2023 Life Logs, Day 333: Quiet Morning, Late Afternoon Trip to Hyannis
Date: Wednesday, November 29, 2023
Weather: Mostly Sunny, but Chilly: High 36, Low 32 F; Sunset 4:15 pm (-1 min)
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA

What I can get done in a day due to my back issues has dwindled to very little. I can still contribute to getting grandkids to and from activities. I just can’t get out of the car and walk any distance when we arrive. This is fine for most things, but tonight I wanted to get out of the car to watch Sam and Jonah practicing under the lights at Barnstable High School, but I couldn’t walk the distance. So very frustrating.

I started taking Celebrex on Monday. At first I was taking the capsules a friend gave me and they were 200 mg, one twice a day, They seemed to really help. But then my doctor prescribed 100 mg capsules, one twice daily, and they help a tad but don’t take away the pain when I walk. So, I am contemplating upping the dosage to take two 100 mg capsules twice a day instead. I’ll report on how that is going in a few days.

In the meantime, I hobble along. But at least I can hobble!

2023 Life Logs, Day 332: With a Little Help from Friends and Family
Date: Tuesday, November 28, 2023
Weather: Mostly Cloudy, Windy, Cold: High 41, Low 26 F; Sunset 4:16 pm (-0 min)
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA

Heather arrived at 8:20 am to take Shadow for a morning walk. My back has gotten to the point where walks longer than down my driveway are just out of the question. So, Shadow and I both really appreciated Heather’s offer to walk Shadow. Then this afternoon after school, Jonah came over to rake Shadow on his afternoon walk. Again, Shadow and I were very grateful.

My day in between Shadow walks was very quiet. I read some, started a new jigsaw puzzle, played fetch with Shadow, watched some of Rosalyn Carter’s funeral in between icing my back. I dealt with some medical issues for my sister on the phone and then called my primary care to see if he would prescribe Celebrex for my back pain. Last night, a member of my wine group suggested Celebrex and this morning she brought 6 pills over for me to try. I felt I needed to check first with my primary care, and he agreed that it was worth a try, so he prescribed it for me. Celebrex reduces inflammation and has fewer undesirable side effects that other similar drugs. My neurosurgeon’s assistant prescribed pregabalin (Lyrica) a couple of weeks ago, but I have not taken it because of the severe undesirable side effects. My primary care agrees that trying Celebrex first, to see if it works, is a better choice. Here’s hoping.

I did go out to pick up the prescription, but otherwise, it was just a day at home with nothing pressing to do. I loved it. And I am so appreciative of friends and family who are supporting me during this trying time. The medical advice and help with Shadow are much appreciated. With a little help from family and friends, I will make it through this.

2023 Life Logs, Day 331: Hosting My Wine Group
Date: Monday, November 27, 2023
Weather: Mostly Sunny: High 54, Low 32 F; Sunset 4:16 pm (-0 min)
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA

I continue to struggle with my back pain issues, but it didn’t stop me from hosting my wine club tonight. Jonah came over after school to help me do a few things to get ready—Thank you, Jonah—and at 5 pm my gang arrived. We had a wonderful evening experiencing wines from Australia. My wine group is a very special group of friends. Once they arrived, they did everything for me. I could just sit and enjoy.

2023 Life Logs, Day 330: Finally at Home
Date: Sunday, November 26, 2023
Weather: Sunny: High 48, Low 47 F; Sunset 4:18 pm; Sunset 4:16 pm (-1 min)
Location: At Home on Lakeview Avenue, Falmouth, MA

I finally got home today around noon and I was so happy to see Shadow (and I think he was happy to see me too). I heard from Heather that they would be home get their Christmas tree on arrival so they could decorate tonight. Heather leaves on Wednesday and she really wanted to get the tree up before she left. I offered to fix dinner for them, but I had to have Jed come get the beef stew as it was too heavy for me to carry. He insisted that I come with him, rather than drive myself, so off I went.

