Tuesday, July 5, 2016

More X-Rays and Decluttering

I had a quiet, relaxed day, yesterday.  I slept in a bit, watched some TV and read blogs, did some paperwork and filing, tidied the coffee table in the family room, and harvested the one peach that escaped getting baked on the tree:

One Perfect Peach
I kept it in the fridge to share with my daughter when she comes home tomorrow night.  This one peach is the sole harvest from my little peach tree, this year.

Another Look!
Later in the afternoon, I did my decluttering for the day:

July 4 Decluttering
Four decorative copper frying pans that hung on my kitchen wall.  I began collecting copper kitchen ware in the 1980s.  These hung in the kitchen in the apartment, before I bought my house in 1991, so, I've had them awhile.  I've more copper items hanging on the kitchen walls and sitting on the counters.  A copper kettle which holds all my cooking spoons, a colander which holds potatoes or lemons, a saucepan which holds some other stuff.  I got rid of the set of four canisters and set of four measuring cups in a previous round of decluttering.  I still like the look of copper, but, lately, all the items hanging from the walls have been too much visual clutter.  So, yesterday, I took down the four decorative frying pans and polished them one last time.  Three of them have little sayings on them:

Home Sweet Home
Welcome Friends
Good Friends, Good Times, Good Health, Good Cheer
One has no saying, just a basket of flowers:

Basket of Flowers
If I had a bigger kitchen, I would have kept them. 

After I took them down, I noticed that they had left some marks on the wall where the bottom edges rested against the wall.  So, I washed that section of the kitchen wall. 

I had planned to post about my peach and my copper pans, last night, but for some reason, my photos wouldn't upload in time.  They had eventually uploaded at 2:00 a.m., but I had gone to sleep by then.

I woke up at 8:00 a.m., this morning and called the radiation clinic to confirm my appointment for later in the morning.  A short time later, my primary care doctor called to check on me.  She calls me regularly to see how I am doing, even though the oncologist sends her regular reports to keep her updated.  I do appreciate her calling me to speak with me directly, as well.  Then, I did some filing before I left to drive to the clinic.

Traffic was fairly light, so I got to the clinic 30 minutes before my appointment time.  Which was fine, I'd rather be early than late.  I sat and read my prayer book while I waited.  I had thought that I would receive my first radiation treatment today, that Wednesday's CAT Scan, etc., was all the preparation they needed to do before hand.  But I was wrong!  Today was when they positioned me on the radiation machine and took X-rays, etc.  They drew some marks on me, put some sticky tabs which I am supposed to leave in place (OK to shower with them, I was told, but don't scrub them off), and took X-rays.  It all took less than 20 minutes.

One of my friends had suggested I get some 100% pure aloe vera gel to put on my skin to soothe any radiation burns.  So, on my way home from the clinic, I drove to the store where I was told I might be able to buy some, but they didn't have it.  I mentioned it to one of my cousins who had called to find out how I was and she was able to find it for sale online from one of the drug stores (they didn't carry it in the stores, only online) and she went ahead and ordered it for me.  I should receive it by the end of the week, according to the confirmation email I received.

After I got home, I had lunch (spaghetti with meat sauce) and rested a bit.  Later, I did my decluttering for the day:

July 5 Decluttering
Five magazines.  Well, actually, two magazines and three brochures that I culled from one of my files.  But I am calling them all magazines for the purpose of my song!

I've two additional verses to my decluttering song:

On the fourth day of July, Bless did declutter,
four copper pans, (three books on cross-stitch, two painted boxes, and a sewing machine with a broken bobbin).

On the fifth day of July, Bless did declutter,
five magazines (four copper pans, three books on cross-stitch, two painted boxes, and a sewing machine with a broken bobbin).  

Yesterday, I was grateful for:
- The freedoms we enjoy in this country.
- The sacrifices others have made to enable us to have those freedoms.
- The holiday atmosphere with all the celebrations and parades.
- Being able to watch my neighbors' fireworks (even though they are illegal in my city!)
- One perfect peach harvested from my tree.

