chateau earwig

It hardly seems possible but here we are, September 22nd and the deck plants are inside. We also started bringing furniture in too - sofa, and green chairs from the pool level. Tomorrow we'll bring a few more things in - I have to pace myself!

The weather has certainly become more fall-like, with frost warnings overnight and low mid-day temperatures. I definitely needed a sweater outside, despite the sunshine! And thankfully there is enough wind to flummox even the most determined mosquito…

It's been a busy few days or at least it's felt that way… Saturday we spent part of the day at ‘Heating up the Capital’ hot sauce festival. Olaf aka ‘Uncle Awful’, had a booth showcasing his flight of hot sauces and people were all over it! There seemed to always be a line to try a taste and it seemed that most people left with at least one bottle! It was an awesome day - so much fun to see Olaf in his element. The weather was perfect as well, with slightly cool temps but a blazing sun.

After the hot sauce festival we raced to Marie's house (across the street from us) to be there for the Monarch butterfly release. It was pretty cool to see it warm its wings in the sun before taking off into the trees. The lady figured that it would reach Kingston which is about 90 miles away as the ‘butterflies fly’, by Sunday or maybe not until Monday, and there it would start the long journey to Mexico.

And how did I fare… not great although not the worst either. I was totally wiped by the time we got home so crashed for the rest of the day. Carm left soon after we got home for his annual ‘Friendly Golf League’ supper - I indulged in tons of junk food…

Sunday was not the greatest… lots of fatigue and sick feeling - I was definitely experiencing PEM, or post-exertional malaise… I took it easy all day so it didn't get worse. But gosh! I can usually keep a positive and hopeful mindset, but I'll admit to a few minutes of frustration and tears. I flipped out on Carm for no reason - I felt terrible about letting him take the brunt of my outburst as he's been a great support and certainly doesn't deserve my rants!

Today is much better although I think I'm still experiencing the tail end of PEM… but that didn't stop me from helping Carm start to get the deck cleared off. The sofa came in - there'd been some sort of creature on the deck so I didn't want to risk it being a desirable spot to create a nest for the winter! Then Carm did the heavy work of bringing the plants in… I carried some light ones, but otherwise mostly just manned the door. A few extra chairs made it into the basement as well. Still lots to go but we are on track.

Oh, and I got stung on my wrist while I was washing out the tubs that the indoor plants will sit in - it hurts like crazy and I feel a bit derpy from the benadryl!

Awesome!

“feeling mostly okay for 15 full days”

“biggest job done - plants inside’

“Uncle Awful”

“butterflies”

“sunny day”

when Im 64

Day fifteen!

Time is flying by, despite my rather limited life! I’m doing a bit better everyday at my current level of activity but I'll give it another few days before I add a bit of structured movement (well, I cheated a bit and did 2 reps of 4 ab exercises - not enough to feel even slightly tired but a start!). 

I even felt good enough to dance a little bit - is it even possible to sit still while listening to ‘rasputin’ by BoneyM? You've probably seen Tom Hiddleston going crazy dancing to it! My footwork is not as fancy, but my enthusiasm matches his!

It dark when my eyes flipped open Wednesday night - I rolled over to check the clock and YES! It was past midnight so officially my birthday - I was free to start my sugar extravaganza - a bowl of Captain Crunch eaten in the dim light from the pantry. The day was off to a good start!

Carm helped me get ready for our lunch guests - Mom, Dad, and Kirsten with Basel joined us for what other than tomato sandwiches on focaccia… so original! We had fun with the dogs too 😀 . Lupa went crazy at first, but then mostly settled down. The dogs went crazy when they spotted Kirsten's car coming into the laneway but! I was able to call them back from the door to put them into their crates - they actually listened during all that excitement!

While Kirsten was here, we practiced the ‘hot zone’ game. I'd been practicing a bit for the last week so the dogs knew the drill and did well with the extra distraction. Then we had a short walk in the field to get the ‘ya yas’ out. It worked - all dogs crashed when we got back inside. It's funny watching them try to run through grass that for some of them, is higher than their heads!

Oh, after lunch, we piled into Kirsten's car for a trip to Dairy Queen for a Skor blizzard. I'm sure that's what kept me going for the rest of the afternoon. But when everyone left, I crashed on the sofa for the rest of the day. A few weeks ago I would have been in bed for the rest of the day feeling sick and miserable. Not so yesterday!

Tuesday night Pat came for supper to celebrate her birthday which was last week. On Facebook, I'd stumbled upon a ‘vegan date & walnut cake’ which was super easy to make and delicious. It was mostly sweetened by dates and only had ⅓ cup of brown sugar. I might try making it with almond flour.

