Month: February 2022

Scars

I had seriously forgotten about this song until it showed up in my Apple Music shuffle. This song was a song that came out when I was still teaching! I shared it on one of my Faves in my “Tunes” tab.

I do have visible, physical scars though. If I’m thinking about the order that I received the scars: Chicken pox cars when I was 13, ACL reconstruction on my right knee when I was 17, C-section scar when I was 19, meniscus repair on my right knee again when I was 35.

I remember showing my ACL reconstruction scar to a colleague just after he came back to work after he had his ACL reconstructed. He had two little dots on his knee and I told him to close the teachers lounge door and to never discuss how white my legs were but I showed him my ACL reconstruction scar and I told him that’s what ACL construction is supposed to look like! It’s about a 4 inch scar down the center of my knee. They have come along way with knee surgeries and they didn’t need to cut him open like they cut me open.

The most noticeable scars that I often forget that I have are my Chicken pox scars. I have two pocks on my forehead and a less noticeable mark on my nose. The pocks came when I rubbed my face on my pillow while I was sleeping and my eyes shot open when I realized that I had just pulled off two of the scabs on my forehead. I remember telling my students that I licked my finger put it on my forehead and put the scab back into place (LIKE THAT WOULD WORK?!)

I think I told that story pretty close to the end of me teaching because it was already in the spring time when a student commented on it and wondered how I got it so I told them the story and I was surprised that I hadn’t already told them that.

… “I thought I Would be a Different Woman

So again, I am late to the party but in my defense, my son is 20 years old! The days of me going to see a new animated film opening weekend are long since past.

I enjoyed this one throughly! I laughed and I cried as well and I’m not even embarrassed about it. I can’t control my emotions anyway! I liked the Abuela‘s song though because for different reasons, I too, “I thought I would be a different woman.”

#MyGirlL: A Champion

My Mom told me a story about Leia on their walk this morning. So, because the weather has been so warm, her second annual track has melted and what is in its place is a muddy mess so that’s why my Mom takes out for walks now. When she came back, she was helping me out of bed and she told me the story that reminded me of a video I recently saw.

I would share this video if I knew where I saw it but I will just to give you the gist. Apparently, Leia was listening as I was watching because she utilized this technique. The interview was about someone interviewing multiple Olympic athletes before their event. They asked about their nerves and how they feel about the event they’re just going to be in. then, they would interview them AFTER their event and specifically, they interviewed the winners.

Thry asked them if nerves were a factor and what they did that made them successful in their event. Each athlete who had just won their event have a simple answer. It was the same for all of them. “Do it scared,” I guess that Leia Heard that and utilized it because my Mom told me that and their walk, (I was still sleeping) FaceTime across what looked like a melted snowman. It was just a small pail surrounded by grass because of the melting snow. My Mom said it was about Leila’s size. She immediately stopped and crouch down and my Mom talked to her soothingly and told her that they were going to investigate it.

My Mom said that Leia was sniffing everywhere as they walked closer. Leia hesitated a bit but she walked closer, so close that she put her front paws on the melted snowman and as she did, the hair on her back was standing straight out! #MyGirlL is a TRUE champion! She faced her fears and did it scared! Go on ahead with your bad self! I love that dog!!!

3 Christmases

I received a delivery from Amazon yesterday and I have secured the next three Christmases! Christmas 2022, Christmas 2023, and Christmas 2024. I am happy that I will have the next three Christmases covered! I have a number of the Ginger Spiced that I bought but now I will start stocking up on these because I know they are available on Amazon!

A Serious Investment

My Super Bowl shirt arrived yesterday. I will wear the Rams’ NFC Championship shirt but I had too much of an “MS-y” day to post it. I won’t unveil it until Super Bowl XVI!!! I’m so excited!!!

This is the first Super Bowl of my lifetime that I have been seriously invested in!!! I’m so glad that my man got here! I’m sorry that it wasn’t with us (Detroit) but I’m glad he’s there now and I can’t wait to watch him and then the EPIC halftime show that will be signed as well!!! Yay inclusivity!!!

“The Unmistakable Aria”

Yesterday, my Mom washed my legs and changed my socks. We have a routine for this and I remain sitting in my power chair in the hallway as she uses the bathroom sink to use the water to wash my legs.

We listen to music as we do this and we normally switch off between a song I like and a song she likes. But yesterday, I wanted to hear just the songs she likes exclusively.

We started off by listening to the Fleetwood Mac, “Rumors” album. That album is the soundtrack of my Mom cleaning the house when I was growing up. We listened to this entire album and she just had finished washing my right leg and putting a clean compression sock on my right leg.

So, I turned around in my living room and then backed up into the hallway between Sean‘s room and the bathroom so then I would be facing my living room so she could wash my left leg. The other album that my Mom would listen to as she was cleaning the house was Journey. I just searched, “Journey” and the “Journey Essentials” playlist showed up in Apple Music.

I know so many of those songs because my Mom listened to them during my whole childhood! But, it wasn’t until this song came on where as she was soaping up my leg, she let out, unbeknownst to her, “The unmistakable aria” that was the REAL soundtrack of my childhood! I immediately felt my heart warm and a smile form on my face and hearing it and I was taken back to being six years old and laying on the green carpet in my living room probably watching the Disney Channel. My Mom was probably washing dishes or scrubbing the tub.

