Post vaccine

It's been a rough 24 hours.  I went to bed early last night, feeling like I got run over by a truck.  Soon after, the fever and chills started.  I turned my electric blanket on the highest setting and was still shivering.  After a long miserable night of barely any sleep, today started with everything hurting.  My muscles, my organs, my skin, everything hurt.  I spent 24 hours in bed and am just now starting to feel better, though I still have a low-grade fever.  I'm thinking the vaccine might have been a mistake.  At least I know for sure that I didn't get the placebo.  September 24 is my next dose of vaccine, and I'm not sure I can do it. I didn't expect to feel that awful.

My family was wonderful all day, though.  Mike brought me water before he left for work, Sarah brought me oatmeal for lunch, and Noah made me a salad for dinner.

 The cats were very snuggly with me all day too.

Saving for historical purposes:

Vaccine

I spent 3 1/2 hours at the study place.  It was a disorganized, unprofessional, chaotic mess like last time.  They took 14 (!) vials of blood, gave me a bag full of stuff that I probably won't ever use (PPE, supplies to test myself, a cooler to haul the sample in, and even a full-body protective suit), because I only use it if I get COVID.  Then I had training about how to fill out the daily paperwork, and they scheduled my next 7 appointments.  The vaccine itself was surprisingly painful. 

The guy who was drawing my blood was making small talk with me to distract me from all the blood leaving my body, and somehow it came up that my daughter is gorgeous.  He said, "Beautiful people have a much easier path in life than people like you and I."  I felt like a hideous troll.

Meanwhile, Noah's boss backed into his truck, so they are at a body shop now, hopefully getting it fixed.  He got a letter from the steamfitters union, telling him that he passed his aptitude test and is qualified to proceed to the interview portion of their program selection process.

Library

Remember when you could just go to the library, walk in, touch all the books, stay as long as you want, and check out as many materials as you want?  I miss that.  Now when you want a book, you have to search for it online, order it, wait for a notification that it's available for pickup, schedule an appointment to pick it up, and pick it up at the appointed time (which must be made within a limited window).  I used to just stop by on my way somewhere else, but today I had to make a special trip just to pick up a book.  Normally I would walk, but it was way too hot and humid at my appointed time, so I drove. 

I had to drive by Noah's house (that's what we call it, even though the sellers didn't even respond at all to his offer, so we're just waiting for it to go into foreclosure or for something to change) on the way to the library, so I pulled into his "driveway", which is really just a patch of weeds next to the garage.  I stared at the house for awhile and prayed about the situation.  I really like that house.  It just seems like Noah. 

COVID study

Yesterday I had my first appointment for the COVID vaccine study.  It was so crowded in the lobby area that it was impossible to distance from everyone else.  They were conducting screenings and labs in the conference room and hallways.  It seemed like a chaotic, disorganized mess.  I had several tubes of blood taken (negative for COVID antibodies, which means I've never had it), a urine sample (not pregnant), and a COVID test to determine if I currently have it (results come in tomorrow).  That last one was very unpleasant.  They poked a little bristly thing so far up my nose that I could feel it scraping my brain.  Just when I thought the torture was over, the nurse said, "When you're ready, we'll do the other nostril."   That one was even worse, because I knew it was coming. They told me it would take an hour, but it was over an hour and a half, which made me late for my fingerprinting appointment for my census job.

They had a hard time getting my fingerprints and told me that sometimes fingerprints get worn down as we get older.  I'm not THAT old, and I remember they couldn't get my fingerprints 18 years ago for Sarah's adoption paperwork.  That was way back when they were still using ink.  I had no trouble getting fingerprints for Noah's adoption a couple years before that, so I tell Noah that I worked my fingers to the bone taking care of him.

Speaking of Noah, he went to Kuk Sool last night and will be testing for his second degree black belt on Sunday with Randi, on his right in this picture. 

