Thursday 2nd May

 Snippets...

I did some cross stitch, so I can start on the lettering tomorrow. That feels like progress. 

The family opposite have managed to train the toddler twins to stagger along in a close approximation to a straight line - I love watching them! They seem to have got the idea of walking as a means of reaching a destination,  as opposed to just staggering around as their arms, legs and sense of balance directed!

I haven't been putting out pebbles for some weeks. This afternoon the little girl who used to collect them carefully placed a snail on the wall. Was that a hint?

We ate the bean sprouts in a stir fry. Very enjoyable!  I'll get the next lot going soon.

Thursday 2nd May - My Oxygenated Life

I'm going to have to open a whole new file to keep track of everything... perhaps these blog posts will help. 

I did some googling today. Apparently there are around 32,000 people in the UK with Pulmonary Fibrosis (PF), around 8,000 people with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) and 19,000 with Scleroderma, the auto-immune condition I was first diagnosed with back in about 2000, which led to the PF and the PAH. I hadn't really realised how uncommon my situation is - when I go to the clinics they are always packed with people so I had assumed I was one of a large crowd. 

That explains why, outside the specialist clinics I attend in London, none of the other health departments I interact with have much idea of these diseases. I'm working on getting an assessment for home oxygen done locally. The secretary told me that I am seventh in the queue, so, with two clinics a week I should been seen at the beginning of July, possibly at the end of June. 

Months away. Oh. My. Word. It's a good job my life doesn't depend on this (heavy irony and sarcasm). I've said I'll accept a short notice cancellation in the hope getting an earlier appointment. Meanwhile I'll carry on juggling the portable concentrators, each with a short 1.5m  length of tube, that we bought some time ago. Otherwise I would just have to stay upstairs using the NHS concentrator prescribed for overnight use. 

I had a call from another community health department about things that would make life easier. I'm so glad we were able to afford a stair lift ourselves. The waiting list for assessment for NHS help is 6 months... I really, really feel sorry for people who just have to wait. 

Thank heavens, praise the Lord that Spring is on the way! Getting out into the garden every day for a little while is keeping me sane and sweet tempered(ish!).

Wednesday 1st May

This morning was all misty, but it soon cleared. Not enough to let the sun through. We have thunderstorms forecast for tonight...

I did have a look around the garden

This first aquilegia is flowering in a sea of lemon balm

And I think this white flower is a kind of viburnum call snowball, but I'm not too sure;

And a reminder of the Sans Day Carol; 'now the Holly bears a Berry as white as the milk, and Mary bore Jesus and wrapped him in silk';

We ate the alfalfa sprouts at supper time, as a fresh and crunchy addition to ravioli with green pesto and pine nuts.

I mentioned yet another decluttering hack which is to remove one thing every day for a year. I thought I'd start with May and see how I got on; today it was a star ornament which has been added to a charity bag.