First Snow?

Yikes, I’m not ready for snow yet! But the forecast calls for snow on Monday and Tuesday. They don’t say if there’s to be any accumulation. We are having a huge dip in the temperatures starting Sunday….high 50, low 22-28 for the next few days! And I still don’t have heat. (Come on, Stimulus!!!) I’ll be a popsicle in the mornings! Last year we had our first snow on October 6, so we did get a bonus few weeks of really fine weather.

Roxie is not spending any time under the house any more, she’s mostly in the house in her little bed. I think she’s starting to feel her age (13).

I mentioned a couple posts ago that I thought I might have Shingles. Yeah…no. After a couple miserable weeks waiting for the homeopathic to make it go away, I went to my doctor and got the shingles anti-viral meds. I took them for 10 days and it didn’t make a bit of difference, so it’s not shingles, even though the symptoms are exactly the same except no rash and no itching. But that area on my side and under my bra line is incredibly sensitive, constantly burns like fire and then there are terrible stabbing pains from time to time. I read that Shingles can cause “pins and needles” sensation. No, this is more like sabers and swords! It’s something called Idiopathic Neuropathy, which simply means they don’t know WHAT the heck is causing it. It’s been nearly 3 months now and I’m soooo tired of it! Earlier this week we tried Lidocaine injections, in case it was an entrapped nerve. I did get 5 hours of numbness which was heavenly, but it was not a permanent fix. I cried and cried. Now I’ve been referred to a doctor who does EMG testing (Electromyography). It sends electric current through the nerves to see if there are blockages or damage. If so, it could take surgery to resolve it. A friend got Shingles a couple weeks ago, started taking the anti-viral and started feeling much better right away. I tried not to hate her. I’ll bet I’m the only person on earth who WISHES she had Shingles!! The homeopathic is the only thing that even touches the pain, and it’s very expensive…$16 for one ounce! So I try to only use it at night so I can sleep a bit.

I know I’m constantly complaining about critters eating anything green around here. But I never thought they’d eat a cactus!! Pretty sad when I can’t even keep a cactus from getting eaten! All hope is lost for a garden.

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I have a large packrat nest under my 275 gallon water tank. I looked the other day and there are some clothespins, sponges and other doodads I’ve left outside. I stole back the clothespins.

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Last week I washed a third of my car! (Just one side) Since I don’t have running water, I used a small amount of water in a pot to wash, and rinsed it by tossing little 5 oz. Dixie cups of clean water at it. I got tired after that one side and never got back to it, but boy, that one side looks really good! I am SO not a car-washer….that’s the first time I’ve done it in three years. Maybe I’ll get up the energy to wash the other side soon. Then again, maybe not.

I have not been able to go camping yet. I’m very disappointed but some unexpected expenses came up so I didn’t have money to spend on extra gas. But I’m planning a good trip in late November or early December, unexpected expenses notwithstanding! Not far, just barely inside Nevada (camping on Lake Mojave) and then down to Parker (The Desert Bar!) and camping on the Colorado River in Ehrenberg, AZ. I hope it’s not too cold by then but those areas are much warmer than here.