This is the hot mocha “signature coffee” at a place called, “Nine One Coffee” I enjoyed with Brian while we were out running errands this morning. I have discovered I LOVE the art associated with the hot drinks, and, surprisingly also love the cold varieties of a lot of these, given the heat and humidity here. Brian has a seemingly unending series of coffee places he likes, so I spend my days grinning like a nut as an ‘adventure’ uncovers another one! 😋
I like the art SO much that I always smile and tell the server how pretty I think the design is. Brian says that I shouldn’t do this – should just drink, THEN bow and say, “thank you” as we’re leaving. I refuse, though, and the servers seem to like what I am doing.
How could one NOT compliment the server on designs this pretty?
We snarfed down these cookies before I started my stricter low carb diet…
And shared a warm seed-covered bagel with cream cheese inside…
I think this one was when we were in Laos at the coffee bar where the stray white cat slept on a table between shops.
A beautiful ‘swan’ in your coffee cup. Almost too pretty to mess up by drinking it.
I really look forward to our ‘adventures’ that Brian works so hard to provide. One day it’s coffee – another day a lady who hand crochets tote bags – and today was talking about taking my sock with a hole in the big toe to a lady nearby who repairs things. (I told him I thought I only had ONE sock needing this, and that I could fix it with a teeny tiny sewing kit. He said I would be supporting the local economy if I brought the sock to the woman. At least I’ll check to make sure I don’t have other socks in need of repair…
This is the jigsaw puzzle I am trying to put together. I love owls, and the colors this has I think are wonderful.
The very BEST part is that I now have a “jigsaw puzzle table” and the puzzle is OUT, very close to the door, where everyone visiting can see it for as long as I am working on it! I may even coax a person or two to sit down and work on it with me. 🙂
Brian is coming down to pick me up to run errands around 10- 30-ish. We had to wear our “Thailand Rainsuits” again this morning to go to the gym and back for our workout. As we were putting them on before venturing into the downpour, a lady who works at the condo building came out to ask Brian how his dad was. From his gestures, Brian told her that some things were better, but that his dad remains very, very confused at the nursing home. I am so amazed and pleased that people all over the building are so kind and caring to ask. He has obviously made quite an impression here.
When we get finished with our errands, I’m going to spend part of the afternoon using my new step stool to see what is up high in my place. I will get it cleaned out and use it as good storage places.
I think I told you that I have headphones with my computer for the first time ever. Brian got a set for Harvey and me so that we didn’t drive each other crazy with sounds. I’ve told you I came out of the hospital with a large hearing loss for which we are now looking for hearing aids. My husband would drive me out of our office in the states with the high volume on the gory movies he loved. The headphones would make it possible for us to each watch a movie with volumes set where we wanted them, sitting side by side, without bothering each other, or one could watch TV and the other work at the computer with the headphones that canceled out the noise of the other. Even though I am by myself in the condo, I have neighbors who might not enjoy my choice of YouTube videos or TV movies, so I wear the headphones. Last night I tried it, playing a documentary of Jelly Roll! ☺️
I have been finding drawings I like on YouTube and Pinterest and trying to reproduce them in my sketchbook. I’ve been using regular pencils, colored pencils, and recently bought a set of watercolors. Since the whirlwind of our lives is calming down a bit now, I’ve been having a blast simply playing in my art alcove, enjoying the process under no pressure to try to make something I hope someone will like enough to buy. Can you see me grinning? 😁
After we visited with Harvey this morning, we stopped at a place Brian found that might have the larger tote I needed. I’m carrying a LOT more in Thailand than I ever carried in the states. I needed more capacity plus rummaging around room, plus space to add stuff when out shopping.
I think this one will fill the bill. It’s handmade, much larger than the nice one Brian got for me. The tight stitchwork won’t allow anything to fall out, like my keys. It has double straps, so it will be comfortable on my shoulder.
This gives you an idea of the capacity of this bag.
This shows you the basics of what I need to carry every day. (phone was used take the photos, so doesn’t show here.) I now routinely carry a bottle of water, an umbrella, now the Thai raincoat, as well as trashbags to carry wet stuff, etc. Brian is going to look for something to attach my keychain to the tote, like a snap, a hook, so that I won’t be at my door having to rummage around for the keychain that will ALWAYS be at the very bottom of the bag.
