Dentist Time...

Another short post.  I've got to get around & deal with some stuff.   Then I have to go over to Fort Smith for a dental cleaning.  Shouldn't be any big deal.  I hope the drive goes well.  We got a little more rain last night & it is horribly humid.  The humidity's been playing havoc on my sleep.  Hopefully, this stuff will dry out & move on for a bit.  I'm off to shower & get out of here.

Cya...

Rushed Morning...

In a bit of a rush this morning.  I've got some stuff to get done early.  I've got to get blood drawn for my appointment with Telemedicine next month.   I'll need:

• HIV-VL Ultrasensitive Quantitative 
• CD4
• CMP
• CBC

Hopefully the draw will go well & there won't need to be any repeats.  Tomorrow I have a cleaning dental cleaning.  There's another trip to Fort Smith.   May I'll be lucky enough for the trip to go smoothly.  It'll be a week or so before I get all my results from the labs.  

Cya...

The Yard...

Our yard is getting out of hand.  We called the guy who mows & told him whenever he thinks it dry enough to come mow the lawn.  He didn't make it yesterday & might not today.  That could be a problem.  There's a large chance of more rain today. 

This has been a soaked July in Oklahoma.  Some of the grass could probably hide small game at this point.  Our yard is rapidly becoming the grasslands.  I don't need that.  That just invites vermin into the grass & most of those little beasties come with other pests like fleas.

Even though cut grass screws with my sinuses, we seriously need this yard mowed.  Hopefully, it'll get done today.  The grass is going to seed  & that's not easy on my allergies.  I hate grass.

Cya...

Drying Out..

The lawn might get mowed today if it's dry enough.  The water's been standing for days after the rains.   It's been nice sleeping in cooler night air, but it's kept everything from drying out again.  It's left the yard a mucky mess.

Lately the high dew points at night have been causing me problems.  I haven't had a flare up of gout, but I've had serious warnings it could happen.  I can control what I eat, but not the weather.  This has been the case since mid spring.  It's made it very difficult to do any strenuous exercise involving my feet, like steps.  I can walk, but even too much of that & I start feeling warning twinges.  So, I've stayed mostly to stretches & the peddler. 

Maybe with Summer ramping back up I can get back more into the groove of things   I at least want to make sure I don't gain any weight back.  That'd suck.

Cya...

The 27th...

I've become very aware of the 27th day of the month now.  I have been for several months.  December 27th of 2012 was the last time our cat Alice was in the house.  That she took her last trip to the vet's.   I think about that on the 27th now.  I didn't have her very long, but she was definitely my cat.

The 1st of September is coming up, it's my birthday.  I'm not that into my birthday.  It has little to do with my age & more to do with past stuff.   For the last several years however, it's been about the death of another cat.  His name was Julian.  He had be put down on my birthday.

Somehow his idiotic brother is still here with us.  He's the old shit-monster I complain about sometimes.  There are 4 cats in the house now.  Tink came in not too long ago & wasn't all that impressed by the move indoors.  There is another male outside, we call him Clementine.  It may not be the best name, but it's better than me calling him Short Orange like I was.  The indoor boy cat will turn 16 this year.  The two girl cats are middle aged & Tink is a few years younger than them.  Clementine is pretty young.

7 months ago today Alice passed away.  The 1st year we lived in the place before here Julian left the building.  It's just a matter of time before old man cat passes.  At least that's what I keep thinking.  That old bastard may just be some type of shit-zombie.  Off with his head.

Cya...

Rainy Day...

This is a weird July.  It's rainy today & probably won't hit 80 F.  We've more than doubled our average monthly rain totals & there are still a few days left in the month.  The relief from the heat is nice.  It's supposed to jump back into the 90's in a few days & stay in the mid to upper 90's for the rest of the 10-day forecast. 

I like the coolness we have now, but it's not seasonal & has issues of it's own.  This weather leads to more mowing & probably more fleas if we're not careful.  There are always trade-offs.  Higher temperatures means the grass dies & less fleas.  Both are definite perks.   These lower temps & all the rain is apt to lead to a lot of mold & mildew.  

I know I can't be happy with anything.  The reality of this is simple, the weather always has good & bad points.  However, I slept really well last night, so I'm not seriously griping about the rain.

Cya...

Wow... It's Nice Out...

We had hella' rain & it knocked the temperatures back down.  Yesterday we didn't even make it into the 90's F.  Today we're supposed to be just into them.  We had a good & productive time yesterday.  I'm always a bit leery of Fort Smith trips.  

