Where Have I Been?
Georgia, that's where. Oh, yeah, and the ER. Actually, I wasn't in either place for very long, but I've been worn out. I didn't realize how exhausted I was until the antibiotics finally kicked in.
My oldest niece, my youngest sister's only child, got married in Georgia on September 3. She's 25, her new husband is a few years older, and they seem very suited to each other and very happy. He seems like a good man. My mom, my middle sister P., P's daughter J., Irish, and I rented a minivan and drove down to Forsyth, Georgia for the wedding. We got on the road about 7:30 a.m. on September 2, stopped every couple of hours, and were in our hotel rooms by 12:30 a.m. on September 3. The wedding was at 4:00 p.m., we were back in our rooms around 10:00 (except for P. and J.), on the road by 7:00 the next day and home by 10:00 that night. Sunday took less time than Friday because it took less time to get through Atlanta and waaaay less time to get through Nashville (which we hit at rush hour on Friday). (Why were P. and J. not back at the hotel with the rest of us on Saturday night? Because her son - my nephew, A. - who was in the wedding party and had gotten there earlier in the week, was supposed to spend Sunday and Monday with a friend in Athens. A friend who, it turns out, wasn't able to make it to the wedding after all, leaving A. with a Monday plane ticket and no ride to Athens. P. drove him, with J. - who at 19 couldn't drive the rented van - for company and got back to the hotel at 1:00 a.m. Sunday. Unfortunately, Athens is east and we were heading west, so dropping him off on the way home wasn't our best option. It all worked out, though.)
The reception was great and I only cried one time - watching niece and nephew dance and remembering niece staying with me one weekend when she was 7 and her wanting me to play music so we could "dance like grownups" - she had to stand on a chair to dance with me. Irish asked, "What's wrong?" "Nothing! They're all grown up. They're not kids anymore!" "Well, yeah." Well really, when did that happen?!
I did buy a new camera on Thursday, brought it home, pulled the memory card out of my old, cheap camera - and it turns out the new camera needs one of those mini cards. So no pictures from me, I'm afraid, because at that point I wasn't going back out to find a mini card.
About an hour after we got home Sunday, I started feeling sick - upset stomach - and spent Labor Day with an upset stomach, not wanting to eat, and mostly sleeping. Had Tuesday off instead of Wednesday so we could return the van and take my friend who'd come to check on the cats out to lunch. I was feeling well enough to eat but was still tired. Went to work Wednesday and was just exhausted when I got home. Thursday, my teeth, gums, and tongue started aching on the right side and by the time I got home it was really painful. I even snagged one of Irish's Vicodin, which took the edge off - but then I went to bed and my bi-pap mask pressed on every single part of my face that hurt, and slept poorly all night; kept waking in pain. Woke up Friday with my right cheek, part of my nose, and upper lip all swollen - it was less painful than Thursday but still tender and I looked like a rodent. Went to work and tried not to talk much, not because it hurt to talk but because it felt really weird to talk with my lip like that. (I asked a co-worker if I talked funny. "No, you just look funny!" I had to laugh because it was absolutely true.) My cheeks were really, really red, too, more than usual, and a little hot, but I didn't feel like I had a fever.
Saturday (9/10), mom, P., and I were supposed to put together the food for the reception. We had a reception for A. and M. (newly married niece and husband) on Sunday so friends and family up here could meet M. and visit with them. When I woke up, my face was much less swollen but below my right eye was extremely swollen and puffy. By now, fortunately, there was no more pain unless I pressed under and around my nose. I showed P., who's a nurse, and told here what'd been going on, and she immediately said, "You need to see a doctor now. You can't wait till Monday." When a nurse tells you that, it's generally a good idea to listen. My doctor, who's 15 miles away, doesn't have weekend hours, so I went to the local emergency room. Now there's an advantage to living in a small town - I walked in at 11:30 a.m. and walked out at 12:30. p.m. The doctor I saw diagnosed me with cellulitis in my cheek, told me it's a good thing I went in when I did since he thought it was early enough to clear it all up with oral antibiotics, had the nurse give me a huge shot of antibiotics in my butt, and sent me off with a prescription for Bactrim. Called P. to let her know what was going on - she, my mom, and my aunt who was helping them were already done with the food! - got my drugs and lunch, went home - and slept the afternoon away.
The reception on Sunday was fun and I had a good time, but I kept having to sit down and rest. When I complained to P. and mom about being so tired and lacking energy, they both pointed out that it's normal when you're fighting a severe infection. Normal, maybe, but really, really annoying! Tired still on Monday morning - like, haven't slept tired, even though I'd gotten 8 hours - and I wasn't sure I could stay at work all day. However, by the time I left Monday, I actually had more energy than when I got up, yesterday wasn't too bad, and today (my day off) I'm finally feeling like normal. Yay for antibiotics!
So that's where I've been. I feel like I should be writing more about niece's wedding and our road trip than about being sick but without photos, they seem a little difficult to write about, especially since they already seem like a million years ago or a dream. I will say that I'd do the same road trip again, though niece J. says never, not ever. (I think she's just being nice and leaving off, "Not with all you old people!")
