HAPPY HALLOWEEN 2022

I handed out candy to a few kids tonight. It is 8:30 and I haven't seen a kid in awhile so I packed it in. I live in a small street and I was the only home giving out candy. Next door the renters were giving out candy for awhile but I heard them leave. I was the only house decorated. It is sad because I love Trick-or-treaters but none of the other houses participate. My house is all lit up with lights in the window and a big light up spider web on the front door with a giant spider. I have a light up pumpkin on my porch. All the other houses are dark. 

I gave out vegan, peanut free, non-GMO, all fruit and vegetable flavoring and coloring, no high fructose candy. It tastes really good. There are gummies and Skittles type things and lollipops. One parent was really pleased when I told her. She works for a tofu company. 

I dressed Lucky up as a bat. She looked so cute. 

Lucky went to the park today with the dog walker for the first time since her episode (that's what we call when she got sick and fell over). He said she did good for the first hour but then she went in the car and slept. She got tired. He said she was slower than before the episode (BE). Also he said she was less enthusiastic than BE. Less excited. He thinks she is scared one of the other dogs will knock her over. It all makes sense. She got a big scare. She came home and fell fast asleep. But she woke up for the Trick-or-treaters!  I gave her a dose of cough medicine to see if that helps with her congestion. I was supposed to do it days ago but I kept forgetting and I have to feed her a bit before I give it to her. It's a whole thing and timing is key. Tonight was perfect. Let's hope it helps her congestion. She is scheduled to go again next Monday. 

Until tomorrow...

TUSCAN KALE SOUP

 I made some great soup today.Tuscan Kale Soup. I used Chard instead of kale. I swapped around some other items because I have to make a soup I like.  It is really good. 

I am starting to get an eye problem. I get these eye problems because I do not make tears and have dry eye. I went to get my solution and it expired two years ago. I have to get more ordered tomorrow. I tried to get something’s done today:read my book, invoice clients. I did a little of each. 

I’m just super fatigued. I got into bed at 8 pm. 

Until tomorrow…

DAY TWO HUNDRED THIRTY-TWO OF VEGAN COOKING COURSE

 I am back working on my vegan cooking course. If you are paying attention, there are a bunch of numbers missing on my title count. During my Staycation, I did not write the count of what day I was on for the cooking course when I made all those cheeses.

Today I started the Vegan Raw Desserts chapter. It is set up differently than the other chapters. The other chapters give you an overview and then a break down of different recipes with corresponding videos showing you how to make them. Some are even dishes or meals with all the steps laid out. 

This chapter has a few recipes but they are only on the video. There is no corresponding written recipe with the video. There is a handout that has some recipes but also different ideas. Example: mini cake can be made with pecans or hazelnuts. It can be topped with caramel, fruit jam, or glazed. It can be filled with jam, caramel, compote. You get the picture? They give me many options rather than one recipe to follow. 

I wanted to start out slow so I made Dark Chocolate Mini Cakes with Caramel Drizzle. It would have been really good had I had vanilla ice cream. It tastes like an amazing brownie with decadent caramel on top. It was fun to make and now I have more confidence to make another dessert. 

I had a very lovely phone call from a friend, took Lucky for a walk, took a bath, and watched TV. Oh and I deleted a ton of old email!! Clean out the clutter. 

Until tomorrow...

FLU SHOT BUT NO PNEUMONIA SHOT

 Today was my scheduled flu and pneumonia shots. I arrived early for my shots when it was explained to me that they had no record of me having a pneumonia shot previously. The pneumonia shots build on each other. First you get a lower numbered one then you get a higher numbered one. I swear I got a pneumonia shot years ago but my doctors office has no record of it. I had to wait around while offices were called and discussions were held. In the end I was told I should wait and only get the flu shot. I got my flu shot and went home. 

I took Lucky for a walk and ordered Chinese food for dinner. 

I think a flare is coming on. We shall see. 