This will make my life easier. Brian won’t have to be patient, waiting so long for me to retrieve sunglasses, reading glasses, the recharged Kindle we took to Harvey this morning, etc. It will hold all the new gear, plus all the regular stuff I’ve always carried. 🤗
After my walking on the treadmill at the gym this morning, we again put on our “Thailand Raincoats” in the covered parking spaces just outside the gym. These are trashbags with sleeves and a hood with drawstrings. They really do a great job, where my tote got wet yesterday under my umbrella. I have the clever raincoat on my laundry rack drying now. I can fold it up and keep it in my tote for use the next time we have a good amount of walking to do, rather than simply getting into or out of a Grab. (Mine is purple, though it looks pink in this photo. Brian’s is blue. – we have a standing joke about him apologizing for not getting yellow – begun when MAC offered computers in that color that were simply hideous! I even LIKE yellow as a rule, but certainly not on my computer…)
Soon we’ll go see Harvey. He did have the nurse call Brian yesterday. He said, “Get me out of here,” about being at the hospital for tests. Brian assured him that the tests were over and that he, accompanied by Miko, would be on their way home soon. Miko thanked Brian, saying Harvey calmed down after talking with him. It will be interesting to see if Harvey 1) knows us, 2) missed us visiting yesterday, 3) remembers being at the hospital, 4) is still complaining about everything and threatening to do harm to the male nurse and the male physical therapy expert at the nursing home.
He keeps wanting to get out of bed. He thinks he can walk by himself, but it takes the PT guy with a strong belt that goes around Harvey’s waist to hold him up so he can walk, shuffling, to the wheelchair in the room or sometimes even to the front porch of the facility. He would certainly fall and hurt himself, possibly ending up in the hospital again if he tried. We have explained this to him endless times, but haven’t been able to get through to him yet…
Brian needs to work today, so he’ll do that while I do various fun things in my condo. We’ll regroup around 5pm and walk to a place Brian thinks I might find a larger tote I can use.
I wish everyone a Happy Memorial Day. I realize that as I type this, it is still Sunday evening for some of you. For others, it is already Monday evening. So a happy celebration to all who remember this day.
It started out with pouring rain when we got ready to go to the gym. I was actually carrying my umbrella in my tote! Brian, of course, had his. We started out, immediately hit by gusting winds that turned both of our umbrellas inside out. We got that straightened out, but not before we were thoroughly soaked. I also had trouble getting it closed at the gym, making water spatter on the floor. Brian and I got out our gym towels and wiped up the water before anyone could slip on it. We may opt for “Thailand Raincoats” essentially pulling a trashbag over over our heads next time. 😋
Everything I had on was soaked, so I washed everything and hung it all on my drying rack with an old sheet under it, protecting the floor. I then took pics and wiped up the latest water leak – but this time it was only affecting the center dining area window.
Harvey was scheduled by the hospital for tests this morning primarily on his kidney function this time. A female nurse was going and would be with him the entire time. We elected not to go this time, since we weren’t needed or consulted last time. Brian just asked the nurse to have the hospital send the bill via phone and he would pay it right away. The results showed no further problems.
We decided to NOT visit Harvey today. He slept the rest of the afternoon the last time he went for tests, plus we decided to see if he noticed we didn’t come today. It’s hard to know if you’re doing something good or bad. Harvey is being awful to the male staff and complaining about everything. We need him to get with the program and cooperate with the people doing their best to provide everything he needs. Changing our visits will be a gradual decision. So far, we get maybe 5 lucid minutes out of the 3 hour round trip.
Brian needed to work today, so I’ve put the day to fun use! I drew and water colored a silly looking bird in my sketch book, chosen from wonderful pictures on Pinterest.
I’m trying to clean up the files on my computer, plus passwords, so I worked a long time on that. I have started a new book, so I read a while. I borrowed a phillips screwdriver and tightened the screws on my closet doors, something that has been needing attention for a long time. I actually took a nap!
Brian got me an appointment to get my hair cut on Thursday. HOORAY! We are trying to get an appointment to look at hearing aids at the second major place in Chiang Mai, but haven’t gotten one yet. Brian will try to get the local handyman to install a new door with lock on my place, plus do the resealing of the windows ASAP. The IKEA people are coming Wednesday afternoon to put my chest of drawers together.
Brian texted me awhile ago, asking if I was okay, and if I minded if he and Christian took a walk and caught up for awhile. DUH. This wonderful person put his life on hold, few 24 hours to rescue his parents when they were both really sick (me ending up in the hospital), made arrangements and paid for flying both of us to Thailand to hopefully live in the same building he does, bought the condo, dealt with his dad having a stroke, being hospitalized, finding a nursing home for him when it was clear he needed more help than we could give, moved me into the condo and is helping fix it up and make me comfortable, orders meals for us, does workouts with his mom – so what do you think I answered his question if it was “all right” if he took a bit of time with his friend?
I am again looking around, enjoying my new place, new country, new life, grateful to have a second chance at life.
I don’t know if you can tell or not, but it’s raining now. So much so, that I started checking for leaks. I’ve spent the last half hour or so defending myself against not-so-welcome water.
First, I rescued my small amount of laundry from the balcony. That is water on the OUTSIDE and it’s expected from time to time.
The part I’ve been dealing with since then is water on the INSIDE. Apparently, we are going to need to hire someone to reseal the windows, particularly in the dining area, but also in the art alcove and the bedroom.
This is not a new condo, and we will be dealing with things that don’t work, repairs, etc. As we will be going into “the rainy season,” from June through October, resealing the windows will become a priority soon.
