Gallstones and homeschooling and quarantines, OH MY.
Where to begin?
Of course, there's the whole coronavirus thing right now. I live in Ohio, which was the first state to close the schools, etc. We're under mandated orders to social distance now, and only essential businesses are allowed to remain open. Restaurants are open, but only for takeout or drive through. Stores have to count how many people go in, and each store much set a limited maximum number of customers to be inside at one time. Every time I do go out, I see more and more people with masks. Now that the CDC has recommended everyone where cloth masks, wifey and I got some cotton fabric, but I guess we're going to send it down to her mom in Alabama, who is going to put a lining and sew them properly, and then mail them back. Which could take a couple of weeks. I'm debating trying to just make my own to hold me over until then.
I was supposed to be seeing MISS SAIGON on the U.S. National Tour in June, but now I have no idea if that will even happen. All the touring productions, and Broadway itself, are shut down. I didn't have my tickets yet; they were supposed to go on sale this month. I don't know if they went on sale or not; haven't checked. I know MISS SAIGON is problematic in many ways, so it's not great of me that I really love it and consider it one of my favorite musicals. Me being upset that I'll probably not be able to see MISS SAIGON is privileged as fuck, honestly.
Wifey and Nate were going to go to Alabama over Spring break to visit her parents. I was going to go, too. I was super excited, because I have only been down there once. But we couldn't go because the whole pandemic thing got in the way. Her parents are homophobic and biphobic, and they don't know wifey and I are married (we're not married legally, for multiple reasons; we had a spiritual ceremony). They also don't know we are polyamorous, but they do know that she is married to Joe (they are married legally, as well as spiritually). However, he parents, especially her mom, love me, and are always sending gifts for me along with gifts for Kim and Nate. Her mom calls me her adopted daughter, and always thanks me for how much I help with Nate, for being such a good friend to Kim, etc. I wish her parents weren't homophobic and biphobic, but her mom is still a better "mom" to me than my own, so I'll take what I can get.
I forget if I mentioned here, but my mom (I'm 99% no contact with my mom, after years of abuse/neglect) fell and broke her femur and her back in her unsanitary, hoarder apartment. She's now in a nursing home, allegedly temporarily, to be rehabbed enough so she can walk. I guess she hasn't made much progress. And her landlord found out how unsanitary her apartment is. My sister, her husband, my wifey, and I all went and cleaned it as much as we could. But the landlord is now claiming there's bedbugs (there aren't; we checked), saying her bed needs gone (true: it's saturated with urine), and saying she broke her lease because she has been away from her apartment since November (due to hospital and the rehab place). I used to help my mom clean, but I could never keep up, because she hoards and won't do anything for herself, even though she can. And she refuses to have a professional aide help her at her apartment. And she won't get in contact with her landlord now, so my sister is panicking and trying to handle it all. I feel so guilty that it's all on my sister, but I can't break the no-contact with my mom. I visited her in the hospital, and it was okay, but then she started the same texts and phone calls as before, so I stopped contact again. I have been trying to advise my sister as best I can, and I've told my sister I will help her (my sister) any way I can. So, I have no idea what is going to happen. Honestly, I've thought for a few years that my mom should probably be permanently in an actual nursing home, because she is truly disabled, and won't even do the few things for herself that she CAN do. But I don't know if there's funds for that, or what will happen. I do know that if she loses her apartment, I'm going to go get the various keepsakes and photos that have sentimental value for our family.
At Walmart yesterday, we had to get pet food and some other necessary supplies. They were counting us as we went in, which is a relatively new development here in Ohio. And probably half the customers were wearing masks. I got incredibly anxious, and started shaking and having a panic attack. Wifey bought me a 20 ounce of Wild Cherry Pepsi so I could take one of my as-needed anxiety pills (vistaril). I wasn't anxious about catching anything, really. Sure, I have some health problems, and am at somewhat of an increased risk, but I don't think I'm at an incredibly high risk of complications. But just the whole surreal nature of things, thinking back to stuff like Twilight Zone and various apocalyptic movies, I just got overwhelmed and it didn't feel real. But, at the same time, it had never felt MORE real.
I have weekly therapy, but it's over a webcam program that's HIPAA compliant. It makes me anxious. I keep thinking I'm bothering my therapist or that she's bored with what I'm saying. Appointments with my psychiatrists have been over the phone.
