Knitting knitting and more knitting

 I have officially painted myself into a corner with knitting projects for the next 6 months.  Deadlines are looming!

I mentioned previously that I was knitting a top called The Stockinette Top.  It is a top down raglan project that I thought I would easily knock out.  I started with a yarn that just was a little off guage and then I had problems with the very first element - a neckline that wouldn’t stop curling.  I did half the top and I ripped it out.  But I wanted this top.  So I purchased the yarn suggested by the designer - Drops Air.  That made a big improvement in the finished project.  But I wasn’t sure I liked the color I bought - but I plowed on to the end, and the color actually looks good on me in the mirror. But it isn’t a color I typically purchase.  Too neutral or something.  Regardless I finished that top.  

Drops Air is a blown yarn that is a light weight aran weight, comfortably warm, in a color I grew to like - and cheap! I don’t like how I did the neck but I don’t dislike it enough to rip this out and start again!!  Remember - this was my 2nd start at this pattern.  Drops Yarn has some surprisingly great yarns at incredibly cheap prices.

I added a long 4x1 rib and a small 3 row stockinette roll edge.  I could have just cast off with the 4x1 rib, but the small rolled edge did give it a better finish than a cast off edge.  The long rib seems to be a thing on Ravelry. 

The arm is roomy enough to accommodate another light weight shirt underneath  That was not my intention but at least the arms sort of “fit” with the rest of the sweater ease. 

Then I decided I would do this top in a yarn I totally loved because I wanted to love the yarn and the pattern!!! Classic Elite Waterlilly is an aran weight and really beautiful.  It is a kettle dyed yarn that is out of production, but was introduced when kettle dying was a “new thing.” The yarn worked up beautifully - on gauge and exactly what I wanted - until I tried it on for sizing!  Cripes!  It was just too darn HOT! 

It is a good color for me. This aran weight yarn is spun and the sweater turned out quite heavy.

Here is a better picture of the 4x1 rib with the rolled edge.

And then - the sleeves.  I didn’t plan on bat-wing sleeves.  Actually my first thought was - wow.  I could put my thigh in that sleeve. 😂.  Oh well. I just won’t stand like that!

And finally the neck!  This rose color sweater is my 3rd attempt at the neck.  And it was perfect for me.  Again, it is a 4x1 rib.  The original pattern called for starting immediately with a stockinette stitch - the pattern picture showed it laying flat. didn’t roll   But everyone knows that stockinette stitch rolls. I didn’t want a roll neck.  It was the one complaint that was noted on Ravelry.  The designer didn’t explain how she got a stockinette neck to lay flat.

Regardless, my method not only stands up correctly but it hides a double chin!!! Also I can survive the North Pole with just this sweater.  

Win-win!!!

Despite the fact these yarns are soooo very different from each other, they both turned out to be tops that are best worn over other clothing and not as tops worn close to the skin - as the pattern seemed to suggest.    

But I am totally bored with all the stockinette - 2 1/2 sweaters worth of it!  I wanted to do something a bit more challenging.

Along comes a KAL for a sweater that was in my Favorites on Ravelry. The Woven Arches Sweater by Catherine Blanc of the Kat and Stitches Vlog on YouTube.  The KAL started November 1 and ends January 1.    She offered a 15% discount on the pattern - since I was going to buy it anyway, I signed up.  Typical of me - I am starting the KAL late.

I love this sweater but .... The first problem I noticed was that the model is stick thin - and I am not.  (Why do I do this to myself?) Then I noticed that this sweater is similar to the two I just finished.  Hmmm.  (I seem to have a theme.) Finally the sleeves are a little loose at the wrist (another Ravelry trend.)  I am not sure I will be able to adjust that since there is a repeat of the pattern there. I know I won’t make them quite that long for sure.  

No matter - onward!!!