I want to sleep with clean legs and new compression socks and was most content at remembering being a child and thinking of the sights and sounds of a simpler time. A time before MS definitely!

I texted all of my brothers and it was a long text to describe how I heard my Mom singing last night and I set the stage as to how it was when we were kids. I sent it to them in a group text and all of them have loved my text because they remember that too and hearing this song I’m sure they can hear ‘the unmistakable aria’ in their heads!

Accomplished

So, it has been three weeks to the day sensei lost the To my Chapstick and head to make a, “Bag of Chapstick.” I was waiting for my speech pathologist to join a video call and she actually saw me meticulously put the Chapstick back into the bag so the Chapstick that was hanging out did not get ruined. We had other things to talk about so I did not even address that with her. I think that tonight for the daily text messages that I send to her that have to be spoken I will tell her about it now that the, “Bag of Chapstick” is NOT a thing any longer.

i used this Chapstick until I could only press the Chapstick tube onto my lips because it hurt too badly to have the plastic scrape my lips. I blotted in my lips with cocoa mint and then I went to have my hair washed. By the time my Mom was finished washing my hair and my hair was dry, my lips were also dry so when I got back into my wheelchair, I wheeled over and put my Vanilla Bean Chapstick on EXTREMELY liberally!

I actually wanted to wait until tomorrow to change flavors but my lips couldn’t handle that. I used it all up! I could have my Mom scrape out Chapstick from the plastic; but it’s not that serious! I’m not going to say that I don’t have her do that because I do when we’re talking about deodorant but Chapstick is a little more affordable can you don’t need to use it until the absolute end but I used it until it hurt my lips.

so now, I am rubbing my lips together to keep them moisturized and I will have Vanilla Bean flavor on my lips until the weather breaks. Except for Mondays and Thursdays. On those days, I use my Shortbread Cookie Chapstick and I have been doing that since the beginning of January because I want to use the Shortbread Cookie chapstick up because I don’t think I will get it again for next year. I chose Monday and Wednesday because normally, that is my “cheese Day” but it’s too cold to eat fresh mozzarella cheese in the winter! That’s more of a spring and summer thing which will be a COMPLETELY different Chapstick flavor choice! I do feel completely accomplished by having used this entire tube of Chapstick.

😳😳😳

My Mom took Leia for a walk last night and she talked to a couple who lives down the street. I have never talk to them but what she said kind of startled me. I’m not even sure if that’s the word but it befuddled me astounded me I’m not sure. That’s why my blog post title is what it is. What my Mom told me last night reminded me of a story that I was told eight years ago:

Eight years ago, my cousin graduated from high school. I had to text her to find out how old she is to know how old the story was. She is 26 so eight years ago, I was still driving. She was having her graduation party at her house and my Mom and I were going to drive together to go to it. My Mom called my aunt in advance and asked her to leave the driveway open because that’s easiest for me to get to their backyard.

My Mom had told me about my aunt’s nephew telling her about a woman who gets out of her house every morning who is in a wheelchair and puts her wheelchair on top of her car and drives to work. She would say that woman every morning when he was stopped at the stoplight to go to work himself. He told my aunt that this woman could easily get on disability but instead, goes to work every day.

it wasn’t until my car was in my aunts driveway that her nephew saw the car and told my aunt that, “This is the car!“ it was extremely warm and we did not stay at the party very long so I did not get to talk to this man but I thought about the story because the man my Mom spoke to yesterday had noticed me too. My Mom told the man where she lives but then corrected herself and said that her daughter lives there but she is staying with me. My mom told him that we are the house at the end of the street before the Ford building. He asked (for clarification), “Oh, The woman in the wheelchair who goes to work every morning?”

She smiled and agreed. I never once thought about the difficulty I had getting out of my house and getting into my car and driving to work. I was just doing what I had to do to take care of my son and myself. I guess I left an impression on people even though I haven’t worked in coming up on five years now.

Almost

I wasn’t going to post about this but when I showed my Mom my progress and she rolled her eyes, I KNEW that I HAD TO!

this is my cocoa mint Chapstick. If you recall, a couple weeks ago I lost the cap but I am a very OCD person and needed to finish the entire tube! Call me Christian Wolff! So when I lost the cap, I told my mom to get a Ziploc and it would keep the Chapstick fresh so then I could finish the tube. I am so close! Almost!:

cue Bobby McFerrin because that’s what it’s about!!!:

‘The Whole Shebang!’

After my hair was blow dried, hi got back into my wheelchair and wheeled to my ‘normal’ spot right in front of the TV. My Mom was in the kitchen preparing my dinner and was on the phone so they decided to play my song. I’m talking about Sara Bareilles call my MOM thinks it’s depressing but her song, “She used to be mine” is EXTREMELY cathartic for me! It hurts because it’s true for me; I also am “No longer anything like I used to be.” What does still remember that girl. It’s starting to get a little hazy but I still remember. So, my song played and then my Apple Music just put songs I listen to often and shuffle and then this one came on! I actually had to do a little research and see when this song came out because I clearly saw myself driving myself to Barwis after work. This album had just been released and I was listening to it on my drive when I heard this song and football season was coming up and I thought my Lions would do great things because there was a song now!:

Well, in 2014, the Lions did NOT win the whole shebang but this year, for this Super Bowl, it is quite possible that my man CAN win the whole shebang! My friend texted me this picture which made me laugh but it IS true!: