Day 389-390 of Sheltering In-Waiting

Thursday-Friday. Thursday and Friday were PT. Thursday my right arm that I got the shot in was swollen and hurt just to move it, so the only PT thing that was a problem was the step bike. I just kept my right hand in my lap and let my left arm and legs do all the work. I had a headache and really wanted a nap, but that never happened. After PT I went to pick up my daughter’s medication. Of course it didn’t go smoothly. I was assured on Wednesday night that the insurance rep called the pharmacy to confirm it went through. It didn’t, so I had to get out of the drive thru line, park, and spend an hour on the phone with a jerk from the insurance company. My daughter wasn’t with me so I added her to the call, he told me to take her off the call. Then he had a hissy fit because I was using the speaker through the radio. (Wednesday night the entire call was on speakerphone...wtf?) After putting me on hold 5 times, he finally told me it now went through and I got off the phone and got back in line. I eventually got the medication.

Friday was PT again, but the arm pain was gone so I could do the step bike and the other stuff. Afterwards I went to Meijer to get the stuff no one told me we needed, but there were no electric carts, not even the wheelchair. So no shopping. No way I could walk the entire store after PT.

I haven’t heard from my sister in over a month, but my daughter talked to her today. Isn’t that nice? You’re saying, ‘Lola, why don’t you call her?’ Nope. Not gonna happen because I don’t know when it’s ok to call. If my daughter calls and it’s not ok, everything is cool because she’s the niece. I’m just her sister and I’ve called at the wrong time and have gotten yelled at more times than I can count. I’m not in the mood to get yelled at. Therefore I’m not calling her. 

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2021

Day 388 of Sheltering In-Waiting

Wednesday. I got my 2nd dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. I am wiped out. I don’t know if it’s:

The shot

The long drive to get the shot

The long to walk to the very back of Walmart because there were no electric carts (yes, I little old lady walked with my walker and my knee brace on)

The 1/2 hour I spend on hold with a provider’s billing service (no one ever came on the line)

The one hour I spent on the phone with my daughter’s insurance company trying to get them to authorize payment for her missing psychiatric medication. I finally got them to authorize 10 pills. The missing 1/2 month of doses better turn up when she goes back to the group home, because I couldn’t do better than 10 pills and I really tried. The group home should have been handling this, but not one single staff person would help my daughter. It’s closer to 2 hours because yesterday and today I coached my daughter on how to make the calls herself

I think I should send them a bill for my services. How much should I charge an hour?

Lola’s Diner cc 2008-2021

Day 383-387 of Sheltering In-Waiting

Friday-Tuesday. Friday. I am seriously losing track of time. It feels like Saturday. I had PT earlier and am chillaxing. Saturday was grocery shopping. Can I say how much I dislike going grocery shopping on the weekends? Sunday I stayed home all day and actually had alone time. I had alone time so long I thought the family had been kidnapped! I never get that much alone time in my own house. Monday migraine...canceled PT. Bad migraine.

My daughter found out move in day is May 1st, but her source isn’t necessarily reliable, so we will plan to have my daughter pack, but that’s it. I think I’ve mentioned before I did get some furniture and stored it away at my house. Still a lot of things to get, but they are all things that can be gotten after she gets the keys. My daughter also has a lot of people, friends and relatives of my wife, who want to help get her set up with smaller things. For furniture I’ve got everything but a bedroom set. We got a Sam’s Club membership last week (deal in the Val Pak, $45 membership and then you get a $45 gift card, so it’s basically free). Their towels looked like they were a good deal and really good quality, so we’ll probably make a trip back to get those. They looked so good I think my wife and I are gonna be jealous. I will be researching bedroom sets from both new and 2nd hand sources.

Tuesday was another didn’t leave the house day. I had an appointment but canceled it because they aren’t billing properly, so the insurance is denying payment. It’s always fun and games with insurance as it is, without the billing errors added in. 

Been freaking out since last week because my daughter was shorted 1/2 a month’s supply of her most vital medication. I had been having my daughter handle the situation, but she was being ignored. Today I emailed the director, stating that, AND naming names of everyone my daughter talked to in an effort to get the missing medication. You don’t mess around with Lola, especially when it comes to my kids. I made it very clear that she needs the missing medication Wednesday and if she runs out I guarantee she will be hospitalized, and it will not be good. I waited 20 minutes after I sent the email and then I called. The director was in a meeting. They are all ALWAYS in a meeting, that’s why I send emails first. I got an email reply 45 minutes after I sent my email. 🤞hoping everyone follows through and I can pick up the missing medication Wednesday. 

