Life in Covid 19Times

I wrote this 2 weeks ago but for some reason it didn't go through. I'm publishing it late; oops.

My Dad is singing in the bathtub.  He's 80 years old and has COPD.  He worked at the Algoma Steel Plant all of his life, in horrible conditions.  He was born in a small town in Austria during WW2 and remembers his family's struggle to keep food on the table.  His older sisters had to hide in the attic so they wouldn't be raped by German soldiers.

My 75 year old Mom is downstairs, watching the news.  She was born in Canada, after the war, but her family also struggled with money. She remembers having only one doll as a child, but she didn't have it long as an older, jealous cousin speared it with a hot poker from the fireplace.  Later, as a teen, she had one roller skate, and said she loved that roller skate so much. Mom is a 2 time cancer survivor.  She is tough.

I am 55, and have had severe chronic asthma since I was a baby.  I've had pneumonia so many times.  I used to be a teacher, but could no longer teach after being assaulted by a teenaged special needs student, who almost broke my neck.  It took me 3 months of recovery to be well enough to go to physical therapy, 6 months of physio to be able to turn my head side to side, or raise my arm, and another 6 months to get back to almost normal.  I still have pain in my neck and limited mobility when I try to turn my head to the left, years later.

We've all dealt with our issues and carried on, but now it seems we are all at risk due to the new corona virus, Covid 19.

I took it seriously from the start and have been self isolating.  My parents only started taking things more seriously this week, after Ontario shut down everything except for essential services.  They still think it's OK to go to the grocery store or pharmacy every day.  My Mom likes to go for a walk in the mall every day, but now that almost everything is closed she is walking outside, which for now we are told is still OK.

Yesterday I went for a walk in my neighborhood.  There were only a few other people out and we all gave eachother a wild berth, not walking closely to one another.  Except for one young guy on a bike who was weaving his bike all around the road and onto both sidewalks, coughing away.  I think he thought it was funny.  It wasn't.

I live in my family home.  Every time I see my parents, I wonder how much longer they'll be with me.  I wonder if I'll remember that my Dad likes to sing in the tub, and while he vacuums. That he likes to cook.

I'm trying to hoarde memories, in case I need them.

I am worried. I hope I'm overreacting, but I've read so many dystopian novels and watched so many post apocalyptic movies that I am having a very hard time seeing how things can get better.

I am also a writer, with a vivid imagination. If I were writing this, in future chapters things would get worse.  Health care workers would contact the disease and be unable to work.  People would start dying from things that they would normally have survived because the health care system is broken.  The workers who package and deliver our foods would get sick and there would be riots over food and medicine.  I am glad I'm not writing this and I hope with all my heart that I am wrong.

That people will be peaceful and cooperate and things will get better.

But I don't see that happening.

I hope that if anyone is reading this, that you are safe, and healthy, and that your family is safe and healthy too.

I'm writing this mostly for me, to document my feelings right now.

Happy New Year 2020!!!

It's 2020!  Happy New Year!

Y2K was 20 years ago!  

1970 was 50 years ago!

How crazy is that, lol?

When I was a little girl, my best friend and I wondered if we'd even still be alive in the year 2000 (we weren't good at math, lol), and now it's 2020.  Wow!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas season, or Hannukah, or Kwanza...whatever holiday you celebrate, I hope it was happy.

I have spent so much time with my extended family it's crazy, lol.  Every night we'd gather at a different house...same people.  Today is the last official family gathering as everyone is coming here for supper.  Here we all are, at my 93 year old Uncle Buck's house last night (except for my Dad who took the photo below).

And here's Dad and my cousin Stan.  It was a small gathering last night because everyone is all peopled out, but at Christmas Eve there were about 25 people in that small house, lol.  

I got an Oculus Go Virtual Reality headset for Christmas and my 75 year old Mom and my 80 year old Dad love it.  My 93 year old uncle is coming for supper and wants to try it, so that should be fun.

I also got an instant pot for Christmas and am looking forward to making Keto friendly dishes.  But today, I may just try the New York cheese cake recipe, lol.

I just wanted to pop in to say Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas 2019

Merry Christmas Everyone!

This was the LAST Christmas of the Decade...

Isn't that hard to believe?