These trips have a habit of developing issues.  There is always the possibility of idiotic traffic on the way over there, since the locals refuse to 4-lane the road.  There's always some old asshat who thinks they know how everyone else should drive.   Shooting those people should not be illegal.

Productive trips have a tendency not be just that, productive.  If we go looking  for something, suddenly it's like the thing never existed.  Or it turns out not to be what we needed at all.

We're always cautious going to movies.  They're damned pricey now & the thought of wasting $ on a crappy movie is nerve wracking.  We've been lucky with that issue for a while.  Then again we read just about every review possible before deciding to see a move in the theater.

There is also always the threat of car issues.  Did a tire go?  Did the radiator go bad?  How about the fuel pump? Etc...

Somehow, though, everything went pretty well yesterday. I'm really glad it did too.  We needed to go & really needed for it not to suck.  For that I'm grateful.

Cya...

Outta Here...

Getting out of the house for a bit today.  The roomie needs new shoes & there really isn't any decent place here to buy them.  We had a lot of rain last night.  Weather Underground said it was a little over 4".  There's probably a lot of high water on the roads.   The morning's going to be busy.  I have to get myself around, take a shower, get food made & get us out of here so we can catch the 1st movie showing today.  I'll write more tomorrow.

Cya...

Tick Tock...

I know for an HIV blog, I write a lot about the minutia & trivia in my life.  However, this blog is about my life as a person in his 40's living in small town Oklahoma, who happens to also be +.  Things that have impact on my life may seem inconsequential to other people, even those living with HIV.  For me, though, they're a big part of my life.

My life & health is drastically affected by the weather, hot or cold.  So, I do write about it a lot.  Weather can screw with me in ways little else can these days.  It doesn't matter if I'm talking about actual temperatures or humidity levels.  It all changes how I feel & what I can accomplish that day.

I write a lot about the little things in my life, like going shopping, taking trips to Fort Smith or going to see a movie.  These things are markers in my life now.  That sucks, but it's true.  I don't have much left.  So, I go shopping Mondays & Fridays.  Sometimes more often if I need things.  I go to Fort Smith as needed.  Sometimes that need is simply to get the hell out of the house.  I write about trash day on Wednesdays.  

Summertime can be hard on me due to the weather & the lack of TV programs.  I use those programs & my roomie's outings to measure time.  To mark all the stupid minutes until I have something else to do.  My drugs are an unwelcome reminder of time passage, but they do chart the day.  My stressful encounters with my pharmacy mark out the month.  Going to see my doctors & dentist map the year.

Right now, that's my life.  It's governed by mundane errands & medical junk.  Occasionally something fun gets into the mix, but not as often as I'd like.  But, probably more often than I can actually afford.  That's life on disability, at least for me.  Maybe someday it'll change, hopefully for the better.  But, it might not.  So, I do my my best to get by.

Cya...

Summer Breeze Kaput...

Well the summer pleasantries seem to be over.  The nice low 90's & upper 80's are heading back to their normals of mid & upper 90's.  Yuck.  The main problem is the damn humidity is lingering.

I really can't complain.  This has been an amazingly cook Summer for Oklahoma.  Still, I was feeling like crap with the cooler weather.  This warmer stuff won't be a help at all.

At least we aren't supposed to hit the 100's again yet.   Maybe we can mostly avoid that for the Summer.  That'd be a real treat.

Cya...

Cool Again...

We never got the rain that was supposed to come our way, but it did cool down a lot.   We barely scraped the 90's F yesterday.  Looks like that's the way it's going to go today as well.   I'm loving the weather & it seems to be helping me get past whatever was making me ill & my sinuses go nuts.  I've still got some sinus issues, but they're much less than they were.

I'm beginning to wonder if it's purely environmental & it just affected me earlier than my roomie.  If not then I must have caught some bug & now she has it.  I'm thinking it's environmental though.  I felt like crap, but not like the flu or a cold.

I still can't believe it's late July at 1 PM & we're barely 90.  That's weird, nice, but weird. Until tomorrow.

Cya...

Tech Issues...

Not sure if my internet provider or Blogger is throwing a fit.  Whatever it is, it's making do this entry next to impossible.  It keeps kicking me out.  So, on to the points:

• I seem to be getting better slowly
• Can't say the same for my roomie
• We had amazingly cool weather yesterday
• It dropped back into the 80's 
• It was very nice
• I slept well
• It might rain today
• It might not

That seems to be about it.  I'll try to post more tomorrow.  Hopefully this will go easier.

Cya...

