Small Talk: The Welcome Mat

[Netfoot]

Why are people stockpiling TP?  CV doesn't give you the runs, does it?

[ProfCrash]

43 minutes ago, Netfoot said:

Why are people stockpiling TP?  CV doesn't give you the runs, does it?

It is more a fear of supply chain disruption and not wanting to be dirty. We stocked our pantry and freezer just in case there was a disruption or people went bonkers  and cleaned out the grocery store. Except that we added a few extra things with each trip to the store over the course of two weeks. the news out of China and Italy was enough to get us started.

[Netfoot]

A while back, I woke up in the wee-hours one morning, to find that my home was on fire. I was badly burned before I could get out. I spent weeks in hospital, receiving several skin grafts over large areas of my body, followed by more than two years using pressure-garment therapy to control burn-scars.

Today is the 29th anniversary of that fire.

Don't know why I felt like sharing......

[SG429]

Now that scripted shows have shut down production and probably won't complete their seasons, maybe it's time to dust off a fresh Season 32 to fill some prime time?

[Netfoot]

Forced to go doctor/pharmacy this morning. (Ear infection, very painful. Otherwise BP and Temp perfect.) First time out since last week. Only 3 persons allowed inside pharmacy at a time, 6 foot division marks sprayed on ground outside to keep people separated.  Waited 90 minutes for prescription to be filled (10 tablets and a bottle of ear drops). Thanks to the ear, my drug load is now 33 tablets a day, but if the infection goes away that should fall again within the week.

No vitamin-C anywhere.  People are buying anything in an orange-coloured box, including suppositories!

Doctor tells me the toilet-licking, butt-chugging idiotic youth are in for a shock. I'm heartbroken. Gota go see my other doctor next Thursday, so until then it's back in lockdown.

[Netfoot]

Next Thursday's doctor's appointment cancelled; doctor said he would call the prescription through to the pharmacy and I should collect it today.

Lined up in the sun outside for 1½ before they would let me in. Man at door insisted I take off my nitrile gloves to sanitize my hands.  Then he stood in the narrow doorway and made me "belly-to-belly" and squeeze past him.  

Another 1½ lined up in the pharmacy, to be told that they didn't have all my medication and I'd have to "come back on Monday". Over three hours door to door, and I still have to go out next week because I'll run out of meds if I don't.

Any way, I got 5 gallons of gas in a can, a 20 lb. cylinder for the stove, and a buncha food for Buddy.  Unfortunately they didn't have any dark Toblerone (dark chocolate is an anti-oxidant, don'tcha know?).

Get home to discover that all non-essential businesses will be shut from tomorrow 3PM until April 15th.  The Pharmacy is considered essential, so I should be able to get my meds next Monday, after (presumably) another 3 hour wait.

 

[Netfoot]

Woke in the wee hours of this morning with a sore throat. Thought: "I'm done!" Gargled with salt water, went back to bed, woke again with the sore throat almost gone.  WhatsApped my doctor, she wasn't concerned. Felt foolish, but I am high-risk for this thing, so pardon my paranoia!

Today would have been Day #11 were I not forced out of the house three times to go to the doctor/pharmacy. But because of the unavailability of a critical medication (the one that makes me high-risk for CV, as it happens), I had to go back to the pharmacy yesterday.

So, I've been going stir-crazy for 11 days, but today is only day #1. Now I have food for 60+ days and meds for 30+ days, so I should be OK for a while.

Twenty two books inbound, but can't get any of them without breaking out of quarantine, so I will soon be out of fresh reading material.

Must see doctors and revisit the pharmacy on 22nd April, so maybe I can collect those books on that day.  If I have to break quarantine, I might as well get much done as possible, for the single exposure.  I'll probably top up on food supplies as well. The 22nd is 3 weeks away, so things might be greatly improved by then. Or they might have gone down hill. 

Custard. I want custard. Last time I had custard was about 50 years ago, but I suddenly have a deep desire! You have to pour custard over something, so I'll have to figure out what by the 22nd. Perhaps one of the deserts mentioned in the books I've been reading recently? Like Spotted Dick, Figgy-dowdy, Plum Duff and Dead Baby (I kid you not).

Buddy is fine, although also going a bit stir-crazy. I've taken his collar off, and he is running about like a pickney. I have a mountain of 50+ cans of food for him, plus two bags of chow. Plus he demands a share of whatever I'm eating, although come to think of it, he never offers me any of his dinner...

So, Azithromycin, Chloroquine/Hydroxychloroquine might be a useful treatment for CV!  But what's this? All three of them are in the list of "Drugs to Avoid" for my condition. To misquote Julie Andrews/Maria: "Somewhere in my youth or childhood/
I must have done something really horrible."

[Netfoot]

Wow!  Things must be getting really bad!

The government just closed the Rum Shops!!!

 

[Browncoat]

Just now, Netfoot said:

Wow!  Things must be getting really bad!

The government just closed the Rum Shops!!!

 

Nooooo!!!!  Liquor stores here have been deemed essential services, and the last I heard, business was up something ridiculous like 250% over this time last year.

[Netfoot]

Just watched the live-stream from Acting PM Santia Bradshaw. (PM Mia is recovering from a surgical procedure - not CV.)

Lockdown just got bigger locks:  "All beaches and parks shall be closed... No person shall leave his home except to purchase food or medicine, or to seek medical or dental attention... The sale of intoxicating liquor is hereby prohibited... Any person who contravenes this directive without reasonable explanation is guilty of an offense and is liable on summary conviction to a fine of $50K or imprisonment for a term of one year, or to both."

[Babalu]

In the U.S., it appears it’s up to each state as to whether liquor stores are considered an essential business. I’ve heard anecdotally that some medical providers asked the health department to keep liquor stores open because they didn’t want to be dealing with withdrawal in addition to the overwhelming demands caused by CV.

[Netfoot]

Last few times I was in the pharmacy I tried to buy alcohol to use as a sterilizing agent, but there was none.  I considered buying a gallon of white rum, preferably 151 overproof, but in the end I didn't. I have about 1¼ liters of isopropyl which I use in the workshop when working with epoxy, and will make do with that.  (Also have nitrile gloves and N95 face masks originally bought for use in the workshop. You can't see it, but there is an N95 mask under that mask/buff/thingy that I bought 5 years ago.)

I'm in, I don't have to come out until the 22nd, and have meds to last until then, and food for much longer. There is nobody else in here to infect me, so I don't have to be quite so strict with the constant sanitization. So the ¾ bottle of hand sanitizer and the alcohol should be more than enough.

Boredom is the trouble.  Finished my supply of fresh books last night, and I have already watched every single video on YouTube. Will have to start re-reading some of my favourites. You'd think YouTube would be able to keep ahead of me but it seems every video is about Orange Man Bad or Toilet-Licking Girl.

There is a curfew in effect until April 15th, but I wonder if that won't be extended before it ends.

[Netfoot]

Acting PM just extended the curfew.  From tomorrow afternoon it will be a 24 hour curfew until the 15th. Exceptions: Doctor/dentist visits, pharmacy, etc. One person arrested already, for breaking the partial curfew.

All supermarkets and minimarts are closed; village shops may still serve the local communities (but no alcoholic beverages, only three customers at a time). I am a little worried because my pharmacy is actually inside a supermarket. I can't see how they could prevent people from visiting the pharmacy.  A different, stand-alone pharmacy wouldn't work for me, because all my prescriptions are already on file.

Of course, I don't actually need to visit the pharmacy until 9th May when I start running out of critical meds. However, I am not entirely sanguine that the curfew/closures won't be extended past the 15th.  Fingers crossed.  