I took pictures as best I could and marked the places water was streaming down the walls so I have something that may help the experts figure out how to attack the problem.
Brian is helping his friend deal with a computer problem this morning. Then we’ll go visit Harvey. Good thing we have umbrellas!
There is one of these – a Red Frangipangi – though the one we see beside the gym is actually white with a yellow center. It’s simply gorgeous. Even the spent flowers on the ground are pretty, and I try not to step on them.
This is called a Cannonball tree. So far, it’s only dropping gorgeous orange petals, but supposedly it grows large fruit that it can drop on your head as you walk under. (Just what I’d need, walking to the gym to try to get healthier….) 😜
Speaking of trying to get healthier, I had an appointment at a local clinic today to be assessed for how I am since the move from the states March 31st. We wanted to see where I am on blood pressure, blood sugar, thyroid, and pacemaker, see what their recommendations were, and then plan to follow up every 3 months.
We’ll get the results of the lab work via my email. Blood pressure was really high, so I am on a new combination medication that is supposed to bring that down. I’m starting today with half a pill, then going to a full pill after 6 days, taking that until my followup appointment in one month. I’m supposed to take and record my blood pressure twice a day from tonight until my next appointment.
Hopefully that will show a big improvement. I’m already doing the low carb diet, though we have been splurging too much. We’ll reign in that and be stricter on our adherence to that. We’re already exercising, with my walking a mile every morning on the treadmill, doing yoga stretches in the afternoon or evening, and walking doing errands in-between. Hopefully, losing some of my lard will be the result of this, as well.
We’ll take whatever recommendations they have after looking at my bloodwork. Hopefully, all this will result in a good improvement in a month’s time, so I’m glad we got to the clinic, found a problem and are working to improve it, and have a baseline now from which we hope to show good improvement, moving to once every 3 month appointments, once they find the medications and dosages are good.
Coucal – This bird and his/her partner fly around close to the gym every morning. The contrast of the black and reddish brown really catch your eye, as well as their soaring, fast flight. I thought they might be a member of the hawk family, but Brian just sent me a link that says they’re a member of the cuckoo family! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coucal
Brian orders breakfast for us each morning after our workout and cleanup, and lets me know when to go up to his condo. I can look out at one of his gorgeous views (from his 9th floor condo!) as we eat. One of my favorite things is the flock of pigeons that comes every morning to fly around. As Harvey and I used to do one summer, trying to keep our heads still and count the number of hummingbirds that were flocking around our feeders, I keep trying to count the number of pigeons that dip, soar, and dive bomb in the air space outside his part of the building. There are at LEAST 12 that I’ve counted at one time. They put on quite a show and surely add a beautiful quality of life to our breakfasts, though Brian now takes them for granted.
And finally, I assume that the birds outside the big window glass panes that line the front of the gym where Brian and I are (running – Brian) (walking – me), are different colors of pigeons. I’m not a bird person. I just know that one of the delights while walking on the treadmill is seeing various birds of all different colors walking around, as well as a dog or a cat sometimes.
This was the END of a wonderful Thai meal we had recently. Brian said it didn’t really have an official name, but it had chicken, some type of pasta, lots of veggies, salad ingredients, sauce, with a fancy dish of fruit on the side.
This was my first real Thai meal. Brian is trying to help me eat healthy, eat less, and avoid food that will blow the top of my head off. By the way, protocol dictates you DON’T eat the fern or the pretty flower…
Every day I learn more about how I should act, what I should and should not do to honor the culture and the people. The list is long and my life may not be long enough to absorb it all, but I’m trying my best to absorb as much as I can.
Examples:
Taking off your shoes in all private dwellings, some businesses, some doctor’s offices, etc. I am learning to LOOK for signs that shoes should come off. (shoes outside the door, a rack of temporary slippers to put on after shedding your shoes, etc.) That’s the main reason we bought the Skecher Step-Ins so we could ‘toe’ them off and then quickly step back into them.
Don’t point – ever. Thai people don’t want to do anything to get your attention. If you point for whatever reason, it means to THEM you think that something you’re doing is wrong somehow.
When you see someone, bow, smile, and fold your hands together in front of you. You can even do this partially – if you have something in your hands. Smiling, bowing and hands equal you are happy with them, and honoring them – something very important.
I am trying to learn to say, ‘hello’ (pronounced ‘sawat-dee-kah’) and ‘thank you’ (‘cawp-coon-kah‘) in Thai. We’re still looking for hearing aids, and Brian said my pronunciation is terrible. So, until I get my hearing aids and can practice, I have returned to smiling and speaking English.
For the same reason you never point, you never look around – say at seeing someone’s home for the first time – and smile and say something like, ‘what a beautiful home!’ You are just supposed to smile and say nothing. The logic behind this one still eludes me.
