2/28/15. The post where I cook.

2/28/15: the rain turned to sleet, which then turned to ice.  When we woke up this morning, the freeway outside our home was completely shut down on the northbound side.  That doesn't happen often, and it is always very interesting to see a completely empty freeway.

I slept really well last night...I suspect the hot toddy might have had something to do with it.  We spent a lazy morning waiting for the ice to melt.  As soon as it did, I went to the grocery store, because we had a big day planned.  We have some friends with a teenage daughter who is like a niece to us.  She stays with us when her parents are out of town, and hangs out with us periodically even when they are in town.  She loves to cook and we planned to spend the day making a big, complicated meal.

When I got to the grocery store, it was clear we weren't the only ones with this idea.  It seemed everyone intended to spend the cold, rainy day cooking, so they were all buying exotic ingredients for complicated meals or desserts.  It was actually a fun grocery trip, because everyone seemed happy and conspiratorial.  Lots of peering into each others' shopping carts with knowing nods.

She and I spent the rest of the afternoon cooking, with my patient, long-suffering husband supervising and helping with the trickiest procedures.  Then we invited friends over for dinner and spent a really nice evening eating, drinking, and chatting. I fear for the next generation sometimes, but tonight I felt like they will be okay.  At least some of them.  My foot was fairly cooperative considering the weather and my activity level, but it is happy to have some rest.  The rain continues tomorrow, but it should be 20 degrees warmer, so I am optimistic.  And I have lots of yummy leftovers to get me through the day.

2/27/15. The post where it gets cold again.

2/27/15: another cold and rainy day.  I've been riding the trainer all week since it is too cold to walk outside.  Although the trainer is right next to my indoor garden, so it's almost like being outside.

It was a blissfully quiet work day after a long and difficult week.  I moved the stimulator around quite a bit today and kept things (relatively) under control.  After work, I met some colleagues at a nearby bar, where I had a hot toddy that was exactly what I needed on a day like today.  Then I hightailed it home before the rain turned into sleet.  

Looking forward to spending the rest of the evening in my warm pajamas under a blanket.  While my foot is not feeling as bad as I expected, I am starting to get foot and leg cramps that I suspect are related to the high amplitude I have set on my stimulator.  I decided to turn it down a few notches tonight, so we'll see what happens.  As I've mentioned, I am a member of a social media group of CRPS patients, and I am shocked by the number of people who are resisting getting a spinal cord stimulator, either out of fear that it won't be effective or out of concern for the recovery time after the surgery.  While I may have had more surgery experiences than the average person over the last ten years, the stimulator surgery seemed like it had a fairly simple recovery.  And compared to the prospect of continuing my pre-stimulator trajectory with no relief in sight, I would do the stimulator implant again even if the recovery were three times as long. 

In general, reading the posts of other members of the group makes me feel very fortunate.  I was diagnosed pretty quickly (although it didn't feel that way at the time), which meant that the stimulator has been more effective. I am not on any medication. It hasn't spread anywhere else.  I can work full time, exercise nearly every day, and lead a pretty normal life.  Remind me of these things when I am whining about the weather and my pain level, which I feel certain will happen over the next week.

2/26/15. The post where I bounce back.

2/26/15: got a little more sleep last night and woke up feeling better.  The morning showed promise, with the sun finally showing itself.  It was an illusion, though.  By late morning, the clouds had come back in and the temperature started dropping.

I spent half the morning in the office and then went to a board meeting for our music series.  This afternoon, it was back in the office to catch up on paperwork.  My foot behaved pretty nicely today.  I changed the stimulator program again to a slightly less obnoxious one, but it was still strong enough to do the trick.  I looked at the ten-day forecast and there is not a single day without a chance of rain.  While that is great news for our local water supply and area lakes, it makes me nervous.  

Time to brag on my patient, long-suffering husband again.  He is halfway through his liquid diet and he has lost 25 pounds!  He's also managed to keep a good attitude and still be fun to be around.  That's a pretty big accomplishment, in my opinion.  My weight loss has not been as significant during the same time period, but I have managed to lose six pounds.  And more importantly, I am only 2.5 pounds away from new shoes!  

Or, I was until tonight.  I may have ruined it.  I went with two of my BFFs to a local charity event where local restaurants and bars sampled their wares and celebrity judges voted on the best cocktail in the city.  It was a great event and we had a really fun time.  Maybe not the best diet activity, but it was worth it.  I'd like to say I'll make up for it the next few days, but the weekend is coming and I'm not making any promises. 

2/25/15. The post where I am pooped.