COVID

Tomorrow I have an appointment for a COVID test, and (assuming it's negative) I'll get the vaccine. I'm among the first groups in the country to test the vaccine.  I feel like I'm doing my part for science (but honestly, I wouldn't be doing it if they weren't paying me).  Hopefully it works, and I'll be immune, and part of history, and it will lead to ridding the planet of this vile virus.

Another milestone

Noah made an offer on his first house today.  He also bought a little countertop oven, because it was on sale and he knows he'll need it wherever he ends up.

Paid in full

Today, Noah paid us the last of what he owed from his truck purchase.  He's a free man!

Band

We went to the end-of-band-camp mini performance tonight.  I usually cry at one point at every performance for reasons unknown, but I cried through this whole thing, because it was a beautiful performance, and because I was feeling the sadness of a missed marching band season.  It would have been such a good show.  The theme this year is "Relationships Over Championships".  They're making the best of it.

Their shirts this year have masks over the drums. 

 

Sarah did a great job. 

The whole band did.  It was the best end-of-band-camp performance I've ever seen. 

Nature, work, and COVID

Our baby wrens have hatched!  I know this only because I see the parents (whom I've named Jenny and Ryan), hauling food in there constantly, and every time they appear at the entrance hole, the babies go wild in there.  I wish I could see them, but it's completely dark inside, and the nest is built way up to the top.  I look forward to seeing them when they emerge, but for now, I enjoy listening to their incessant screaming.

I harvested my first tomato of the season a few days ago.  It was big and beautiful, and I sliced it up and gave it to Noah, because he loves tomatoes more than anyone else.  

There are LOTS more green ones on the way, but none of them are anywhere near ripe yet. 

Shiloh scratched off her big, disgusting, fur-encrusted scab and left it on Mike's chair.  Her wound is looking much better, but still has lots of healing to do.  She seems to feel somewhat better, but is more skittish than ever, and is still not acting quite like her old self.

This week, the company that I work for made some changes, and my job is much easier as a result, and I'm making double the money I usually do.  They're using computer-generated scripts, so instead of all the typing I used to have to do, now I just have to edit what's already done.  It's still a lot of work, because the computer doesn't understand grammar, singing, heavy accents, or line breaks, but I sure appreciate being saved all that typing.  Now I'm doing longer videos and enjoying the variety of interesting topics. 

On the COVID front, my mom and dad got tested last week (which doesn't make sense to me, since they have no symptoms and hardly go anywhere).  Dad's results came back negative, and Mom's haven't come back yet.  

But for the first time, someone I'm personally acquainted with has tested positive.  She recently moved to Florida, had their dream home built, lost her job because of COVID, had to sell the house and move to a smaller house, and now her whole family has COVID. 

Here's the latest from the library:

Even when this wicked virus is finally gone (will it ever be gone?), I doubt things will ever go back to the way they used to be.

I've witnessed some strange human behavior with masks, like people alone in their own cars wearing a mask (why?), someone wearing a mask in the pool, or wearing their mask pulled down around their neck (what's the point?), but I saw one today that takes the cake.  A guy was trying to wear a mask and smoke a cigarette at the same time.  He's more likely to set his face on fire than get the virus.

The trip is back on!

The epic road trip has been on, off, back on, questionable, and now...definitely back on.  We got bear spray and new tires on the van, so it's getting serious.

Pitiful

Sarah is at band camp this week, so I should not be getting phone calls from her during the day, so when I see her on the caller ID, I know it won't be good.  She says, "Unfortunately, much to my dismay, I have bled through my underwear and my shorts.  Can you bring me some?"

This should be a 10-minute project, but it turns out to be much longer, because for some reason, neither of our children use dressers.  They just heap all their clothes up on the floor.  I don't understand this, as both their father and I organize our clothes in closets and drawers.  So I go in her room and waste a ridiculous amount of time searching for shorts and underwear.  There's no rhyme or reason to where they might be.  I finally find some, put them in a bag, and take off for the school.  As I'm turning in, I see a sad sight: Sarah standing in the pouring rain, bloody, wearing a mask, looking miserable.