[Netfoot]

Just watched the latest YT video from the local government. In a nutshell:

• 100 healthcare workers arriving tonight from Cuba to assist local doctors, nurses, etc. 
• Emergency health facility at Harrison Point completed and to be handed over today, to be equipped immediately and brought on stream ASAP.
• 48 ventilators available across the island, 150 more ordered, paid for and en route, but $1.4M worth of them (20) were seized in the USA. The ventilators seized were not the ones paid for by Rihanna, the first 5 of which are due to arrive this week. So far only 3 people have had to be placed on a vent.
• 56 cases so far, ages 7 to 83. Six have recovered, and will be discharged today. Our first CV death occurred last night, an 81 year old local man who traveled abroad and returned home infected.

Breakdowns at home so far: bedroom fan, living room telephone, 3 burners on the kitchen stove (one remaining), Android tablet, cold tap in the kitchen sink. Buddy is going nuts and demands food every 30 minutes.

The PM who underwent surgery made a live-stream appearance on YT a few days ago. Good to see her back on her feet, and the background of the barking of dogs, the crowing of cocks and the over-revving of engines by asshole street-racers just made it somehow all the more reassuring.  The completely unpolished nature of these videos somehow makes them seem more genuine, and gives me a sense of reassurance.

Working my way through the fresh food in the kitchen, before it spoils. Got plenty of potatoes, some mushrooms, also some sweet peppers, and one tomato. Want to get to this stuff before it spoils. Cooking frozen meat with this in case the refrigerator packs up or the power goes out.  Quite a bit of frozen stuff remains, including 15 days worth of sausages. Saving the tinned stuff (bully beef, tuna, beans, peas, channa, tomatoes, etc) and the dried foods (rice, pasta, beans) for later. Got flour to make bannock when the frozen bread runs out which will be soon, and got two 900 gram tins of Klim for when the milk runs out. Glaringly absent from the kitchen: curry powder. How did that happen?!??

Plenty of ass-fodder; 47 rolls, and I certainly don't use a roll a day unless I get The Belly, so at least 3-4 months worth.

[Netfoot]

Prime Minister just extended curfew from 15th April to 4th May, and implemented a system where you are allowed to shop on certain days anda t certain times according to your initials.  I get to shop on Tuesday afternoons and Friday mornings.  Supplies of food holding up well.  Discovered I had a lot more tuna than I thought. I have 45 days of tuna, 29 days of bully and 23 days of frozen. Plus 45 days of food for Bud. Remember when I was confined to my home last year, after the surgery? Seems I prepared by stockpiling far more food than I thought I had. 

Feeling achy-painy this morning, but no symptoms I can detect (fever, etc). Slept poorly; may just take a Panadol and go back to bed.

A little piece fell off my spectacles this morning, but I am still wearing them and they continue to work as well as before.  In truth they were really due for replacement, but I didn't have $1K to spend right now, so was making do with these.

Worked on my stove which was down to half a burner. Got another burner to work, but it is that tiny burner at the back -- you know, the one that is too small to actually get used? But it's working again now, in case the half a burner I've been using packs up completely.

Cases here now total 68, with 4 deaths and 11 recovered.  The Active Cases graph has developed a bit of a plateau. Obviously, it could start trending upward again, but I am hoping for a downturn towards normalcy.

ETA: Not gonna watch Tiger King....

Edited April 12, 2020 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

Just made a pot of rice and it tastes damned good!  Pigeon peas, bully beef, onion, and a little carrot and string beans. Splash of Worcester sauce and a spoonful of Delish's Bajan seasoning. Made enough for at least three meals.  Probably got food in here for another three months -- longer if I rationed.  But very little fresh apart from one last handful of string beans, some onions and a couple christophine which I don't know how to cook, since I don't particularly like them and never normally buy them. Have to go out for meds no later than the 4th, so maybe I can stock up on some fresh then. And maybe a new fan to replace the one from the bedroom which died and refused to be resuscitated. It's been sweltering, some days. Mostly not bad, but when it's hot...

Finally ran out of milk, so had to make up my first batch of Klim. Also made up some bannock, which is pretty good, in the absence of bread. First batch I didn't flatten it enough when it went in the pan, and it also cooked much faster than expected. Result: Outside a little darker than desired, and the middle not 100% cooked. Ate it up, tho... Subsequent batches just fine; had bannock with peanut butter for dinner last night!

Curfew still ends 4th May except for essential business. A few days ago the PM's office finally got wise and classified computer stores as essential. Ask everyone to work from home and home-school and not make computer stores essential? Silly wabbit! The 4th suits me fine, because otherwise on the 5th I am without meds. Hope they don't extend the curfew, because if they do I can't resupply until the 5th (my day) and I will be out of meds the day before, so will have to go out on the 1st instead.

Was supposed to go for a PT/INR blood test this week but WhatsApped Dr. Kristi and she says I can skip it, since I have been stable for several months. Tomorrow I am supposed to go to the Neurology Centre to get a prescription for the coming month. For which I am expected to pay $180. For the prescription, not the meds. But he messed up last time, and wrote the prescription for twelve months instead of only one. So.... no.

We're catching cabin fever a bit here at home, with The Budster suffering more than I am. Today is 31 days. At least I know what's going on, whereas Bud doesn't understand, and there is no way to explain it to him. He expects to be fed every 20 minutes and on top of that, expects a ½ share of what ever I eat. It won't hurt to keep him well fed and plump, as an emergency backup food supply! Also, he barks at anybody who comes near the house. With a 24 hour curfew in place you'd think that wouldn't be a problem, but it's amazing how many people there are walking about the neighborhood at all times of day and night. Particularly at night, there seem to be an awful lot of Rude Boyz wandering around. I sleep with a Wakizashi machete beside me at night and wish I still had my old .357 magnum. 

Cases here so far: 75, with 23 recovered and 5 croaked.  Active cases rose sharply until the curfew was instituted on 3rd, and fairly level since then. (Coincidence?) Yesterday saw an actual down-tick in the active cases. That may just be an anomalous data point, but maybe we've turned the corner? I want the curfew to end and see if the curve turns up again or not.

Digging in cupboards and pulling out old books to read. Also watching classic B&W war movies thanks to BitTorrent. Spelunking through the cupboards continues to bring more tins of tuna to light. 

Not sleeping well.  Having difficulty falling asleep and can only stay down for 2-3 hours then wide awake again. This makes me very tired during the day and forcing me to take long naps. Hence, I'm not tired at bedtime and can't get to sleep... Vicious circle.

Hope everyone is staying well, and not suffering the mental anguish demonstrated by certain celebrities who are suffering so much in their 15,000 sq. ft. palaces, even if their staff do sprinkle rose petals in the bath so they can livestream exactly how out of touch they are!

Edited April 21, 2020 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

It's nearly 10 PM and it's sweltering. I'm going to have a cold shower and go to bed damp. Hope I can sleep. Been laying awake until very late unable to drift off, then Buddy has been waking me at 4:30 every morning without fail.

You'd think that since I ain't going anywhere, I could sleep when ever I want, and wake when ever I felt like it. Except I am on a very strict medication schedule, and I have to be up at 8:00AM no matter what, to swallow 15 tablets and stick my finger with a pin. It's a bit of a pain. I'm yawning and my head is nodding, but as soon as my head hits the pillow, I will be wide-eyed for the next 4 hours at least, before I nod off. Then up at 4:30 with the Hound of the Budstervilles howling in my ear.....

Last two eggs and some bannock for dinner.  With a little Stilton. What? Just because you're locked down, doesn't mean you can't be civilized! At least I'm not crying into my cereal, wishing it was sushi. I have a tomato left, which I will have for lunch tomorrow, and call it a salad.

Several people have been sending me the URLs of small businesses that are popping up, offering to deliver fresh produce.  Great!  But nobody can tell me how long between order and delivery. Because nobody that has ordered has taken delivery yet!

My own supermarket was offering curbside and home delivery, but the service was "temporarily suspended" two weeks ago, and there's no sign of it being reintroduced. Which is a pity because I could order all sorts of groceries and meds from the pharmacy, and have them delivered. Save me leaving home to go and pick the stuff off the shelf myself.

