Friday Five: Randomness Galore

RevKarla brings today's Friday Five to RevGalBlogPals:

Wow, this second Friday really snuck up on me!   But it is here, in all of its glory, right?  So…here we go, another random Friday Five!

Jan holding Emma

1.  What’s up?  How are you?
Last week I spent in Austin happily holding new grandbaby Emma, and this week I have felt exhausted. What has developed is that my RA probably was reacting to the Humira shot being three weeks apart instead of two.  (Go here to see the story of that experiment that began on Sept. 30.) I successfully managed to go several periods of three-week intervals until this week. Fatigue and pain in my hands and feet were returning, so I am back to the two-week schedule.

I am glad my rheumatologist encouraged me to try this experiment. I am also grateful that these miraculous drugs (methotextrate and Humira) are available to relieve my RA symptoms.

2.  If you were a Panda Bear that could speak  O.k., even that is too random for me.  You are moving to a new office.  You can only take five books with you (pretend there is no thing such as kindle, nook, etc.).  What would they be BESIDES the Bible, which is already written on your hearts, yes?
Five Books:
Praying with Psalms by Nan Merrill

Into the Silent Land by Martin Laird

Beyond Words by Frederick Buechner

The Awakened Heart by Gerald May

Gratefulness: The Heart of Prayer by David Steindl Rast

3.  If you had a superpower that could give you a five hour retreat, and you could go anywhere in the world to spend those five hours on retreat (because you have superpowers, ya’ know?), where would you go?
 I can't be specific and should be--someplace with an unobstructed view of Oregon beach or tall trees in a simple setting. I guess I'm too realistic and can't imagine anything right now.

4.  What piece of music, song, hymn, etc. are you diggin’ right now?
As I am still taking piano lessons, I was surprised that my piano teacher had me choose two Christmas songs to learn to play. In retrospect, it makes sense to start learning them now! So I am reveling in the learning of "What Child Is This?" and "Angels We Have Heard On High." I keep singing them to myself.

5.  Use the following words in a sentence (or two):  Tangle, dribble, hook, Panda, shark, smile, worry, island

The worried Panda is tangled in the net hung by a hook from the wharf on the island as the smiling shark circled around. In contrast, his oblivious owner dribbles a ball down the walkway.

Waiting for a Sign

In so many ways in our lives, we wait for "a sign" for action or even non-action. Guidance! Where is it?

I have RA, and my two medicines are controlling it so well that I only see my rheumatologist every two months for a check-up. The last time I saw him, I had delayed my Humira injection by three days because of a late return from a vacation.

He suggested that I might want to continue to try a longer time period in between the shots, even up to three weeks (instead of every two). For the last two injections, I have waited 2 1/2 weeks, with no ill effects.

This week I decided to try waiting for 3 weeks, which will be on Friday. I am taking it a day at a time. Four more days to see if there is a sign of swelling or pain in any of my joints.

If not, I will keep trying to go for three weeks in between shots. I like the idea of taking the least amount of medicine needed, especially with such an expensive one. It is much easier to schedule the injections with complete week intervals, rather than half-weeks--3 1/2 days added on makes it too difficult for me to keep track of!

With my doctor's guidance, I reduced the weekly intake of methotextrate in the past year from the maximum to half of that. However, after a few weeks, I discovered that I needed one more pill than that. By jockeying the dosage, I learned what works best for me. (The reduction also stopped my hair from curling which you can see here.)

I am hopeful that my physical signs/symptoms (pain-free or not) will indicate the path to follow. It worked before, so I am confident that this will happen again.

As Julian of Norwich said, "All shall be well; all shall be well; all manner of things shall be well."

Friday Five: Randomness

RevKarla brings today's Friday Five for RevGalBlogPals, which I am going to do as quickly as I can because we're leaving for Austin to visit grandbaby Avery and her parents, who just happen to be our oldest son and his wife.

1. How are you?  What’s up with you?
I am fine and am hurrying to leave with Chuck for the 4-hour drive to Austin, TX to see Avery and DC and AA. We are looking forward to this and are grateful that two college girls will stay at our house and take care of our three dogs and one cat.

The other good news is that my RA seems to settling down. My rheumatologist suggested moving to 3 weeks between shots of Humira instead of 2. I've gotten to 2 1/2 weeks with no blips, so in the future the time may grow.....

