impassable driveway and I am parking my car halfway up. My road (not my driveway)is so bad, my neighbor came over and told me the postman, who drives an International 4WD, has refused to deliver mail on our road for the last 10 days.
The road commssioner is not taking any calls.
My car has 6 inches of clearance and patched brake and power steering lines, but I have to drive it or walk a mile. I have had it sideways twice and didn't slide in my car once all winter, but the mud is so deep it throws the car.
We had huge winds Friday and lost the power for a couple of hours. The neighbor came over to see if we had power. Thank goodness it came on just as darkness fell even though Willow had the candles and lamps lit.
We have bare ground in places, and 6-8 inches of snow in places. The plowed snowbank on the lawn is still 3 feet or so.
Happy Spring!
Yesterday was the first day in ages I left the fire out all day.
My driveway collapsed. It ate a Jeep Wrangler. The passenger side axels and bumpers were resting on the still frozen driveway. The passenger tires were no where to be seen. There was water pouring under the driveway on that side; the top frozen layer gave way.
That was the worst case of stuck I ever saw anyone in my driveway. My Hay guy came over the next day with his 4WD pickup and a chain and I got to learn how to drive a standard in reverse, except the Jeep didn't budge.
Three jacks, digging, and chopping the frozen ground free of the tires, and digging two diversion trenches to try and drain the stream flowing through the tire rims away, and several more attempts and we got it out! Yay!
I really wanted to get pictures but the batteries for the camera were flat!
I found it extremely amusing that my driveway ate a 4WD Jeep Wrangler. Until I worked for two hours to help get it out.
Now I have an impassable driveway and I am parking my car halfway up. My road (not my driveway)is so bad, my neighbor came over and told me the postman, who drives an International 4WD, has refused to deliver mail on our road for the last 10 days.
The road commssioner is not taking any calls.
My car has 6 inches of clearance and patched brake and power steering lines, but I have to drive it or walk a mile. I have had it sideways twice and didn't slide in my car once all winter, but the mud is so deep it throws the car.
We had huge winds Friday and lost the power for a couple of hours. The neighbor came over to see if we had power. Thank goodness it came on just as darkness fell even though Willow had the candles and lamps lit.
We have bare ground in places, and 6-8 inches of snow in places. The plowed snowbank on the lawn is still 3 feet or so.
Happy Spring!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Wednesday
It's been just about a week since I took the I131 treatment. The treatment takes 1-6 weeks to kill the thyroid. Usually in the interim patients continue with their anti-thyroid meds to prevent a spike in thyroid hormone as the dying thyroid releases the stored hormone.
As I had a rare reaction to the meds, I am not on any, and I am experiencing hyperthyroid symptoms. More muscular/neurological stuff, like back pain out of nowhere that turned into curl up in a ball stomach pains.
My back is still a little cranky this morning and an ankle is now protesting.
My brain is very scattered; I am having a hard time accomplishing anything but the must do's.
The total body fidgets are back.
Total exhaustion.
I am not even sure what the Dr.'s plan is. All I can remember was something about, "see you in six weeks."
I am not sure the natural methods will work when I go hypo, since technically there won't be a thyroid to stimulate. I will be on Thyroxine, I believe, so unless there is naturally occurring thyroxine I will be on pharmaceuticals. Even if there is natural thyroid hormone, if I took it that might effect my prescribed dose.
****
The roads here are a mess. We had about 3-4 feet of snow pack, then we had torrential rain and temps in the 40's for two days. There are orange cones and road barricades all over the place, from where the road flooded over and washed out the road, or turned to ice the night before as it was flooding, creating these crumbling iceburgs across the road in places.
Parts of my road, which is dirt, are nearly impassable without 4 wheel drive (which I don't have). As the top layer of road thawed, the water and muck stayed on top, making mire pits in low sections.
I'll have to take my camera out and get some pictures of a real Maine spring. :)
As I had a rare reaction to the meds, I am not on any, and I am experiencing hyperthyroid symptoms. More muscular/neurological stuff, like back pain out of nowhere that turned into curl up in a ball stomach pains.
My back is still a little cranky this morning and an ankle is now protesting.
My brain is very scattered; I am having a hard time accomplishing anything but the must do's.
The total body fidgets are back.
Total exhaustion.
I am not even sure what the Dr.'s plan is. All I can remember was something about, "see you in six weeks."
