Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Bi-annual appointments are a bother

I hate driving all the way up to Fond du Lac for fifteen minutes of doctor time in order to get my pain pills refilled but if it's a choice between no pain relief and the trip up there, I'm going.  Still, they wear me out.  And of course once I get there, I feel fine so there is nothing to report.  Except this time she noticed my right knee was swollen.  It almost never is when I'm there so in a way, that's good.  I told her about my dodgy hip and getting a cane and she said I was smart to do that because a lot of women won't for vanity reasons.  No point in getting any testing of it since we know from years ago that the bone density test showed I have arthritis in that hip.  My family doctor would have insisted I get another test to see if it has gotten worse.  Since it doesn't feel any worse, I don't see the need.

I wish my rheumatologist was my family doctor sometimes.  Don't get me wrong, I do love my family doctor.   We get on well and have good rapport but she is nuts about tests and wants me to get them every time I'm in.  Well, she used to.  Now she understands I'm just not going to do that because I can't afford our share of them AND there is no way of knowing until after the fact whether the insurance company will even pay for them.  They won't let me know beforehand.

I didn't knit much last night because I wanted to fall asleep soon enough to get some sleep so I could wake up early enough to get ready for the trip.  Didn't work.  I had to stay up to tell Tom about the condition of the car, which he had planned to take up north this weekend.  It's not going to make it up there and back.  And we can't afford to abandon it by the side of the road or get it fixed up there.  I suggested he and his brother drive up there together since they're going to the same place and since gas is nearly $4 a gallon now, but he's not really keen on that.  I don't know what it is about guys not wanting to share rides.  Well, I don't know what it is about him since his brother seemed okay with it.  So the only thing that's going to happen is we're going to be without transportation for four days while he's gone.  We live in a very tiny city with no shopping at all so I'd better get everything I need before he leaves.  If we run out of anything we'll just have to do without.

I"m making progress on the child's sweater mostly because it's worsted weight and goes more quickly.  I'm working on the sleeves on both sport weight baby sweaters so I alternate the projects so nothing gets put aside for any length of time.  I'd like to get back to my Greek Key afghan but it's too heavy for this weather.  Hot, that is.  Not sweltering but hot.

Pizza in the oven but that will probably be the last one for a while as we are under super tightwad measures from now on.  We've got so many extras that keep popping up, especially this month with co-pays and the minivan's license due for renewal.  Plus Tom's hunting and fishing license and his trip up there.  But I don't begrudge him the trip.  He's so tired from working 70 hour weeks every week of the year for at least the past 12 years.

Poor guy.

TTFN

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