Until tomorrow…

TWO T-SHIRTS

My very nice brother sent me two t-shirts from Walt Disney World. One had a Mickey Pride (rainbow colored Mickey) and the other was the Millennium Falcon. I love them both. It was a nice surprise. 

I know some people have a problem with Disney but I love Disney. Not so much Disney Land.  I go to Disney World every chance I get. I have a part of a drawer that is just Disney shirts. My Disney shirts are Mickey and never Minnie. Not very feminine shirts and no pink or green. Definitely no princesses! 

I had a long day working. I had a situation where I had a task to do and another person did the task but didn't tell me. I ended up wasting my time. I hate that. No communication. 

Until tomorrow...

INSPECTION

This morning was my termite inspection. I was up early and ready when he got here. Unfortunately I forgot to notify my neighbor that today was the day (I told him it was happening but forgot to remind him) so I didn't organize access to his yard to see the side of my house. I ended up having to call him at 9:00 am and ask him to open the gate. He was super nice about it. I think I owe him cookies. 🙄 

The inspection didn't find any sign of termites on my property. That is great! It did show termites on my neighbor's property when we went to check my house. His fence is being eaten. 🦟 I texted him a photo of the damage. I know wait for the inspection report and decide what I want to do moving forward.

That's pretty much the highlight of my day. I took lucky for two walks and she's doing great.

Until tomorrow...

NOT CHANGING MY MEDICINE

 I went to see my new Rheumatoid Arthritis doctor. I really liked her when I met her virtually. We got on great. Today when I saw her in person I got another vibe from her. Maybe she was having a bad day? I don't know. I am going to see her again in December and I am going to see if she is the same way. 

My labs came through and everything was in the good range. That is fairly typical for me. Especially during COVID since I am alone most days and masked all the time. 

I am still processing the appointment because she told me things I was unhappy hearing. She had a completely different plan about my meds than we spoke about on the video call. Instead of adding a medicine she wants to completely change my meds. We all know what that means: potential flares, insurance problems, etc. I am not willing to go through that. The holidays are coming up. Things are not great now but they aren't "horrible bedridden flare" bad.  I told her no. She wanted to put me on Gabapentin and take me off Orencia. I said no. Maybe Orencia is not working well but I am not a fan of gabapentin. I give it to my dogs and they have horrible side effects. 

She also wants to change my diagnosis after 20 years. I was like "what???" I was so upset about that. It is like telling someone they are a Texan for 20 years and then all of a sudden they are told no we lied, you are actually not from Texas, you are from Philadelphia. Or telling a vegan that you have been feeding them dairy products for years. How do you change something that you have told someone for years and they have been taking meds for and living? It was an upsetting day. I am choosing to ignore her until she gets to know me better. How do you make a decision like that after knowing me for 30 minutes over video conference? Four other doctors can't be wrong. 

That was my day and I had a hard time concentrating on anything else. Then an earthquake hit on the West Coast. That was all anyone could talk about. 

Until tomorrow...

PEOPLE!

I had a long day working. I was on zoom calls for 5 hours. It made the day seem really long. 

I just have one question. Why can't people follow directions? I sent out clear directions to 4 people. The same directions. Two our of the four didn't pay attention to the directions which caused all sorts of confusion. They ended up having to redo the work because if they had followed the instructions, they would have known they had to wait until we were in the meeting to log in and fill out the forms. Plus, they both did not read the "fine print" (I say that to be funny) and did not meet the criteria for the final step of the process. Hint: you have to read all the words on the list of what you need to bring. People! 

If I said we were going mountain climbing and you needed to arrive at 10 am at XYZ Park at the East parking lot and you need to bring 1) climbing gear, 2) your ID, and 3) a jacket. Don't show up with just your ID and your jacket because you are missing your climbing gear and you are not joining us to climb the mountain. Don't show up at 11 am because we already climbed the mountain without you. Don't go to ABC Park because you will be standing there alone. Read all the details. I learned that from watching The Amazing Race. 

Anyway, that was my day. Exhausting! 

