Jennifer Apodaca's Blog, page 21

Wednesday Stuff

Success!! I finally got an appointment with an UCI endocrine surgeon! It’s August 9th, and from what I can see she (the surgeon) is well-qualified and specializes in just what I need. All I need to do is get a CD of the thyroid ultrasound I had in April, which shouldn’t be hard.  Wizard and I are feeling pretty good about this.

As long as we’re moving forward, I don’t want to dwell on the frustrations we went through to get here. In fact these two months of problems may have actually led me on a jagged path to better quality care. Life is funny like that sometimes.

How’s your Wednesday going?

The post Wednesday Stuff first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Weekend Roundup

So the weekend was good. Well mostly.

Saturday morning we met youngest and his wife at the auto museum/ winery. The place was so cute! Amidst sweeping fields of grape vines were three buildings with pathways and stairs to reach them. So lovely and peaceful.

The first building was a quaint store with so many things to look at that each time we were in it, we found new things. Totally fun. Tucked into that was a little winery. None of us were interested in wine tasting (too early, and we were all driving), but on the way out, Wizard and I bought a few bottles.

Then we followed a path through grapevines and beneath the warm blue skies to the first building complete with an old fashion gas station out front. There we met that highlight of the day — a friendly cat! Me and daughter in law were smitten, petting him and telling him he was beautiful (because he totally was!) while the two men headed inside muttering things like, “We’re not here to see a cat.”. Then we went in to see rows of beautiful kept classic cars, and an assortment of other classic electronics like older computers to work on cars (don’t judge, I’m not a car person) along with TVs and stereos. We all enjoyed it.

Then Wizard and I sent youngest and daughter in law off to see the top building as it wasn’t accessible to Wizard. Well that was my plan. Wizard insisted I go with them and he’d be fine. So I did (because he means it) and we climbed a hill and stairs to the finally building with a wrap around porch. In the back was the wine/barrel room and we couldn’t go in there. But we looked in like super secret agents Then we went inside the actual building to see more immaculately kept classic cars, some with less than a 100 miles on them. Amazing. Youngest solved all the questions about how they got the cars in there (hidden garages) but none of us are sure how they got one car up to a platform up in a corner of the building. We then discovered a Barbie room filled with Barbies because that makes sense in a car museum, LOL. Daughter in law loved it. I asked daughter in law if she’d be surprised to learn I was more of a Tom Boy as a kid and had zero interest in Babies? She was not surprised However I went through with her because I love her and she was interested. Youngest got about a foot and a half into the room before he remembered something (anything!) else he had to do.

After that, we found Wizard and went back down to the main building where we hung out and did more window shopping, and ended that portion of our fun that day with Wizard buying the bottles of we wine we chose (without tasting which is pretty risky).

After that, we all went to lunch. We had fun and talked nonstop, but the food was the only day’s disappointment at a normally reliant restaurant. Well, we can win at everything, now can we?

Later than evening Wizard went into our bedroom for something,  and I opened a Petit Syrah wine that we’d bought. Um, I had a bit of an uncorking adventure that sprayed red wine on the wall, floor and me. That was a new experience and I’ve opened quite a few bottles of wine. Wizard came into the kitchen, saw the newly sprayed walls, floor and my white shorts, then fixed a look on me. “Did you sneeze?”

I couldn’t help it, I doubled over with laugher. My bloody noses are a little scary lately, but also, funny as heck in some ways. (Note: they are probably just allergies and nothing to worry about). Regaining some self control, I pointed at the wine. “Blame him!”

We cleaned up, did what we could to keep the cork out of the wine and failed. But then came the moment — Tasting the pricy and surprisingly difficult to uncork wine. We both had some trepidation wondering if we’d just invested in colored vinegar.

But it was wonderful!!! Full body, nice balance with a good backend finish for my very amateur tastebuds.

So that was Saturday. Sunday Wizard went racing and I stayed home with plans to workout, wash floors and begin the sourdough process. In the process, I hit my the back of my hand on a drawer pull and bruised it. That’s just annoying. But Maggie’s bladder issues appear to be worsening and she seems a bit restless.  I’ll feel better after she sees the vet on Wednesday.

How was your weekend?

The post Weekend Roundup first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Friday Five

TGIF! No small talk, let’s get right to sharing five random things about our week:

We just learned of a fire on the mountain highway coming down into our town. It’s a 100+ degrees here so it’s not good news. It’s close enough that we’re not worried (about ourselves, we are worried about the people and animals in its path) but we’re on alert. We see a lot of air support on the fire, so that’s hopeful — sometimes they can knock it down pretty fast. And I have a friend in Canada evacuating a huge fire there — I hate fires. The week has been mostly quiet and hot. Somewhat boring, but only because the heat limits our options.Maggie is having bladder issues as in very small accidents. She gets very upset about it, but she doesn’t seem unwell. All that said, she has a vet appointment August 5th, and I’ll ask them to do an ultrasound. They’ll either do it then and make another appointment. It’s really just a precaution that I’m more than happy to pay for. I think it’s just a poor spa job (before we had her) and age, but she hides pain so I’d rather be overcautious.The baby shower for my daughter-in-law is August 3rd and its really nice to have that to think about and look forward too. The baby should be here very late August and maybe early September. Those are great distractions from dealing with getting into UCI. I think we’re making progress, but I have an appointment with my primary doctor late next week in case I need more help. On the upside, I’ve been polishing up my phone and nagging skills, bwahahaha! It’s been a long week.Tomorrow we’re going to an auto museum and winery place with Youngest and his wife. It’ll be fun to spend time with them! Wizard and I both need a day out, or at least a couple hours as it may be too hot for us to stay longer than that.

