A Surprisingly Warm And Colorful Morning

7:17

7:37

7:38

7:38

8:18

I have been up since before 7:00, walking outside to take another photo of the changing, gray, pink and orange sky.  The stars and moon were out when I first walked out and to my surprise, it was warm, a 51ª.  It looks like we may be able to enjoy the morning but then the rains come in for the next couple of days.  It's after 9:00 and I just returned from kayaking, as the sun came in and out, highlighting the changing colors of fall.

A Solitary Kayak Morning (from Evie's bedroom perch)

The Southern Sky

Long Point

Woodlawn

Yesterday was another day of convalescence for Evie, doing her best to follow the directions of the doctor, to do nothing.  That's the hard part for her, to do nothing, just lay around and don't aggravate the surgery.  She is doing a pretty good job of following the instructions, with my gentle prodding to let me do 'this or that.'  She's used to doing 'this or that'.  It was a pleasant fall-like day,  so I was able to get in an early paddle, crossing the lake to Long Point.

Dahlias Just Cut

Evie stayed upstairs until 11:00, taking it easy in her bed but came down when our new iPhones arrived, courtesy of our son Tommy.  It was exciting for both of us, especially me because this is my first iPhone.  Around 11:30, I drove into Lakewood to pick up a prescription for Evie that the CC's pharmacy was unable to fulfill.  Despite the fact it was a busy Tuesday, I was able to get out of there quickly.  When I returned home, Evie was on Facetime with our grandson, Nick, a junior at the University of Arkansas, in Fayetteville, AK, a great college town.  He was patiently walking Evie through the setup of the iPhone even though she's fairly adept at these type of things.  Then, however, it was my turn and I needed all Nick's help I could get.  He must have been on the phone for almost an hour but by the time he said aloha, we were both ready for iPhone bear.

We then had lunch, soup of course from our good friends, Wendy and Julie, and I had one more meatloaf sandwich.  I began watching the second season of OZARK, catching up on what happened in Season One.  We both then took brief naps, did some reading, and watched the news or other shows because Evie was downstairs for the day

Ready For Mulching

Around 4:00, I fired up the lawnmower again and gave the leaves a good chopping in the front yard where our two maples sit.  And this morning, some 12 hours later, the leaves look like they were never mulched, as the trees keep giving.  I think I might try to mulch them this morning before the rains just to keep up.  It beats raking and is good for the lawn.

After The Mulching

Around 5:30, I relaxed with a beer, Evie with lightly spiked soda water, and we both got dinner ready.  Evie made a salad, cooked the broccoli and heated up the chicken tetrazzini was even better the second night and we both were starved for good veggies, especially Evie's salad with red cabbage and hard-boiled eggs.  We watched Chris Matthews hour-long college visit with Texas senator candidate Beto O'Roarke at the University of Houston.  He's the real thing, charismatic, smart, thoughtful, the antithesis of Trump.  We usually turn off a politician after a few minutes but were glued to the interview for the full hour.  I don't think it's an exaggeration to compare him to JFK or Obama.  He's got it and I think he will be the face of the Democratic party, perhaps their Presidential candidate in 2020.  He so impressed us that we have given money to his campaign in Texas and Evie ordered me a Beto tee shirt last night.

Support Beto!

We ended the night as usual with Stephen Colbert and his humorous analysis of Trump and his sobering comments about The Tree of Life.

No Wind, No Rain, Just Sunshine

7:53

7:55

7:55

8:02

 It's 7:55 and I have just been out in the front yard photographing the sunrise over the lake, on a beautiful clear morning, the first in a week or more.  It's bizarre to have a sunny morning, so bright that it's hard to look out at the lake.  It looks like an amazing morning for a paddle although it looks like a vast bank of fog is hanging over the eastern shore.  It's after 9:00 and I did get in a great paddle, over to Long Point, across to Sandy Bottom and home, but no photographs of waterfowl.  Still, it was amazing to be out on the lake on a perfect morning like this. 

Kayak Morning

Yesterday was a pretty good day for Evie. She cannot do much, shouldn't do much, so it's boring as heck but that's the way it's going to be for a couple of weeks.  She spent most of the day on the couch, occasionally getting up to walk a bit, to do something, make an egg for breakfast or get a glass of water.  I took off around 11:00 to do some shopping after making sure she had everything she might need.  I hit the coffee shop, then Wegman's, on a wet, overcast and rainy day.  We did not need a lot, just some fresh vegetables, a few staples, things like that.

