Simply Norma

A couple or so months ago I decided to try a new app (application) on my iPhone5 called Sleep Cycle.

The app has an alarm that wakes you up during the “best” time so as not to interrupt you when you’re in a deep sleep. You have the ability to set a “window” of time for it to do so. I set the alarm before I go to bed and put it under the fitted sheet next to my pillow.

The app is supposed to be able to tell when I’m in a deep sleep, regular sleep or awake. If you look at the snapshot I took below, it shows I started my sleep cycle at 10:49 p.m. — right before I went to bed. I turned it off at 6:31 a.m. On this particular day, I turned the alarm off before it actually went off because, well, I was awake. On the day shown below, the app said:

• My sleep quality was 85%. I’ve noticed that the longer I sleep the better my sleep quality seems to be. I’m not sure if that’s a good indication of my sleep quality though.
• I was in bed 7 hours and 41 minutes
• My heart rate (when I woke up) was at 72 bpm (beats per minute). The app uses the camera on the phone to determine my heart heart. I simply put my finger over it and it calculates the bpm.
• I have 22 days of data so far on the app.
• It’s calculated that in those 22 days I’ve slept 6.7 days. Hmmm … is that good?
• My average time in bed is 7 hours and 16 minutes. This number can be manipulated because you can delete days you don’t like — for instance, I had one day when I didn’t fall asleep until 2 a.m. and woke up at 6 a.m. I deleted that particular day because it was not a “true” measure of how much I normally sleep.

If you scroll further down on the main screen, it shows your shortest, longest, best and worst night.

On the settings page you can:

• turn the alarm off or on
• select what kind of sound you want to wake up to and how loud you want it to be
• set your wake-up phase (the amount of time you want the app to consider before waking you up at your “peak” time, etc.)

If you keep scrolling down, this is the rest of what you’ll see on the settings screen. The Sleep Cycle app also gives charts that show:

• Sleep quality per day of the week
• Time in bed per day of the week
• What time you went to bed
• How long you were in bed
• Your heart rate

Here is an example of a “list” the app makes that shows how I slept each day. According to the chart below, Saturdays are my best sleeping days — I usually sleep in on Sundays.

This app does have what I believe is a flaw. Since I don’t sleep alone (hello husband!) and if my husband should get up to go to the bathroom, the app must feel his movement also, don’t you think? And — what if I can’t sleep and decide to go some place else to read? Will the app assume I’m in deep sleep because I’m not moving around much?

Overall, it’s an okay app — especially because when I got it, it was free.    I like free!

Has anyone else tried it?

So — this is me typing with an injured right hand which is a little hard to do with a soft cast on.  I tried pulling weeds yesterday and made it worse but I had to do something. Sigh …

Between a bulging disc in my lower back and an injured hand/wrist it’s getting a little hard to function and my moods are more “down” than up. This is temporary I know but it’s quite a setback since I had so much outdoor work planned.

Thankfully (yes, thankfully) the weather has been quite cool so nurseries have held back on putting out a lot of plants.

And — I also have a few new recipes to post. Yes, I’m still cooking although it’s a little hard getting around the kitchen but I haven’t given up.

So — if you’re a praying person, add me to your prayer list for quick healing. And if you’re a “you’re in my thoughts” kind’ve person, keep me in your thoughts.

While visiting a friend in Seattle, I commented on how beautiful her Christmas cactus was. She laughed and waved it off as if growing one was no problem.

“Every now and then, parts of it will fall out and I will just push it right back in the pot and it starts growing again,” she said.

Wow! I was impressed.  Before I left I asked her if I could have a couple of pieces.  She took a few pieces off her plant, got a plastic baggie, added water and the plant pieces then tied it with a rubber band on the bottom.

Carefully tucking the plastic in a small pocket of my carry-on suitcase, I lifted the carry-on onto the TSA security belt and thankfully it made it through with no problem.

When I arrived home, I immediately found a flower pot, added fertilized dirt and stuck the Christmas Cactus pieces inside.

And … here it is. I chose a large flower pot because I am quite hopeful that it’s going to grow. (Quite a Pollyanna attitude, no?)

I was not disappointed.  See the small pieces of growth?

I have very few plants growing in my house — the guanabana plant I grew from seed that I got in Puerto Rico, a bamboo miniature plant and now this one.

I can hardly wait for the blooms to begin in November.

My husband and I recently decided to tour the Cathedral of St Paul as our neighbor had told us how beautiful it was.

We entered through a side door — fewer steps to climb.

I took a picture of one of the stained glass windows from the outside …

This is that same glass window on the inside.

The ceiling is very very high — cathedral ceilings for sure.

I believe the seating capacity in this church is approximately 3000.

Below is a picture of the altar that’s in the front of the church.

Here are a few more pictures I took while walking around.  Photography is allowed although there are people who come here to pray so flash photography is discouraged.

