DAY TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTEEN OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 113.  A month ago I noticed a red mark on my arm.  It was while I was in the hospital.  I didn't say anything because, well, other more important things were going on.  I knew I had an appointment with my dermatologist coming up and decided to wait to see the doctor.

Today was that day.  She looked at it and it is not cancer.  Yay!  It is some long name that is basically a mark that means I am getting old, am fair skinned and spend time in the sun.  It is nothing.  This makes me happy.

My rosacea has come back.  My face is red and has bumps since I was in the hospital. The doctor gave me a special medicine to use. Hopefully it will go away.

Finished my taxes and I am sending them off tomorrow.

Going back to the Happiness Project soon now that I am feeling better.  The month of March was a bust!

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND TWELVE OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 212.  Taxes.  The deadline is looming and I have to get my tax prep done.  Usually I take my tax prep to the accountant but this year since I have been ill, I will be mailing it to her.  The last thing I want to do is make an accountant sick around tax season.

At this point I just have to do the best I can and get it in the mail if I want to make the deadline.  Luckily I am really organized the way I send it to her.  She usually can get it completed in a day or so.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND ELEVEN OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 211.  I went out today and without a mask.  It is day 7 since I was in the ER so I feel pretty confident that I am no longer contagious plus I am barely coughing anymore.  I don't think I am able to spread it.

I took Lucky to her behavior appointment.  Lucky has an issue with space.  She resource guards space.  I have a bunch of things I need to do.  I need to put items on the places that she likes to covet.  She likes a certain chair so right now the chair has a box on it.  I can use other things: a prickly mat, a thunder mat that makes a loud noise when she jumps on it or thunder can that sprays air at her. 

I also need to stop the dogs from going on my bed by themselves.  I need to allow them to go on the bed with my permission.  This will be harder.  I will have to think of a way to do this since I don't have a regular bedroom door. 

I need to remove all the dog beds and leave one for each dog in the living room and the office.  That is it.  The rest need to go.

I need to treat Lucky when she does the correct things and ignore her when she does other things. 

I have my work cut out for me.  I need to work as hard as I worked when she had food issues.  The behaviorist seems to think it is something that is workable.


Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND TEN OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 210.  I went food shopping!  It feels so good to have some food in the house again.  I wore my mask and, yes, people starred.  I just ignored them.  It was probably just as well that I wore it.  All those germs at the grocery store!  Who knows what else I could catch!? 

I bought bread.  I had soup and sandwich for dinner.  It was delicious.  I also had an ice cream bar.  I am in a happy place.  I didn't buy much because I didn't want to carry too much. 

I have been working on my tax prep.  Since I have been so sick, I had to postpone my tax preparations.  It is getting rather late and I am finally able to work on it.  If I can finish it by the end of this week, I will be able to file on time.  Yay!

I am feeling better but still real tired.  The coughing has decreased so that is really good.  Progress.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND NINE OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 209.  Happy Easter!!  I watched a couple of movies over the last few days.  Bridge of Spies, Hop, Redwood Highway.  They were all very good.

My neighbor was very nice and went to the store for me and bought me soy ice cream.  I have been craving ice cream for days.  She also picked up a package for me.  It was a book I bought.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHT OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 208.  Another day laying around.  I would never believed I would get tired of laying around and being stuck in the house.  People have said read a book, watch a movie, watch TV, listen to music.  Sure.  But I have been laid up since February 22nd.  That is 33 days.  The first week I was in the hospital and pretty out of it.  Then I was home and my brain was not quite right so all I could do was watch TV.  Now I can do more and I don't have the energy.  I am now reading a book.

I have one more Tamiflu left to take and then I am done with the medicine.  I don't have to wear a mask anymore but I still need to be careful around people.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND SEVEN OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 207.  Today was another day of lovely weather and I am in bed.  I went out on the balcony for a few minutes to enjoy the sunshine then I went back to bed.  I forgot it was Easter weekend.  I called a vendor and they were closed for Easter.  Did companies close for the Friday before Easter anymore? 

Besides trying to get some work done, I am binge watching one of my favorite time waster BBC shows Death in Paradise.  It is really silly but it is fun to watch.  Sort of like Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.  Very British humor but this one has a wonderful beach background.  Nice to look at when laid up!

Not much else going on here except I am running out of food and may have to venture out to the supermarket with my mask on to get more sustenance.  Also some ice cream.  I want ice cream and I ran out a few days ago.  You know how you crave something once you don't have it?  I am at that point. 

I think the March Happiness activities have gone by the wayside.  I have been doing more of the April activities.  Those activities are more about family, reaching out, connecting with people more.  Nothing makes you connect with family and friends like two possible fatal diseases!  My family and friends have been more than wonderful.  Offering to come take care of me.  Doing favors for me.  Taking care of Lucky and Happi.  Asking me if I need anything.  Driving me places.  Super nice.  I could not ask for nicer folks.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND SIX OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 206.  I can feel the Tamiflu working already.  I had to go check in with my primary today.  I kind of wish I didn't have to go because I didn't feel well.  At my appointment my primary told me there were two things I have watch out for.  One is some weird thing where my body eats my lungs.  I told him to stop talking it sounded so horrible.  The second is bacterial pneumonia, something I know all to well.  I have had it two or three times so far.  I am not trying for another time.

I had to get this paperwork in to the city for an assessment and it took all my brain power to get it done over the last 48 hours.  I had to seal and reseal the envelope 4 times because I left out the check, put the copy in instead of the original, put two copies in instead of the original.  It was a mess.  I have high hopes that the paperwork goes through.

Now I just have to rest and get better.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND FIVE OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 205.  I could not sleep all night.  I was hot. I was cold with the chills.  I was nauseous.  I ached everywhere. I could not think straight. I thought I had meningitis again.  At 3am I wanted to go to the hospital but what was I going to do with the dogs?  I stuck it out until 6 am when I texted my neighbor to ask if he could feed and walk the dogs.  When he said he would I caught a cab to the ER.

When I got there my blood pressure was really low.  So low that they took it twice and asked me if my blood pressure was normally low.  I said yes and they asked me how low?  I told them I was too sick to answer any more questions and began vomiting.  They then took me directly back to a single room.  Meningitis and low blood pressure (as well as chest pains) really get you fast service and a room to your self.

I got one of my favorite docs and he ran a bunch of tests.  Blood, more blood, flu test.  Gave me some morphine and called my primary.  They decided I had been through enough in the past month and another spinal tap was not necessary.  The flu test came back positive so I have the flu.  Not the "oh, I think I have the flu" type of flu.  It is the you have flu, wear this mask for 5 days and take Tamiflu.  You are contagious type of flu.

I went home and got in bed and fell asleep.

Until tomorrow...

DAY TWO HUNDRED AND FOUR OF THE HAPPINESS PROJECT

Day 204. Today I basically didn't really get out of bed.  I worked from bed, ate from bed, hung out in bed.  I kept falling asleep.  My back is killing me, I have a headache.  Nauseous.  Miserable.  Going to sleep.

Until tomorrow...