Simply Norma

Last year, on our wedding anniversary, we drove past the Franconia Sculpture Park on the way home from our getaway. This year we went for a drive in the country and stopped at the park again since they usually change the sculptures there.

The weather was absolutely beautiful with the sun shining high in the sky. It seemed like people may have thought this was our last beautiful autumn day as the road was crowded with cars and lots of motorcycles.  People were pulling over to see the changing colors on the trees. Everything looked so peaceful. Even the St. Croix River looked stunning.

Parking was almost full when we arrived at the Franconia Sculpture Park but we were able to find a spot in the grassy area. The sculptures were indeed different than the last time we were here — so original and, shall I say, interesting? I didn’t realize that they had signs with the artists’ name on them until I was halfway through the park. Check these out!

 This one is made out of “fragile” crates.

Pretty interesting, eh? There are so many and I didn’t get a picture of all of them. Here’s a few more but if you’re in the area you should stop by and check them out. Seriously!

Here’s a close up of the picture above … It looks so cool!

Okay so, now I’ll show you the ones that I was able to get the artists’ name for (yes, I know, never end a sentence with a preposition ….)

Translation for Las Puertas de Orion is The Doors of Orion.

Hey! There’s a man in the picture! I asked him to pose for me so that I could show you the size of the sculpture.

 The one below is one of my favorites. I guess I just like “reclaiming” things.

This next one seems appropriate for the area — farm country.

And last, but not least …

I hope my nervous doesn’t look so, well, nervous.  hehe

A nice thought provoking walk through the park.

This past Friday I saw my massage therapist. She is so good! She does “regular” massages but also includes cranialsacral work in her therapy. Every time I’ve gone to her I always leave feeling a lot more relaxed which leads to quicker healing.

After detailing my history of the “virus” I supposedly have, she had me lie face up on the table and proceeded to “hear” my head. This sounds weird, doesn’t it? Over ten years ago, when I lived in Seattle, I went to a cranialsacral clinic because I had severe vertigo and had tried everything else to help cure myself since the doctors had no suggestions. Back then, the cranialsacral treatment didn’t work either.

After the therapist had put her hands on my head and “listened,” she told me that there is little movement on the right side of my brain. That is not good. Movement is essential to good health. Anyway, she continued treatment and found I had two swollen mastoid lymph nodes. Those nodes (in lay terms) help with drainage. In trying to research them I didn’t find much information on them except for blogs where people have had similar symptoms to mine. In all cases that I’ve read thus far, the doctors say “it’s fine and will go away.”

The massage therapist would not work on the areas of the lymph nodes because of the swelling. She continued her treatment and ended with a quick Swedish massage to my back. I felt pretty good when I left although the right side of my head is still sensitive to touch.

This morning, I went to see my chiropractor. I originally went to see him because the massage therapist told me that he has a laser that can possibly help with the lingual nerve problem that I’ve had for over a year and a half. And he has helped with that! He is also using this laser treatment on my left wrist — the one I fell on last winter, and again, the laser treatment is helping.

But I digress as I think of my body falling apart …

The chiropractor felt both lymph nodes and said they are both still swollen but he believes that this is due to the virus that I am fighting off.

I am feeling better. The jabs of pain that I had last week are down to one every couple of hours or so.

I think I’ll do a little leaf sweeping this afternoon as it is too gorgeous a day to be indoors. Fresh air should help with healing my body, no?

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Tuesday I had the weirdest pain sensation in my head — an intermittent stabbing sensation that felt like small tremors. The stabbing happened a few times every minute and each time it was severe enough that I grabbed my head and yelled “ouch.” At times like these I’m glad that I never was one to use curse words or my language would be very unladylike.

I bit the bullet and made an appointment to see the doctor Wednesday. No more homemade remedies that don’t seem to work.

I arrived 5 minutes early for my appointment. Forty minutes later I got called into an office and was seen by the nurse. Blood pressure — high. I knew that my blood pressure would be high as it always is when I’m sick. The nurse told me the doctor would be with me in a few minutes. Not so.

