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| My Mother and I |
I spent a quiet morning. I woke up at 9:30 a.m., which has been the earliest I've woken up in several days. I was hoping that I would get an early start on the things I'd planned to do, but, I didn't feel quite up to it, so I took it easy.
Later in the morning, I decided to check my kitchen cabinet, before I went to buy wine. I remembered that I had a couple of bottles of wine in the top cabinet, leftover from the last prayer gathering. One of my cousins and another participant had asked what they could bring and I had said to bring a bottle of their choice of wine, because I didn't know what to buy and they brought at least a couple of bottles each, plus, there was a bottle of ginger wine I had known to buy, and a bottle of wine that one of my friends had given...in the end, I discovered that there were five unopened bottles of wine! Plus the 4 opened bottles I had stored in the fridge (which might or might not still be good). I asked one of my friends for her opinion and she thought that that was plenty of wine for the occasion. So, I "shopped" for wine in the cabinet and didn't need to go to the wine store!
I decided to do a little more cleaning, after that. There is a wooden mosaic picture on the wall in the family room that was dusty, so I washed it. Then, I took apart the table fan I have on the counter of the pass-through between the family room and the kitchen and washed that! And I tidied and dusted the computer table (also in the family room) and the little white plastic shelf unit where I store shoes and the tool kit and various, computer related stuff (power cords, etc.). Eventually, I'd like to get rid of that plastic shelf unit, but for now, it adds some much needed storage space.
After that, I had lunch - leftover rice and curries (dhal, garbanzo beans, chicken curry). Then, it was time to visit my mother's grave and go to the dental appointment, which was at 3:30 p.m.
Today's dental appointment was to have my bridge inserted. Why do these things hurt me so much? The dentist had to give me a shot to numb that side of my mouth because it hurt me too much! But, the bridge has been put in place and I paid the rest of my bill and made another appointment to have the other bridge done, next year! This time, the procedure took just one hour. Afterwards, I checked the small Armenian grocery store a couple of doors down from the dentist's office to see if they had the bread that I like, but they didn't have it. Oh, well, I won't be tempted to eat it if I don't have it, right?
I was told not to eat or drink anything for 2 1/2 to 3 hours and to wait until the numbness wore off. The numbness wore off after about 2 hours, but I waited until 2 1/2 hours to take two Tylenols as my mouth was hurting and then, had a cup of tea.
After I came home and before the numbness wore off, I cleaned the living room windows - the window sills and the insides of the windows. I don't open these windows because the screens are torn and Dancer can jump out, but the sills still end up getting very dusty (the windows are old, 1970s aluminum frames, single panes, and rattle at the slightest breeze) and, there are kitty nose prints on the panes of the big picture window thanks to a certain Dancer! Cleaning the windows wasn't on my prayer gathering To Do list, but I am glad I was able to get them done!
Then, I rested for a bit. Aunt T called and Cousin P called and I chatted with them. Daughter texted to tell me she was going to do a bit of shopping after work and called me to let me know she got home safely and didn't get run over! LOL! She said she bought me a new planner to carry in my purse so I could keep track of my appointments, as she knew I had been looking for one:
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| New Planner |
Later, I started cleaning my bathroom. Scrubbed the toilet and sink, cleaned the mirrors. Then, I started on the 5-tiered white plastic shelf unit. I have lined the shelves with wax paper to make it easier to clean. But, even with the wax paper, the shelves have to be damp wiped, every so often. Today, I cleaned the top three shelves and relined them with fresh wax paper. The bottom two shelves are the dustiest, but I will do them, tomorrow, as now I am tired (plus I forgot to wear a dust mask and I don't want the asthma to kick in!) While I was cleaning the shelves, I also decluttered a couple of items - two hand sanitizer pumps that don't work (never worked; plus, they are rather old and probably not very effective now).
Today, I am grateful for:
- Memories of my mother, the lessons she taught me over the years
- My friend who shared her opinion about the wine and helped me decide that I had enough
- Whatever the dentist used to numb my mouth!
- Tylenol!
- All the cleaning I was able to accomplish today
Thursday's To Do List:
- Visit mother's grave - DONE
- Shop for the beverages - DIDN'T NEED TO!
- Dentist appointment - DONE
- Clean my bathroom - DID SOME
- Water the indoor plants - DONE
Friday's To Do List:
- Vacuum (whole house)
- Tidy/dust my bedroom
- Finish cleaning my bathroom
- Finish cleaning my bathroom
- Plus the rest of the grocery shopping
- Tidy the 3rd bedroom a.k.a. The Dump
- Meditation session?
Oh, dear! Friday's to do list looks a bit daunting, doesn't it? I might ask M to do the vacuuming for me if I don't get around to it (neither cousin P nor friend R will vacuum as they refuse to use my canister vacuum cleaner! But they'll sweep.) Going to the temple will depend on how much I am able to get done during the day. I won't be able to sit and meditate if my mind was dwelling on all the things I still have to do!
Still to do (Saturday):
- Mop kitchen floor
- Rest of the grocery shopping (if not finished on Friday)
- Finish cleaning the 3rd bedroom
- Finish cleaning my bedroom
- Rest of the cooking
- Pick up friend R?
