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Barbara Fritchman Thompson Diary

Week of 27 July 2009

Latest Update: Saturday, 1 August 2009 1:30 p.m.


Monday, 27 July 2009

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I have broken yet another pair of glass frames. Last night while I was cleaning my glasses the top part of the frame broke off at the nose bridge. Bob tried super glue but there is not enough there to hold it. Fortunately I have my previous pair on hand. I could see fairly well at a distance but reading at bedtime was pretty rough. I managed a few chapters before giving up and turning off the light.

It was past due time for my eye exam but I had been putting it off until I could fine a new place to go. I was having to use the very bottom of the bifocal for reading, my cue it was time for a new prescription. For the last few years I had been going to Baptist hospital for both exam and glasses from their optical shop. The last few pairs of very expensive titanium frames I have bought have had to be replaced when the broke and I was fed up with how long it was taking for an exam.

This morning I was at the optical department at 8:30 when they opening. Of course, being titanium, they could not be fixed and they were out of warranty. I told them to find anything that was cheap they had on hand that would fit my lenses. Progressive bifocals are ground specifically to fit the frames so the eyes line up with the correction. I can see okay at a distance and at arms length but they don't quit line up for close reading. It is at least better than with my old pair. The frames are tortoiseshell instead of the wire frames I have been wearing. To me, I look pretty weird.

I had narrowed my new eye doctor's down to three. I called the one I was leaning toward to see about getting an appointment. Turns out they had a cancellation for next Monday morning. I mentioned the place to several people at work with positive feedback. I will let them recommend where I should get the prescription filled.

On to the gym from work. Frances and I did our workouts. We are watching some more episodes of Mad Men. No rain. The storm last night missed us as did the one late this afternoon. 


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Tuesday, 28 July 2009

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I am reading the fourth and most recent book by C.S. Harris in her Sebastian St. Cyr. series.

We are watching the first 2 hours of an old Mystery that aired back in 1999, Heat of the Sun. I am sure we saw it when it aired on PBS but I don't remember all the details.

Hot and muggy. A 60% chance of storms/rain tonight and 80% tomorrow. We need the rain, a nice steady all day affair, not a gully washer. We had just enough last night to wet the street and lawn not under the trees.

Duncan is doing somewhat better. We have started him on a regular schedule of a half of a tramadol morning and at night. So are he seems to be walking around a little better and has had a couple of good nights sleeping. We will see how it goes.



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Wednesday, 29 July 2009

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No update.


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Thursday, 30 July 2009

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I had lunch yesterday with Marcy.  When I got back to work I had a message on my phone from mom to call back ASAP. Dad was asking to go to the emergency room. I quickly logged out and headed for the car calling Bob on the way to let him know what was going on. We arrived at the hospital around 2pm. They checked dad in then wheeled him in the wheelchair out to the waiting area. There we sat for two hours before he was taken back to the ER.

Mom came out half an hour later to let us know they had drawn blood, taken a urine sample, and started him on an IV drip and later for a scan. At 7 we left to go out to grab a quick bite to eat. They called Al on his cell just as we were leaving to return to the hospital to let us know he was ready to go home. Severe dehydration was all they could come up with.  I got home sometime after nine.

In the meantime Frances' car was in the shop. Al had picked her up at work to bring her to meet us at the hospital. She rode with me last night to take mom and dad back home, get them settled, and to borrow dad's car. I called this morning just before I left to go to work. Dad had slept all night and was feeling somewhat better. I checked on him again mid-morning, he sounded more like himself.

Frances called at 4 to let me know her car would not be ready. Dad needed to go to the store and drugstore. Rather then make them wait until she got off from work at 8, went over from work to pick him up to run his errands. I did my little bit of grocery shopping too, dropped him back off, making it home around 7:15. We unloaded the groceries and fixed a quick dinner.

Yesterday afternoon we got about 1/4 of an inch of rain from a quick moving storm, the same again earlier this evening. It's only 77 degrees but the humidity is 80%. I think most of the rain is over for tonight but a chance again tomorrow. The grass is getting fairly high now that I've had some rain on the fertilizer.



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Friday 31 July 2009

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No update.



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Saturday, 1 August 2009

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Between dad getting sick, Duncan having an up and down week, and work, it has been a long week. I caught on my ironing this morning before heading outside.

I transplanted some more liriope in the back where my wash problem is. Don't know why I didn't do that long time ago. It really is the only thing you can plant where there is a heavy wash when it rains and not much in the way of sun.

After I picked up sticks and edged the front I mowed with the catching bag on. There are a lot of maple leaves down in the front, I guess from the dry weather. And, the Bermuda grass had gotten really high from all the hot, dry weather. I swept up what didn't get sucked up by the mower and called it a day. I started around 10 while the temperatures where in the high 70's but the humidity was already well into the 60% range. By the time I finished sometime after 12, there was nary a dry thread on my clothing.

Duncan has been pretty good at night after I was up with him most of Monday night. But he has not been walking too well all week long and spending most of his days stomping his feet to get attention from Bob. We think maybe he hurt one or both of him front legs which is not good with his back ones already bad. He has starting doing something like a flip sideways when we try to bring him up the two front steps into the house. He really, really, does not like to cooperate and do what we want him to do. I think when tried one of his sideways flips he landed sideways on the top step and fell back down. He may have hurt a leg or even his ribs. He has lost so much weight they have very little fat to pad them.

I am reading another tea shop mystery by Laura Childs, The Jasmine Moon Murder. Rest, reading, and golf this afternoon. I have some beef ribs from Costco to through on the grill for dinner.


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Sunday, 2 August 2009

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Sadly one of our favorite mystery writers, William Tapply, died July 28th. Bob and I are still reading the books in his Brady Coyne series. We had read the two Stoney Calhoun books. According to his web site the third book in the Calhoun series will still be published.

House cleaning chores this morning. Today it is mostly cloudy with a chance of rain. We had a brief shower sometime early this morning. The temperatures are only in the high 70's to low 80's but the humidity is brutal. I had the dogs out back for a short playtime. Occasionally we get a good breeze. I sat on the front porch for reading for awhile and to keep Duncan company while he was lying in the front yard. We hate we leave him out when it is either hot and/or humid but he just loves lying out in the yard looking around.  At this point I will let him do whatever it takes to make him happy as long as it is not adverse to his health.


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