I am not sure the natural methods will work when I go hypo, since technically there won't be a thyroid to stimulate. I will be on Thyroxine, I believe, so unless there is naturally occurring thyroxine I will be on pharmaceuticals. Even if there is natural thyroid hormone, if I took it that might effect my prescribed dose.
****
The roads here are a mess. We had about 3-4 feet of snow pack, then we had torrential rain and temps in the 40's for two days. There are orange cones and road barricades all over the place, from where the road flooded over and washed out the road, or turned to ice the night before as it was flooding, creating these crumbling iceburgs across the road in places.
Parts of my road, which is dirt, are nearly impassable without 4 wheel drive (which I don't have). As the top layer of road thawed, the water and muck stayed on top, making mire pits in low sections.
I'll have to take my camera out and get some pictures of a real Maine spring. :)
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Congrats to the Firebird for winning a trophy for basketball!
So, I'm 50 hours into the radioactive iodine treatment. Although the only known side effect is a possible sore neck, I have been draggin butt and just got up from a three hour nap.
The tech said I was getting a good dose that will knock the thyroid out, so most likely I am looking at replacement hormone the rest of my life. Thanks Tonia, for the tip on the generic, after I took the pill I was thinking that I hope the meds over my loifetime weren't going to cost me an arm and a leg...figuratively speaking.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Wednesday
I go for my treatment tomorrow. I am a day behind, since Monday was a soppy wet snow supposed to turn to rain that made me not want to risk a wreck to drive to town to swallow the test pill.
So I took the test pill yesterday and went back for a scan today and go back tomorrow for the big dose.
I find it so ironic, ne, Karmic, that an anti-nuc greenie like myself is facing nuclear medicine. No hesitation. That or get knocked out and go under the knife and hope the surgeon is competent enough not to slice my vocal cords or the thymus gland. Nope, just swallow a pill. Not have a breast removed, or a limb amputated, or half my face taken away, it's just a pill. Or maybe two pills.
And a whole list of recommended precautions, apparently I could shed radiation from my saliva and stuff that comes out the other end, so I have to keep my eating utensils separate for a week, and throw out my toothbrush in a week, and wipe the phone off after I use it, and flush three times everytime I go...but the scientist in me wonders how to handle the volumes of drip that comes out my nose working outside in the cold? What about the tissues and gloves and yes, ok, shirtsleeves?
My favorite part, and I had the fellow from nuclear medicine giggling nervously along with me, is that I get a dr's note in case I try and cross international borders in the next month and set off the dirty bombs alert...lol. well, the geiger counter...
One most likely thing that will happen is that I will go hypothyroid and have to take a pill everyday for the rest of my life. But the meds I was taking came to 7 pills a day and crashed my white blood cells, so I guess I can happily take one a day forever to avoid that!
I suppose some comfort might be gained from hearing that George Bush senior and his wife Barbara both had this treatment for hyperthyroidism.
So I took the test pill yesterday and went back for a scan today and go back tomorrow for the big dose.
I find it so ironic, ne, Karmic, that an anti-nuc greenie like myself is facing nuclear medicine. No hesitation. That or get knocked out and go under the knife and hope the surgeon is competent enough not to slice my vocal cords or the thymus gland. Nope, just swallow a pill. Not have a breast removed, or a limb amputated, or half my face taken away, it's just a pill. Or maybe two pills.
And a whole list of recommended precautions, apparently I could shed radiation from my saliva and stuff that comes out the other end, so I have to keep my eating utensils separate for a week, and throw out my toothbrush in a week, and wipe the phone off after I use it, and flush three times everytime I go...but the scientist in me wonders how to handle the volumes of drip that comes out my nose working outside in the cold? What about the tissues and gloves and yes, ok, shirtsleeves?
My favorite part, and I had the fellow from nuclear medicine giggling nervously along with me, is that I get a dr's note in case I try and cross international borders in the next month and set off the dirty bombs alert...lol. well, the geiger counter...
One most likely thing that will happen is that I will go hypothyroid and have to take a pill everyday for the rest of my life. But the meds I was taking came to 7 pills a day and crashed my white blood cells, so I guess I can happily take one a day forever to avoid that!
I suppose some comfort might be gained from hearing that George Bush senior and his wife Barbara both had this treatment for hyperthyroidism.
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