How was your Thursday? What are your plans for Friday?
- Meditation session?
Oh, dear! Friday's to do list looks a bit daunting, doesn't it? I might ask M to do the vacuuming for me if I don't get around to it (neither cousin P nor friend R will vacuum as they refuse to use my canister vacuum cleaner! But they'll sweep.) Going to the temple will depend on how much I am able to get done during the day. I won't be able to sit and meditate if my mind was dwelling on all the things I still have to do!
Still to do (Saturday):
- Mop kitchen floor
- Rest of the grocery shopping (if not finished on Friday)
- Finish cleaning the 3rd bedroom
- Finish cleaning my bedroom
- Rest of the cooking
- Pick up friend R?
How was your Thursday? What are your plans for Friday?
My Thursday was very quiet (no workmen!) and then a committee meeting for band in the evening. That was the first time I spoke to anyone all day, so a reminder that I have important lifestyle changes I need to make.
ReplyDeleteYour cleaning efforts put me to shame ... I'd just get tired and give up! Is it the thought of the prayer gathering that's driving you to get it done?
I love the photo of you as a child with your mum.
Yes, the retired life can be very solitary. Even with all the phone calls I get from family, there are days when I don't talk to anyone during the daytime. But I got used to that when I was home during my chemo treatment. I was asked not to go out at all during that time - no shopping, no visiting, etc. - due to having a compromised immune system from the treatments and it being the flu season, at the time.
DeleteYes, it is the prayer gathering that is urging me to clean as much as I can. My house has become quite neglected. When I was not well enough, I had to turn a blind eye to the dirt, but now, I am feeling better and want to get the place cleaned as much as possible. There's more cleaning to be done - but I'll keep that for later because I do still get tired fairly quickly, so I am trying to pace myself.
Thank you; the next photograph in the album, taken on the same occasion (someone's wedding, I believe), shows her feeding me ice cream! :D
I know that you get tired and don't get as much done as you would like, but when I read about your days, they would make me tired and I'd be happy if I had accomplished as much as you do. BTW, love the picture of you and your mother.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Live and Learn. As I looked through my childhood photo album, I realized that there aren't a lot of pictures of me with my mother. I know it wasn't she who took the photos (my father did), so I don't know why she wasn't in many of them.
DeleteAs for accomplishing things, thank you for your kind words! I'm trying! All the energy I used to spend going to work and back is now being directed towards housework! :)
I too love the photo of you and your mother. I can understand how you feel. There's not a day go by that I don't think of my dad.
ReplyDeleteYou've been working hard Bless. I also have window cleaning on this week's to do list. I washed only one so far.
I chuckled when I read how you called to your 3rd bedroom Dump. That's how I feel about my 3rd room. Sometimes I think a 2 bedroom house would have been enough for me. Then I wonder where my other stuff would be. One of these days I'm going to turn into a craft/guest room. 😊😐
Thank you, Nil. My father died when I was 7 and I no longer think of him, daily, but I remember him in my prayers, every night. My mother, my father, my step-father, and all the others in the family who have died, is how I phrase it. :)
DeleteThe 3 bedrooms worked out well for me, at first - one for my mother, one for my daughter, and one for me. After my mother died, I moved into my mother's room and gave daughter my room, and turned her former room into the guest/crafts/office room. Later, daughter and I switched rooms again and I went back to my old bedroom and daughter moved into what used to be my mother's room. And, gradually, the 3rd room became the storage room! Everything gets dumped in there!
Your mother was beautiful and you were a very pretty child! Good memories can ease the sadness, I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteDental work is (literally) a pain, isn't it? I sometimes almost envy those crocodiles who have little birds to take care of their teeth! I hope you are feeling more comfortable now.
Thank you, Bushlady.
DeleteI hate dental work! I took two more Tylenol, last night, before I went to sleep, but didn't need any, today. I'm still getting used to having the bridge in my mouth, but there is no pain. Haven't tried eating from that side, yet, though!
My Mum is a great influence on my life too. I'm glad you spent time remembering what a great lady your mother was! I love the photo.
ReplyDeleteI had my bridge fitted on Tuesday - and a crown started on the other side. My whole mouth was numb. I hated it. I kept biting my lips as I couldn't feel them even when I was talking. I ended up going home and sleeping just so I wouldn't have to put up with the numbness. I now have to remember that I can eat normally on the one side and carefully on the other.
Thank you, Sharon. I guess for most of us, our mothers are our role models. :)
DeleteI thought of you when I had to sign a form stating that I had read the guarantee - the bridge is guaranteed for workmanship for 6 months; if anything happens to it during that time (from normal usage), they will replace free of cost; if anything happens in the first year, they will repair at a nominal cost for labor and material. After 1 year, you have to pay the full cost of replacement. I thought of you and how your bridge broke. I still haven't eaten from the side with the bridge!
Beautiful photo of you and your mother. You both look so happy there.
ReplyDeleteGlad you have finished with the dentist's appointments for a while, and you did it before your insurance changed over. Yay.
Thank you, Susan. :)
DeleteYes, dental appointments are done for the time being! Yay!