Living Life | A Thankfully Imperfect Woman

Mar 24

A Clear Head and a Good Heart

My daughter Sam is in the Studio Arts program in college and this is one of her recent creations. Isn’t it AMAZING!?!

Little did she know that when she gave it to me it was incredibly significant to what I was going through.

I’d been having some health issues and the doctors had decided that I needed a stress-echocardiogram to look for heart damage and a brain/inner ear MRI to look for a tumor. Needless to say we didn’t want to tell the kids until we had definite answers…positive or negative.

I was scared to death.

I cried as I showed my husband the print and he nodded, knowing just what I was thinking.

He accompanied me to the tests and the doctor visits after, thank God, because I was a mess. I’d always been the caregiver – dealing with doctors on behalf of parents, kids, other loved ones, and friends. But this…this was about me, and I knew I couldn’t do it alone.

Once we received the news that everything was good, we felt like a huge weight was lifted. We didn’t have all the answers we needed, but we sure had some fantastic negative results!

We did receive one answer (to the loud hum, aka tinnitus, and hearing and off-balance issues I was having): Meniere’s Syndrome in my left ear. It’s a health issue diagnosed by elimination…meaning there’s no one test that can diagnose it. It brings with it random episodes of Vertigo, a feeling of being off-balance, and sometimes permanent hearing loss. My hearing loss is permanent, but only moderate/severe to mild (I can’t hear low sounds but I can hear high-pitched sounds). It can be progressive but doesn’t cause full hearing loss, and it doesn’t usually affect the other ear. A hearing aid should help, which I hope to get this week. So if you see me walking around a store and I’m wobbly, remember I’m not drunk, it’s just the Meniere’s!

I’ve learned one thing from all this: if you have tinnitus in just one ear – get to an ENT or Audiologist right away! I’d been having the loud hum off and on for probably a year, but just figured ‘everyone gets tinnitus, don’t they?’. Wrong answer.

My other health issues will have to wait until April when we go to the Mayo Clinic for some specialized testing. In the meantime I’m just hanging out…writing a little, getting myself a new look (see the new profile photo), and reading a lot of books…and once in a while watching those crazy babies who sit and snuggle with me!

Life is good…I don’t have heart disease or a brain tumor!

Patty O

ps…Back to Sam’s art…now we can relax and have her print as a reminder of just how blessed we are. It will soon be framed and in a place of honor on our wall.

pps…Notice I didn’t say an empty head. I have too many friends that would have far too much fun with that. 🙂

Mar 22

4 Comments

Does This Look Familiar?

The best laid plans…

And then God laughs.

He’s in control…

He’s in control.

Repeat after me:

HE’S IN CONTROL!

Mar 20

6 Comments

Soakin’ In The Sun At 25 Degrees

For any of you that don’t live in Northern Minnesota – you’re going to think I’m nuts. And maybe I am! But after the coldest winter in MN history (since something like 1917) and a stretch of overcast, gloomy days – I NEEDED SUN!

I peeked out at my deck this afternoon and saw the tiniest of walkways open by the house, so I pulled open the sliding glass door and looked out. Low and behold, in what is probably the ugliest (but sunniest) outside corner of our house, was a piece of deck completely clear!

A fist pump, a ‘YES’ and a quick run to my garage for a lawn chair and I was about ready. OK, so this chair isn’t in the best shape ever with a broom handle holding the bottom together and paint on the arm. Let’s just say it’s well-worn. Besides, I love that my sister-in-law Jane made it years ago for my husband. It would aptly serve it’s purpose for today.

I quick grabbed my book and out I went.

Sitting and soaking up the sun.

The temperature outside was 25 degrees…above zero. Nothing like the many days below zero (like down to -50) we’ve had this winter!

Was I in my swimsuit? No. I opted for my yoga pants, fleece jacket and scarf.

Did I care? No.

Thank God for sunshine…warm sunshine. The kind that makes you feel alive again. That makes you realize just what a compliment the writer of the song “You Are My Sunshine” was giving as he sang it to his loved one! Yes, I am a romantic, in my mind I picture him writing as his little child peacefully drifts off to sleep.

I’m leaving my little chair there. I have high hopes for this weather. I may be a bit delusional right now considering there’s a Winter Weather Advisory out for tomorrow saying we will get more snow, but I’m leaving my little chair there.

I’ll be back little chair.

And you and I will lap up some more sunshine together.

Ahhhhhh.

You are my sunshine…my only sunshine…you make me happy…when skies are gray…you’ll never know dear…how much I love you…please don’t take my sunshine away… (she sings softly to herself as she smiles, eyes closed, face turned up into the sun).

Oh! Just in case you’re wondering, we have lots of snow left. This is what I was looking at when I didn’t have my face pointing up:

It’s the little things in life that help us survive the big things (like 6 foot snowdrifts in March with more snow on the way)…

Patty O

ps…I say it’s the ugliest outside corner of our house because, as you can see, it has the fireplace vent and the dryer vent, complete with fuzzy lint blown out – and NO I didn’t clean it up before I sat down or before I took the picture!