When I got home, Wendy, one of our good friends, had just left after dropping off a pot of delicious and hearty vegetable soup.  We took it easy all afternoon, after a lunch of Wendy's soup and for me, a meatloaf sandwich with ketchup, of course.  We both fell asleep around 2:00, me for only ten minutes alas.

Victoria Woods

The Trail

Around 4:00, it cleared up some, so I took a walk through the Woodlawn/Victoria woods, and the sun even came out.  When I arrived home, another good friend, Julie, my yoga teacher was over, having brought a pot of homemade chicken noodle soup.  We are so grateful to have our lunches set for the next week.

The Leaves

We relaxed until 5:30 when I put the chicken tetrazzini in the oven, let it bake for 35 minutes and we had an easy, delicious dinner, thanks to Linda.  We watched Real Time With Bill Maher and Stephen Colbert then Evie went up to bed.  I watched some of the Bills/Patriots game then followed her. 

Just a note: we have been without cellular service since Thursday, no phones or texts because we are changing to a new service and we are getting new phones which have yet to arrive.  So if you wish to contact us, use our emails. 

Rain, And More Rain

More Leaves At 8:10

I have been up since 6:40, catching up on Facebook, emails, and the news.  Evie is still sleeping and the house is quiet, no radio, no TV, just me waiting for the sky to lighten.  It's 40º and wet out there and I doubt if I will kayak.

Yesterday was a strange day, overcast with a slight drizzle on and off but it let up enough in the midafternoon for me to get out in the yard and mulch the leaf covered front yard.  It felt good to be outside after five days in hotels and hospitals. 

The day started with kayaking, at Evie's insistence, on a calm lake, overcast sky.  When I got home, we organized Evie so that the things she might need during the day were downstairs, so she would not have to go back up unless she wanted to nap in her bed.  She's to avoid stairs, sitting for long, and needs lots of bed rest, taking it easy.  And that's how her day went.  We have set up the couch in the TV room with quilts and a mattress off of a chaise lounge so it's comfortable enough to watch TV or doze off.  So she was able to stay downstairs, enjoy getting up and walking around the house, or puttering around in the kitchen when she wanted.

I made scrambled eggs and bacon, with an English muffin for breakfast around 1:00 and we watched some of the Browns game until we became discouraged and Evie fell asleep and I decided to go in the living room and nap as well.  Around 4:00 it had stopped raining, so I got out the lawn mower and mulched the front yard, the side yard bereft of leaves for the most part.  As I was finishing up, our good friends, Linda and Ron, stopped over for a half hour and brought a chicken tetrazzini dinner which we are looking forward to tonight's dinner.  It was good to see them.  Also, our other neighbors, Bud and Debi stopped by with a get well gift of their homemade maple syrup and our other neighbors, Jim and Barb, left us a beautiful plant and a get well card when we arrived home on Saturday.  Great neighbors and friends.

For dinner, I had gotten out a frozen meatloaf and after Evie had cut up a cauliflower and roasted it, I put the meatloaf in the oven and microwaved some Wegman's mashed red potatoes.  By the time dinner was ready and plated, Evie had fallen asleep so I let her sleep, ate my dinner, and watched the Rams and Packer game.  She woke after a half hour, enjoyed her dinner, and we then tried to find something worth watching on TV and went back to our old standby, saved Stephen Colbert shows.  Evie went up to be around 9:00 and I followed around 9:30, a pretty good day for both of us. 

Back At Our Lake, Finally

Home

7:29

We both were up around 7:00, happy to be in our own bed, of course.  I am downstairs, enjoying my coffee, looking at another gray sky and lake but I have no complaints.  We are home.  There's not a whisper of wind after probably 48 hours of rain, over 2.5 inches.  It's now 9:00 and I just finished my morning paddle.  Evie wanted me to get back in routine on my mornings and promised not to get up until I returned.  Despite the gray, it was a fine day on the lake, no wind, just me and a couple of geese/duck hunters, camouflaged on the bank just below Chestnut Hill.  They were so well hidden that I did not see them until they called out Good Morning.