Update on the dads:  My dad was released Sunday and is home.  Mike's dad is being moved to Kindred Hospital, where they only allow one visitor, and it has to be the same visitor, which will be Kathy, so Mike is leaving work early today to go see him while he still can and say goodbye again.

Another wild one

My dad had a stroke last night.  Mom told me this morning, but this was the morning of Noah's big test to get into the steamfitters/pipefitters union.  I didn't want that on his mind during the test, so I waited until he left before I went to the hospital.  I took food for Mom, books for Dad, and a Sudoku game to play together (and to test his brain).  He was in ICU but doing amazingly well.  He seemed just the same as he always does.  We played Sudoku, and he proved that his brain still works just fine.

Only one visitor at a time, so Mom and Jeff and I rotated.  Then I thought I would go visit Mike's dad, since he was just across the street at the other hospital.  Navigating the confusing maze of hospitals is always difficult for me, and it took me a full 30 minutes to get to Marty's room.  Here I am roaming around, trying to find the right entrance to OSF.

There was a funny moment with each dad.  The nurse was asking Dad questions to determine if he was able to comprehend and communicate.  One of the questions was, "Do you know what brought you here?"  Dad looked blank and confused and then said, "An ambulance."
The board in Marty's room said:

and at first glance, I thought it said, "Patient will not put up with any shit."

Mike and Noah and I met his realtor and his boss at the house he wants to buy.  He wanted Victor to look it over and give his opinion, since he's been in the construction business for years.  He gave a favorable opinion and thought it was worth an offer.  Mike and Noah and I had a big meeting.  Noah asked, "How much does it cost  every month to be an adult?"  So we wrote out all the expenses he would have, compared it to his income, and determined that he could do it.  We might call the realtor tomorrow and make an offer.  He said his apprenticeship test was very hard and he's not sure how well he did.  He has to wait 2-3 weeks to find out.  If he doesn't make it into the union this time, Victor told him he's always got a job with him.

Sarah had band camp all day, but I bought her lunch, and tonight Mike took her out for a banana split so she wouldn't feel like everything is all about Noah.

wild

Yesterday was a wild one.  I was playing games at Denise's, and the tornado sirens started going off.   Mike and Kathy were at the hospital with their dad, doing power of attorney things and making final plans.  I had asked Mike earlier if he wanted me to go sit with his mom, but he said no.  I know she craves her alone time just like I do, and she doesn't get much of it, so I left her alone.  But when the tornado warning started, I decided to go to her house, because I wanted to make sure she got into the basement ok.  Just as I was about to leave, Noah called.  He had come home early from work, because they were doing roof work, and the crane operator saw lightning.  I knew he would be fine, but didn't like the idea of his being alone either, so I told him to go to Nana's and stay with her in the basement.  He called right back and said that Mike told him that Nana was already in the basement, and he should just go to our basement.  He seemed unsure what to do, so I told him to do what his dad said. That's the beauty of having a head of the household.  When there's a discrepancy, obey the highest boss.

Meanwhile, Sarah was at band camp, so I knew the band staff would get them all to a safe place in the school.  She texted me and told me she loves me and was safe in the locker room.

In the end, there were two tornadoes nearby, but we didn't get hit.  We did end up with 8 inches of rain!  All our cute little voles got flooded out of their holes and were just scurrying around above ground trying to find shelter.

Bull Run Creek behind our house was the highest I've ever seen it.  The water was rushing by (surprisingly quietly), carrying huge logs and all kinds of debris.

 The above pictures show it yesterday, and the below is from today. 

 Even today, it's still bigger than it usually is.  

The picture below shows Marty enjoying a drink of fresh rainwater from the tub that I keep outside to catch rainwater for watering my garden.  I emptied it twice yesterday into the watering can.

After her drink and lots of petting, Marty was ready to supervise an outdoor project:

 weeding the landscaping.

