Eventful events are eventful

As promised, a long-delayed blog post!

These past couple of weeks seem to have been conspiring against me getting online again. But I found a place that actually fixes power jacks for cheap and without a bunch of caveats, so here I am again! Yay! The little beast is working better than it has in years, so I am hopeful of maybe now having it for some years to come yet.

It’s been frustrating not having the laptop since work has been so busy I haven’t been able to do much more than sometimes clean out my in-box of emails that didn’t absolutely need to be answered and mark everything in my RSS feed as “read”. If you said something that you were really hoping I in particular would read, and I haven’t responded, give me a holler. Sorry for the inconvenience.

At least, the laptop woes coincided with the weekend Carapace and I had planned to go to TRF. I have some pictures, and I will post a few later if all goes as planned. We camped, as usual. As is not usual, the weather was as close to perfect as it can get for a Texas autumn and Carapace managed to have not one single significant seizure! I, sadly, had my usual allergies keeping the entire campground awake (ha! That’ll teach those guys who put their tent right up against ours!) and, despite my efforts to plan, perimenopause played the hormone roulette wheel and came up red. Still, that did not negate the very important experience I had using a pair of hiking sticks instead of just my cane, or even pair of canes. With the hiking sticks, I escaped having notable leg and hip pain for the first time in years–and that despite my period! It had gotten to be so bad previously that I wasn’t even looking forward to going. So, I highly recommend getting yourself some if you are a cane-user and have started to miss out on events that require a lot of walking.

My niece is out of the woods as far as the overdose is concerned. She’s facing a long stint in psyc rehab, though. She prefers that to going home, I know, since the home environment is currently unstable due primarily to financial strains. There are other issues, too, but I don’t like talking out of school about other people’s personal lives. The one thing I will say is that, my family is in denial about how pervasive mental illness is in our family. It isn’t just one individual with a problem. Most of us are untreated, uncounseled, and our coping skills are ad hoc, to put it nicely. I really admire Glenn Close and her sister, Jessie, for their decision to speak out about mental illness in their family. I hope that it will encourage other families, including my my own, to take positive action and be more supportive of each other emotionally. (And, in case my family stumbles onto this and puts two and two together, I love you all. Just, wouldn’t it be nice to stop pretending and start dealing with reality instead?)

In more horrifying news, a coworker of mine has an aunt who is likely to not emerge from the coma that her husband put her into. It is a classic case of an abuser first isolating his victim, and then escalating the abuse. I am astounded that the husband is out on bond. How can this be? Why isn’t domestic abuse taken more seriously?

Oh, and finally, much less universally depressing but potentially more annoying for me personally, it looks like I have a torn rotator cuff. And that I am actually going to have to do something about it, what with not being able to use my left arm being a real nuisance, what with me being left-handed and the driver’s side door being on the left in the US. I don’t know if it will mean surgery and then PT, or just PT, but, either way, I have a feeling I am facing a lot of PT. And I hate PT. So, expect a lot of griping.

Back and Up

I’m back and rested from my seashore shenannigans. I camped overnight at Padre Island National Seashore, enjoying good weather and more peace and quiet than I usually get from my neighbors at home–even if the dingleberries in the next campsite over did keep honking their horn around 11 pm. At least they stopped by midnight. This was the very first time in my 50 years of life that I went somewhere completely by myself for vacation. I travelled maybe too light, but it was OK, since it meant less to deal with both at the destination and coming home. I was very glad, again, for having bought an easy-to-pitch tent. Not even the evening beach winds could keep me from being able to set it up by myself. However, next time, if it is for just one night, I will probably just sleep in my car and if it is for more than one night, I will bring a lounger, because I can’t even pretend to sleep flat on my back for more than an hour.