2.  Last Saturday, I went to the outlet store and stocked up on underwear for the year.  I love a bunch of new fresh underdrawers!  I also love a cabinet full of paper towels.   What silly thing makes you happy?
Cute and unusual cards! I love to go to different places, like Seattle, Portland and Austin, and find shops with unique cards. Due to my daughters AE and KA, I like to find letterpress items, too.

We loved visiting the Oblation Papers store in Portland, Oregon, which prints letterpress cards and invitations.

3.  Give a shout out to someone you love, appreciate, or want to thank!
Thank you to Martha for organizing the new RevGal blogging site!

4. Miss Kansas has the Serenity Prayer tatooed on the side of her body.  I sadly do not have a tatoo, and maybe you do, but if you were going to get a prayer tatooed on the side of your body, what would it be? 
Bless ___________, change me.

5.  Use some or all or a form of the following words in a sentence:   jello, kittens, mercy, dump-truck, tabuleh, terror, skipping, monkey, Rev. , health, and snoring.
(I'm glad you wrote "some")
The Rev. was snoring peacefully, while the kittens were skipping over the jello in the health room where the monkey was lying on the toy dump-truck.

Hair Changes

Well, about a year ago I had to accept the fact that I had curly hair because of the chemo drug methotextrate taken for rheumatoid arthritis. I wrote about that and put a picture of me with curlier hair here.

I liked the fullness in that earlier picture.

As my RA symptoms lessened towards the end of the last year, my doctor and I decided to find the least amount of medicine I needed to maintain my bodily comfort. As the methotextrate was reduced, my hair gradually lost its curl, as you can see from this picture taken by my friend Margie with her new Iphone at a friend's 70th birthday party last week. I now have straighter and flatter hair again.

I was excited about my good health, even though my rheumatologist cautioned me that I probably would never be able to discontinue the meds entirely. With my 2-month checkup today, I realize that I need to discern what level of methotextrate is best as some pains in my hand joints have returned. The doctor told me that I could decide within the next two months about taking 4 or 5 tablets weekly. I've been on a regimen of 4 pills weekly for the past period, so I will see day by day, week by week.

Info About RA in 1 minute

Good Things (and a new book!)

• Tonight my daughter AE sent me this lovely spring picture from Seattle and said she thought of me on her walk. I love daffodils and, even more, love that my eldest daughter thought of me and told me about it!

• The RA pain that surprised me this week depressed me at its return. I took this as a lesson from God to see how easily I can fall into either/or (good/bad) thinking--as I succumbed to imagining I'd be saddled with RA pain and would not be able to do my shoulder exercises and thus would get more disabled. Fortuitously, the bi-weekly Humira shot did its magic a few days after its intake. I am lucky that the medicine is still working in my body, which gave me the relief to realize that I tend to fall into disaster-thinking and should instead appreciate the day at hand.

• The worst day of pain was re-aligned in my mind by a phone call from eldest son DC. He called to tell me that his daughter Avery had seen my picture on my blog and said "Nana" for the first time (for me)! He kept asking her who the picture was, and she continued to repeat "Nana" much to my joy.

• I just read a really good book that I consider to be better than The Hunger Games. It is The Passage by Justin Cronin, who is an English professor at Rice University in Houston, TX. He is going to be the speaker at the Corpus Christi Literary Reading Series next weekend, which is why I purchased the book in the first place. A friend told me it was about "vampires," which made it sound like sensationalism. That could be a description of the evil forces that come about through a South American virus, but it is more a tale of redemption. It is 700+ pages long and is the first in a planned trilogy in a dystopian USA. I liked it even better when I read the interview with the author at the end of the book.

More About My Hair

For months I have been unhappy with my hair as it seems to have changed texture with its change to white and my intake of methotextrate (a chemo drug) for RA. With the wind constantly blowing in Corpus Christi, my hair is further ruffled.

At physical therapy on Friday, my physical therapist Pam suggested that I "embrace the curl." Following that appointment, I had my hair cut. Dee has been cutting my hair for the past 18 years. She agreed that the texture had changed and suggested letting the top curl--by cutting it different lengths. So here I am.

It is a little difficult to adjust to the new image in the mirror--after 60 years of smooth hair. This is my new reality and so I am announcing it here.

With my daughter AE and husband CB's help, I got a new picture for FB and my profile here. CB took the photo and AE lightened it for me.