I got to hear all about their trip to New York. They visited Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty on Friday morning and then headed to the 9/11. Friday was a little more light-hearted. They took the train from Larchmont, where they were staying with the Dearman’s, to Grand Central Station, and then toured Times Square, Rockefeller Center, 5th Avenue, Wall Street, and Central Park where they took a horse carriage tour. All three boys really enjoyed their time in the city.

When I arrived the tree was up and the lights were on it. After dinner, the tree decorating started and Ollie installed his train track around the tree and the Christmas Lego land on the coffee table. So I have now watched Justin and family decorate their tree and Heather an family decorate theirs. My turn next!

2023 Life Logs, Day 329: Chilly Day on Cape Cod
Date: Saturday, November 25, 2023
Weather: Sunny: High 37, Low 28 F; Sunset 4:18 pm; Sunset 4:17 pm (-1 min)
Location: At the Goldstones, Falmouth, MA

If my memory serves me correctly, this is the first day this fall where the daytime high temperature did not climb out of the 30’s. It was just a reminder that winter is on its way. But the forecast shows that for the next nine days, the daytime temps will stay mostly in the 40’s. So back to fall weather.

I did not a lot today as the nerve pain from my herniated disks was back. I feel truly blessed that yesterday was such a good day. Just wish it could have lasted a little longer. I had lunch with good friend Jane Woodin today. She has a long history of back issues and was able to give me some advice. She has a pain management specialist at Brigham and Women’s in Boston that has been very helpful. I will call on Monday and see if I can get an appointment. In the meantime, I wait until December 8 to get the MRI and then go from there. But back to lunch with Jane. She and Bruce just returned from a trip to Italy. They flew to Milan, on to Rome, and then a cruise through the Mediterranean ending in the Bahamas. They had some ups and downs on the trip, but managed to enjoy the trip despite the ‘downs’. It was great to see Jane and catch up on life.

This afternoon I spent time going through photos from my trip to Puerto Rico. Like Bruce and Jane, my trip also had some ups and downs, but nothing kept me from having a wonderful time with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco. I love their little farm, Finca Maravilla. It is such a special place on this earth with all the plants and animals that live there. I spent my early mornings sitting outside and just taking in the scenery of a barnyard waking up in the morning—the horses, the chickens, the pig, the cats, and the dogs. There are two horses, Hopi and Cacique, numerous chickens and one hen with a baby chick, the miniature pig that is not a mini, cats—Mango, Cosmo, Hattie, Neema, Baby, and Smudge, and dogs—Lenny, Maya Moon, Honey, Maddie, and Bluebell. And Justin has a gerbil named Meena and Ziggy has two goldfish, Gillbert and one yet unnamed. Apologies if I didn’t get all of that correct, but I know I am in the ballpark.

Then there are the trees and various tropical plants of Finca Maravilla. One evening when we were around a fire outside, I asked everyone to name their favorite tree on the property. Jo and Coco both named the ylang-ylang, one of the tallest trees on the property with wonderfully fragrant blossoms. Justin’s favorite is a tree called monkey-ear in Puerto Rico. This tree can have an expansive, spherical crown and seed pods that have a curious shape like monkey ears. The bark is gray but has red fissures running vertically making it look a rusty red. Ziggy loves the mango trees because he loves mangos. And my favorite is their starfruit tree because I love the fruit. But that was a hard choice for me because I also love the leaves of the breadfruit tree, so majestic. There are so many different plants, all exotic and beautiful, but the passion fruit was in bloom at this time of year,

and the blossoms and the fruit both rate at the top of my list of favorite plants.

We had a wonderful week preparing for Thanksgiving and then enjoying a full-blown feast. And I was delighted that Coco and Ziggy wanted to get the Christmas tree while I was there so I could be a part of their Christmas celebration. Despite my back issues and the not so perfect weather, it was a fabulous week of family togetherness. I am thankful for many things in things in this world, but I am most thankful for my family—Heather, Jed, Sam, Jonah, and Ollie—Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco. Just like the plants and trees of Finca Maravilla, every member of my family is a distinct species, all bonded together with love.