I trundled out to the water’s edge the night I arrived. No one else was out there at all. Once I turned off my lantern, there was no artificial light. I figured I would get to see the moonlight and stars reflect off the sea foam. What I did not expect was to see the shoreline flash softly in blue and purple. I bent to examine the source, turning my lantern back on. It was the nasty seaweed that litters the beach! By day, it is quite ugly. But at night, the plankton that live in it biolumenesce up a storm! All these years I have gone to the beach, and I had never seen this. If you go, make sure to go to the shoreline when there is no one else there with lights or fires so you can see for yourself. Other beaches may have other colors, depending on the plankton. It’s really wonderful.

One of my main reasons for going down was to get myself into regular sketching again after, lo, these many years. I took a small sketch book and some pencils and charcoal, and spent the morning after camping drawing whatever interested me.

Earlier today, I finally broke out my pastels to add some color to the drawings and have managed to scan in the first three of them. Let’s see how they turned out, shall we?

This first one was done at daybreak. When I got down to the beach, the sun was just coming up. By the time I got the rough proportions of beach, sea, and sky pencilled in, the sun was off to my left, high enough in the sky that I couldn’t see anything but blinding white light on that side, but not high enough to bring out color. For the most part, the colors of sand, water, and sky were indistinguishable. But still, there was plenty of light for the plovers and pipers to find their prey in the tide. The color I’ve added in is actually more than what you would have seen with the naked eye, but it’s pretty close.

By the time I finished with that, the sun had risen enough to bring out the yellows and roses along the beach. This small shell was left in a tiny crevice made by the receding tide. I thought the shadows and colors around it were interesting, even if I didn’t quite capture what I saw.

When I went back to the camp site, I looked over the dunes and saw this magnificent gray heron observing the hustle and bustle of the campers. He was quite large, maybe three feet tall standing at the crest of the dune. I should probably have drawn him with his neck extended, but this is the pose he settled into, so I went with it. I didn’t want to get too close for fear of spooking him, but the only time he showed any sign of perhaps flying away was when a karakara swooped in nearby. But a three foot tall heron is a match for a karakara, so they quickly ignored each other. The heron would move, later, as I’ll show you tomorrow.

Huzzah!

This past weekend I went to Texas Ren Fest, camping Friday and Saturday nights. I’d show you pictures, but I think Carapace has the camera. OK, so I’ll show you pictures later. I know what you are really wondering is, “how’d it go what with walking around the festival?”

Pretty damn good.

I took two canes, a knee brace and, of course, my orthotics. The combination kept me steady and took the weight off my legs and feet that usually has me done in after a couple of hours. I was exhausted and dehydrated and hurting at the end of Saturday, but a night’s rest and plenty of water had me feeling much better Sunday.

Funniest line I heard at TRF this time was from a toddler who observed me and then told her daddy with great excitement, “She has two sticks!” Heh, someone is learning to count. I am glad to have been of service. Second funniest line was from a patron, in mock horror, on her way to the exit. “Someone stole all my money!” It’s a fact that money seems to disappear unaccountably at ren fairs. Apparently many people were losing all their money this past weekend. I made a point of asking vendors how their sales were, and each one I asked told me the same thing, that this weekend people seemed happier, more willing to part with their money, than the week before. Almost like some major event had happened that left consumers feeling a bit more confident. I don’t know about other business people, but the TRF vendors seem quite pleased with Obama right now.

I didn’t buy a whole lot, being mostly kitted out already, but I did get a nice rucksack with a dragon design while I was there, relieving me of having to manage a shoulder-carried bag while using canes. And I got a few odds and ends. There was some beautiful artwork for sale that I would love to have if I had the room. But I don’t. Anybody wants a bronze water fountain in the shape of a dragon or a green man, I know just the guy.

Other good things that made the weekend pleasant:

new Coleman propane stove with instant lighting. It was nearly as easy as using the kitchen stove.

new tent with 7′ height and enough space for two twin air mattresses. Sadly, one air mattress wasn’t worth the attempt to inflate it, but the good one left Carapace sleeping comfortably, as did her tall-sized sleeping bag.

my adjustable portable table! It’s not just good for sewing; it also fits nicely into the back of my car and is light enough that even I don’t struggle with it.

taking Monday off for recovery. I had a whole day to put things away, wash clothes, and sleep after I got back. And so I went back to work Tuesday happy and feeling good.