I was pretty sure I had the yarn in my stash for this - Purl Soho Cashmere Merino Bloom Heather.  This yarn is 75% Extra Fine Merino Wool and 25% Cashmere and oh so soft.  I purchased the Bloom yarn about 4 years ago on sale and it was pricy then - over $300 for a sweater’s worth. Then I changed my mind on the sweater I selected for this yarn - but I knew I would use it for something special. And I better darn well use it as the price on this yarn has skyrocketed - the same number of skeins purchased today is in the $480 range off sale.  An outrageous price that I would never pay now, but it is a wonderful wonderful yarn - just too far out of my price range.  The color I have is called Tidepool.  It is a neutral gray that has undertones of green in good light. When I sat down to do the gauge swatch for the Aches Sweater I realized that the sweater gauge was a worsted weight + a lace weight Mohair (2 yarns held together.) *sigh*.  That seems to be another trend now on Ravelry.  Bloom Heather was a light worsted.  So I did some mohair research looking for a high quality product that was next to the skin friendly.  I wasn’t going to go “cheap” on a mohair (which can be itchy) when I was blending it with the premium Bloom Heather yarn.  I settled on Isager Silk Mohair in a silver green color - to help raise the green color elements in the Bloom Heather - $185 worth of silk mohair. 

Lordy!!!  This better work out.

All shades of green are my favorite.

I am preparing to cast on - a week late - but still inspired by the pattern and the yarn.  I am really really glad to find a pattern for the Bloom Yarn.

And just to add to the deadline stress, I have already committed to next year’s Stolen Stitches Mystery Shawl Knit Along.  I have done that KAL for 2 years and really enjoyed it.  Stolen Stitches is out of Ireland and the catalogue of this woman’s work is extensive.  I think I have mentioned her site before. The website has yarn, patterns, a section for questions and discussion of various patterns and also many, many video options for her patterns - so you never feel like you can’t get help!  That KAL runs from February to April.

And a distant goal, I really really wanted to knit a short sleeve top to wear at Maryland Sheep and Wool next May. I have many beautiful patterns and yarns just waiting for me.

To be completely honest - this knitting schedule is crazy! December and Christmas are right around the corner.  I am not a fast knitter and free time becomes wishful thinking during the holidays!  The only thing that might make this doable for me is that both KALs emphasize that it is ok to knit at your own speed (slow) and not worry about deadlines (right!).  I will have to tattoo those words on my forehead!!. That advice might work for mellow folks - I am more a type A individual.  Put a deadline in front of me - I am like a bull with a matador waving a red flag.

In fact, my Astrological Sign is the Ram - Aries!!  Not that I put much value on Astrological Signs, but if you read up on the Aries personality, it describes me completely. Words like bold, stubborn and highly competitive are found in the descriptions.  The picture is a Ram with horns!  

Nope, not a peaceful sign at all. 

😁

The Final Guard Rail

I know I promised my next post would be knitting.  I have pictures and text in the works.  But public events in my country cannot be ignored.   

A few days ago our nation held a national election for the selection of new members to our Congress - both houses of congress, many local elections including some State Governors and state representatives.  It is called the mid-term elections because the US President is not up for reelection in this cycle. Typically this election is not attention getting and is largely ignored by the population.  But this year it was not only attention getting but also historic in its response to demanding a change. And by now almost everyone in this nation and (apparently) in many other nations across the globe know the outcome.  The President’s party, the Republicans, were roundly defeated in race after race throughout the nation. There was a resounding outcome that rejected the President’s actions and the Republican’s lack of action.  Guard rails that were built into our institutions to prevent or correct the development of a dictator failed one after another. Where was the Cabinet and the 25th Amendment - that allows for the removal of a President?  Why wasn’t there an uprising of patriotic members of the Congress (Republicans AND Democrats) to impeach and remove a wanna-be dictator from the highest office in the land? And at the Judicial level (the Supreme Court, for God Sakes), was the MOST  embarrassing by giving him permission - legal permission - to be above the law?  It was left up to the final guard rail (the American people) in a historic outpouring of frustration and anger to stand up and say “Enough is Enough.”

Thank God they did - because beyond “the people” there is no other safety net.  