Friday Five: Odds and Ends

Sally brings today's Friday Five for RevGalBlogPals:

I have had a ridiculously busy week so apologies for the fact that this is rushed and even a bit late, but here goes, even in the busyness of the week what has

1. Inspired you
In our Lectio Divina group, a member shared about teaching a yoga class for disabled adults. One man can rarely do the poses and so lies flat on his back. At her last yoga class, the teacher said she looked at this man and felt overwhelming love for him, the same love that God has for each of us.

2. Challenged you
I was challenged this past Sunday to attend a meeting of Christ Centered Prayer facilitators at my church and admit to them that I do not believe that the books that go along with this way of prayer are the highest authority. I am not very good at confrontations and usually avoid them at all costs. By only talking about my own feelings, the meeting went well and I left early with the agreement that I would no longer lead a Christ Centered Prayer Group. I feel very peaceful about this and know that it was the right thing to do at this time.

3. Made you smile
Pictures of my granddaughter looking at dogs at PetSmart:


4. Made you cross/ made you want to weep
A few days ago I started having an RA flare, with the joints of both hands swelling and reddening, plus exhaustion returning. This was three weeks after my shoulder surgery, when I had to stop taking the RA medicine for several weeks. I had not had a flare since I started the combination of Humira shots and methotextrate pills in October, so it was both painful and disappointing to have RA symptoms return. It is understandable though, after the stress of surgery and the disruption in my meds. My rheumatologist advised me to take prednisone (a steroid) until the pain subsides, which is starting to happen.

5.Kept you going?
Friends and family and seeing my physical therapist three times a week. Yesterday I saw the orthopedic surgeon, who told me that on Valentine's Day I can stop wearing the sling!! I am definitely encouraged and am on the downhill count to that day (with less than three weeks to go).

Friday Five: Random

Revkjarla brings today's Friday Five for RevGalBlogPals:

I don't know about you, but my life seems to have a lot of random surprises lately. Just little things,like the doggy in the picture, who was rescued by a Good Samaritan from running into traffic, who then brought him to the police, who brought him to my neighbor's house. I took the doggy, now named Scout, to the vet on Monday, and the woman behind the desk said, "This dog looks so familiar. Were you here last week?" I told her no, that this particular dog is a stray, and she looked at me, and said (use your best Boston accent here), "Oh my GAWD! I rescued that dog on Satuhday! I took him to the police!" and then she proceeded to tell me the story. She was Scout's angel.

Random, right?

So, for our Friday Five, I invite you share five random things about you, or five random thoughts, or five random surprises in your life.

Just be random!

This goes along with something my friend Katherine said to me today about her husband--he will ask "Tell me something interesting." That could be random but interesting!

1. I've been hating my hair recently, as it has been so flyaway and weird. When I got my hair cut recently, I asked Dee, who has cut my hair for the past 18 years, about it. She said it is because I have varied lengths of little hairs coming up on top of my head--I have been losing hair over the past few months so slowly that I did not notice. I had thought I had escaped side effects of taking methotextrate for my RA, even though my rheumatologist asks me at every appointment if I am losing hair. . . .and I had not thought so until now! So I am in the in-between stage of growing out my bangs, so the weight will cover up the little hairs. So I am encouraged.

2. Daughters AE and KA are flying from Seattle to Austin on Saturday! They are not going to spend Christmas with us, but will visit KA's family in Ohio instead. So we are having a mini-family gathering this weekend in Austin. Yay!

3. AE and KA gave me the newly published book 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami for my birthday, which was also its publication date. I plan to read this thick book after Christmas when I have more time to dedicate myself to it. I had never heard of it before they gave it to me, even though many people were awaiting its publication.

4. I love playing Words with Friends on my Ipod, even though I usually lose.

5.I had to go to three different supermarkets to find red sprinkles (sugar) to buy. I cannot find red currant jelly anywhere in Corpus Christi, but may get it in Austin. At least, I am getting ready to bake Christmas cookies! (The only Christmas item I've brought out is our Christmas wreath on the door. Husband CB put lights on the house outside, too.)

RA Fingers

Found here and directed there by Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior, who also wrote this about RA:

"RA is a chronic, systemic, progressive, destructive disease. None of that would matter much if there were a cure. However, since no cure is available, and treatments are only modestly successful in a significant percentage of patients, monitoring Rheumatoid Arthritis is required to preserve as much health and life as possible."

I can get back in denial with meds helping the symptoms to fade. I am glad the combination of three drugs is helping me for the moment, which I guess is why I will continue to see my rheumatologist every two months for monitoring. Even though my symptoms are less, the disease is still in my body. . .pain and fatigue still occur.

