Making the Most of Down Time

Tuesday March 10 and Wednesday March 11, 2015
Quail Run RV Park
Wesley Chapel, Florida

 

 

TUESDAY March 10

 

Don’t go to Labcorp to get a blood test without an appointment is my advice.  I tried to get my lipid check done in Brandon while we were in Lithia Springs but they claimed my doctor had not faxed it in.  I find that hard to believe.  He and his staff are excellent.  I called yesterday back to Brandon and talked to someone else and sure enough, the order is there.  Problem is I’m not.  I ask if they will fax it up to their office in Lithia Springs.  Nothing doing.  What a cooperative business always trying to help the patient out.   So no blood check on Monday.

I have to do the blood check today since David is going in for his to the Moffitt Cancer center tomorrow and we both have to go fasting which means early morning.  The places are not near each other.  So I call my doctor back.  His great staff faxes it in yet again this time to Wesley Chapel Labcorp.  

I go out for a walk/run and then drive over there for the test.  It is 10:45 by now.  I’m still fasting.  The waiting room is full.  There are over 30 people ahead of me. Some of them wisely have an appointment.  But my order is here so I pull up a chair and wait for over 2 hours behind the appointment people and the walk ins ahead of me.   SIGH…………but at least it’s done and the weather has turned HOT so I’d be inside anyway on this day that looks lovely with its blue skies and bright sun.  I won’t have the results for several days but I’m really hoping my numbers might have dropped some more from my previous 154.

I’m finally finished about 1:15 and head down to Bruster’s ice cream for a lipid jolting treat to break my fast but they tell me that they had Jamaica Me Crazy last week but not this week.   My luck!

At least the test is done.  The rest of the day is spent sitting in the shade reading outside and inside working on the income taxes.

 

The most fun of the day is when we go down to the Rec Hall at 7:00 to play bingo.   It’s a dollar a card with a 4 card minimum per person.  The hall is full.  Most people have all their own chips and magnetic wands and daubers.  We are clearly the amateurs here.  Luckily they have loaners and welcome us to the fold.

We play our 4 cards 5 times for regular bingo or 4 corners.   Folks are winning right and left.  No pot seems less than $28.  Then comes the paper cards.  Those are another $1 each for 3 on a sheet.  You mark these with the daubers of which they also have loaners. 

First one played is a pyramid on the cards followed by a cover all.  The pots are even bigger.  Then comes intermission with popcorn and all kinds of sugary and salty snacks.  David has his myeloma and lipid tests tomorrow so he foregoes everything but the popcorn although it is clearly cooked in oil and smothered in that “yellow chemical” popcorn salt.  I eat too many sweet and salty treats from the table.

 

 

After intermission is a repeat.  We play 5 rounds with our 4 cards and win not a thing.  Then we buy more paper cards and daub a thunderbird pattern and a coverall.  David gets down to needing one number on the thunderbird for a win but it isn’t called and isn’t called and after 6 no calls someone else wins.  Of course his number is the very next one called as we continue on to the coverall.  Luck isn’t with us tonight but it is at our table since the 3 people sitting next to us all have won.

But we had a great time anyway and I’d come back next week if we were going to be here.  But then I learn it is being cancelled next week for something else and the troops are not happy.  They want it moved to Wednesday but that’s the ice cream social.  They say, “let’s combine them, they’ll sell more ice cream” but the caller says it isn’t happening.   Toward the end of the night a petition goes around for Wednesday night bingo.   These people are serious.  They love their bingo.  Wonder why it isn’t scheduled more than once a week.   Saturday and Sunday nights both look pretty open to me.   

 

 

On the walk back we discover that our neighbor is all lit up.  Looks like a holiday.  Not sure what the occasion is.  David says it’s been that way every night since we got here.  Don’t see how I would have missed it although I don’t tend to walk around in the dark unless it’s a full moon. 

Glad we have MCD shades given our proximity to all these lights.   In the morning I find out that they leave them on all night long.  That seems very strange to me since they pay their own electric bill being seasonal lot renters.  Besides they are asleep and so is everyone else so who is there to see them?   Maybe the people they keep awake.  <grin>

That’s Winnona off to the left in the picture.  Reminds me of Disneyworld.

 

 

 

WEDNESDAY March 11

 

Today is David’s day for the blood draw but he has to drive all the way into Tampa so he leaves about 8am for his 8:45 appointment.  It’s nearly 1:00 when he returns.  Don’t ask me what he was doing.  He did bring beer back with him of course and it can take an hour to pick out 6 bottles.

After he leaves in the morning, I go out for another 10000 steps and after once around the park, up and down every street, I decide to go outside the park and just try some local neighborhoods for a change of scenery.  I come back, get cleaned up and assume my position on the patio facing the canal.   While I’m reading, I’m glancing up to see the wading birds.   Love my spot in this picture above.

 

At first the little blue heron is on the far shore and the ibis nearer to me.

 

 

 

 

 

They both walk on down the canal and away from me.  The ibis climbs the bank and disappears into someone’s yard.  The little blue crosses the canal and the next time I look up, he’s on my side and a great egret is on the far shore.

 

The Great Egret has his breeding feathers and colors on. He looks fantastic.  Girls where are you?  I had NO idea he was so metallic green.   He almost appears proud of himself as he struts down the canal, fishing as he goes.  He must know how handsome he is.

 

 

 

The little blue heron’s bill is also very bright. An electric blue but my close up pictures of him don’t turn out as well. Maybe tomorrow.

 

 

By the time David returns it is getting to be a hot one outside.  Time to come inside and enjoy our electric hook up and the air conditioning.  It is 89 degrees and humid outside again today.  Neither of us is interested in being outside even with the breeze.  I’m glad I was able to be out this morning. 

We spend the afternoon on the income taxes.  Because of doing the solar install in the spring, I’m really hoping we might get something back this year rather than having to pay.  David says we could always lower our exemptions but they are at zero now I tell him.   Without home interest as a deduction, there isn’t much you can take off of your income.  Ours retirement income is certainly not large but we sure are paying taxes on it.

About 4:00, I walk the trash to the dumpster and go into the pool area where I chat with two people from SW Virginia who are here in their 38’ Fleetwood Bounder.  I learn from them that the pool does not have chlorine.  It is salt water.  Had I known that, I would definitely have gone swimming today and maybe even shown up for the 11am water aerobics.  I’m allergic to chlorine.  Really glad to hear this. 

Hot weather is predicted through the week-end.   Seems like we went from winter right into summer here.  No spring.   That’s too bad.  It’s one of my favorite seasons.   Hope we get north in time to enjoy some of it.

 

 

A vegan friend of David’s sent him a recipe for stuffed shells.  It looked very delicious so he makes it up for dinner.  But it requires the oven so we put our toaster oven outside and cook it out in the heat rather than run the AC to cool off the oven.

Looks beautiful but when I taste it, I know something is wrong.  It’s out of balance.  David doubled the oregano thinking the amount seemed too small.  Now it’s too heavily oregano.  I toss some extra garlic powder on to tone it down.  I’ll post the recipe when we get it perfected.  We have used unbleached parchment paper inside the baking dish so we didn’t have to grease it.   Looks pretty though and tastes fine just not as perfect as it will the next time.

 

 

 

During this down time we had hoped to get a number of items ticked off that ever present list.  We are closing in on it having gotten Winnona’s hydraulic hose replaced at Lazydays,  a wash/wax for her here and both of our blood tests done.   We have the taxes to finish and the blood draw follow up and treatment discussion with David’s doctor on Monday before we leave this area and head north.   I’m happy with our progress and the heat has made it so that we aren’t so tempted to drop the taxes and do something more fun.