I am not going to give a list of all the promises he made and how they were broken. That is for others who are keeping track.  I just want to be grateful that one of those guard rails held.

BUT we are not out of the woods yet!  The Democrats, who have been handed control of both houses of Congress, now must step up to the plate and demonstrate that they hear and see what their citizens want. It will be a long legislative list of corrections from the last 2 years as well as a sincere attempt to repair international friendships that Trump set about to destroy.  It is a big job.  But the people gave the Democrats a majority and as a result, the power to make change.

Don’t fail us now.  We want better.  The world needs better. 

And to BOTH Republicans and Democrats - make no mistake, that final guard rail has a long memory!  I suspect you will be hearing from us again in record numbers in 2 years

Democrats - do what you promised.  Fix our broken system. And stay focused on the people. Because that is where the American Power is kept safe.

Republicans - figure out what happened to the party of fiscal responsibility and smaller government.  Get back to your roots.  There are tons and tons of conservatives who did not drink the Kool Aid and follow the half-crazed Trump.  They are looking for the party that left them.  

   

Netflix - Famous Last Words

I came across an interesting Netflix show called Famous Last Words.  The host interviews very famous individuals who may be reaching the end of their lives due to age or illness.  The studio is empty except for the interviewer and the famous person.  Cameras are remotely managed.  There are no camera personal or directors in the space.  The interviewer reviews the path of the famous life getting the person's reflection on the events.   In the end, the interviewer leaves the guest alone in the space so they can leave a final recorded message to the viewers.  The interview is not aired until after the death of the individual.

I have seen 3 episodes: Eric Dane, the actor who had ALS,  Gloria Steinem, equality activist, and Jane Goodall, Primate Naturalist.  All the interviews were interesting and thought provoking.  Questions toward the end of the interview often address end of life issues and many I have thought about myself.

One question addressed to Ms. Stienem was something to the effect of “How do you feel about not being here at some point in the near future?”  She paused and thought about it.  She finally responded that it is hard for us to accept our own absence.  How well said.  I know I have had similar thoughts.  Something as simple as this. How is it that the building that I am sitting in now will exist when I am gone?  Sounds like an odd question, I know.  Setting the religious considerations of an afterlife as our focus after the death, my brain gets a little unsettled at the idea that this place will still be here when I am not.  I have no problem with the fact that our world has millions of places and things in it that are centuries old and have seen many generations pass by.  I get that easily.  But my mind finds it hard to accept my own absence while everything else remains.   

I find if I think about that idea of absence long enough ... I realize that nothing is really mine - that it is all only ‘borrowed' for a time. It makes accepting my absence from my place in the world a bit easier to  wrap my brain around.  A harder idea is absence from loved ones ... well ... I hit a wall when I think of that.   

If you have Netflix, I recommend the series.  The most heart breaking interview of the 3 so far was Eric Dane.  Here was a man who was probably in his 50s.  He still looked as strikingly handsome and fit at that age as he did when he was in Gray’s Anatomy.  And yet he was frozen in a wheelchair, barely able to speak.  Obviously, except for illness, he would have had many more productive years ahead of him.  He left behind a wife and 2 young children.  The other two ladies, Ms Stienem and Ms. Goodall, had lived really full and important lives - reaching very old ages.  While it is also sad to have such vitally active people lost to us, at least their lives were not cut short.

Anyway, next post will be a knitting update.  Time for a sunny topic.

Facing the next 20 years or 20 minutes ... which ever comes first!

I’ve been very off center for the last year or two - unable to find my footing enough to return to blogging in any meaningful way. My life is pretty uneventful if you overlook all the health issues. 

I have never been the kind of blogger that writes about day-to-day stuff.  Detailing my days just doesn’t fill me with inspiration. What is odd is that I actually read some blogs that do share those kind of things and I enjoy them.  It is kind of comforting to see patterns of life that sometimes fit my own.

But for me ... well let’s give this a try.  Today I did some laundry, the cleaners are here now cleaning our condo, hopefully my car which needed a new muffler will be returned to me today and my husband and I got our covid 19 shots.  Flu shots were last week and next week we are scheduled for the RSV shots.