2023 Life Logs, Day 328: Back on Cape Cod
Date: Friday, November 24, 2023
Weather: Sunny: High 51, Low 33 F; Sunset 4:18 pm; Sunset 4:18 pm (-0 min)
Location: At the Goldstones, Falmouth, MA

At 2 am, I said my final farewell to Finca Maravilla and Justin and I were on our way to the airport in Aguadilla. By 2:30 am, I had gone through the USDA check at the airport and was in line to check my bag. Justin was waiting outside in case I needed assistance, but the miracle I had been hoping for all week came true. I woke up after only 2 hours of sleep with no pain in my right hip. There was still a heaviness at the bottom of my spine and tingling and a little numbness in my legs, but I could walk without the excruciating pain. There was a long line waiting to park at the airport, so I insisted that Justin drop me off and just wait a bit in case things in my back changed. But they did not. Aguadilla is a very small airport, so I was able to get my luggage checked and get into the gate area to wait for my 4 am flight to Orlando. I let Justin know he could head home and by 6:40 am I was in Orlando. I deplaned at Gate 28 and needed to walk to Gate1 for my flight to Boston. I had planned to ask for wheelchair assistance, but with only my backpack and still no back pain, I walked slowly to the Food Court, had breakfast, and then walked the distance to Gate 1. So far, so good. The flight to Boston left Orlando at 9:30 am and by 12:45 pm, I had my luggage and waited to catch the bus to the Plymouth Park and Ride where I had left my car. Finally, just after 3 pm, I was back in Falmouth. But I went to Heather and Jed’s, instead of going home, as the house sitters are there until Sunday. I had received a text from Karen Baranowski inviting me to dinner, so I took a nap and then went to dinner. Since I only had 2 hours of sleep before leaving Puerto Rico and only two more during the two flights, the afternoon nap was much needed. And not having to cook dinner was such a treat. Thank you, Karen and Peter.

Heather and family are in New York City and will return mid-afternoon on Sunday, so I settled in to finish the book I have been reading, Hello Beautiful, and went to bed. By the way, I highly recommend the book. It is on the list of the New York Times Top 100 list for 2023 and I agree.

Heather, Jed, Sam, Jonah, and Ollie had Thanksgiving in New York with the Dearman’s, my summer neighbors when I lived in the cottage, and today they did a behind the scenes tour at Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, and the 9/11 Museum. They are doing more New York City touring on Saturday before returning home on Sunday. Then they will switch into Christmas mode as Heather leaves on Wednesday for Dubai and doesn’t want to wait until mid-December to put up their Christmas tree. Sunday will be Christmas tree day.

My trip to visit Justin and Jo was plagued with cloudy and rainy weather and my back issues, but we made our own sunshine by just enjoying being together and limiting activities to things I could manage. My memories of our Thanksgiving feast is one I will also cherish and the time spent with Ziggy and Coco made it well worth the trip. And I loved that the kids insisted that they decorate their Christmas tree while I was there to be a part of it. I hope to return after my knee surgery and after I resolve the issue with my back so I can fully enjoy the sunshine and snorkeling, as well as spend more time with Ziggy and Coco who are growing up so fast. Thank you, JJZ&C for a wonderful week.

2023 Life Logs, Day 327: Happy Thanksgiving from Puerto Rico
Date: Thursday, November 23, 2023
Weather: Sunny: High 87, Low 75 F; Sunset 4:18 pm (-1)
Location: At Home with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco at Finca Maravilla

Happy Thanksgiving from Puerto Rico. It was a sunny Thanksgiving Day here and we divided our day between cooking and having fun at the beach. I tried to get into the water with Justin’s help, but it was a no go. My back just could not handle the incoming waves, so I watched the fun from the beach. Later in the afternoon, Thanksgiving dinner was an absolute feast. Instead of turkey, we had Pernil which is Puerto Rican seasoned roast pork. It was so tender and delicious. Of course, there was gravy to go with the pork and mashed potatoes and stuffing. We also had fried sweet plantains that I think are called maduros, assorted greens, Mark’s cranberry salad., and Coco’s grain-free rolls. We ate on China that belonged to Mark’s great grandmother. Then for dessert we had an assortment of pies. Ziggy made his favorite, an apple pie, and Jo made pecan and pumpkin pies with whipped cream or ice cream. All delicious.

