When Life Gives You Lemons...

This is a story of the carpet, the thorn, the rain, the cable, and CVS (not the drugstore chain).

Let's start with my absence from blogging.  That is primarily due to CVS, computer vision syndrome.  While trying to focus on the screen, I see 'floaty thingies'.  I experienced this same type of thing years ago when I worked in Special Hematology at the hospital and spent most of my day at a microscope.  The doctor had me do eye exercises.  The easiest thing for me to do now is sit here and wear my glasses.  Or, just take some time away from the computer, which should be easier, but is actually harder to do.  So much of my life is online communicating with friends and even looking up my recipes (more about that later).

The carpet.  Finally installed one week ago.  After telling the company I was not waiting another week for installation.  It is very soft.  One of my sons said it was soft enough to sleep on.

The thorn.  Two weeks after having had a barberry thorn go through my work glove and into a finger I finally saw a doctor.  When the incident happened, I thought I had removed all of it, but persistent pain said that was not the case.  Having experienced this before, I called the dermatologist.  She lanced the finger and tried to poke around with some forceps but said that because of where the thorn was in my finger, she needed to send me to a hand surgeon.  Not having one available that day, the plastic surgery nurse told me to go to emergency to have it checked out.  That doctor sent me for an x-ray and gave me some antibiotics.  I was told to go home and soak the finger in warm water and dilute hydrogen peroxide (which is what I did when it happened).  Two days later at the hand surgeon's office I felt like an idiot because I told him I no longer felt any foreign object in my finger.  I thought it might have been ejected after all the poking and soaking.  He agreed it was possible.  He then turned out all the lights in the room, placed the flashlight on his smartphone under my finger and pronounced the finger good as new.  He then borrowed another doctor's cell phone so that he could use the light on it to then take a picture of the finger with his cell phone.  Which he then sent to my medical file with a voice instruction.  Here is the best part:  the doctor who ordered the expensive x-ray was probably no more than 35 years old.  The doctor who took the cell phone picture?  He graduated from medical school in 1960 and is 79 years old.  I Googled him when I got home.  I must say I am very impressed.  Who says you can't teach on old dog new tricks?

The rain.  I thought last year's rain was bad.  This seems worse.  Maybe it is just my imagination.  I have puddles everywhere.  Every time I check Doppler radar I see more rain clouds.  Fortunately, one of my purchases this spring was some waterproof rain boots for the garden.  I may be wearing them all summer if things don't dry up.  I have a lot of work to do outside as the animals destroyed all of the cotoneaster ground cover.  I need to cut it all back to the ground and let it rejuvenate itself.  The last time this happened was in 2007.  I only remember it because I still had my leg in a cast and was immobile and my sister and her husband kindly cut it all down for me.

The cable TV.  For the last three weeks I have been having problems with certain channels on the cable HD network.  After issues again on Sunday, the company said they would send someone out today.  Of course, this morning everything was working fine.  When the tech called before coming out, I told him it was OK.  He said they had been working on the problem and gave me his cell phone number in case it happens again.  On Tuesday night, right in the middle of the climax (one of many) during the season finale of 'Agents of Shield', the sound went out and I had to quickly switch to the regular channel.  You can bet that I will be keeping the cell phone number taped to the back of the TV controller.

Lemons.  I may have mentioned before that I love the taste of lemon.  I have lots of lemon recipes.  So, I decided to create a Pinterest board of lemon dessert recipes.  Two boards actually.  First 'When Life Gives You Lemons' is a collection of 50+ desserts.  The other is just 'Lemon Cakes'.  If you love lemon as much as I do, check them out.  I am sure you will find something to make your moth, oops, mouth water.

Have a great day!