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debRAinOC 
3:14pm, October 31, 2009
Well, I made it through Hearst Castle’s Tour 1, which took us around the lower levels of the grounds and through one of the guest cottages: 2/3 mile and 170 stairs. Beautiful landscaping, tons of ornate decorations, and great views of the coastline. No tripods or flash photography allowed, so most of my interior photos are not as sharp as I wish they were. My right knee throbbed the night after the tour, but after I got moving the next morning, the pain went away. (I really wanted to do Tour 2, which takes visitors to the main house, but the description was a little too intimidating: 3/4 mile and 404 stairs!) When we got back home, I was feeling so good that we decided to go to the OC Fair (actually, it’s called the OC Super Fair, but that’s definitely an exaggeration). We went on a Thursday so we could sample lots of fair foods for just $2 a taste. We indulged in sample sizes of funnel cake, pulled pork on half a roll, freshly cooked potato chips and onion rings, and frozen lemonade - lunch for 2 people for just $12, which we thought was a great deal. There seemed to be fewer participants at the fair overall: photography and fine arts entries were in a smaller hall, only four rabbits were on display (and not a single Flemish Giant), and we didn’t see as many livestock as in previous years. We didn’t go to the fair last year because I wasn’t feeling up to all that walking, so maybe participation has been declining slowly and it’s more noticeable to us since we skipped a year. I don’t know how far we walked, but my right knee let me know it wasn’t happy by swelling up. However, it recovered within about 24 hours.
Even with the day-after discomfort, I’m glad I attempted these once-daunting outings and survived quite well overall. It’s so good to know that I can do much more than I could 12 to 18 months ago.
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So much has happened since I last wrote. Our daughter (17) graduated from high school in June (hooray!). Once school was over, she was able to concentrate on finishing her last couple hours of driving lessons, and after an intense week of training with Mom and Dad, she got her driver license last week (hooray again!). Her first solo outing was Sunday: she drove about 4 miles to Target and bought a 10-pound bag of sunflower seeds for the bird feeder. At first she wanted to try a shorter trip to the local "greasy spoon" (to pick up dinner for the family), but since that's barely a mile away, I convinced her that Target wasn't very far at all. Besides, I didn't want diner food that night.
On July 4, Hubby and I went to an outdoor concert by the Pacific Symphony, which we've done every year for the past 8 years or so. This year's concert featured the music of Billy Joel with a sprinkling of Elton John. (And yes, I sang along.) The finale always includes Sousa marches and fireworks.
Hubby wasn't feeling very well that evening. He thought it was because he'd done some gardening in the heat of the day, so I made him drink water - from my water bottle because he forgot to bring his own. But the next day he was very sick - fever, sore throat, runny nose, the works. My first thought: "Oh no, we drank from the same water bottle!" But here it is, several days later, and despite MTX and Humira's effects on the immune symptoms, I don't have any cold symptoms, thank goodness.
Those are the highlights. Daughter's at her college orientation today. Hope she's not too bored. (She took a book with her just in case.)
I wish there were some way that all of my medicines and supplements could be combined into an easy-to-take, once-a-day capsule. The weekly pill container I use doesn't have any more room for another daily pill, but my rheumy gave me another med to take today. I've been having stomach pains from taking naproxen, so the doc added Nexium to my regimen. He wants to try this before taking me off naproxen altogether (and possibly going with something like Celebrex). Guess I need to buy a bigger pill container! >_<
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sorry, sounds like it. i know what you mean mine is pretty full too! deby
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That's a bummer. I know what you mean about too many pills. Hope your stomach starts feeling better.
Past Entries
| February 2009 |
Thursday, 2/19
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January 2009 |
Thursday, 1/22
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Friday, 1/16
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Thursday, 1/15
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October 2008 |
Tuesday, 10/28
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Thursday, 10/02
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September 2008 |
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Wednesday, 9/24
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Tuesday, 9/23
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Goal Updated
Flemish Giant? Wasn't that Andre? I'm glad you're recovering quickly. I'd love to see Hearst Castle, someday. It always seems so remote, but then I remember that I'm the one in the remote place. It's nice to look back and see progress, isn't it? Hope your right knee gets right!
DougTedsen