A few minutes later a different nurse knocked on the door and told me she was taking me to another room because my doctor had to deliver a baby at the hospital. More waiting. I hate waiting when I’m on time.

Shortly I heard another knock on the door and a cheerful female doctor walked through the door. “Shhh, you’re too loud,” I felt like telling her.

The doctor listened to the history of my headache pain. She looked at the bumps on my nose and said “At first they looked like shingles to me but I believe you’re right, they’re cold sores.” Uh, that’s good, I thought to myself. I haven’t heard too many good things about people who have shingles.

After the doctor listened to me breathing, she looked in my ear and said that the inside was “pink and pretty.” No ear infection.

When I told the doctor that I could press on a muscle in my neck and almost pass out she told me “You’re having neck spasms that are causing the headaches.” Hmm … did I just diagnose myself? Then she proceeded to write a prescription for me for a muscle relaxant called flexeril. She also prescribed an anti-viral medication. I specifically asked her if the pills were large but she aid “No, they’re small, you’ll be fine.” She was wrong and since I have trouble swallowing pills, I have to cut them in half.

My brain was foggy though so I didn’t think to ask any other questions. I drove to the pharmacy where I hoped the prescriptions would be ready but they weren’t. Since I had another appointment I told the pharmacist that my husband would pick up the prescriptions later.

When I got home the pain had started getting severe again. Stab, wait a few minutes, stab, wait a few minutes … that’s how the rest of my afternoon went.

When my husband came home with the medications he showed me the receipt and said “I hope this works.” The anti-viral pills (which were to last for 7 days) were $139! Had I been at the pharmacy I would have given them back until I spoke with the doctor again to make sure they were absolutely necessary.

But, my husband doesn’t like “confrontation” so I have two different pills to take. I’m not sure which one is causing the dry mouth but both cause drowsiness and I certainly have been sleeping plenty.

In the meantime, the leaves continue to fall. I am now “behind” in yard work although what I was planning on doing was scheduled (in my head) for next year. I so much wanted to get a head start though — without the bugs and the heat.

Oh well. Next week looks promising weather-wise and if I’m better I’ll head outside to work in the crisp, sunny Minnesota days.

I remember telling a doctor once “I can tell when things aren’t going well in my body.” He then gave me a strange look. Aren’t we supposed to know our bodies?

Last week, I started getting a dull pain behind my right eye. By Friday, the whole right side of my head hurt and yesterday I could barely hold my head up. At first I thought — migraine. But no, it’s not a migraine. I’m pretty sure it’s an ear infection of some kind.

The pain radiates from the middle of the top of my head to the right side of my neck. I almost went to the emergency room yesterday but decided to wait. I took two Tylenol and lay down for a couple of hours without moving. The lack of stimulation to my brain really helped.

This morning I saw my chiropractor and he used a vibrating instrument on my neck which took most of the pain away. So far today the “edge” has been taken off but every now and again I get a quick pounding that let’s me know I’m not out of the woods yet.

I also woke up with a few large bumps on my nose — blistery looking. At first I thought that they were fever blisters but I haven’t had a fever that I’m aware of. Very very odd.

Looking out my window I see a dreary looking day which matches my mood.

The chiropractor said that most ear infections resolve on their own without antibiotics but if I should start feeling really bad then I should see my doctor.

Good advice.

Have you ever received one of these envelopes in the mail?

It seems like I receive them weekly, or maybe monthly but it seems like they come quite often.

The envelope includes coupons for “deals” on restaurants, carpet cleaning, etc. so I peruse each one to see if I can use one. And I found a great deal! Uh, well, I thought it was a great deal. I had needed to have the carpet cleaned and this coupon stuck out as a fantastic deal. (But, have you heard of the adage “if it’s too good to be true, it probably isn’t?”

I really only needed to have one room cleaned but since they had such a great deal (2 rooms and a hallway) for $69.95, I decided to go for it.

I called the company and scheduled a morning appointment and was told they would arrive from 9 to noon. Around 11:50 a.m. I received a call from the company letting me know that their truck was in the shop and they hadn’t received it back yet. The gentleman wanted to come later in the afternoon. When I asked “What time?” I was told they couldn’t give me a time. So — I rescheduled another morning appointment. The man was very friendly “anytime you want, ma’am.”

