Eureka - April 2019

4-7-2019.

Monday morning I walked with the Ramblers. While driving to the meeting place it rained. I felt like turning around, but I walked. Some walkers brought umbrellas. It actually had stopped raining while we were walking. On the way back it started to rain again. I was near my car and did not get wet.

In the evening I danced at the Moose Lodge.

Tuesday it was cloudy and it rained a little bit off and on. I walked Down Town. The trees at the gazebo are in full bloom.

Wednesday through Friday I walked during breaks of the rain.

Saturday I attended a lecture at the library. The Humboldt County Heritage Society presented it. It was about Myrtle Cemetery, the oldest cemetery in town.

In the evening I went Down Town for Arts Alive. I stopped at the Morris Graves Arts Museum to check out the earrings Nicolette has made in her art class in school. Unfortunately, the display was gone.

Sunday I walked at the mall, went grocery shopping and updated my autobiography. I was behind a few years.
 

4-14-2019.

This was a wet week. Monday, during the day, I did not leave the motorhome. It rained all day. In the evening I danced at the Moose Lodge. I have to walk only 300 feet to the lodge.

The rest of the week I walked in the mall or when there was a break in the rain, in the city .

Tuesday evening I went to the library to see, A Streetcar named Desire, a film directed by Elia Kazan. This month all four films were directed by him.

Friday the weather was better and I started installing a new WI-FI booster antenna on top of the motorhome. Since I have not used the CB radio for several years, I removed it and the antenna. The    WI-FI antenna will take the spot of the CB antenna.

The WI-FI antenna is connected to a inside router, which is powered by nine volts. The system needs 120 volts though for the nine volts. I wish they had it designed for 12 volts.

Saturday I finished the installation of the router. I could not connect to the King Network. Monday morning I have to call the company.

Sunday I worked on the top of the motorhome. I swept off the redwood leaves and used a water hose to  clean under the solar panels. Those leaves left nasty stains.

On one of my walks  I saw those beautiful Victorian homes. In a wet climate like Eureka, it costs a lot of money to keep houses like those, in good shape. Many homes are in bad shape.

4-21-2019.

Monday morning I spent about an hour on the telephone with a person from the King Company. He helped me with setting up the WI-FI booster. Now I have my own password protected router.

It was not an easy process.

At 12:00 noon I went to one of the OLLI lectures. It was about climate change and very interesting. California is leading in reducing of the use of carbon fuels.

In the evening I danced at the Moose Lodge.

Tuesday evening I saw the film: “ On the Waterfront” at the library.

Wednesday I walked with the Wednesday walkers at the beach in Manila.

This was a sunny day. Everybody was happy.

Sandpipers were resting after doing their acrobatic flying.

I finished the work on the roof of the motorhomes. I replaced rusted screws and nuts, on the solar panels and antennas, with stainless steel fasteners.

Thursday I walked at the Humboldt Botanical Garden. Some bushes and trees are in bloom. The temperature was 60 degrees F., which is considered warm here.

Friday the weather was lousy. In the evening I danced at the Elks Lodge. Midnight Special was providing the music.

Saturday I drove to Arcata where they have godwit days. Godwit is a bird. There were book sellers, bird spotting device sellers and everything needed for birding.

School children had their art work on display. Nicolette got honorary mention for her painting of a tufted puffin.

In the evening I danced at the lodge.

Sunday I went to the zoo. Sequoia Park Zoo is small. The star inhabitants were hiding while I was there. The Red Pandas unfortunately decided not to come out.

There is a statue of Bill in the zoo. He was the star for many years. He started at a circus and ended up in Eureka.

In the afternoon I went to Scott’s mother house for an Easter Dinner. The whole family was there. The turkey was perfect.

4-28-2019.

Monday morning I went to St. Joseph Hospital where they did a Doppler ultrasound study of my hearts blood flow, valves, and chambers, for a heart murmur. This was requested by the doctor who I saw on March 21.

At noon I went to OLLI to hear a lecture about woodworking. I have done some woodworking and built furniture, but not like the speaker has done. His pieces are special and cost a lot of money.

In the evening I danced at the lodge.

Tuesday morning I went to the doctor office again and instead of hearing about the results of the blood tests and ultrasound study, I told the nurse practitioner about my new health issue.

I have a four inch diameter lump in my abdomen.

I have been constipated the last four weeks, in the last two weeks really bad. I do not know whether it is blocked intestines or a growth.

The nurse practitioner brought a doctor in the room and both decided to send me for an ultrasound and a CT Scan. This will take several weeks because they have to contact my medical insurance.

The lab also took some blood today.

If my situation does not improve soon, I will go to the Emergency Room at St. Joseph Hospital.

I have been very lucky the first eighty years of my life. It seems to be catching up with me.

From the doctor office I went to St. Joseph Outpatient Services for a heart X ray. This is still a part of my last month visit to the doctor office.

I lost twelve pound in the last few months and do not know why and how. I still have a good appetite and eat regular meals.

In the evening I went to the library to see the film: ”A Face In The Crowd”, another Elia Kazan directed film, starring Andy Griffith, Patricia Neal and Walter Matthau.

Thursday evening I saw a play at the Redwood Curtain Theater. The play was: “Prodigal Son”.

Saturday morning was the Rhododendron Parade. The weather was perfect but most of the floats were not decorated with flowers.

Last year the weather was miserable, it rained, but there were more colorful floats.

After the parade I walked to the Adorni Recreation Center, where the Tall Ship Hawaii Chieftain was moored.

The Lady Washington was not there. Both ships were supposed to be in Eureka for the Eureka Salt and Fog Fish Fest, which was held at the foot of C Street.

While I was there the Hawaii Chieftain sailed by.

At 7:00 AM, Sunday Morning, I arrived at the Emergency Department of the St. Joseph Hospital. When the triage nurse felt the bulge in my lower abdomen, she took me to a room right away. I was hooked up to the monitoring machine in a hurry.

They took blood and a urine sample.

The doctor came and thought it was an expanded aorta. They took X rays in the room and I was taken for a CT scan.

The doctor saw me again at 2:00 PM and told me that I do not have to stay at the hospital. I have to see my primary physician, and they have to make an appointment for a biopsy of the mass in my abdomen.

The doctor also gave me a prescription for taking care of my constipation. I have to drink eight ounces of a liquid every five minutes, for a total of three quarts. That will be fun.

From the hospital I went to Walgreens and had the prescription filled.

4-30-2019.

Monday morning I got up before 4:00 AM and added four quarts of water to the container with the powder and then started drinking. 

It took two hours to drink the gallon. The process worked.

I went to the doctor office at 8:00 AM and had them make copies of the papers the doctor from the Emergency Department gave me.

They called me later and told me to come to the office at 10:45 AM on Tuesday.

At noon I went to another Brown Bag Lunch with OLLI. Three speakers talked about the housing problem in Humboldt County.

In the evening I danced for a while at the Moose Lodge. I do not feel that great right now.

Tuesday morning I went to the doctor office. They prepared the request for the biopsy.

The rest of the day I took it easy. In the evening I went to the library and saw the film: ”East of Eden”.