December 1-15: Settling In

Wednesday, Dec 1 woke to 42 degrees -- at least we didn't get down to the 32 predicted! Li'lBit and I went into town first thing -- WalMart, HEB and Walgreens and the Dollar Store -- all right there on the same corner. Picked up the paper to check the sales and decided there wasn’t anything worth running around for so we came home after picking up the ‘essentials’ (milk, bread, eggs, paper towels, cat and dog food)at WalMart. Li'lBit finished her sausage biscuit in the truck -- too cold to go to the beach for breakfast!

Hooked up the cable, the TV is working, picture fuzzy - not bad. When will I remember to shut down the antenna booster when I plug in the cable -- GEEZ! You'd think I've never lived in an RV before! Rockport is the only place where I actually have cable TV – in Iowa and Gatesville, I have to use the converter box.

I took the rug cleaner to spot clean my rug. Have a grease streak (or some dark streak)in my carpeting I can't get out -- straight line -- must be from when the slide was in. Will continue to work on it. Hopefully it will go away one of these days. It will either go away or I’ll have a hole worn in the rug!

The flags needed to be moved from the front of the RV -- too windy, so I have them on the side of the slide by the door.

Went out to get the Christmas decorations from the under compartment,could only reach the Hanukkah Menorah. I parked my truck to close to the RV and couldn’t get the under compartment door open enough to get out the boxes with the decorations! There’s always tomorrow!

Li'lBit and I are enjoying the picnic table and warm afternoons. She's happy! She has a picnic table! That's why we couldn't stay long in Gatesville - -no picnic tables

Stayed close to home - trying to get stuff done -- takes me quite awhile to accomplish anything -- I work for 10 minutes and rest for 20 minutes! I've decided it is best for me to just stay "locked up" for a few days and get used to the new pollen and dust before I wander out.

December 2nd was another 70 degree day. Perfect outside weather for me and the pup!
Went over to the laundry, forgot to take the rugs - guess I can do that next time! In the meantime, they will remain outside under the RV -- they are the ones I use under the kitty litter while we are traveling.

Also need to sweep down my parking pad -- full of acorns -- not the big ones like at Shady Oaks, but little obnoxious crappy things that crunch when you walk on them and slip and slide under your feet. And make a mess all over! The first year I was here I picked up a 'leaf blower' so I can blow the damn things away and not have to sweep the whole thing!

Li'lBit and I have steps -- we are both too old and crippled to be using these little RV steps anymore! A nice sunny afternoon -- good day for doing stuff -- but putting them together took just about all my air for awhile -- will have to catch my breath before I hit the pad with the leaf blower and broom! Can't find my picnic table cloth - I know I have 3 or 4 of them. I'll look later -- one thing at a time when you are old, fat and don't have any lung power!

Finally got into the under compartment to get the Christmas box. Have my Santa with the jingle bells hanging on my door and my candy cane made of bells hanging on the side of the slide by the door. WalMart had a "special" on really nice size poinsettias -- Under $5! I picked up a one red, one pink and one white -- I have the pink and white in the basket of my walker and the red one setting on the little aluminum table by the door! Ain't THAT quaint!

Bonnie and Cleo, from Minnesota, made it in about 5:30 PM. Glad it's not me having to back in with it being almost DARK!! Since Ruth & Walter are in Florida this winter, only Jeanetta and Gayle (Nebraska) are missing from "the 2nd St" group. Kathy & Bob got here last week.

Friday December 3rd was "lunch date" day with the “in town” gang. There were 10 of us at The Beach House – love their sandwiches! Went by Deryl & Elke's for a visit after lunch. Of course I had to stop at Castaways and see what they had there that I couldn’t live without! On the way home, stopped by Whataburger for my free onion rings! Naturally, I had to buy a hamburger to get them, guess what I had for supper! Whataburger had email coupons for the "12 days of Whataburger" and everyday something is free - doubt I'll be taking advantage of ALL of them! But they do have good onion rings!

I will never understand where folks got the idea that the 12 days of Christmas was the 12 days BEFORE Christmas. It's the 12 days AFTER Christmas - from Christmas to the Feast of the Epiphany. Oh, well -- one of those tedious things I just have to put up with!

