MY NEW COMPUTER HAS SHIPPED!I was very happy to get an e-mail

MY NEW COMPUTER HAS SHIPPED!

I was very happy to get an e-mail from Dell yesterday telling me that my computer has shipped and should be here on Wednesday, 7/16! That is much earlier than I had expected! I am hoping that one of my sons, J.D. or Jeff, will be able to hook it up for me soon. Then it's a matter of learning to use Vista. I plan to check out the inexpensive tutorial that an earlier anonymous commenter mentioned and see about ordering it today.

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I heard from my podiatrist this morning (which was nice of him) not to worry about the coloration I was concerned about, and that everything sounds fine. He said that if I had any more concerns, to call Monday. I don't think I do. So hopefully the gross entries are all behind me now! ;-)

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I got my work done this morning in 1 1/2 hours -- faster than I expected -- after having worked an hour last night. The weekend is now mine to be on the computer, read, or watch my movie.

GOOD NEWS (I THINK)I had an e-mail from my doctor today, and

GOOD NEWS (I THINK)

I had an e-mail from my doctor today, and I believe that everything is okay with my toe. I think that the nurse misspoke or that I misunderstood her Wednesday when she talked about the discoloration, and from what the doctor said, it was okay that it be gone by the time I removed the bandage 2 hours later, although I have sent him a return e-mail just to verify that. I probably won't hear from him again until Monday evening to be sure, but he didn't order me to Urgent Care, and I'm sure he would have if he had been at all concerned!

One other matter that we discussed at the appointment Wednesday was the fate of my right big toenail, which he had removed last summer, although temporarily. He asked me if it bothered me and I said it seemed sensitive, so we discussed removing it permanently later on, maybe this fall. I realized when I got home, though, that it's the tip of that toe that's sensitive, where the toenail hasn't entirely grown in yet. My verdict on permanent removal of that one: Not in this lifetime! LOL!

I am relieved to be having little or no pain, although I am wearing socks and sandals as I can't wear my runners for another 10 days. My doctor wasn't crazy about the idea of my wearing sandals because he said every child and grandmother would be stepping on that toe, but when I got home and read the instructions, it said to wear clean, white cotton socks and clean shoes. I was able to dig out and wash white cotton socks but clean shoes? I don't think so. LOL! I would have had to go buy some and that would have been painful right now. So sandals it is and I'm staying away from people as much as I can for the next while.

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I was quite riveted to the NW Newschannel last night as they were focusing on the local news in Spokane, which was covering a big fire in the Spokane Valley, near where I went to my last year of junior high and high school. I had to wonder if any of my old classmates had stayed in that area and been affected. One of the roads in the middle of the fire area was Dishman-Mica, and I went to Dishman Junior High. The Red Cross had set up a relief area at University High School, which was my high school's old rival (and not that far from me; I think I lived near the borderline). Today it looked like the fire was under control but 7 homes were lost, which is sad.

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I will be working much of the weekend, and that is all right with me. I read a lot yesterday and today, although I can't remember the name of the book right off. It is the first novel of a Korean-American young woman. I also have a movie to watch sometime this weekend. I will be on the computer off and on, you can bet, thanks to Jeff!

MMMMM . . . STRAWBERRIES!

MMMMM . . . STRAWBERRIES!

My daughter-in-law Kris came over yesterday and installed non-slip material on my front steps, plus left me a jar of strawberries from her and son J.D.'s garden. I didn't hear her due to being upstairs next to the air conditioner, but I came down later and found that she had been here. The front steps now look like this:



Great job, Kris, and will make it so that no one will slip on the slippery steps, especially in winter, and sue me!

The strawberries were lovely. I nibbled on them all day and then in the evening I cut the last of them up and ate them with Equal and 1% milk (a diabetic's treat). Here are a couple of shots of the berries.





Somewhat earlier, son Jeff had come down and done away with a bunch of thistles out by my garage. Online friend Andree commented yesterday that she wondered what kind of thistles they were, so I found one in a different area of my place and took this picture of it:



I do not like them, the stickery things!

Thank you to both Kris and Jeff for their assistance yesterday!!

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Someone else that I had meant to mention, who was a big help to me on Wednesday, was a cashier named Rachel at the Fred Meyer store in Canby. I was quite sore when I went through her line because of my earlier physical therapy and I had a lot of items in my cart. She was very cheerful, friendly and still professional. She said this was her first job of the day; that she would be shopping and then going to her second. We talked about working and how it was like the old commercial where the baker said it was "time to make the donuts." I was much happier for having been through her line, and after I got home, a bit later in the day, I found on the receipt that Fred Meyer had a web site and I went there. I found a place in which to make comments and I did so, thanking the store and Rachel for the good service that day. I have never done that before but I felt it was very much deserved. I gave them the information for getting back to me but in my comment I said it wasn't really necessary. I think I would have been embarrassed, actually. But if you see Rachel at the Canby Fred Meyer, tell her "hi" for me. :-)

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I tried to start reading Stephen Colbert's "I am America (and so can you!)" a couple of days ago. Colbert is clever but I am afraid I don't share his sense of humor. I am ready to give the book away. J.D. and Kris, do you want it?

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I am blogging earlier than usual today because it is a working weekend. Right now, I need to go make the donuts. ;-)

THERE'S NO WAY TO QUIT USING THE ARM . . .. . . unless I put

THERE'S NO WAY TO QUIT USING THE ARM . . .

. . . unless I put it in a sling, and I have too many things I have to do that use both arms. I guess I have resigned myself to having to deal with the soreness, icing it down once in a while and taking 1/2 of one of the few Vicodin I have left if it gets too bad.

I have considered e-mailing my doctor but then I remember that I lifted some things yesterday that likely irritated the right upper deltoid that hurts and I also did a lot of filing last night at my business. It's amazing how that bit of grunt work with its repetitive action can exacerbate the pain, which then radiates down my arm to my hand and up higher, to my shoulder. Today it's been getting Mexican chicken into the crockpot to cook, putting away clean dishes from the dishwasher, and doing loads of laundry. Easy enough stuff, eh? To which I answer: Believe me, getting old isn't for wimps! ;-)

As my friend Greg commented on yesterday's post, it also may have been the laser sword fighting with grandson Alex that made it flare up again when I was visiting his family almost a week ago. -G- It doesn't take much, it seems! (However, Alex is pretty big and strong for a 7-year-old -- I was amazed at the force he could put into his laser sword dueling!)

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I have broken down and temporarily abandoned my resolve to not turn on the propane heater. With the weather outside being in the upper 50's, I felt I needed to set the thermostat to 65 degrees F in order to be able to tolerate being downstairs at all. I have also turned on the electric heater here in the office. This weather is crazy!

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I signed up for fraud alerts through my credit card and on Monday, just a couple of minutes after I placed a photo print order with my favorite online digital photo developing company, I had a phone call from the credit card fraud alert department, triggered partly, I'm sure, by the fact that the charge was so low. It was no problem to okay it and I'd rather be notified and have the charge be all right than not be notified if there actually was a fraudulent charge made to the credit card.

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I have been feeling bad for Ted Kennedy and I have meant to mention that here. I have not always been that crazy about his political stands but I wouldn't wish a malignant brain tumor on him or anyone. He is in my prayers.

NO LONGER UPWARDLY

NO LONGER UPWARDLY MOBILE

It has been quite a day, with two doctor appointments this afternoon, and I truly dislike going to the doctor!

The first one brought good news, that I am going to be able to taper off my expensive medication without having to buy any more. I learned today that it has been found to not only cause a craving for carbs but also to affect cholestrol, especially triglycerides.

My doctor at that appointment, however, was concerned about the fact that I had hurt my right upper arm/shoulder area yesterday and that I am unable to lift the arm beyond straight out. She felt that I should either arrange to get it checked or get a prescription for something stronger than what I had at home (mainly Naproxen).

I was able to get an appointment in an hour with a doctor at the other Kaiser clinic in Salem, and there I learned that I have injured my deltoid muscle. (I know I did that yesterday, lifting too much out of the trunk at once after shopping for mostly canned goods at Costco.) I am not to lift my arm upward for a week. There was talk of a sling but I opted not to use one. I will remember not to lift my arm up, I'm quite sure, unless the Vicodin I got kills the pain enough that I forget. I also had high blood pressure; I have to go back again in a week to get that re-checked.

This will affect some of my work. I will have to put off filing until next week, and as I expect a stack of it, I will probably work on it Thursday and over the weekend as well as next Wednesday evening. I will play it by ear on the trip to Costco next week. If we just need light stuff and I unload it gradually, I should be all right.

I am going to keep some of my dishes down on the counter rather than try to reach up for them with both hands, and I will be very careful doing the laundry tomorrow. Dressing and undressing will require special care, as well.

This getting old and out of shape is the pits! I just need to remember that there are things I cannot do, and make sure that I don't act like I'm 20 years younger than I am.

I think I can type okay for the most part but I will likely take that easy, too. It takes more than an injured deltoid to keep me from blogging and e-mailing!