Monday, November 24, 2014

Sigh......

The other day, while driving to down I-5 through Seattle, I saw a good number of rigs, presumably heading south for the winter. Was I jealous or was I envious?  Accordingly to Wikipedia, and I quote:

"Envy" and "jealousy" are often used interchangeably in common usage, but the words stand for two distinct emotions.[1] Jealousy is the result or fear of losing someone or something that one is attached to or possesses to another person (the transfer of a lover's affections in the typical form), while envy is the resentment caused by another person having something that one does not have, but desires for oneself.

It appears that I am envious....but not really.  I don't feel resentment towards those of you that are already headed out.  But dang, I wish I was one of you.

The repair work on the trailer continues.  I stay out of it, and I'm doing my best not to nag.  In fact, I have agreed not to nag/panic until January 31st.  God help me! As it is,  I am starting to get tired of whining about the situation anyway, and have been looking for other outlets to occupy my time.

First up, get the doctor appointments out of the way.  Whoopie!  I thought I may be looking at bunion surgery, and if so, we wouldn't be able to leave for 8 weeks anyway.  Might as well get that over with.  Then perhaps I can resume walking, and maybe even take up easy hikes.  I read so many blogs and see so many gorgeous photos that people take on hikes - I want to see those scenes too. A swollen, throbbing foot has kept me from doing things like this in the past (not to mention that I am totally out of shape), but if I take care of the bunion, maybe I will be able to do some of those things.  However, it turned out that it was going to end up being reconstructive surgery.  Apparently, my proximal phalanx has started to slide off the first metatarsal, which would require realignment of the big toe, complete with metal plate and screws.  That part I could handle.  Also, there was the 6-8 weeks in a cast, putting no pressure on the foot at, using crutches, a walker and/or a scooter.  Even that I could handle.  The part that made me say, "Maybe later," was no showering for 6-8 weeks.  Well, one could shower, if you had a hand held shower head and a shower stall big enough to hold a shower chair and a 5 gallon bucket on which to prop the casted foot.  The only shower in our house that could possibly accommodate that is downstairs, and I would not be able to go down the stairs (or rather I could go down, but I could not go back up).  I just could not do sponge baths and sink shampoos for 6 weeks and be a happy camper.  Plus, I would be looking at 4-6 weeks of physical therapy afterward.  Nope, it ain't gonna work.  Although I do have to say, I will now be more open to a full sized shower if and when we buy a new 5th wheel.  The salesmen always look at me funny when I'm not impressed with full sized showers in a rig.  I'm 5'3" and my husband is 5'6" - we aren't that big - and I'd rather have more cupboard space than a tub sized shower......At least that was what I thought until I heard about what is involved in the recovery process of this bunion surgery.  I guess Aleve and I will be good friends for the next few years.  The pain is really only higher than a 5 out of 10 when the barometer sudden drops or when I've been on my feet for a long time.

The eye doctor appointment revealed that I am still seeing 20/20 or better, two years post-cataract surgery.  I'm so glad I had it done.

In the meantime, I've wanted to take up painting.  I started with watercolors and wasn't happy, so I switched to acrylics.  I've made some progress.  I have never painted before.  And I doubt anyone would call me artistically inclined, but I'm watching You Tube videos and I've done a few pieces that make me smile.







Do you paint?  Do you have any You Tube videos or other sources you would recommend.  I'm obviously a beginner and would welcome any guidance.  Maybe I'll try painting some scenes reminiscent of Arizona, Nevada and Southern Utah.  I'd like to give up the envy and be happy right where I am.