Yep, Two Duck Hunters Found

Kayak Morning

Trees Are Slowly Starting To Turn

Yesterday, for me, started with rice cakes, covered with syrup, compliments of my brother in law Rich, a breakfast my Mom used to make with leftover rice.  I left for the hospital around 8:30 and Evie was getting instructions on how to walk, sit, go upstairs, things like that when I got there. Of course, things could not go as perfectly as her meds prescription, supposedly written on Wednesday, could not be found.  Fortunately, a doctor was there and he was able to rewrite them and I walked them over to the Pharmacy to get them filled, much quicker than waiting for them.  I went to get my car around 11:00 and picked up Evie who was taken downstairs in a wheelchair.  It was a wet, gray day but we were just happy to be in our car, on the way back to the lake.

Morning Along Victoria And Woodlawn

We had an easy ride home despite the weather, stopping once at Love's Truck Stop at the Ohio/Pennsylvania line.  We quickly unpacked and Evie was wiped out, so she went upstairs to lie down.  We were both tired from the trip, the week really, so we did not do much, found ourselves not knowing what to do with ourselves.  We weren't hungry, did not feel like TV, had to stay in so we both took naps, perhaps the best idea.

Morning Fishing And Long Point

So we just took it easy, trying to figure out how to organize our new life for the next few weeks.  Stairs are a problem because Evie should not go up and down more than once or twice a day, so we have to keep that in mind when the day begins.  Once she comes down, she should stay down for a good part of the day.  So that made sense.  Neither of us was hungry, so I had some of Evie's vegetable soup, with soda crackers, and Evie had an English muffin with jam and feta cheese and an apple.  We went to bed early, Evie falling asleep around 8:30.  I stayed up and watched some football and the World Series until I too went up to sleep at 9:45.

Rain On Another Cleveland Morning

My Main Man, My Brother In Law And Chef Extraordinaire, Rich

It's 7:00, pitch black outside, as I sit in my brother in law's living room.  I know Lake Erie is out there somewhere but I cannot see it, just hear the rain on the roof.  Since I am still in Cleveland, Evie's obviously still in the hospital.  We have great hopes that today is the day she will be able to head home, damn the rain!

Yesterday was pretty much a replay of the day before.  I got up early, sat around writing the blog for an hour, then my brother in law, Rich, made a big breakfast, his specialty, of eggs, bacon, hash browns and toast, a fine start to my morning.  I did not leave for the CC until 8:20, hoping to miss rush hour but ran into some stoppage around Eddy Road if you are familiar with the drive from Euclid to Cleveland.

When I arrived at the hospital, I actually found a place to park on the fifth floor instead of the usual, the roof.  The day then was typical, the same as the last two, with multiple tests for Evie to find why her blood pressure was so erratic.  She was dizzy early but as the day went on, she started feeling better, ate, did some walking with me, and her blood tests looked better.  They still wanted her to stay one more night to make sure everything was copacetic and we agreed since they seemed to think she would be discharged Saturday morning.  I am keeping my fingers crossed.

A Wet Lake Erie Dusk

I stayed until 5:30, then drove back to Euclid, to stay another night at Rich's home.  He had made a pot of pasta sauce and his famous meatballs, so I was looking forward to a good dinner, after my first Manhattan in a couple of weeks and a glass of wine.  His son Richie and Sally also came over for dinner so we had fun talking about, what else, the good old days,  I am sure Rich and I bored the heck out of both of them.  After they left, Rich and I watched some Big Ten Volleyball until 9:45 when I decided to go up to bed.  A long day for me, even longer for Evie.

I am hoping the next time I write this blog, I will be sitting in a living room on Chautauqua Lake, not Lake Erie although it ain't too bad here either!

Still In Cleveland (On Lake Erie)

7:38 East

7:39 West

I am sitting in my sister's house in Euclid, looking at Lake Erie, as our plans to get back to the lake yesterday were a bit premature.  Because of some complications with Evie's blood pressure, we put off coming home until we get an OK.  Today, we hope things have settled and we can leave for the lake.

So yesterday was more waiting, some anxiety as Evie's blood pressure dropped some after standing, then later in the day, after a walk, it was too high.  Both numbers were enough to keep her overnight.  I spent most of the day with her, occasionally walking like I did on Wednesday, getting lunch, more lentil soup, and a chicken shwarma.  I checked out of the hotel at noon and was able to leave my car with them until later in the day, saving me having to find a new parking area.  Once again, Evie's nurse, in fact, the whole staff, were amazing, accommodating and sympathetic, trying their best to get us home.  Then, by the end of the day, they agreed that Evie should spend another night, making sure her blood pressure had normalized.