Shopping In Swamp Air...

Apparently Walmart no longer feels the need to adequately cool their stores.  Maybe the department store giant wants to save some pennies on the AC bill.  Whatever the reason, shopping there today was like wading through a swamp of thick soup.    

That can't be good for the produce & other perishables.  It certainly wasn't good for me.  I was zapped by the time I got our of the store.  Besides all the normal Walmart BS, it was sweltering in there.  Makes you wonder about the condition of their food stuffs.

Instead of focusing on my shopping.  All I could do was think about getting the hell out of there.  I was nasty, they were still stocking & there were children.    None of which I wanted to deal with this morning.

Our outings are over.  It's supposed to get hot today.  We opted not to go to Fort Smith.   I have no desire to go over there in this heat.  It'd be my luck something would happen to the van & we'd be stuck on the side of the road for an hour or more waiting on AAA.

So in we stay for the rest of today.  Fort Smith can wait a bit.

Cya...

Swamp Time...

We hit 95 F yesterday.  I was alright throughout most the day.  Then at about 5:30 or so, it started to cool off a bit.  That's when the hell came creeping in on us.  By 7 PM it was down to 92 sounds nice.  But the humidity had cranked & it felt like hell.

The humidity sapped my strength & made me nauseous.  My meds are a killer when the heat & humidity soar.  Finally at 8, I gave in & knew the AC would have to come on for a while.  Even though I'd made it through the heat of the day relatively well, I couldn't hack the swamp air I was sitting in.  

The AC ran for 2 hours & the outside temp dropped down to 80.  For those of you who don't use window unit AC's, they produce a lot of condensation.  We have a bucket under the AC so the water doesn't just stand on the porch.  Within 2 hours the 1 1/2 gallon container was overflowing due to the humidity.

I can take a lot of heat,  but that combined with humidity just kills me.  I still feel off this morning.  It's going to hot & humid again today.  The AC will be coming on much sooner today.

Cya...

Once A Month Meds...

According to this article, a injected of medicine in a nanosuspension is being developed by Janssen.  I have no idea how far off this med is, but I think it could be a wonderful thing.  Aside from people who are sick of being on a leash of pills, this approach could be more suitable for many people without proper means of storing meds, such as the homeless.

The idea of 1 shot a month instead of numerous pills a day is liberating.  No more worrying about missed doses or having to run home because I forgot my drugs.   The more convenient we can make HIV meds the more apt people are to be on & stay on regimens.

This is something I'll keep my eyes on.

Cya...

Some Rain...

It rained yesterday, not much, but some.  It was enough to give everything a good bath, but that was about it. We still have some rain chances in the forecast.  I hope we get it.  The ground is dry, but the air is humid.  I'd rather have the reverse for a bit.

I'm getting past this yuck I've been dealing with.  Yesterday was much better than the day before.  My sinuses are still a mess, but at least my stomach's calming down.

Will probably be back in Fort Smith at the end of the week.  The roomie needs shoes & there aren't any good shoe stores here.   So, we'll probably make a day of it.  But for today, I'm enjoying the cooler weather & having little to do today.

Cya...

Med Refill Round 2...

Not in a great mood today.  I called my pharmacy to check & see if my refill orders had been placed by my doctor.  The Didanosine had been, but my Lamivudine had not.  OK, I'm already tiffed at that news.  But wait, it gets better.  They ask me if I'd like the Lamivudine/Zidovudine combo drug that was just refilled instead.

OK, recap:

• This combo in non-generic form is known as Combivir
• Combivir contains the non-generic version of Zidovudine known as Retrovir or AZT
• I am allergic to AZT
• AZT put me in the hospital
• We have just been through this fiasco less than a year ago

No, I do not want the combo drug.  No I do not want the generic version of the medication that put me in the hospital.  No, I will not accept that order.

My doctor's nurse ordered this drug for me less than a year ago.  We went through all this then.  Apparently some people need lessons drilled through their thick skulls.  Her mistake could have cost my insurance over $1,000 & possibly killed me.  Also, this isn't the 1st time this woman has done this.  She needs to be flogged, but I'd settle for fired or at least kept away from my med orders.

Hopefully this will all be straightened out & my order will arrive as intended next Tuesday.

Cya...

Nice Day...

It's been pleasant here for the last couple of days.  The weather has been mild.  I'm glad.  It's letting me catch back up on sleep & start to get past whatever this yuck is I've been dealing with for a while.  

I've got some household stuff to get through today, so I'm going to keep this brief.  I'm going to do my best just to get through the stuff I have to & hopefully nothing else gets added on my plate.  