But things are better for me!

The trick of living always seems to be staying in the middle of paradox--BOTH AND, so as not to get stuck at either extreme. The golden mean!

Preparing for the Future

Oddly, I have spent much of today blogging for the future days in November while I am in Russia. It has been fun to post where I will (hopefully) be, along with a quote, poem or prayer that I like. This is not starting until November 1st, but I hope you will come back and look to see what is going on here even when I am on another continent.

Anticipating the future is getting me more interested in blogging again, an enthusiasm that lately diminished. I guess I've been too preoccupied with my health, dealing with new medications in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Time is also taken up with the water aerobics classes I attend each morning at the YWCA. And now I am trying to get things together for this trip to Russia where the temperatures will be at least 40 degrees colder than here in south Texas.

Since blogging is also a way for me to fulfill my desire to "write letters," I don't want to give that up. At least my fingers have been more agile lately so that I can type and also handwrite notes.

Friday Five: Scattered!

Revkjarla brings today's Friday Five for RevGalBlogPals:

So, I don't know about you, but I have had quite the scattered week. Sometimes, life is that way, right?

In the spirit of Scattered-ness, I offer you a scattery kind of Friday Five:

1. I lose my keys all of the time. Even if they are in my hand, I still am looking for them. Sigh!
What is something you chronically looking for, if anything?

My reading glasses! I have multiple pairs that I misplace. In contrast, my husband has three pairs--always kept in the same places, so he knows where they are. I cannot seem to do that.

Just a few days ago, I could not find my copy of Tattoos on the Heart, the book the Wisdom Class reading group is discussing every Tuesday morning. That's my well-read and highlighted copy, so I had to go on Tuesday to lead the discussion, without having re-read the chapter at all or having a book of my own. Then a few days later, I found the book on the chest by the front door in obvious sight, but that was one place I never looked when I was rushing around trying to find the book!

2. What movie are you looking forward to watching sometime in the future? (me, the new Footloose!)

I never saw "The Debt" in theaters, so I hope to rent that--plus, the last Harry Potter movie.

3. What is one of your favorite comfort foods? (me, pizza. hands down).

Chocolate!

4. Story time. Tell us a story of one your favorite people that has touched, blessed your life.

Too many people come to mind! I feel blessed that I am going to Russia in two weeks with some of my favorite people who meet with me in a weekly Renovare Spiritual Formation Group. Several are introverts like me, and I need to feel connected with them as many in the larger Methodist group are extroverts.

5. What do you do to focus or calm or center yourself? (please, I need ideas!!!)

Breath prayers, such as "All shall be well, all shall be well, all manner of things shall be well," help me to center myself, which actually occurred a few weeks ago when I ineptly gave myself my first Humira self-injection (for my RA).

The consistent practice of sitting in silence/meditation. If I can accept and remember that 1-2 minutes is enough, I manage to sit twice a day. And it would be possible to center for a few minutes throughout the day, if I would only remember.

BONUS: Share the first thing (or second thing) that comes to your mind after your read this!

I love the word "scattery" as used above, which reminds me of "cattery," which is a local haven for homeless cats. I think of "skittery" and "scattery" as the sound of a claws of dog or cat slipping and bounding on a slippery floor--an image that I can identify with when I pulled in too many directions and don't know where to go!

Also, the image of too many books comes to mind--stacks abound at my house.

WHEW!

Whew! I just spent over an hour filling out an on-line Visa application for Russia! It seemed very complicated and detailed. I called a Methodist minister in Austin three times for advice on questions.

I guess this is a good introduction to my next amazing trip: I am going on a mission trip to Russia with friends and clergy from the United Methodist Church! Many of the friends are members of the weekly Renovare Spiritual Formation Group that meets at my house every Friday morning. This is an interesting and beloved group of women.

We are going to visit Moscow, Vologda, and Saint Petersburg. The first and third locales are where we will visit sites and the mid-location is where we will meet with Russian Methodist clergy and talk with them about spiritual matters.

We will be gone for the first 12 days in November.

I am eagerly looking forward to this opportunity, especially because my new medication, the self-injected Humira, seems to be alleviating my RA symptoms. I am really glad that I seem to be having more energy and less pain.

