Day 245 - More Teeth & Naturopathic Stuff

I'm not sure what I was thinking when I booked an 0800 dental appointment the morning after surgery, but I did. So away we went. Mom had to drive me, as I was legally impaired until 1330 this afternoon. Naturally we left a bit late, but Lois was ready & waiting for me when I arrived at 0810. 


Oh dear. My bottom teeth were bad yesterday. My top teeth were even worse! My gums have receded so much that the root is exposed. Which meant that Lois couldn't even drag her 'little scrape-y tool' across the area! It sent me through the roof! She cleaned as best she could & polished them afterwards. I love the suction thing & I love a Hygienist that lets you control the suction. There's nothing like gagging on your own spit or swallowing some mint tasting chemical! Ick! Lois let me use the gadget & I was grateful! I took the wedding photos to show her, as she was quite amazed at the story of Jaco & I. She is such a sweet heart! She's very passionate about her job & thankfully so. If she wasn't I probably wouldn't have known my teeth were in the shape they are in! I picked up a Sonicare toothbrush & I'm in love already! The organized side of my personality loves it! It has a 2-minute timer with 30 second bleeps to tell you when to change quadrants in your mouth. And it has a UV brush cleaner! Oh & it brushes your teeth sparkly clean! 


I waited outside in the sun for Mom to pick me up. She'd run to Okotoks to get the 14" rims for the car. I waited for quite awhile. I thought she was in a rush, but you know Mom! Lo & behold, she finally drove by. Apparently she'd been into the clinic a few times looking for me, but didn't bother to look outside or drive through the parking lot! She'd been there 1/2 an hour! Whoops! We stopped at the bakery for a quick bite & then headed home. She had to rush into town for her day planner production.


I crashed for a good 1.5 hrs. I was so wiped! I really didn't want to get up for my 1445 appointment. I quickly got ready & hopped into the car. It wouldn't start. The battery was completely flat. Great. Thankfully the truck was running! I don't enjoy driving the beast, but I had no other option! Away I went!


Parking was fun & I still have no idea how the silver Honda made it out of the space next to me, but kudos to the driver! The Naturopath didn't impress me too much today. The last appointment was pretty hefty. ($$$) Today was nearly $60 & I was there for about 5-10 minutes. He browsed over my medical papers & focused on blood work from 6 months ago.  He told me to email him on Friday after chemo & let him know how I felt. Huh? What is going on? He'll get one more shot. I certainly didn't feel like we had a $60 conversation. Thank goodness the parking was free! 


I stopped at Jugo Juice (of course!) & headed home. I spent the rest of the evening trying to sort out my desk & a pile (mountain) of papers. No, I'm not finished yet! I also attempted hooking up the Magic Jacks, but I hit a few roadblocks. Looks like I will need to set them up on a PC! How rude! :o) 


Okay, super wiped & looking forward to some R&R...
xxxx
Maria & Valentina

Lois - she's a riot!

Sleepy little town...

Saving my teeth!

Watching the clouds roll by!

Day 243 - Another Hmpf Day.

Righty ho then. I had originally titled this post 'Not my favourite day', although when it actually came time to remember WHY it wasn't my favourite day, I couldn't really remember anything too terrible! Isn't is funny how life works? That whole saying of 'in 5 years time, today won't even be a memory' - well, I guess it's true! It only took a week & I've already forgot why it was such a crappy day! Imagine that! Hope the same happens for you!


I do remember sleeping in. I remember making some phone calls. I had decided it was high time to have my teeth cleaned before I started chemo. They had told me not to have any dental work done once we started treatment, as some of the chemo is blood thinning & also wounds would be slow/difficult to heal. (I guess learning how to rollerblade on gravel is out of the question?) 


I phoned Bragg Creek, Okotoks & Black Diamond. Surprisingly there was a lot of difference in the cost of a cleaning! Black Diamond won out as the most cost effective, so I booked myself an appointment for this afternoon! I was the last opening (ha ha) they had. I had just hung up the phone when Dieter & Jim pulled into the yard. Poor Dieter. He bottomed out on our terrible road & the oil pan went. For the 3rd time! He called AMA & it took forever for them to show up!!! We had a cup of tea & some toast while we waited. Eventually I had to get in the shower & get ready for my dental appointment. I left Dieter at the house & took Jim to his house on my way to Black Diamond.


