PICCin' but not much grinnin'

I got a new pink cast on Wednesday and a PICC line put in today.  After the PICC was put in, Larry and I got educated as to how to do it and when and all that.  I'm infusing 100 ml of Ancef every eight hours.  Or 7:00 AM, 3:00 PM and 11:00 PM.  That was best for my sleep schedule.  

The actual PICC procedure didn't hurt that much.  The numbing shot was a little uncomfortable but once I was numb, I didn't feel much.  I was able to watch on the monitor and it was cool to see my ribs and lungs and to see the wire running through there and ending at my ribcage.  

I bled a good bit after the procedure and when they put my first dressing on and then some more when I got home.  It seems to have stopped.  It's 11:20 PM and I'm almost through with my first infusion by myself.  Yay.

I'll go to the Infusion Center once a week to get my dressing changed and once a week to the Wound Care Center to get my wound checked and get a new cast.  They cut off the old cast and put on a new one every week. 

My birthday is Monday and I'll be smack dab in the middle of wound care and IV antibiotics.  

But, Sunday, we're going to see the new Toy Story movie and eat at our favorite Mexican restaurant.

Sweet Baby Jesus, let this be the end.  Let this infection leave my body and allow my wound to finally heal so that I can get back to my life.  Amen.  

It's my 10 year blogiversary!

Y'all.  I just realized that this month marks ten years blogging on the Junket!  Wow.  These past ten years have flown and I have changed SO much. 

I've shared my life, my jobs, my job changes, going back to school, trips I've taken, food I've cooked, Gotcha Days for our fur babies, my attempts at gardening, products I love, just MY LIFE.  And I've enjoyed every minute sharing with the ones of you who read my blog.  I know you're out there.  I've had over 208,000 page views from all over the world.  I see you and I appreciate you!!  Thank you for following me and for reading about my life.

One thing I have shared a lot that I don't do so much anymore is family get togethers.  I used to love those.  I love my family and I loved getting together with them on holidays and birthdays and such.  But things have changed and I have very strained relationships with both my sister and my brother so I see my parents when I can avoid the other two.  It's really hard to avoid my brother since he and his wife LIVE with my mama and daddy because he's a drug addict who refuses to get help.  He won't work, can't pass a drug test to even get and keep a job, and the whole thing is so infuriating.  I feel like he's mooching off my folks, who pay all the bills and buy all the food.  And this is not the first time they've had to live with my parents.  It's a pattern with them.  They've allowed his drug addiction to take homes, cars, everything they have.  It is not right.  It is not what I need and expect from my brother.  He is such a disappointment to me.  He's taken money from me, groceries from me, because he LIED to my face and took advantage of my love and my obligation as "big sister".  Every single person in the family who looks the other way enables him and they disappoint me, too.  I'm the bad guy because I don't and I'm being "mean" because I refuse to condone his behavior.

I haven't seen my sister in two years.  And that one stings.  I love my sister.  She has a hateful way about her, though.  A way that cuts and bites and hurts and she said one thing too many, a nasty insult to Larry.  At my birthday party, two years ago this month.  The absolute last straw.  I've suffered years of her verbal abuse, her little digs, her smart remarks, telling me what to do, how to be, how to even raise my cat (who by the way, is ridiculously healthy and happy and sweet and friendly and social), making fun of me whenever she could.  I just took it, laughed and let it go.  The outburst to Larry (after years of constant little digs at him as well, which he took and let go), over something that was SO small and insignificant and involved ME and not her, was just the thing that changed something in me.  Like a little off switch inside.  And I've not seen her since.  Oh, we've texted a few times but could not get anything resolved.  You can't make someone apologize for doing something to you but you can refuse to subject yourself to more of it.  Forgiveness flows freely around here but I'm not stupid.  I've touched that hot stove before.

I don't know if they'll read this or not and I don't care.  I don't blog for them.  I blog for me, as an outlet to express what's going on in my life and the life I'm building with Larry, after so many years of being apart.  We deserve this life.  We waited a very long time to have it.  And we get to decide who's in it and who's not.  I don't like the term "toxic relationships" but if you find yourself in one, get out.  It's not worth the pain.  I also have a strained relationship with Larry's daughter and have not seen them in over three years.  Also, over something very selfish and nasty she said to Larry.  Larry tells me all the time to let this stuff go, that the insults were toward him and he's perfectly fine with everybody, old hippie that he is.  I just can't do it, though.  I forgive you but you need to apologize and change when you see you've hurt somebody.  I have no room in my life or heart for selfish people.  

