Boy, am I a day behind or what?

Hope you all had a good riot yesterday!

Oops!

It's June 28th!

Riot like it is 1969!!!

Yes, it is hot.

Yesterday was 102°: hottest day in the last 28 years in the Upper Hood River Valley, (once again, using my flawed data base!) But, even WU claims that the former record high (for the date) was a paltry 95°.

I’m not saying I’m miserable, but for fun today I defrosted the freezer! (Okay, it wasn’t for fun, it was because the iceberg at the bottom of the freezer was keeping the door from closing tight.)

Today, was only a little above 90°. I won’t know for sure until WUnderground announces it tomorrow morning. Now they are forecasting 104° for Thursday!

Oh, and does anyone know what to do about an adorable, red ball of body heat who demands to sit on your lap. Well, other than standing up.

I know, I whine at the drop of a hat!

Sweat alert!

Yesterday’s official high (according to WUnderground) was 100.2°.

Today is forecast to be 104°.

Sunday, 93°.

Monday, 92°.

Tuesday, 92°.

Wednesday, 100°.

Thursday, 102°.

Friday, 103°.

Saturday, 104°.

Sunday, 101°.

Monday, 97°.

Excuse me, did I die and go to hell and no one bothered to tell me? Why that is just rude, folks!

(And just so you know, according to my totally inaccurate and flawed weather recording system, 100° would tie as the hottest day I have seen in my 28 years in the Upper Valley. 104° would smash that record. And five days in a row over 100°! Holy Toledo!)

And first:

What an amazing day. Finally we are free to marry who we want; in all 50 states. SCOTUS, you done me proud! But I do have to admit it is a hallow victory. A day late and a dollar short, but still a victory!

And the scorch has begun. It is officially 99°. Just to make it more amazing, the air conditioning in Richard’s car seems to be dead. I turned it on coming home from work. It made a loud noise like a piece of paper flapping in the wind, but no air came out of the vents. It was a sweaty ride home. And, as soon as I got home, Tom demanded to put his heat producing body on my lap. A misery inducing heat bomb with short red hair; EEEK!

The coolest day forecasted among the next ten days is Monday, when it will only be 91°. Spirit in the sky, grant me ice!

A brief moment of reality

I have a CT scan tomorrow and an appointment with my oncologist on Tuesday.

There is an anxiety brewing. What do I do if the cancer is back? What do I do if it isn’t?

Surviving your partner, your husband, your lover is not as easy as it seems. There is no one to scream to, “My god, this fucking hurts.” No one who will hold you through the night as you cry your eyes out. No one who will tell you it is going to be okay.

Because: it will not be okay.

Dr. Sanborn will not say, “Oops, we made a mistake. Richard is sitting in the next room, waiting to see you.” Nor will she say, “You’ve survived cancer. Normal life can resume. I will never see you again.”

I know. Self pity. Unattractive.

But I still love Richard. I bought a chain in Nice… a necklace if you will… to house my wedding ring to Richard; assuming I would want to take it off my finger one day but still have him close to me.

I see no reason to take it off my finger. But, I wear the chain.  I am a slave to his love.

Scorcher alert!

Yesterday’s high in the Upper Valley: 84°.

Today’s high in the Upper Valley: 93°.

Friday’s forecasted high in the Upper Valley: 104°.

Saturday’s forecasted high in the Upper Valley: 106°.

If I wanted to experience Palm Springs in the summer, I would live there.

Give me moderation!

A major holiday: Summer Solstice and Fathers Day

A happy Fathers Day to all you fathers out there. There is one special father I would like to give special tribute to: mine!

And Summer Solstice is only special to those of us who have been to Stonehenge. But you Hawaiians have it easy. You have an active volcano for the sacrifices. I envy you at this time of year.

But damn, shouldn’t I have a horse show to work?

And how was your morning?

3:43 AM

There is a horrific screeching in my ears. It is Max; sitting by my head as I lay on the bed. Apparently another obscure senator from a state we have never heard of before has displayed an effrontery to cats everywhere and now it is a call to arms.

I muttered some words that I hope my mother didn’t hear, swatted at the cat (I did not connect) and fell back asleep.

4:07 AM

A crash: unidentifiable as I lay in bed. It was a big crash. I get up. The TV is lying on the floor, flat on his face. I put him back into his appropriate position. He works. I go back to bed. I try to fall asleep.

4:22 AM

Another crash: less horrific in size. But I still get up. My desk is clear of the mound of paperwork that set on it. No, Max has not taken care of the issues, he has just thrown it all on the ground. I now know sleep was not possible.

Excuse me, Noah… were domesticated house cats let on the ark intentionally or did they slink on in the middle of the night? Didn’t you warn your security service about the danger?

Red letter date in the Upper Valley!

Richard's car reaches 295,000 miles!

Mrs. Murphy inspects the new purchase

The new storage containers have arrived, been washed and duly inspected by Mrs. Murphy.

These aren't just any storage containers: they were recommended to me by three of my sisters on Facebook. Well, maybe it was just modern advertising and I am just a guppy.

But, they are safely tucked away, and the old yogurt, margarine and various and other sundry containers have been recycled.

How do you spell VICTORY!

Okay, I am jumping the gun, but this is just like in the third quarter of the Ducks game against the Seminoles, when Jameis Winston fumbled the ball and Tony Washington scooped it up and ran to the end zone. Deep in our hearts, we all knew the game was over.

I spoke with Aflac on Friday. They weren’t overly helpful, but they sent me back to Providence Hospital to get the documentation I needed.

I spoke with Providence today. Seems they don’t do the billing for the radiation department, which is run by The Oregon Clinic. I have a sister that will vouch for me on this (don’t ask me which sister, they rotated so fast my head spun), but the receptionist at radiation told me I had to go to Providence for the information I needed for my claim.

So, I called The Oregon Clinic, and they are sending me the information I need. They said they will put it in tomorrow’s mail.

Okay, moral dilemma. I have told Aflac, both in an email and on the phone that they have overpaid me for chemotherapy. Do I pursue it further, or just say “I’ve done my part”?

I just hope the cancer doesn’t come back. I really don’t know if I can deal with insurance companies and hospital/clinic billing departments again.

Inevitably, I stumble across more pictures:

Whatever, do what you want.

  You spent $25.00 dollars on what?

I jest, Richard never questioned my quirky purchases.

You may notice he is doing the New York Times crossword puzzle in ink. I think he did it to irritate me.

And yes, I still cry.

It feels like summer.

The high today was 90°. It felt like summer. This is not odd for Hood River in June. Sometimes we get this warm of weather in May.

So, I toddled down to the local convenience store to buy some beer to keep me cool.

Then the most amazing thing happened. I was carded. Me. Carded.

I danced a jig as I left the store. They have forever won my favor!

The most amazing thing

I have just found the perfect way to clean the fine teeth of a grater. Use a toothbrush.

Note: if you live alone, use an old toothbrush. If you don’t live alone, use whatever is handy just don’t mention it out loud.

Slick!