I awoke this morning, day 6 of LDN, and well enough to engage in some epic early morning squabbling about our bedroom lamp shade,
So large - a sort of half a giant paper paper ball with a flat underside... which in the half light or during dreams at the dead of night unfortunately resembles a space ship landing on the bed. It also has some vibrant dark brown stripes underneath, from an accident months back, where I had lurched across the bed, (full hair dye on head), scraped beneath it at speed - in my desire to reach the bedroom window to shout at the postman. I had also managed to stick the curtains to my hair in conjunction with an unfortunate gale force gust of wind. Apparently we need to change this... this has triggered off the bad taste police... I have visions of something hideous being installed due to husband's current upcycling fever - although I have seen a few nice chandeliers made out of people's old metal bicycle wheels with Uri Gella style spoons added in.
This LDN experiment is something of a long haul experience. I am well read on it, and there are no magic wands involved for instant cure, not with my five disease profile...and I can feel it doing something... I have a headache most days and the insomnia is grindingly tedious - however being well practiced at both, I am not phased by this, any bad tempers are put to one side, as quite frankly with my history of drug reactions, and only just coming out of my latest infection and antibiotic flare up... to not be back in some reaction is very promising indeed. This phase happens to many and does not continue for ever. There is already improvement on this front. However the other night, having cooked gluten free toad in the hole, with caramelized onion gravy laced with good marsala and glazed steamed veg. My husband came cycling up the hill on a bike with impossibly small wheels, having rowed an estuary in dark. Very keen to demolish a dinner he had inquired about three hours previously. The lack of sleep and funny goings on with endorphins caused a Stepford Wives moment. The expression on his face was an absolute picture - as I poured the gravy over his dinner... and just kept pouring and pouring. A waterfall of exotic steaming liquid behaved as a waterfall off the side of the plate and then formed a travelling lake heading towards an electric yellow globe we have in the centre of the table. I just don't normally do things like that
youtube.com/watch?v=VG7JAM6...
So it seems a while since I embarked on the LDN even though only less than a week. The week has been a typically busy back to school and work scenario - my man disappeared in a whirling tornado of lap tops, pads, kindle, unread reports, telephones and further unwritten reports screaming deadline deadline - a trail of most of these could be seen all the way out to the car. I attempted to chase it one morning... as he reversed it violently up the drive making that awful noise of a car about to go bang. Just before he left he asked me most mournfully... "do I look fat in these trousers" - "no of course not darling, you just have a Christmas tummy like mine". As he said this, I had just managed to prevent him taking his vitamin pill with the cat's glass of water, (we have one cat who likes her water served on the kitchen table in a Babycham glass). That kept me sniggering all day, and actually we are a lot smaller since Christmas. I hope to be well enough to start my exercise again this week, with my newly mending hands and feet. Also currently my spine is no longer inflamed and now my kidneys have stopped throbbing, all very good news.
The children did not manage a whole week at school, both ill with their usual ailments, but all school work completed and various letters written to their doctors etc. I had my own whirlwind of cats, school fuss, papework and PE kits, and new medications going on. I also visited my GP to moan about his retirement and give him an update on my latest off spec plans for rejuvenation. I hope his replacement is as good.
As usual my man came up trumps before the holidays ended.. he took us all to see The Hobbit in 3D, although I did have another moment at that, it was my first day out of bed... and I found myself during the film, due to the intensity of the 3D effects, rummaging around for a seat belt in the cinema chair, having temporarily given myself vertigo half way through due to the speed of the visual effects and falling down holes etc. We had arrived there slightly flapping, late and jittery. We drove through thick sea fog in the dark to get to town, and as usual, despite visiting this town frequently for the last eleven years, drove around in circles, and at one stage managed to get wedged into a dead end in some abandoned office complex. At this moment my man chose to tell me how he had enjoyed his morning misty bike ride to collect the car from rather an ancient garage in outer sticks. The car nearly always resembles a travelling skip unless he has to see important big wigs... he had had a number of minor faults fixed, including a large dent in the back, formed three years ago, when towing a boat which was totally full of water, not emptied out - which had come crashing down on top of the boot. As I intently listened to his recount of the car and it's latest antics. I was asked if all was clear behind... at this point I guided us into a row of concrete bollards, so dent back again. I am married to a very good sport - this sort of thing does not bother him much thankfully.