I love stained glass windows … especially when the sun is shining through them — as it leaves me with a sense of awe.

Here’s another beautiful stained glass window. I’m sure each one has a story to tell — hmmm … I’ll have to check into that.

The picture below shows “confessionals” where a priest resides during certain hours and you enter and confess your sins.  Although I was raised a Catholic, I never understood the need to confess my sins to a priest — only to God.

Here are a few more pictures I took while walking around.

There were a few side altars. My guess is that you light a candle and pray to the saint that’s depicted.

Another side altar …

Here’s a picture of the organ that’s behind the main altar. When we first entered the church the choir was practicing and the music sounded incredible.

Although raised a Catholic, I never have understood why we have to pay to light a candle to pray to a saint — or for that matter why people pray to saints.

Here’s a picture of the side hallway.

As a teenage girl, I met and became friends with a priest who had an “open” mind. There were many things I did not understand about the traditions of the Catholic Church and my priest friend would never hinder me from asking him questions.

Although I did not remain a Catholic, he and I remain good friends.

It feels like time is going by so quickly and life is getting in the way of, well, life.

It’s already May. I wish I could say that it feels like spring in Minnesota but a day here and a day there isn’t consistent enough for me to actually call it spring. I’m happy there are no bugs though — at least not yet.

I haven’t recovered from the high blood pressure that I believe was caused by being over medicated on the thyroid medication levothyroxine (manufacturer Mylan). I am on levoxyl which is made by Pfizer which was my “go to” thyroid medication for over 10 years until it got put on backorder last year. My blood pressure has not normalized — yet. It’s “okay” every now and again — 140/94 — but it was at 118/79 before all this happened. Sigh …

In addition, since June 2013 I’ve been dealing with pain on the left side of my hip and leg. The recent MRI I had of my back confirmed that I had a bulging disc. My chiropractor told me my options were:

• try a steroid called prednisone for a week (may only take away the pain temporarily)
• get a cortisone shot – approximate cost is $900 and up (this may or may not work although I had a friend who received one and she has been fine for the past 5 years)
• continue with traction and laser treatment at his office (had 12 sessions already and not much relief)

Although the chiropractor has given me some exercises to try they don’t seem to work very well. I decided to tweak one exercise he gave me to see if something different would work. He instructed me to lie on my back, bring my leg up (knee bent) to my chest and alternate with each leg. What I decided to try (and it’s working) is to bring up both legs (knees bent) up to my chest while lying on my back.  I’ve done that a couple times a day and it seems to “open up” my back and I’ve hardly felt the pain.

Hmmm … could it be this simple?  What do you think? Anyone tried the injections of cortisone for their bulging disc?

As if my own problems weren’t enough, a week and a half ago I flew to Seattle because a 76 year old friend of mine had fallen, was in rehab and is quite despondent. When we talked, she didn’t come right out and say “can you come out?” but instead would say “I wish you were here.”  Over and over again that’s what I would hear her say. So, after my MRI I flew out to be with her for a few days.

I’m glad I made the decision to fly out. Her husband, who is about the same age as she is, had never boiled an egg in his life. That was shocking to me. I later found out that he’s never used a microwave either. One day he came to visit his wife at the rehab center and brought a file box with bills that had to be paid. He has never paid a bill!  My friend had me write out all the checks for her then she signed them.

It’s amazing that someone in this day and age is so dependent, isn’t it? When I came home I told my husband that he needs to pay bills for one month just to make sure he remembers. True to form, he rolled his eyes at me and said “I know how to pay bills.” I know he does … it was just so shocking to actually meet someone who doesn’t.

(Look at how beautiful Seattle was while I was there — perfect spring weather. This is looking at the Olympic Mountains from Richmond Beach.)

For those who are waiting to see the new quilt I’m working on … well, that’s been put on hold for a bit as when the weather gets a tad nice I’m heading outside and pulling the notorious garlic mustard weed. Remember it from last year? There are pockets of “babies” throughout the property that need pulling before the seeds start to grow. I may have to hire someone to help me do this what with my back problem. What a bother!

Fortunately, I have yet to see any buckthorn growing.  Hmmm, I wonder if I pulled every single one out last year. The property looks so bare — well, we have a lot of winter debris such as small and large branches that need to be gathered but other than that it’s like nothing is growing yet.

This morning I called a local nursery as I have $500 that the county is giving me to plant native Minnesota plants that will replace the buckthorn and garlic mustard weeds that I’ve pulled.

All this takes so much time and I feel like I’m being pulled in so many directions.  Do you ever feel that way?

So — one day at a time, sweet Jesus. (I’m humming the tune as I write this.)

Once things settle down a bit I’m sure I’ll be back to “normal.”  Just don’t ask me what that is supposed to look like anymore.  (laughing)