Wednesday I get my 2nd dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. Driving all the way to Hodgkins, because at the time I scheduled the 1st dose it was the only place I could get an appointment. My wife and son got appointments in J town and will get their 2nd dose at the end of the month. We are not in the “back to normal after vaccination camp”. We will continue to take the same precautions because my daughter has severe asthma and we can’t risk being a carrier and infecting her, even though they say when you get the virus after being vaccinated it’s mild. With these new, variations of the COVID-19 virus, it makes us err on the side of caution. You don’t mess with severe asthma. She was hospitalized about 2 months ago with a severe attack. I’m praying that once she moves into the brand new apartments her asthma will improve. I think that old house she’s been living in caused her asthma. She never had asthma before she moved to the 2nd floor of that house.

Lola’s Diner cc 2008-2021

Sunday Stealing-Morning Meme

 Hi! Your host is Bev Sykes of the blog "Funny the World". . Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!  

Google is not playing nice today. Having a really hard time posting comments. Please don’t think I’m skipping out on commenting. I’m really trying, even cleared my cache and history in Google.

 

 

 

 From Monday Morning Meme

 

 

1. You have just been hired to clean your own home, what is your first complaint?

No can do.

2. Are you able to ignore a ringing telephone?

No. I look at the caller id. Most of my calls are spam/scam calls, so I silence the call so it stops.

3. How often do you allow a ringing phone to go to voice mail?

All the time. See #2. If it’s not someone I know, or a call I’m expecting, it gets silenced and sent to voicemail.

4. Do you answer your cell phone, out in public, every time it rings? Or do you silence it and get back to it when you’re in a more private area?

If it’s a member of my immediate family, or a call regarding a medical appointment, I answer no matter where I am.

5. How often would you say you’re on your home phone? Your cell phone?

I don’t have a home phone. Talking on my cell phone, not much. But I do use it to read my Kindle books, so it’s in my hand a lot.

6. Do you like talking on the phone or do you view it as a necessary communication tool?

I do like talking on the phone.

7. When did you last go for a bike ride?

Bicycle, probably 2002? I bought a fancy mountain bike that has front and rear shock absorbers. Motorcycle ride, probably 2004. I had a riding buddy and we’d ride to Boystown, or Andersonville. Sometimes we’d ride North, which was not my favorite because I was not an experienced rider and I didn’t like riding above 40mph.

8. Do you own a bike?

I still have my mountain bike and my motorcycle, but unfortunately I can no longer ride either due to my back problems. I doubt that I could get on the motorcycle and maintain it in an upright position. I have a Suzuki Intruder 800. Not a small bike. A previous owner had modified it to look and sound like a Harley Davidson, so I’d get asked about it at stoplights all the time.

9. Given the most popular New Year’s resolution of losing weight, would you consider putting bicycle riding as one of your exercise options? Why or why not?

I can no longer ride due to back problems, but when I have PT I do use a step bike.

10. If you had to name a smell that always makes you nostalgic, what would it be? What sorts of memories does the smell evoke?

Coty Airspun Face Powder. My Mom used it when she dressed up. I know that scent anywhere, even though she passed away, this June it will be 37 years ago. I smell it occasionally when I’m around senior citizens. 

11. What did you do over the weekend? No detail is too small. This is your journal, so tell us about the mundane tasks in your life.

Saturday we went grocery shopping at Meijer. It was a much shorter trip than usual because I didn’t have a list on paper. Since the pandemic began I’ve been writing out my list rather than using my iPhone Notes app. That way I’m not continually exposing my iPhone to potential germs, etc. Sunday is my stay in and chill day. Amazingly, my kids weren’t up in my grill wanting to go shopping or watch tv. I read and did this blog post.

12. If it weren’t for my blog, I’d _________. 

I’d go bat crap crazy. I used to do a lot of days of the week posts like Sunday Stealing, but when I returned to blogging after a long hiatus, many owners of the original blogs that created them stopped blogging. I even used to have what I thought was a fun Thursday feature called

“If I Could Blog Back Time Thursdays”. Here is one I found in my Drafts. Topics where all over the map, about growing up, school, holidays. The idea was to take the week’s topic and blog something personal related to it. I’d love to bring it back, but I usually have no readers outside of Sunday’s.

                                                      Lola’s Diner c 2008-2021

Come join me for the next edition. Post yours Thursday, December 10th and comeback and sign up with MckLinky. 

This Thursday's topic is: Christmas Past - 

Time to share some Christmas memories.

