Tag Archives: Shopping

Chronic Migraine, Hotels, Occipital Neuralgia, Shopping, Surgery

The Noggin’ Chronicles Part 2

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Journaled 04-01-23

I don’t know if you guys want or care to read about these adventures of mine, but here I am nonetheless. I’d honestly rather be at home, but the hotel isn’t bad. We are staying at the SpringHill Suites by Marriott off the Northwest Highway. This was a good decision on my part. I’m not crazy about the part of town we are in – not that I’ve really gotten out, but I think this hotel offers the amenities that we need for the stay. At least it’s pretty much the epitome of quiet, which helps this abused head of mine. 

I can’t say enough amazing things about my poor hubby who’s waiting on me like I’m the queen or something. He is also keeping me in line – making me get up regularly and walk laps around the hotel suite. So I walk from the bay window to the door and back again. It sucks, but he’s right. 

The view from the bay window toward the hotel room door. The room is divided by an actual door between the bed/bath area and the “living” area.

Ooooh… he also helped me get my first shower since Wednesday morning.  I still cannot wash my hair ( or what’s left of it,) but at least I smell like a human and have clean jammies on. I’m also utterly exhausted by all the moving around. However, the shower was indeed worth it. 

A few observations: 1) I can turn my head to the right side a little bit and to the left a bit more. You have no idea how many times a day you turn your head until you cannot. 2) My head is heavy. Today I’m really feeling the “aftermath” of the surgery and holding my head up takes more effort than I like. I’m particularly grateful for the travel pillow as it helps to some degree. It’s also handy for keeping ice packs in place. 3) You have no idea how many times you have to look down, reach down or do anything “down” until you cannot. It’s entirely stupid not to be able to bend down to pick something off the floor. However, this is a strict instruction because I cannot risk raising the blood pressure in my head. I was told this multiple times and it’s also written on every surgical instruction thingy I’ve received. I accidentally reached down once to pick up something off the floor. That’s officially a hard “Nope” for me. 

Pic Courtesy Carlos Obrien
It’s really a long way down to the ground, especially if you aren’t supposed to “go there.”

I’m also supposed to take my BP every 12 hours, but I don’t have a cuff or anything. I didn’t know I was going to need one until after surgery otherwise I would have brought one down. (However, my BP normally runs low so I’m not too worried.) I honestly don’t see the point of buying one at this particular point.  Hubs actually went to the Walmart near the hotel right after I was released from the hospital. Not a one. They did actually have a thermometer, another thing I could have brought from home had I known, but I have to make sure I’m not running a fever as well. (So far, so good.)

That specific Walmart had an unusually  crummy selection of clothing, but I can’t complain. Why? Hubs bought me the MOST comfy jammies on the face of the earth. I think I need a few more pairs. (Just sayin’.) Unfortunately,  the reality of this situation is I’m actually going to have to buy a few more things to make healing from surgery easier. I should have taken to heart the advise from others who have gone through this surgery with more urgency, but you know me… I apparently like to learn things the hard way. 

Side note: You may not know this about me, but fact: I deplore shopping for clothes and shoes, evidenced by wearing the same things repeatedly whether they “look good” or not. (This is also part of the problem with finding something for Eldest’s wedding, an entirely different beast, but suffice it to say, I hate shopping for clothes.) This really should be it’s own post… I digressed. Truly sorry.

Unfortunately, Eldest and Youngest are bearing the brunt of Hubs and I being gone. I didn’t realize we’d be down here so long. I thought I’d be back at home in my own bed by now, but, their plans have been completely interrupted by this mayhem. Again, had I known…. 

I also wanted to take the time to say a most sincere thank you for the prayers and the encouraging words, text messages and memes that have lifted my spirits. There’s no possible way I can every repay that kind of love and support, but it has meant the world to me and by extension, Hubs. 

Now it’s time to eat some more soup and try to get some rest in. I did a bit much today, but I’ll figure it all out at some point. Much love ❤ 

Home, Life

All Because of Laundry

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“Many people take no care of their money till they come nearly to the end of it, and others do just the same with their time.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

I had a rude awakening tonight (one of several actually) and I thought I would share it with you. I’m not really proud of this revelation, but self-discovery is always interesting – especially when uncovering the baser parts of human nature. Tonight’s discovery concerned “entitlement.” 

When we talk about “entitlement”, generally it’s about the “younger” or “next” generation and  their expectations to make large salaries upon graduation from college – or even high school. Youth today seems to expect to have things handed to them that my generation and back had to work and work hard to achieve. 

So it’s with a grimace I’m sharing with you this experience.

With the move to Dallas, Yoda and I are tapped out financially for a bit.  We’ve been living paycheck to paycheck for a while, but this pretty much takes the cake – having to take on apartment rental on top of a mortgage payment (which will be covered by someone renting the house for the time being, but I digress…) There are extra utilities, two households worth of groceries, extra gasoline for now driving in the Metroplex (as well as back and forth) and many more miles to work … you get the picture.  

And to clarify, tapped out means just that. I have enough money for a tank of gas and about $20 left for groceries until I get paid again. If other bills need to get paid, fuhget’boutit. They will be late. I can accept this as it’s only for a couple of weeks. (I hope.) 

However… I HAD to go to the grocery tonight and get some laundry detergent and fabric softener in order to have clean clothes to wear. Wandering around naked just isn’t an option. No one, save Yoda, wants to see all of this hanging out.

This decision was the beginning of the end.

I don’t buy the big name brands of detergent. I’m a middle of the road kind of gal.  So as a general rule I get the BIG VALUE 150 load bottles of soapy-wonderment for something like 10 bucks. About that. I only had $11 to spend on both tonight. The store I went to carried my normal detergent in a smaller size, but the price was $7.50. Seriously? That’s not helpful. At all. Why spend that much for so much less…? And then not be able to afford anything but the $1.99 fabric softener which smelled like… like… well… I don’t have a good description. There are perfumes that don’t smell that bad. And it was runny. It was so watery… Why even bother? 

So I sat pacing the freakin’ detergent aisle for the longest time and finally bought a small bottle of the store brand of detergent and a decent bottle of fabric softener. I paid $10.20.  

This whole thing brings me back to “entitlement.” 

I would like to think at my age I would have learned my lesson and saved for the rainy day, paid off all the freakin’ credit cards (which in the overall scheme of things are completely unnecesary and just a bunch of BS) and actually achieved something more than living paycheck to paycheck.  However, I apparently didn’t learn it and as a result I sat in the grocery store thinking that I should be able to get any damned laundry detergent I wanted because I’m old enough by George.  (Insert foot-stomp here.)

George had nothing to do with it. 
I’m not entitled to my favorite detergent. 
I’m just a girl who is starting over in life… in the middle of life. 

What I have learned from this is that we all get second chances to get things right and to make things better.  I have a feeling 2014 will see a lot more change than I have already experienced and will also see me humbling myself and admitting that just because I’m older, doesn’t mean I’m wiser… not just yet.