Done Since 2020-07-19

[mdlbear]

I can't really say that it was a bad week, as weeks go these days, but it wasn't an especially good week either.

Colleen's caregiver, V, was here Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday; it's nice to have her back. She normally comes (came? this was the first week she was here since the middle of March) on Monday and Wednesday; I asked her to come Tuesday because I had a long-delayed dentist appointment to have them replace the crown that popped off about a year ago. (I'd forgotten, and thought it was more like six months. Good grief!) It was easier and less expensive than I had expected -- crown technology has changed a lot since the days of lost wax and gold. But it wasn't a whole lot of fun either.

Colleen was admitted into Home Health on Monday; her first PT and wound care appointments were Thursday. I'm actually somewhat hopeful about the PT. As long as we can keep her doing the exercises, which has always been something of a struggle. I don't exercise enough either, though I've been pretty good about keeping up the back exercises that I got from my physical therapy sessions back in February and early March. I'd been scheduled for more, but COVID.

The PT suggested raising C's bed a couple of inches. We have adjustable beds (which we usually call "hospital" beds, but they're on the low end; one is much more likely to see them in nursing homes), so this would have been easy except that I hadn't re-attached the driveshafts that connect the head and foot headboard mechanisms. The springs are stiff, and just barely within my ability to handle them, so they've been sitting on the floor ever since we moved in. Oops. Done now. I also pulled the beds out from under the lowest headboard shelf and moved them over a couple of inches (away from the window, and toward Colleen's side). That gives me a little more room on my side. It also required moving the transfer pole a little, but since it had gotten tilted I would have had to do something with it anyway. It's really not designed for slanted ceilings, so I took the opportunity to add to the (corregated cardboard) shims on the up-hill side.

Things are actually looking up in the wound/skin care area as well: she's getting Cavilon™ Advanced Skin Protectant, which is a waterproof film that lasts for an entire week, replacing (e.g.) Desitin and other barrier creams. It's not cheap, but Medicare is paying for it. Over the last year or so skin and wound care have been the cause of most of my back pain (though raising the bed may help with this as well).

Moving on toward the negative side of the week, I've been sleeping poorly, which is only partly due to having to get up in the middle of most nights to care for Colleen. To caregiver stress and near-burnout, add the occupation of Portland -- and now Seattle and other cities -- by King Donald's secret police / jackbooted thugs / shadowy paramilitary forces.

I'm always a little flaky around August 4^th; all this other crap isn't helping.

Notes & links:

0719Su
  * up 5:30; W=191.8; shower
    % pain left shoulder; must have slept on it wrong.  nasal congestion
  @ Masks offer much more protection against coronavirus than many think - LA Times 
  @ The Technical Challenges of Building Cloudflare WARP
  * CPAP change paper filter, wash tub
  / 9:10 major cleanup
  @ KDE & Xmonad • KDE Community Forums (future UbuntuStudio releases will use KDE)
  ~ tried putting the TV up.  Problems with both hole diameter and alignment.
    -> at this point my arms are too tired to continue.  Later.  (11:15ish?)
    -> noon: still feeling somewhat weak
  @ Trump not ready to commit to election results if he loses
  @ Opinion|Facing the Coronavirus and Racial Injustice, America Still Has Hope|NYT
  * pick up -7-_6_ prescriptions for S
  % 3:15 back pain.  Heat.  Probably what comes of emptying & loading the dishwasher
  % 4:20 still feeling weak.  runny nose.  oxygen ok; T=99.0, a bit high.
    just the heat perhaps?  dehydration?  Low blood sugar more likely.
    -> yogurt and sweet orange marmalade.  We'll see.  -> it did seem to help
  @ Marianne's Politiblog
  : Whidbey home health  360-914-5634 ask for intake  -> called C at 5:25
  @ Lamplighters Presents: The Pirates of Penzance (2018 full show) - YouTube
    now until July 31
  @ Marianne's Politiblog
  : Whidbey home health  360-914-5634 ask for intake  -> called C at 5:25
  & R requests $100 via WU
  % fell asleep at my desk.
  / major+ cleanup; very liquid
  * order paper pads
  % stress/anxiety attack (very brief) after blowing my nose of all things.
  % how the fuck did it get to be a quarter after midnight?
  % 00:24 meloxicam
  & awake 2:15am
  / 2:20am major cleanup

0720Mo  * litter boxen
  ? Westercon rooms can be booked after this date.
    new dates are Thursday, July 1 through Sunday, July 4, 2021.
  * Up 6:50; S=5:54, T=98.7;
  : L reported -annex not working.  It's reachable and looks good, but it doesn't seem to
    be passing DHCP through -- I don't get an address.  May end up turning on dnsmasq
    -> and of course I broke it trying to mess with it.  Growf.
  * Singing:  For Amy
  ~ call Dr. Rochier's office if still feeling off -> seem to be okay today
  * 11:30 - 12:30 (arrival time window) Home Health Alison -> admission
    wound care 2/week  -> high protein diet
  * pick up S's lancets - after 2, IIRC
  @ Federal agents, local streets: A 'red flag' in Oregon
  % 8ish headache; right side
  % 9ish fell asleep at the desk again.  Should splat
    -> actually went to bed before C