I hope you all had a nice holiday season.  I had a wonderful time with family and friends.  My parents bought an amazing blue spruce tree; it's huge!  Check it out:

Mom and Dad enjoyed opening their gifts, and were very happy with everything I bought them, but were also mad because they thought I spent too much, lol.  My Mom is hard to buy for and doesn't want anything, so I mostly got her clothes.  I bought her 5 new tops, 2 pairs of pajamas, socks, lol, and some lotions and creams and household items.  Here's Mom with some of her gifts:

Dad's main gift was a Aerogarden Harvest, which is a hydroponic grow light set up.   

It came with a set of herb pods, but I also bought him the lettuce seed pods.  He decided to plant the herb pods first.  We set everything up yesterday after supper, because the lights are super bright so we're using them to basically light up the kitchen and entrance hall, lol.  The lights will be on all night so we won't have to use any other lights. 

Here's Dad with his brand new Aerogarden Harvest.  It's so bright, lol.

Here are the seed pods, planted on Dec. 27th at around 7 PM.   It will be exciting to see how quickly they sprout.

The pets also enjoyed their Christmas.  Smokey, my African Grey Parrot, opened her gifts under the tree.  She tried to open our gifts too.  She has been opening gifts under the tree for 30 years now, so she is a pro, lol.

Dasha the dwarf hamster also enjoyed her gifts.  She decided to sit on one of her treats while she ate another.  I cracked up laughing when I saw these pictures, as she is totally using the green pretzel treat as a little sitting stool, lol.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday too!

Merry Christmas!

13 Days until RNY Gastric Bypass (Weight Loss Surgery)

Hi Guys!

Sorry I have been AWOL; I had to fly to Toronto a week and a half ago for a Pre-Op appointment with my surgeon and his team.

I originally was going to drive but we have a LOT of snow:

So I wimped out and booked a (super crazy expensive) last minute flight to Toronto.

I left on Sunday Jan. 8th; my Dad drove me to the airport, lucky me, as I hate driving when it's snowing and blowing. I flew home on Thursday Jan. 12th, and was lucky enough to be able to stay with family and friends while in the Toronto area.  I stayed with my ex sister in law and friend, Leslie, her Mom, and my gorgeous nieces and nephew.

Dad at the airport

Clary doing her homework

Lexi and Clare

Lexi, Clare, Chris, Leslie, and Sandy

Max

Chris and Max

It was so nice to spend time with everyone again; it had been almost 5 years since I saw them last.

My first night there, they ordered yummy exotic food that I've never tried.  Shwarma and other things.  It was quite good.  My favorites were the fries with some sort of cheese and dip, and the wrap.  We watched a movie on Netflix and just took it easy while we caught up with one another.

They go to bed early; the teens are in bed by 10 and the adults go to bed at 11 so that was a surprise, and difficult for me to adjust to as I'm normally up until about 3 AM, lol.  I ended up taking an ativan to help me sleep, and just when I had fallen asleep, the fire alarm went on.  And on, and on.  We had to walk down 5 flights of stairs to the lobby, where a fireman instructed us to go down another hall, which was crazy as that hall was smokey and I have asthma.  We ended up sitting in the van with the heat blaring for about an hour or more before we were allowed back in.  Some jerk had tossed a lit cigarette down the garbage shute!

There was a blizzard on the day of my pre-op meeting, Jan. 10th.  I couldn't believe it!  First a fire, then a blizzard, lol.  Luckily, it was a Toronto blizzard, which looked like a typical Sault Ste. Marie snow fall.  We didn't have to go on the highways, thank God, and the drive to the hospital was short, only 10 or 15 minutes.  It was snowing and blowing a bit but not too bad.  

My pre-op meeting went well and my surgeon, Dr. David Lindsay, could be on the cast of Grey's Anatomy; he's THAT good looking.  So much so, that after I met with him, the nurse asked what I thought, and I told her he seemed very nice, and competent.  She said, "And handsome?"  I cracked up laughing and told her they have their very own Dr. McDreamy. She said "everyone says that!".  LOL.

The whole team was very nice and very kind, and the anesthesiologist was another cast member from Grey's Anatomy; very handsome.   At the end of all of my appointments I was given 3 weeks worth of Optifast 900, a high protein diet.  I had to take them out of their boxes and they barely fit in my suitcase:

Optifast, my diet for 3 weeks!

