The morning coffee is still being prepared on the range, with the camping percolator. That old percolator was another yard sale scoop, many, many years ago. It is a stainless steel model, so is virtually indestructible. It is shiny at the top, and black on the bottom, from being used over campfires. It works very well. At first Attila’s efforts were less than spectacular, but it only took him a few days to get back in the swing of things. More time consuming than a electric coffee maker, coffee making has become a significant addition to Attila’s workday preparations.
Last summer I bumped into a sale on electric coffee makers, a decent brand was on sale for $15.00. I bought one just in case. The just in case is now. The new coffee maker is still in the box, at the little house in the city. All that is needed is to pick it up next time we, or I, visit.
The masonry heater was cured immediately following Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. Today, as I sat quietly checking my email, I had my first nosebleed of the season. Sheesh, I wasn’t even doing anything strenuous! This year I am on a vaseline-in-the-nasal-passages campaign, which may or may not help; it was suggested to me by my family doctor. I have always had nosebleeds, since early childhood.
Attila spent the day burning brush from his previous clearing projects, and stacking the newly purchased firewood. He finished both projects by dinner time, we are as ready for winter as we can be!
I spent the day removing everything from my dresser drawers and clothes closet. There are items in there from the 1980s! Some of the clothes will never fit me again. Some of he clothes are just one size too small, so those will be stored in bags with the size written on the bag, in theory they may fit again. Everything has been tried on, and sorted. There is a sizeable stack of clothing to be dropped off at the Salvation Army Store. The place where I donate things has a truly needy clientele, the establishment is totally non-profit, and there are not many items in the place, so I am sure that these items will go to very good homes, where someone will use and appreciate them. The items are in “like new” condition.
There are some items that are are worn or torn or just not suitable in some way for donation. The sound portions of fabric will be salvaged from them. Currently I am planning on making tea towels, hot pads, and curtains from articles that would have been destroyed otherwise.
It has been a mild, wet, and blustery day. That doesn’t discourage the wildlife. As Attila and I were sitting at the table this morning, chatting over breakfast, he spied a Red Fox trotting down the road in front of the house. It was a beautiful looking animal, well proportioned, with a beautiful bushy red coat, and a magnificent red tail. Attila told me he saw a flock of Wild Turkeys at the end of our road, when he was coming home from work on Saturday. Also, a fat Blue Jay has been flying around the house all week, landing in the branches just outside the windows, and a Red Squirrel has been leaping branch to branch, and darting up and down tree trunks for the last few weeks.
 |
Worldly Distractions
Weather
2°C
Date: 2:35 PM EST Sunday 9 November 2014
Condition: Light Snow
Pressure: 100.8 kPa
Visibility: 11 km
Temperature: 1.5°C
Dewpoint: -0.3°C
Humidity: 88%
Wind: SSE 21 gust 32 km/h
Quote
“You can’t deny laughter. When it comes, it plops down in your favorite chair and stays as long as it wants.”
Stephen King
1947
Maggie, I am jealous of all you ladies that can drink café. Next life time. That, straight legs and lots of curls! Hubby used to percolate his café but when he started going through too many percolators and their price shot up he went with Mr. Café and likes it just fine. He drinks café that could easily curl the paint off walls. I would have to be hospitalized if I drank it.
Nosebleed. Is there a season where they are more prevalent? Sorry that you get them. I have only experienced a handful.
That was a big under taking working with your clothes/ drawers and closet. Trying everything on and so forth. I’ve done it. I could stand to do it again even though I donated 3/4 of my clothes last year before and during transit. I wonder if I will ever fit into my pants again. I have one pair I have been wearing for the last year. I looked yesterday for more of them but I wasn’t focused and tired easily. Shopping isn’t my thing these days and buying clothes is hard. Lol, I am so wimpy! It must feel good having completed that project.
The closet here is very deceiving. It runs the length of the wall which seems like it is spacious. But the only easy access is from the two doors that open and show that anything to the sides of those doors you need a map to find. If it had four doors it would have been ideal. I’m not sure exactly what I have in there any more and I think like you I will have to go through it again with a realistic mind.
