Done yesterday (20090623)

[mdlbear]

0623 Tu
  * up 7ish (alarm); drugs, nose, teeth; coffee, C
  * 09:00 Dentist
    => find Colleen a dentist with an accessible office
  * Walk, ~30min -- just down to the pond and back
  * climbed the tree on the hill behind $work!
  * investigated hospital-bed packages.  Nobody has bed+mattress-rails.
  * 4:35p Birthday call to (brother) Al
  x 5:00p Mindfulness group
  & Long talk with a tearful, lonely Colleen.  Cheered her up.
    => Thursday evenings out with Colleen -- we'll start with the Pruneyard,
       now that she can keep up with me.
    => Walk with Colleen at least once/weekend -- Rose Garden feasible.
  & Wonderful snuggle

A couple of days ago I realized that the tree on the hill behind the building where I work is extremely climbable. Yesterday on my walk (cut short due to schedule pressure) I took advantage of that fact, combined with the picnic table somebody had thoughtfully put underneath it. Fun, even though I stopped at the first branch because there were people working in the vicinity.

I've been working in that building for nearly 17 years. The tree has been there all that time. It's been a lot longer than 17 years since I last climbed a tree.

I gave my brother a "happy birthday" call later in the afternoon (i.e. after dinner, East Coast time). He was glad to hear from me -- I need to call him more often.

In the evening I had a longish talk, or rather a series of talks over the course of the evening, ending with a couple of things resolved and some wonderful snuggle before we both somewhat reluctantly went to sleep.

Colleen is lonely a lot of the time, and doesn't get nearly enough quality time with me. Now that she has the scooter, we can go walking together again for the first time in maybe a decade. We're planning to spend Thursday investigating some of our favorite local shopping malls, and take at least one walk together on the weekends.

It's been a pretty good week so far.

Comments

[shadowe_wraithe]

Wonderful to climb trees! I love it...though I don't do it often enough either, these days.

I am also very glad that Colleen has the scooter and will be accompanying you on some of your walks. I don't know how the lay of the land is down your area, but up here, we have a semi-wilderness trail that is scooter accessible and makes for a nice day trip.

Is Colleen online at all? I will not be around as much as I have been the last couple of weeks, but I'd be happy to chat with her if she is, and is interested...not sure if she remembers who I am, since You have seen me recently and last time I saw her, was much longer ago...she and I cried together about our Selena and your Amethyst in the filk room a few years back, WesterCon if I recall correctly. (though I admit my memory is not one of my best virtues at the moment)

I am happy to see things beginning to come together for both you and Colleen, I keep you all in my prayers daily.

Love, Hugs and Blessings,
Shadowe

[mdlbear]

Colleen reads LJ -- both my friends list and hers -- but very rarely posts. She doesn't have an IM account yet; I need to fix that, although she much prefers phone to typing.

[shadowe_wraithe]

I too prefer phone, but, can't afford it, so type is my next best friend. I admit I am a fairly fast typist, but many of my friends on IM are not. Chaos has my IM info if Colleen would like to add me, I will gladly chat with her when I am online. :D If not I understand, but let her know that the typing gets better when you do it more often...also if not using an ergo keyboard, they help a ton. I went from about 40 wpm to over 60wpm just getting changed over onto an ergo keyboard, and IMing for a few months.

((((((((((((((((((((STEVE N COLLEEN))))))))))))))))))))))

[thnidu.livejournal.com]

We are planning a trip to the zoo this Saturday.

[mdlbear]

"Daddy's taking us to the zoo tomorrow, / Zoo tomorrow, zoo tomorrow / Daddy's taking us to the zoo tomorrow / We can stay all day!" -- Woody Guthrie

[thnidu.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was thinking of that. And then the last two verses...

[judifilksign.livejournal.com]

I am reminded of a tune: "If growing up denies me the dignity to climb a tree, I won't grow up. Won't grow up. Won't grow! Not me!" How wonderful that you did some tree connection. Makes me grin and feel happy.

I think it would be very helpful for both of you to get out into the sunshine. It will help with the depression, and Colleen's loneliness, too.

[mdlbear]

"If growing up means it would be/Beneath my dignity to climb a tree/I'll never grow up, never grow up, never grow up, not me!"

From the musical version of Peter Pan. Very popular on TV when I was growing up. Yeah, that was fun.

Sunshine is good, at least if Colleen's wearing sunscreen. I tend to be a cave Bear, which is one reason why I need vitamin D supplements.

[shadowe_wraithe]

Hmmm the comment about sunshine and depression reminded me...are you both taking extra Vitamin D? It is something that can really help with depression, especially if you are sunscreened and not out in the sun much...just a thought. And it's cheap and easily digested as well. Most folks up here, in the PNW need to be on about 5000 IU per day during winter and at least 2000 IU during summer. Yes, it's that important.

Love, Hugs and Blessings,
Shadowe

[mdlbear]

I take about 4400 IU/day; Colleen's not taking much more than 800 or so, but she doesn't have my problem with malabsorbtion, either. (I've posted earlier about D metabolism and gluten sensitivity; it's why my mood is better when I lay off the gluten even though I don't have any intestinal symptoms.)