The next appointment date found me waiting until noon again. I called the company and was told someone would get “right back” to me. By 12:30 I had not received a call back. My definition of someone getting “right back” to me was different from theirs, I’m assuming. I called again and this time was told that they were checking and could have someone out within a couple hours.

I explained to the gentleman that this was the second appointment that they had missed and that I couldn’t wait around for them to come in the afternoon. I asked for the appointment to be canceled. It was as if I had said a “bad” word. The man then told me the truck was on the way.

Me: Where is the truck?

Them: On the way.

Me: Yes, I know, but where on the way is it because earlier you told me it would be a couple of hours.

Them: It’s on the way.

Me: Please just cancel the appointment.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Have you ever seen that movie? Same person but he can have different personalities.

“You are being unreasonable.” Uh, what? Yes, that’s what I heard. “You are being unreasonable.” He mentioned something about my being a woman and then hung up.

I stood there with my mouth open not quite knowing how to react.

Then, I did what I should have done in the beginning: I checked online for reviews of the company. The company also operates in Spring Park, MN where the Better Business Bureau has given them an F rating. In addition, a blogger posted that he had had similar experiences with the company not showing up AND their rudeness.

Truth be told, this company was going to “save” me $30. What a waste of two mornings. My time is definitely more valuable than that.

What did I do? I hired the company that came to clean our carpets when we first moved into the house, Daisy Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning. I called, made the appointment, and they were out as promised.

Now that’s a company I can count on!

I spent the morning outside moving large pieces of wood into a woodpile that we had already started.  The mouse was back but this time he was alone. He doesn’t seem to be afraid and looks at me to see if I’m going to leave or what my plans are. I talk to him, uh, her, uh, whatever.  “Get on your way now …”

The mouse skadaddled away to an area where I will be heading. Again, he seems to not be afraid. He’s a rather quick mouse running hither and thither.

I manage to make a new woodpile from wood pieces that are just lying on the ground. There are so many pieces of wood lying around that I wonder if this property has ever been taken care of. Large, small, medium … I rake up the pieces and put them in plastic bags so that I can send them along with the trash but there are too many. Three bagfuls later, I determine that I am done for the day but then I look around and decide perhaps I have a little more work in me.

Large pieces of a cut-up tree trunk sit in an area looking messy so I decide to roll some of them down the slight slope and make a pathway with them. After working with four large pieces I again decide that I am done for the day.

My left wrist is swollen and achy again. I took a Naproxen pill this morning and it seemed to help but now I need to ice it and put the splint back on.  Since the orthopedic surgeon told me that I needed an MRI of my wrist, I’ve been calling places to determine the cost. Shopping for healthcare costs is not for the faint of heart. Calling, leaving messages and playing phone tag is enough to stop anyone from caring. Except me.

I have learned that the cost for the MRI is not the only charge I will incur. I will also have to pay for a Radiologist to review the MRI and give his/her determination of what the problem is.  What a bother.  Another hunt for pricing information.

One might wonder (anyone?) why I bother to check prices. Simply put, our healthcare plan is not as good as the one we used to have in Seattle. We have a $3000 deductible (unless its preventative visits) that we have to pay before our insurance matches anything. So I am more careful now about costs.

But, I’m digressing. Back to the yard …

Since I have so many pieces of wood (mostly decaying, moldy or unusable) I  bag them and wait until I have room in my garbage can. Sure, I can pay additional to leave extra bags out, but why? My large garbage can will take 2 large bags of wood in addition to our weekly garbage which isn’t a lot. So, I’ll accumulate the wood and every week I will slowly send more rotting wood away.

One day, it will be too cold to work outside and then I’ll be able to catch up with putting the wood in the garbage. I can be patient.

I am now more cognizant in closing the garage door in case small animals might enter, ie the mouse.  There are plenty of mouse feeders with poison out there so I’m not sure how this little fella managed to escape them.

I called my husband around noon to check in and said “You know, I could catch the mouse and we could keep him as a pet. I could call him Barky since he seems to like the woodpile.” (laughing)  It didn’t go over too well … I wonder why?