I would say all in all the year has started well for me, apart from the bronchitis and bad reaction to antibiotics. I know this may not be a total cure the LDN, but if I can have just a bit more action in my life and laid up just a tad less then mission will have been accomplished. If I could have say 40 percent less chronic fatigue and brain fog, I would settle for that. Last night for instance I did not have to go to bed at 7.30... I stayed up and watched Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, having seen the documentary previously and read the book. A nice roaring fire and my lap top with the backdrop of an impromptu band taking place. Three guys, on double base and guitar and my man on the piano and my children doing full size drum kit,, tambourine and singing - with my daughter's boyfriend on saxaphone... I can hope that soon my violin will be out and I will be back in the band, and tomorrow to mend my hands further I shall start playing honky tonk again.
I met my husband playing wild music twenty one years ago.. and I want that woman back. He was my first attempt at a casual relationship with no strings attached, and I have loved it ever since. I am being well supported with my new exciting drug venture. During the week I was taken out for a romantic and working lunch to make up for all the other events I have missed - to a pub I quite like with a full coeliac menu, meaning that gluten free does not involve some sort of rubberized offering with a nut on top. Actually I found myself over scrutinizing the decor as I waited to sink my fangs into my hot oak smoked starter - all these fairly trendy done up pubs are all becoming the same colour... a palette of colours which are not quite grey or brown..trendy teeth on edge industrial nicety which I refer to as mushroom on a stormy day, offset with lashings of eggshelled cream everywhere.
Having got loads done over lunch and had real fun as we worked together I then lamented how the local population was going nuts panic buying in case of heavy snow in the East of England and then went home and did exactly the same on line, the thought of being snowed in without enough fire lighters, useful grub and red wine - (yes I have been told to have four glasses a week, not that I have had it yet) - is a frightful thought. We also had a very large his and her ding dong about an ongoing argument about the log shelter. Yes I am lucky that my my man wants to do handy things, very lucky indeed. However a slight query of mine, as to how the roof of the original log shelter was too thin, and blowing way to nowheresville during every gale, brought on a his and her stalemate. This is not a technical hitch more some over zealous scrutiny by my own style police. So we have had soggy logs for literally weeks now. However he overheard me telling Mr Logs that when he delivered on Friday afternoon, he was to reverse up to the garage, open the door and deposit the whole truck load on top of my mans newly set up Tarzan style exercise equipment.
So.. within half an hour the most hideous thing I have seen for quite some time has been installed in the garden. A vile piece of oily tyre marked tarpaulin has been stretched across my french windows obscuring nice views of our apple tree, darkening the room so that I have to have globally warming lights on. This contraption is tied tautly to the nearest tree with a neon and gnawed blue nylon rope, at a height which will garrote anybody over the height of 5 foot nine who visits after dark. Apparently when not in use for chopping wood, which I am not aware takes place very often anyway... it will flop down in all its hole ridden damp glory to cover the wood pile. This is a piece of sticky old nostalgia from his past when it formed part of his house on the back of a lorry during two years living on the peace convoy in the 1980's. No doubt it will snow today or tomorrow, it won't be put down and will fill up and collapse at some point. I have decided to draw a picture of my own vision for this project, frame it and hang it inside this area. The way this has been discussed over the last 6 months would merit the planning of The Taj Mahal - although since debating started form our different perspectives, more so a cage fashioned for myself no doubt.
So in with the new and out with the old. Although I have I managed to fling out a very new and annoying snobby clothes catalogue yesterday - before being temped to ruin my much needed economy drive.. I do like those arty floaty velvet coats which help rejuvenate middle aged ladies, especially if on special offer.. however the phrases supposedly uttered by the models is infuriating...'Jilly likes donuts at SouthWold' should be replace by Hyacinth prefers a pot noodle in Bog End. None of the models have ever eaten any food whatsoever. Hypothryoid or not I am pleased to say I am slowly losing weight, the combination of being careful and my nutri thryoid has slowly changed things over the last year... and I expect to progress further.
Happy New Year
Mary F x
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Meeting with a Professor of Endocrinology 