It was good day to pull weeds, because the ground was so soft from all the rain, but it still took me two hours.  It feels like a waste of time, because I didn't get all the roots, and I know they'll grow right back.

I was too tired, sore, muddy, and sweaty to deal with the carcasses.  Maybe in a few days, it will be cooler and they will have shriveled and I will sweep them all up, or maybe someone else will come along and deal with them. 

Change

The latest weird shortage is coins.  Apparently there's a general coin shortage (where did they all go???), so stores are no longer giving you change if you pay in cash.  The only thing I ever use change for is renting my cart at Aldi and paying the occasional toll or parking meter.  I do happen to have a decent amount of quarters right now, because way back when the world was normal, Noah needed them to park downtown at his internship.  Since the internship was cut short, I have more quarters than I usually would.  Are they going to be worth something someday?  Should I keep them?  Or are they going to become obsolete and worthless, so I should unload them?  I don't know.

Ugh

It's been a rough day.  It was Sarah's first day of band camp, and she said it was mostly spent crying, because they found out that their whole season is canceled.  The director sent out this message to parents:
The Morton Band Directors, staff, school administration, and booster board have spent a considerable amount of time analyzing this season’s direction. Due to current conditions, we have decided to push our competitive show to the 2021-22 season. While we feel that it is an incredible program, we are unable to ensure a successful and fulfilling contest season without the appropriate rehearsal conditions or a consistent show schedule. All Illinois competitions have been cancelled, football is at a standstill, and the Bands of America show schedule is very uncertain at the time of this writing. I know this is the right decision for us this year as much as it breaks my heart to make it.

Meanwhile, I was home alone with the cats all day, and I decided to dedicate the entire day to watching Shiloh and figuring out what's wrong with her.  She hasn't been herself for the past few days, and we haven't been able to determine the reason.  She slept behind the couch all morning.  I took her a bowl of ice water around noon and she lapped it up. 

 I brought her a bowl of food, and she ate heartily.  She's been acting like she's uncomfortable, but not crying in pain, so I wondered if she was able to get downstairs to the litter box.  I decided I would carry her down there.  When I picked her up (very carefully and gently), she screamed out in pain.  I thought maybe she was constipated, so I set her in the litter box, but she got right back out.  I didn't think I should pick her up again, so I left her down there.  A few minutes later, she came up and sat on her favorite pillow and started licking her butt area.  I went to inspect it, and that's when things got bad.  


I saw that she was licking a big open wound, and I freaked out.  I grabbed the phone and stared at it, trying to think who you call in these situations.  All I could think was 911, but I knew that wasn't right.  My mind was my a panicked blank.  Finally I realized it was the vet that I needed to call, but I couldn't remember the vet's number or even who our vet is.  I googled Morton veterinarians and figured out eventually which one is ours and called them.  By the time the receptionist answered the phone, my hands were shaking and I was crying and I said something about a big wound on my cat, and she calmly and kindly said, "Bring her right in."  

I was hesitant to pick her up, so I picked up the whole pillow that she was on, and lowered it and her into the pet carrier.  

She cried some on the way there, and I was not making any effort to obey the speed limit.  The vet was great.  He said it was an infected abscess from a puncture wound (one of the other cats must have bitten her, either in play or irritation).  He took her to the back and lanced it, drained a lot of blood and pus out of it, and cleaned it.  He gave her shots of antibiotics, painkillers, and an anti-inflammatory.  I could hear her screaming wildly (the whole place could hear her).  It was a horrific sound that I never want to hear again.

According to the poster on the vet's wall, Shiloh and I are the exact same age.

She didn't make a peep on the way home.  Blood and pus are still oozing out of the wound, as the vet warned me would happen, because he left a drain hole. It looks so bad.  I felt like a bad mother, but the vet assured me that it happens all the time and it's hard to see wounds under the fur.  