My sister discovered that the organization she was donating to in NY was selling her beautiful clothes over seas where they in return were making rags out of them to resell. I think (think) it was The Salvation Army. I do not remember how she found this out but she changed organizations. That as very disturbing to hear because who would think that donations would not be going where you think they would. One has to be careful. I donate to a Christian ministry because I know they do what they say they do. Plus there are not a lot of local choices. I am happy with this choice.
The wild life there out side your window and road sounds like a National Geographic dream. We had visiting wild turkeys in upstate, NY and I loved them. I have some wing feathers left as a gift. In Fl I had a visiting gray fox (they climb trees) that the raccoons chased off every night. It was interesting to watch. I wish we had red squirrels here. They are little treasures!
Here’s to keeping and staying warm this winter and being so well prepared. Cheers!
P.S. That is a nice photo of Great Granduncle Sandy. I love old photographs and this reminds me that I need to go through the boxes I have and organize them and share them as well. They are priceless.
Your Uncle had 10 surviving children. Families were large back then. My mother came from a family of 9 with one still born.
I like the quote.
Because I’ve been on oxygen 24/7 for 2 years, my nose tends to dry out year round. There’s a thingy one can attach to the oxygen concentrator – a humidifier of sorts for the nose, but I found myself anxious about keeping the attachment at the correct water level and my nose became overly leaky with all the moisture. We on oxygen can’t use Vaseline – it corrodes the plastic, which might give one pause to consider what it does to flesh. It’s suggested that one use KY Jelly. 🙂 I keep on forgetting to purchase some, but I know my nose will be grateful for the protection.
That would be so hard Nora, no coffee! I used to drink a lot of coffee, in my PhD years, I only slept about three hours a night, all I had time for between my studies and raising two daughters by myself. It was hard to cut down though, and painful. For many years now I have only one cup in the morning, and allow myself no more than that.
LOL, next lifetime, yes I too have a list! Still, we are pretty amazing when you think of it, we humans, miracles each and every one of us. Miracles and stardust.
Nosebleeds are seasonal for me since we moved to the country house and heat with wood. Wood dries the air, reduces the humidity significantly. My nasal passages dry out, and since am prone to nosebleeds anyway, I get them in the winter.
I know what you mean about all those unreachable regions in a closet. Ours do not spread out, they spread up! Cathedral ceilings. So we have shelves that require a step ladder to reach. Most of my genealogical records are up there in boxes, and it is only an issue when I am writing and need to consult a record, then I need Attila to get the ladder and start bringing down heavy boxes. Luckily I didn’t need to touch those today.
The Salvation Army store I take things to works hard to get the items on the shelves, it is a small town. However, I will be looking into it. There are always women’s shelters, and I am sure some women need nice clothes for job interviews etc. I will be doing some research before proceeding.
I am fascinated by the generations that came before us, and made us who we are. The community that my Grandparents lived in was the same area that their Grandparents came to as pioneers, and now we have a camp there. The continuity is priceless to me.
Reenie, you learn something new every day! I had no idea that being on oxygen would dry out your nose. The doctor told me that vaseline is the correct PH for skin, and highly recommended it. I don’t know if there is an alternative for me, maybe coconut oil? I might give coconut oil a go, and see if it works. It smells good too!
Leaky beaks as Attila say, lol!
Vaseline in your nose? That makes me so uneasy. Doctors don’t even want you to even put Vicks Vaporub in your nose anymore, as – just like Vaseline – it’s not water soluble.
SD and SS30 both have problems with bloody noses. Apparently they have a genetic predisposition to blood vessels near the surface of the lining. With SD, the doctor looked inside her nose and said that it’s not just one bleeder but a mass of small blood vessels, so even the surgery sometimes used with chronic nosebleeds wouldn’t work for her. In the end, the doctor prescribed a nasal spray that shrinks the blood vessels and using that SD was able to make it through both summer allergy season and winter dryness year after year with basically no problems at all.
