We are days away from the darkest depths of the year, and my photography is reflecting that. I'm never outside when it's daylight, except on my walk to work! And even then, the light is rather gray -- the "wan sun" striking "tin glints" that Sylvia Plath mentioned in her wintry poem Parliament Hill Fields.
Yesterday was another work, work, work kind of day -- a steady stream of tasks. I actually ate lunch at my desk because no one was available to cover for me, so in between bites I was up helping students. It is just a relentless pace.
I went to see Dave in the evening. On the one hand, he seems to be making progress. We walked around the seventh floor and talked to have some privacy away from his "roommates." But on the other, he seems a bit foggy.
"I never expected to have surgery twice in the same day," he said last night.
"Dave, your surgeries weren't on the same day," I replied. "Your first surgery was Friday, and your second was Sunday."
He looked at me skeptically. I think he has completely lost that intervening day. I know time has a way of telescoping and collapsing in the hospital, but still -- that freaked me out a little.
Anyway, he's still not on solid food, and I've been unable to connect with the doctor to find out why. I think he may begin eating today. Dave has promised to ask the doctor to call me, so we shall see.
Two of Olga's Kong toys have disappeared. For years, she's had three of them, and I can only find one. I have looked under every stick of furniture and all over the garden. I think she may have left them outside to be spirited away by foxes. You may think that unlikely, but it has happened in the past. It's annoying because Kongs are expensive, but fortunately she's not as obsessively attached to them as she used to be.
While walking her yesterday morning I found yet another abandoned houseplant, a rubber tree left on the corner next to a utility box. So of course that came home with me. We now have three rubber trees.
I was sorry to read about the death of poet Nikki Giovanni. I always admired her literary voice and her politics. I went with some friends to see her speak in the early 1990s -- I believe it was this event, actually -- and she was quite fiery and irreverent, as I recall, though I can't remember specifics. She's one of those people who seems frozen in my memory as a young woman, so to read that she was 81 was surprising. Where does the time go?
(Photos: Houses on my walk home from the hospital last night.)
The photo of the first house is stunning! Sending good wishes to Dave for a speedy return home ( and some decent food!)
ReplyDeleteThank you, and Dave thanks you!
DeleteAmazing pictures, as usual excellent photography work.
ReplyDeleteMy best wishes go out to Dave, may he come home soon and have decent food and surroundings that inspire him.
Thanks, Sabine! Hopefully today (Friday).
DeleteThe photos are excellent, shadows and light indeed! sorry to hear Dave is a bit spacey, perhaps the medications are to blame? How long is the Christmas School breaK, Here in Australia it is summer, so the kids have seven weeks and all the parents are saying "oh no, not holidays already!"
ReplyDeleteYes, definitely the meds. Our Winter Break is almost three weeks.
DeleteI must admit that I had never previously heard of Nikki Giovanni but it is very likely that she had never heard of me either. I liked your two December house pictures and I still hope that Dave makes it to Whitstable.
ReplyDeleteThe Whitstable thing sounds a bit crazy but we are still hopeful it will happen!
DeleteThat's a nice Plath line.
ReplyDeleteI love both houses.
Don't worry. Dave will come good and soon be home to cook you a proper meal.
I know you've mentioned Olga's Kongs in the past, but I really have no idea what they are. Does she need more than one?
She doesn't now, but when she was young she was obsessed with them. They're basically heavy rubber chew toys and she gnawed on them a lot. Now she just carries them around when she gets excited.
DeleteThe house photos are both beautiful and so on-topic for your blog title. Sorry about Dave’s slower than expected progress. The meds given for surgery are intended to impact memory so you don’t remember what you went through. At least that’s what I’ve been told. That might be the reason Dave is confused about the two surgeries happening so close together. Wishing you both better days to come... and soon!
ReplyDeleteInteresting about the meds -- I hadn't thought about their impact on memory, but he definitely is fuzzy about those first days in the hospital!
DeleteObviously a drug thing. Probably why he says that he's not hungry despite not having eaten for a week as well. I'm sure you both will feel much better, and I am glad that you're off work for the Christmas holiday to take care of him. It sounds like he'll need a bit of TLC.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the food thing concerns me a bit. I feel like he needs to be eating. He's off his pain meds now, as I write, so hopefully his appetite will return.
DeleteI am amazed at the differences in health care systems. I'm not sure I can come up with some surgery that requires a week stay in the hospital over here. My dad got a completely new hip joint installed at 11 a.m. and was discharged 7 hours later. Perhaps that explains some of our poor health recovery statistics. Hopefully Dave can be discharged one of these days.
ReplyDeleteWell, there are also advantages to getting patients out of the hospital, though. I've read that the hospital is actually a very dangerous place to be! I suppose the NHS can afford to keep people longer since there is no profit motive. He was originally told to expect a four-day hospital stay, but that second surgery set him back.
DeleteIt is difficult in the dark of the year..we need more light!
ReplyDeleteI hope the doctor will be able to explain properly...the lack of appetite is probably a side effect of the operations and GAs...but does need to be addressed.
As foxes do seem to like taking bowls away..I wouldn't be surprised if they like the Kong's as well!
Every year I am surprised by how dark it is in winter!
DeleteNo, it wasn't me putting that extra "greengrocer's apostrophe" in!!
ReplyDeleteHa -- "greengrocer's apostrophe" -- I love that term!
