Two Outings!

 Actually I had three outings in a matter of days and only one was a visit to the doctor! Pretty thrilling news to say the least. Against my better judgement, and the advice of my doctor, I tried packing too much in one day. While I enjoyed myself at the time, it was a seriously stupid move to visit with friends poolside in yesterday afternoons blazing heat.  Although I was mostly in the shade, I paid the price when I got home and my arm swelled in the splint. It is crazy hard to stay indoors most of the time while everyone else is having fun, however, with any luck it will only be a few more weeks, so that is what I shall do.

What you really want to know about is the visit to Dr. Patel's office, so here goes.

A lot has changed since I spent my days taking x-rays, not the least of which is the advent of digital. Just as it was for taking photographs, there was waiting involved while the film was developed. In 1973, when I went to school at Winter Park Memorial Hospital, processing took 3.5 minutes which seemed like an eternity when you were waiting to see if all your films came out while doing a barium enema. Oh how difficult for the patient if you were unsure whether you had the proper settings for each of the five views! Being the relatively confidant person that I am, another way of saying that I am an optimist, I would usually drain the fluid after taking the films, but every now and again, say if someone weighed a large amount, doubt would creep in and I prayed they could hold it while I checked my films. In those days everything was manual, so you had to keep a slew of "techniques" in your head. Eventually more automatic ways of doing things came along, sort of like using the auto setting on your camera. Oh wait, you use your phone which is automatic! There was a lot of heavy lifting as the film holders, called cassettes, weighed far more than you would think. Lots of these thoughts came into my mind when I had, yet another, x-ray Thursday. 

One cassette for every view with instantaneous results! I stopped the girl to get my camera out of my purse and she did not like me much in that moment.  Explaining that I was a blogger, she relented. As an aside, I only just realized that I am in my 15th year of blogging. Whoa Nelly!

Next stop was the exam room where I took the photo below while waiting. Our post op instructions said to call if the bleeding came through the outer bandages. Apparently I did not bleed all that much.

Dr. Patel told me that it is healing well and he wants me to begin therapy, 3X weekly, ASAP. This time I called one of the providers on our drive home and not only are they super close, but my appointment is for Monday at 1:00. To tell you the truth, the thought makes me nervous, but I will do my best. Before the latest splint went on, here's what the surgery site looks like.

Apparently the stitches are meant to dissolve over time. I also realized that from the beginning of this unfortunate saga, I am wearing my sixth splint! My hand and fingers remain swollen, however both that and the pain is crazy better than the last go-round. A little out of order as things unfolded, I had Brucer photograph me in splint #6 for posterity.

Should you be wondering, it is darn hot and uncomfortable, although this one is somewhat better than the last, allowing me to get some much needed sleep. Of note is the fact that I put on bracelets and my hair is in sort of a bun, courtesy of Bruce. While I care little about jewelry, I do love watches, particularly Skagen, and I have very much missed wearing one.

Books ordered from the library have been slow to arrive meaning I have been scouring my own for ones I have not read. Both of these turned out to be very readable.

And this one.

When we moved, getting rid of books was among the casualties.

Woo hoo! Bruce helped me with the frame and I managed to finish the puzzle.

It is so cheerful I've yet to put it away.

Exhausting my bookshelves, on our way to the museum, we stopped at the downtown library where this beautiful dress display greeted us upon arrival.Oh how my sister Maureen would have loved to have seen these. Because she does not answer her phone, we can only assume that she is no worse.

Lots of days Bruce offers to take me somewhere and most of those days I decline. On Friday, after browsing the local art magazine given to me by Michelle,  an indoor activity presented itself. A visit to the Orlando Art Museum was in order.

In my early days of selling, I had an abstract version of this fountain in my bins. At that time, the fountain aspect wasn't working nearly as well as yesterday.

Let's go inside, shall we? A Pride month selfie backdrop on the left in the lobby.

The largest exhibit was the Florida Prize for Contemporary Art, some of which was interesting.  Bruce did not know I was taking his photo as he tries making sense of this work.

Proving the point that most anything can be made into art, I share with you a dreams project.

It was a delightful surprise to run into an old friend, Barry who was there with some buddies. It has been ages and ages since I last saw my bald-headed friend.

There is a wing with, I believe part of the permanent collection, impressive African art including these.

Walking into the darkened room with this suspended from the ceiling is quite the experience. Something like 1,200 LED lights, I kept thinking about the difficulty of the installation.  Although all  lit in this shot, there is a bunch of flashing on and off in real time.

In one of the oddest things I've seen presented as art was the one entitled "Drifting Cabinets" where this is but one of said cabinets.

All manner of small life presented in a series of opened trunks that are meant to be transported via bicycles.  Should you be interested, click on the link above. 

There was plenty more of note but this gal was getting weary of carrying a heavy arm around so we will have to return, sooner, rather than later. Before we leave though, this was a striking piece in the farm exhibit area, meant to highlight the modern farm's dependence on fuel. Note the corn cobs for their surreal depiction.

And then we went the few blocks to one of our favorite restaurants, Hawkers, last visited who knows when. I will have a little more to say about that fun time in my next post but now it is time to see how many clean clothes I can fold using only my right hand. I am getting better as each day passes.

your friend,

Gail