Catching Up (and Down)

Yo-yos were toys that I was never even marginally good at. I got good enough to get one to return to me probably three times at my best. But anything more? Like ‘walk the dog’, ‘around the world’, or doing two at once? Not a chance. Didn’t do very well with Slinkies either. It’s not the toys’ fault. I tried them and just didn’t ‘click’ with them as a toy. I envied people who acquired skills.

Different strokes for different folks different times.

2024 has been very different for me with some new challenges. I do not offer this as an excuse but to explain what has gone on in my life.

• First on the list was a shattered molar that cracked all the way down into my jawbone. Of course, it abscessed immediately. The problem for me is my allergy to penicillin-class antibiotics. Between the pain and getting the infection under control, it developed into cellulitis which is a life-threatening condition. That took most of April.
• As I recuperated from that, I suffered a dog bite to my thumb that shattered the last bone and came out the other side. (Long story, very sad, but I won’t relate every detail.) That developed into osteomyelitis and a 4 day stay in the hospital for IV medications and surgery. The surgery worked fine, but my thumb is permanently crooked. I’m just grateful to still have my thumb (and my hand since the infection was starting up my arm.) That was May.
• In June, I finally was able to schedule surgery to get that cracked molar removed. More antibiotics and more pain medications that I was required to take.
• I got about two weeks of grace in July, then tried to get around the kitchen table and something snapped in my left knee. I could feel something move under the skin that I had never felt before and it hurt terribly. Off to the orthopedists to investigate because that was NOT normal. After the exams and imagining, I’m told that I have ruptured the ligament that anchors the meniscus on the back side. In layman’s terms, the tie down on the back side of the cartilage pad on the inside of my knee broke and the pad was flopping around loose. Surgery was indicated. That happened on August 1.
• All of August and September have been consumed with rehabilitation. I gradually expanded my activities during October, but I’m still somewhat limited by what the knee will allow me to do. I am working hard on getting back to a regular routine, which is frustrating, as you can imagine. I’d rather be out canvassing and meeting people.

Sometimes you make plans and sometimes life has other plans. I’m pulling up my big girl britches and getting on with life. I still have lots of things I want to do in life. These are just speed bumps. I thank God for our doctors, dentists, and the healthcare I received (nurses, PAs, MA’s, and ancillary-that includes you, too). The Urgent Care people at Piedmont were fabulous.

Go vote EARLY. It’s important. From all indications, the polls will be PACKED out the doors on Nov. 5.

• Voting early takes YOUR NAME off the lists that the parties have for door knocking, calling, or texting. If you want to stop the constant phone calls/texts or having people knocking on your door, go vote.
• Voting early may mean that your vote is in the piles of ballots that get counted FIRST. In many counties, those votes are tallied by the Election Office while they are waiting for outlying precinct captains to close down their polls and get their machines locked down and back to the Election Office.
• Absentee ballots are also frequently counted while the Election Office is waiting on outlying precinct captains to close down their polls and get their machines locked down and back to the Election Office. Just make absolutely certain that your ballot makes it inside that Election Office BEFORE CLOSING ON ELECTION DAY.

Tell your friends, family, work buddies, and every person you meet that it is vital to vote BLUE and not to write in nonsense like Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, or some stuff like that. Act like an adult. Follow the directions.

Vote in every race. It’s important. State and local races actually affect you far more than the Presidential race.

God bless this country, you, and our people in foreign lands. May we all learn to live together in peace and compassion.

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