That’s my five, now I’d love to hear yours! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

The post Friday Five first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

New To You Wednesday

When I was at Trader Joe’s last week, I bought a watermelon. Then I cut it and discovered a yellow watermelon. I never knew!!! How did I get this many decades into my life and not know about yellow watermelons? Wizard and I loved it.

And that reminds me, trying new things is important. Even when it’s by accident, LOL!

So how about you? Did you know about yellow watermelons (I’m pretty sure the answer is yes and I’ve been living under a rock!). And what have you tried that’s new to you lately?

Happy Wednesday!

The post New To You Wednesday first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Weekend Roundup

It was a pretty quiet weekend overall and nice enough. But late Sunday afternoon I opened the door to get a package on the porch, immediately smelled smoke and my eyes started burning. The fire is some distance away from us, so not a concern for us directly but causing evacuations for others. I hate fires.

Aside from that, my weekend went well except for nose bleeds. I had a sudden and significant one Friday morning while getting Maggie’s breakfast. Wizard came in and finished feeding her while I went into the bathroom to take care of it. I got it to stop in about five minutes and that’s good. But then I returned to the kitchen and found blood on the floor and running down a white cupboard. Wizard surveyed it, then turned to look at me. “Don’t disappear. The cops will luminal this place and arrest me. I’ll never be able to explain all this blood!” I cracked up. He was only half kidding, and I laughed harder. Because sometimes, we just have to laugh!

Saturday I had a couple minor nosebleeds, and Sunday was blood free! I have a prescription ointment I’m usually and hopefully that helps. I’m sure the weather is aggravating it.

Otherwise, I did some cleaning, organizing for the baby shower in a couple weeks, a bit of online shopping in my endless hunt for clothes and shoes that I like and will actually wear, and I’m beginning a new sourdough starter. With the throat surgery and endless tests, I neglected my old starter and it’d died    I don’t know how I got so careless! Later in the afternoon, we went over to Youngest’s to see a stacked stone planter he’s been building in the backyard 100 degree heat. He doesn’t mind the heat as long as it’s not humid. The planter is going to be beautiful.

I forget to tell you all, one morning last week, Maggie and I were on our daily morning walk, and we were on the sidewalk by a school. Between the sidewalk and the fenced school parking lot is a slope filled with brush. An animal broke out of that brush and hauled-butt back into the hills. I was so startled, I stopped and watched and I’m pretty sure it was a bobcat. It could have been a coyote, but it moved like a cat, and had the bobcat ears from what I could see. Either way, we were lucky! It’s rare for the critters to come down to the street, but it happens. It’s part of the package of living at the base of the hills (it’s a National Forest), and it’s also a good reminder to stay alert.

I’m listening to a non-fiction book by a doctor about wide ranging topics in medicine and the medical field. That’s both interesting and a bit depressing.

How was your weekend?

The post Weekend Roundup first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Friday Five

TGIF!!! Who is the wise witch making the weeks go faster lately? Or is that just me??? Anyhow, it’s time to share five random things about our week. Here’s mine:

 Monday I got my mammogram done. Um, it was the same as it usually was — the procedure is tolerable and quick. I had a harder time tolerating a lady in the waiting room being annoyed at everything and hassling the staff because — obviously — she had more important things to do that the rest of us did.This week was a first at the grocery store — Wizard and I were both stunned at how low our total bill was. Like…we were confused, LOL. I mean we knew it’d be a light week but are we even eating??? Oh wait, the scale says we are Anyway, those kinds of shocks are few and far between.Then I went to Trader Joes “for fun” and $75.00 dollars later….it all made sense, LOL. I filled in some things like fruit, good parmesan cheese, baking vanilla and various other items. None of that really adds up to $75.00 though…until I added in two bottles of wine (see #4 for why the wine). So why do I think Traders is fun? Because it’s not a required task, and most of what I get is stuff I want, or ingredients to cook or bake something fun and basically use a little creativity.Okay, so I’m still working on getting into UCI. I *think* I’m making progress, but man it’s been hassle. I’ve been making endless calls trying to get my referral faxed from one entity to another and finally realized my mistake. I was expecting people to do their job! Silly of me, right? So I drove across town to UPS and paid them to Fax the referral to two of UCI fax numbers I’d been given. Finally yesterday I was told they had a referral!  See what happens when I stop being lazy and do other people’s jobs for them? Now the referral needs to be “verified” and then they’ll call me with an appointment.  Before that I got bounced around between surgeons and in total, I’ve seen or talked to 5 doctors, spent a few hundred dollars and mountains of worry, and still waiting. And so…I built a documentation file (which I am prepared to use if needed) and, also, bought some wine The stress on me is expected, but the stress on Wizard is what’s really pissing me off.  So…wine for him too! Plus I’m probably making peanut butter cookies with chocolate chips because duh chocolate and peanut butter are soul mates!Oh and before I forget, Maggie met a very young puppy today. She was fine with him, but way more interested with his big brother — whom she has a crush on. That makes me smile! And the puppy was too adorable! Her son brought him home (say he found the puppy in a box), and they believe he’s a six to eight week old Miniature Rottweiler. To me, he had the markings of a Rottie, but had a slimmer build like a miniature pincher. But I am definitely not a breed expert, and it doesn’t matter anyway. I’m happy for them