0721Tu
  * up 5:40ish; S=6:21;
  @ The Teenagers at the End of the World - The New York Times
  @ Intimacy Is Overrated: Concerts in the Livestream Era - The New York Times
  % I have too much S-T-U-F-F
  * noon or 12:20: -> 12:34 leave for dentist.  Take ferry tickets, food.
    % prepared for the trip by only having one cup of coffee.
  * 2:30 Accent Dental crown  -> $465; build-up would have been another $150 if needed
  % I am, clearly, seriously depressed.
  @ Books – Lost Art Press
    Calvin Cobb: Radio Woodworker! – by Roy Underhill – Lost Art Press
    The Anarchist's Design Book: Expanded Edition – Lost Art Press 
    Now Available (for Free): ‘The Anarchist’s Workbench’ - Lost Art Press

0722We
  * up 7ish; S=7:31;
  @ Facing federal agents, Portland protests find new momentum
    Trump's show of federal force sparking alarm in cities
  @ Revised Report on the Algorithmic Language Algol 60
    How recursion got into programming: a tale of intrigue, betrayal, and advanced
    programming-language semantics | A Programmers Place
    ALGOL 60 - Wikipedia
  * pick up Colleen's lomotil at RiteAid
  : On the way out to RiteAid I saw mail being delivered by someone in a private car.
  : according to V, Island Drug went bust.  Good riddance.
    -> apparently just moved, into what used to be a Wells Fargo.  ??
  @ Tim Bray is Not Done With Amazon - The New York Times
  @ Tiny Home Hacks We Learned From 200-Square-Foot Dorms

0723Th
  & Awake ?2:00;
  * up 8:15; S=7:09;
  * 11ish HH PT Colleen
    bed(s) up; re-position pole with new shims; trapeze; walker with bigger wheels
  * 1-1:30ish -> 2:30 HH nurse Diane
  @ Wyden, Merkley bill targets feds' Portland 'shadowy paramilitary occupations' 
  * a little work in MakeStuff.  Decrease use of shell; decrease use of :=; better
    messaging in redraft and commit targets.
  / cleanup - oatmeal consistency

0724Fr  * litter boxen
  & Awake 1:40 (actually earlier);   / C nauseous; vomiting;  back to bed 3:30
    -> gave up 3:45;  / minor cleanup;  back to bed ~4:40 (time via git log)
  * up 8ish; S=5:47, W=189.6; shower
  @ WOTD: "hayduke" (via this comment)
  / cleanup  -> needed more work than I expected because of the bedding.
  @ The global march of face masks: A mirror on humanity
  @ WHO Director-General's opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 - 7/23
    " we will not be going back to the “old normal”. The pandemic has already changed the
      way we live our lives. Part of adjusting to the “new normal” is finding ways to live
      our lives safely. " [...]
    " In recent years we’ve seen young people leading grassroots movements for climate
      change and racial equality.
       Now we need young people to start a global movement for health – for a world in
      which health is a human right, not a privilege. "
  * cancel Monday's appointment with lawyer (360) 678-4407
  & 15min:  finally implement ^C* in to-do-mode.
  & wash top sheet and purple blanket.  Blanket may not be ready by bedtime; can sub the
    green electric blanket if need be.  Had "help" from Ticia changing the top sheet.
    % mild back pain (~4?) ->  x meloxicam -> didn't use it.
  @ The top 5 most important ethical issues facing tech | Clockwise
  * empty C's wastebasket;  * check for any additional cleanup needed
  * laundry.  Feeling a little flaky around the edges after sorting
  @ International Self-Care Day - ISF
    The Seven Pillars of Self-Care - ISF
    International Self-Care Day: 24th July 

0724-26
  ~ C’MONFLUENCE REGISTRATION
    C'monfluence the Musical, the virtual event will be held on Zoom during the weekend of
    July 24-26, 2020, in lieu of the music-programming track at the canceled physical
    Confluence. Register at https://confluence-sff.org/cmonfluence-registration-2/
    FB event page at https://www.facebook.com/events/665314100732763

0725Sa
  & awake 2:25ish;
    / major- cleanup; the Cavalon advanced protection stuff really helps.
  * up 8ish; S=7:21;
  & managed to screw up wap2 (annex); trying to scan for its IP address.  But it's
    working as a gateway via ethernet, so meanwhile I can use that connection.
    -> 192.168.8.252, so the problem I was having before was probably an ARP screwup.
    -> sorta works but won't talk to the local network.  Firewall, probably
    -> only worked for a little while.  Now failing.  most likely trouble with DNS and ARP
    -> wasted a huge amount of time on this.... and now it's broken again.
  * re-position transfer pole with new shims (thicker on up side; duck tape)
  * install bed lift driveshafts,  * pull out from wall,  o raise 2"
    Definitely something of a struggle; didn't occur to me until the second (my side) bed
    that what I needed to do was raise the head and get at it from the top.
  @ Sir Patrick Spens
    Buffy Sainte-Marie
    Little Wheel Spin and Spin - Wikipedia
    Buffy Sainte Marie - "Sir Patrick Spens" - YouTube
    English and Scottish Popular Ballads, by Francis James Child, #58
  & looking at cat kibble.  Natural Balance appears to have been bought a year or so ago;
    getting poor reviews.  Maybe worthwhile trying some others.
  % why the hell do my hands itch? -> tried some Aveeno intense relief; ... maybe?
  : something stuck in my phone's usb port again.

Comments

[ellenmillion]

*hugs*

[mdlbear]

*hugs back*

[spiffyvoxel]

Your talk about wound care reminded me of what my dad had to endure during his terminal illness. :( It wasn't helped by different nurses and doctors having different ideas about how to treat them. At least it sounds like the Cavilon and other changes are working for you.