Re: Rambling/Whining...


DianeW wrote:
Rose -- And just how much coffee did YOU have this morning? LOL

ha, you've discovered my deep dark secret! weekdays, my daughter and I
share a pot of coffee, but she spends weekends elsewhere, so what do i
do? instead of making half a pot like a sensible person would, i brew
the whole thing and drink it myself -- over the course of the whole
day, of course! ;-> but yes, weekends definitely fnd me
well-caffeinated!

in our house, i'm the cook and Tam is the baker -- i do the healthy
stuff, she's got dessert covered. maybe it goes back to making cookies
with ma as a kid, i dunno, but the girl loves to bake. *she's* the one
who makes the holiday treats, i just take care of the turkey, hee hee!

i sliced myself while chopping veggies a couple times before too -- one
reason i use more pre-cut ones these days -- we've seen Joy Luck Club,
but i don't think D&T find the idea of blood in their fried rice very
appetizing! =:o i've also got a big spike in my chopping board --
Dennis added one, at Lo's suggestion :-> spike the tater, tomato, or
whatever, then slice it sideways, fingers stay out of the way! we have
a gas stove with flame burners, and i've got to be REAL careful there
-- before i even approach the stove, i've got to tie my hair back in a
double band, so it doesn't hang into the open flame (YIKES!). the third
extra-caution thing is, lots of numbness on my right side, including my
right hand -- i had my hand hitting the broiler coil one time, and
didn't even know it until i smelled my own flesh burning -- gross, and
pretty scary. still got a scar on my right hand to remind me to be
CAREFUL in there. :/

something like that. I wanted the kids at my house so I baked weekly,
letting the kids know what was next on the menu. After the first year,
they started having their favorites and would ask, "Mrs. Witt when are
you making .....again" So I would make their favorite for their
birthday. I was so surprised to learn how many of them didn't have
Mom's who baked --EVER ! I mean not even a box cake or brownies.

several years ago, when Tam was still a teenager, she was out raising
hell with the neighborhood kids, looked at her watch and exclaimed "I
gotta get home, Ma's making chicken enchiladas tonight!" her pals were
confused -- one f them said 'You can get an enchilada at Taco Bell,
can't you?" and she was like "No, no, you don't understand....!" LOL.
yeah, we've had friends over to share meals, hers included! a lot of
these particular hell-raising kids had mothers who weren't really
"Moms" in any way -- tweakers and addicts, alcoholics, going from man
to man, kicking their sons out of the house whenever 'Stepdad of the
week' decided he didn't want young teen males around, having their
daughters run away when Stepdad of the week decided since he paid for
the meth, he had 'rights' -- we've lived in some pretty crummy
neighborhoods!

some of the kids got very attached to Tam's home life as well as to her
as a pal, and Dennis and I got very attached to some of he kids. many
folks might look and think 'Eww...street kids, keep your distance,
they're probably dangerous!" and a few of them actually *were*
dangerous and best avoided, but i was surprised by how many of them
were still actual *kids* in their hearts, you know? most of Tam's
"strays" had never had a home-cooked meal in their entire lives before,
and it was really touching how much they enjoyed the experience.

for the most part, i'd say they really didn't 'know how to act,' but we
taught them -- Tam told them if the wanted to come in, they had to
'respect the house,' and by gosh, they really did! it was funny,
because we'd hear foosteps approaching he door, then Julian would
holler "Remember: respect the house!" and they'd pass it down the
line..."respect the house, or they won't let you in!" none of them ever
stole anything, or broke anything, or even acted all that loud or
rowdy. Tam told me that when they went to other houses, nobody showed
respect, because most of their parents were tweakers, drunks, and
druggies. she said it was common for them to do things like spit on the
floor, or stub out cigarettes on the tables in their own homes, and
most of their friends' homes -- nobody cared, because the parents and
*their* scuzzy friends were all doing the same things.

here's my unapologetically judgemental advice to people in general: if
you want to waste your life chasing the tweak pipe, go right ahead, but
DON'T HAVE KIDS!

About that Energy Conservation Training -- where did you do that? I
haven't heard of that. The only thing I did was a memory course that
helped me learn some things to do that make remembering things easier
When I was first dx with MS I was having an awful time with short term
memory. My memory is still bad but the tricks help. I think it's drug
related.