Called the repair man that makes “house calls” to check my furnace. WOW! Am I embarrassed! A blown fuse! Another one of those, when will I learn deals – furnaces in RVs run on 12 Volts – that means fuses! When Bobby asked me about fuses when he looked at it in November, I told him I'd checked the breakers! I have a working furnace just in time for some predicted ‘cold fronts’ moving into the area.

Sunday Dec 6 I woke up with the "you moved again" crud. Cough, plugged, icky! Sure glad my furnace is working -- and it's so nice to hear it kick on all by itself! I've stayed in most of the day - it's damp, windy, chilly -- never did get over 54 degrees and I don't think the wind ever stopped until the sun went down! I fixed plenty of rice and made shrimp fried rice so don't have to worry about starving - like I EVER worry about starving. Guess I'm back in Rockport -- shrimp on the menu!

Sure is nice to wake up and put my feet on a warm floor Monday morning!
I called the Live Oak Family Clinic --its just about a mile or two from here and several of the RVers go there -- Elke also mentioned her. I had to go in, fill out the paperwork, let them copy my insurance (the only question they asked when I called was "what's your insurance?") Then, they will set up an appointment! YIPPEE! Maybe I won't be Yippeeing so loud after I see her!

Finally, the Christmas tree was up on the table at the back window....moved the Menorah over -- that can be put away Dec 9th this year! Hanukkah came early this year. Under the tree I have my black lab figurines that are decked out in holiday stuff and my snowman figurines. The Hanukkah candy dish can be put away, too. My Nativity scene is only 2 pieces. Always thought I would buy the extra pieces but can’t remember where I bought the ones I have!

Li'lBit, Holly and Tinga have their socks hanging waiting for Santa to fill them.

Went to the doc's first thing Tuesday morning-- easy to get there - the office gal handed me a packet of 8-10 pages and told me I could take it home to fill it out! Good thing! I think it asks everything including when I pooped last!

When I pulled back into the park, since it was Tuesday AM, everyone was going to ladies coffee so I went up for that. Coming out of the coffee, Jeanetta and Gayle (Nebraska) were pulling in -- good to see them -- they are on the same street I'm on -- just a couple spaces up. So the Gang's All Here! Really miss Ruth and Walter and their dog Molly.

Started candy and cooking making. Cookie tasting at the activity building is the
8th. It was nice with the oven going -- only problem was I was making spice cookies and they smelled so good I wanted to eat them rather than save them for today!!! But the recipe makes so few, I didn't have a single one!

Cookie sampling/tasting is a nice little social get-together. Everybody brings cookies to share --(or candy)- then we set around and visit, drink coffee, eat cookies and get a sugar high! There were three of those long pot-luck supper tables FULL of SUGAR -- the entire park was on a sugar high that night! Stuff left over gets put in the fridge for the folks playing cards and parlor games up there to munch on and one night will be a hot cocoa and cookie nite for the park choir after they go carolling in the park. Ain't life grand in the RV park

Ran the paperwork back to the doc’s office on Wednesday. Must have taken me over an hour to fill out the packet! Would have been a good day to stay in – windy, 47 degrees! By noon, the office called with an appointment for 2:30 Monday 13th. She won't do anything with my oxygen until I either get medical records from VA or go thru all the pulmonary testing again. I told her office gal to tell Doc I'll go thru the testing, it will be quicker than trying to get records from VA. Have no idea what it will cost, but insurance will pick up a chunk of it.

Came home and started working on getting the candy made and stuff put away. Tinga keeps getting into my boxes of ingredients. Now why would I think a parrot would be interested in a box full of nuts and dried fruits!

December 9th, 54 degrees and I finally used a tank of propane -- haven't bought any propane since June -- needed one tank when I was in Iowa. Can't complain about using a few tanks down here, I guess, considering December 10th I bought my first tank since summer! New guy on the propane truck and he doesn't set it in for me -- just leaves it on the drive -- Oh, Well! Price is the same $22/tank.

I think I'm finished making candy and cookies-- so I can pack the baking stuff away and get my table back. I don't cook or bake often, but when I do, I really miss the counter space.

The local fish market makes salmon pinwheels – some are stuffed with a lobster dressing and some with spinach and ricotta cheese. I like the dressing better -- but my belly is full of salmon -- one pinwheel isn't enough, two are too many.

