The Fourth of July was a true bomb at our house. The day started OK, although I could not convince Rick to take the day off. We are under a couple of deadlines-- one to get the master bathroom finished so we can get the windows inspected, and one to get the kitchen prepped in time for the cupboards to be installed.
By late morning, I began to really feel awful. I was exhausted, nauseated, and out of sorts. I took my blood sugar and discovered that I was in the high 300's. (Normal is 80 - 100.) I took a bolus of insulin and continued to push myself to keep going. By 11:30, I tested again and found I had reached over 400. I took another bolus and asked Rick to watch my insulin Pod as the medication (supposedly) went through the cannula into my system. I had the Pod on my upper left arm, so he could easily see it. He told me that the cannula was completely out of my arm which is why my blood sugar was going up even though I was trying to take more medication.
I changed my Pod which I hate to do early since I have to toss it out complete with the insulin that is still inside it. Wasting insulin kills me because I know how expensive both the Pods and the medication are. With a new Pod in place, I took a massive dose of insulin and had a light lunch. By mid-afternoon I was getting back to normal and starting to feel a little better, but Rick was still fretting about my health. That makes me feel both good to know that he really cares and terrible because I feel guilty for not being totally in control, even though I know this was an equipment malfunction.
By late afternoon, my blood sugar has swung the opposite way, and I was faced with a low reading. Both high and low readings really take a toll on my body, and both make me feel like crap. We had a light dinner as I struggled once again to gain control.
Rick asked what I felt like doing that evening, and I told him I wanted to go down to the Marina to watch the fireworks. We parked a few blocks away by the gelato shop so we did not have to hassle with trying to park the truck in a crowded area. As we walked toward the Marina, we stopped at the local ice cream shop called Strachan's. While their ice cream is good, it also is terribly expensive. The shop is a cash-only enterprise, and as we stood in line awaiting our turn, we watched families in front of us with three or four children easily pay up to $5.00 for a couple of scoops of ice cream on sugar-laden cones. Six people, all ordering ice cream, at $5.00+ each. You do the math! Rick and I usually do not pay that much money for an entire meal.
Since we do not get out often, my scoop of Butterfinger and my scoop of black cherry ice cream really was good. We got two scoops in a cup with two spoons and had the entire thing gone in the few blocks it took us to walk to the Marina.
One thing you should know about Dunedin. While it is located in a very populated area (sort of like living in a suburb of a large city), the community itself is very quaint. The locals are proud Scotsmen, artists, and small business owners. The city streets are all lined with cobblestone sidewalks, and even later at night, one feels safe walking among the one-story, old-fashioned shops, bakeries, and numerous restaurants and cafes.
The crowds at the Marina were surprisingly light. We walked out on the pier a short distance, listened to the live band that was performing at Bon Appetite, a local restaurant, and waited for the fireworks to begin. The Marina looks out over St. Joseph's Sound, a bay of water that is rimmed by a peninsula containing small beach communities. Those communities back up to the Gulf of Mexico. From our position on the pier, we could enjoy the fireworks across the Sound from four or five beach communities (including Treasure Island, Indian Rock, and Clearwater Beach) and the city of Clearwater. We also had prime views of Dunedin's fireworks, so we saw various fireworks shows all from one prime location.
Locals tell us that the fireworks from Safety Harbor are the best. Unfortunately, since Safety Harbor was directly behind us, we were not able to see their display, but we were not disappointed with the show we saw last night.
After living with them for a couple of days now, we have noticed that our new front doors, while they are heavy and look beautiful, may not be installed in the most secure of positions. To accommodate the sill plate from the front porch, Chris positioned the door over treated lumber. That leaves the bolts of the semi-stationary door inserted into lumber instead of concrete. The door is sound now, but we both question how secure it would really be in a hurricane. That is one thing we will question when the contractor comes next week. We may have more hassles with those doors yet.
Rick spent this morning with a power sander and the shop vac in the master bathroom trying to get the room ready for primer and paint. We want to finish the bathroom by Sunday evening at the latest. Rick spent a frustrating couple of hours yesterday putting in the pocket door handles and pull, so this afternoon he was able to put the moulding and jamb for the door in place. Tomorrow, hopefully, we can prime and paint the walls, reserving Saturday and Sunday for adding the new light, the new mirror, installing the cabinet, finishing the electrical, and adding towel racks and toilet paper holders. Our new sink is supposed to arrive on Saturday, so if that comes in in time, we may be able to install that also.
I worked in the hallway and living room prepping the lower walls so they are set for new baseboard. The living room and dining room are now ready; however, we have more wall space than we have prepared baseboard at this time.
Rick also spent part of today varnishing the main bathroom vanity that he and I stained cherry yesterday. We have the little Kohler pink sink to install, but lots of work assembling and hanging the drawers and doors await us before that project is complete.
We also bought a new ceiling fan for the bedroom today, so now we have two bedroom fans that await installation. As you can note, we have many more projects than we have hours in the day. Once again, I am writing this late at night while an exhausted Rick snoozes in front of the TV.
However, the changes in Gladys are evident on a daily basis. This is quickly becoming a very livable home, and the addition of bedroom furniture and kitchen cabinets in the next two weeks will transform it even further.
As I mentioned earlier, Gladys keeps getting a facelift and appears younger while Rick and I are battered, strained, cut up, and bruised. Our muscles ache, Rick has re-injured his right shoulder, and we both feel the toll of our daily abuse of these getting-older bodies. Hopefully, we will one day have a snug little house that will shelter our slowed-down, retired bodies in the wintertime so we can enjoy some of the hobbies that lay untouched yet in our "retirement" home.
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