I got home with her at about 4:15, and my phone started ringing right away.  It was Noah, telling me which house to meet him at with the realtor.  I had been looking forward to that all day, but with the whole Shiloh emergency, it had left my mind completely.  I was supposed to meet them at 4:30, so after he told me the address, I said, "Yes, I'm on my way" in what I thought was my normal voice, but in those 4 words, he picked up on it.  He said, "You sound stressed. Are you ok?"  He's always been so sensitive to others' feelings, especially mine.  

So we looked at a couple houses, and one of them just might be the one.  I found a painted rock there, which I took as a good sign too. 

The teenagers

Last week, Sarah missed curfew by 10 minutes.  She delivered her excuses and apologies and was worried she would be in big trouble.  We said it was ok and to do better in the future.  Noah huffed, "What! That's all she gets?  I got home at 9:59 when I was her age and you yelled at me for cutting it too close!  She's a full 10 minutes late, and it's fine?"  I shrugged and said, "Well, she's the second born.  You were our guinea pig."

Last night she came home from youth group with pretty bad damage to the front of the car.  She had run into a post when she was backing out of a driveway. Noah was sure the sparks were going to fly when we saw the car.  But all I said was, "Well, I did way worse than that when I was 16.  That's why we can't have nice things."

Noah has some bad shower habits, always knocking over the shampoo and conditioner bottles and leaving puddles all over the floor.  Sarah wrote him a very civilized note, calling him out on it and asking him to change his behavior.  

My favorite part was "detrimental to my socks".  Mike and I agreed with her assessment, and he said he would do better.  Then he started looked at houses online.  He likes to fantasize about living on his own with no parental rules and annoying siblings.  I used to fantasize about the same thing when I was his age.  I was 23 when I bought my first house.  He'll probably be younger than that.

P.S.--Mike's dad is back in the hospital with pneumonia.  He tested negative for coronavirus.

Lesson learned?

I've been waiting for a cooler day to get groceries, but there just aren't any, so today was the day.  When I pulled into the lot at Aldi, my goal was to park in a shady spot, no matter how far from the door it was.  I was pretty happy when I came across a fully-shaded spot, but as I was getting out, I realized I had parked in a tree, and the limbs were smacking me in the face.  I fought them off as I got out, and held them back with my legs while I locked and shut the car.  Mission accomplished.  Yay, me.
When I returned with my groceries, I thought this:

was going to be my biggest problem, but it turned out not to be.  I felt around in my pockets for my keys and had an all-too-familiar sinking feeling.  I said right out loud, "Oh no, not today."  I peered in the window, and yep, there were my keys inside the 150 degree car.  I called the cops.  They said they would send someone and that I should wait by the car.  My cold groceries disagreed, so I took them back inside and parked them in a hidden corner of a freezer.  The rest of the groceries and I went back outside to bake by the car.

When the officer arrived he was not as happy as I was that I had parked in a tree.  He pried the door open, and I retrieved the rest of my groceries and bent myself in half and twisted myself backwards so I could load the cooler in my trunk, which was being blocked by the huge vehicle in the parking space behind me.

4th of July

All the big fireworks celebrations were cancelled this year, and so was the party that we usually go to.  We were sitting around at home and noticed that there were lots of fireworks going on outside, so we sat in our own backyard and had the best fireworks show we've seen in years.  So many people were setting off big ones that it looks like a professional show.  I heard it was like that all over the country.  The spirit of the people can't be cancelled!

 Full moon and fireworks

Sarah has always had a love/hate relationship with fireworks. Nobody was forcing her to stay outside and watch them, but she said, "I hated that one!" after every loud one.

Day whatever

I'm releasing myself from the pressure to blog every day during the pandemic.  Who knew it was going to last this long?  Some days just aren't bloggable.

Day 105

We're definitely going on the epic road trip.  I made reservations at a VRBO near Glacier National Park.  It's set in stone now. :)  Even if they shut everything down, we can just drive out there and look at the mountains and sleep in the van.  They can't close the mountains.