Next year:

Don’t bring lounger. It never got used.

Remember jacket. Sure, I can just wear all my garb, but it would still have been nice if I remembered to bring a jacket.

Vacation success!

We’re back, poorer in pocket but richer in memory and know-how! I appreciated the good wishes sent me prior to taking off for vacation, and especially appreciate Elizabeth’s ideas about making things safe as well as fun. I did take that to heart and found us a beach with lifeguards and lots of other people around, in case of trouble.

Also, we ended up not camping. The more I thought about it, the less I wanted to expose Carapace to even one day of unremitting sun, seeing as she is photosensitive. As luck would have it, I stumbled across a funky beach cottage establishment that still had an efficiency for rent at astonishingly affordable rates. So we stayed there both nights, enabling us to go to the actual beach twice on Thursday, and then swim in a pool after the sun set.  It was really quite an old cottage, but all the same it was almost accessible.  If they would just ramp the entrances (which all had high anti-flooding thresholds) anyone could get in.  The door to the bathroom was already plenty wide.  A sliding bench and some hand rails would have made the shower and toilet available to anyone.   But I can tell from the rates they were charging that there are no major renovations planned for these 80 year old cottages any time soon.  I’m frankly astounded that the upkeep is as good as it is in such old cottages.  I’d stay there again, but if I needed a wheelchair….well, that poses a whole set of problems for a community built on sand.

Here’s what I did that made our vacation about as safe as it could get for us:

• life jackets–Carapace didn’t want to wear one, but I did, and it helped me a lot. Last time I went to the coast, the waves battered me pretty badly and I was so exhausted that I couldn’t enjoy it. This time, the life jacket did the work for me so that I didn’t have to try to fight to both keep my head up and keep my limbs from being jerked out of place by the waves.
• Dark goggles–they kept both the bright light reflecting off the waves as well as the waves themselves from stinging our eyes. I have a particularly badly shaped forehead for keeping liquids out of my eyes, so not having to deal with that nuisance was great. My goggles, unfortunately, did tend to create a vacuum around my eyes that I had to keep breaking to keep being able to see. But it was a fair trade off. Just, next time, I will try on the goggles before buying them.
• Rash suits–I wore both a sleeved top and long pants, and C wore a sleeved top over her swim suit. This kept us from burning, and also offered some protection in case of jelly fish. Weirdly, we saw no jellies or portuguese man-o-war the entire time, but experience has taught us that there is no swifter end to a beach vacation, so it was good to be prepared.
• Morning and evening at the beach, afternoon in the air conditioning.  Avoiding the hottest, sunniest part of the day also was a big factor in keeping us from becoming toast.
• Cheap canes–this was the result of an unexpected find at the island grocery store.  They had wooden canes for $1 each.  We each got one, and so were able to do some beach combing without worrying about messing up our good canes.
• Cervical collars have more than one use!  This was also an unexpected “find.” I use a cervical collar because my neck tends to go out of place on an annoyingly frequent basis.  But I didn’t need to use it at night during vacation.  At least, I didn’t need to use it on my neck.  Instead, I wrapped it just above my left knee to keep my leg bent like I need it at night, instead of using the towels I had brought.  It worked much better, since it didn’t fall off when I moved or need to be readjusted.  Now I know that when I replace this cervical collar, I can continue to get use out of it. 
• Not overdoing it–this was maybe the most important thing.  We made sure to get plenty of rest and never spent more than an hour doing any particular activity.  Sure, there was a lot more we could have done if we had been go-go-go the whole time.  But this vacation was about relaxing, enjoying different surroundings without demands, and being ready to go back home where work and chores await feeling refreshed mentally.
• Coming home with enough time to recuperate–who doesn’t need a vacation from vacation?  We went during the week so that I could have the weekend to do laundry, buy groceries, and rest my weary bones.  And rest I have.