This is day 37 I think, and the lockdown ends tomorrow week (assuming it isn't extended). First thing will be to take Bud into the country and turn him loose. May attempt to cut the grass as well, but that depends on the state of the strip and the condition of the mower. Next day will be grocery day for us, mainly for the pharmacy but while I'm there I may as well pick up a few items. My "Must Get" list is up to 51 items, some of which I know I'm not going to find (like yeast and vitamin C).

Latest numbers: 79 cases, 32 recovered, 6 RIP. For about a week the graph was trending downward nicely! Then came a bump in the numbers and for the last two days active cases have been on the rise again. Here's hoping it's just a glitch and things continue to improve. Frankly, I want to see what happens when they relax the quarantine in a week. (Assuming they don't extend it.) If that graph turns back up again.......

Edited April 27, 2020 by Netfoot

[Netfoot]

The PM to address the nation "...on matters of national importance" tonight. I hope, after being in lockdown for 40 days, she isn't going to extend the quarantine. With the number of active cases falling, I would really like to think not.  

Not that I want to rush out and kiss strangers on the lips à la VE Day, but... it would be nice to get a few essentials and take Budweiser for a walk without getting hassled by Babylon.

[Netfoot]

Yesterday was the last day of the quarantine/lock down!

Sort of...

As of midnight yesterday, the lock down entered Phase #2 which is exactly like Phase #1 except with more things allowed/essential. For example, you can now go for a sea bath (but between 6:00 and 9:00 AM only). You can buy rum again, but not for public consumption. Laundries, pet supply stores, landscaping, and a handful of others businesses have now been re-opened. Plus a buncha government departments.

So, since landscaping is now OK, I put Buddy in the van and drove up to the club. (Didn't take me long to remember which pedal did what.) I know he has been going nutty, cooped up in he house for the last 44 days, and I figured I would enjoy some fresh air as well. Given that it's over six weeks since anybody cut the grass, I thought the grounds around the club might need some work, but to my surprise there was little growth. I guess there hasn't been much rain up there, although it's rained here almost every day. Any way, I wasn't actually feeling that well, so I decided not to get the mower out and do a cut.

Bud ran around and sniffed everything and peed on everything. He roamed away hundreds of yards, and only came back when tired and thirsty, to lap from his water bowl, before heading out again. Finally he was tired enough to stand still for a photo with his dad, and shortly afterwards, when I saw him preparing for a nap, I slung him in the car and brought him home again. 

Our shopping days (by alphabet) are Tuesdays 1:00 to 4:00 PM and Fridays 8:00 to 11:00 AM.  Good thing because I am down to the wire with regards meds, and desperately need some fresh vegetables. Dinner tonight was bully beef stew that was mostly liquid. Perhaps it was a soup? If it wasn't for a small piece of butternut squash, there would have been no 'bits' in it at all! There is 3 months food still in the house (and 1 month for Bud), but the lack of fresh vegetables would make that a pretty miserable 3 months! So, tomorrow, the pharmacy & supermarket are a priority. I will also try to get a replacement fan for the one that fritzed out early in the lock down. It's a sweltering night again, and I'm sitting here with the liquid pouring off in rivulets.

And of course, my spectacles decided to go get busted again. That's twice since the lock down began. First, one of the nose pads fell off, making it very uncomfortable to wear, and just a few days ago one of the right side arm/limb/thingy fell off completely and had to be reattached with nylon cord and CA glue, in non-folding mode.  I really don't have the $1,200 it will take to replace them, and they do need replacing because the lenses are in disgraceful condition! But I've been told where to find the place where all specs are made and buy direct for a lot less. If they can make my current pair comfy to wear, I will see about ordering a brand new pair, which should take a week, probably.

So, tomorrow will be a busy day, with the hardware store, the pharmacy, the supermarket, and the optical place. And if (as I've been told) no bread is to be found in the supermarket, I will have to find a "bread shop". I suppose I could go direct to Purity Bakeries... And I have exactly three hours to do all that, including travel between one place and the next!

Thank goodness I don't need to visit the barber.....

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Spunkygal]

@Netfoot, you and Budster look to be in fine form! Love your tee shirt! It is so lonely without my furry little girl these days. Give Bud a big kiss for me!

[Netfoot]

11 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

@Netfoot, you and Budster look to be in fine form! Love your tee shirt! It is so lonely without my furry little girl these days. Give Bud a big kiss for me!

@Spunkygal, I don't know how I would have survived the 44 days at home without Bud for company. He is an irritating rascal most of the time, but I love the demonic creature, and overall I enjoy his company. Just don't tell him I said so!

I hope you soon meet up with a four-footed friend who needs you. 

[Netfoot]

$1,600+ later....

Left home at 12:20 so as to be at the door at 1:00 when it opened.  Still had to wait in a line outside. Went in and got a 20" fan! Thank goodness.  Also, a ladle for the next time the stew turns out soupy.

Then PriceSmart, followed by the supermarket/pharmacy. Long lines to get in, and long lines to get out again. Wasn't on my way home until 4:45.

But as well as fresh chicken and steaks, minced beef, curry powder, soy sauce, bread, cheese, hen fruit and cow juice, etc, and a mass of tinned stuff, I also got fresh onions, potatoes, tomatoes, pumpkin, a medium sized breadfruit, even mandarins and gala apples! And a guy in the parking lot begged me to buy some of his tiny mangoes for a buck each, so I took ten and gave him $20, because honestly, he looked hungry.

No scurvy for a little while yet, then.

Oh, just as we were driving out of the lot, Budweiser went completely nuts, because a troop of green monkeys (bull, two females, two young) were casually walking across. Took me 10 minutes to calm Bud down!

Now I'm home, I drank a beastly cold malt, and sat here to catch my breath. I just wish I had the strength to unpack the car! Because the new fan is under that pile of groceries.

Dr. Kristi sent to say I should look to come in for my PT/INR. Maybe I'll venture abroad again in another two weeks.

And I never got near the optical place, so...

[Netfoot]

We're doing well here, with plenty of grub in the house, probably enough for four months. Naturally, the fresh food will run out much faster than that. But I will be going to the pharmacy every couple of weeks, and said pharmacy is inside the supermarket. So, I can lay in supplies of fresh fruit & veggies to keep the diet more healthy, and stem the tide of beriberi and scurvy.

My breadfruit is all gone. It was delicious! Had to eat it all before it started to spoil, so it was breadfruit with every meal until it was gone. Prolly a good thing we're on lockdown, because... you know... breadfruit!

Heidi on WhatsApp was complaining that she couldn't find a breadfruit. Dunno why, there were plenty in the shop, but then she shops Mondays & Thursdays. Besides, as I told her, she once cut down a breadfruit tree! So, she can't complain if the gods prevent her from ever enjoying breadfruit again.....

Tried a curry. Originally locked down with no curry powder so was keen to lay in some last time I shopped. No Chief's no Lalah's, not even any Ecaf. Was forced to buy a brand I wasn't familiar with, something out of Guyana. Guyanese curry is usually quite good, but this brand, not so much. The packet said use one teaspoon and I used two heaping tablespoons, yet the taste was very mild and there was no heat. If I use more and more curry powder to compensate, it will run out faster. You can compensate for the lack of heat by throwing in a bonny pepper, but that doesn't bring up the flavour.

Bud is fine, but a huge pain in the butt. He comes begging for food every 15 minutes, and wants the door opened (so he can go out) all through the night. Since I'm having trouble sleeping, I really don't appreciate him rousing me up when I do actually fall asleep. He stands with his feet on the bedside table and his head out the window, with his mouth all ready in pre-bark mode. If so much as a leaf blows, he creates a huge fuss to be let out to prowl the yard. Even if I ignore him, which I usually do, I still get dragged backwards out of the land of Nod. Trouble is he sleeps all day so he isn't tired at night. Whereas I can't sleep soundly at night, so I'm tired all day.

The Bat Soup Sniffle numbers continue to improve, with active cases trending down quite comfortably. Alas, one more case discovered today, so that is unfortunate, but in general it looks good.