Oh dear. My teeth were in pretty rough shape. I hadn't had a cleaning for 3, yes, three years. My gums are receding from aggressive brushing, so it is VERY painful to have a cleaning done. Much to my horror, the Hygienist told me I had gingivitis & pre-periodontal disease. Great! She was only able to clean the bottom teeth since she had to do it all by hand & couldn't use the ultrasonic cleaner with water. She put heaps of numbing gel on, but it wasn't enough! Looks like I'll be back Thursday morning to finish up. 


At least the Hygienist was a riot! Her name is Lois & she was a total sweetheart. She asked me heaps of questions & by the end of the cleaning, I felt like I'd known her all my life! Don't ask me how she could learn so much about me with her hands in my mouth, but hey, she did! She's that good! :o)


I had taken the back way to Black Diamond, but thought I would head home through Turner Valley & stop by Scott & Shauna's place. I couldn't exactly remember where it was, but I drove around long enough - I eventually found it! Shauna & I went to pick up Scott at YWAM. They gave me a quick tour & then we drove back to their house for a visit. Shauna's parents were on their way to stay for a few days, so I didn't want to stay too long - I'm sure there was plenty to do. They were going on a 4 day backpacking trip into Kananaskis tomorrow morning! Shauna told me later, she carried a 40 lb pack & Scott carried a 50 lb pack! Crazy! That's like lugging 5 Valentina's up a mountain! 


As soon as I hit the highway, I knew something wasn't quite right. My car was making a click, click sound & my steering wheel was giving a tug, tug simultaneously. It became worse as I increased my speed. I pulled over several times to check my tires & they looked fine. No flats. I kept it at 80 km/h the whole way home. Mom & I drove it to EVIC & back & it did the same thing for her. Sure enough, when we got out of the car at home, there was a hefty bulge in the tire. I knew the tread was wearing down, but I had no clue it was THAT bad!! Great. Now what!? Mom was supposed to be leaving for SK on Thursday & tomorrow is surgery. 


Mom decided to drive it slowly to Cochrane tomorrow at 0800 & have the front tires changed. She would be back by 1130 when I had to leave for surgery. When it rains it pours.


Here's to a successful surgery & fantastic tire change!
xxxx
Maria & Valentina

No wonder my neck has been getting cranky! It's nearly a full moon!

What a pretty sight! Wild ponies outside the door!

I've missed them!

Day 175 - Happy 39th Birthday Mom!

Happy Birthday to My Wonderful Mother! I hope your day is extra special & you filled it with a little dog named Annie! :o) I'm still waiting to hear the news that Valentina has a sister or Aunt. (As Mom says, 'I'm my own Grandpa') :o)


Today I had a free shower at the clinic. Actually, I had my teeth cleaned, but there was so much water spraying everywhere, it was like I had a shower! Yup, for those of you who hate paying for dental work, it was $25 to have my teeth cleaned. I found out later that since it was my first cleaning, Castillo's clinic doesn't charge you anything! Ha! I like that deal! 


I boogied back to the hotel & made my way straight to the Post Office. Of course, today was April 15th, when all the Americans have to have their papers ($$) to the IRS (I think). So, 1.5 hrs later I had my boxes shipped! The queue was about 30 people deep & after I was served, it was a little longer! The Customs forms want a very detailed account of what is in the boxes. Each form only has 4 lines. I had 25 different items. Yeah. I took a little while! 


After the post office ordeal, it was down town to return a few things & hopefully find a weigh scale that worked! I stopped in at City Dog & took back the astro turf that never did seduce Valentina into using it. I then headed to Abercrombie & Fitch & found Jaco a sweet deal on a shirt & hoodie. ($12 for the shirt & $20 for the hoodie) I then found a weigh scale with a 1 yr warranty! Yay!


My day was slightly dimmed when a creepy dude named Willie tried to pick me up at the trolley stop - gold teeth, dreadlocks, red shirt & red shorts - tempting, but NO!!!! Oh where for art thou Jaco?!? Then his buddy proceeded to 'slyly' take photos of my backside on his cell phone. Lord help me get home safely! I have never been so happy to see that Blue Line Trolley come rolling along!


I was up until 0245 packing. Yup. Another 2 boxes to ship tomorrow. My luggage weighed 35 lbs each. Surely to goodness that would keep me underweight for the flight tomorrow? SURELY. 


Dulce Suenos,
Maria y Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

The fruit man sells delicious fruit outside the clinic!

The best edible flower ever!

Waiting for the bus home!