The problem when you're chronically ill, is that even fun stuff can be tiring.  As much as I get antsy about being stuck in the house during the Summer, I realize there's only so much I can do before I wear myself out. Unfortunately, sometimes it doesn't take much to zap my reserves.  So, today, I'll focus on some chores that need done & that's about it.  

Cya...

Saturday...

OK, so the weekend's here.  I hope it goes better than my week.  I've been a ways off from feeling good mentally & physically for a while now.   The old cat I live with, which I've renamed Shitstormapalooza, is still among the living some how.  I'm trying to be as kind as possible to that cat, but he is seriously trying my patience.   There isn't a lot there to try to begin with, so he'd best be careful.

Had a good time out yesterday other than idiot drivers to & fro Fort Smith.  We hadn't planned on going, but our Walmart was short some things we needed.   Since there's no telling when that store will actually restock anymore, we opted to go to Fort Smith & get the stuff.  We round up seeing Pacific Rim.  It was an enjoyable flick.  

The weather is cooling & I'm starting to feel better.  Hopefully, we'll get some rain soon.  We need it.

Cya...

It's Friday...

It's Friday & we have some errands to run.  We've decided to make a day of it.  There's a movie we wanted to catch.  Hopefully this will go well & we can just have a good day.   We need it.

Cya...

Hot 1...

Yesterday was a scorcher.  It hit 103 F here.  Now for Oklahoma in July that's no where near as hot as it can get.  But, considering the nice weather we'd had up to that point, that 103 felt like hell.   We may hit 100 today, but the red's supposed to be sliding back down the thermometer a bit.

The problem here is it was supposed to rain last night.   There was no rain.  Only it's dank cousin, humidity, showed up to the party.    That sucked.

My body is still reeling a bit from the abrupt change in temps.   My stomach is churning.  I've had worse sinus & throat issues this Summer, than I ever did this Winter.   I've kept a good supply of lozenges. 

Hopefully, we can get back into the lower 90's.  That'd mean the night time temps would be in the upper 60's or low 70's.  That's way better sleeping weather than the humid, low 80's.

Wherever you are stay hydrated & cool.

Cya...

Here We Go Again...

My pharmacy called this morning so I could place a refill order.  The last couple of times have gone relatively smoothly.   Then again I hadn't needed any prescription refills from my doctor.   This time I need 2.  That's twice something can screw up & have me left hanging in the process.   All the while, everyone's playing the blame game.  I called my doctor's office to let them know the request was coming & to please be sure to send it in as soon as possible.   Here's hoping this goes well.  

It's supposed to pass 100 F here again today.   This will be the 2nd day over the century mark this year.  That's pretty good for Oklahoma.    It's supposed to cool back down in the lower & mid 90's after that for a while.   The lower 90's are a breeze as long as the humidity's low.  

Well, it's Wednesday & I have all my usual midweek crap to catch up on, so until tomorrow.

Cya...

Pulling It Together...

I've been stressed & not feeling well lately.  There's nothing big going on, just a bunch of little things constantly poking at me.  My sleep is off & that knocks everything out of whack.  The temperatures are rising & my older cat is a bitch that won't pass gently into that long good night.  This is all causing my appetite to all but vanish.  If not for having to take my meds with food that might be a good thing.  I can stand to lose so more weight.

Again, nothing monumental is wrong in my life.  There's just a ton of minutia taking it's toll on me. My typing has been awful.  I'm spending more time fixing typos than typing.  My spoons are all used up & I've got little left to use for myself.  I really hope something gives soon & that it's not me.  Lately, I've just been tired.  It'd be nice not to wake up exhausted, depleted & stressed.  

Cya...

Heating Up...

The temperatures are going back up, then again we're in July.  We're supposed to be in mid to upper 90's F this week.  That's way better than in the 100's,   

Had to go shopping this morning.  It was annoying on just about every level.  I'm still not feeling great.  Neither are my roomie or the cats.

I've got some minor errands to deal with this week, but that's about it.  I'm very thankful for that.  Other than going to Fort Smith later in the week, I don't really plan on doing much of anything.  Maybe it'll give me a chance to get back to feeling normal or at least normal for me..

Cya...

Bad Connections...

I'm not sure what's going on but blogger is being a real pain.  It keeps screwing up & resetting.  I think it's saving & then what I've written is gone.   This isn't making me happy.  On top of that, I'm still recovering from the 4th crap.  I was doing better, but more asshats sat off fireworks again last night.  Past that, we had the lawn mowed, so my sinuses are pissed off.  Which isn't doing my stomach any favors.

