Walking Wih A Wiggle

I figured it was about time to do another update on my health status. Doing it here is much easier than repeating it over and over on the phone.

Okay, so I finally have a primary care doctor. Yay! I've seen her twice so far and have another appointment scheduled for the first part of December. Being out of touch with 21st century healthcare, as I was prior to the heart attacks, makes for a number of doctor appointments until everything is taken care of.


I've had a mammogram done, twice actually. The first one showed 'something', 'something' that, thank God, wasn't there in the second one. My mother died from breast cancer but I don't think it's genetic. I think she got it from taking medications, hormones specifically.


I've had my medications changed. I am now down one less prescription and no longer feel like there are baby robins fluttering in my chest. I also no longer have to run to the bathroom every fifteen minutes. I kept telling the cardiologist it was the meds but he disagreed. I was right.


I've had an MRI on my knee, the one that I injured two years ago when I fell on the jagged concrete. I'm waiting for the results. The doctor wanted to make sure I didn't have a torn ligament.


I go to physical therapy three times a week for the knee. It's painful as can be but my knee is getting better, I think.


If you call in the mornings and I'm not around, do not panic. I'm probably at physical therapy or yet another doctor appointment. And if I sound exhausted when we talk, it's the therapy. It's really hard work.


Be good and be careful, take care, stay strong.


hugs, Tawny

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My Aunt's Funeral

Today we buried my aunt, Big Gal. Her real name was Lillian but everyone called her Big Gal for most of her 83 years. Yes, she was big so she came by the nickname honestly.

Big Gal died last week Wednesday. Everyone thought her kids would have buried her this past weekend. It's not like people were coming from down south and needed traveling time, the furthest anyone came was Chicago. One of her sons, Terry, is in Mississippi but he couldn't come for the funeral. He's within maybe 45 days of being released from prison and they wouldn't give him a furlough. More than likely the hold-up was the undertaker insisting on up front payment and having to wait on her life insurance check.

There was a big turn out. It was almost like a family reunion. I saw cousins I hadn't seen in years.

When I pass on I don't want a funeral. It seemed so sucky that the one day everybody showed up to see Big Gal she couldn't see them. I want people to visit me while I'm alive, not after I'm dead and laying out in a casket.


Be good and be careful, take care, stay strong.

hugs, Tawny

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Foreclosure X 2

A few years ago I was telling you about the house next door to me. How Dave and Diane, two of the hardest working people I knew, had lost their home to foreclosure. What made it doubly sad was Dave's father, Bud, had built the house all by himself back in the 1950's.The family lost a piece of their history when Dave and Diane lost their home.

A fellow who fancied himself a 'house flipper' bought the house from the bank. He completely redid it---new carpeting, kitchen counters, appliances, aluminum siding, etc. Then he put it on the market, expecting to reap humongous profits.

When I heard what he was asking for it I tried explaining to him that his asking price was unrealistic. Even though property was selling at an all time high, he was asking 40 grand more than any of the rest of us on the street could sell our homes for. And our homes were decades newer and almost twice the square footage, and had basements. He paid me no mind.

The neighbor across the street and down one, Ed, he tried explaining it to the owner too. But the flipper knew what he knew.

So months and months went by and no one bought the house. He offered deals, sort of---he tacked another 20 grand onto the selling price and said he'd refund the 20 grand to you at closing. Nobody was interested. Then he tried auctioning it. Nope, didn't work.

His next step was to rent it out. It took him almost a year to get a renter. The family stayed less than eight months. The house is empty once again, this time for almost a year. Another couple rented it for one year, then moved. Empty again for many, many months until a year ago this past August when a family with a child moved in.

But now the house is empty again. Not because the family wanted to move. Nope, they liked the house even though the rent was a bit high.

This time it's empty because it's in foreclosure. The landlord, the 'house flipper', was collecting the rent but he wasn't making the house payments with it. The family moved out this weekend.

I don't know how it is where you live but here in Michigan there are so many foreclosures it isn't funny. This one makes at least two on my street, and maybe the tenth in a four square block radius.

Aside from the obvious sadness and heartbreak when a family loses their home, it's also not a good thing for the rest of the neighborhood, the city, or the state. Whatever I could have expected to get for my house if I wanted to sell it, now it's thousands less because the foreclosures sell for mere pennies on the dollar.

I don't know when or even if this will ever correct itself. Michigan is a mess.

Be good and be careful, take care, stay strong.

Hugs, Tawny
248-615-1300

L Is For Lust

Have you ever lusted for an inanimate object? If you'd asked me that question prior to yesterday I would have said 'no'. But now? YES!


I was at Costco yesterday and I saw the most beautiful watch! Anne Klein. $169.99 (which means it probably sells for at least $400 anywhere else). I fell in love. It was all I could do not to purchase it yesterday. I kept telling myself 'are you crazy? $169.99 for a watch?'.


All last night I thought about that watch. I even dreamed about that watch. I want that watch in the worst way.


I don't think I have ever lusted for an item before. I'm not real materialistic. I have a watch that works just fine. It's utilitarian and practical and will probably last me another twenty years.


But that Anne Klein watch from Costco is beautiful. It's white gold with a large face and it has diamonds on it. I'm going to have to stay out of Costco for awhile.


Be good and be careful, take care, stay strong.

hugs, Tawny

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Ringing My Bell

Had some excitement here in the wee hours of the morning. I woke up at 3:30am to what I thought may have been the doorbell ringing. Nope, must have been a dream I figured because nobody would be ringing my bell at that hour. But then I saw Kathleen, my beloved cat, hunkered down in the hallway and knew that the bell must really be ringing because that's where she sits when the doorbell rings or someone knocks on the door.


I turned on the flood lights and didn't see anyone at the door as I peered out the picture window. The bell kept ringing and ringing. No way in the world was I going to open the front door. The bad guys are going to have to work harder than that to ambush me.


Finally, after about an half hour of this craziness, I unplugged the door bell from inside the house. Immediate peace and quiet!


I think the doorbell must have just gone crazy last night. Like when a car alarm goes off for no apparent reason.


Kathleen and I were up until almost 5am. It's hard to go right back to sleep after so much craziness. I slept in until 8:30am and I had to roust Kathleen at 10am as I was going out the door. I know she went right back to bed as soon as I left, the lazy cat (smile).


Had it not been that today is the last warm, sunny day for who knows how long, I may have stayed in bed, too. But I wanted to go to the lake and sit in the sun. And watch the beautiful swans. Can't do that and sleep so...


It was nice at the lake. I sat there for a couple of hours soaking up the rays, then hit the grocery store, and then, for the first time in six monthes, I stopped at McDonalds. Have you ever had one of their frozen strawberry lemonades? Me neither until today. Right around $2.40 for a large one and it was great.


Hope you're having a good day. Be good and be careful, take care, stay strong.

hugs, Tawny
248-615-1300

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