When you cross the street, you cross each half – one at a time. When traffic will allow you, you cross and wait in the center of the street. You wait until the traffic will allow, and then continue to cross. If someone is suddenly there in their car or motorcyle and allows you to continue to cross, you bow your head, thanking him for allowing you to cross. You NEVER – WHATEVER YOU DO – try to run across any part of the road. It is better to stand spread-eagled, blocking the whole road, making it all come to a standstill, than to run. Brian says MANY people are injured or killed because of not following street crossing protocol.
I have a Google search bookmarked on my phone now so I can figure out what something costs here. I see a price listed, and I can reasonably quickly type, ‘12,000 bht to usd’ on my phone to find out that it costs $365.74 U.S. dollars. There is no sales tax here. The price listed is the price you pay.
‘You pays your money and you takes the ride.’ When you pay someone here to do a service, you are literally putting yourself in their hands, showing them that you value their expertise, judgment, and workmanship. I am going to a clinic tomorrow for an initial assessment of how I am doing since moving to Thailand. It would be insulting for me to TELL the doctor that I had my thyroid radiated for Graves Disease several years ago, or that I have a new pacemaker. You trust them to find that out, or ask you what they want to know. They finish their tests, tell you their assessment, and make their recommendations.
I’m going to have a haircut soon. It’s the same thing there. They have a good reputation, lots and lots of reviews. You go in and ask them to make you look better, and then cross your fingers…. 😳
I hope you’re beginning to see why I feel overwhelmed a lot of the time, combined with fascinated and thrilled. I make a LOT of notes!
We visited Harvey. He was lucid and positive for about the first 5 minutes, then got tired. This caused delusions, paranoia, some hostility – but he basically seemed a bit more positive today. He had no memory of going to the hospital for all the tests yesterday and demanded an ‘orange malt.’ He did know who we were, but kept talking about bagging everything up, buying his bed, wheelchair and some other stuff, and going back with a lady named Janelle to Tulsa. (We lived in Tulsa until 1987, and I have no clue who Janelle is.) He said he felt good, nothing hurt, and then said he wanted a portable x-ray machine to take a picture of his foot. He said all his toes were broken. Brian manipulated his toes, had him bend them, etc. Harvey said none of that hurt, but still insisted on the “portable x-ray.”
We stopped at the big mall on the way home. I got two blouses and two pairs of slacks that are MUCH lighter weight than my jeans, and so will be a lot cooler. They are also smaller, which brings a small smile to this old face.
Speaking of my old face, it turns out that the touch-to-open app on my phone won’t accept my thumb print more than half the time because my thumbs are wrinkled. I realize I’m old and I have a LOT of wrinkles, but I’ve never been criticized for having wrinkled thumb prints before. The solution is to update my phone to one that will use a 3-D image of my face. It’s wrinkled, too, but the phone doesn’t seem to mind that.
And speaking of my phone, we tried to open a bank account, only to be snafued by the guy who changed out Harvey’s and my SIM cards mixing up our passport numbers. The one on my phone showed Harvey’s passport number, so we couldn’t open the account. Sigh.
So back we go tomorrow to the Internet/phone people to get the SIM cards done correctly, and then probably back to the bank to see if we pass muster this time.
We are handling LOADS of details in as timely a fashion, juggling as best we can. Sometimes it makes you grind your teeth a bit at ALL the hoops through which we need to jump to get what we need…
This is the cute resident of this coffee shop where I enjoyed an iced mocha today. She goes right to sleep in the middle of the shop and everyone walks around her, or tries to get her to wake up and come over to visit them.
There is a really beautiful straw piece that is rolled down to unfold and shade the shop.
It is my firm opinion that these stools are much too pretty to sit on. Aren’t they great?
We stopped here on the way back home from visiting Harvey. The visit started out with the physical therapy guy getting Harvey out of bed and walking all the way out to the front porch. This is a real professional with a nice manner, very strong and experienced. He walks behind Harvey, with a safety belt tight around Harvey’s middle, supporting him while Harvey concentrates on trying to stand up straight, with his head up as high as possible, putting one step in front of the other. He rested for a few minutes in the wheel chair that one of the nurses wheeled behind him, and then the PT guy was trying to get him up to walk back. Harvey wanted coffee and decided to try to “order” it then and there. The guy played along, saying he would get a cup of coffee if he walked back to his bed. Harvey refused at first, and then finally gave in – and got his cup of coffee.
Harvey’s attitude is embarrassing. Instead of being grateful that he is in a nice place, with good food, and caring, attentive people to try to help him, he acts like a greedy child. He seems to have lost the ability to think beyond what he wants, trying to order everyone around. When he tried to do it with Brian, Brian told him not to order him around, and we abruptly left. We’re not at all sure that our actions will get through to him, but we figured it was worth a shot. We’re hoping that this is a phase he’s going through and he will start acting more like himself in the coming months. It’s hard to see him this way, but we of course have no control over his hoped-for recovery.
