31 October 2023
Happy Halloween! Tonight I cut off my porch lights and hide away in the house so as to not attract Trick or Treaters. It usually works. For years I would buy candy and since I didn’t decorate the yard, no one would stop by. One year after I started hiding away, people kept knocking on the door. When I don’t buy candy they come, when I do buy candy they don’t. I finally chose not to participate.
Halloween has always been my bane. For years, I came down with tonsillitis and couldn’t go trick or treating. Then when I did go, the costumes were ill fitting and uncomfortable and the eye holes in the mask never matched my face. Later when I learned to enjoy it, the churches in town decided collecting pennies or dimes for some charity was more important than candy. It’s a no win celebration for me.
Night sweats are new. Night before last I woke up with dampness on the fitted sheet and pillows. It wasn’t bad enough to do anything so I flipped the pillows and went back to sleep. Last night it got so bad I put a towel down on top of the fitted sheet. I’ll change them this morning. I sometimes get night sweats around the nape of my neck but this is a first for me – my back and nape and soaking the bed.
Of course, I was wide awake at 3 am this morning. I read a little and finally got out of bed close to 5 am. Nap time this afternoon!
So, what do you think? It’s my new kaftan. Recently, I was reading a story about a woman in a mumu. Later, I read another story about a man wearing a kaftan. Tomato, toemahtoe. I decided to see what the kaftan was all about. I ordered from Linenbee, run by a mother/daughter team in Latvia. The price was OK and the selection was pretty varied. They ask for measurements and make it custom for you in the chest, hips, and height. As you can tell by the name, it’s made of linen. The weave is pretty tight so it’s not as breathable as tropic weave linen but it’s perfect for watching television when the A/C feels too cold and when South Florida winter arrives. I looked for a more colorful pattern but didn’t see anything I liked so I went with dull gray.
Depending on how the day develops and how I feel, tomorrow night I’ll go to dinner with friends at the Secret Garden. Hopefully, weather will cooperate and we’ll sit outside by the intercostal. I’ll probably know by noon whether or not I’m up to it. I still stagger a good bit because of the numbness in toes and soles of my feet. I’m a little better on stamina. We’ll see.
Tomorrow is All Saints Day and I turn 75. This year I had my doubts. Unless something drastic happens tonight, I’ll have made it. I’ve always suspected I was born on Halloween (see above – trick or treating) and my parents bribed the hospital staff at St. Joseph’s in Meridian, MS to write the birth on the birth certificate as early morning, November 1. If that is the case, I’ve already reached the ripe old age of 75. Now about 76….
Stay tuned!