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO OF CLEAN UP

Today was day two of the clean up. I spent another 2 hours cleaning and putting away things. I broke down boxes, mopped the floor, dusted, swept, did laundry and wash dishes. Then I walked Lucky and did some work. I tried to read my book but got some phone calls. Then I made myself dinner. 

I made Vegan Asian Brussels Sprouts. I put the Brussels sprouts In the oven until they were cooked and then I put a soy sauce, maple syrup and fresh ginger mixture on them. It tasted delicious. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY ONE OF CLEAN UP

 I got up early and spent two hours cleaning , dusting, sweeping, organizing, and putting things away. I started in the kitchen by organizing it. Then I cleaned it, swept it and dusted it. Tomorrow I am going to mop the floor. Then I moved to the bathroom where I cleaned and swept it. Then I dusted and swept my office. Then my two hours was over and I sat down exhausted. 

I read my bookclub book for a while and then had a few phone calls. I took Lucky for two walks. 

I wanted to watch a new show but I fell asleep at 9 pm. I was so tired. 

Until tomorrow...

FOURTH FRIDAY NO WORK

This is my 4th Friday off with no work. Funny. I keep seeing to do work even though I have the day off. Not a lot of work but still some. 

Today I went for my blood work. It was easy but I got to the place and it was not very organized. I made a reservation and when I got there I checked in at a kiosk. Then I waited. They said they would text me. I waited and waited. Then I asked a woman at a desk how far they were running behind and she said that I arrived after the man seated. I said my appointment was 15 min ago. Oh, you have an appointment? It said it right on the big board on the wall. (Maybe if she wasn't chit chatting with her BFF) Oh, you can go right in. 

It was all very painless and I was home fairly quickly to let Lucky out of her cage. She was sound asleep. She and I went for a walk and then I did some things around the house. Lucky seems 75-80 percent better. I am still concerned about the congestion in her nose/chest. 

That was most of the day. Pretty boring. I am planning my next chapter "Raw Vegan Desserts". I had to buy some molds. It is going to be fun to make entremets (small cake-like desserts). 

Until tomorrow...

FINGERS CROSSED LUCKY IS ON THE ROAD TO RECOVERY

Good news about Lucky. She woke up and ate some food. We went for a short walk mid-day. Then she ate dinner and we went for another short walk. She wanted to play with her treat toy and she barked at the door bell. These are both good things. Fingers crossed she is on her way to recovery. 

I was supposed to watch an Arthritis webinar on insurance but I had a family situation and missed almost all of it. 

I helped my neighbors by taking in their delivered refrigerated and frozen groceries. I guess something happened and they couldn't be home when their delivery happened. I put the cold stuff in my fridge until they came home. They gave me some fancy tofu from the company where the wife works. Yum! That was super nice but unnecessary. 

Until tomorrow...

ANOTHER TRIP TO THE VETERINARIAN

 I had another day that didn’t go as expected. I started out working. 

Then after lunch I called to get the lab results for Lucky. The doctor asked how she was doing. I told her that Lucky was fine last night and this morning but now she is like a rag doll. Usually Lucky follows me everywhere but she just sleeps.  The doctor said the labs were great. Nothing was concerning. Even the things they have been watching were either the same or better. The are still saying they think it was a case of either dehydration or when she vomited she caused herself to get overwhelmed and she fell over.  I still think it is the medicine she takes. I convinced them to let me stop the medicine,  I think is causing it, for the time being. Then we can see if that is the cause.  

Thé doctor said that Lucky was much better today than yesterday. She was much more « feisty » which is a good sign. She actually barked today for the first time in days. They gave her more fluids and nausea meds.  When she got home she ate food, played her treat game, and went for a short walk.  Let’s hope she is on the road to recovery. I cried an ugly cry this morning because I was scared. I don’t want her to be in pain. 

That was my day.

Until tomorrow…

AN UNEXPECTED EMERGENCY TODAY

My day started out pretty regular. I worked and Lucky slept. Lucky was more sleepy than usual. I was preoccupied with work and a doctor's appointment. 