Kindle Addiction

Lately, I have grown addicted to buying and reading books immediately on my Kindle. I read three mysteries since this weekend, which were about a former Amish police chief, with murders in an Amish community in Ohio. They were easy reads, but not ones I would heartily recommend, like the books by Louise Penny and Jacqueline Winspear.

While I was waiting at my rheumatologist's office today to be shown how to give myself the Humira injection, I was very glad I had my Kindle with me to read. I had been told to be there between 11 and 11:30, so of course, I was at the office by 11 o'clock. Having no appointment and only needing the nurse to show me how to do this self-injection, I falsely assumed it would be quick. After 55 minutes of waiting and reading, I finally asked the receptionist again about this event occurring. 15 minutes later, the nurse finally took me to an intake room and showed me how--in about 5 minutes. If I had not been so uneasy about giving myself a shot, I could have figured it out all by myself--but now that I know how, I'll be able to do this every other Monday.

So sometimes an "addiction" helps one--I was glad I had a book to read, even an electronic one!

Thursday Thank You's

I believe what Meister Eckhart wrote: if the only prayer you ever say is "THANK YOU," that is enough! So here is a gratitude list of "thank you's" for today:

• Avery's baptism this past Sunday with family and friends joining us for the celebration!

• The thank you note I received from one of Avery's parents' friends, thanking us for inviting them to a luncheon, which they were even unable to attend! This reminds me of my long-time friend Nancy, who told me when we were teenagers that her mother sometimes said she needed to thank me for my thank you note! I have felt that way ever since I found this card in my mailbox!

• The return of pain and swelling in my hands and wrists are reminding me that I am grateful that I am starting the next stage of RA medication on Monday, when I take my first shot of Humira. Every other week injections will be my life for awhile (forever?). I am also grateful that my insurance company will pay for these extremely expensive drugs--also the determining factor of my continued usage of Humira and other such medicines.

• I am trying off-and-on to appreciate the inner turmoil I am experiencing about criticism and feeling-like-rejection from someone who used to live here. Intellectually, I can be removed, but within, I am hurt.

• Mail--Not only that thank you note but notes from a friend visiting in Maine and from my oldest daughter AE in Seattle!

I read them ALL!

Tonight I finished the seventh and final book in Louise Penny's mystery series about Armand Gamache. These were such good books! Each one was better than the last! Maybe in another year, Louise Penny will have written another one. . . or so I hope. Click here to see the books to read!

If you have a Kindle, you can easily download them. The first one Still Life only costs $2.99 to download! Then you'll be hooked! (My first two books in the series were library books, so look at your local library, too.) It is such fun to be immersed in another world for days. . . .

Now it is time to be back in the real world, since classes and more regular activities started this week after Labor Day. Maybe I will also get back into blogging and even visiting other blogs.

And what is happening around here:

• My right hand is swelling more, while I am still waiting to get the prescription to start the new medication Humira for my RA.

• This Sunday is our granddaughter Avery's baptism, and so family and friends will be arriving soon. Both sons will also be bringing their dogs, so we will have five dogs for the weekend.

• The Wisdom Class reading group started meeting again this week after a two-month break. Our new book is Tattoos on the Heart by Gregory Boyle, a must-read.

• Our Lectio Divina group began meeting today. We meditated upon Romans 14:7-9

We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's.

• Lectio Divina surprises me at what comes up--I was struck by the word "to." There is movement there, causing me to ponder what I am paying attention to, going to. With all this intensive reading behind me, it is time to be mindful! To what or whom am I focused upon?
  

Which way to go?

After two months of travel and other stuff, I finally saw my rheumatologist on Thursday. You may recall that I was diagnosed with RA in May. Since June 1, I have been taking a weekly dose of Methotextrate, which has gradually been increased to the highest oral dosage possible. However, Dr. P. says that it has had no effect on my RA since I have not been able to reduce my daily intake of prednisone--even a 2.5 mg. reduction causes increased swelling, pain and redness in my hand joints and wrists.

So he advised me to consider taking one of three TNF Blockers: Enbrel, Humira, or Remicade. The first two are given by self-injection and the last by IV's. I am worried about adverse side effects with the TNF Blockers, especially allergic skin reactions at injection/ infusion sites and infections. It sounds like the skin reactions are more likely to occur, which could be minor or severe. Getting TB or pneumonia is scary, especially because I had pneumonia in 1993 and was sick for a long time.

A friend told me that this might not be my decision but that of my insurance company's. That is an interesting thought. I guess I have to get to the point to suggest one or at least talk to my doctor again with questions.

