deafness

shaking it off

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Those things, you know…the things that you have to shake off. Do they bother me? Those things? Of course they do but there’s no one at the edge the lake with a big fluffy towel so I’d better learn to shake it off.

I went in to get a colour correction.  That’s fancy talk for fix the gold streaks in my hair that look like streaks of “oh no…..not a good look”.  I went to a new stylist because I wanted a change; came out with hair so blonde it looks like doll hair. A cross between yellow yarn Raggedy Ann hair and bombshell Barbie synthetic hair.  A friend of mine said “I wouldn’t have done that” when she saw me.  Well, I did it and actually kind of like rocking the blonde again for a change. Doll hair and all.

My friend said to me ” don’t you worry about your brain tumor?” Interesting question which I suppose requires more than a yes or no answer. Well yes, I worry about it just before it’s time for the next MRI to check what it’s doing.  Besides making me deaf, that is.  Yes, I worry about that.  Do I worry about it otherwise? Not so much. The hearing aids work and I get by. For now.

Standing across the counter from the cell phone lady, I explain that I need a new phone and want to review options and all that stuff with the phone plan thing. Because there was background noise and she was talking down at her computer I couldn’t hear her so I moved around the end of the counter and said “I am pretty deaf and need to stand closer to hear you”. Great. She spent the next five minutes explaining my plan to me by YELLING at me very slowly. People in the store were all watching her yell at me as I backed up around the front of the counter.  I wanted to yell back “I’M NOT THAT DEAF”,  but she was trying so hard I didn’t have the heart to.

This is the time of year that no matter how long I’ve lived away from there, I get homesick for Oregon.  On my way to work early in the morning the air might feel like Oregon, or it might smell like Oregon. A tiny pang of homesick. It’s not always practical to pack up and chase homesickness so I buy Rainier cherries. Well, we called them Queen Ann, but whatever you call them, they taste like Oregon. Shaking it off.

These things that bother  – I can usually shake them off and find some joy and even a smile in doing it. Even if sometimes that wet dog smell lingers…..

 

 

 

 

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i’m here not gone

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Every once in a while we run into an urgency  in our lives that makes us stop the car and run out to deal with it. Somewhere between the first and second MRI was my moment to slow the car and pull over.

At first all you can think about is the urgency.  The “this is here and now and if I don’t deal with it I will explode” feeling. Overwhelming. That’s what it is.  And we’ve all been there; not one of us is exempt from it hitting us in varying degrees throughout our lives.

So pull over and stop for a few minutes and understand the dynamics of the situation.  My hearing is hurt because… or my life is changing because….or my life hasn’t really changed because….. so many variables to understand.  Stop and pull over.

We’re not defined by the moments we need to be held up but by how we climb back up the bank, get back in the car and continue the adventure. I’m back in the car and on my way.

By the way, this photo is of my Mom and sister – which yes, has provided my brother and I endless amounts of sibling glee over the years and I have to admit…..it still does. It seems we never really grow up.

 

 

 

the past month or so

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I’m back this month, but I needed a break in January.  Needed it bad.

Lots of people do because basically January sucks…..because……

  • the novelty of living in snow country is pretty much old news and slipping on the ice hiding under the snow is a bitch
  • nothing good on TV to watch and the local theatre clearly doesn’t pay attention to award-winning movies
  • the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party of politics south of our border (that doesn’t have a wall and doesn’t need one) is making me weary with basically a new reality every single day based on the whims of the man with little hands and less respect for the truth
  • I’m ensnared and yet helpless in watching someone want to die which is a very, very terrible thing
  • 20 below celsius is just plain nasty
  • this whole deafness thing is just plain nasty and I’m frustrated
  • this whole “ate too many Christmas cookies” muffin top thing is just plain nasty

Yup, not sorry to see January gone but I survived by emersing myself in home, family and a good place to go to work everyday.

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And now, I look forward to spring coming.  The days are getting long enough to go for walks with  Jasmine after work and not worry about meeting a lynx or other critter in the dark.  And although this weekend brought a foot or so of fresh snow, it will shrink with a few sunny days.

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Into February I go; booked a trip to San Diego next month to feel some “no snow”, booked a new test for my hearing stuff, stopped gobbling cookies to lose the muffin top and am remembering to laugh and love.  Even when it’s hard sometimes.

Thanks, Pipy the parrot for illustrating the month for me. You make me smile.