The old, rickety, crunchy bed was removed yesterday morning. I left for my massage 😊 when they guys were still taking it apart. Brian was there for supervision.
When I came back the bedroom was empty and Brian had put the computer table together! He proceeded to get the TV working AND get my computer up and running while we waited for the new bed to be delivered and set up PLUS my new cleaning person to arrive! (The bed was supposed to be delivered at 1pm so we would have plenty of time to get the new sheets on the. bed and things cleaned up, but you know how THAT goes…) They both arrived at about 2:30.
Nong, my cleaning person, is little bitty and cute as a button. She took charge immediately, getting organized while the men put the bed together. She would not allow me to help put the sheets on, and, very politely asked us to get lost and go elsewhere while while she worked. The place was spotless when when we returned 3 hours later. 🤗
We had so many things to get accomplished yesterday that we just couldn’t get out to visit Harvey. We will leave in a few minutes to go see him today. I feel bad that we missed, but the round trip and visit take 3 hours. He was griping because he didn’t have strawberry pop, so I’m taking him a bottle today. (While we were still in the air bnb, Brian found a brand that has 0 sugar, so he can enjoy it as he likes.)
When the day was almost at an end, I played on my computer for several minutes😊, then turned on the TV and watched YouTube for about half an hour, wearing my newly charged headphones so I could listen without bothering anyone, and then had the best sleep I’ve had since we moved to Thailand on my new firm bed with satiny sheets and light duvet.
I can see my SIL sneering a bit over this, since I think she said she routinely walks 5 miles a day, but this is the very FIRST time I have logged this many steps, and I am pleased to be able to toot my own horn to tell you,
Brian also told me while we were walking home from the gym that I am “more agile” than I was. 😊
SO – two indications I am improving. I will try to keep this up, improving on it as I can.
I’m also loosening up with my yoga stretches. When I first get down on the floor, I am really stiff and sore, but I feel pretty good by the time I finish.
On another note, the movers came and got the old bed this morning. I cleaned the room out the best I could, putting the old pillows in the closet for the moment. They came right on time and the old bed was gone.
I went to get my massage while the movers were taking that bed apart. By the time I returned, the bed was gone and the computer table had been put together!
Brian got the computer up and running and we plugged all in to recharge while the computer did an update. When we get the right cable, I will be able to make a backup of the system once a week AND a backup of everything on my phone, too!
He got the TV going, as well! I’m looking forward to listening to music on YouTube with my headphones on tonight. 😛
I’m planning to take some pictures soon to share them with you. I hope this will be a wonderful day for you.
Red-eyed tree frog sitting on the branch and smiling
This is just the frog I WISH were my new pet. Isn’t he cute!
I’ve told you that Brian and I clock into the gym right at 6am when it opens. T
I kept hearing a small sneezing sound. I just wondered about it the first few times, and then I finally asked Brian if he heard it. He listened for a second and said it was a frog!
I have no idea why a frog would make the sound that really sounds like a sneeze. As I’m stepping over him, he sneezes and I say, “Good morning, Sweet Frog!” (as you can tell, I’m getting hard up for pets since I came to Thailand.) He immediately gets quiet, I guess because he isn’t really friendly.
I don’t care. I’m determined to make friends with him. I think it’s just a matter of time when he believes I won’t hurt him.
(There are also a couple of cats that lie down and go to sleep on the table off the office where packages and deliveries of all kinds are placed for people. They aren’t friendly, either, but I speak to them nonetheless.
We had a big storm last night that knocked the power out several times. New condo, strange noises, I was unable to sleep. Thank goodness my phone and my night light were charged. I managed to sleep a bit on the couch.
Tomorrow will be a big day. I’ll strip the old bed when I get up at 5 to go to the gym. Movers will come to take it away at 9:30. After the bed is gone I am prepping the place for my first ever cleaning lady to come. I will also do my laundry and hang it on my clothes rack on my little terrace. The new bed comes at 1pm. We have sheets, a pillow, and a very light comforter for it.
We have a bunch of errands to do, and we are trying to put together the computer table and get my computer up and running tomorrow. I have a massage in the middle of all this.
We will probably have to miss visiting Harvey tomorrow. We just don’t have 3 hours tomorrow. Today he was awful – full of vague complaints he couldn’t detail when pressed, and saying ugly things about the people who are trying to help him.
He insisted he wanted to get out of the bed. We tried to explain he’s not strong enough, but he wouldn’t listen. We warned the staff about it when we left. They were aware of this. It’s upsetting to have him act so unlike himself.
A Grab is like an Uber in the states. Brian has a Grab app on his phone. He calls it, tells it where he is, where he wants to go, and in a minute or two one comes and picks us up. He has an app for paying directly from his bank account as well, so there is no fumbling for money, waiting for change, etc.