Gotta get myself that PT/INR because I've been bleeding heavily from small scratches that seem to come out of nowhere. Today was pretty bad. I know viscosity is affected by what you eat, and I have not been eating normally for the last 52 days. So maybe Dr. Kristi needs to tweak my warfarin dosage. I've ordered styptic pencils from Amazon, but godnoze when they will get here.

I have 23 books I ordered before the lockdown, which are still outstanding. They are now starting to come in, but in reverse chronological order, which is annoying.

[Netfoot]

I watched a lengthy address from the PM yesterday. (She has completed her convalescence after her recent operation.) A playback speed x1.75 works good for that stuff. There are new changes to the quarantine/ lockdown beginning on Monday, which will take us into Phase #3.  We stick with alphabetical shopping days but relaxed to the full day each day instead of half-day. I was Tuesday afternoon and Friday morning, now all day, both days. 

Businesses allowed open now include many service-type operation  as well as appliance stores (so, technically I shouldn't have bought the fan on the 5th?), florists, barbers (but I'm not keen to have anyone man-handling my face just yet), and so forth.  Beaches now open from 4:00 to 6:30 PM as well as previous morning hours.

Non-contact sports now allowed, no surprise because May is, after all, the start of the cricket season! I guess this includes Glider Guiding and R/C flying too, since no contact is required. As one member said on WhatsApp: "Social distancing: You throw the beer and I catch!" But I won't be taking advantage, much as I'd like to. It would be OK to go and just maintain Social Distancing with the other pilots... but I don't know how to explain the concept to Budweiser. He will want to go and rub his head on all his friends, one after the other, and I don't want him to be the Typhoid Mary of this pandemic. I could go and leave him at home... but no.

So these changes are slightly more convenient for me.  I see Dr. Kristi early on Tuesday morning for a PT/INR blood-draw, and to get her prescription for stuff I'm running low on. But now, instead of twiddling my thumbs until 1:00PM, I can go directly to the pharmacy to collect the meds. Also have to get a prescription from Dr. Karen, but she don't need to see me, so I'm hoping I can arrange it over the phone and she can call it in.

I now have twelve packages ready for pickup, including those styptic pencils I ordered from Amazon! Godnoze how they got here so quick. The packages also include 11 books from two different series, but as you'd expect, the first book of each series still languishing in never-never land. Those books might be released this evening or Monday, but who knows? Just for reference, my Eafengrow EF97 pocket knife with the D2 steel blade and titanium handle has been stuck in the system for exactly six months today.

Wet Market Sickness numbers continue to improve, with only 13 active cases remaining. Heard that initial estimates were as high as 1,200 to 1,600 deaths, and we've had seven! Some may see that as evidence the whole thing was a storm in a teacup. I saw the rocketing numbers abruptly checked the day the country went into lock-down, and turn abruptly down after two weeks (incubation period) of quarantine. So, I choose to believe that things would have been much worse were not steps taken to manage the situation. And as someone who pays the pharmacy every month to suppress my immune system, and who, a few months ago, was found to have lungs compromised by "dozens of blood clots," I'm happy to adopt a Just-In-Case stance.

Two weeks to the start of the hurricane season. ("June, too soon..." You know the rhyme, right?) Hmmm. Generally, I am pretty sanguine about the hurricane season, but seeing as the past year or so has graced me with (to name only a few) an auto-immune disease, kidney cancer, clotty lungs and now a global pandemic, I think this year a good category 4 or 5 storm is pretty much guaranteed!

Bangers and mash for dinner, I think.....

[Netfoot]

PT/INR results: too high.  Change dosage; retest in 2 weeks.

Active virus cases have remained at the same level for a week now, and two new cases yesterday. Need these numbers to go down!

[Netfoot]

PM announced that from Tuesday (Monday is a Bank holiday), all retail businesses may open. Many service businesses may also open, including churches. Restaurants open for sit-down customers (delivery and take-away have been allowed for some time). Persons from one household may sit together at one table. Parks, beaches and botanical gardens may open all day from 5:00AM to 6:30PM,

All activities still subject to Social Distancing. For places like churches, this includes a "one person per 40 sq. ft." rule, which I'm told is an internationally recommended thing.

Curfew relaxed Monday thru Thursday from 5:00 AM to 10:00 PM, but Friday to Sunday it remains 5:00 AM to 8:00 PM, so no booze-ups on the weekend. (Given that the curfew has been in force for the last several weeks, you would be surprised at the number of Rude Boyz roaming around the neighborhood in the dead of night.)

Alphabetic shopping now suspended -- go when ever you like, but if this results in excessive numbers, the alphabetic system will return.

The graph on active cases was dead flat for nearly two weeks, but there was a dip over the last two days. Of the 92 recorded cases we have had 76 recoveries and (alas) 7 deaths. That leaves only 9 active cases. Testing has been ongoing -- apparently we are close to the top testing rates (per capita) in the world. What that means exactly is anyone's guess.

Personally, I'm still taking two immunosuppressants, so I am determined to play it safe whenever possible. Would like to go out to the cliff (maybe) with the boys this Sunday and/or Monday, but I just can't get Buddy to grasp the importance of Social Distancing. Will say this past fortnight has really gotten me down, for some reason. Maybe because Dr. Kristi banned naps when I saw her last week? Well, to be honest she didn't ban naps, she just limited me to one per day. In typical fashion I have not had a nap since, and I am feeling it. I will see her on Tuesday for another PT/INR so maybe she will prescribe a naps. (She once prescribed scones, clotted cream and strawberry preserves. I kid you not.)

Sixteen of my 24 books have been delivered. This includes a complete set of 11, which I have begun reading, and I'm now on #2.  There remains a package of six which includes the first books of a different series still to be released. Also, two books which are stand-alone that have been released and I will collect on Tuesday. Good thing the 11 book set is now readable - there is SFA on the telly!

I see that Twitter has shot itself in the foot. Or perhaps more correctly, blown it's own leg off at the hip? I am heartbroken. BTW, I will be starting a new "Social Media" platform called Karen..... Some people should just give thanks daily that Stupid isn't a crime.

Wait! Just got a notification that the six books have been released, and home delivery is expected. Whether they will reach me before the end of the day is unknown; I would say unlikely. So, they will probably want to deliver on Tuesday... while I am visiting Dr. Kristi, the pharmacy and the supermarket. Out of potatoes, plantains, breadfruit, mushrooms, bananas, broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers, peppers, yams, sweet potatoes... just about everything.  Got two tomatoes left, and that's about it as far as fresh food goes.

[WhereThereIsLife]

2 hours ago, Netfoot said:

(She once prescribed scones, clotted cream and strawberry preserves. I kid you not.)

At that point, Dr. Kristi probably figured Netfoot was on his last legs; may as well let him have one final glorious dessert. 😇 You sure fooled her!

[Netfoot]

3 minutes ago, WhereThereIsLife said:

At that point, Dr. Kristi probably figured Netfoot was on his last legs.....

Heh! It was when I was off to England for 3+ weeks. Saw her the week before and honestly, I was feeling pretty low, physically. Maybe because I had been on a fairly harsh diet for a while? She gave me a B-12 booster shot, told me to stop dieting while overseas, and to eat anything and everything that came my way. She specifically instructed me to seek out scones, clotted cream and strawberry preserves, and called it a prescription. 

You know, if she wasn't a generation too young for me, and happily married with more kids than you can shake a stick at... she still would be outta my league! :-)

[Netfoot]

Latest PT/INR results just in (tested Tuesday). Numbers are good; just about the middle of the desired range. Testing again in 5 weeks.

