Strange times

So no yard mowing today due to heavy particles of smoke in the air. That put the kabash on the Big Plan for the day. 

I guess if the grass really got out of hand, I'd do what I did in 2008 and again in 2016. Put a hot wire around parts of the yard and let my critters do the mowing.

Instead I picked berries this morning then closed up the house for the A/C to hopefully keep hubby feeling healthier.

Cell phone shots of the berries. 

The top photo is from the top of the ridge and the unripe ones are midway down into the valley. There are micro climates in our woods and I am beginning to understand that certain areas will produce berries in different stages.

Since I couldn't mow due to how wet it was and how bad the air was, I collected some flowers to try 'pressing' and drying. I dyed some Queen Anne's Lace with food coloring and some Fleabane.

Here is my sample of flowers I am pressing between two boards:

There is also Chicory, wild Vervain, Cosmos, Bee Balm, and Marigold. This method is supposed to take about a week or more.
I have to change the paper every few days to draw the moisture out. I used some rocks from my garden as weight for the top board.

Now I have some ideas of trying to put some of the flowers on handmade greeting cards so I will watch some videos of that. Another option is to place the pressed flowers into a picture frame and use it as a decoration?

It all started because I wanted some Queen Anne's Lace to use for some Still Life photos and perhaps dry some for a bouquet in the winter. 

What strange times we live in, when the midday sun is but an orange orb in the sky.

I almost feel like I am living in a science fiction novel.

A secondary smoke plume will then be
transported southward across the state Saturday afternoon into early
Sunday morning. Elevated fine particulate matter (PM2.5)
concentrations are anticipated to result in air quality index (AQI)
values in the UNHEALTHY FOR SENSITIVE GROUPS level over this period.
Sensitive groups include children, elderly people, individuals with
respiratory and cardiac problems, and anyone engaged in strenuous
outdoor activities for a prolonged period of time.

So... I was out doing garden work and dead heading the petunias when something very odd happened. I noticed I had a splotch of brown paint or maybe bug goo on my glasses. It was in sharp focus and moved when I stood up. Totally freaky! 
So I grabbed my glassed off and it was still there.
I brushed my face because, just well, because.
It moved and then swirled. I dropped my crap right then and there and headed to the house. 
Visit to Urgent Care sent me to the ED. After some testing I was given the diagnosis.
Vitreous Hemmorrhage. 
Vitreous is the clear gel in the center of your eye. Mine had blood in it. 
I will see an Ophthalmologist on Monday.
No bending. No lifting. No straining. No exercise. Damn, they should have included NO cooking too.
I get to sleep sitting up.  
I am not in pain but apparently this needs to be figured out and I don't need more blood seeping around in my eye. It sort of looked like this, but brown:

I still see stuff floating about and coming into my visual field. Hmmm. Mmmm.
Strange Times indeed.
Have a great weekend. 

Home home...

I had some conversations with the Respiratory Therapist and his nurse via phone after talking to hubby this morning who was sobbing.
His Respiratory Therapist was concerned but had said that he was holding his own on the treatment he'd been given.

I spoke later with the nurse and we talked about depression and how bad it was. I felt if he was stable all the way around he would be so much better off at home. The longer he was away from home the worse his overall mental health was getting. A sobbing husband doesn't make me feel very good. 

I've been down this road before and have now been able to recognize the direct correlation of desperation and knowing he was 'checking' out. It sounds dramatic, I know, but when really nasty depression hits, this is exactly what comes out of his mouth and he knows he is dying. He may not be dying physically but mentally he is. We too often shy away from talking about mental health care because it is an uncomfortable topic. He is not a nutjob. His brain is damaged in a way we don't understand. 

I pled my case with his nurse. If he was stable, I can still do everything they do...monitor his temp, his blood pressure, and 02 levels. I do that now as a matter of routine. I do his medications, I know him more intimately than any doctor who sees him for 10 minutes.

Fact.
He would do better in familiar surroundings.

Rich told me the nurses were in bubble heads, googles, and full face shields. 

Let's think about that for a moment. Strange rooms, fragile person, [yes he is a tough guy...however he is fragile when he is not feeling well]...strange bubble heads at night in a gloomy room. 