I also put to test something else I had been considering, that anyone who hates re-packing might do.  I bought a couple of disposable roasting pans, a disposable grill top (such as is supposed to be used on a regular grill), and instant-light charcoal.  I punched some holes in one of the pans, and bent both pans so that the inner hole-y one was up a little higher than the outer one.  I put in the charcoal, bent the grill around the pans, and lit the coals.  Soon, I had our hotdogs ready to eat.  All I had to do after that was pour water on the pans and throw them away.  Nothing dirty to pack back up!  Yay!  If I was at a park instead of the beach, I would want to put the pans on a couple of bricks or something, because they get very hot.  But for the beach, this was perfect.

Oh, and I made sun tea by using the car windshield and the foil-covered window sunvisor as a lazy woman’s solar cooker.  I put water and 8 tea bags in a large sports bottle full of water, and set the bottle between the windshield and the sunvisor.  It made for a strong tea ready to be diluted in my half-gallon pitcher, in just 90 minutes.

Another important thing I learned is that I can really book with two canes.  Next big adventure will be TRF, and I will have two hiking sticks with straps on me, even if they aren’t period authentic for Tudor England.  Maybe this time I will be able to avoid the pure agony that comes from dragging one leg around all day.

Okay, okay.  I know, this is educational and all, but did I have fun?  Yes!  I had some very nice food at Moby Dick’s and Virginia’s on the Bay, where each place went out of their way to make sure C’s and my diet were accomodated.  We successfully beachcombed!  We played in the ocean, bobbing over the waves.  A big pelican flew right over my head, close enough to make out the breast feathers even with my goggles on!  And a school of fish moved in on us, very nearly slapping C upside the head as they lept out of the water.  One of them swam right under my foot as I moved to stand in the chest deep waves.  It’s a strange feeling to stand on a fish!  We had a long and fun conversation with the evening barista at Sips.  We fed the seagulls at the park.

Was there anything bad?  Well, I did have a terrible cramp in my right calf that still hurts two days later, and that tried real hard to cramp up my thigh, too.  But that could have happened at home just as easily.  And my neck went pretty badly out of place on the drive home.  But again, that sort of thing happens all the time, so it’s no reason to not have a vacation.  Besides, that’s why I carry a cervical collar everywhere, so it isn’t like I wasn’t prepared.  And C ended the trip with a migraine.  But again, that was likely to happen anyway.  Because we both anticipated having our usual gamut of problems, we were able to have a good time while also taking care of ourselves.

I need hints and encouragement

This coming week, Carapace and I are going to go where gimps and spazzes aren’t supposed to go. Yes, we are going to the beach. The plan is to camp one night, and then spend the next night in a motel so we can go home without carrying sand in our intimate regions. The motel bit I’m not worried about, as long as the room is reachable without stairs. Nor am I worried about the camping bit. Car camping is completely within my capabilities and skill set, and it won’t be like we’ll be away from civilization.

No, what worries me is the actual beach. I so want to be there, feeling the salt water bounce me around. But I do worry. I can’t exactly swim worth crap anymore, with my shoulders always ready to slip right out of place and the one leg’s tendency to float in a direction different than the rest of me is going. I don’t know…how does one keep a leg from floating sideways? And then there is Carapace and her seizures. They’ve been pretty much under control, and I do have shoreline life vests for us both. Those are supposed to flip an unconscious person face up. I haven’t used one since I was a little kid, so I don’t really remember how they worked in reality. I’m hoping that with the life vests, I won’t tire as fast and Carapace will have a margin of safety. Oh, and they are orange, which will make it easier for Carapace to see me despite the world being a particularly sloppy impressionist painting when she takes off her glasses. Oh, and I got her some dark goggles, too, which I hope will be good enough for her photosensitivity to not be triggered. And sunburn-prone me will be covered ankle to wrist.

So, anything else I should do to make sure we have fun and that I won’t spend our time fretting? What experiences have you all had? Tell me!