THINK I’M SETTLED

I spent a good part of the day today getting my work area set up outside. Linda, the landlady, was concerned that I was doing this and warned me about the wind. I heeded her warning, and set everything up so that it is easy to take inside at night.

Now I’m thinking I might ask Jerry if he has a tarp. I just felt a few raindrops, and I don’t want to have to rush if it rains. Last year, when I was higher up the hill, it rarely rained. As a matter of fact, I cannot remember a single day of rain. But Linda said it does rain here, so I want to be prepared. There are a number of microclimates here, so, although it didn’t rain up there, it may very well be the case here.

Shortly after I wrote the above, I sent Jerry a text and asked if he, per chance, had a tarp. He showed up in less than five minutes with one. It started to rain almost immediately. I quickly covered my spot with the tarp and came inside – Bob’s yer uncle!

The tarp just blew off!! Okay, a redo…with rocks holding down the tarp; so far, so good. It gets incredibly windy here. I remember one year having to put my full body weight against my front door in order to be able to close it against the wind. And people have a hard time getting out of their cars.

I spent part of my calligraphy time this morning making this for Jenn and John. I redid it SO many times. Who would guess there were so many spellings for “birthday.” I kept getting it wrong.

I walked into town yesterday and visited a dentist. Her name is Khristel Gutierrez. She is the daughter and sister of the Fernandos I talked about earlier. I texted her shortly after I arrived and asked if she made the dental appliances that prevent snoring. She said she did, and they are $350. I planned to get one from my own dentist in Spring, and the cost was $650. Yes! Dra. Gutierrez assessed me for size and will order it from Panama City. I have to see her four times.

She said that the first week is just exercising with it. Something about manipulating a small ball with the tongue. She told me that she has had very good results with many patients reporting improved sleep. Hope so. I’m almost as annoyed with my own snoring as I used to be with Dan’s!

Now I want to work on getting off the Ambien. I’m only using about 2.5 mg per night, and I realize that this is likely psychological, but I don’t think my doctor is going to continue refilling my prescription. She told me that the medical community is changing their policy on this, not prescribing for people over 65. I’ve heard that cognitive behavioral therapy can help with this, so I’ll give that a try.

The walk into town is fairly easy – all downhill. The only issue is that the road is very narrow, and there are no sidewalks. I was happy I walked over 5 miles yesterday, and my foot felt fine. It’s been bothering me since I felt a snap while walking in October. Diane, my massage therapist, thinks it’s an inflamed tendon. I’m continuing to massage it with Tiger Balm. I’m hoping to walk most days while here. Dan and I are planning to do a Camino in May, so this will be my prep.

Couple of photos from yesterday. This yellow tree was so vibrant against the blue sky. And this is, by far, the biggest beetle I have ever seen. The photo may be hard to judge, but it was at least four inches.

I did a little grocery shopping at Super Baru and found that some of the freezers and shelves were a bit sparse. I was able to get everything I needed for a couple of days. Nancy picked me up, so she could give me the table. We stopped at Sarah’s vegetable stand so I could get some garlic. I walked in and asked the guy sitting at the cash register if they had “ajo.” He said yes and pointed down the aisle to his left. I walked down the aisle and saw only fruit. He asked again what I wanted. Again I said, “ajo.” This time he pointed to a back wall. He said he thought I was asking for an “apple.” He laughed and said he wasn’t expecting me to be speaking Spanish. So, to him, ajo sounded like apple.

Nancy stopped in for a while after she brought me home with my table and groceries. We had a nice chat. Tomorrow I’m going to go to Lady’s Place for a pedicure, and then I’ll be able to visit with Kathy. She lives upstairs from there. I also heard that Betty was finally able to get a propane tank, so the holiday dinner plans are underway. It should be fun.

Barbara is still not feeling well. We might get together this weekend.

I made a pretty good beans-and-rice dish yesterday. Wish I could have gotten cilantro. Today I’m going to have some steamed calabaza (pumpkin squash) and cabbage on the side.