I'll do a separate post about Optifast, but suffice to say, today is Day 9 and I'm doing great!  I'm down some weight too.

My Dad picked me up again after my flight came in and I was astonished to see we've had even more snow.  Regardless, it was good to be home.

Back yard.

Street facing West.

Street facing East.

Christmas Day 2016

We had a nice quiet Christmas this year.

It started with my little dog Benji waking me up at 3 AM, 3:30 AM, and 4 AM because he wanted to open his presents, lol.

Benji in the early hours of Christmas Morning, wanting his presents.

 I managed to get him to go back to sleep until morning. I was pleasantly surprised that he even noticed it was Christmas because he is 16 and a half years old, is partially blind and deaf and sleeps most of the day. 

Benji diving head first into one of his gift bags.

 Ben was very happy when he was finally allowed to get at his gifts, lol.  He looked adorable in his new Santa sweater.

 My Dad complained that he had too many gifts to open.

 But he seemed to appreciate them.

 The toque I crocheted for him was a bit big but fit OK.  Dad picked out the pattern and colors himself. Just about everything he owns is either blue, grey, or red, lol.

 Mom opened her presents under the tree while Benji looked on.

 She really liked the purple top.

 I opened my gifts last.  My main gift was my new exercise bike, but I also got two cute hoodies, a watch, some bath oils and creams, and loads of chocolate.

Dad and Ben

Smokey opening gifts under the tree

 Smokey enjoyed opening her gifts.  She shredded the small gift bag to get at the toy inside.

Smokey with her new musical guitar toy

We had a lovely day, and a wonderful dinner later on.  It was weird not having my Uncle Buck with us, but he had shingles and felt awful so had to stay home. It was our first Christmas without him since I was born 52 years ago, and probably longer than that (I'd have to ask my Mom).

Christmas Eve 2016

I can't believe Christmas is over, and it's already the new year.  I hope you all had a lovely holiday, whichever holiday you celebrate.

We had a white Christmas!  I was very glad my Dad did the driving when we went out to family Christmas Parties.

Lots of fluffy white snow.

 One of my favorite Christmas traditions is decorating the tree.  My Dad is always in charge of putting the lights on the tree.

 Mom and I decorated most of the rest but we were both too short to reach the top branches, even while standing on a chair, so had to call my Dad back to help.

 Dad brought the stepladder in to help out, lol.

Mom and Dad decorating the tree

Christmas tree, 2016

The tree, an 8 foot Fir tree, looked and smelled wonderful.

Mom, Dad, and Aunt Erna

We went to visit my Dad's sister, Erna, on Christmas Eve, and then we went to my Uncle Buck's. 

Mom and Dad baking

We  also had to bake extra Tie Plates (Pizelles) because we ate them all, lol. They're my favorite Christmas cookie.

Thanksgiving with family

I am so behind on my blog that I"m posting Thanksgiving pictures in December...and we have Thanksgiving in October here in Canada, lol.  Oh well.

Steve and Dad

 Steve and Shirley came in from Ottawa and stayed for the weekend.

Mom, Steve Dad

Steve, Shirley, Mom and Dad

Benji in the stroller.

 I took Benji for a walk before dinner.

Mom and DAd

 Mom and Dad were busy in the kitchen, and Mom hates having anyone else in there so there's no way to help, until later, when it's time to clean up, lol.

Mom and Dad

Steve, Buck, Carlo, and Linda

 We had turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, turnips, cranberries, salad, fresh hot rolls, and I think green beans.  It was delish.

Shirley's birthday brownies

 Shirley was turning 50 the following week so my Mom surprised her with her favorite, brownies, and we all sang.

Pies

 For desert we had fresh fruit, home made pies:  apple pie, cream pie, lemon pie, plus a store bought pumpkin pie.  Shirley did not share her brownies, lol.

 Uncle Buck had a hard time because he was missing Cobie. 

 After dinner everyone was stuffed so we moved to the comfy chairs in the living room for drinks and coffee.  Dad is sitting on Benji's favorite chair, which is why it's covered with a sheet.  Ben just sat on Dad instead, lol.

Everyone had a good time and nobody wanted to leave, until finally Steve stood up and said, "I'm going to bed; get the hell out!" at 11 PM, lol.  That ended the party.