After dinner, I watched as everyone decorated the Christmas tree. Ziggy and Coco wanted to do this while I was here to share the experience. Now that Thanksgiving is over, I am looking forward to get a tree and decorate as well.

I fly out of Aguadilla (about thirty minutes from here) at 3:59 am, so Justin and I will get up and be out of here no later than 2 am. I really don’t know how I am going to negotiate the change of planes in Orlando since I cannot walk any distance without having excruciating pain, but I am still hoping for a miracle. And if that doesn’t happen, I will just have to request assistance. If all goes well, I will be back in Boston by noon tomorrow. Here’s hoping.

2023 Life Logs, Day 326: Some Sunshine on Day 5 in PR
Date: Wednesday, November 22, 2023
Weather: Sunny AM, Sprinkles, Then Clearing PM: High 82, Low 74 F; Sunset 4:19 pm (-0)
Location: At Home with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco at Finca Maravilla

Finally, we had a mostly sunny day, so we headed to the beach this morning. On the way we stopped at Justin and Jo’s storage unit to get the Christmas decorations and Christmas tree stand, and then we headed to Marina Beach in downtown Rincon. The water wasn’t calm, but it certainly was calmer than two days ago when we were there. I walked into the water holding on to the rocks, but it was too rough for me to stay in for long. So, I just sat in the sun and read and enjoyed every minute of it. And I loved watching Ziggy and Coco running on the beach.

Baking happened this afternoon. Jo made three pies for our Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, plus stuffing, and Coco made more cinnamon buns. I mostly sat in the sun and helped out only a little. Justin put the Christmas tree up and Jo went out and gathered some vines to make a Christmas wreath.

After dinner we went to the plaza to attend the Art Mart. The kids met up with friends and took off to have fun. I bought earrings from a woman who makes them out of aluminum. They are so light and beautiful. Then Justin, Jo, and I went across the street to the Rincon Beer Company to sit and have a drink to wait until the kids were ready to head home. Once home, Jo put the lights on the Christmas tree with a little help from Justin. Then Justin lit a fire outside to get rid of cardboard and branches and Ziggy, Coco, and Jo got into the pool. I declined as I didn’t want to go to bed with wet hair and also because I am having a tremendously hard time negotiating. I literally can barely walk without support. I researched today how to get airport support.for the trip home. I honestly don’t know how I am going to make it, but hopefully with wheelchair assist when I change planes in Orlando, I will make it. So frustrating.

My back and the weather have certainly not cooperated for this trip, but regardless, it has been wonderful to visit and catch up on what is happening in Coco and Ziggy’s lives. But I had to laugh tonight when Justin showed me the report on the amount of sun captured for energy these past few days. The graph showed the month of November looking great. Then I arrived, and the amount of sunshine immediately too a nose dived. I’ll hope for a sunnier reception when I come next time.

2023 Life Logs, Day 325: More Rain and a Trip to Mayaguez
Date: Tuesday, November 21, 2023
Weather: Overcast, Rain Mid-day; High 82, Low 77 F; Sunset 4:19 pm (-1 min, CC)
Location: At Home with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco at Finca Maravilla

In last night’s log, that I wrote early in the evening, I didn’t mention that we watched Barbie last night. Everyone had seen it, more than once, except for me. This was my first viewing. I could write a whole missive about what I thought of the movie, but I will spare you. I have always hated the concept of Barbie, but I appreciated the movie. As a baby boomer, I think I saw it differently than millennials, and I think millennials probably saw it differently from those born after 2000.