Also went to pharmacy, and took the opportunity to buy some veggies. Pharmacy was a problem. One of the immunosuppressants I am on simply was not available at my pharmacy, nor at any of their branches island wide. None of the alternatives were available either. Bad news: I need that stuff to avoid becoming a gibbering wreck and (possibly) dying. The pharmacist called all the competing pharmacies and found one with a small supply. She told me to get down there ASAP and try to get two months supply instead of only one. There is an island-wide shortage, and she didn't know when more of the stuff will be coming in. I had Dr. Kristi write me a prescription and whizzed around there. I was able to get them to provide me two months supply. Maybe taking two months was selfish, but I'm trying to keep breathing. (Figuratively and literally.)

Wet Market Virus numbers gradually improving. No new cases in the last 12 days and active cases down to four! If that would just hit zero and stay there a while.....  The whole Social Distancing thing is a PITA, but since I am particularly at risk, I will have to stick with it until someone I trust tells me it isn't necessary any longer. Don't know how much sense it is, when governors and mayors are releasing violent prisoners from jail, saying it's too dangerous to have them locked down in jail, then telling regular citizens it's too dangerous for them NOT to lockdown at home.

Went to the supermarket/pharmacy Tuesday and there was a long line outside, everybody standing on the 6' paint-marks. I joined the end of the line. After 15 minutes a guy comes along and says "Are you waiting for the supermarket?" "Yes, and the pharmacy," i said. "Well this line is not for you, you can go right in!" Ok, good.  Except I waited 15 minutes in the sun for nothing. And... the place is a supermarket/pharmacy. If the line wasn't for that, what was it for?

Also, guys were up at the club yesterday.  The report was "It was lovely - wind straight down the strip, 10-ish knots." Of course, I couldn't go. Because Buddy won't social distance or wear a mask. I can't blame him for the mask, because those N95s don't fit his puggy little face. And all he wants to do is go and rub heads with all his friends who he hasn't seen in... well, today is Day #75 for us.

Good news!  All 24 books have now been delivered! So... I ordered another book! But those books I just received allow me to complete two series of books, one 11 volumes long, and one 21 volumes long. I've already finished two of the new ones and started a third, and have a stack here still to read that is almost 15" (21 books) high, not counting the one on my pillow waiting for me. Trouble is, Dr. K. did not grant permission to take naps. I didn't get much chance to chat with her, so the subject never came up. (I was rushing to get to the pharmacy that had the meds which weren't available elsewhere.) Since I read in bed, and this usually leads to a nap, I am now only reading in bed at night, before lights-out.

On Tuesday I was surprised to see the Ark second hand book tent in the usual place in the supermarket parking lot (first Tuesday of the month). I usually buy a couple books, just to give them some support, but I didn't buy any books Tuesday. We did drive by and stop so Buddy could give a small $20 donation out the car window, as he tries to do every month. Right after giving them the $20, Mango Man from a few weeks ago came by, looking hungrier than ever, without even any mangos to sell this time. He said it was his birthday which I doubt, but all I had left in my wallet was a $2 note, which I showed him. He wasn't too pleased, but all else I had was a Hard Dollar in my pocket and I wasn't getting out of the car to get my hand in there to retrieve it. So he got the two bucks and I don't feel bad. $20 for dogs and $2 for a human, but it isn't my fault. I'd have done it the other way around if I'd seen him first. But since he came along after and not before, the deed was done, and my wallet was empty save for the $2.

Well, I guess I had better go see if there are any movies left on BitTorrent that I have not already watched.....

[Netfoot]

What is the point of asking for my Photo ID, then peering intensely at my face mask, trying to confirm that it's me?

[Netfoot]

The number of active CV19 patients fell as low as 4, and held there for a full week. However, a flight of returning citizens (110 passengers in all) was allowed in yesterday. All of these were tested and all were placed into involuntary medical quarantine for two weeks. Four were found to be positive. Two of the previous cases were cleared and sent home. So the net number of active cases has gone up to six.

It is expected that some Bajan citizens will wish to come home, and the policy is that any Bajan requesting entry, no matter how sick they might be, will be welcomed "with open arms." At some point, there will also be non-Bajan arrivals. (Cruise ships which request aid for example, have and will be accommodated.) This means we will probably get more "imported" cases. This might go on for months, if not years, and there is no guarantee that we will ever be virus-free. This is the new normal.

For me this poses the problem of how to know when to return to normal life. When do I carelessly rub shoulders with people in the market? When can I go out with friends? When do I leave home without my N95 mask? I imagine everyone is asking themselves these questions. I'm not usually a Nervous Nellie, but seeing as I just happen to have some of exactly the wrong qualities, which places me at more-than-usual risk...

I don't see Dr. Kristy for another four weeks when I go for my next PT/INR. I suppose I will just have to stick with what I am doing until I see her, and she can give me advice on how to behave going forward.

Buddy is being unusually naughty today. Begged for a snack, so I gave him a tin of tuna. Minutes later, he is nose down in the trash, stealing the empty tuna tin and dragging it out into the garage, where he can savour it at his leisure.

Gotta go and get some freshly cut tamarind logs. Not sure what I will do with them, but if I don't collect them today, they are going in the skip!

ETA: As I was getting dressed to go out, guess who raided the trash and stole that tuna can again?

Edited June 10, 2020 by Netfoot
Post Scriptum

[Netfoot]

It is exactly one year ago today that I had my thymectomy and hernia repair operation(s). Of course, I have fully recovered from that. 

Collected my tamarind logs yesterday. While doing so ran into my niece Heidi who commented that Buddy had "frosting". Yes, it's true, my baby has frosting. I will try to get a decent photo of him and his frosting and post it. Poor boy. Gotta take him somewhere he can run and breathe. He is really feeling the lockdown. It's been nearly 40 days since he was out of the house. Well, he goes out with me, but he stays in the van. So, it really doesn't count as any sort of outing for him.

PM on telly yesterday saying that virtually all activities allowed to operate again, but people should still take protective measures. I assume that means masks. Still 6 active cases here. Curfew discontinued for four days a week but weekends (Friday to Sunday) still 8:00PM to 5:00AM. Public gatherings in excess of 250 people should call the cops in advance to give them warning, but approval is expected in virtually every case. They have already approved a "protest march" for Saturday. I wonder what they will be protesting?

Naps are still banned, and this is having a negative effect on my reading. I have only read six of the books I recently received (plus the one I am halfway through). Ten Seventeen more remain here in a pile, and the one I ordered mnost recently is in Florida ad "Preparing for shipment". Gotta talk to Dr. Kristi about the naps, and I am hoping to persuade her to drop at least two pills from my daily regime, currently 31.

Sent a message to a very old friend (43 years) who lives in SF. Teasingly asked her "So, which gun exactly did you buy?" Got a long tirade of irate messages telling me how completely unnecessary that would be... Asked for her exact address so I could "send you an AR-15." She refuses to talk to me now. Some people have no sense of humour.

Going to have to see my neurologist. He monitors my progress and each month, reduces the amount of nasty drugs I am taking. It was coming down every month but I have not seen him for three months now. I would reallu like the drugs to fall to zero (remission) which was the whole point of the thymectomy.

Shopping/pharmacy again Tuesday. I feel for another breadfruit. That and a few local ground provisions would be welcome. Otherwise still got 114 days of food in the house. May prove useful when the inevitable hurricane comes.

Gotta go.  Want to WhatsApp my surgeons from last year with some sort of silly thank-you message.

ETA: Somehow, I have managed within the last few days, in separate unconnected incidents, to break by favourite plate and my favourite coffe/tea mug. 

 

 

Edited June 12, 2020 by Netfoot

[Spunkygal]

@Netfoot, congrats on the one year mark of recovering from the thymectomy and hernia surgeries.  I confess I had to consult Dr. Wiki regarding what a thymectomy was. I am glad you, with the help of Buddy, are taking care of yourself. So sad that your longtime friend in SF has no sense of humor. Remember that life sucks donkey balls for all of us right now and is a struggle for many. Maybe wait a day or two and try to reconnect if you want to smooth out the relationship.