Mar 17

2 Comments

I’m Married to a Geek

And I’ve been married to this geek for 14 years. You’d think I would be used to this fact by now, however he always finds a way to surprise me.

I knew when we got married that he was/is this math genius, aka advanced math teacher at the local high school.

I knew that he could rattle off random facts making it hard to beat him at games like Trivial Pursuit. 80’s Music Games – forget it – he’s the King. Thank you, thank you very much…ok, he doesn’t really say that, but I couldn’t resist.

Other Geek Indicators:

– When Gabi was little he would walk her up to bed to tuck her in, and instead of singing nursery rhymes, he’d have her doing addition and subtraction problems. When I’d look at them, shaking my head, Gabi would say “What? I like it!” She’s just like HIM!

– The sad sigh that escapes his mouth when someone comments about how much they hate math. He just shakes his head and says “That’s sad.”

– The smile on his face when one of his past students comes back to school to talk to him and tells him how college math was so much easier because of what they learned in his class. From there, the conversation turns into a foreign language. There’s no ‘Oh hi, how is college going?’ They talk Pythagorean Theorems and Stokes Theorem (and yes, I had to ask Tim how to spell these terms).

– The fun he has singing the Quadratic Formula with his daughters.

– And the final straw…

Picture this…

Sunday afternoon. Tim up by the new garage door opener’s main box. Me standing by the exterior keypad.

As Tim was pushing the button on the main box, I was waiting to input the Pin. All of a sudden I realized that we hadn’t decided on what the Pin should be (I was tired, give me a break, ok?). I yelled up to him saying “What numbers should we use?” In response, he shouts out these random numbers and of course I, the ever-dutiful wife, immediately punch them in.

At this point I look back at him and asked “Why these numbers?”

He looks at me as if I’m stupid (ok, not really) and says “Because it’s … # to the third power… # to the second power and… # to the 1st power”.

To which my response was “WHAT? Why would you set it at THAT?” (My voice may have been a bit shrill at this point.)

His calm response “Because it’s easy to remember.”

{Head thunk}

“That’s not EASY to remember for me! Why couldn’t we set it with a mix of our birthdates?” (OK, by now I’m completely exasperated.)

“What if we mix up the birthdates?” He earnestly asks me.

{Mental head thunk, head thunk, head thunk…against the wall.}

“We could have just tried again the other way and had it correct!!!”

“Pfth – no, this is much easier”, he states and then smiles.

AAAARRRRRGGGGHHHHHH! I felt like Charlie Brown lying flat on his back while Lucy held the football up in the air.

Needless to say, I have it written down and tucked in a few different places for when I need it. Whether I actually remember where I put it may be the next blog.

{sigh}

I dearly love this man, have I told you how much I love this man? I REALLY love this man.

{sigh}

Patty O

ps…for your added enjoyment, our children have tagged Tim as Sheldon and me as Penny. I even came out as Penny when I took the “Which Big Bang Theory Character are You?” test.

Sigh…at least I have a good personality. 😉

Mar 15

2 Comments

My Dog Ate My Glasses

I now know that this is not a unique event. Many people I have complained to have shared stories of their own wonder dogs eating their glasses. I even had one person come back with “Well at least he didn’t eat your dentures!” Suffice it to say, if I had dentures I would be REALLY unhappy.

As it was, when I came out of the shower to find Motzy laying on the rug chomping away, I wasn’t happy. Of course I couldn’t see what he was crunching on since I wasn’t wearing my glasses, thus I bent down, nose almost to the floor, to find out what he had. I’m sure the shrill in my voice and the look on my face, instantly notified Motzy he’d done something wrong.

I think my first comment was “How could you do this Motzy?”, voice rising with each word. Like he was really going to look at me and say ‘Well, remember that time you took the dirty diaper from me? Yeah, this is payback baby.’ (You can find that story here: A Dirty Diaper, 4 Pens and 2 Christmas Ornaments) Don’t doubt my language abilities, there were definitely more than a few expletives spoken that day…sigh…sorry Lord, I think I may have even taken your name in vain a time or two.

Thankfully I’d saved my last couple pairs of glasses (you never know when you’re dog might eat them). But think now, do you remember why you got new glasses? Was it (A) because you didn’t like the look anymore? Or (B) because you needed an upgrade (or downgrade) to bifocals? Or (C) could it be both? Yes, just go ahead and circle letter C. I’ve been waiting ever-so-NOT-patiently for the new ones to arrive…as I raise my old glasses to the top of my head so I can read something close…and slip them back down when I want to see anything even remotely far away. Up…down…up…down…

{sigh}

And just why did I tease my Mom so many years ago when we were at church and she couldn’t see her hymnal? I even held my hymnal really…far…away, in an attempt to help her see…I thought I was just so funny. Yup, she’s having herself a REALLY good laugh up in Heaven right about now!

Here’s to a bright, beautiful weekend…I hope you can see it better than I can!

Patty O