by Judy Handley | May 18, 2024 | 2024 Life Logs |
2024 Life Logs, Day 139: Prom Night for Sam
Date: Saturday, May 18, 2024
Weather: Overcast with Periods of Rain; High Temp 54, Low 50 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA
I watched my children grow up and now I am watching my grandchildren do the same. There are those special moments along the way that mark the transition from stage to the next. Tonight was Sam’s Jr-Sr Prom and this afternoon Heather called to see if I would like to go to Sebastian’s home, one of Sam’s friends, for a pre-prom photo shoot. I jumped at the chance to go, and as I stood there taking photos, I realized this was one of those special moments.
Sam has been friends with Sebastian since they were babies. And this afternoon they were dressed to the nine’s and certainly no longer babies! Sam’s friend Robert was also there. They met in 5th or 6th grade, so that history doesn’t go back as far, but still they were boys when they met, not the young men they are today. Sebastian has a steady girlfriend, so she was there with her family as well. But many kids these days go in groups rather than with a date. Looking through the camera lens was like looking through a window into the future.
The prom here is held at the Coonasmessett Inn where they had dinner followed by dancing. That ends around 10 pm when everyone goes home to change into comfy clothes. They then check into the rec center by 11 where they spend the rest of the night into the early morning playing games of all sorts. Once they check into the rec center, they cannot leave until one of the chaperones has called a parent. Students over 18 can then drive themselves home, but anyone under 18 must be picked up by a parent. The hope is that it is a fantastic, fun, but safe event. This has happened for 30 years in Falmouth and every year the students really look forward to After Prom.
by Judy Handley | May 17, 2024 | 2024 Life Logs |
2024 Life Logs, Day 138: Bits of Sunshine
Date: Friday, May 17, 2024
Weather: Sunshine AM, Clouding Over in PM; High Temp 65, Low 51 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA
There were bits of sunshine today, but not enough to say it was a sunny day. The gray sky returned in the afternoon and there is a chance of rain tomorrow. Maybe Sunday? The PT arrived at 9 am and gave me a good report. Flexibility has gone from 98 to 102 since Tuesday, and that is great. I still have considerable swelling in the right leg, but that is to be expected. I no longer need to use the walker, but she suggests a cane when I am outside. No walking Shadow on a leash for another week, but I can walk outside, just no further than around the block. Detta left at the same time as the therapist, so suddenly I was alone. And actually, that is not a bad thing when all you are supposed to be doing is keeping those legs above heart level as much as possible. Detta got me through the worst days and now I am totally independent. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to Detta.
This afternoon, I got a card from a good friend from my days in Concord, NH, Cheryl Dolin. I have always had this aversion to resting during the day, but this card said, “It’s PRODUCTIVE to REST. Slow down, take care, and grant yourself grace.” Great advice, Cheryl.
by Judy Handley | May 16, 2024 | 2024 Life Logs |
2024 Life Logs, Day 137: Another Rainy, Dreary Day
Date: Thursday, May 16, 2024
Weather: Overcast and Rainy; High Temp 59, Low 53 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA
Since I am spending almost 100% of my time inside for a few days, I guess I shouldn’t care that is rainy and dreary. But dreary outside means dreary inside, and I don’t like dreary. So to brighten our world, Detta was my indoor gardener for the day, transplanting indoor plants from one pot to another. One plant was given to me by a friend dear to Detta and to me, Leslie Kole. She brought it to me on the day of Mark’s celebration of life and, within a year, it had outgrown the pot it was in. For the past seven years, every time I have looked at that plant, I have thought about buying a bigger pot and replanting. Today that finally happened. Two more plants that came into my life this winter and were just left in their pots from the nursery also got a permanent home today. And Detta dug up some of the many lilies of the valley to take home. She also ran errands twice during the day. I just alternated doing my exercises with putting my feet up with ice on my knee. That is certainly not exciting, but it is what needs to be done to heal.
by Judy Handley | May 15, 2024 | 2024 Life Logs |
2024 Life Logs, Day 136: Dreary Day
Date: Wednesday, May 15, 2024
Weather: Overcast and Rainy; High Temp 64, Low 56 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA
What a dreary day. But despite the weather, Detta and I managed to have a good day. We did some indoor gardening and not much else except work on my recovery. Detta did all the work of keeping me on schedule and I did the walking and the exercises prescribed at yesterday’s physical therapy evaluation. Things are still going along with no problems, and I am able to move around with minimal pain. I can only hope recovery keeps going smoothly.
by Judy Handley | May 14, 2024 | 2024 Life Logs |
2024 Life Logs, Day 135: Wonderful Friends
Date: Tuesday, May 14, 2024
Weather: Sunny; High Temp 63, Low 52 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA
Heather left to go to work this morning after making me promise not to get up until my friend Karen Baranowski arrived to be Nurse Karen for the day. I didn’t sleep much last night as I was high as kite from the steroids I was given in a knee surgery cocktail, so taking an hour-log nap was great. When Karen arrived, we got to work on a campaign ‘get out the vote’ project for Heather. We put a stamp and an address label on 1,000 post cards. We worked all morning , me with my leg propped up on a chair with an ice pack strapped on to my knee. At noon, we stopped to make lunch, and just before we sat down to eat, Olivia White arrived to help with the postcard project. Then later in the afternoon, Claudia Needham stopped by to help. By 3 o’clock we had completed our project. Hooray for wonderful friends!
I had a visit from a visiting nurse today to check on my progress after the knee surgery, plus I got a call from two different nurses from Cape Cod Hospital checking up on me. Then I had my first in-home PT session. I am doing really well so far, and I have now been given my marching orders for a daily exercise program. Hope I can keep up with the program.
Karen left around 4 pm and Detta arrived by 5 pm. As always, we have talked away the night. She is a great nurse and will be with me until Friday. Then I’m on my own.
Sam has been friends with Sebastian since they were babies. And this afternoon they were dressed to the nine’s and certainly no longer babies! Sam’s friend Robert was also there. They met in 5th or 6th grade, so that history doesn’t go back as far, but still they were boys when they met, not the young men they are today. Sebastian has a steady girlfriend, so she was there with her family as well. But many kids these days go in groups rather than with a date. Looking through the camera lens was like looking through a window into the future.