My nephew Gabe is graduating 8th grade this year, and I'm really upset, because he won't be able to have his ceremony. His school would have done an actual ceremony, because they did when my nephew Josh graduated 8th grade there a couple of years ago. Josh is almost 16, and has his learner's permit. His voice has mostly changed, and now Gabe's voice is starting to change. WHERE DOES THE TIME GO?!? I'm so happy, though, because they are both such good kids. Just, truly, really good kids. I worry about Josh's anxiety, and I actually worry that Gabe may have some struggles at some point, because he has some issues and doesn't open up and talk about his feelings like Josh does. But they have such good hearts, are very giving, and are wonderful "cousins" to Nate.
Homeschooling Nate is a mixed bag. The first two weeks, I came up with my own "lessons" for him, based on some handouts his teacher had sent home, and based on the free stuff the Scholastic website was making available. Now that the whole no-school thing is going on longer, his teachers have lessons for him to do online, and one of his teachers makes videos to talk to the kids, periodic Zoom chats with herself, kids, and parents, etc. Nate fights a lot on doing his work, particularly this reading program they're having him use called Headsprout. Wifey and I both help him and push him to do his work online. The first two weeks, when I made up lessons for him, I pretty much did it on my own. It was actually kind of fun! But I'm glad his teachers are now setting up stuff for him to do online, so that he can stay more on track with what he'd be doing at school. He goes to a school specifically for autistic kids, and it's such a great place for him. I'm so grateful he's there and not in special ed through the public school system, because public school just doesn't have the resources he really needs.
I had my 39th birthday March 11, right before shit really started hitting the fan, so I got to go out to dinner for my birthday and had a relatively normal birthday.
I say "relatively," because about a week before my birthday, I got sick with what seemed to be a stomach bug. Nausea, pain, sweating, diarrhea, heaving, vomiting. It just kept getting worse, plus I had lost 6 pounds in 4 days. I need to lose weight and I am morbidly obese, but you're not supposed to lose weight that fast. So wifey took me to an urgent care, and I was assuming I'd get some prescription nausea meds to hold me over. Well, the doctor at urgent care didn't like my rapid weight loss, didn't like that I was dizzy, didn't like that my stomach was very tender. he said I needed to go to the ER for more thorough test.
At the ER, they drew blood, gave me IV nausea meds, gave me IV morphine (WHEEEEEE), gave me IV fluids, and did an ultrasound. My bloodwork was normal. But my ultrasound showed gallstones. So, I was discharged with prescription zofran for nausea, and a referral to a surgeon.
When it came time for my appointment with the surgeon, the coronavirus stuff was in full swing, so they did the appointment over the phone. The surgeon said, were it not for the current coronavirus crisis, they'd be scheduling me to have my gallbladder out in two weeks, based on the symptoms I have and the gallstones they can see in the ultrasound. However, they aren't doing non emergency surgeries while the coronavirus crisis is so bad. So, I'm eating a low fat diet to try to prevent any blockages and to manage my symptoms, until things calm down enough that they can schedule me for surgery.
The low fat diet helps a lot. I only get the really severe nausea maybe once a week or so, and I have the zofran for that (I pray I don't run out before I can get surgery). I have pain, but it's tolerable. The bloating and pressure is pretty uncomfortable, but I can tolerate it. Surprisingly (and happily), alcohol doesn't make it worse. So, I'm still able to have a few drinks here and there. And because my diet is more limited than usual due to having to eat low-fat, wifey has been letting me pick up whatever I want to eat at the store, so I'm having snacks like multiple dill pickles, hummus, etc. I can do okay with eggs and cheese, but in very limited quantities. Surprisingly, I do okay with avocado and guacamole, maybe because those are "good" fats? I don't know.
Oh, so I've been working on my loom knitting, and I had been practicing on my afghan loom. I was almost to the point where I was ready to cast off to see if I'd mastered it yet. My first attempt was messed up, and I found out I need to use a different kind of cast off. But you have to have enough rows on the loom before you can try the cast off. I'd put many hours of work into this second practice attempt, over the course of a couple of months. Well, a couple of nights ago, I was trying to eat a salad before bedtime. It had light dressing and fake bacon bits in it. I also was trying to carry a glass of milk, two pillows, and a comforter. I was miffed, because nobody was offering to help me carry all this stuff, and of course I wasn't going to ask, because I'm just that way. Well, when I tried to put the bowl of salad on the nightstand, I missed, and it spilled ALL OVER MY AFGHAN LOOM AND THE PRACTICE PROJECT THAT WAS ON IT. I had to frog the whole thing, because the yarn was soaked in salad dressing. I had to take all the yarn off and throw it away, and then meticulously clean between all the pegs on my afghan loom (it looks like a big infinity symbol; there are a lot of pegs). I was so fucking upset.