Is anyone still awake?  

I think I am a better writer (and thinker) when I am writing about something that is weighing on my mind - something that is unseen but fills my mind more than I care to admit. The last time that happened I was my mother’s caregiver.  It was 8 years of a solitary lonely sh*t-storm that seemed to go on and on.  At the same time it was a gift that I could give my mom during her last years - the gift of time and dedication as she desended into dementia.

Obviously I have kept connected to my blog writing about a host of other things in the last 12 years since her death - but nothing was as consuming.  It was really just laundry, and car repairs and health issues and housework, repeat, repeat, repeat!  

Lately, however, my brain has shifted to overdrive on a topic that we all will face if we live long enough.  Our last decade or two of life. Or our next week or two of life - since nothing is promised. Lately I find myself waking each morning thanking God for another day.  I never did that before. I assumed that the next day and week and year would be there.  My calendar is full and I have things to do.  I am sure many people live their lives like that. But at 79 I came to the conclusion that I’ve been lucky in life and this stupid assumption going forward had to stop.

I don’t consider myself religious even though I was raised as a practicing Catholic.  My feelings about organized religion are complicated.  I do believe there is a supreme being. I consider myself spiritual.  But I am 99.999% sure that the supreme being isn’t listening to my gratitude each morning, (and this is a pretty valid assumption based on all the crap that is going on in the world right now).  Just in case, however, he/she happens to be passing my way in the morning, a small 'thank you' is not too much to ask.

My husband turned 80 this year and all his various illnesses, while controlled and managed, have tapped his strength and mental fitness. I do my best to minimize all of them in his mind so he doesn’t become depressed, but there is no ignoring the fact that any one of them could end his life.  We are only 8 months apart in age. I will turn 80 in April 2027.  That birthday has attention grabbing impacts. Any negative events - something as simple as a fall - in the decade of the 80s - can be “curtains” for a senior life. Since our calendar has very many medical appointments every single month, I am constantly reminded that keeping alive now is a full time job.

These thoughts are just the tip of the iceberg in my head.  They rattle around almost daily. When I was mom’s caregiver, thoughts just built up and built up until I was about to explode.  This blog was born then.  I could pour out those thoughts in one place and know they weren’t escaping - but they had stopped residing in my head.  It helped.  

So I think I am back in the 'blogging saddle' - trying to face my own future - however much there is of it.   My own health so far is leveled out and for that I am also grateful. But mentally I need to get a grip.  I know the standard line about birthdays is “it is just a number.”  But no one can deny, 80 is a very big number.

There will be 'sunshine and flowers’ blog posts .... and there will be 'rainy day and muddy puddles' posts as well. Pictures might be hit or miss.  I will talk about knitting.  But my brain will probably jump from one topic to another without logic.  It might be a bit of a roller coaster - but I won’t be talking about laundry and car repairs.  Those of you who do talk about the daily stuff - please, keep on doing it.  I will need the your ‘normal’ to remind me to enjoy my normal.

Back Again

 Back again ... as promised.

The lull in our health “adventures” seems to be holding.  The carnival game of “Whack-A-Mole” - (where you have a rubber hammer and you whack down a wooden mole who keeps poking his head up through the holes in a flat board) - that “life game” we have stopped playing for now.  Modern medicine - while it cannot cure our ailments - it has provided scientific measures and medicines that are keeping us - most importantly - my husband, well for now.  

