swilkinson

Straight hair

I went through that for months so it is good to be out of masks again. But the memories of isolation, mask wearing etc does linger on. Making people feel nervous maybe and thinking that we might have to go back to that again. You are right about how hard it is not to be able to be close to people. Anyway we survived it and I know you will too.

Heather some people find soft music in the background helps. I like to be in a quiet place and sometimes Sunday afternoon when there is less traffic is a good time.

Had a Lion's Club meeting last night and discussed our Changeover and the members decided to make it informal, a pity really as it is usually an event to look forward to. I think we've lost heart a bit through two years of relative isolation so that may work against us with Lions dinners becoming a chore not a pleasure. I've been involved with Lions since 1984 when Ray joined do have many happy memories of those special nights.

That is a very good presentation Asha. Thank you for sharing it.

Because my younger son has been here we have been discussing the way our families have reacted to the Covid restrictions. My daughter works as a Chaplain in a nursing home and with some staff members missing because of isolation issues is working longer hours as a substitute for others like the activities person, morning tea person etc. She is on a set wage so no extra payment. My son in Adelaide and my grandchildren who live with him are not travelling interstate so no visits from them for two years. Only an occasional phone call from him and none from my grandchildren. This means I have missed out on two years of school holiday visits, usually only one day visit but enough to keep a relationship with them. How have your own families reacted?

Today is sunny, yesterday it was heavy rain again. My son has been trying to clean my driveway because it is slippery with drowned ?leaves etc. He's afraid I'll have a fall. Just a few days of sunshine would dry it out but it's not happening that way. He goes back to Broken Hill tomorrow so it will probably be sunny next week. I've neglected so much through Covid and he tries to do a few of my minor repairs etc while he is here.

Well I posted in February that it was raining and that continued most of March, it was the rainiest period in many decades. It did stop for a few days and then back came the torrential downpours and the floods. Some towns further north really suffered. It has eased back now but the run off is still happening and the older, deeper drains are still running. Most people can't remember having the minor flooding as we have just experienced. Is it global warming or just the changes as resculpturing of the land takes place? Nothing remains static and plans for drains etc need revising sometimes. So it is school holidays including Easter and Trevor and Alice are here til Friday. Today they have gone to Sydney to the Royal Easter Show and no doubt they will come back tired and stressed and out of spending money but satisfied that coming all that way was worth it because of being with Grandma and experiencing all the special things they can do here. And seeing cousins is hopefully a bonus too. Alice visits her aunt and cousins on her mother's side each time she comes here as they live one suburb over from me. We are in the middle of preparation for Easter in the church. Most years I am involved but asked to be let off this year. I had a week away two weeks ago and since then have been very busy so I need time to relax and enjoy family time for a while. I did go to Sydney to see the oncologist and the physiotherapist who specialises in lymphoedema and both were pleased my condition hasn't changed but I still get very tired and blame the thyroid operation for that. Vitamins don't seem to help and putting my feet up mid afternoon seems to give my body a break so I try to do that most days. The rest of the family are fine. There is still too many Covid cases in the State and as contact isolating is a matter of choice not law now my Adelaide grandkids are not coming here but their mother is going to see them over Easter. I have not seen them for two years. Unfortunately many grandparents are in the same situation. I see my Cardiff family when I go up there. I am so fortunate Trevor and Alice come here. I am also fortunate that I have good friends to meet up with for morning tea or lunch and the activities of the church and my Lions Club to participate in. Since Covid changed our lives I have gone back to counting my blessings. I pray more for all kinds of people who are going through all kinds of troubling times. It is one thing I can do at home. Prices are rising and taking a long trip in the car is something I have to think about now as fuel prices have almost doubled. Do I need to go here and there? Usually not. If I do can I get there by public transport which is subsidised for old people like me who are on a full or part pension? Yes? Even if it takes longer that is a good option. Sometimes I feel like my days are shortening I guess that happens to people of my age. My main life's work is over, what remains is sharing whatever wisdom I have accumulated. And that is only appropriate for some people who are seeking answers. The rest get prayed for. Of course practical help is needed sometimes and our church provides that. I am good as a listening ear so I do spend some time on the phone, not counseling, just listening. I hope that helps. I learned from my years as a telephone counselor that most people know what the solution to their problem is, they just need the courage to do it. So life goes on day to day, some good days, some not so good days. My family are well and seem to be coping with life, I am well according to my specialist. Covid is still here, some of my friends or their family members have had it but so far I haven't. I call that fortunate and am thankful for it. I'll just keep them all in my prayers.

Just had two notifications of close contacts from friends who were at the lunch last week but I was at the opposite end of the table to both so no need to isolate. One of my friends had a visit from his daughter who stayed overnight and tested positive two days after so he is isolating for a week. I guess it is now up to the individual to make that decision.

Hi Susan Cm it has been a long time. I looked at your blog page and the last one was 2018! Not many of the members who you remember will be posting on here now but there are a bunch of Aussies here again. The person who will tell you when Steve died will probably be Kelli who does most of the monitoring here now. I am still blog moderator, gave up hosting chat some years back. I think of myself as a volunteer now as I have been a widow for nine years but can't leave the site and all the friends I have made here. Welcome back, hope you can make some new friends here.

I went to a lunch for the WAGS stroke group today and spoke to a couple we hadn't seen for two years. She has an autoimmune disorder and he can't drive so can only come if she drives him there. It made me aware that going out into mixed groups is problematic for some people. I have been out and about for a while now and forget other people can't always do what I do.

jungle noises

Janelle, no laughing about it here. The little girls next door have been home for a week. Oldest girl Joey has the bad cough, poor pet not sleeping day or night. The other sisters and their brother seem fine. My son Trevor still has the cough although he came out of quarantine three weeks ago. It seems some people get the mild cases but even some of the triple vaxxed like Trevor can have after effects. Stay safe and well.