Maggie: I may be spouting misinformation – but there’s something about the 02 and Vaseline that don’t cooperate, I think I’d better consult Dr. Google. 🙂
As far as I know Vaseline is a petroleum by product and toxic to the human body. Just sayin…..:(
Thanks for the feedback re vaseline Irene, Nora, and Teri, certainly helpful and timely. The need for caution is well advised.
The Mayo Clinic http://www.mayoclinic.org/petroleum-jelly/expert-answers/faq-20057784
“Petroleum jelly: Safe for a dry nose?
I’ve put petroleum jelly on the inside of my nose for years to relieve dryness. Is this safe?
Answers from Lawrence E. Gibson, M.D.
Petroleum jelly is generally safe to use. Rarely, however, inhaling fat-based substances (lipoids) — such as petroleum jelly or mineral oil — for prolonged periods can cause lung problems.
Typically, petroleum jelly applied to the inside of the nostrils drains down the back of the nose with normal nasal secretions and is swallowed. Rarely, small amounts of the jelly can migrate into the windpipe (trachea) and lungs. Over many months, the jelly can accumulate in the lungs — leading to potentially serious inflammation known as lipoid pneumonia.
In some people, lipoid pneumonia causes no signs or symptoms. In others, lipoid pneumonia may cause cough, chest pain or shortness of breath.
Lipoid pneumonia is often detected on a chest X-ray or CT scan. Sometimes, the diagnosis is confirmed with a bronchoscopy.
When lipoid pneumonia is caused by petroleum jelly, generally the only treatment is to stop using the petroleum jelly. To relieve nasal dryness without petroleum jelly, use a vaporizer or humidifier or try over-the-counter saline nasal spray. If you must use a lubricant, choose the water-soluble variety. Use it only sparingly and not within several hours of lying down.”
In view of just how unhealthy daily nosebleeds can be, not to mention extremely unpleasant, and disruptive, and the fact that there is no medical cure for my nose’s propensity for bleed profusely without much provocation, I will proceed with caution with the vaseline. I plan on applying only a thin layer in the morning, when I will up and moving around for 15 or more consecutive hours. Humidifiers will not keep up with the dryness in a house heated with wood, so that solution is not practical. Of course, the ideal solution would be to sell the country house and move somewhere with central heating! We keep trying.
Just a crazy thought, would an oil like olive oil help your nose? If it does end up getting in the stomach, it’s food safe. But I probably don’t know what I’m talking about. I’m sure you drink lots of water, etc.
Have you seen an Ear/Nose/Throat doctor about having your nose cauterized? I used to get nosebleeds all my life until my late teens. So did my father. When I got a bad nosebleed at work one day (working in a hospital) I went to an ENT doctor there who said he could cauterize the offending blood vessel (it was malformed or weak) and he did it on the spot, and sent me home for the day. I was 19. I have never had another nosebleed since that day.
Bex is right that, as I was saying previously, a nosebleed from a single bleeder can be cauterized or otherwise tied off. Unfortunately, SD and SS don’t have single bleeders. Has your doctor said if this was a single vein causing the nosebleeds, Maggie?
I will ask DH if he remembers the name of the nasal spray that was prescribed for SD. It was a corticosteroid but that’s still better than daily nosebleeds.
We think the medicine is Nasacort AQ, which is generically Triamcinolone.
Joan, the olive oil is now on my list! Will be researching it, and so far haven’t found any reliable medical source that warns against it. Thanks for the suggestion.
Bex and Teri, I have been consulting doctors for 50 years about this, cauterization is not an option for me. Too bad, it would be a simple fix.
I am going to try KY jelly in the a.m. for a few mornings, and see how that goes. Going for the simplest, least expensive ideas first, as money is an object.
I am lucky, in that the problem occurs due to a known condition, wood heat in the winter. This means a lot more control than if this were happening year round.
So many good ideas here, lots to explore, thanks to everyone!
Thanks for the name of the drug Teri, so glad to have record of it here, in case I need it!