Of course, there's the whole coronavirus thing right now. I live in Ohio, which was the first state to close the schools, etc. We're under mandated orders to social distance now, and only essential businesses are allowed to remain open. Restaurants are open, but only for takeout or drive through. Stores have to count how many people go in, and each store much set a limited maximum number of customers to be inside at one time. Every time I do go out, I see more and more people with masks. Now that the CDC has recommended everyone where cloth masks, wifey and I got some cotton fabric, but I guess we're going to send it down to her mom in Alabama, who is going to put a lining and sew them properly, and then mail them back. Which could take a couple of weeks. I'm debating trying to just make my own to hold me over until then.
I was supposed to be seeing MISS SAIGON on the U.S. National Tour in June, but now I have no idea if that will even happen. All the touring productions, and Broadway itself, are shut down. I didn't have my tickets yet; they were supposed to go on sale this month. I don't know if they went on sale or not; haven't checked. I know MISS SAIGON is problematic in many ways, so it's not great of me that I really love it and consider it one of my favorite musicals. Me being upset that I'll probably not be able to see MISS SAIGON is privileged as fuck, honestly.
Wifey and Nate were going to go to Alabama over Spring break to visit her parents. I was going to go, too. I was super excited, because I have only been down there once. But we couldn't go because the whole pandemic thing got in the way. Her parents are homophobic and biphobic, and they don't know wifey and I are married (we're not married legally, for multiple reasons; we had a spiritual ceremony). They also don't know we are polyamorous, but they do know that she is married to Joe (they are married legally, as well as spiritually). However, he parents, especially her mom, love me, and are always sending gifts for me along with gifts for Kim and Nate. Her mom calls me her adopted daughter, and always thanks me for how much I help with Nate, for being such a good friend to Kim, etc. I wish her parents weren't homophobic and biphobic, but her mom is still a better "mom" to me than my own, so I'll take what I can get.
I forget if I mentioned here, but my mom (I'm 99% no contact with my mom, after years of abuse/neglect) fell and broke her femur and her back in her unsanitary, hoarder apartment. She's now in a nursing home, allegedly temporarily, to be rehabbed enough so she can walk. I guess she hasn't made much progress. And her landlord found out how unsanitary her apartment is. My sister, her husband, my wifey, and I all went and cleaned it as much as we could. But the landlord is now claiming there's bedbugs (there aren't; we checked), saying her bed needs gone (true: it's saturated with urine), and saying she broke her lease because she has been away from her apartment since November (due to hospital and the rehab place). I used to help my mom clean, but I could never keep up, because she hoards and won't do anything for herself, even though she can. And she refuses to have a professional aide help her at her apartment. And she won't get in contact with her landlord now, so my sister is panicking and trying to handle it all. I feel so guilty that it's all on my sister, but I can't break the no-contact with my mom. I visited her in the hospital, and it was okay, but then she started the same texts and phone calls as before, so I stopped contact again. I have been trying to advise my sister as best I can, and I've told my sister I will help her (my sister) any way I can. So, I have no idea what is going to happen. Honestly, I've thought for a few years that my mom should probably be permanently in an actual nursing home, because she is truly disabled, and won't even do the few things for herself that she CAN do. But I don't know if there's funds for that, or what will happen. I do know that if she loses her apartment, I'm going to go get the various keepsakes and photos that have sentimental value for our family.
At Walmart yesterday, we had to get pet food and some other necessary supplies. They were counting us as we went in, which is a relatively new development here in Ohio. And probably half the customers were wearing masks. I got incredibly anxious, and started shaking and having a panic attack. Wifey bought me a 20 ounce of Wild Cherry Pepsi so I could take one of my as-needed anxiety pills (vistaril). I wasn't anxious about catching anything, really. Sure, I have some health problems, and am at somewhat of an increased risk, but I don't think I'm at an incredibly high risk of complications. But just the whole surreal nature of things, thinking back to stuff like Twilight Zone and various apocalyptic movies, I just got overwhelmed and it didn't feel real. But, at the same time, it had never felt MORE real.
I have weekly therapy, but it's over a webcam program that's HIPAA compliant. It makes me anxious. I keep thinking I'm bothering my therapist or that she's bored with what I'm saying. Appointments with my psychiatrists have been over the phone.