I went to a lunch today sponsored by the Stroke Recovery group I have belonged to since 2006. There was not a lot of conversation as we were avoiding the main talking points that have been in the news. It was as if we had forgotten that we were friends. It was pleasant but not like it was before. Future meetings are to be planned but it depends on the spread of the latest Covid variant in our local area. That is because the stroke survivors particularly still feel vulnerable. Does anybody else feel as if we are still in limbo?

house plants

Day by day we live our lives. I am a widow the ex-caregiver for Ray who had multiple strokes. I cared for Ray through his many strokes for a total of twelve years. This gives me a unique perspective which I can share with others. As the person reading this you have a unique perspective.One of the ways you can share your experiences is to start a blog. If you already have a blog you can update it. Blogs are just longer posts that express what you are going through or what you are learning in your day by day living. We read the blog and learn not only something about you but also what we, as human beings, have in common. Some of my present friends I got to know through their blog. Because of our meeting through Strokenet I had amazing experiences, like meeting Sarah in Hawaii, and meeting Ann in Norfolk, England and attending her son's wedding. So becoming friends with other caregivers or stroke survivors can lead to something life changing. Doing something new like starting a blog can be frightening or exciting, for newcomers to the site it can also be bonding. I hope you can start a blog and find new friends like I did.

Kelli, I am so thankful that Missy has decided to keep this site going. I know you are working and also trying to keep this site going. The Aussies and New Zealanders are the beneficiaries of that right now but hopefully we will get new members who want to participate fully in the site too.

Thanks to all the volunteers on here and to those who keep the site going. I was one of the early beneficiaries of the wealth of wisdom on this site. Long may it continue to serve the community.

Still raining on and off. Floods further south and west of Sydney now. Hopefully by next Monday conditions will improve, we are all a little over this monsoonal rain. I went shopping today as we've been told fuel prices wil go up and the cost of groceries will follow. So much for 2022 being a better year.

Deigh this site is run by volunteers. As far as I know it is still funded by Steve Mallory's family. I don't know if any of the volunteers have a lot of knowledge of how the site works. I have been on here a long time as a chat host and blog monitor but the rest of the workings of the site are a mystery to me. We do need younger people with a knowledge of IT to volunteer on here. Maybe then they could explain how to register to people who have a problem with doing that. But anyone can answer a cry for help that is posted on this site. All you need for that is a knowledge of human nature and experience of stroke as a stroke survivor or caregiver.

Yes it's fortunate I am high and dry but a lot of people in the lower lying areas of the Central Coast now have water surrounding them. My sister in law in Queensland is still isolated on her small farm and my friend Cate can't get back home. More and more people are flooded in in Southern Queensland and on the north coast of New South Wales.

It's raining here, it has been for days. There is minor flooding in the creeks locally and there has been one drowning death. A man who drove through flood waters against advice and his car washed into a creek. So sad. I have had to redig drains because of increased flow and patch a dirt wall at the top side of the house washed away by one of the downpours. My Ray set up some " temporary" drains 30 years ago and now I'll have to do something to repair the damage. Of course that is reasonable wear and tear after all those years. Today we are all busy watching the situation in the Ukraine. I lived in a migrant area as a young girl and know some people who came from that area so their pain is my pain. I have always seen the world as being interconnected, that was my Dad's doing, it was his world view which probably came from his prisoner of war days when all were depending on each other. A salutary lesson for us all. Anyway I feel for the people of Ukraine and for those in other trouble spots in the world. I have done nothing exciting in the past ten days. The usual church attendance, craft group, shopping days were done under stress as I rushed from the car, umbrella unfurled. Other than what I had to do everything else has cancelled or postponed including a BBQ with the Stroke group WAGS. So life is really not what summer is usually like on the beautiful Central Coast. If the humidity would disappear life would be better though. Crocheting has increased and so the production of cat mats but gardening has not been possible without a snorkel. The advantage of course of a wet summer is no bush fires our side of Australia. Western Australia has heat waves and bush fire threats so feel sorry for Janelle in that respect. We all deserve to be able to enjoy the summer and take advantage of the coastal lifestyle but too much hot sun or too much rain can be a spoiler. There has still been a lot of extra traffic as this is still our tourist season. But I feel sorry the tourists have outlaid their money to be kept inside by the rain. I am keeping in touch with friends by phone, Facebook, email etc. As of today the mask mandate is over and we are encouraged to get out and about, mix, attend, spend and generally boost the economy but I am not sure I am ready for all that yet. With numbers still high in those catching Covid daily I am not sure mingling is what I want to do. Tomorrow is Sunday so church and then a quiet afternoon. My social life is quiet, my family is busy and the television is full of bad news so not a good outlook. Perhaps the rain will lift and we will go back to hot and sunny days but there will be high humidity after the floods. And mosquitoes as well of course. So for me it's a quieter life until the sun shines again.

What food?

Party food

Sorry you have had Covid Mark, Willis and Becky. It is rife around here too. I still go out to the shops etc. I do keep enough food in the house, over the counter medicines etc for a couple of weeks in case I get it. I hope you are all feeling better soon. The thought of long Covid worries me but as I live with the lasting effect on my right lung of having a bad virus 33 years ago I know that many viruses can leave a lasting legacy. I just hope that doesn't happen to any of you.