Rick keeps saying that perhaps we are too old to be remodeling Gladys. I don't believe that is true for two reasons: we have made progress with the remodeling this year and we feel better when we are out working on projects. We have done an incredible amount of work on this house in the past three years, and the work that we have done in just the past two months shows that we still can do the work. Even this morning, though both of us are now in pain from our injuries, he admitted that he felt better when we were out digging holes and pouring concrete. He is just frustrated right now that we could not finish the fence, as he had planned, before we go North for Christmas.
Yesterday I woke up more stiff and sore than ever. I thought that by this time I should be feeling better, so I finally listened to Rick and went to MedExpress in town. They are an urgent care facility similar to an ER, but they were less busy and better suited to what I needed. (The earliest I could get into my doctor's office was in February.) Rick and I both agreed that he should have gone to MedExpress instead of the ER a couple of days ago.
The PAC who saw me ordered X-rays to be sure that nothing was cracked or broken. The X-rays confirmed that her guess was right; however, she said that when I fell on my shoulder, I probably slightly dislocated it. The shoulder has popped back into place (as confirmed by the X-ray) but I had multiple contusions that were just going to take a long time to heal. She prescribed Neproxin and a muscle relaxant, also telling me to use heat to help the knotted muscles relax. Sigh. Here I am again, screwing up my muscles. I have to admit that I keep trying to stretch the muscles in the arm so that it does not freeze while still keeping within pain tolerance.
Rick, meanwhile, is driving himself nuts by wanting to be active. We drove down to the Marina and walked down Victoria Lane to check on the new, massive house they are building. Rick had to stop twice when his leg buckled, so we did not venture far. We watched masons lay brick for a while and then headed back to the Marina. While we relaxed on a bench, I noticed a large fin suddenly break water at the mouth of the marina. Then a second fin appeared, but this time the dolphin to which it was attached fully arched out of the water. His companion followed suit, and we watched the two of them play for a few minutes in the calm waters. One even turned on his back, sticking his snout into the air as he did the backstroke back out into St. Joseph's Sound. What a treat! We usually do not see dolphins that close to shore. They made us both smile which is something we have not done in the last few days.
Today Rick cleaned up eight weeks' worth of accumulated paperwork in his office while I cleaned both bathrooms and washed two loads of laundry. I also dry-mopped the floors as a way both to clean the house and to stretch my arm. The house looks better, and Rick's office is once again visible after removing four small garbage cans full of papers.
A walk around the block felt really good to me but rather painful for Rick. He went out to get some lunch and to buy some materials necessary to finish a small Christmas gift he is making. I am content to spend the rest of the day here, letting my shoulder and back rest.
Are we too old to remodel the house? Not in the least. Yes, we have to be careful when we work, but there is no reason that we cannot continue with our labors. People far older than we have done much, much more.
Is luck on our side? Not always. We actually took the wishbone from the Thanksgiving turkey today to make a wish. We each made a wish and then pulled the wishbone. It was very dry so it shattered, leaving both of us holding short ends while the main connecting point flew away from us into the air across the kitchen. OK, nobody will get his or her wish. That's all right. Shakespeare once wrote, "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride." Dreams are not fulfilled by wishes; they are, instead, fulfilled with determination and actions. Once we return from the Holidays, we will continue to pursue our plans and dreams for Gladys.
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