Be sure to include some photos. (Photos with Santa, your family around the tree, etc.)

12/17/19 topic is Christmas Present. What are your hopes/plans for this Christmas?

12/24/09 topic is Christmas Future. What are your hopes for future Christmases?

13. When was the last time you replied “because I said so”? Do you find yourself saying that a lot? Or do you prefer to tell people WHY you want them to do something for you.

Multiple times a day. My daughter is on a home visit so both my daughter and son play the “I’m not doing it, I did it last time”, or other variations of avoiding ANYTHING.

14. What is the worst gift you’ve ever received?

Just about anything from exes who thought last minute shopping for a holiday or birthday at Walgreens was appropriate. For those not familiar, it’s a drug store (pharmacy) that has all kinds of crappy things last minute shoppers will think is the perfect gift. When you go there you can tell who those last minute shoppers are because they are like a deer in headlights. I only go there to pick up the stray prescription one of our doctors sent there in error, or I need one item and I don’t want to go to a regular store.

15.  Tell us the worst gift you’ve ever given. What was the reaction of the recipient?  

I don’t give bad gifts. Anytime my wife or one of my kids go ga ga over something on tv or when we’re out and about I add it to a list on my Notes App on my iPhone. When it’s time for a gift, I consult my list. It NEVER has failed me.

Lola’s Diner cc 2008-2021

Day 381, 382 of Sheltering In-Waiting

Wednesday, Thursday.

Thursday first:

UPDATE:

I heard from the PR person, he sent me a review copy of the book. I started reading it tonight, but have stopped for the night. It’s a bit of an interactive book, asking you to find photos of your beloved pet(s) who died and journal along. My project Friday will be to dig up some photos of my beloved pets who crossed the rainbow bridge.

I can interview Reagan Pasternak via email or phone. I am leaning towards email. If you have any questions for her, please leave them in the comments.

~I got an email today asking if I would like to interview Reagan J. Pasternak, actress and author. In case the name is not familiar to you, she was in HBO’s “Sharp Objects”, Syfy and Netflix “Wynonna Earp”, HBO’s “Being Erica”, and BET’s “Ms. Pat”. She is also author of the just released “Griffin’s Heart”. It’s part memoir, part guide for grieving a pet.

I don’t know what to do! I don’t remember actually doing any phone interviews. I’ve submitted interview questions via email before. Doing a phone interview would be a total fan freak out on my part. (I’m fanning myself right now.)

It would be so awesome to get back to doing book reviews here.

I’ll let y’all know what I hear back on this.

Ok, Wednesday, Thursday. I had my deposition preparation Wednesday and discovered they are missing records. They also didn’t send me documents to review (not my first rodeo). So the deposition on Thursday was canceled and to be rescheduled after the records are requested and received.

It was nice to have the break today. I did not sleep much with everything I was anticipating today. My wife and both kids accompanied me to Sam’s Club. I think I’d gone once in the early days of the pandemic. My kids may be 20 somethings, but it was like trying to wrangle toddlers. They were all over the place! Props to the customer who held the family restroom door open (ladies-closed for cleaning). I wore cargo shorts today so my HUGE knee brace was clearly visible. Tomorrow and Saturday PT. 

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2021

Day 380 of Sheltering In-Waiting

Monday, Tuesday. Monday was PT. I woke up with horrible knee pain. I powered through, but my knee let go when I was side stepping, fortunately, that is done between parallel bars. I did 7 out of 10 and skipped the slant board, which I could have done, but my therapist said “that’s it, let’s get you some ice.” 🤷🏻‍♀️ 

Tuesday was my daughter’s staffing for the group home. That was 35 minutes I can’t get back. Total WOT. Then...let’s just say it got very stressful at home. Then it started again at midnight. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Still doing the countdown because we are not even near the normal before the pandemic.

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2021

Day 378, 379 of Sheltering In Happy 28th Birthday to my daughter

Happy Birthday to my daughter who turned 28 years old today! She requested we celebrate her birthday first, before we celebrated Easter. Since Easter dinner isn’t quite ready, we gave in. 

I also forgot to put together the Easter baskets, which ended up being gallon ziplock bags. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I went to Dollar Tree yesterday and looked for those plastic containers for organizing, but the location I went to no longer sells them. I figured I could use those as Easter baskets and then give them to my daughter for organizing when she moves into her apartment. I can’t believe they didn’t have any! I think it may be because they seemed to expand the grocery section.

Ok, happy birthday has been done.

Happy Easter everyone!

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2021