Daily Archives: October 6, 2009

>Lovely Day

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>I got some tidying up done, and my friend Tess brought some groceries I had asked her to get for me. Then we played games on here for a bit. Fun. We always get hysterical with laughter when we play pc games. Especially Big Kahuna, the word game. It’s my fav.

Wondering what my life would be like if I felt even this good on a daily basis. I still tire easily, and have some pain, but I am pretty functional. I could actually cook, and even go out to the library or something. Do more decluttering around here, too. It’s amazing how backed up everything gets when you are not well. If you have family, they can pitch in with the tidying up and keeping things running well, but when it’s just you and the cat, dishes pile up, mail piles up (got my mail, finally), everything gets messy. Then your feeling better time has to be spent clearing up all the things you couldn’t do because you were feeling crappy. Feeling good times should be reserved for fun. Fun is very, very important in life. Even when you feel crappy, fun makes you feel that little bit better. I read fun blogs like the LOL stuff and Cute Overload because they make me smile, and quite often make me laugh out loud.

I wonder if anyone else out there is dealing with chronic illness on your own, and how you manage life. I like living alone, and not being responsible for anyone but myself and the cat, but sometimes it would be so nice to have someone who would cook a meal, or clean up the kitchen, or even make a cup of tea for me. What do you think, readers?

>Much Better

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I am. Much better today. Slept well, feel pretty good. It’s a gorgeous fall day, too. Sunshine, breezy, comfortable. I have showered, but I need to get dressed so I can go down and get my mail. Last time I got it was last Monday, over a week ago. I’m sure the mailman is not happy with me.

I found this program on tv the other day about a food challenge in Canada. It was to only eat items produced within one hundred miles of where you live, for one hundred days. Not so simple as you might think. No sugar or coffee or salt or pepper or any spices. A long list of things we take for granted. It really got me thinking about how we live. My first thought was what if it was winter? I live in New England, and there isn’t a lot in season in winter. You’d have to live more like our ancestors, learning how to preserve food. How would you do that? Canning, root cellars. No brining, because no salt. I think this would be really hard for anyone, but for someone with a chronic illness, the work involved would make it impossible. How fortunate we are to live in a time where food is easily available in pretty much ready-to-eat forms year round. I could not survive otherwise, since I live by myself and cannot afford a private chef.

That’s something I’ve learned since becoming ill. Not to take so much for granted, because I can’t. You have to be healthy to grow your own food, prepare your own food, raise your own animals, all the things people had to do not that long ago. Illness makes you count your blessings. I know some people spend their time bemoaning the fact that they can’t be their pre-illness selves, and trying to find something to fix them. I do that, too, sometimes. But I prefer to learn the lessons of illness. Appreciating what I can do, what is available to help me survive with illness, friends who are willing to help out with the really hard stuff. I think I have a wonderful life, even though it isn’t the life I thought it would be, or the life I used to have. It is still a good life, with friends and fun and lots to be grateful for. Like Jack and Ianto. *smile*

>I Seem to Be Sick

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I never get sick, but last Monday a friend came over and she was coming down with a cold and I must have gotten it. I don’t have cold symptoms, though. I just feel worse than normal. Does a cold or similar illness manifest as a fibro flare instead of the actual cold symptoms? I haven’t had a fever, although I did have a brief ‘sweat’ thing yesterday, for no reason I could see. I’ve been spending most of my time on the couch or sitting here. I’m thinking maybe I DO get sick, but it causes increased fibro symptoms in lieu of what ‘normal’ people get when they are sick. I am puzzled and confused. Maybe what I think are flares are really that I’ve caught something and don’t know it. Or maybe this doesn’t make any sense at all and I should just go to bed. I love this snap of Ianto, btw. “He always cheats.” I snagged it off a fanvid.