When considering that RA is a chronic disease, this decision could impact much of the rest of my life--if it works on me.

Back in Bellingham

We spent four days in Seattle, visiting our daughters AE and KA and friends Terry and Dennis. AE took our picture this day when we ate lunch inside a greenhouse at Swanson's Nursery, near her home in Ballard.

Unfortunately, when we got to Seattle on Saturday, I thought I was having a huge allergy attack which ended up being a cold. (I was relieved that I wasn't allergic to Washington State, though having a cold to share was not that appealing.) So far both daughters AE and KA have caught this cold and possibly husband CB.

The weather is beautiful, with sunny days and high temperatures in the 70s F, both in Seattle and now back in Bellingham. Tonight we will walk around Boulevard Park, which was a traditional activity to do around sunset ever since the children were little and my mother was still with us.

As we drove to Seattle on Saturday, I heard the news that a dear friend, Susan Chaubal, died in her sleep. It was a great shock and is sad. I have many regrets, because I had not made time for her this past year, mostly because of my preoccupation with my health. Even so Susan encouraged me greatly to get a better diagnosis when it was not determined yet that I had RA.

Please pray for her husband Milind and daughter Anjulie.

We're in Moab, Utah!

CB and Jan at Mesa Verde National Park, NM

Near Spruce Tree House dwelling

July 18, 2011

It is so nice to be in Moab, Utah for tonight and tomorrow night, where we have wifi in our room! Unfortunately, the laptop we brought with us is clunky to use, so I will not be downloading as many pictures as I would like to. It is refreshing to be connected with the internet again, because we did not have access to that or to our cell phones (not here either) for the last two nights.

Sunday night we stayed at Jemez Springs, NM in a log cabin that also had a hot tub. CB and I had not been in a hot tub for over 25 years! Since my RA was acting up that day, the hot water felt soothing to my joints as we sat together in the hot tub, with the Ponderosa Pines swaying in the breeze around us.

Monday we drove to Mesa Verde, National Park where we spent the night at the park hotel called Far View Lodge. All afternoon we spent looking at different sites, ranging from pit houses built around 575 to cliff dwellings from 800-1200. The multi-story cliff dwellings were built at the later period, with the early Pueblo people leaving the area around 1300, abandoning all their structures. The cliff dwellings span long expanses of cliffs in clefts that appear. Amazing! It was hot walking on the short hikes.

This morning we left early to get to Canyonlands National Park, also in NM. The red cliffs, needles, and rock formations are truly amazing. It was hot, though mitigated by thunderclouds and huge raindrops at times. It was sad to see the remains of burnt trees and vegetation, still evident from serious fires in 1995, 2000, and 2006. The last one demolished over 23,000 acres!

I took over 100 pictures, which I will share someday when I have an easier computer, maybe at CB's parents' house in Bellingham, WA--where we will arrive in ten days.

Sadly, symptoms of RA flared again today, so we skipped the last hike to a petroglyph wall left by the early Pueblo people (whose name I cannot remember how to spell--Anasazi?) Maybe all the heat and exertion from yesterday caused this to happen, I don't know.

The only (!!) changes in my life since starting this vacation have been little or no meditating each day and no swimming/exercise. Otherwise, I have no idea why I have had two alternate days of pain.

Tomorrow we are going to visit Arches National Park.

I move but don't

SUDDENLY, it is time for our big trip north and west through the national parks, ending up eventually in Bellingham, WA. We leave Friday, and I feel like I am moving, without motion, to get ready and not getting enough accomplished.

So I am sorry I am not writing or reading blogs; I miss my friends and miss their comments.

I have not even finished writing postcards I got in Spain. I haven't blogged about the Spain trip OR labeled the 600+ pictures. Now I hope to write postcards to friends on this USA trip--as long as my fingers will allow me without too much pain.

I haven't gotten rid of piles of books or papers. Somehow I always think a trip is a deadline. With RA fatigue and sometimes pain, I am not meeting any of those odd goals I seem to set myself up for.

I have not written letters I meant to write--hopefully, postcards (maybe) will suffice. . .in the future.

I have no birthday present for husband CB, whose birthday will be celebrated on this trip.

The only packing I have done so far is putting a pile of books in a big bag to take along. That's one advantage to going in our own car.

There's more, but this is enough complaining. The time will get here on Friday morning; we will leave; that's that.

(Sarcasm: This is such a momentous 1,999 post!)