One non-medicinal coping mechanism I used was knitting - a sort of escape hatch.  This knitting  time was different from other stressed filled periods in my life, because I didn’t drift away from knitting like in the past.  Rather than stop knitting, I  doubled down into it. I also did a lot of stash management.  I performed another sweep through my stash to donate some yarn to the local thrift store.  My sorting criteria was - will I be disappointed if I never get to knit with this yarn - rather than - do I love it.  Through my 70s the years are pressing me to discard stuff that just adds weight to my life.  I also gave in to purchasing many new patterns and yarns - probably more yarn purchases than yarn donations (*sigh).  I really didn’t have to buy yarn, but it did give me the opportunity to explore other yarns I have never used.  I also spent time getting my Ravelry account current - no pictures of knitted projects, but all other areas are up to date. Now when I look at Ravelry patterns, Ravelry automatically pairs up items from my current stash that others used for this same project. This is a time saving feature.  If a project has a 1,000 finished objects, I can be connected quickly with only those projects that used yarn I have in stash.  That pairing of stash to patterns is a remarkable Ravelry feature I previously ignored because my stash inventory was so wrong. 

Actual knitting, however, was limited to just one project - and I am still working on it.  Last winter I started a project called Stockinette Tee by Svetlana Volkova.  

 

It is probably the first close-to-the-skin project I have ever done - not counting socks.  I’ve done shawls and sweaters that are worn over other clothing, toys and blankets. But in over 30 years of knitting, I never knit a garment called a tee or a blouse. What I discovered is that close-to-the-skin garments are a little more demanding when it comes to fit and gauge. 

My first yarn choice for the Stockinette Tee was from stash and it was the blend of 2 yarns to obtain a worsted gauge.  One yarn was a fingering weight called Silk Road by Kiparoo Farms - a blend of silk and wool - that was soft and drapey (top left).  The second yarn was a lace weight by Unplanned Peacock called Whisper Lace - a blend of Alpaca, silk, and cashmere. (right) This combination (bottom left - biggest ball) was not only exceedingly soft but the colors of the Silk Road (the multi-shaded one - top left) were muted somewhat in the fabric it produced - reducing any pooling concerns.

All the edges are rolling.

I started that darn Stockinette Tee about 5 times.  It is a top down garment that begins from the very first row at the neck with stockinette - actually one of the features of this tee that I thought was very nice.  As any knitter knows, however, stockinette curls.  I falsely assumed it wouldn’t curl because the designer's picture shows no curl.  She would explain how she did that, and all would be well!  But after looking at the pictures others took - I suspected my assumption was wrong.   Almost everyone’s curled. I didn’t like the look.  One knitter gave the pattern poor marks for not explaining how to achieve a cast on that didn’t curl.    I almost abandoned the pattern before it had reach row 5.  At some point I switched to my own version of a neck line (a hem neck) that was acceptable.  

I reached second major hurtle with this tee.  I got past the arm holes and joining the body, but then decided that the arm holes were not big enough.  I extended the arm holes by another inch - risking the chance I might run out of yarn for the sleeves.  If it didn’t fit, I wouldn’t wear it so I extended it.  I closed up the arm holes and barreled my way down the sweater with simple stockinette. At some point I stopped and tried it on.  Crazy, but the sweater was now too big.  Part of the problem was that although I got stitch gauge, I didn’t get row gauge - which never mattered in other projects I did because I would just extend the pattern to where I wanted it.  In this pattern, row gauge is important. 

Frustrating.

I went onto Ravelry and checked the yarn the designer used.  Drops Air - found it was an inexpensive option - purchased that yarn (because you know I was in a buying mood) - and cast that on.  

BIG DIFFERENCE!  No, the Drops Air was not as pretty as my Silk Road blend but the gauge was spot on and it seemed to settle comfortably into the pattern.  It also is knitting up faster because the row gauge is bigger.  I decided that the raglan sections would start at the very top of the neck and the non-raglan sections would be garter.  It is sort of like a very wide rib.  Once it is blocked, if it looks better than the picture it will stay.  Otherwise if will get folded down and sewn in place. 

I still haven’t made up my mind if I like this Drops Air fabric, but it is a very warm, very light weight option - good for the winter.  I will finished the Drops Air tee, block it and then see how it fits.  If I decide it isn’t for me, I will donate the finish object, and consider it a learning exercise.

And the Silk Road blend?? I ripped it all out recovering all that lovely yarn, and it is now in a ball (the big ball in the top picture.)  And I think I found the perfect pattern for it - and I will cast that one on soon.  Pictures to follow on that in the next post.

