It began on a happy note with my favourite baby, Nicholas, celebrating his first birthday. I have the pleasure of working with both of his parents, and have been able to interact with him during the first year of his life, and he's a total charmer who loves everybody.
Later that weekend, things took an unfortunate turn, and I ended up in Emergency for 4 hours one night and 7 hours the following day with abdominal pain that they were unable to diagnose, but during the hundred and one tests they did, they found a "hazy patch" on my lung. Just the kind of thing you want to hear after having had little sleep, no food, and have been on IV painkillers for seven hours. More tests and a doctor's appointment later, turns out I had a severe lung infection. Cue to a week off work, and a lot of sleeping and watching Netflix. It seems I am the person who gets pneumonia in the summer.
The cloud had a silver lining, in that it allowed me to binge-watch the Miss Fisher Murder Mysteries series on Netflix. I developed a huge girl-crush on the character of Miss Phryne Fisher (on the left in the photo above, pictured with her companion Dot), who is basically a female superhero. The series is set in Melbourne, Australia in the 1920's and has smart writing, engaging characters, and outfits to make you weep with envy. Click on the "source" link above to read one blogger's opinions about why it is such a great show.
When I felt well enough, I did little walks around the neighbourhood and visited with some of the local critters. Clockwise from top left: Miss Kitty, one of the store cats at the Silk Road Store, attempting to do some fishing; one of the many (and I mean, many) cats that live in a house in my neighbourhood. Most of the neighbours are aware of the "cat hoarding" situation and we keep an eye out to make sure they are not being mistreated or starving; Varg, my neighbours' 14 year old chihuaha, whom I've grown very fond of; and two more residents of the "Cat House".
I also was able to spend some quality time with my little girls, Ginger (above) and Ruby, though not in the best of circumstances. Ruby got sick with a respiratory infection, and after a trip to the vet, I brought her and Ginger home with me while Heather and her husband were away on vacation. It was a challenge given that my lungs were already compromised but I was careful not to handle them too much, and used my inhaler regularly, and we were fine. It was obvious from their behaviour they were very happy to be home, and it made me happy to have them with me again. Unfortunately, I can't keep them with me forever, so I'm enjoying their companionship while I can.
When I felt well enough, I did a bit of thrift shopping, because there's nothing like a bit of shopping to take one's mind off the fact your lungs are crap
My best score was this beautiful heavy silk, reversible embroidered robe. The purple side has an orange dragon on the back and front. I can't wait for it to get cool enough to be able to wear it over a t-shirt and pair of pants.
And I wore stuff....
Aside from a few basic pieces, most of what I wore this summer was purchased secondhand. The two outfits above cost me less than $25 each. On the left: silk top from The Silk Road
Store, skirt from Style 360 Consignment store. On the right: 1980's
shirt from The Sentimentalist, pants from Talize. Fly London sandals
with both.
By far, the pieces I acquired that received the most wear were this top and wide-leg denim trousers. I found them at Talize at different times, both were $8 a piece. I wore the pants at least once or twice a week unless the humidex was near 40 (which it quite often was). The top was so comfortable in the heat and the polka dots made me smile, especially when I paired it with my yellow dot earrings from Value Village. I had received good news from my doctor the day I wore this outfit - after two rounds of antibiotics, my lungs sounded much better, and if a followup x-ray in 4 weeks doesn't show any more infection, then I'm in the clear!
You never appreciate your health as much as when you don't have it, and it may be a cliche to say that "Without your health, you have nothing", but it's a cliche because it's true. You can't fully participate in life if you're exhausted, going back and forth to doctor's appointments and medical tests, waiting for results, and generally feeling worried and unwell. That being said, I was very grateful for our Canadian Health Care System which meant I was able to get the attention I needed in a timely manner. It felt great to have the energy to go out on Friday night with friends to see a Flamenco performance, instead of feeling wiped out after a full day at work. I was also happy that I felt inspired and well enough to write this post. Hopefully it won't be so long before the next one.
You never appreciate your health as much as when you don't have it, and it may be a cliche to say that "Without your health, you have nothing", but it's a cliche because it's true. You can't fully participate in life if you're exhausted, going back and forth to doctor's appointments and medical tests, waiting for results, and generally feeling worried and unwell. That being said, I was very grateful for our Canadian Health Care System which meant I was able to get the attention I needed in a timely manner. It felt great to have the energy to go out on Friday night with friends to see a Flamenco performance, instead of feeling wiped out after a full day at work. I was also happy that I felt inspired and well enough to write this post. Hopefully it won't be so long before the next one.
