New painting

We have been busy with walks, medical appointments and watering my sister's garden for the past two weeks. I also managed to swallow part of a tooth which has resulted in a dental appointment for the construction of two crowns! There goes the money that we have saved on gas for the car and dining out during covid restrictions!

Meanwhile I am still working on the large mystery painting 

but took a short break to finish a new smaller one.

It reminds me of fresh lemonade at Tre Porto in Chora on Amorgos.

The flavor was so sweet and tangy that it lingered for hours.

An interesting week

It has been an interesting week. Last Thursday John took a new antibiotic for a bladder infection. By Saturday morning he couldn't move because of extreme back pain so I was forced to call for an ambulance. I watched them, in total hazmat gear, wheel him away. It was difficult to read his expression behind the face mask. As we only have one phone...he had to ask someone at the hospital to contact me with an update.

Eight hours later, after three calls to the hospital, I finally received a call to say that he was ready to be picked up. The final diagnosis was mild spinal stenosis...not dramatic enough to have caused such pain. Much to his chagrin he was released with a walker!

After a couple of days with decreasing pain he had a telephone consult with his doctor and discussed the possibility of the antibiotic causing the back pain. Apparently it happens in rare cases! We all know from experience that John is often the example of a "rare case"!

A small piece of a new painting

Tomatoes and a reunion

Our patio garden is producing a massive amount of tomatoes!

Although the plant was purchased with the hope of yielding GRAPE tomatoes,

these green globes could be growing into beefsteak size!

Today brought special visitors to Langley enroute from Salmon Arm to Vancouver Island. Karen and Cherie joined me for lunch and a wonderful reunion visit almost five years after we moved from Salmon Arm. We even indulged in "verboten" hugs. I still have a smile on my face!

The three of us were part of a Women's discussion group that gathered together 3-4 times a year to share good food, laughter and interesting topics. On a couple of occasions we travelled together and risked sleepless nights on lumpy beds with loud snoring...only to wake up the next day to smile at each other and resume chattering.

I still miss my friends...but feel grateful for wonderful memories!

Moss scraper

John offered to scrape the moss from the patio at the back of out building.

He chose a wet day to tackle the job after a 2 3/4 mile trek around town.

My guess is that he will be on the couch with feet up for the rest of the day! 

Since March 15th

I decided to do a tally of my activities during the last three months of pandemic days and was quite surprised by what I discovered. According to my fitbit I have walked 767.7km since March 15th. That is almost the distance from Langley to Salmon Arm and return! This accomplishment would never have happened during "normal" times. John has joined me every day during some of the walks and we have explored the park pathways nearby. The birds and squirrels have entertained us along the way, the trees have burst into bloom and the Nikomekl River has ebbed and flowed.

During that time there have been 6 new paintings finished and several loaves of banana bread baked. Then there are the meals prepared while not being able to visit our favorite restaurants and cafes. Whew!

Educationally, I managed to navigate a virtual Strata Council meeting and guide John through a Zoom session about hospice during COVID.

We have watched Dr. Bonnie Henry's updates and followed her advice.

Forgot to mention that we celebrated my 76th birthday and John's 83rd! Looking forward to more sunrises!!

Coffee and backgammon

Our mornings start

with coffee

and backgammon

Penny Pinchers reopens

Penny Pinchers, the Hospital Auxiliary thrift store, re-opened on Tuesday and I resumed my volunteer position that afternoon. I had confirmed that appropriate precautions were being taken and also confirmed that I would be sorting donated clothing and restricted to the back of the store. That didn't happen! Someone did not show up to handle the entrance and control the number of people in the store (7) so I was told to manage that position as it is a mandatory monitoring...more important than sorting clothing!

This afternoon I will return for another three hour shift of sorting clothing. This should be much smoother because the store will not be open. They are doing a gradual re-opening of both stores on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday between 11:00am-3:00pm. Today I will just sort, tag and hang clothing in preparation for tomorrow's opening.

One challenge for the Hospital Auxiliary is the aging population of its volunteers. Most of us are in that vulnerable 60-90 age range. Another challenge is that most shoppers at thrift stores are browsers! It isn't like a grocery store where customers shop for specific items, pay and leave. Thrift store shoppers want to check every shelf and every rack for bargains so when the first ones are allowed inside at 11:00am...the others in line could wait for 1-2 hours before it is their turn to browse! Seriously doubt that any item in the store is worth waiting that long!

On Tuesday afternoon a customer entered the clothing store side of Penny Pincher at 1:00pm and told me that she was first in line at the other side and she had spent two hours hunting for bargains there. She was in the clothing side for another 1 1/2 hours!! Meanwhile people were lined up...waiting for their turn! There is no apparent solution...no way to limit shopping time to 30 minutes. Why are people so eager to spend?!