Do You Play Words with Friends?

I do, but I may be quitting in the near future.

In the past 3 weeks I have had three men start games with me and 'chat me up", as they say.  They start by saying "hello" and asking how I am, to which I usually answer ,  "fine".  Then they want to know where I live. I comment only my state (never the city) and  then they ask if I am married, how many years, do I have kids and if so, how many.  The three have stated that they reside in Oregon, Texas and the west coast of England.

I am very non-committal, answering only in the broadest of terms.  But the last two guys have asked for my cell phone number and my email. Of course, I said no,  and then they said "they only want to get to know me better."

Well I don't want to get to know them better - and I have said as much - but it doesn't seem to dissuade them. I may have to block the last two, as I did the first guy.

Have any of you had this problem?  How did you handle it?

No News is Good News - or so they say

But in my case, it means there was no time or inclination to write a post, or I was sick, or in pain.

For about 5 weeks, my neck, arm shoulder and upper back have hurt terribly. I started by going to my chiropractor, but after 7 treatments, I had not seen any improvement. His x-rays showed 5 bone spurs in my neck.  I made an appointment with my orthopedist, who ordered an MRI - which showed three bulging discs (#5-6- and 7).  It was decided that I would receive a steroid shot in my neck - which may or may not help. She also put me on a nerve medication.

I am happy to report that it has helped a great deal!! The severe pain left almost immediately; and although it partly  returned after 2 days, it left again and except for some residual soreness, it is if it never happened.  I am so grateful to be out of that severe pain. At times, my elbow hurt so badly I wanted to cut my arm off.

In the meantime, I am coming down with a cold (passed to me by my child, unwittingly) and a possible UTI, due to side-effects from the nerve medication I am on. 

And today, the death knell came:   my clothes washer (which came with this house) has died. The part to repair it would cost $275, not counting installation. It is a minimum of four years old and I doubt it would be smart to spend $275+ on an older machine. I really wish I had kept my own washer/dryer when we moved here. But this set was only 1-2 years older than mine and I thought it best to save on moving expenses. I guess that was a mistake. 

I'll get over it all, but today, I am royally ticked off.

Sorry..... I'll write a post soon

Not sure anyone cares if I do or not.

We're Getting All Cultured Up in Here!!

Two of my neighbors and I went to a play this last weekend; The Women, written by Clare Boothe Luce, whom you may know as a former ambassador to Italy, the first woman appointed to represent the USA in a major country. 

The play was written in the 1930's and the original movie, starring Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford and Rosalind Russell came out in 1939. There was a remake in 2008, starring Meg Ryan and Annette Bening, along with Eva Mendes.  

The play is funny, and shows the author to be erudite and observant.  I think the content is timeless and this play could be adapted for performance in nearly any time period.  The three of us certainly enjoyed it!

However, there was one aspect we didn't enjoy - and that was the cold temperature of the theater. We had been warned by a previous attendee that it was chilly, and so we dressed accordingly - or so we thought. I had on a sweater set and a skirt, and my legs and feet were shivering.

The play was held at The Cary Arts Center, which was the original Cary High School, and as it is on the historic register, it is an interesting place to visit. I just wish it had been warmer. 

Pinched Nerve - Part 2

Please refer to the previous post if you don't know what's going on in my life.....

I have been to the chiropractor  seven times in two weeks - with minimal pain relief. So I have decided to see my orthopedist on Tuesday.  Jim is getting physiotherapy in our home twice a week, so we consulted with his therapist and he gave me a treatment last Friday, with some relief. He massaged my neck, shoulder and arm muscles and it felt so good. I am looking forward to his next treatment, on Monday. 

Today, my daughter took me to get a Chinese chair massage. They only had time for 15 minutes, but it felt good and relieved some of the spasms I was having. Afterward, I came home to apply the ice pack - for what seems like the 500th time in 2 weeks. Thank Heaven for ice. Muscle spasms are unforgiving, but icing them helps a bit.

Nearly constant pain is debilitating so I am hoping for some more long lasting relief in the near future. Thanks for listening. 

A Pinched Nerve?

Last Friday morning, I woke up after a good sleep and had a slight pain in my neck. It felt as though I had slept in a kink, as we say.  Hoping it would go away soon, I continued on my day. But the pain didn't go away, and over the course of the weekend, it traveled down into my shoulder and my arm. It is waves of intense pain that go into my hand.  Tylenol, the only thing I am supposed to take for pain doesn't touch it. I am lucky that I have some codeine left over from my broken collarbone in March, and taking one of them at night helps me get to sleep. Otherwise, sleep would not be possible with the pain. 

I went to my chiropractor, whom I had not seen since March 2015. As I explained the pain, he felt my neck and twisted it a bit (which made it hurt more) and said I can't touch you without x-rays, to see what is going on. So today I am getting x-rays of the upper back and neck area. It could well be a pinched nerve. 

I have had 3 babies, 5 surgeries (inc. open heart) , 5 car wrecks and 3 broken bones - and the pain of this is so much more intense than anything else I have experienced. It is hard for me to type this now. 

Please pray for me, if you are the praying kind, and if not - send me some good thoughts. I really need them. 

Another Busy Week....

On Saturday, we went to Maggiano's for dinner, to celebrate my first-born daughter's birthday. Only three of her children were there; the fourth is in Dallas, doing a workshop in anthropology. It was a nice gathering, although two of her siblings were unable to attend. We ate our fill, and thanks to the restaurant's policy of allowing you to take home a serving - we left with a shopping bag full of Italian delicacies.  I tried to upload a photo, but Blogger is not cooperating this morning. 

On Saturday, the clubhouse here showed the movie "Miss Sloane". It stars Jessica Chastain, and is a fast-paced story about a Washington lobbyist. I enjoyed it. 

On Sunday, our son came for breakfast, as we were joined by our granddaughter Jessica, the budding artist. She had gifted her mother with a painting of hydrangeas, and we all wish it was ours. Again, Blogger will not allow a photo. We have developed a habit of having poached eggs on Sunday, and quite often we have guests, which is fine, as we love having them. 

Sunday afternoon, my son and I went to the outdoor pool at the clubhouse, the first time for me since we moved in in December of 2015. The water was warm, just as I like it - and I didn't really want to get out to go home. But I had signed up to view a documentary that evening, titled "Remarkable Journey", about the Asian Indian community in NC. It was fascinating and ended too soon. Then we were invited to go to a new Indian restaurant nearby, named "Persis." I don't think they were prepared for an invasion of about 20 people; service was slow, the menus were not in English, we had no idea of what we were ordering, and the waiter didn't speak English well enough for us to understand him. It was what a Navy man would call a "SNAFU".  I ordered some form of Tandoori chicken and it was given to the woman seated next to me, whom I didn't know.   Eventually we all got served, and we tasted some of everything (well some of them did - I am not very adventurous when it comes to food I don't recognize.) The best part was the complimentary dessert, something mango and frozen, similar to ice cream or sorbet. I'd go back just to order that!! I didn't get photos of all the foods, but since Blogger won't let me post them - I guess it wouldn't matter.....LOL

I spoke with the young man who introduced the documentary; he is the current mayor Pro-tem of an area near where I live. I mentioned that my son's best friend in high school was an Indian boy, with whom he had lost contact after high school. That boy died two years ago - and he happened to be the best friend of the man who introduced the movie. It was nice to make that connection, especially since we still mourn our friend's passing. RIP, Alok!