I virtually met with my new rheumatoid arthritis doctor. I really, really, really like her. She didn't make me feel like I was crazy. She didn't poo poo any of the things I said. She listened to everything I had to say. She agreed with me I'm almost everything. She said it was fine with the amount of Prednisone I was on and said that she had many patients that could not go down even a quarter of a milligram of Prednisone without going into a flare. So it was wonderful to hear that because my current / now previous doctor always said to me that was ridiculous. She also heard my theory that my Sjogren's could be causing my most recent problems and she said well let's test for that cuz that could possibly be what's going on. She also agreed that it's possible I might have to change medications but first she wants to run tests and see if maybe adding another medication might be a better option. She came up with so many ideas rather than what my previous doctor did which was nothing but tell me to increase prednisone. So basically I have to go get labs done and then once that's done I will go into her office to see her in person.

I've been off the video call with the doctor for about half an hour and had called someone else when I turn around and Lucky is vomiting. She vomited four times and then collapsed on the floor. I quickly picked her up and called the doctor and told them I would be there in 15 minutes. I put Lucky in her dog seat in the car and drove to the veterinarian's office. Luckily I found a spot very quickly and carried her to the office. They triaged her quickly while I waited outside. They ran a number of tests many that I will get back tomorrow. They also x-rayed her chest to make sure there's nothing going on in her chest. And basically their initial assessment is that she had some sort of dehydration or drop in blood pressure that caused her to fall down. They pumped her full of fluids and increased one of her medications and we came home. They sent us home with a new bottle of a medication that turned a funny color and I was suspect was making her ill. I got her home and she was her old self. She wanted to go for a walk and ate tons of food. 

I am keeping her home from the dog walker tomorrow to see how she is. Already her breathing is better and she has more energy. We will see tomorrow. I was exhausted. 

Until tomorrow...

BLOG COMMENTS

I have a lot less to say today. If you made a blog comment recently, I finally got around to answering some of them. 

For some reason I had a hard time sleeping last night. Was it a full moon? I'll have to check. I was awake for hours in the middle of the night. 

Instead of riding the stationary bike today, I spoke on the phone to someone. I should have ridden the bike. 

Until tomorrow...

BOOK CLUB WAS GREAT

 Well, mystery book club was great. They were a real nice group of people. It was a small group and I didn't get to ask if this was the regular group or if it had shrunk due to the lockdown. We talked about the book and how our lives were like the book. The meeting went exactly one hour. That part was nice. My old book club would drag on for over two hours. Ugh. It's a book how much can you talk about?  I have my book for next month. It is very different but still a mystery-ish. 

I spent over one hour clearing off almost everything on my dining room table. I don't know about you but my dining room table became a place to drop things and it was out of control. I got rid of empty boxes and a ton of junk mail. I can see the table top and only have about 20 thing left on it. I will work on it again and get rid of them. 

I wanted to watch the Dallas/Eagles game today while I made soup. (yes, they lost.) I could not get the remote to work so I put new batteries in. The remote still did not work so I tried to get the battery out and the twirly metal part of the remote where the battery is stabbed the battery. The battery got real hot. I panicked. Could the battery blow up? Catch on fire? I called my brother and then another brother. He assured me it would not blow up. (yes, I googled it. You google it and see what you get. It will confuse you and not tell you what to do.) He told me to take it outside and use some pliers to get the battery out of the remote. The remote was toast now and the battery was no longer hot. I guess I need to buy a new remote or I can not change the volume with out doing some sort of yoga to reach the TV that is mounted on the wall. Luckily I can push a button on the TV to turn it on. 

I made the soup Curry Butternut Squash Lentil. It was so delicious. It has spinach and carrots in it too. 

My neighbor moved today. I am a little sad. She and I were just becoming friendly more than the "hi" type of neighbors. She just rented her place so maybe she will be back. I gave her some of the cookies I made for the road trip. 

Until tomorrow...

FINISHED BOOK FOR BOOKCLUB

Today was a good day. Lucky and I took a walk and saw some neighbors. About two months ago I bought some cookie mixes that I have been buying for years but this time when I got them, the ingredients included powdered milk. I was disappointed because I bought 6 of them in different flavors. Today my neighbor said he would try to take them back for me. 