Thursday evening I started working on Christmas cards. The boxes that needed to be mailed were wrapped and ready to go. I wanted to have my cards finished when I went to the post office, but you know what they say, “The best laid schemes of mice and men, Go oft awry!”

FRIDAY it was 60 degrees and not too windy. Had to go out and empty my holding tanks – you remember me – the one that never lived in an RV before – GEEZ! How could I NOT open my gray tanks when I got set up! Today my sink started backing up!

I talked to Marvin and Terry about washing my RV -- I need to get a 'permission slip' from Allison and then they would try to get it done next week if the weather cooperates. The weather did cooperate and by December 15, I had a clean RV. Terry checked out my roof and said I did put a slice in the roof when I hit that tree. He would pick up some patch and fix it later.

Went into the post office to mail boxes – the line was so long, I decided to see what was happening at the UPS store! Nice lady, easy in – easy out! No fuss, no hassle. UPS has my business from now on!

Went to WallyWorld to pick up some fruit to make a small basket - Li'lBit wandered across the way while I was switching propane tanks -- Bonnie and Cleo brought her home -- she went to their yard to poop! Cleo cleaned that up! She likes their Chihuahua, Bucky, and constantly wanders over there to visit if I don't have her on a leash!

Have flank steak marinating in the refrig for the weekend -- and a pot of mushroom barley soup in the crock pot. Back to eating healthy -- well, kinda healthy!
Friday it was nearly 70 degrees; Monday I woke to 44 degrees!

Monday the 13th I had my initial appointment with the new Doc. She isn't too bad (yet!). In fact, she went out of her way to try to keep me from having to go into Corpus Christi to have lab work. Tried a pulse-ox reading in the office - of course I have fake nails on and so they tried the toe, but didn't work. She sent an order to LinCare (oxygen provider) to come out to do a night pulse-oxymeter test. And, I left the office with an appointment for lab and return follow/up. No bitching about the weight -- she thought I either had my respiratory status controlled by my own method (doing nothing!) or I was in terrible denial I think she thinks I'm a nurse "heal thyself" kinda person! And, actually for a "lunger" I'm not in the hospital a lot -- could be that I don't go to ERs or the docs a lot!

Tuesday the 14th, I woke up at 4:30 and went out and watched the meteor shower! Between the lites in the park and the lites from the Airport, I didn't see a Hellofalot! After Ladies coffee Tuesday AM, I went to Walgreens to get my flu shot. I’ll probably be so healthy I won’t be able to stand myself.

The respiratory folks came out to set me up with a pulse-ox for the night. That was quick! Wednesday, the 15th, was a horrible nite without my CPAP. I woke up gasping for air and coughing about 5 times between 10PM & 4AM. At 4 AM I woke up vomiting and decided it wasn’t worth it! I took the pulse-ox off; I needed SOME sleep. Put the CPAP on about 4:30 and slept like a log until 7AM!

The interesting thing will be what they will do since I still have oxygen from VA -- That may be the stick in the mud. I'll drive back to Waco and leave the tanks on their doorstep, if I have to! I will (spend the nite at Johnnie's and come back!) I still have my portable concentrator that runs on the truck cigarette lighter or batteries -- except the batteries are only 2 hours at best (I have 2 batteries) but the damn thing is so noisy. I guess for walking it would be OK -- I'd just have to shut it down when I set around to visit and drink coffee -- which I do with my tanks anyway.

I called Mid-Cities oxygen to tell them I would be canceling their oxygen and what did I need to do -- had to call a contact at VA -- met the winner of the bitch of the week award! I told her I was in Rockport and Mid-Cities didn't supply down here -- she said "they have offices all over the Dallas area" -- I think she is geographically challenged. Not sure the company is going to pay someone to drive 7 hours one way to get 4 ‘D” cylinders! She said she couldn't hear me on my cell phone and just kept saying I needed to go to a land line. So, that afternoon I went to town and called from the Wal Mart parking lot -- that's the best place! Don’t know why my Verizon service is so icky here in the park. I can foresee a few weeks of confusion over all of this!

By 11 AM Thursday, December 16th, I had an oxygen concentrator! YIPPEE!