Di, our local chapter of the M.S. Society has always offered a lot of
services to those of us in the area. it's not quite as all-purpose as
it used to be, since the San Diego chapter merged with the
Riverside/Berdoo chapter, because the resources now need to stretch
further to cover more people. they *do* still have an Energy
Conservation Training program locally, at Sharp Rehab Hospital. like i
said, i think a lot of it is stuff that we kind of learn for ourselves,
if we've had M.S. for a while, and actually a lot of it involves things
you mentioned yourself.

the NMSS has a page where they describe some energy conservation
techniques, which is what the training basically consisted of -- that
and hand-outs, so you don't forget! it's in the middle of a big page,
here's he excerpt:
--------------------
Energy conservation techniques

Prioritize tasks
Plan ahead (schedule strenuous tasks throughout the week, not all at
once)
Perform the most strenuous task during the part of the day when you
have the most energy
Take a 10-minute break every hour
Pace yourself
Perform activities while sitting, when possible
Organize your workspace to avoid reaching, bending, carrying, and
climbing
Use labor-saving techniques (for example, if you need to get a file
from somewhere else try to wait until you have several files to
collect)
Plan on 10 to 12 hours of daily rest
Use correct body mechanics (your physical therapist will help you
identify and implement these)

Cognitive strategies

Write everything down: diaries, loose-leaf organizers, and hand-held
computer/organizers are helpful.
Have a particular place for everything and always put things back where
they belong; encourage others to do the same.
Repeat things that need to be remembered. And write them down.
Try not to get hung up on recalling a word. People are often happy to
chime in with the right one. Let them.
Take your time. Plan your work and don't be rushed by anyone.
If you find cognitive problems crop up at a particular time of day,
reorganize activities so you have the more demanding things done before
that time.
--------------------
they also recommended using reachers to avoid the need to bend,
stretch, or stoop over. now that i'm retired, i can and do plan most of
my activities for as early in the day as possible, since that IS when
i've got the mos energy -- works well with activities around the house,
or getting together with friends who are early risers, but doc's
appointments and such, if i waited till an early enough one was
available, i might have to wait months -- take 'em when you can get
'em, and make the appt. for a day when i've got NOTHING scheduled for
the day after, because it's the 2nd day when i feel the trip the most.

last Christmas we spent with Dennis's family, his dad and step-mom were
coming in from Iowa, and dinner was scheduled for late, s I *tried* to
rest up earlier in the day, but i wasn't worn out yet then! as it
turned out, D's dad/stepmom's plane was late, then there were delays,
and they ended up not arriving till after 10 p.m., by whic time i'd
been there for 8 hours, had eaten, chatted with everyone, played with
the kids, and ws nodding off every 30 seconds -- i ended up leaving
before having a chance to say Hi, and it was kind of a bummer, but they
understood, and dropped by the house for a visit the next day, so
Dennis had a chance to hang with his Dad, and Paula was perfectly
amenable to sitting on the couch drinking coffee and chatting, so that
wrked out well! :->

my neice's wedding was nother one where i had no say in the scheduling
-- and again, i tried and failed to rest up prior to the event, because
also again, i wasn't tired yet. we saw the vows, went to the reception,
and bailed out when the dancing had commenced. took me a few days to
recover, but hey, i'd rather be worn out from attendin a happy event,
than from a doctor-to-lab-to-other-doctor-to-pharmacy trek, y'know?
:->

my daughter's college graduation ceremony was held outside during a
heat wave, but the joy of the occasion kept me going -- i was happy and
excited and proud, as well as hot and tired and stumbly, and there was
no way in hell i was going to miss *that* -- i told her damn straight
i'm there with bells on, even if somebody has to wheel me in in a
hospital bed! and this time, it turned out i was right, so...YAY! :->

when there's a big event, i've just never gotten the knack of resting
up beforehand, but in my case it seems more helpful to schedule in some
'down time' for afterward, give me a chance to recover and be lazy for
a day or 2 before doing anything productive. i have noticed, it used to
take me one full day to bounce back, but now it's more often a
couple-three days before i feel back to whatever current 'normal' is at
any given time. so i just take it a little easier for a couple days.
lather, rinse, repeat. ;->

RD

.

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