I finished reading the book for the virtual book club I am participating in tomorrow. If you don't remember I tried to join this bookclub in person pre-pandemic but it didn't work out and then it was lockdown and the bookclub stopped. Now it is virtual so I thought I would give it a go. I got the book a few weeks ago. It is a mystery bookclub. I enjoy mysteries so it might be fun. Plus I need to be more social. 

I spent some of the day planning out the new Raw Vegan Dessert chapter of the cooking course. It is different than the other chapters. The other chapters had recipes and videos telling you how to make the dish. This chapter tells you how to do techniques and it is up to me to decide how to use those techniques to make a dessert. A little intimidating. The desserts are mostly entremets. Little desserts. It will be very creative. 

Until tomorrow...

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES FOR THE NEIGHBORS

Another week has ended with me keeping the boundary between work and non-work. My work stays in my office and the rest of the space is no work space. It has really been freeing. At 5pm (or there about) I walk out of  my office and work is done. I used to work until the wee hours in the morning and on the weekends. Now I only work on the weekend if I have a deadline or if it is an emergency. 

Today was week three of Fall Fridays! I woke up and baked a batch of cookies to give away. I have these cookie mixes that used to be vegan but after I bought them I noticed they no longer are vegan because the company now makes them with nonfat milk. Many companies have started sneaking milk into their dry products. Of course I can't return the mixes so I decided to make them for my non-vegan friends and neighbors. What else can I do? I don't want to throw the mixes away. That is a waste. I make the mixes with vegan butter and apple sauce instead of butter and eggs. You would never know the difference. I get rave reviews even from my dog walkers daughter and she hates sweets! 

After making cookies, I hung out doing things around the house until my 2 pm meeting. Yes, I had a work meeting. It was the coaching session with a client. But it turned out amazing because I am most likely going to be hired as her companies consultant. I find out next week. Contract has been sent over. So it was worth it.

I have a list of things to do this weekend. I am going to sleep. 

Until tomorrow...

ALMOST MISSED VEGGIE DELIVERY

Today was a less exciting day. Late last night my veggie box was delivered and the delivery guy must be new because he didn't put my box inside my locked gate. I keep my security camera on so I can monitor the nights the box gets delivered. Good thing since it was left outside. I got up and brought it inside. Today I contacted the company and let them know. I don't need my box stolen again. 

I just walked Lucky twice today and worked a bunch.  Tomorrow is my day off. 

I made my flu shot reservation for two weeks from tomorrow. It's good to see people are getting the shots and they are in high demand. 

Until tomorrow...

ARTHRITIS MEETING

It is really amazing how less stressed and how different I feel now that I am not on my laptop all evening. Tonight I had an Arthritis meeting about exercise and arthritis. It resulted in a few moments of stress while I had to log on with my iPad instead of my laptop. I worked it out and got in the video call. It was an interesting meeting. Most of the information I already knew but it had some links to YouTube excercise sites that seem useful. 

I made roasted cauliflower for dinner. It was so delicious. I added cumin, paprika, coriander, salt, pepper, garlic, and cayenne pepper. 

Today I had a meeting about my ex-foster kid. It was great to see him.

Lucky seemed really down today. She didn't eat breakfast and kept sleeping but I sent her with the dog walker and then she came home wanted to eat. This was her this morning. 

Until tomorrow...

BETTER WORK/LIFE BALANCE

I am trying to have a  better work/life balance. If you notice me not commenting much on this blog, I have stopped using my computer after work hours. If I don't have my computer nearby, I don't use it. 

I video chatted with my nutritionist this morning. I made some commitments for my next appointment in January. I committed to 1) riding my stationary bike, 2) cook more multiple meals like soup or casserole, 3) do my physical therapy exercises for my feet and 4) lose 5 pounds.  

I got a letter today from my primary physician. He is retiring in April. In November he is moving to a new practice and slow down.  I am so sad. He has been my doctor for more than 20 years. He diagnosed my RA. 