DeleteSurgeries and opiods can mess with people's brains, especially as we get older, not that Dave is old, but he is older than he used to be. When my mum was sick, she argued with me about where I grew up and was quite adamant about it. She got better and the confusion lifted.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think the drugs have definitely affected his thinking. I was glad to see he is now off them when I went to visit last night.
DeleteHospital time does seem to bleed into one for the patient as they have no normal references for time and may be sleepin g more than normal.
ReplyDeleteHopefully Dave gets up and outta there soon.
Now, those houses and shadows and such are giving me Halloween vibes, totally the wrong holiday!
That memory lapse is unnerving to you, but people do get confused after even one surgery, let alone two. I think it will lift, probably when he's home in familiar surroundings and with Olga!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I think so too. As Pixie said above, it's probably mostly a side-effect of the medication.
DeleteIt might be the pain killing drugs that Dave has been on. That happened to my brother when he had back surgery. Once Dave is home the fog will clear and he will be back to his old self. I sure hope he can come home soon. Thank goodness you will have your nice break from school so he can recover and you both can relax.
ReplyDeleteI am SO looking forward to this break!
DeleteYeah, Dave'll snap out of it when he's completely off the drugs and home again.
ReplyDeleteSteve, those pictures are great. Especially that first one. That house looks like a wedding cake. I love it.
I felt the same exact way when I heard about the death of Nikky Giovani. I also think of her as being that wiry, fiery young girl.
It is a great house, isn't it? It's called "The White House," according to those artsy signs on the wall. I don't remember where I first read Nikki Giovanni. Probably at some point during my poetry-writing and -studying days in college.
DeleteYou should talk to Dave's doctor. I take a long time to overcome anesthetics. Dave may have trouble getting over anesthetics so make sure you are with him when the doctor is seeing him. I have the Micro Manager accompany me.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is, the doctor comes either early in the morning or late at night, and I can't be at the hospital at those times because I've got to care for the dog. I'm trying to get him to call me but so far he has not. I'm sure he's busy.
DeleteThe shadows and light captured in your first photo are outstanding. The starkness is quite beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI suspect, the drugs (anesthesia and pain meds) are causing Dave some weakness. One surgery causes this so two in quick succession is likely at play. Hopefully the MD can clarify this for you and Dave.
I am surprised at the increased pace at your library. With the holidays near, things used to slow to a crawl and the office lunches and parties were more the focus. When I worked, I brought in a cake, cheese platters and cookies... encouraging the merry good time and work slow-down. I told my boss I was encouraging teamwork and high office morale. They bought it.
We get busy as holidays approach because teachers and parents are pressing kids to have some reading material over the break. Whether they actually read it or not is another question!
DeleteNo one should have to eat lunch at their desk, unless they want to. That 20 minutes of peace is so precious. When my Mom came out of anesthesia after surgery, she was convinced that there had been an attack against the hospital and that shots had been fired. It was a garbage truck picking up the dumpsters. Funny how the brain works. Cheers to Dave, better days ahead.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually entitled to an hour-long lunch break according to my contract. So to take no lunch is a sacrifice on my part, and I hope it is appreciated. I was surprised that time collapsed that much for Dave, but I can understand how it would happen.
DeleteWhat an odd thought that a fox might have taken away a Kong. Both of those photos are lovely. There's lots of beauty to be found in the dark.
ReplyDeleteI hope once they let Dave start eating again that things will rapidly improve. Hang in there... all of you (including Olga).
The foxes really do steal her Kongs. We found one in the neighbor's yard years ago!
DeleteI have been wondering how Dave was doing. Thank you for the update. I hope he comes home soon and enjoys some solid food!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Michael!
DeleteOne can lose track of time in hospital. Sending good vibes to get him home to enjoy the holiday season.
ReplyDeleteEvery time I go I try to mention what day it is, to help him get anchored that way.
DeleteThat's a lot of anesthesia in a fairly short period of time. I would not be that concerned. Love your nighttime photos, especially the first one. Cheers to you both.
ReplyDeleteThanks -- yeah, he was much more clear-headed last night (Thurs) so that's promising.
DeleteI second everyone's opinion that the anesthesia and other meds are the cause of Dave's spaciness. In case the docs forget to mention it, narcotics can slow down the bowel, and especially if he's not been allowed solid food yet, it might take some time to get them working normally. Not to be too graphic, but an impacted bowel can be an excruciating side effect. Talk to someone (the doc? a nurse? a dietician?) about how to avoid that. Had my father in law just been told to take 3 Tb of Metamucil per day for the first week after his surgery, it would have prevented another trip to the hospital and another surgery. Ugh.
ReplyDeleteOn a brighter note, both photos are exceptional. I particularly like the inviting-in aspect of the second one.
The thought of a fox absconding with a Kong makes me grin.
Chris from Boise
OK, good tip about the impacted bowel! Dave's gut apparently is functioning and -- ahem -- moving, so that's a good sign. But I feel like nothing much is going to happen until he's eating well again.
DeleteI love those gorgeous house shots! Being in the hospital and medicated can really mess with one's sense of time. Chris has some great advice in the above comment!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I hadn't even thought about the risk of an impaction. (Is that a word?)
DeleteWith all those meds, I'm not surprised Dave is a little off kilter in the memory department. And, as others noted, about the bowel and the narcotics. I'm so sorry he has to deal with this now, and you by proxy as partner. It's probably best to keep him and monitor well till they know all is working as it should but I know that has to be frustrating to Dave (who really knows good food!) and to you, too. Hang in there -- vacation is coming!
ReplyDelete