We bought our current house the end of April 2011 when snow (and a lot of it) was still on the ground. Last summer we had some work done on our property such as removing 5 dead trees. At that time, the .97 acre that we have looked manageable, at least in my head.

This year, with mild temperatures and little snow, our property looked more like an overgrown forest. Weeds grew abundantly and the growth of small trees and bushes could be seen which is not good for a dreamer like me who wants things to happen sooner rather than later.

Here is what our property currently looks like:

It looks messy but the wood pile has halfway been cleaned up which is a big plus. This next week I’ll be working on the woodpile so it will be “done” (although we might be felling two more almost dead trees so we have to put the wood somewhere.

But — I have a dream of what I’d like my backyard to look like. It doesn’t help that I visit Japanese gardens as they make my mouth water from the simplicity, structure and beauty that they have. I know, I know, it takes awhile to get a garden to look like that and my friends in Seattle reminded me that it took them over 5 years for their one acre to resemble anything like they wanted. Five years!  Well, it seems long until you remind yourself how much time it takes to work it every day.

I usually don’t work full days in the yard either. I like working in the cool of the day, the morning. By noon I’m ready to head inside and do something else. In the summer it’s easy to blame the bugs for only working a little each day, but in the autumn when the bugs are ready to hibernate (or simply die off) there are no excuses. Although, my left hand has gotten swollen and achy again from the fall I took in the Caribbean back in January so I guess that’s a really really good reason.

When we went to visit our daughter recently, she took us to the Anderson Japanese Garden in Illinois. It was a wonderful garden and gave me even more incentive to “get out there and work!”

Since I am a visual person, it gave me more ideas with what we can do with our property. But it will take time — lots of time. Eventually the park-like setting I’m looking for will happen. I’m thinking I should organize our property into four sections and then work on one section per year. Thoughts? Has anyone ever done this before besides the designers in Japan who come to America and do it for us?

Here’s a glimpse into some ideas although I don’t have a pond on my property. But I could put a fountain in …

Small hints of wood and bamboo can be seen through trees and bushes …

I especially like this lamppost …

And I definitely will need one of these fountains. I read that the noise from these bamboo fountains scare the deer away.

It would be nice to have a Japanese style building but, who will build it? I wonder if I could buy a kit to put together …

You can barely see the wooden steps that lead up to private property outside the gardens. Our property has a slight slope to it so perhaps I can incorporate some steps onto it.

We won’t be able to have a waterfall like this although we might be able to build a small fountain that looks like one.

Maybe little boys will come and play in our yard. (laughing)  That’s our grandson examining the rocks.

Incorporating a couple of bridges sounds really good to me.

A koi pond is the one thing we won’t have as I don’t want to have to worry about bringing the fish inside in the winter.

Well, what do you think? This garden combined open areas with areas that were more bushy which would work well for us since I like a more structured look and my husband likes a wild look.

I can dream, can’t I?

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I guess with time things start falling apart.

My current iPod classic is getting finicky with me as sometimes it stops playing the music I’m listening to — even while being charged on the iPod stand. It’s quite odd.

Then it decided not to allow me to push the buttons to select a playlist or artist. Oh wait, it works now. Oh, wait, it doesn’t.  Well, you get my drift …

I’ve been having problems with it for a few months now and my husband, bless his heart, has offered me his old iPod. I’m not sure which one is worse although his doesn’t seem to have a mind of its own. The only problem with his is that the screen is “broken” and it feels like it weighs ten pounds — well, alright, a little bit of an exaggeration on the weight.

With Apple’s recent announcement of the new iPhone 5 I checked and found that they have also updated their iPod’s. So … I have my eye on a really pretty blue iPod Nano.

In reading up on the newer Nano’s, they do quite a lot more than my current one. For instance, the Nano now has Nike support and a pedometer that’s built into it.  Cool!  It also is bluetooth enabled. Wowie zowie!

Now I need to find time to get to an Apple store to feel it in my hands and see if I really like it — in person. Can’t wait to try it out!

Click here to see the new iPod Nano.