So, there's all that.  Me at 52.  I've been through a lot the past several years and the worst time of my entire life has been with this foot of mine.  The more I endure, the more I realize that I want to surround myself with people who love me and don't play games.  The older you get, the less drama you want around you, and the only drama I want in my life is "The Young and The Restless".

My advice is if you want to blog, DO IT.  Even if no one reads it.  Do it for you.  

Again, thanks for reading my blog and I welcome each and every one of you to stay on this ride with me.  I promise it will not be boring!

Still...with the foot

But, there's tomatoes, too!  

So I saw an infectious disease doctor yesterday who debrided my incision right there in the office with some kind of crochet-needle-looking-thing, scalpel, I'm guessing because it cut and it HURT.  I hate when people just start chopping on you and don't tell you what they're doing or WHY they're doing it.  God a'mighty. 

I did like her, though.  She told me she's concerned that my incision is going to bust open when the stitches come out next Thursday because the skin is very thin right there.  Well, duh, I just had a skin graft RIGHT THERE.  I'm so over this whole thing.  Just one thing after another after another.  She wants to put a hard cast on, foot to knee, to immobilize my foot and put me on IV antibiotics for six weeks via a PICC line.  I'm waiting for the call today to tell me when to go to the Wound Care Center for all'a that.

The one thing she told me, that second opinion that backed up our theory all along, was YOU NEVER PUT A HARD CAST OVER A HEMATOMA.  And quite possibly, the hardware used caused this infection.  Soooo many mistakes made with my foot from the very beginning.  This whole thing did NOT have to happen.  I could be frolicking in the sand with my baby next weekend for my birthday but nooooo, I'll be stuck in a cast with a needle buried in my arm. 

But hey!  I have pics to share!  No scary ugly foot pics but pics of plants living their best life with all the rain we've had.  We got our sprinkler system fixed Saturday so no more watering every-dang-thing every day all summer.  Yay.  It was just the control box.  No biggie.

I had almost given up on my little patio jalapeno.  It was a stick!  And now there's one tiny pepper bloom.  No more jalapeno on a stick!  Ha! 

The purple Russian tomato plant is doing great, too!

I'm so proud of the rhubarb!  I'm not looking to actually GET rhubarb this year but next year, she should be ready.  Vicki, that's her name.  :)

Our sunflowers are growing big!!  Every year, something stings the crap out of them and I have to sprinkle diatomaceous earth on them.  Guess it's time for that.

Our first tomatoes of the summer! 

For an early birthday present, Larry gave me a Big Bertha!  A 4-ounce Pyrex casserole dish in the Old Orchard pattern.  He found it IN THE WILD, too.  Incredible.

Annnnnd just because he's as cute as a slice of pumpkin pie with Reddi-wip on top...Tabbie Hoffman wearing my peace necklace.

My boot boot.  <3

Number FOUR

Good grief.  This is getting ridiculous, don't you think??

I had my fourth surgery on this foot last Thursday, again in Phenix City.  Larry snapped this pic of me sleeping hiding after we were done and back in my room.

I brought a pillow from home this time, old hand that I am nowadays.  Hospital pillows are awful. And a pretty silk pillowcase makes everything better, right??

The food is great at Hughston Memorial Hospital, as is the care.  No complaints there.  I just wanted to sleep, though.  I ate an Italian ice once I woke up and drank some juice and they brought me a chicken sandwich but I could only get two bites down. Friday morning, breakfast was toast, eggs and bacon.  Nope.  I couldn't eat that either. 

It took a while to sleep off that anesthesia.  I'm still sleepy, five days later.

Here's my foot now.  This time, Doc drained and flushed my ankle joint so I have two little stitched incisions on top of my foot and he removed the one remaining anchor and cleaned some scar tissue off my ankle joint.  He showed me pictures.  The joint was pretty much covered in scar tissue.  He had hoped that would stop the popping and snapping that I'm feeling in my ankle but as soon as I got home, they started back and now are pretty much constant when I'm walking.  The joint pain returned this morning so I don't know what's going on in there.   

My blood culture results will be in tomorrow or Thursday and we'll see if there's infection and then we'll deal with that as we have to, cross that bridge and all that.

I'm so ready to get on across this bridge!!!  Life is passing me by, the beach is still calling and my birthday is this month!  Come on, foot!!