I made vegan chocolate pudding after dinner. It is so chocolatey and delicious. I have a lot. 

Until tomorrow...

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE'S DAY

I decided to take indigenous peoples day off this year. I know my clients are working today but my business was closed today.

I did a whole lot of nothing today except making Sesame-Ginger Potato Salad. I saw the recipe in a magazine I thought I would make it today. I switched up the recipe a little bit because I didn't have one of the ingredients. It is super easy recipe of potatoes, ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil, hot sauce, and a few other things. It tastes fantastic. I would have never thought to put ginger and soy sauce in potato salad but it works.

Until tomorrow...

COOKIE CUTTERS

Today was another boring day. I took Lucky for a walk, finally washed my new cookie cutters (bought months ago) so I could put them away, this cleared of a big space on my kitchen counter. Then I read my book club book. I now have one week to finish it before book club. 

It felt really good finally putting those cookie cutters in the cookie cutter drawer. It also got me interested in making Halloween cookies. I have the best cookie cutters for Halloween. 

Until tomorrow...

FINISHING MY BOOK CLUB BOOK

After a long walk with Lucky to the post box, I sat outside and read my book club book. I have one week to finish the book. 

Then I took some photos of planes and birds. I looked at some new zoom lenses. 

After working on the puzzle, I ordered a vegan calzone. It was pretty good. I ate half of it. I was stuffed. 

I watched a new movie Uncharted. It was action packed. 

Until tomorrow...

FALL FRIDAYS

Today was my second Fall Friday. This is what I am calling my two months of Fridays that I am taking vacation days. I had my final physical therapy appointment and that was it all day. 

Before PT I went to visit my neighbor who is in the same hospital. I arrived half an hour early and found his room. I took the brownies and gave them to him. He seemed so much better than I thought. He is being moved to a rehab center tonight. I plan on visiting him there. 

I went downstairs to the PT center and gave my physical therapist a brownie. It was my last day and I graduated. 

I got home and decided to clean up a bit. I wanted to work on my puzzle but the table was a mess. Honestly the whole room had items all over the place so I cleaned it up. Then I worked on the puzzle. 

I did take so photos of some planes that were in the area. They were buzzing by. 

I think I need to make plans for these days off. If I leave it to chance, the day goes by and I have sat around. 

A client called with an emergency that took half an hour to solve but other than that it was quiet. 

I decided to have breakfast for dinner and made pancakes for dinner. I used applesauce instead of eggs and they came out great. I used this vegan chocolate hazelnut spread on top. It was yummy. 

Until tomorrow...

VEGAN BROWNIES (SORT OF)

Today I had a crack of dawn virtual doctor meeting with my gut doctor. I had a list of questions I wanted to ask her after we checked in. I wanted to know if my current esophagus situation was a permanent situation. It is not. With medication it can be cured although it could come back. I also asked if this could lead to more serious medical situations. I was told currently it would not. I floated by my theory of Sjogren's causing inflammation in my esophagus and she said that it is possible but I should talk to my RA doctor who would know more about this.

I had a full day of work and gave Lucky a walk. After work, I attempted to make vegan brownies with sweet potatoes. It was going well until I got interrupted. I ended up missing an ingredient. The brownies came out more like a chocolate cake. It still tastes great but it isn't a brownie consistency. I packaged them up to take to my neighbor who is in the hospital. Oh, no you can't taste the sweet potatoes. 

Until tomorrow...

MORE VEGAN FRIED RICE

 I got the phone call from the vet about Lucky. Her labs are the best in a long time. His quote was « she looks great »  The urine test was cultured for three days and on the third day there was growth. That means infection. So she has a slight (or the beginning) of a UTI. I went down and got her meds at lunch time. She has to take it for 20 days and then has to be retested. Small dogs can have UTIs for long periods of time. I went through this with my dog Happi. 

