Day: September 13, 2023

Everything Fred – Part 121

13 September 2023

I feel pretty good this morning even though it started at 3:30 am. Seems the saline solution they give me along with the drug infusion makes up for some of the fluids I’ve lost through diarrhea. I felt good enough to start on my walk and was about halfway through when I got those stomach rumblings. I barely made it back to the house.

In reality, prior to the walk I had one semisolid bowel movement and then the diarrhea hit. After the walk, I had a second bout but I still seem to feel OK. Enough OK that I decided I need to trim the Heliconia. It gets out of control quickly and the dead leaves really detract from their appearance.

I didn’t get to trim this one because I filled the yard waste container with a second one on the side yard but you can see what I mean by the dead leaves.

I trim with an old home-made knife my Dad had that still can be sharpened to a razor’s edge. It cuts through the leaf bases pretty well and I’ve learned to wear gloves (the hard way) so I don’t slice a finger.

I have no idea how old this knife is but it is home-made. I don’t know if Dad made it or he had it made. It’s a perfect cutting tool and it can take an edge when sharpened.
This is the one I trimmed today and it looks much better. I also had to pare it back so Trevor can get his lawn mower between it and the fence. Every few years, I actually cut the whole thing down and it grows back within a few months.

I really enjoy how the leaves poke up under my Bahama shutters in the bedroom and bring a little green into the room.

I’m waiting on AAA Modern Air to show up for a check up of my A/C unit. I have a contract with them and they should call between 8-12 today. They clean the coils, check the coolant, and do a few other things. The main thing is for me to order more A/C filters. I change them once a month unless it’s winter and then it’s every two or three months. As you might guess, the filters are irregular in size so you kinda have to buy them from the company. I get two service calls a year and only pay for one.

I also spent some time on the phone with my insurance company. They send you a questionnaire and then ask you to submit it. Then they call and want to know what you want. I told them I was satisfied with my coverage at present, but who knows. They insure my house through Citizens, so they have no control over that. My car insurance is with them and I don’t think there’s anything I want to change on that. I guess it’s good they at least call you for once.

I’ve now been scheduled every Friday at 1:15 for a hydration infusion to follow up on the chemo infusions on Tuesday. I admit to feeling better after the hydration infusion and since it falls on day 4 when my diarrhea normally hits hard, I suspect I need the fluid replacement. No telling how long I’ll be with the hydration but I estimate at least two hours. I’m glad I no longer need the Filgrastim every three days so I’ve cut my visits to the cancer center down from four days a week to two days a week.

Nancy and Michel came over last night and brought massive amounts of Thai food from Heart Rock Sushi and Thai on Sunrise Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. I used to go to that place quite often for sushi but haven’t been there since Covid. They brought two containers of Nam Sod Salad (minced chicken, ginger, roasted peanuts, red onion, scallions, cilantro, lettuce and lime juice) and Beef Pad Thai and a Broccoli Stir Fry with Beef. I’ll be eating left overs for a week. It was all delicious.

Better yet was visiting with Nancy and Michel. Today was their anniversary of my introduction of them. I took them on a date to Las Olas Cafe (long since gone) and they seemed to hit it off. Imagine me as a matchmaker! I think it’s now been some 20+ years they’ve been together. They left this morning for a golf tournament in the Dominican Republic and I told them to make me proud. Nancy said about 7 are going from the Fort Lauderdale area but there are 100 entrants from all around the world for the tournament.

We discussed heading to Key West for our birthdays. Michel and I are close on our birthdates and we say all three of us should celebrate in Key West. We did that years ago before Covid and just simply haven’t gotten back. We had such a great time together when we did it before.

October 13, 2019 – just before Covid hit. This was taken in the lobby of The Saint Hotel. We had a few drinks at their Burgundy Bar before the photo. Apparently there is another hotel in New Orleans. Maybe we should try that one next.

Well, the A/C person called and the stomach is making noises.

Stay tuned!