I’m seeing my sister today and the rest of my weekend is nothing special so we’ll see what happens. Now it’s your turn to share five random things about your week! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

The post Friday Five first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Who’s Reading and What are You Reading?

I just haven’t been reading. There’s lots of reasons, but one thing I have been into lately is listening to trial lawyer podcasts following trials that are live streamed in real time with the lawyers commentary. Recently, I just happened to be two of the strangest trials with unexpected plot twists so I was hooked and not reading or listening to anything else I’ve loosely followed other trials too lately. Why? No idea, my interests can bounce around and I guess it keeps me learning. It’s also good to have on in the background as I’m cooking, gardening or doing projects in the house.

I miss reading and I’m going to spend some quality time searching for really good books. Catching and keeping my interest lately is pretty tough.

How about you? Are you reading? And if so, share what you’re reading!

Happy Wednesday!

The post Who’s Reading and What are You Reading? first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Weekend Roundup

While I was doing some early prep for dinner on Saturday afternoon, Wizard got a news alert on his phone. And that’s how we  learned of an attempted assassination of a presidential candidate. And just like that, my weekend filled with anger, disbelief and a bottomless sadness. I just cannot understand what drives a 20 year old kid to murder people. I just can’t.

As I write this, the latest I know (and I was gone most of the day yesterday taking a break from reality before I wrote this blog) is Former President Trump was injured, one man died and two more were critically wounded. And a LOT of people who love those victims have been terrorized and traumatized. I hope to God I am never in a crowd and forced to witness such a terrible thing like that. Ever.

I am sad at what we’ve become. It would not matter to me which of the two candidates was targeted, my feelings would remain the same. This is not how we solve problems. People who do something this heinous are the problem.

Now deep breath and let’s move on: The rest of my weekend was good. The highlight was having lunch with my friend, then we walked around an outlet center and ended  our day out with some sorbet. Friends are truly one of life’s blessings.

So that was my weekend, how was yours?

The post Weekend Roundup first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Friday Five

TGIF!! Friday keep on coming! Okay let’s jump into sharing five random things about our week.

Well the good news is I had some chocolate chip cookies in my freezer! Just what I needed this week!The frustrating news is my ENT office told me late Wednesday they will not do my surgery. Oh did I say told? Sorry I meant sent me an email. Thankfully it was just in time to cancel my preop appointment.A huge thank you to another doctor’s assistant who spotted the shenanigans going on with my case. That assistant worked behind the scenes to get me a referral to UCI (a very good University hospital system). That same assistant called me last week I think to let me know the referral was there if I needed it. I suspect she knew I would need it. I’m now in the process of getting a consultation set up there. It’ll take time to get the referral authorization into their system, then we’ll need start over with a new specialist. But I should get better care for my specific situation. The moral of this story is that many times really good people are stepping up and quietly helping even when they have no real skin in the game. I so appreciate that assistant.More good news, I should be able to go to my daughter in law’s shower now! I’m so looking forward to that, and since I’m one of the hostesses it’s good that I’ll be there Even more fun, I’m getting to know my daughter in law’s mom more as we plan the shower and she’s so nice! Truly a bright spot to have all this going on. And just because I’m thinking about it, my daughter in law called just to see how I’m doing and I love her for that. So lot’s of bright spots that make me happy.I’m meeting a friend on Sunday for lunch and I’m very happy about that. Wizard is going racing too, which I’m also pleased about. He needs to get out, see his friends and have fun too.

That’s my week, now it’s your turn! I really hope everyone has a great weekend!

The post Friday Five first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.

Just when I think the fireworks are over, some moron set ...

Just when I think the fireworks are over, some moron set one off last night and terrified my dog. We were all in bed, Maggie was sound asleep in the the front room, and after that mortar blast, she was afraid to go back to that bed.

Add in the heat that’s keep Wizard in the house…all day…I’m over it.

But at least there hasn’t been any bad news or new problems this week, so that’s a win!

How your Wednesday going?

The post first appeared on Jennifer Lyon.