My nephew Gabe is graduating 8th grade this year, and I'm really upset, because he won't be able to have his ceremony. His school would have done an actual ceremony, because they did when my nephew Josh graduated 8th grade there a couple of years ago. Josh is almost 16, and has his learner's permit. His voice has mostly changed, and now Gabe's voice is starting to change. WHERE DOES THE TIME GO?!? I'm so happy, though, because they are both such good kids. Just, truly, really good kids. I worry about Josh's anxiety, and I actually worry that Gabe may have some struggles at some point, because he has some issues and doesn't open up and talk about his feelings like Josh does. But they have such good hearts, are very giving, and are wonderful "cousins" to Nate.
Homeschooling Nate is a mixed bag. The first two weeks, I came up with my own "lessons" for him, based on some handouts his teacher had sent home, and based on the free stuff the Scholastic website was making available. Now that the whole no-school thing is going on longer, his teachers have lessons for him to do online, and one of his teachers makes videos to talk to the kids, periodic Zoom chats with herself, kids, and parents, etc. Nate fights a lot on doing his work, particularly this reading program they're having him use called Headsprout. Wifey and I both help him and push him to do his work online. The first two weeks, when I made up lessons for him, I pretty much did it on my own. It was actually kind of fun! But I'm glad his teachers are now setting up stuff for him to do online, so that he can stay more on track with what he'd be doing at school. He goes to a school specifically for autistic kids, and it's such a great place for him. I'm so grateful he's there and not in special ed through the public school system, because public school just doesn't have the resources he really needs.
I had my 39th birthday March 11, right before shit really started hitting the fan, so I got to go out to dinner for my birthday and had a relatively normal birthday.
I say "relatively," because about a week before my birthday, I got sick with what seemed to be a stomach bug. Nausea, pain, sweating, diarrhea, heaving, vomiting. It just kept getting worse, plus I had lost 6 pounds in 4 days. I need to lose weight and I am morbidly obese, but you're not supposed to lose weight that fast. So wifey took me to an urgent care, and I was assuming I'd get some prescription nausea meds to hold me over. Well, the doctor at urgent care didn't like my rapid weight loss, didn't like that I was dizzy, didn't like that my stomach was very tender. he said I needed to go to the ER for more thorough test.
At the ER, they drew blood, gave me IV nausea meds, gave me IV morphine (WHEEEEEE), gave me IV fluids, and did an ultrasound. My bloodwork was normal. But my ultrasound showed gallstones. So, I was discharged with prescription zofran for nausea, and a referral to a surgeon.
When it came time for my appointment with the surgeon, the coronavirus stuff was in full swing, so they did the appointment over the phone. The surgeon said, were it not for the current coronavirus crisis, they'd be scheduling me to have my gallbladder out in two weeks, based on the symptoms I have and the gallstones they can see in the ultrasound. However, they aren't doing non emergency surgeries while the coronavirus crisis is so bad. So, I'm eating a low fat diet to try to prevent any blockages and to manage my symptoms, until things calm down enough that they can schedule me for surgery.
The low fat diet helps a lot. I only get the really severe nausea maybe once a week or so, and I have the zofran for that (I pray I don't run out before I can get surgery). I have pain, but it's tolerable. The bloating and pressure is pretty uncomfortable, but I can tolerate it. Surprisingly (and happily), alcohol doesn't make it worse. So, I'm still able to have a few drinks here and there. And because my diet is more limited than usual due to having to eat low-fat, wifey has been letting me pick up whatever I want to eat at the store, so I'm having snacks like multiple dill pickles, hummus, etc. I can do okay with eggs and cheese, but in very limited quantities. Surprisingly, I do okay with avocado and guacamole, maybe because those are "good" fats? I don't know.
Oh, so I've been working on my loom knitting, and I had been practicing on my afghan loom. I was almost to the point where I was ready to cast off to see if I'd mastered it yet. My first attempt was messed up, and I found out I need to use a different kind of cast off. But you have to have enough rows on the loom before you can try the cast off. I'd put many hours of work into this second practice attempt, over the course of a couple of months. Well, a couple of nights ago, I was trying to eat a salad before bedtime. It had light dressing and fake bacon bits in it. I also was trying to carry a glass of milk, two pillows, and a comforter. I was miffed, because nobody was offering to help me carry all this stuff, and of course I wasn't going to ask, because I'm just that way. Well, when I tried to put the bowl of salad on the nightstand, I missed, and it spilled ALL OVER MY AFGHAN LOOM AND THE PRACTICE PROJECT THAT WAS ON IT. I had to frog the whole thing, because the yarn was soaked in salad dressing. I had to take all the yarn off and throw it away, and then meticulously clean between all the pegs on my afghan loom (it looks like a big infinity symbol; there are a lot of pegs). I was so fucking upset.