I'll blog more tomorrow.

Cya...

Feeling Slightly Better...

I'm slowly getting passed the holiday crap, even though my neighbors shot off more smelly fireworks last night.  The weather is still relatively pleasant, especially for July in Oklahoma.  I'm sleeping well, but waking up tired.  My sinuses are not happy campers right now.

We have an old cat in our home & he's being a tremendous source of stress right now.  A less nice cat person would probably have had him put down by now.   As annoying as his sanitary habits are, I can't really justify offing him over them.  Besides that cost $.  So, he lives to shit another day.

I'm in sort of a weird place right now.  Not good or bad, just odd.  I'm not sure why.  I feel like I should be on the go, but I don't really have anywhere to go or the desire to do so.  I'm antsy but not really anxious.  Weird, I know.  I go to listen to music, but nothing seems to suit me.  Maybe, I'm just being picky.

Maybe tomorrow will bring something more diverting.  Hopefully, it won't be bad.  Sometimes, I really do feel like a leaf waiting for the wind to blow.

Cya...

Aftermath...

The 4th is gone & hopefully so are the fireworks.  I hate to be a downer, but the noise was just annoying.  We sat on the porch last night & watched the city fireworks display as well as some others.  It was a pretty sight, but smoke was much less enjoyable.

The neighborhood was shrouded in haze from the pyrotechnics.  It made breathing difficult & my eyes water.  I'm still having issues this morning.  I'm glad the lawn guy won't be mowing until this weekend.  I need a break between the smoke & the cut grass.

I try to get into the 4th, but I don't really succeed.  As a kid we shot off a lot, but you couldn't do it in town.  So we always went out somewhere as not to bother people.  Of course, being kids, we did shoot off some in town.   We accidentally sent a bottle-rocket sailing through cop car window as it drove by.  Luckily it went right out the other side before it popped.  A lot of the time, we spent the 4th out camping & canoeing/floating.  That was actually more fun than just watching fire works.    

Well, it's Friday, have a good weekend everyone.

Cya...

Holiday...

It's Independence Day in the US.  Not much going on for us here.   There'll be more fireworks tonight.  Not that we bought any.  We can see the town display from the porch & the neighbors are setting off more than enough.

I really didn't expect to see too many articles today, so I didn't look that hard.  There's still some stuff emerging about people being "cured" after transplants.  I'm not sure what to think about that yet.  A lot more will have to come out about that matter.

For those in the US, have a great holiday & be safe.  For those not, Happy Thursday.

Cya...

Nearly Forgot...

I about didn't get this in today.  We ran to Fort Smith & blogger was being a real pain earlier.  I didn't even remember to do a post until well past 9 PM.  

Things going on:

• Saw Despicable Me 2 & had a good time
• Drive to Fort Smith, less fun than the movie
• Cashed checks & paid bills for the month
• Hating on people & their fireworks, I'm so in the spirit
• Loving the American Baking Competition
• Hating Big Brother & it's amazing bigot show
• Got trash out
• Have no plans for tomorrow

That about wraps it up.  

Cya...

IP = Too Much $...

In this article, Doctors Without Borders states intellectual property rights are keeping medications from becoming generic & therefore elevating the costs to treat 3rd world countries.  No surprise there.  These companies are mostly concerned with making $, not curing illnesses. 

A new trade agreement, Trans-Pacific Trade, could actually make all this much worse.  This act could tighten the leash on people capable of producing generics.  It would allow for much greater leeway for those with IP rights.

In the end corporate greed will probably be the 1 thing keeps anyone from ever curing HIV.

Cya...

July...

Today's the 1st of July.  So long June.  It was nice of you to stay cool for most the month.  Here we head towards 1 of my less favored holidays, July 4th.   Yippie, there'll be idiots with fireworks.  Maybe Darwinism will win out this year & they'll off themselves with roman candles.  

I'm hoping this month doesn't get too hot.  I'd like for no further car issues or breakages.  I'd really like it if the new neighbors start trying to deal with their howling dogs.   Why do people who don't really want dogs, get dogs?

So far, the 1st day of July has been pretty good, even with a a trip to Walmart this morning.   Not much else planned for today.    We're still waiting for checks to get in so we can do bills  later this week.  After that, at least the house bills will be caught up again.   The roomie has some errands to run, so it's just me & the cats for a bit.  I doubt they'll even notice, right now they're all asleep. 

Here's hoping for a good July for everyone.

Cya...