Yesterday we spent some energy in the garden harvesting the corn. That went really well. We did the math based on four ears per dollar and figure we must have got $50 worth of corn out of ours! I think that has Missis fairly convinced it was not worth it. I just about agree, though I sure did have a lovely corn on the cob supper last night.
And then there is the pain factor. My hips went off on me, causing pain down to my knees, and hurting something fierce. I took a nap, I think for about two hours or so, and woke up still in serious pain. Continued rest finally relieved it. According to a Google search on it, I am to expect pain now caused by bone remodeling, as opposed to years of it from degradation. I am left to wonder if what was thought before of as Psoriasis and Arthritis was just caused by this glandular issue, as it apparently can go on undiagnosed for years, and even decades.
So, it is Monday morning, and only four days after surgery. It seems like it has been well over a week. The wound is a little tender, but not painful at all. I had painkillers yesterday during the hip ordeal, in the form of two generic OTC acetaminophen. Nothing to do with the wound. So, I am quite happy with how that is coming along. There is no swelling that I can feel. I only feel the little bandages that are holding it together. Those are set for removal on Wednesday morning.
I hope to go back to work after that. But it really hangs on this business of what is going on inside, I think. I have remained pretty restful apart from the corn harvest. That turned out to be devastating. Who knows what a day of trying to work would do to me? Nothing sudden has come up on me, like unconsciousness, or any attempt to become so. Is that a risk? If so, that will put a damper on working! If not, and I am just facing the demands of pain, then I think I can take a pace that will be tolerable. Maybe a bit of shop time will either help to answer the question, or at least help me understand the pace I need to be at, or work my way up to readiness? Gentle shop time.
The girls have been lovely, as always. I have had help with my chores. And Katrina has insisted on my not lifting anything. She has kept me from doing myself any damage. All of my needs are more than met. And their company through all this has been wonderful! I am so thankful for their sacrifices to help me through it. I could not ask for a more loving and sweet family.
Here I am, sat on my bed at a little before 5AM, feeling the bones, not quite hurting, but I am aware they are there. I think I could call this more of a weak feeling. I can feel them from my knees to my wrists. Thighs especially are alert to that feeling. I need to go wake Missus up for her weekly with her bestie. Then it is back to bed for a little over an hour before getting the girls to the bus stop. Then home again. I feel like I should be working. I should be earning against the bills that are coming. But I will need the rest. I will need the pacing. That’s hard to accept. But I have dealt with enough pain over my life to have learned to deal with it properly. It’s no good hurting myself to sort of prove anything.
I had a good talk last night with my oldest daughter, Autumn. She is keen to learn about photography, and we spoke of it a bit. I think that will be a much easier conversation to have in person. I can better asses her technical skills then. Then there is the subject of subject and composition. Use of color and light. Patterns and repetition. Subject isolation, or elements such as leading lines. She seems to think she wants copies of my pictures. I think she really wants to just make her own. That would be much better. My art is mine, not just in a possessive matter of ownership, but in a matter of creation. She needs to explore her own style and take pride in it. The best I can do is help set her on her own path and leave my work to me. Besides, why should she be paying to host copies of my work when the cost to do so is better spent on her own?
Hurts to cough still. Phlegm still wants coughing up.
Missus is up and getting ready for her call. I am back on the bed, thinking the bone pain is a bit worse for wear already. Might lay back down for the next hour, if I can just finish this entry soon!