The drivers are truly amazing as well. They use GPS on their phone to plot the best route, but know shortcuts, too, if needed. Many times we are on highways or main streets where there are 3 lanes of cars in both directions plus a gazillion motorcycles darting in and out. Just when you think you’re bogged down, they pull out and drive past 20 or 30 cars in a lane. It’s breathtaking and impressive at the same time.
Grab also runs a motorcycle delivery service. We use it to order food for breakfast and dinner. Brian orders, then gets a notification that it is downstairs. He goes down and brings it up.
To say this service is vital to our quality of life is an understatement. I am amazed and in awe of the system.
Lots of things according to Google, including malt for beer , chemicals, animal feed and more.
why am I talking about this? Well, another thing that came in a 55 pound sack was a lot of my fat. Today I finally hit another interim goal on my effort to lose the lard and get healthier. I am down 55 pounds from my highest weight. I am setting interim 5 pound goals because they seem more achievable than the whole number at once. I still want to lose another 25 or 30 pounds (or so) but another 5 pounds sounds doable.
I’m eating breakfast and then dinner, both mainly low carb. I’m walking at the gym on the treadmill while my son runs, and doing a good session of old lady yoga stretches daily. Even though I am the definition of a stress eater, I am seeing results.
I will weigh and measure at the end of the month, but it seems like I am on the right path.🙂
He couldn’t find anything wrong with my ears. He did suggest, after asking me for more information about my hospitalization and surgeries, that there were a number of things that could have affected my ability to hear, but none are fixable. He wanted me to do another audiogram and see a specialist at the hospital with which he is affiliated.
Brian and I agreed that probably nothing could be done and we already had a recent audiogram, that we will now research hearing aids. I do know that for the short time I used the computer headphones Brian got me, I was delighted to be able to “turn up sound” on my computer, the TV, or even on my phone. So now we will see what is available and go from there.
One day maybe I will say, “YES! I can hear you now!”🙏
Sorry that my Happy Mother’s Day wishes are late. For some reason, I couldn’t get to my blog.
I had a delightful surprise – Brian’s friend and coworker and his whole family wanted to come by and leave something with me.
It was this gorgeous orchid as a Happy Mother’s Day present. This wonderful family lives in the same building that Brian and I do. We had been invited to dinner at their condo but we had to cancel due to Harvey’s stroke. I had met the woman and her 9 month old (I think) daughter, but hadn’t met the rest of the family. They have a 3 year old son, too. They brought one of their Nannie’s and another friend.
I gave her a choice of a pair of earrings that I had wood burned. She seemed pleased. They have adopted Harvey and me as honorary grandparents! I about lost it when they asked if they could call me, “Nana.” 🙏
She is an artist and will invite me to see some of her work in her studio. I can’t wait AND they are going to invite me to dinner soon!
To say I am thrilled is the understatement of the century. I will try to earn my new name each time I see them.
I hope you had a wonderful Mother’s Day or showed yours how special she is.
These 3 pictures give you an idea of the view from the Fohhide Coffee shop.
Brian took me there after a depressing visit with Harvey, who didn’t really know us or any of his family. He thought Brian was his brother Bill. He knew I was his wife, but didn’t know my name. He told us the people there were trying to drown him.
SO – we really enjoyed the absolutely stunning view from the 5th floor of this building. The elevator was really old style, completely glass, and would only hold 2 people. I have to admit it gave me pause. That was until I saw the view. What a special place to show me! 😊
We stopped today at what instantly became my favorite coffee place yet.
There was not only ONE sweet cat – there were FOUR! 🤗
Two were black. One of these had an elegant gold chain with a bell as a collar. The other black cat had a string of pearls as her collar. One cat was what I can best describe as a cocoa siamese. The last one was a black, gray, and orange cat with hair in a kind of checkerboard pattern.
Their cat cage was in one corner of the shop. It was huge, several levels with beds and toys.
In another spot was a food dish, water dish, and something else the cats kept checking, but I couldn’t figure out.
There was a table with toys on a string or stick that the patrons could use to try to engage the cats in play. A couple tried but had no luck. Then a young woman and her boyfriend sat down. The cats were immediately intrigued. She really got them going, leaping over each other trying to get the toys. Finally, the black cat with the gold collar grabbed the toy end while the woman wasn’t paying attention, and leaped down, causing a parade of cats to follow.
I do want you to know that the cold chocolate drink I had was delicious, but the reason I want to go there again is to see the kitties again🤣
The past couple of days have been challenging – good and bad.
One thing that has been getting on my nerves a bit is having to try to write to you here via my phone rather than getting on my computer. All kinds of problems associated with this, so even though I am doing the best I can, I appreciate your patience.
Our next delivery of IKEA furniture is the 14th and I have asked that we put together the computer table first and get my computer up and going as soon as possible.
Our visit with Harvey today was heart wrenching. He didn’t recognize us, care that we were there, and didn’t try to communicate, so it basically a wasted trip. The worst part of this stroke is the cognitive decline and lack of ability to communicate.