I had hoped to wake up to a party cloudy sky this morning, but it was totally overcast. And it got cloudier as the morning progressed and rained mid-day. So much for a beach day. Maybe tomorrow. But we found ways to enjoy the day without the sunshine. Ziggy, Jo, and I made a morning run into Aguada so Jo could gather ylang ylang from the trees along the Aguada running track. The smell is so wonderful, and Jo uses it to make an infusion that goes into the creams and lotions she makes and sells at local markets. And while we were at the track, Jo and Ziggy did a couple of walking laps, and then we were off to the aquarium shop. Ziggy wanted another goldfish to go with his big, beautiful Gilbert. We got that and returned home to have lunch. We all then just relaxed and waited for sunshine that didn’t come. While I was waiting, I tried to walk about the property to take photos of the trees and plants. I didn’t get very far because of the pain in my hips. I really can barely walk. But I made it to the star fruit tree just beyond the shed. It was split in two by Hurricane Fiona last year, but it has come back with a vengeance. When I walked under the tree and looked up, all I could see was star fruit hanging in clusters. I made it back to the front porch and just sat there for a bit taking in the view of the breadfruit trees, passion fruit vines, a very tall ylang ylang tree, and other various vines. Then I headed to other side of the house where passion fruit abounds along with many other tropical delights.

In the late afternoon when we drove to Mayaguez to see Ziggy’s school, SESO (Southwestern Educational Society, and to Home Depot to buy a Christmas tree. They were selling Balsam Firs and Ziggy and Coco picked out the ‘just right’ tree. We bought lights for the tree and then head back to Rincon to have dinner at Bakku Japanese Eatery & Crudo Bar. Justin and Jo had never been there and they had something for everyone. They had Wagu beef dumplings for Coco, Korean barbequed short ribs for Ziggy, fresh Wahoo, fried sushi rolls, and fresh and delicious nigiri and sashimi for all of us. It was absolutely delicious and enjoyed by all.

It was then time to head home for a another game of Doomlings, a game played in round using Age cards which have different rules that players must follow. I didn’t come in last tonight, but I still am not sure of exactly how to play this game. Regardless, it is fun.

2023 Life Logs, Day 324: More Baking and Thanksgiving Prep on a Rainy Day
Date: Monday, November 20, 2023
Weather: Rain Overnight and Into the Day; High 81 Low 76 F; Sunset 4:20 pm (-0 min, CC)
Location: At Home with Justin, Jo, Ziggy, and Coco at Finca Maravilla

During the night, the rain started, and it was not a gentle rain. Of course, I didn’t look outside until I got up this morning, but by then water was rushing across the driveway and pouring off the roof of the house. It eased up some closer to noon and then was overcast all afternoon. The rain started earlier than expected but also ended earlier. And tomorrow was supposed to be rainy, but now it looks like it will be partly sunny. All good news. I’ll take any amount of sun over the rain, so I just hope that forecast holds.

Coco and I made grain-free cinnamon buns today and we made Mark’s cranberry salad that we will have for our Thanksgiving dinner. We made the buns for Jo since she cannot eat wheat or other grains. They certainly were not big and puffy like the ones we made yesterday, but they were delicious. The recipe called for maple syrup instead of sugar and the icing was made with coconut cream and maple syrup. Delicious. This recipe was from the Paleo Running Mama and she has a recipe for grain free garlic and herb rolls. Since everyone loved the grain free cinnamon buns, Coco and I will make the rolls for our Christmas dinner.

Coco and her dog, Bluebelle, went for a short ride around the house this afternoon and Justin took Ziggy to the gym and to buy live plants for his aquarium. I think we have decided to go to Mayaguez to buy a Christmas tree tomorrow and then head a little further south to some beaches that might be calmer than here. With my back situation, I can’t brave the rougher waters. We will have Thanksgiving on Wednesday so we can begin Christmas on Thursday as I leave in the wee hours of Friday morning. Coco really wants me to be here for Christmas tree decorating. And besides, she is a true Puerto Rican believing you begin celebrating Christmas in September and keep celebrating until February.