2/25/15: yesterday was every bit as tiring as I expected it to be.  No ice on the roads, but it was still cold and I had to be in and out quite a bit, so I bundled up again. I also changed my stimulator program again, this time to a particularly obnoxious pattern, and turned it up to warp factor 7 for maximum distraction.

At lunchtime, I had my voice recording project.  Having never done anything like it before, I wasn't sure what to expect, so I thought I'd better do some vocal exercises in the car on the way there.  It sounded something like this: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ro_LMuIs3Ek

It was a very interesting experience.  The studio was recording voices to be used as an algorithm for voice recognition software.  They described it as "the next generation of Siri."  Since I can't get the current generation of Siri to understand a word I say, I am hoping to benefit personally from their work.  I sat in a recording booth for about 30 minutes and read a script containing hundreds of voice commands.  Like, "Turn on the security system."  "Turn off the bedroom lights." "What time is it?"  "Pour me a glass of wine."  Well, okay, maybe not that last one, but you get the point.

The studio employee doing the recording complimented me on my work afterward.  My first grade teacher would be so proud - I can read simple sentences like a pro.  My "payment" for participating in the project is a free voiceover demo recording at the studio.  What will I do with a voiceover demo? I have no idea. Am I going to make one? You bet!  

I spent the afternoon (and part of the evening) in my legislative work group meeting, where I spent most of the time trying not to say anything that would get me fired. (Now that I think about it, that voiceover demo may come in handy after all. I may need the work.) I went straight from the meeting to my acting class, which was great, but which also ran late.  All my activities made for a long day and not enough sleep.  Today was also a busy day, but at least I spent most of it in the office, so I didn't have to move around as much.  The weather also got a little warmer today, and between that and my obnoxious stimulator program, my foot was a lot more manageable.  I hope it lasts, because I will have to change the program to something a little less frenetic very soon.  

2/23/15. The post where I spoke too soon.

2/23/15: this morning the cold front was officially here and my foot was officially miserable, but I had some things that I needed to do at work, so I got up anyway.  I skipped my workout and used the extra time to slow down my make-ready process to a more manageable speed.  I dressed as warmly as I thought I could handle once I was in the office, changed my stimulator program, heated up my car seat, and took off.

I spent the morning in meetings, so it went fairly quickly.  My PT would have been proud, because I remembered the way he taught me to walk without limping on days like this.  It's a little slow going, but it works.  As luck would have it, my employer sent us home this afternoon because of the potential for icy roads, so I was able to work from home in the afternoon, which was a huge relief.  

It is forecast to be slightly warmer tomorrow and I hope the forecast is right, because it is a big day.  In addition to the normal work day, I am helping someone from my acting class with a voiceover project during my lunch break.  A late afternoon meeting with my legislative work group, and then acting class.  I don't know if I'll have time to post tomorrow, but when I do, I'll have lots to tell.  Wish me luck.

2/22/15. The post where I don't hurt as much as I expected.

2/22/15: church this morning and then lunch with our visiting musician friends.  This afternoon, we attended their concert.  It's rare for me to get to attend a concert with my patient, long-suffering husband.  Yes, I know, you are thinking, "What? You guys are at concerts all the time!" True.  But most of the time he is performing, or I am working the box office, or both.  Today's concert felt almost like a date.

It drizzled most of the day and the temperature continued to drop throughout the day.  After the concert, we moved the garden inside, where it will likely stay most of the week because of the weather.  Not many people have an indoor garden.  Unless they are growing things they don't want anyone to see.  In case you are wondering, here's what our indoor garden looks like:

My foot felt better today than I expected, given the weather.  Don't get me wrong...it feels terrible.  But I had convinced myself it would be even worse.  I guess that is one of the benefits of having low expectations.

2/21/15. The post where I show my foot who's boss.

2/21/15: by bedtime, my foot was miserable and I didn't think I'd be able to sleep. But I did.  I slept really well.  What a relief.

Not sure how I slept so well, because my foot didn't feel any better this morning.  I fiddled around with the stimulator programs a little more, and then I decided to just ignore it.  I went for a long walk with our visiting friend, I ran some errands with my patient, long-suffering husband, and then we came home and started in on our spring container garden.  

We cut back all the old plants, potted the new plants he bought yesterday, watered everything, and cleaned up the patio.  Now we are ready for spring.  Unfortunately, winter isn't over yet.  While the weather was warm and spring-like today, the next week will be a very different story.  Which is one of the good things about having a container garden.  Tomorrow, it will become an indoor garden.  

A few more chores and then a little rest before heading to a friend's house for a get-together.  My foot still feels rotten, but I suspect it is no worse than it would have been if I had spent the day on the couch.  I may not always be able to show my foot who's boss, but today I did.