We stopped at the immigration office on the way home and got Harvey’s medical visa. This makes him legal! It is renewable every 3 months. We are still waiting for something on mine, but we are making slow, steady progress on trying to get my retirement visa which we can renew in one year.
The auction on our home in AR was yesterday. Mixed results on that. Brian is in contact with the auctioneer to find out what the next step is. After 37 years, it is hard to walk away, even though the upkeep on the place had become way too much for us. Part of me is relieved – the other part sad.
More good news – as of next Friday I will have a lady who will clean my condo weekly! She cleans Brian’s place and has just agreed to do mine. We got a bunch of cleaning supplies today. I have never had anyone come clean before 😀
I got a massage this morning. She found all kinds of knots in my back and neck. It was wonderful. AND she agreed to do weekly massages on Fridays at 10:00! Spoiled, happy me!!!
We put together the new dining area table from IKEA this afternoon. Brian gave me the two black chairs.🙂
We also put together the TV table. We will order an Apple TV to go on it.
Since these are super sturdy and are good quality, we will now order my computer table, my chest of drawers, and my jigsaw puzzle table. 🙂 Brian just texted me that the other pieces will arrive in boxes on the 14t
My new bed is due here on the 16th. We need to have the movers come before then to have them take the old one. We will have to ask them when they can do it. I will switch to sleeping on the couch in the interim.
Lots of excitement around here, and confusion. We need to get pillows, some sheets and a mattress pad pretty soon…
This may not look like much, but it will be a lifesaver for me. It’s a new doorbell. Several days ago Brian rang my doorbell. He did this because there is construction going on and I didn’t hear him knock softly as he usually does. The bell was so loud I jumped straight up in the air. We had identical looks of horror when I got the door open. Brian said, “We are getting you a new doorbell.” 🤣
I have been washing the dishes, glassware, and silverware in my place and placing them carefully on a towel on the counter to dry.
This is an air purifier. It helps all the time, but is especially important for “the smoky season”when the farmers burn off their fields once the harvest is over.
And finally, a clothes dryer rack. It will live on my terrace. Stuff you put out there is usually dry in two hours. If it looks like it will rain immediately I will bring it into my art alcove to finish. My place is coming together day by day. I just love it!🥰
This is my terrace! I’ve never had one before. This one is about the size of a postage stamp, but it’s big enough to put a clothes drying rack on, allowing me to wash out a few things saving trips to the laundry in the future. I will be particularly pleased to be able to rinse out towels and my workout clothes.
Harvey was discharged from the hospital and moved to the nursing home yesterday afternoon. We have been to see him twice there now.
Yesterday he was actually alert and trying to talk to us. He recognized us (whoopie!!!) called me “babe” and kissed my hand repeatedly. He said a lot of stuff that made no sense, but was trying to communicate. The nursing home will feed him low carb food, and this will help him a lot. They send us videos of him! Today’s were of his physical therapy. We got there later to visit, and he was determined to sleep, having eaten well and exercised. He had the same book about Thailand on his chest. It’s written in Thai, so he can’t read a word. Maybe he is just looking at the pics.
Anyway, the staff is making sure someone is with him, helping him do daily things and making sure he is comfortable.
I was encouraged again today, even though he didn’t know we were there or interact with us.
My friend Marsha sent me a really cute picture to go with the holiday, but the saved photo goes to la la land 😡
We went to the gym (day 2 for me). I walked for about 32 minutes and bumped the speed up from 3.6 to 4 in increments. I felt fine. The bottom line was I walked a mile. 🙂
We’ve had breakfast and I am waiting for the people to come install Internet service for me. When they finish, we’ll copy some stuff and send it DHL.
Then, if the time is reasonable, we will go visit my husband in the nursing home.
❤️ Shout out to Laufrain and David, who are celebrating an anniversary today!
Harvey is going to be discharged from the hospital this afternoon and transferred to the nursing home by an ambulance hired by the nursing home.
we came to check on Harvey and he is sound asleep. He does not know we are here. Apparently he didn’t sleep well last night, and so is doing it now when he is supposed to be taking medicine, doing PT, and eating lunch. He is really soundly asleep now. we are waiting for the cashier to bring a final bill. She was supposed to be here at 11:00, but it is now almost noon.
we are supposed to be meeting the movers at my place this afternoon, so it’s hard to tell how this all will work out. we don’t have to be here for the transport to the nursing home, but it would be nice to be able to sign off on the hospital before we have to leave…
The nursing home will call us when Harvey has arrived and has been made comfortable in his new room. We will visit there as soon as possible.
I’m back in my condo after eating breakfast with Brian. We combined salad, sliced avocado, bacon, and scrambled eggs in big bowls, plus drinking a mug of hot mushroom tea. Today was Day 1 of an effort for me to continue losing my lard plus regaining strength from my sudden health issues, plus wanting to be the healthiest me I can be.