My birthday present arrived Tuesday afternoon so while Carm and Pat watched violent TV, I played with my new fitness watch (Garmin vivoactive 6). Mental challenges are as exhausting as walking miles! My brain was fried by the time I got everything figured out making it almost impossible to think clearly… and then again Wednesday, most of my energy was burned by my brain! In the end, it's all set up! I love it!

Give me your answer, fill in a form,

Mine forevermore.

Will you still need me, will you still feed me,

When I'm sixty four? Ho!

I created a custom activity to track how much time I spend in the kitchen doing stuff - this is what tends to burn me out as it adds up quickly. Wednesday I made 2 batches of focaccia and by the end of the day I'd spent around 2 hours in total in the kitchen! I was tired but not exhausted - there's a difference!

Was today my last swim? The forecast is for cool weather going forward so my 20 second dip this afternoon might be my last for 2026, but we shall see! Perhaps I am more beluga whale than human! It warmed up to 19C so maybe…

Awesome!

“feeling mostly okay for 15 full days”

“a beautiful morning with sunshine and no mosquitos”

“turning 64! I made it!”

https://youtu.be/fsKvmFy5pQg?si=OBa1Bl2gxfE6dXRy 

eleven days

Day eleven!

It's been a good stretch of feeling a bit tired, and occasionally nausea (honestly, lunch of broccoli & sardines makes me gag)... but nothing like what I was experiencing before. There was only one afternoon where I spent time resting in bed (that was after taking the dogs to the vet). Overall, I think I've found the sweet spot of activity - I can do more than I thought but less than I'd like! No treadmill or other exercise for another few weeks but I can see that I'll be increasing activity slightly in another week or two of relative stability.

If I pace myself properly I can actually get quite a bit done - I've roasted several zucchini, made flavoured salt again - this time Thai Awry - Thai basil, garlic, and Olaf's ‘Awry & Ginger’. It’s a flavour bomb! I've harvested some cherry tomatoes and packaged them into the freezer - little orbs of summer delight for winter stews.

I've been playing with the dogs - getting out the clicker for some fun games. It’s been years since I've done much with them - they get pretty excited when I get all the training stuff out. I can take the dogs outside a few times during the day, including one slow walk to the end of the field and back. 

TV and videos are still a bit hard - reels of music etc are energy neutral, but anything that uses my brain wears me out quickly. Still, I'm able to watch some things! And of course music energizes me - my ‘Thrive’ playlist is wearing out!

The trend is in the right direction!

Carm has noticed the trend to normal and said that he didn't think it would go this well!

I’ve been reflecting on how different bipolar depression is from the feeling of discouragement that I sometimes have whispers of. Being discouraged feels temporary and not all consuming. It's more like a cloak and not my whole being. It doesn't turn the world grey and there is always a thread of hope and belief that it will pass. Depression feels like it will be for eternity making life too hard to live. It feels heavy and a bit like that rock in Greek mythology. It's grey and black and fog and neverending rain. 

It’s the same thing with fatigue - there are differences. Bipolar depression fatigue is real - it feels heavy and like I'm walking through water. Pushing through it often helps and can even energize me. It makes the depression a bit easier to bear for a while. I’ve gotten good at pushing myself when I feel tired or overwhelmed… which has served me well in the past but not so much now!

The fatigue that I've been experiencing lately is different. It feels like the energy is gone from every cell and when I’m having a bad day, even holding my head up is hard. I notice how still I am - just shifting my weight sitting down is hard. I notice in the car how much effort it takes to stabilise myself when braking or turning a corner - it's exhausting - even as a passenger! The visuals of traffic and scenery passing quickly is tiring. If I continue to push through I feel worse and worse. Over exertion in bipolar depression doesn't last. For me now though - over exertion sets me back days… 

But! I've got 11 days of stability under my belt!

Two different illnesses… two different approaches!

I know I've been repetitive but I'm trying to drill into my head that I have to slow down to get better! If I say it over and over, maybe it will sink in! Being patient does not come naturally to me!

This has been the summer of mosquitos! We've had so much rain and never had even a hint of drought this summer. The field still has areas of squishy waterlogged ground. We haven't been able to sit outside on the deck for weeks now :-( I guess if I didn't mind dousing myself with mosquito repellant but honestly, it doesn't seem worth bathing in toxic chemicals.

The mosquitos have also kept us home from the villetta for another week - it's West Nile season and there have been pockets found in the area - I really can't risk getting sick. But I wanted to go so badly! We need to keep the dogs getting together as Basel grows up…

Awesome!

“feeling mostly okay for 11 full days”

“2 days without rain”

“tomato sandwiches still appear on the supper table!”

“Thai Awry salt on crackers with processed cheese and strawberry jam”