I talked to my cousin who is 74 and she has always had lupus but was recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s and now Lewy Body’s Dementia (isn’t that what Robin Williams had?) She still sounds pretty good. Apparently she’s on good meds. She’s down to 87 lbs and is still in lockdown due to her facility except to go to doctor’s appointments. I don’t live in her city but my sister and I will probably drive down soon so we can at least wave to her. That would ensure that we could hang out with her son and his family. 

What do you use tamarind logs for? I could ask Uncle Google but would rather ask you! And we do need to see Buddy with frosting! I’m sure he looks very distinguished! Sorry about your fav plate and mug! 😣 I have several favorite mugs and would be quite unhappy if any of them broke, My two favs are from Wimbledon and Kew Gardens. 

Edited June 14, 2020 by Spunkygal

[Netfoot]

7 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

I confess I had to consult Dr. Wiki regarding what a thymectomy was.

Don't feel bad - I had to consult the same doctor to find out where the thymus even was! Removal supposedly reduces the amount of drugs I have to take to combat the damned condition which has ruined my life in so many ways. If I'm lucky, the reduction will be total. Fingers crossed...

The tamarind logs came from a tree that was being trimmed. I'm hoping I can get some decent blanks out of them for the lathe, and also cut into boards to make various small items. They were only cut this week, so it will be quite a while before they dry out enough to be used for anything. Heidi asked about thin slices to use as place-mats, but that isn't as easy as it sounds. I could try slicing them quite thick (over an inch), letting them dry for a year and a half or so, and then reslicing them flat. Because they will warp and distort as they dry. 

Sorry to hear about you cousin. When you're suffering from something scary like MG, it's easy to become so focused on your own problems you forget there are people out there who are suffering from really scary stuff! I catch myself sometimes, when I go to the doctor, and I'm wingeing on about myself, and suddenly realize she (Dr. Kristi) helps patients who have so much more than I to deal with. I send best wishes to your cousin and hope she is comfortable and happy.

Buddy, as the above photo shows, can't keep his sticky paws out of anything! It is impossible to take a photo without him somehow getting himself into the action! There is something on the edge of a recent X-ray that I am sure is his nosie! And yet... when you do want to take his photo he is the most uncooperative creature in the world. The frosting has been developing for a while, but I guess seeing him every day makes me less  likely to notice. Heidi only sees him now and again, so she spotted it right away. Bud will be 7 (or 49) on 12th August, so not an old-timer just yet. Sometimes you see him in a cute position and as you reach for the camera... he insists on moving away and won't be called back gain! But I'll get him eventually...

Poor bud is suffering the lockdown more than me. I at least get to go out every couple of weeks to grab meds/groceries. He gets to go in the car, but he doesn't get out to run and stretch his legs and breathe free air! He's only been out once in the last 85 days, and that was over 40 days ago. I must take a special drive out to the country and loose him, so he can run around for a couple hours.

This lockdown is something else. Our PM has been great. She locked us down hard, but only for a few weeks. Then she began gradually opening up again, in stages. We are almost completely out from under, now. And it seems to have worked. I've been watching graphs of the numbers, and the sharp initial rise was immediately checked by the lockdown, and after the incubation period ended, we'v been tending down just fine, despite the gradual reopening. Right now, I can go out pretty much when ever I want (except weekend night-time curfew) and do virtually anything I want, so long as I wear a mask. I won't go out unnecessarily because of my own personal medical condition, but the country as a whole is getting back to normal. I truly pity those people I see on the news who have been locked down for months, and are told the lockdown might continue until August or even later. What is the point of that?

My friend without the AR-15 will be OK. We've known each other long enough that she is quite aware I am only winding her up. I hope she remains safe from CV19 and the attention of the mob. Who I wish I could buy an AR-15 for is myself! Plus a number of other firearms as well. I fired my first gun when I was eight. I've competitively shot rifle and pistol. (Never been much of a shotgun person, though I'd just love to have a KSG-25 in the cupboard for when the SHTF.) Unfortunately, Barbados has very strict regulations on gun ownership. The only people who can easily get their hands on firearms are the ruffians, villains, rogues and scoundrels that can be found in any society. You know, the people who don't abide by the regulations generally, so are unlikely to abide by firearm regulations specifically.

I have to go and see if the water is back on again. I've had lousy water pressure for three months. Who knew the reservoirs would be affected by lockdown? And yesterday and today long periods with no water at all. I have to wash pots and pans in the kitchen before I can prepare something for lunch. So I hope the water comes back on soon. I have several cans of water I can use to flush the toilet, but that is water I caught last year when the hurricane season started, so it's over a year old. I wouldn't want to use it for cooking! When the taps are flowing again, I need to throw it all out and refill for this year's hurricane season.

[Netfoot]

Great.

Active cases UP by one (from six to seven). Yesterday at supermarket, no tomatoes or peppers. My usual laundry still locked down (or out of business) and my favourite copy-center ditto.

Buddy was up half the night, standing on my head and staring out the window, and repeatedly demanding to be let out to patrol or pee, one or the other, or maybe both. I got very little sleep, and I'm feeling it, but still under Dr. Kristi's "no naps" restriction.

And now a "significant Sahara Dust outbreak" will affect the island until at least tonight, with "persons with respiratory issues" to take especial care (also non-GPS equipped marine users). They don't usually make much fuss about Sahara Dust, so I must assume today will be significantly high, or they wouldn't have released such a bulletin.

I have had trouble breathing/shortness-of-breath for many months now. They found a mass of blood-clots in my lungs a while back, hence the damned warfarin therapy which requires frequent blood tests and makes me bleed everywhere at every opportunity. But it's been ages and I'm not seeing any improvement. They don't know what's causing it, and (apparently) they don't know how to cure it.  All they know is how to charge between $1,500 and $3,000 a pop to run tests for it. My favourite of which is when they charged me $2,250 to run the test and then another $750 to interpret the results! All the tests BTW, have come back negative for whatever they were looking for.

So. Windows shut up, no going outside, And a micro-porous cloth mask all day at home, to hopefully ameliorate the effects.

Why can't the Sahara keep it's damned dust at home?

<bitch><moan>

[Spunkygal]

@Netfoot, so was the Sahara Dust outbreak as significant as was predicted? I agree, the Sahara should not be so willing to share its dust without even asking first!

[Netfoot]

2 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

was the Sahara Dust outbreak as significant as was predicted?

Can't say from personal experience. I kept my butt indoors and only peeked out to see a sky that was completely hazed out and showed no sign of blue. Had to go out yesterday so stopped by the supermarket looking for tomatoes (none to be had) and while there a news flash came on the TV to say the dust would linger for anything up to a week. But we did have rain yesterday and last night (and still), so that may be helping wash the dust out of the air. The TV said that the dust would make it as far as the southern USA.

I'm in a better mood than when I made my last post. Slept a little better last night. It's damp and windy and Buddy has gone back to bed. I wish I could join him. (There is some sort of weather system affecting us.) Gotta have a few words with Dr. Kristi re. napping, but I don't see her for 2½ weeks. I get to see the other sawbones on Monday, and hopefully he will reduce my steroid dosage, and will only charge me the usual $180 and not his preferred $360 for doing so.

Today is day #91 for lockdown. I've been out as required to purchase food, meds and other necessities, but nothing frivolous! Bud usually comes with me for the drive, but stays in the car. It's been 47 days since he got out to have a run and a breath of fresh air.

Gotta pay $1100 bucks for car insurance on Tuesday. Since I rarely get to drive the car any more, it's like $20 per drive, now. At least gasoline has gone down significantly.

ETA: At some point yesterday - can't remember when - I guess I bashed my elbow on something. Now it hurts like hell at the slightest movement and is really bad if it touches anything! 

Edited June 20, 2020 by Netfoot

[Browncoat]

I thought about you, @Netfoot, when our local weather reader here in Virginia alerted us to the coming dust storm.  It's meant to get here by the end of this week, but the only thing it might do for us is cause extra fabulous sunrises and sunsets.  The dust should be fairly dispersed by then.