We walked to the gym, rinsing off the bottom of our shoes in a tray of water and wiping them on the carpet put there for that purpose. We put our membership card up to a reader as the door unlocked and the lights came on. The owner/manager waved at us. We were alone, otherwise, and I liked that just fine 😊
Brian showed me all about the treadmill and I was off and walking. I gradually increased the pace to 3.5, which seems to push me a bit, but is a good one for me. The machine showed a path I was supposed to be walking on, but it seemed to be going faster than I actually was. I had been watching Brian, right next to me. He did a good warm up, then gradually increased his speed to where he wanted to be. Then he did a minute or so cool down.
He was worried that I might be dizzy. That was only true for a minute or so on the walk home. I asked him if it would be rude to sit on the back of an elephant statue. He said, “No,” just as I plopped down on one’s back while the other two probably sneered as they watched me.
Brian cut his run a bit short this morning out of concern I might poop out. I did 31 minutes at a speed of 3.5 km/hour. Day before yesterday I did 3452 steps. This morning I have 4963 so far. Pretty good starting point for an old broad!
I will do some yoga stretches now before we leave to go to the hospital, and will do another set after the movers take the furniture away.
We went to the hospital first thing this morning. Harvey was up in a chair. The first thing he said to me was, “I need to be in the chair.” He looked confused when I told him he was already IN the chair. The staff brought in a wheelchair and took him for PT. When he came back, they were trying to get him back into the bed. He clearly motioned for me to come help. It was funny and a hint that my guy is inside there somewhere.
Brian and I stopped at a clothes store that we recently found that has clothes good for Brian. He bought several things, then insisted I get two kind of silky buttons- down -the front blouses he thought were pretty. 😀
We went to another place for a coffee. I told him that I really love Chiang Mai because it’s a feast for the eyes. High rise really expensive buildings and then a group of little stores with colorful, textured roofs, straw basket lids decorating the ceiling or some other creative touch. It’s a good thing he holds my hand when we are walking because I am agog at all the wonderful sights around me.
This place came furnished, but we are having to change several things out for one reason or another. This bed is pretty sad, for example. The mattress is very thin -about 4 inches deep- and crunches whenever you sit or lie on it. I think there are slats under the mattress and they make sounds like they are considering dumping me on the floor in the middle of the night. A couple of days ago we found and ordered what will be a very nice bed for us – if my husband comes home – and, of course, for me. We THOUGHT we had arranged for them to deliver and set up the new one and take the old one with them. Brian called yesterday to make sure that was the arrangement. They called today and said they would not take the old one, so we are having to make other arrangements. We are kind of at the mercy of these companies, so the people who will take the old bed get priority. This means that I will sleep on the couch until the new bed arrives and is set up. That is scheduled for the 16th. As much as I have defended this old, rump sprung couch, I have to admit I hope I don’t have to sleep on it MANY nights…😀
We are going to replace this chest of drawers, as well. The third drawer down has no bottom and none of the drawers want to open or close.
This is the closet and a little dressing table. Brian has ordered me a make up mirror so I will be able to confirm I HAVE a face and slap a bit of makeup on. 🙃
The newest thing today was we got a night light we ordered so I don’t have to leave the bathroom or alcove light on when I get up in the night!😃
This is an alcove area between the bedroom and, living room and terrace.
I think I will use this kind of like an informal desk area. It is a very pleasant area to sit and look out the window. I may try to do some drawing here, too, or simply sit and dream…
I am amazed at all the ways you can get around in Chiang Mai. A lot of people walk. We do, too, if it’s not too far for “old mom” to keep up. This is one of the reasons for joining the gym is so I can gain the strength I lost from Flu A, low oxygen level, sudden heart problems and installation of my pace maker in February. Walking on the treadmill every day will allow me to concentrate on the walking, rather than trying to avoid falling on my head from tripping on the uneven sidewalks etc. You can have a car if you enjoy living on the edge. Even Harvey saw, before his stroke, that this incredible traffic was too much for us to handle. A “Tuktuk” is a tiny open vehicle with a small bench seat behind the driver. If one is parked in the area, you can ask him if he will take you where you want to go – that is, if you speak Thai… We took one the other day, more for the experience for me than anything else. It’s fun. 😊
There are also motor scooters and bikes that will give you rides. I really wouldn’t feel safe doing this. They dart confidently in and around really heavy traffic, many times in between two or more lanes, with a bunch of other motor scooters and bikes right there with you. Whew!
The mode Brian and I take most often is called Grab – their version of Uber in the U. S. He calls, tells them where he is and where he wants to go. They come almost instantly. He pays through an online service. All this happens at the same time on the road, with people driving on the wrong side, all driving fast and confidently. I get in , carefully saying, “Hello,” as Brian says something equivalent to, “Blessings be upon you “ in Thai. I strap myself in and try to keep my mouth from hanging open as we “fly” through the traffic. As I get out, I say a somewhat strangled version of “kawp coon, ka!” Hoping I didn’t mangle it TOO badly… 😂
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