Jaci Dawn

One week of 2013, that is, and it isn’t even a complete week, just the first 5 days that are down. We still have 359 to go.

It’s been cold and frosty here since just before the New Year.

I took a bunch of photos one day, thinking I would get a chance to blog and post them, but it didn’t happen. This was the only good one, anyway: the dog’s wading pool full of oak and Hawthorne leaves, encased in ice.

I worked exactly one day of 2013 so far.

Thursday, we played a little game of role reversal: I drove my husband to the hospital so he could have a double hernia repaired. It was strange being the spouse waiting instead of the patient.

The surgery went well and he was released around 1:30PM, home by 2:00. He’s been very dopey since, and he moves a little like Tim Conway. He said that and when I replied, “yes, you do look a little like Tim Conway, he replied, “Stop that! It hurts to laugh.”

If you don’t know who Tim Conway is, I’m sorry.

Friday, I was a good nurse. It is not my forte. But my dh is a pretty un-demanding patient.

Friday, I finally got a diagnosis for my ailments, too. I am digressing here and I am making this All About Me by inserting this, but then, again, it’s the whole timeline of 2013. I do not have Fibromyalgia or Lupus: I am severely Vitamin D deficient and that (in and of itself) can cause all the symptoms I have been experiencing. I immediately googled it and discovered that one of the diseases associated with Vitamin D deficiency is rickets.

I learned about rickets in the 6th Grade when we studied Vasco de Gama and all the “great” Italian and Spanish explorers of the 14th and 15th Centuries. I remember thinking that rickets was possibly the worst way to get sick, ever, and I lived in mortal fear of setting sail across the Bounding Main and coming down with rickets. It is one reason I steer clear of taking a trip on a cruise ship on any wide open sea or ocean. You could end up with rickets.

Or you could fall over board and get eaten by a shark. It’s that simple.

Not to be dramatic or anything, but severe leg cramps combined with general fatigue and muscle weakness is a sign of rickets. All my symptoms rolled into one great big ball of diagnosis, marketed under “Vitamin D Deficiency.”

I’ve always complained that the Willamette Valley is too overcast for me. Suddenly, the phrase, “I need more sunshine” takes on new (and relevant) meaning. I need more sunshine.

I’m on a Vitamin D2 regimen of 50,000 units per week for 12 weeks. My Internet friends tell me I should take Vitamin D3 instead and I googled that (Vitamin D2 vs. Vitamin D3). I think my friends are right, but I’ll go along with the doctor for now. In 12 weeks, I’ll explain my plan of taking Vit. D3 to him. But first, I just want to feel better. Soon.

Today was a repeat of yesterday, except my husband was moving a little faster. No running marathons, but a big improvement over yesterday. He was a little more like Tim Conway, the aging fireman.

The dogs have been good, considering they do not understand what is going on. Murphy wants to climb onto Don’s lap and doesn’t understand that he is not allowed. Harvey wants to go run a marathon and doesn’t understand why I don’t want to.

I could actually feel Harvey’s ribs this weekend. There’s still a layer of fat over them, but there’s hope. He can lose weight (that would be Resolution #3).

My husband appreciates the prayers and good thoughts of everyone, especially those who are praying I do not kill his dog. Murphy and I have a long history of vying for Alpha Dog position, and with Don stuck in the recliner and unable to play referee, it’s wide open as to which one of us will win: the 90# dog or the <ahem> slightly overweight wife. The <ahem> 45 pounds I have on Murphy don’t count toward much: his are muscle and mine are fat. However, I am more determined than he is. So far, I am winning.

Here’s Don on Day One:

And on Saturday:

(If you don’t pee your pants watching these, there’s something wrong with you. Even Harvey Korman couldn’t keep a straight face to Tim Conway’s antics.)

And that’s just the first five days without the birdwatching thrown in. I’ll post about birds tomorrow.