[Netfoot]

Sky still a little bit hazy, and my breathing has suffered as a result, but only a little, because I do my best to protect myself.

Got up from my desk yesterday, got a little wobbly (not unusual)  and crashed into the bookcase. Nasty scrape on my leg which bled lots. Went to bed and let Budweiser minister to it. (Dog spit is antibiotic, right?) This morning, very cleverly managed to wobble into the same bookcase and gouged the very same scrape. The blood wouldn't stop flowing. Styptic pencil applied three times but blood still poured down my leg and puddled on the floor. Buddy and I finally got it to stop and applied a large gauze bandage to my leg. I am really sick of this warfarin therapy, especially since it doesn't seem to be working.

Phoned up Friday and made an appointment (10:15 today) to have my van roadworthied, because license and insurance is due by next week. Went in... and they have no record of my appointment. <¡grrrr!> So, new appointment for Thursday. Guy took offense when I said "Show me in your book, where you wrote it down."

Now I'm home again, and discovered that I forgot to defrost something to eat for lunch. 

[Spunkygal]

@Netfoot, my area is expecting the Sahara dust “plume” tomorrow through Sunday. No warnings here for folks who have breathing compromises, just to expect gorgeous orange sunsets and sunrises (per the weather person). 

Regarding your wobbliness, does it help if you sit up on the side of the bed or in your chair before you try to walk? Another idea: I have a friend who has a cane and the handle is a gorgeous carving of his dog’s head (a yellow lab named Vanilla). I know this would inflate Bud’s ego even more, but that device might be helpful for stabilization to make sure that the pesky bookcase doesn’t claim you as a repeat victim.

[Netfoot]

1 hour ago, Spunkygal said:

Regarding your wobbliness, does it help if you sit up on the side of the bed or in your chair before you try to walk?

If I rise from my chair and start to walk, I will feel wobbly. How wobbly varies. Generally, when the feeling comes over me, I grab on to something and wait a short while for it to pass. But sometimes I get up, the feeling isn't too bad, so I just keep going, hanging on to this and that as I go, to prevent a fall. That strategy works fairly well, but not always. If the wobbles are bad, I may start bumping into things, and if they are very bad I might actually fall down! I have not fallen very often, but bumping into things is fairly common. Injuring myself in the process is not the norm.

I regret to say that since one of my meds is Lasix, there are times when waiting for the wobblies to pass is not an option.

Ongoing joys: Tuesday afternoon my lovely (and expen$ive) phone died. The battery had swollen up and split it apart like a peapod. I tried to fix it, but no luck. It took me a couple of days to transfer the number and my gmail, WhatsApp, etc from that (dead) phone to a cheap piece of crap I had laying about. When I took that apart to transfer the SIM card... the other phone battery could be seen to be swelling up as well. A new phone is a bit of a stretch right now, and due to CV19 there is nobody coming this way to bring it and save me the 41% excise duty. So POS phone will have to serve until things ease up a bit. I just hope it doesn't die as well and force me to buy a new POS phone.....

Got the roadworthy done today, and mailed it with cheque to my insurance broker. Funny. The guy took a photo of my insurance so he could get the engine and chassis numbers. He walked away and returned with the form all filled out. They didn't check one damned thing on the van! I'm not concerned because I know I keep the van in good shape. But who knows what other bone-shaking death traps got successfully roadworthied today?

Hope good sunsets are all you have from Sahara. I've been having difficulty breathing for several days. Felt like I was suffocating. It was bad Tuesday night. I even considered that maybe I was +ve for Covid and would have contacted Dr. Kristi... but didn't have a working phone. I've been going to bed these last few days with the door unlocked. So they don't have to bust it down to get me out when I'm dead. It's a little better this afternoon and evening.

Also on Tuesday my steroids got dropped from 15mg to 12½mg. Another step towards eliminating nasty drugs from my daily diet. (I started at 40mg, and believe me, that was bad!) This stepwise reduction has been going on for a while, and the hope is they can be eliminated completely. But there is always a possibility the MG will kick in after a reduction. And difficulty breathing is one of the hallmarks of MG. So, I even considered the possibility the MG was back. But then I realized that mechanically, I was breathing fine so it couldn't be MG, since it affects the breathing muscles. Diaphragm, etc.

If it isn't Sahara dust it is those damned clots in the lungs which don't seem to want to go away.

Two friends and I bought ourselves Ahi gliders. I bought and paid for all of them and brought them in; then they paid me exact costs so I am not out of pocket. And while I was at it, I bought a fourth one. That's for when I smash up mine, or if someone I like comes along begging and pleading and offers to pay me Big Bux for it. Ours are not put together yet (waiting on servos from overseas) but here are a couple short videos from YT of the Ahi in the air. I like the one in the mountains...

A second shorter one at the beach, but beaches are, like, so boring, right?

Then I hear today, that one of the guys has told his friend that I have a spare one and will sell it to him at cost! Really? I wasn't planning to part with it, and certainly not for cost! My $1800 was tied up for months, with the real possibility I'd never see the planes, thanks to CV19 and general malarky from the customs department! Some people just like to take it upon themselves.

Paused while out today and brought home a giant roti for lunch. Boneless chicken and channa. Only instead, I got Channa and boneless chicken, the crooks! Never mind, it still tasted good! First roti in quite a while. Good thing I bought two. I had the second one for dinner!

Budweiser naturally insisted on helping me with both rotis.....

[Netfoot]

I'm a better frame of mind than I was a few days ago. So that is good.

I haven't been able to find a decent coffee mug to replace the one I broke a while ago. Found a replacement plate, but no cup/mug. Found some tomatoes to buy last week. Roadside vendor took $19 off me, but it was a large bag and I've been enjoying them ever since.  

I still don't have good water pressure. It's literally been months since I had a proper shower. The sponge/flannel bath is better than nothing, but I want a downpour shower, damnit! On a couple of occasions, the water has dried up completely, making it difficult in the kitchen, and also in the bathroom. 

Tomorrow is pharmacy day, with 7 meds running out. Stupidly, I scheduled my next PT/INR the following Tuesday, so I have to break lockdown twice instead on once. But maybe I will be able to go collect my insurance and license the vehicle the same day. I hope so, because the license/insurance expire this Saturday, so next Tuesday would be none too soon.

Speaking of lockdown, today is day #100 for Budweiser and I. The country has been opened up a bit more in various little ways, but probably the biggest is that "Social Distancing" now calls for only one meter separation! You still have to wear masks, tho.

And the Sahara dust levels were back to normal yesterday. And (coincidentally?) I don't feel like I'm suffocating. Some of the guys went to the cliff gliding, and sent back pictures of clear, blue skies. Would have loved to have gone with them, but didn't think it was fair to expose my friends to Typhoid Buddy. Poor little beggar has been stuck in the house for 56 days. I just know if I take him out to see the guys he will run over ahd give hugs and kisses and Buddy-snuggles, to each person, one after the other. Poor boy. At least I get to go to the shops as needed. Sure, I take him with me for the drive, but he has to stay in the van and doesn't get out again until we are back home.

It's just occurred to me, that even though I won't need to visit the supermarket & pharmacy next week, the Ark second hand book tent will be operating in the supermarket parking lot. So, instead of coming straight home from seeing Dr. K., I could go down there. The ladies love it when I drive up next to the tent and let Bud stick his head out the window. They come and fuss with him and cuddle him up and he really enjoys the attention. We usually drop a couple bucks on a few books and also make a small donation, but I still have 13 books unread, and money is tight, what with the vehicle insurance on top of everything else. But we can still go by so bud can say hello!

One good piece of news. Active COVID-19 cases: Zero! Zip. Zilch. Nada. Diddly. Nix. And it's held  at zero for the last three days. In the future, new cases are bound to pop up, especially since they are phasing in schedules airline flights over the weeks ahead. I am very glad to see the curve which shot up so quickly in the last two weeks in March, has finally returned to zero. The decent appeared to be asymptotic for a while, but finally. Finally!

