FIRST ICE & YESTERDAY'S TEST

It's a lovely day here along the riverbank—the sky a bright jay blue, and sunlight sparkling like diamonds off the snow. Yet even though stalactite icicles along the eaves are dripping steadily, it's still cold out, only 18˚F according to the thermometer on the wall beyond my deskside window. 

When I stepped out with Moon the Dog after breakfast this morning, it was an even colder 10˚F…which to my way of thinking is a bit much for what is officially still autumn rather than winter. I noticed the river was beginning to sheath itself with ice. For the past few days, there has been a narrow ice shelf along many portions of both banks, but this is the first time I've seen ice creeping into the middle of the slower pools. It will doubtless take a few more days and nights of below-freezing cold to close the gap; right now, the mid-current areas are mostly slush. A precursor, perhaps, of a possible early and colder-than-normal winter. Time will tell…

Time will also tell the outcome of yesterday's colonoscopy, though there's no reason at the moment to expect anything other than a benign report from the one polyp that was removed and sent off for lab evaluation. The procedure itself almost didn't happen. I'd spent a pretty awful night beforehand, getting up and down, restless, cold, shivering, unable to sleep more than a few minutes at a time. I wasn't worried about the test; I simply couldn't seem to get warm—possibly due the day's diet of a clear liquids only. I finally got up for good at 5:00 a.m. and fixed myself a big, steaming mug of black coffee. At 6:00 a.m. I began drinking the half-gallon of Gatorade/Miralax mix, which immediately began making me nauseated, though I got the stuff down and kept it there in the prescribed two hours.

However, I wasn't feeling much better by the time I checked in at the hospital at 12:30 for my 1:30 p.m. procedure. Due to some underlying health issues, plus the fact that my blood pressure was on the high side from the sodium in the prep mix, the gastric surgeon considered scrapping the procedure because of possible risks from the anesthesia. I suggested we do the procedure without using anesthesia, which I knew is often the protocol in other countries. The surgeon considered and agreed—whereupon they wheeled me in and things proceeded without a hitch. No pain, I got to watch on the monitor, and no post-anesthesia recovery time. 

Afterwards, Myladylove and I stopped by the grocery on the way home, and once here, I cooked us a late lunch while she gathered wood and built a nice fire on the hearth. Moon the Dog wagged profusely, barked at squirrels, and begged for handouts. Then—fed, warmed, and relaxed, Moon and I sacked out on the couch, while Myladylove changed CDs as needed and worked on her beadmaking. 

That's my report…perhaps a bit too detailed. What I really want to say again is very how much I appreciated each and every one of your well-wishes and prayers. Thank you so much for such genuine concern. It truly meant a lot.

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