Today, I am grateful for:
- My primary care doctor calling to check on me.
- A safe drive to the clinic and back.
- Clinic staff who are courteous and pleasant, explaining each step of what they are doing and being reassuring.
- My cousin being so helpful and kind and caring.
- My daughter's supervisors being fine with her working remotely from home on Thursday and Friday so she can spend time with me (of course, it was the condition under which she accepted the job offer, but people can change their minds after the fact).

How was your Fourth of July?  How was your day, today?

 

14 comments:

  1. What a shame about the one and only peach. It looks lovely. The copper pans are so sweet. I'm not sure they'd make it to my de-cluttering pile :)

    Radiation burns never crossed my mind Bless. I hope they won't be too painful and that the aloe vera works.

    I second the first two things you've written on your grateful list yesterday. We take freedom and independence for granted but when you actually stop and think about it you realise how lucky you are compared to a lot of other people. xx

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    1. Believe me, the copper pans were a hard item to let go of. I actually took them down and kept them aside for a couple of days before I put them in the donations pile. I was waiting to see if I missed seeing them, but I seem to enjoy seeing the clear expanse of wall even more. Besides, it'll be one less item to keep polished!

      Yes, I've been told to expect something similar to sunburn with peeling, etc., due to the radiation. :p Hopefully, it won't be too bad. Will have to wait and see.

      Hope you are having a lovely day, Suzanne.

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  2. That was nice of your cousin ordering the gel for you. I can't read the decluttering song without singing it in my head :-) Although I don't know if I'll make it one it his 31

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    1. Yes, it was very nice of her, especially as she won't let me pay for it! Insists it's a gift from her!

      Yes, I have to sing the decluttering song (and then, the Christmas carol, too), to make sure it fits the tune, somewhat. :D

      Hope you are having a peaceful day, Jess. (((HUGS)))

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  3. I recently read about a new breast cancer radiation therapy protocol that they are using, that takes only half the number of weeks. Did your doctors give you that option?

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    1. No, they didn't. I was always told it'll be 6 weeks of Mon-Fri; 30 treatments. I wonder why? Maybe the dosage is higher in the shorter treatment period?

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  4. BLess, the copper pans are beautiful. But , I understand that sometimes after a length of time...it is just time to let it go..I collected music boxes for 20 yrs.. I had ALOT..., When we moved, I had a really hard time deciding to dontate the most of them.. But, I just didn't have room for them, with out really cluttering this small house.. and in the end I was happy I decluttered them.
    The one perfect peach will be really special for you and daughter to share. So sorry your other ones baked. Wish I could have shared mine with you.
    Best wishes and prayers on your radiation treatment today.

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    1. Thank you, Judy. The radiation treatment went very well, today. :)

      Sorry you had to donate most of your music boxes, I am sure they were very special to you. But sometimes it is a case of too much of a good thing, isn't it?

      I am hoping the peach tastes as good as it looks!


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    2. stopped in again to see if you had posted how you were doing.. So happy to hear your radiation treatment went well..
      Totally agree... sometimes it is a case of too much of a good thing.smile.
      Have a good night.

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    3. Thanks for checking back, Judy. Hope you have a good night, too.

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  5. Glad your radiation treatment went well. That is one special peach and I hope it tastes every bit as good as it looks! DH had a couple of ripe raspberries on the bushes he planted in spring, and was shocked to find that a chipmunk had eaten the best one, leaving him a tiny speck of red! DH quickly picked the other to finish ripening on the kitchen windowsill. I bet that chipmunk will be quite annoyed to see it gone!
    Bushlady

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    1. Thanks, Bushlady. Daughter and I shared the peach and it did taste good. :) Too bad about the raspberries! You might have to cover the bushes with netting to keep the chipmunks out!

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  6. Thinking of you today Bless! Glad to hear your treatment went well. :)

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