Of course, I don't really know what that means for me. I'll ask Dr. Kristi where I stand next time I see her. But it looks like I'm never going to be 100% safe again, ever. There is always going to be something that's just waiting to cry "Gotcha!" For instance, I just learned that if your immune system is impaired, it is dangerous to eat egg & soldiers. I'm like "What?!??"

[Netfoot]

<¡sigh!> It never stops.

Buddy and I went shopping, and coming back from PriceSmart, on the way down Rendezvous Hill, the car died. Everything went black. Instruments, radio, engine, power brakes, power steering, everything. While rolling down the hill, I tried to restart, but no dice. Into neutral and kept rolling down the slope. Got to the supermarket with some speed up, and mercifully, for justb that moment, there wasn't a car in sight, so I was able to pull right across, through the entrance, and roll to a perfect stop in a supermarket parking space. Almost a mile, through traffic, with no engine.

"Now what?" I thought. "Meat defrosting in the back, a doggie in the front... how am I going to get us all home from here?"

Quick check and no obvious faults, so I tried the key, and... it starts! But the hi-fi remains dead as a stone and that doubles as my reversing camera. I can reverse fine without it (the van has five mirrors, and I prefer to turn and look back over my shoulder anyway) but still, this has to be rectified if possible.

Tried to look up the number of the car shop I bought the hi-fi from, but the phone won't connect to the net.  The same phone that was set up for me by the phone company only last week. Well, as it happens, there is a telephone company outlet very close to the car shop, which happens to be only yards from the optician I was already planning to visit, hoping to buy a pair of reading glasses. My tri-focals are still in horrible shape, but can't handle a new pair just yet.

Stand outside the telephone company in the blistering sun for 40 minutes to get my phone properly set up the way it should have been last week. Then down to the car shop to get directions to their technician Sherwin to have him look at the hi-fi. (He installed it in the first place.) I get directions, and they say I have to go now because otherwise he's leaving home. "But I have to buy spectacles!" Never mind, the one day I go to the optician they have a sign up marked "Closed For Stocktaking."

So, I speed around to Sherwin the technician, and when I get there nobody comes out to see me. I call, and Sherwin answers to say "I don't do dogs!" LOL

So, Buddy and I had to sit on a piece of coral stone in the blistering sun for another 40 minutes while Sherwin did his thing. And he done good. Tracked the problem down to a cheap charger that I had plugged into my cigarette lighter. Even though the charger fell apart weeks ago, apparently it left some small bits up in the lighter socket which was playing havoc with breakers, fuses, etc. Anyway, $50 later Buddy and I came home with working hi-fi, reversing camera, and a load of groceries, not to mention some nice, spicy steroids, warfarin, etc, and at 3:30PM, I was able to take my 2:00PM medicine and eat and drink something for the first time today. That first, iced, soda-water sizzled going down!

So, curried vegetables with some chicken breast meat, left over from last night. That Guyanese curry powder again. Not too bad this time. Used a different method. Still no heat, but flavour was OK.

Oh, and I found a coffee mug to buy, and some Horlicks to put in it. Not a proper 20 oz (English pint) mug like my daddy used to drink his tea from six times a day. It's only 12 oz. But it will have to do for now...

 

[WhereThereIsLife]

Buddy probably looks at you and thinks: “You got it ruff?  Sherwin doesn’t do dogs; how do you think I feel?”

[Netfoot]

PT/INR was in the zone. A1c was a bit high as expected, meds adjusted to suit, and the morning test numbers are already starting to improve.

Got permission to take a nap on an afternoon if needed. Dr. K. said 45 minutes but I raised her to an hour and she said OK. Funnily enough, haven't felt to take one since then.

Buddy is crazy. He spent the night barking his head off, and demanding I open the door so he could go out. Eventually, I let him out and closed the door. I could hear him barking away repeatedly during the night. Looking out the window one time (the moon was a waning crescent and had a bright companion), I saw him menacing an unoccupied spot of the lawn. I'm beginning to think he has a tumor or something, silly doggie! Just opened the door and he shot into the bedroom and into bed. I think I'll join him shortly! Weather permitting, I will take him to the club on Sunday and give him a run.

Dr. K. instructs me to go shopping every week instead of every fortnight. I need to get more fresh vegetables and eat less packaged carbs like rice and pasta. Which will help with the blood sugar, I expect. Active CV19 cases now up to seven again, all in isolation of course. But she assures me these were all arrivals from overseas and says that it looks like there is no CV19 on the loose in this country. "So, go get a haircut, because you need one", she says, and she ain't wrong.

A couple weeks ago my nice, expensive phone died and I had to switch my number to a POS that I had laying around for use in an emergency. Well, I took the POS out of my pocket a few days ago... and the screen was cracked in half. Great. The phone still works, but you can't make out what is displayed on half of it. Using it is an exercise in Auto-Rotate, as you try to make various parts of the display visible in turn.

 

[Netfoot]

Tablet died a while aback. Then nice Pixel phone blew up when the battery swelled (Swelled? Swole?) up. Transferred number to PoS phone which promptly split it's screen diagonally across. Yesterday, computer keyboard stopped accepting "V", "M" and "*" keys. And finally, this morning, computer died completely.

Got fed up and took Buddy to the club for a good long run. (His first outing in 76 days.) Came home, clobbered the computer, and it revived.  We might chuckle, but it isn't a good indication of projected longevity.

So, anyway, <creepyvoice>I'm ba-ack!</creepyvoice>

[Netfoot]

Steroids reduced by 20% today. This is good.

Computer keyboard gone naff. The M, V, 3, * and ( keys were all dead which made the computer very difficult to use. I was down to cut'n'paste to enter stuff. Bought & installed new keyboard. This is also good.

The 'gonorrhea' numbers are up: 8 active cases. All in isolation; they came in on recent flights. Dr. K. says there are currently no cases free-range at the moment (this is a good thing). So, upon her instructions, I just had a haircut.All hair off, and also removed incredibly long, bushy beard * moustache. can now eat soup without the 'tache straining out the chunks. This is good.

2020 being what it is, I predicted a couple months ago that we'd probably get a hurricane. Well, it isn't a hurricane yet, but it is a Tropical Storm.  TS Gonzalo, to be specific. The good doctor instructs me to stock up. Met Office: "The system has become better defined within the past few hours [...], in addition visible satellite imagery has been indicating a hint of an eye developing. If this trend continues then the system could be on a rapid  intensification trend this afternoon. [...] As a result Gonzalo could become a category one hurricane within the next 12 to 24 hours." I never like to see a storm passing so far south. NOT good. Next update 5:00PM.

[Netfoot]

We're on Storm Watch for Gonzalo as of 5:00 AM today. This system is small, but with 60 MPH winds at the center it could be unpleasant. And it's small size makes it difficult to tell how much it is intensifying. Predicted track is south of us, but I never like to see a storm to our south, because they love to turn and the always turn north! The chaps have decided that most of our gliders will be overcome with 45 MPH windspeeds, so.... no flying tomorrow.

The next MET Office advisory will be issued at 11:00 AM.

[Browncoat]

Stay safe, @Netfoot!

[Netfoot]

According to the forecast track, it will slip neatly between us and T&T, which places it on a direct path to Grenada. We are still under a Storm Warning and a Hurricane Watch. A Small Craft and High Surf warning is also in effect for the next 36 hours. Next advisory at 2:00PM

Windspeed is down a bit, but it is expected to increase to near-hurricane levels as it progresses. Apparently, a hurricane hunter is en route. Sustained storm force winds are likely here from the morning of Saturday 25th. A rainfall/flooding hazard exists and a formal advisory may become necessary. An hour ago we had a brief but very intense shower.

I got months of food stockpiled. If anything develops, all Buddy and I can do is shut up the house and hope for the best.

@Browncoat, thanks!  2020: what next?