Wednesday, July 20, 2011

One Day in Our Lives

Mr. Fixit came through his surgery without a problem. The doctor had said that the procedure would take about an hour and a half. He was finished in less than an hour. When Mr. Fixit woke up, his color was good, and he was very alert. When he had a test under general anesthesia recently, he had a hard time waking up and he was ashen. It scared me a little.

After I brought him home I had to go to the pharmacy to get his pain medication. The doctor said to be sure that he took it on schedule. When I gave the prescription to our regular pharmacist, he said they were out of the product. This is not an unusual item.  I couldn’t believe it. The pharmacist said he could order it for me. I took the prescription back and explained that Mr. Fixit just had out-patient surgery and he needed it now, not tomorrow. I had it filled at the grocery store.

He walked down the stairs for breakfast this morning, but he didn’t stay up very long. He was told that a little walking the first couple of days would minimize swelling.

About 7:00 pm I was lying on the bed reading and I fell asleep. When I woke up I thought the clock read 4:45; I usually wake up about that time. I noticed that the sky wasn’t completely black, and I realized the shades were up. My first thought was, “I must had undressed with the shades up.” When I stood up, I saw that I was completely dressed. What was going on? I was completely discombobulated! It took me a few minutes to pull myself together and see the clock read 9:50 pm. Okay, I remembered that I had been reading and the sun was still shining when I dropped off to sleep. I got up and went down to the kitchen to take my medication. I turned on the television and put it on PBS looking for “Poirot” which comes on Saturday nights. It wasn’t on. I started flipping channels and saw “NCIS–LA.” I thought they were moving their programming around again. Then I realized that it wasn’t Saturday—it was Tuesday. What a weird feeling—out of step in time completely.

I’m blaming stress instead of thinking it was one of those senior moments.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Baseball in the Heat and Humidity

Yesterday we drove to Charleston, SC to see Cole’s Showcase team play in a tournament. It lasts all week, but Sunday was the only day we could go. (Mr. Fixit has some out-patient surgery tomorrow. I don’t think he will be up to making the 3 /12 to 4 hour trip after the surgery.)

We were lucky; it was hot, but not as hot as I expected. The last time we were there it was horrible. I wasn’t looking forward to the trip at all.  The temp was in the mid to upper 80’s and, of course, the humidity was up there. The breeze made it a little more comfortable. I complain about the heat and humidity but those poor boys don’t get the sit under the canopy in the shade and drink cool drinks.

He has one more tournament for the summer session, and I think it’s closer to home, thank goodness. I’m to old to make these long daytrips, plus sitting through a double header in the heat.

I’ll be glad when Fall Ball starts!

Thursday, July 14, 2011

Hibiscus Flower

hibiscus 003

This is the first flower on a hibiscus plant that Mr. Fixit ordered from a gift catalog. It measures about 7” across.  He bought three plants for $3.00. The other plants have buds but haven’t bloomed yet. Each one is supposed to be a different color.

This is the best buy he’s made from any of the gift catalogs he just can’t resist.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Tip of the Day

This “Tip of the Day” comes from my experience using the downstairs bathroom for showers. I had a few close calls in the upstairs bathroom when the rubber bath mat inside the tub began slipping for no apparent reason (even the new one I purchased slipped).
The shower stall downstairs has a built in seat. I never used the seat to sit on; I use it to put my feet on to  wash them. The other day after lathering my feet and rinsing them, I decided to sit on the little seat to shave my legs (TMI?).
Tip: If you have this convenience (a seat) in your shower, do NOT attempt to sit on it until you have rinsed the soap from it. The minute I sat down I started to slip off. Only my lightning quick reflexes the grace of God saved me from landing flat of my derriere and breaking my tail bone.
NOTE to Shower Manufacturers: Maybe you could put the non-slip surface that you use on the floor of the shower on the seat so that shower-takers won’t break any body parts.

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The outdoor temperature is 96 degrees. The heat index is 106 degrees. It's so hot it hurts.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Crepe Myrtles

The crepe myrtles are gorgeous this year. The colors are vivid, and the branches are covered in blooms (except mine). The ones at our local Wal-mart are outstanding. They are a deep, bright red.

Walmart crepe l 003

(As usual, click on photo for more detail.)

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Baseball

Yesterday was baseball day. We left the house to 11:15 am and returned at 8:30 pm. Cole's showcase team played 2 games, and Noah's All-Star tournament game began at 6:00 pm.

Even though we were under our canopy during Cole's double header, it was unbearably hot. By the time we arrived at park for Noah's game, it was cloudy. We didn't need to set up the canopy again and it was a bit cooler, but it was still very, very uncomfortable.

I think the summer schedules for all the boys are almost finished. Noah has only this tournament to finish (we have a game at 4:00 pm this afternoon) and Cole has a big tournament in Charleston coming up. We probably won't be able to attend that one, Mr. Fixit has surgery scheduled for July 19th.

I'm glad baseball is almost over. Playing and practicing in this heat is hard on the players, and it even harder for their old grandmothers. But I look forward to Fall Ball when the temps drop below 90 sometimes.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Water Towers - Sports

Bull Dogs of Hartwell, Ga.


Green Wave, Easley, S. C.
(Cole's Team)

Bobcats, Seneca, S.C.


Clemson University Tigers, Clemson, SC.
(There are tiger paws everywhere.)

Ty Cobb Museum, Royston, Ga.
(Click on  photo for detail.)