When I was going to the vets, I ran into a neighbor and found out his father had a stroke. His father is one of the recipients of my vegan sweets. He is in the same hospital were I have my PT so I plan on stopping in to see him on Friday. I want to make him something to eat. I need to think of something I can transport and that he can eat. Nothing chewy or crunchy. 

I made vegan fried rice again. I used leftover white rice, zucchini, yellow squash, tofu, and carrots. I could have eaten the whole batch but I controlled myself. 

Until tomorrow…

VEGAN BOX IS HERE

This is not going to be an interesting post. I spent another day staring at a computer. About the only interesting thing that happened is that my VeganCuts box came early. It is a box of samples of vegan items such as chips, drinks, and sweets. This time my favorite item is Gooey's hazelnut cocoa spread. Sort of a vegan Nutella. I can't wait to try that. I have never had Nutella. I hear it is good. 

The most interesting item in the box is Pili Hunters sprouted nuts. Pili nuts are from the Philippines and are better for the environment than almonds. If you didn't know, almonds use a tremendous amount of water. Pili nuts are grown in the wild in the Philippines and use zero irrigation water. They are growth sustainably. They also have 2 grams of carbs and 41 grams of fat per serving. I haven't tasted them yet but they sound tremendous. 

Until tomorrow...

BACK AT WORK

I am back at work after a weekend of rest. Or whatever you call that. I tried to work outside for about 45 minutes so I could get some sun and get some work done. Then it got a bit chilly so I came inside. I had to wait for a client to get back to me about something so I started doing a long awaited project of organizing my client files. I can now say my client files are now in the best shape they have been in for years. 

I think working in my office has been good for me. I haven't taken my laptop out of my office in over a week. I am trying to be more focused and keep my work in my office and not all over the house. All part of the work life balance that I am trying to get better at. 

I did not hear today from the vet about Lucky. I am trying to decide if that is good news or bad news. I'm trying to keep positive. No news is good news. 

I have spoken to a few people now who all said they had a tough time with this new vaccine. I really believe for me this was the hardest first 24 hours of all the vaccines. Not the worst vaccine overall. That is still the first one or the second one. It took me days to get over the effects. I got over this vaccines effects relatively quickly. 

Until tomorrow...

THE DAY AFTER THE DAY AFTER

After a completely sleepless night, I feel much better. Last night I could not fall asleep. It was not like regular insomnia it was something else. I was wide awake until 3 am and then none of my regular tricks helped to get me fall asleep. It was like I drank 3 cups of coffee at 11 pm. I did not. 

But I woke up this morning and felt fine so who knows. After taking a bath and walking Lucky, I sat outside in the backyard for a while reading a book. I signed up for a virtual bookclub and I need to finish the book before the meeting. I wanted to attend a virtual bookclub prior to the lockdown but it didn't work out. Then the lockdown happened and the bookclubs shutdown. Now that they are back, I thought I would give it a try. It is a mystery bookclub. Sounds fun. 

I made some soup as some comfort food. It is a Bean, Zucchini, Kale Soup. I just made it from my imagination. It is really flavorful and delicious. 

Until tomorrow...

COVID VACCINE #5 THE DAY AFTER

This is going to be short. Last night was very difficult. I had chills and a fever over 100 degrees for about 6 hours and I got very dehydrated. This caused me to get a pretty upset stomach and raging headache. So I was incredibly miserable. I didn't sleep very well. The more I drank, the more I had to get up to pee.

I ended up sleeping very late into the morning. Luckily Lucky was not interested in waking up either so we both stayed in bed late into the morning. Somewhere in the mid afternoon I finally ate some rice and then in the evening I ate an English muffin.

It basically stayed in bed all day sleeping on and off while trying to watch TV. Now I am in bed watching TV and about to go to sleep for the night. I'm hoping tomorrow I will feel so much better and can enjoy the day.

Honestly this vaccine's first night was the most brutal of all five. I had fevers with the other vaccines but mostly for a couple of hours. Last night I felt like I was cooking plus my joints hurt so I didn't want to move. 

I'm already so much better, I'm sure tomorrow will be better. 

Until tomorrow...