Cleveland: 6:37 PM

I left around 5:30, picked up my car and drove to Euclid.  My sister was at an Ohio Garden Club conference in Columbus, so it was boys night at my brother in law Rich's house.  His son Richie and grandson Vince stopped over and we ordered a feast from a local Chinese carryout.  It was great and we all filled up on wonton soup, egg rolls, and three or four other dishes.  Rich and I ended up watching Good Fellas for some reason.  It was just starting and there was nothing else worth watching.  I had forgotten how violent it was.  It ended just after 9:00 and we both were tired so we went to bed early, just like a couple of golden-agers.

Lake Erie At 7:36 PM

Once More To The Lake

Cleveland at 7:30 AM

It's 6:30 and I am ready to get out of this hotel room.  Enough of the coffee and a hotel room, get me back to the lake with Evie.  And we are going back later today, I hope leaving by 1:00, at least that's the time they mentioned.

Walk To Employee Parking Garage

Yesterday I spent much of the day with Evie, talking unless she dozed or was on her iphone, me on my computer, as one nurse after another would come in for some reason, checking blood pressure, bringing pain pills.  And a couple of times, physical therapists came in to explain things like how to get in and out of a bed with our stressing the back, or the tub, car, or chair.  And how to get on your clothes, socks and shoes.  We ended up, at their recommendation, ordering a grabber and other help devices from Amazon and it should be at our house on Friday, the wonders of modern commerce.  Evie seemed in good spirits at times, then would get tired, lose her mojo, and fall asleep, typical I am sure with the meds and fatigue from the operation.

Cleveland Playhouse, Next Door To The CC

Every couple of hours I would explore the clinic, just like I would a city, walking down one of the many hallways, leading to buildings, exits, stores and best of all, the dining or eating area where I found Aladdin's Middle Eastern, Subway, Pizza, Sushi, Salad Bars, Sandwich Shops and Ramen places and a large area to sit while eating.  Amazing, just like what malls used to be before they went out of business.  Walking is also fun people watching as this city within a city is multicultural, all ethnicities and religions.  Illness shows no prejudice.  And I have noticed what a benefit the CC is for the city, for this neighborhood as African Americans, most likely locals, are employed in all aspects of the hospital from doctors, to nurses, to workers in stores, food outlets, or hospitality.  It's great to see.

View Of What Used To Be The BP Building

I went down to the busy lunch area around noon, ordered a beef schwarma sandwich and lentil soup from Aladdin's, more than enough and sat down in their brightly lit eating area.  Each of the 10 or12 food stations had lines, as it is a popular place for lunch, for doctors and patrons and it's good, the best part.

I left Evie around 1:30 as she was tired and went back to my room, napped for an hour, took a shower and read some before going back to the hospital at 4:00.  I sat with Evie until 7:00, after she had eaten and we had taken another walk. She has been up walking three or four times. And she slept a couple of hours while I was in my hotel room.

At 7:15, I walked down to the hotel bar, found the last seat and started watching the NBA game on the TV.  After ten minutes, I decided to see if I could break the iPhone obsession and start a conversation with the woman to my left.  She was about my age, from Denver, but was here because her 80-year-old handicapped Aunt from Erie was getting major back surgery.  When we started talking, the guy next to her joined in, also retired like the two of us, and he was here with his wife who had major aorta surgery, her third at the CC.  He has been here for six weeks because of complications after the surgery.  Talking to these two made me feel how lucky we are because Evie is up and walking and gets to go home today.  Both seemed to want to talk, so we had fun learning about each others' lives.  After they left,  I ordered a mushroom swiss burger with fries, both pretty good and stayed until 9:00, watching the NBA on one TV, the World Series on the other.  I must have been tired because I fell asleep by 9:30.

As I mentioned, we hope to be on the road to the lake by early afternoon and the nurse's know we have a long ride so they started the discharge process yesterday afternoon. They are the best.