I understand what is happening in our health systems across the country. Over worked healthcare workers. Our little 25 bed hospital is fully loaded. 

So I applaud his nurse for caring enough to hear me out two days in a row and take me seriously. I pointed out that if he was stable enough, he needed to get Mental Health care that they could not offer. He needed to be in a familiar place.

I can do the job of a CNA. I can't do IV's, but I can be there. I can care for him because I do care about him in ways no staff of any place could.

And on Monday morning I can connect with a VA Mental Health provider by phone.

So. The nurse pled my case to the doctor and the doctor visited Rich and said he was medically stable enough to go home. 

He is home! Charlie is relieved, Rich seemed relieved. He is still struggling, but he isn't attached to beepers and being descended upon by Bubble Heads and strangers.

He is mostly in bed, however he has gotten up to eat. I did offer to fix a plate for him to sit in bed and eat. He decided no, he could sit up at the table.
He has suffered a medical insult to his system but I will spare you the diagnosis. 

And now we are under quarantine because he was on the Covid wing.

I now have time to construct the Suck Box. Eddie, my son was the one who had come up with the idea a long time ago. I love it.

Crossed Fingers for the next 14 days.

One day at a time

Humid mornings. 

I caught this while moving the non riding mules from one pasture to another. Tomorrow I'll open the lower gate to the woods and let them get down near the creek where it is cooler...or I may do that this afternoon when I get back from the Nursing Home.

The heat index is supposed to be stifling. In other words. Hot and near 100 degrees.

The mules are doing well though, they have fresh cool water every day. I redo their stock tanks for them. 

The house is staying cool with the fans and A/C. 

I've been exhausted from sitting with MIL. During the Compassionate Visiting, you are not allowed to leave the room, so they bring you refreshments and you have access to a bathroom. 

Because of their ruling for Covid-19, you are confined.

As one nurse quipped:

This is Hotel California: 

"Relax" said the nightman.

"We are programmed to receive.

You can check out any time you like

but you can never leave."

The reference was pretty clever and I got it because I loved that Eagles song and recalled that particular phrase.

I was amused.

My question of the day is... 

Wait, what? What is THE reason to NOT wear a mask? It is NOT a statement.

Period.

Sunday Sunday...what is today?

It is a different time, no doubt about it.

People are protesting that their rights are being trampled on. We have a president who is egging on unrest to deflect from his own inadequate abilities and woefully irresponsible governing.

Okay. Enough of what I think.

Interestingly enough, this time of being 'locked' down hasn't affected us like it has others. We are a very rural farming community which grows the standard fare of crops. Corn, beans, and hay. Dairy Farms are suffering great losses due to no schools being open among other reasons.

My husband is used to living life in a hermit type way. I am not as much of a loner as he is, but I am settling into a life of being remote.
I did talk with my neighbors yesterday across our property fence. They live at the top of our driveway and are the only folks near enough for us to actually see and hear. The rest of our 'neighbors' are at least a quarter of a mile away or further.

They were setting up their garden. Being 'hungry' for talking to someone else, I did stand on my side of the fence and talk... a lot. We laughed when I asked... *This IS Sunday right?*
I knew what day it was, but somehow our world feels slightly obscure and surreal.

It had been 3 weeks since I'd gone to the grocery store. A record for me.

That is one of my masks. I felt odd wearing it, but I wasn't the only one in the store with a mask.
I went at 7am again and filled my basket. Many of the items I wished for weren't there.

Rich complained that I didn't bring home cookies. They weren't on my list and I noticed that he eats them as a constant snack. I purchased canned fruits instead.
Fresh fruits, tomatoes, and other fresh food was scarce in the store.
He is like having a finicky kid to feed. But I refuse to keep candy and cookies as a non stop snack food for him.
I put an apple in front of him when he complains.

These were our veggies last night. Sweet corn from our garden a year ago, sweet potatoes, and nettles! The nettles cooked up nicely and I ate them with butter, I saved some for tea later.

I will make a special trip to Walmart tomorrow morning as soon as they are open to get some items I couldn't get at  Quillians on Sunday. I need Qtips, toothpaste, ...seeds, and brownie mix, shampoo, and a few other items.

