Recovering During the First Week of September

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I’m slowly recovering from the cyst infection on my chest during this first week of September.

It’s been a week since I saw the thin red streak going up my chest toward my neck. I hate to think what might have happened had I not gone to Urgent Care. But I did, and so I am recovering. Slowly but surely.

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I thought I’d feel better after a few days. But it seems I feel worse.

The two antibiotics have wreaked havoc on my stomach, and I constantly feel nauseous. I don’t think I’ve ever taken two antibiotics at the same time before. Still, I am grateful the medication is treating the cyst infection.

Thankfully, I can be at home and not have to do much. Aside from rolling my trash can to the curb for pickup on Thursday, I have not left the front porch.

I go outside, water the garden from the porch, and tend to the outdoor cats. But then I head back inside, away from the intense heat.

I have a fan going on the porch for the outdoor cats, but they don’t seem to like the sound, so I don’t know if they’re taking advantage of it. I put ice cubes in the two bowls of water, but it melts quickly, of course.

Watching Videos on My Laptop

I watch decorating, homekeeping, and gardening videos. I’ve been watching women baking bread, and imagining myself baking bread again.

I’m so weak right now that it seems impossible. But I’m not going to give up on the idea, because I love fresh-baked bread.

So much of our food in America is laced with Salmonella and other bacteria that it feels like you’re taking your life into your hands when you eat. How did we get to this point?

I look back a year or two years ago, and life here wasn’t so tumultuous. I don’t know how much more this country can take. Gasoline prices are higher, and people are struggling.

I keep thinking that with every day that passes, I’m going to do a bit of fall decorating.

But my kitchen floor really needs mopping, and the living room rug needs vacuuming. I need to do that first, but I just don’t have the energy.

I sit here for much of the day, and morning turns to afternoon, and afternoon turns into evening. Then I eat supper, often scrambled eggs and toast, and shower so I can redress the healing incision on my chest.

What I’m Reading

I’m reading Everyone is Lying to You by Jo Piazza. It’s a book about friendship and what can strain these bonds.

Lizzie and Bex were best friends in college. After graduation, Bex vanished from her life, leaving Lizzie confused and devastated.

Rebecca Sommers married and became an Instagram influencer with millions of followers, showing a traditional mother caring for six children.

Somehow, online, she seems to be simultaneously rolling dough to make endless loaves of bread while having the time to gather eggs and sew clothing. How does she do it all?

Lizzie:

Lizzie is a struggling magazine writer in the city with a husband and two children. She is still hurt that Bex abandoned their college friendship 15 years ago, and she still doesn’t know why.

Then out of the blue, Bex phones Lizzie with a career-making proposition: an invitation to a MomBomb high-profile influencing conference. She would like Lizzie to interview her about her multimillion-dollar business venture and changes that are coming.

Should she go and pretend their friendship was not brutally cut off all those years ago? Or should she ignore the invitation, letting her emotional pain make the decision for her?

This opportunity could be career-making, so Lizzie decides to go.

Of course, something chilling is about to happen. Their friendship seems to have rallied again, but dark forces are just over the horizon at the influencer conference.

And that’s as far as I’ve gotten.

The Kitties Bring Me Comfort

I settle in to watch a bit of TV and do a little reading after my evening shower.

Ivy typically lies down just across from me on the other side of the bed. And Daisy is always at the end of it. Simon might be in the middle. They bring me comfort.

When I’m feeling bad, Ivy will lie down close to me, as though she’s trying to reassure me that this too shall pass. I am sleepy, but I’ve never been able to sleep when it’s light outside.

Sometimes during the daytime, I reach down into a basket that somehow ended up under my side table. And there’s Simon lying inside, tucked in close. I’ll pet him, and he will make a little sound that seems to mean he’s contented.

Daisy has become more clingy lately. She was always the last one to need attention, but now she likes to make biscuits in my lap or lie down across the laptop keyboard.

Kendra + Kasi’s Weekend Plans

Kendra told me that she’s outside in this awful heat sanding the doors to the flip house she’s been working on for over six months. Kasi and her family headed to their lake house yesterday.

People in town are up in arms over the high electricity prices. I dread opening my email account and seeing a new bill. The last one was around $325. I’ve turned the temperature up and keep the curtains closed, running lots of fans.

It’s not like I’ve been moving around a lot and feeling the brunt of the heat this past week. When I’m able to do more, I’ll probably have to turn it down a little. Having 9-foot ceilings doesn’t help.

Eating is Mandatory

I’m sitting here feeling myself grow hungry, but nothing sounds especially appetizing. You know that feeling you get when your stomach is topsy-turvy.

You know you have to eat, so I go into the kitchen and eat a few bites of yogurt. I’ve eaten lots of both scrambled and boiled eggs.

I have green beans and corn leftover in the refrigerator from earlier in the week. I have all the fixings for salad, but the thought of eating those things is just too much. It’s soup or more eggs. Sometimes oatmeal and applesauce.

Soon, I’ll look back and think about this week in my life, and be glad it is behind me. Yet, time is finite, and we’re not promised anything beyond this moment. So we shouldn’t ever wish time away.

A Week Ago Today

One moment I was standing in the bathroom staring in the mirror at a red streak that had appeared on my upper body. And time stood still for a few moments.

In hindsight, I know things could have gone off the rails quickly.

I remember standing there and feeling confused, as though my body was betraying me. I’m am grateful I had the presence of mind to do what needed doing.

When I go out to water the fast-fading flowers and plants, I feel sad that the garden didn’t get the chance to prosper this summer.

I didn’t get to see nature in all its glory with all the rain we had. Then the heat rolled in with intensity and will stay for who knows how much longer.

However, nature is all around us if only we pause to look. I tell myself, if I’m lucky, I will be here next year to plant and grow things again.