Another Cleveland Day

Cleveland's Terminal Tower In The Distance At Night

Good Morning Cleveland

It's 6:30 and I am up, listening to Morning Joe, drinking a crappy cup of coffee, as Cleveland remains in darkness.  The view out my window is not quite as nice as that at Chautauqua Lake as you can see.  It's cloudy and 46º with a slight chance of rain.  It's now 9:00 and I am finishing up the blog in Evie's hospital room.  She wants to make sure she can proofread it. 

A Sunny Morning At The CC

I spent most of yesterday hanging out, which is what you do when you visit a hospital, either as a patient or family.  In fact, we have been waiting for this operation for close to six weeks, so we are used to waiting, sort of.  Our day began at 5:30 when we arrived at the Surgery Center and continued the rest of the day for both Evie and me.  Fortunately, there was no delay for Evie's surgery which can happen when there's an emergency.  She was in and out as I expected.  I sat comfortably in the Surgery Center lounge with lots of other families, checking the digital board every 15 minutes which updates each patient's progress.  Evie, always concerned, made me peanut butter and jelly sandwiches so that was my breakfast with a banana and for lunch, I had a bowl of beef marsala soup which was pretty good.

Storm Rising

After Evie'ssurgey, she was in holding, waiting for her room, on her meds and a drip.  So I went back to the hotel and took a much-needed nap because I did not get much sleep the night before.  Around 4:00, my beeper went off, telling me to clean out my locker at the Surgery Center,  turn my key in at the desk, and then head over to building H, the sixth floor, where Evie would be.  I ran over, just missing a downpour of rain.

Rain And Sleet

She was in a double,  comfortable, the nurse was great, the only problem, she had a long wait for her dinner. We talked as she dozed in and out and I left around 7:00 so she could relax and sleep.  I ended up sitting at the Holiday Inn bar, where else, having a couple of Great Lakes Lagers, a barbecued chicken pizza, as everyone at the bar was on their phones.  After dinner, I watched an inning or two of the World Series before falling asleep around 9:15.  I was tired.

The View From Evie's Hospital Window

My take on the clinic is that it's a city of 40,000 at its midday peak, an assembly line Henry Ford would have been proud of.  The line for the checking in desk at the Surgery Center never seemed to stop from 5:30 in the morning until mid-afternoon.  One couple or family or friends after another, meandering in, checked in, took over a couch, and waited for the call for the OR or to visit the patient after OR.   

An Early Morning In Cleveland

We were up at 4:30 because we had to be at the Cleveland Clinic's Surgery Center at 5:30.  At the moment, it is 6:30 and Evie is getting prepped for her back surgery at 7:30.  Our long wait for this is finally over.  We plan on her spending the night and driving back to the lake tomorrow morning.

Yesterday was a blur, making sure we had everything we needed for the next couple of days, closing up the house, leaving on time for Cleveland.  It's always a time for some anxiety when we leave, made much worse this time because of the reason for leaving.  Anyways, we stopped at the Ohio border to get gas and I got a Mickey D. sandwich.  Evie started in the front seat but her back started to ache, so the rest of the way, she was on her back, on quilts and foam rubber which eases the discomfort.

Our drive to the Holiday Inn Cleveland Clinic was just over two and a half hours, a surprise.  We checked in, along with others like us, here to visit the Clinic.  Lots of elderly, of course, and it seemed like many came from long distances like us.  We were in our room and settled by 3:00 but tired from the ride and no doubt anxiety over the upcoming operation.  We had hoped to go downstairs to the restaurant and bar but Evie was too tired so I went down and had a lousy sandwich and a beer, along with others like me, either patients or with patients.  It was not a talkative group.

So I will be hanging out here in the waiting room, which looks like a vast living room, with couches, wifi, TV's, and lots of people even this early. I have pager which will give me an update on Evie, letting me know when I can come and see her.

A Chilly 39º And Overcast

7:37

8:02

It's 7:30 and I have been up since just before 7:00, having slept in, sort of.  We are listening to NPR, too depressed by listening to Morning Joe.  Although it's gray outside, the lake is calm and soothing to the eye.  It looks like a decent day here at the lake.  I did get in a chilly but pleasant paddle, with a sighting of a heron flying in the trees.