So what have I learned from this 7 months of knitting focused on only 1 pattern?  

• Check row guage.  In fitted garments it makes a difference.
• Don’t force a beautiful yarn into a project just because you want to use both together.  After I balled up the Silk Road I felt relieved that I hadn’t wasted this wonderful yarn on a project that didn’t seem to fit it well.
• The Silk Road yarn is just gorgeous in person.  It requires the simplest of patterns - just something that will allow the yarn to take center stage and shine all my itself.  And since the dyer of that yarn has died this past winter, all her yarn (of which I have other colors) has now become very precious.
• And finally, but most impactfully - my body is not as slender as the model’s body.  This little truth trips me up all the time. :-)  What looks good on a slender person (who could probably wear a potato sack and look smashing) doesn’t always look good on an elderly round body.  

I’ll post the finished Drops Air version of the pattern when it is blocked.  

That is about all I have a present.  What I am really hoping is that as I re-learn all the stuff I used to know (and now seem to have forgotten), future projects won’t take me a year to complete.  Seriously, I can't believe how long this is taking ... and I have sooooo so many projects and yarn lined up waiting to be started!!

Solid Progress - short update!

Without sounding too confident, I think things are settling out in our lives and especially in my husband’s health.  No more new unexpected surprises.  All conditions are being medically managed and he is feeling better.  In fact, yesterday, he and I went out for a 15 minute walk around our community, and other than being tired, it was a huge improvement for him over the last time he walked.  That time was before his hospitalization in May, and he definitely was struggling then.  Now the only struggle is keeping our daily walks going consistently.    

We both saw our primary care doctor this past week.  She was especially happy with my husband’s  progress.  

Then she moved on to me.  “And how are you doing?”  Seriously, now-a-days my mind goes blank regarding my health issues.  I can quote “chapter and verse” on any aspect of his care, but I sort of loose the thread of the discussion when it comes to me. I said something to the effect to her right then.  After a few (like one) condition update, I paused.  I thought for sure she might mention my weight gain.  I have gained 10 pounds in the last 4 months and more than that since my knee surgery last September.  So before the physical exam began, I brought up “the elephant in the room.”  (That phrase certainly felt appropriate in the moment.). I noted the weight gain and before I could finish saying anything about how I  got this weight gain (sitting too much, eating too much, eating the wrong foods,  etc. etc. etc.) she looked at me and said one word.  “Stress.”  It stopped me in my tracks. “Yes, Stress.  I noticed you gained 9 pounds since I last saw you.”   She went on to say the last 6 to 7 months have been filled with nothing but stress.  "It is normal that a weight gain would occur,” she went on.  “You can start to focus on you now - and we can see how you are doing in November - say before Thanksgiving, maybe??”

Have you ever had someone tell you something that was so observant and so non-judgmental ... and so true, yet for some stupid reason you couldn’t seem to admit that truth to yourself? You just blamed, blamed, blamed yourself for letting things get out of hand. 

I can tell you that not one doctor I have had before did more than say ... “try cutting out the cookies.”  Yes, that actually was said to me previously.  

I could feel emotions starting to fill me up.  So my response was limited but also grateful.  “Ok.”  

On the shopping therapy front, I made one more purchase yesterday from Purl Soho for some yarn I have had my eye on for maybe 10 months and it was 25% off now.  God knows, I don’t need any more yarn, but I did it anyway.  Now for the yarn diet to start.  Taking care of myself includes putting the break on these kinds of expenses.

Anyway, that is where we are right now.  The next post will be yarn and knitting focused!  Promise.

You Can’t Make This Stuff Up!

February is when I last visited this space.  I am not even sure why I am here now except that I still have a few kind readers who are left and maybe wondering - is she still with us?  I am.  And my husband, thank the Good Lord, is still with me as well.