I need a trip to the feed store for Senior Feed for Fred and Mica too. Then I am finished for another few weeks I hope.

I feel okay. But the stress of dealing with Rich's memory/health issues on one hand and not getting de-stressed on the other hand do get to me on some days.

Those are the days when I need to get off the farm and out to the hinterlands of the public lands.


I am so grateful to my son Eddie for calling on Sunday evenings. To know that he is checking in on me is comforting.

Thoughts for today....

I really thought I'd have some fun Sunday while stuck inside while it rained/sleeted/iced and blew outside.

My husband thought I should be certified as nuts.

But the weather was nasty, the news sucked, and the day was so dreary that I needed something to be uplifting.
Thus the Toilet Paper soldiers!

I then set up both patterns of the face masks I'd printed off line and  cut out some fabric.

I made the two versions and decided that I liked the feeling of the one version much better than the other.
The flatter of the two versions was better for me. I made 3 masks total. When I go shopping next week [3 weeks between shopping for items] I will wear one as I did last time. I keep the bandanna one in my backpack as a just in case mask.

This face mask was for fun to wear with my Skunk Hat. It is very thin. However, I thought it was fun just to put on and take a selfie.

I haven't sewn anything since we were getting ready for our remodeling in 2014. So it was nice to see that I hadn't forgotten how to do it.
I may even do some of the projects I have all cut out and ready to sew in my kit...that have been sitting around for at least 6 years.

I couldn't help myself then...and got out some scraps of felt....

Well, I made masks for my toys I take out for posting to the Doe Story. Of course ... there is one in every crowd!

I had to think up how to make a mask for a matchbox car!

Oh the toys are not properly 'Socially Distanced' but I had to crowd them in for the photo.

My last thought. Are face masks going to be our 'new' reality for a long time?
No one really knows.
How long can one isolate?

My son says he is lonely.
I am lonely.

I have my husband, my dog, my animals...but I am yearning for that social freedom we used to have.
Meeting someone for coffee.
A hug from a friend.

Human contact. How will it change?

I don't have the answers.

There is no Bad Weather, Only Bad Clothing...

Norwegian Saying....
"Det finnes ikke darlig vaer, bare darlige klaer."

It says "There is no bad weather, only bad clothing."

It is also meant to be said by me with a smile on my face. I will hike in rain, sleet, snow and an occasional ice storm. I dislike hot and humid sticky days. But I do love the outdoors and winter often offers some incredible scenery.

This was two weeks ago on a mild day. The temps were below freezing but still it wasn't bone chillin' cold.

The Kenosha Gang and I bundled up and went back this weekend.

The river had mostly frozen over. Coyotes had tracked along the edges, but the ice was not thick enough to cross over.

There is something to be said about dressing for the weather. Cold wicked weather can become enjoyable.

What can I say? We found our hike out of the wind and along the Kickapoo River in the valley rather decent. Sure, if you sat still and didn't do anything, you ... would get cold.
We of course packed all sorts of emergency supplies and planned our outing so that we'd never be more than a 15 minute rapid walk back to the vehicle.
The actual air temperature was somewhere between -2 to 1 degree F.

Photo Credit: Daryl Clausen ~~ This is a photo of me pulling my mask down to get some 'fresher' air.

New Years Eve morning we decided to head down to on of our favorite places to see the sunrise.
It is along what the locals call Blackbottom Creek.

The median air temperature for the area was supposed to be -5 degree F, however ... it felt much colder.

I took some photos but should have brought my mitten/gloves instead of just gloves. Pulling my gloves off was not a good idea.
However my friend Daryl had worn his waterproof Mudruckers and stood in the stream.
Nope.
I am not quite that crazy. My hands were cold so I got a few photos and then proceeded to walk around to warm up.
The geese.

The tree and the stream.

That afternoon we took a short jaunt along Awesome Creek.

Even the cold creek bottom provided entertainment and laughter.

And a good time was had.
Had no one dressed properly for the weather, it would have been a very unpleasant experience.

I have to chuckle. Today it got up above zero. I felt like spring had arrived!