Kayak Morning North

Yesterday was the harbinger of what's to come, cold with a skift of snow during the morning.  We had a long coffee, a good way to start a Sunday morning although we did start getting together all the things we will need over the next couple of days in Cleveland.  We hope to return to the lake on Wednesday.  Around 11:00, we had enough and decided to get our shopping done so we drove to Lakewood, first stopping at T.J. MAXX to return a few items, and Evie found another pair of shoes, easy to get on and comfortable.  We then did a major shopping at Wegman's, stocking up for the next week.  On the way home, I picked up a couple of new thermostats at the hardware store and we stopped at Kentucky Fried, bringing home dinner, six chicken thighs.  Neither of us felt like fussing with dinner.

We were home at 1:30, put things away and Evie quickly put together a spinach, tomato, and feta cheese omelet with bagels.  We ate while watching the Bill Maher special, an amazing look back at his career, with various celebrities, admiring both his skill as a comedian but also his willingness to speak the truth to power, regardless of consequences.  There's no doubt he would be in jail in many countries like Saudia Arabia or Turkey.

The rest of the afternoon I read, too brief nap, and watched some football, soon tiring of the Bills game and sat around reading, listening to the Browns stirring come back, then lose in overtime, again. Sad making.

We had some wine, watching the lake darken, the daylight wane, then put Kentucky fried in the oven, heating it, as Evie made some cole slaw.  If we didn't feel so guilty about eating the chicken, it would be great and we would have it more often.  Conscience trumps all.  We watched a movie called THE GIFT, with Jason Bateman, which turned out to be more of a thriller than we expected.  I would give it a B-, worth watching when you cannot find anything good to watch.  We or rather I ended the night watching the first half of the Kansas City Chiefs game.  Evie went up to bed early.

A Touch Of Winter

7:22

8:06

It's a winter like morning, howling wind, ominous gray clouds hanging over the eastern sky, a dash of snow on the windshield and hood of our car.  It's 37º out, may get up to 40º, on the coldest day so far this fall.  I was up at 6:20 and Evie followed, uncharacteristically, at 6:40.  When I walked outside to get our paper, I checked the rain gauge and we received 2.5 + inches in the past 36 hours.

Yesterday was a bizarre start to the weekend, as we had howling winds, heavy rains, sunny skies, seemingly warm weather, and hail.  Welcome to Chautauqua Lake weather, I guess.  My morning paddle started out in clouds and a light drizzle ended with blue skies and sunshine, a sign of what was to come.  We continued to do some deep fall cleaning, getting ready for the next couple of weeks when Evie's recovering from her surgery.  And, of course, we cleaned out the refrigerator, gathering all the trash, the stuff from summer we no longer want, and I drove to the Transfer Station, giving the kid who helps with the trash a 15-year-old Play Station we no longer need.  He was excited.

When I returned home, Evie was putting the finishing touches on dinner, chicken paprikash.  When she asked what I wanted for dinner, I sent her the recipe for chicken paprikash, so she made it.  It was one of my favorites from my childhood, a creamy, red sauce over chicken, with buttered noodles.  Yum.

Because the afternoon could not make up its mind as to whether it would be sunny and dry, or cloudy and wet, we stayed inside, watching some TV and relaxing.  After making the chicken, Evie made her famous veggie soup, with lots of beans and cabbage, so I had a bowl for lunch, with a cheese sandwich, and started a new series called THE SINNER.  I watched part of it, then turned it off because I wanted to read, finish my book, then take a nap.

Bringing In The Dock In Sun...

Around 3:30, Chris and Austin arrived, to take out both our dock and our neighbors.  They started in heavy rain, then it appeared to be a perfect day for taking it out, as the sun came out and it seemed to warm things up, but then it clouded up again and poured.  It took them a good couple of hours to get both docks out and we felt sorry for them, wading in the cold water and rain.  It always feels good when all the summer stuff is in for the winter, the boat, the dock, and the inflatables.  It suggests fall is fleeting, winter on the horizon.

And Rain

We relaxed on this miserable night of rain and winds with a glass of wine and Buffalo flavored nuts before dinner.  We decided that neither of us was that hungry, so we decided on nixing a salad, sticking with the chicken paprikash and noodles, a good decision.  The chicken was just what I wanted, tasty gravy with the noodles.  We watched a couple of Colbert's, some news and ended the night with some Ohio State football.  I found out this morning they were destroyed by Purdue.  From what I watched, they did not look good and deserved to lose.