The winter and spring has been bumpy to say the least. My husband began to feel poorly starting in October or November.  On New Year’s Eve had an aphasia event - a brief inability to put his thoughts into words.  No other symptoms, and although I did check him for a stroke the episode, it passed quickly. I decided that a trip to the ER on New Year’s Eve was probably not needed.   That episode, however, was later diagnosed as a mini-stroke or a TIA, so maybe we should have gone.  ERs are not healthy places to be during the winter - well maybe not anytime.  Once the diagnosis was made, however, it launched an avalanche of doctor appointments and diagnostic testing over many specialists.   

Initially it began with a visit to his primary doctor and a neurologist, but then expanded to a cardiologist.  The cardiologist’s testing and findings lead to establishing care with a pulmonologist.   

He now has COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, emphysema and chronic bronchitis) due to smoking earlier in life.  He quit in 1985 but the damage is done regardless.  Now he is on various inhalors.

And in April he had to have one of his surveillance EGDs with the Gastroenterologist.  That test came up negative for the return of cancer,  thankfully.  But he couldn’t have it done until he got clearance from the cardiologist, neurologist and pulmonologist.  His next surveillance EGD this fall, we need to get the same 3 clearances, but now we add his Oncologist - but I have gotten ahead of myself in this story.

We thought by the end of April he had exhausted his list of new doctors and new diagnoses. Unfortunately we were wrong.  He started having weight fluctuation - which we were tracking at the cardiologist’s request.  We suspected fluid retention.  He also had trouble sleeping because he was "focused on breathing". He never said he was short of breath - in fact he insisted he wasn’t short of breath. So we waited to see his primary care doctor. That was a mistake.

That appointment was on May 4th.  She recommended that he go straight to the ER.  He needed urgent testing with stat results and that is only obtained at the ER.  When we got to the ER the place was packed (normal for our hospital).  I thought we would have a long wait.  We didn’t.  They took him right away.  They promptly checked his oxygen levels and he was critically low.  He was started on oxygen and admitted, and stayed in the hospital for 7 days!!  (Yikes! They don’t keep anyone for 7 days anymore.) At first they diagnosed pneumonia, but later settled on fluid build up around his lungs - due to heart failure. They were also tracking abnormal blood work that his Oncologist was also tracking. In conjunction with his Oncologist’s review, he received 2 blood transfusion in the hospital and at discharge (the very next day) the Oncologist saw him. While anemia was known since his chemotherapy, it had not resolved.  So a bone marrow biopsy was done and the test results came back - a type of blood cancer.  As explained to us, it was a very slow growing type of cancer and was probably already there when Chemotherapy was started.  But Chemo sort of jump started the progression of this condition.

At this point in the story, my husband and I had become sort of numb to all the bad news.  He was off oxygen, he was feeling good again, eating and drinking well - feeling “cured” so to speak, and yet the health discoveries continued the mount up.

Believe it or not, there is a fortunate ending to the story. If you look for the positives, you usually can find some.  All of his diagnoses have treatments that allow him to maintain a “normal”  life again.  Even the blood cancer has an injection that prompts the bone marrow to make new blood cells and thereby avoid blood transfusions.  

I have said this over and over again.  Living in this time - and this place - (because we live near medical centers that provide state of the art medical care) - we are the luckiest people on earth. Great doctors, prompt medical care, exceptional treatment options ... you can’t ask for more than that as you approach 80 years of age.  My husband’s 80th birthday is this August.

He is doing well.  Of course, we take daily weight, blood pressure and oxygen checks to capture any change in his status.  Best to adjust things before being hospitalized for them.  We also keep oxygen in the condo - although he hasn’t needed it since a week after discharge.  But all is well right now in this household, so I guess that is why I felt I could write this post.

Will I be back to this blog?  I honestly don’t know.  I have been doing a lot of knitting, (A LOT) so I could probably do a post on that... and I have also been doing some yarn and pattern "retail therapy" (shopping you do to make yourself feel better).  My yarn stash is at a pretty high level right now.  

It either is me buying too much yarn  or the yarn is reproducing on its own. I think it is the latter. 😀. 

At least we can both breathe freely once again.