My oldest niece, my youngest sister's only child, got married in Georgia on September 3. She's 25, her new husband is a few years older, and they seem very suited to each other and very happy. He seems like a good man. My mom, my middle sister P., P's daughter J., Irish, and I rented a minivan and drove down to Forsyth, Georgia for the wedding. We got on the road about 7:30 a.m. on September 2, stopped every couple of hours, and were in our hotel rooms by 12:30 a.m. on September 3. The wedding was at 4:00 p.m., we were back in our rooms around 10:00 (except for P. and J.), on the road by 7:00 the next day and home by 10:00 that night. Sunday took less time than Friday because it took less time to get through Atlanta and waaaay less time to get through Nashville (which we hit at rush hour on Friday). (Why were P. and J. not back at the hotel with the rest of us on Saturday night? Because her son - my nephew, A. - who was in the wedding party and had gotten there earlier in the week, was supposed to spend Sunday and Monday with a friend in Athens. A friend who, it turns out, wasn't able to make it to the wedding after all, leaving A. with a Monday plane ticket and no ride to Athens. P. drove him, with J. - who at 19 couldn't drive the rented van - for company and got back to the hotel at 1:00 a.m. Sunday. Unfortunately, Athens is east and we were heading west, so dropping him off on the way home wasn't our best option. It all worked out, though.)
The reception was great and I only cried one time - watching niece and nephew dance and remembering niece staying with me one weekend when she was 7 and her wanting me to play music so we could "dance like grownups" - she had to stand on a chair to dance with me. Irish asked, "What's wrong?" "Nothing! They're all grown up. They're not kids anymore!" "Well, yeah." Well really, when did that happen?!
I did buy a new camera on Thursday, brought it home, pulled the memory card out of my old, cheap camera - and it turns out the new camera needs one of those mini cards. So no pictures from me, I'm afraid, because at that point I wasn't going back out to find a mini card.
About an hour after we got home Sunday, I started feeling sick - upset stomach - and spent Labor Day with an upset stomach, not wanting to eat, and mostly sleeping. Had Tuesday off instead of Wednesday so we could return the van and take my friend who'd come to check on the cats out to lunch. I was feeling well enough to eat but was still tired. Went to work Wednesday and was just exhausted when I got home. Thursday, my teeth, gums, and tongue started aching on the right side and by the time I got home it was really painful. I even snagged one of Irish's Vicodin, which took the edge off - but then I went to bed and my bi-pap mask pressed on every single part of my face that hurt, and slept poorly all night; kept waking in pain. Woke up Friday with my right cheek, part of my nose, and upper lip all swollen - it was less painful than Thursday but still tender and I looked like a rodent. Went to work and tried not to talk much, not because it hurt to talk but because it felt really weird to talk with my lip like that. (I asked a co-worker if I talked funny. "No, you just look funny!" I had to laugh because it was absolutely true.) My cheeks were really, really red, too, more than usual, and a little hot, but I didn't feel like I had a fever.
Saturday (9/10), mom, P., and I were supposed to put together the food for the reception. We had a reception for A. and M. (newly married niece and husband) on Sunday so friends and family up here could meet M. and visit with them. When I woke up, my face was much less swollen but below my right eye was extremely swollen and puffy. By now, fortunately, there was no more pain unless I pressed under and around my nose. I showed P., who's a nurse, and told here what'd been going on, and she immediately said, "You need to see a doctor now. You can't wait till Monday." When a nurse tells you that, it's generally a good idea to listen. My doctor, who's 15 miles away, doesn't have weekend hours, so I went to the local emergency room. Now there's an advantage to living in a small town - I walked in at 11:30 a.m. and walked out at 12:30. p.m. The doctor I saw diagnosed me with cellulitis in my cheek, told me it's a good thing I went in when I did since he thought it was early enough to clear it all up with oral antibiotics, had the nurse give me a huge shot of antibiotics in my butt, and sent me off with a prescription for Bactrim. Called P. to let her know what was going on - she, my mom, and my aunt who was helping them were already done with the food! - got my drugs and lunch, went home - and slept the afternoon away.
The reception on Sunday was fun and I had a good time, but I kept having to sit down and rest. When I complained to P. and mom about being so tired and lacking energy, they both pointed out that it's normal when you're fighting a severe infection. Normal, maybe, but really, really annoying! Tired still on Monday morning - like, haven't slept tired, even though I'd gotten 8 hours - and I wasn't sure I could stay at work all day. However, by the time I left Monday, I actually had more energy than when I got up, yesterday wasn't too bad, and today (my day off) I'm finally feeling like normal. Yay for antibiotics!
So that's where I've been. I feel like I should be writing more about niece's wedding and our road trip than about being sick but without photos, they seem a little difficult to write about, especially since they already seem like a million years ago or a dream. I will say that I'd do the same road trip again, though niece J. says never, not ever. (I think she's just being nice and leaving off, "Not with all you old people!")