The Sunroom chronicles

Out smarting the killer

Since being diagnosed with Early Onset Dementia two years ago, I have made some changes to my life. I alluded to them in the previous post. For the sake of others living and loving every second of life left, here's my list of changes. As always, take what works and leave the rest! As we say in the hiking world, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary)

1. Embrace life. Yes, the illness is fatal, but you're not dead yet! LIVE
2. Eliminate stress, simplify your environment
3. Eliminate High Fructose Corn syrup (glucose fructose) from diet
4. Eliminate artificial sweeteners (even Splenda) from diet
5. Eliminate plastic containers for cooking and drinking (try this cool new bottle!)
   
6. increase cayenne pepper and turmeric in daily meals, eat whole foods, local when possible
   
7. exercise daily or as often as possible
8. Lose nasty people, negative-energy-sucking "friends" and chronic "worriers"
   
9. laugh, hug and love the ones who remain in the inner sanctum
10. Aricept 10 mg
11. Namenda 5 mg BID
12. B12 1000 mcg, B6 100 mg, Melatonin 3mg, Gingo Biloba 120 mg, Gotu Kola 475 mg, Lecithin 1200 mg, Fish Oil 1000 mg (I buy online from Vitacost, great prices)
    
13. Daily alcoholic drink, red wine, margarita, etc. (you may like chocolate better!)
14. ROUTINE, make one and keep one.
15. Support of like minded people. Join DASN and meet for daily chats, emails etc
    

Thoughts on testing, diagnosis and the delicate balance between good and evil.

I have learned a great deal from the DASN regulars. Learned to continue to seek answers even when various physicians were not helpful or encouraging. I learned to listen to those who had gone before me, which is a big lesson in Judaism, and has come easily. I learned to balance my energy and simplify my life. To keep my life joyful and peaceful. To do what counts and leave the rest. Somehow in the midst of those wonderful lessons, I have slogged through several different doctors and diagnostic tests. This week finds me finishing something I started 2 years ago. A research study in NYC that follows people with early onset dementias. Knowing that my life is good, that I have found the way to keep managing, I truly did not want to come back to finish this study. It is disrupting the balance. It is short-lived and I am grateful for a wonderful mom who has come with me and a great wife who is managing work and full-time teenage boys while I'm gone. I do not care to stress myself out over the memory tests. I see no greater glory in enduring poor patient care and non-empathetic medical staff. I will complete this round of the study, but if contacted again, I will decline. Keeping the balance, for me, is about enjoying what is ahead of me, right in front of me. I'd rather push my cognitive reserve to get a kid to a Kendo tournament than push it to answer hours of questions and negotiation airlines and hotels in a distant city.
As Nanny McPhee said "Lesson, learned" (and the wart is going to disappear friday about 6p when I touch down in Memphis and kiss the wife and kids.)

Mom at Molly's la Casita

Before Mom and I went to NYU for research testing, we had a great dinner at Molly's. I could use one of those margarita's about now.

Atlanta Kendo practice

Quick Trip to Atlanta (Easter! Good thing we're Jewish!) William is a wonderful sport. Up at 4:30 for a 6.5 hour drive to Atlanta and then 5 hours of practice! Aside for forgetting his hakima, he worked and learned. Big thanks to Ken Strawn-sensei for helping him and to both people who lent him the kekogi and hakima!

Ohta-sensei and Memphis Kendo Club Spring Seminar

Ohta-sensei came to Memphis to host a seminar March 15th. William was exceptionally fortunate to spend time with him here and in Atlanta. He is a wonderful individual and hopefully William will find the spark that he needs to get through a Kendo problem.

Kendo fundraising idea take 2

I was scouring the internet looking for a Kendo-themed cell phone case. I found nothing. I enlisted my friend Sarah and we shopped at Hancock for fabric as well as online, where we found some phenomenal stuff. I have made a few bogu bag ID tags and 2 cell phone cases. The ID tags have vinyl, which doesn't show in the photos, so you can slip your business card in them. The other side has a Kendo related kanji on it.

Handrails are coming to our house

I asked for handrails on the front porch in December. We have sketched several plans and finally ended up with a very simple design. This weekend we bought the materials and with help from each of us, ginger almost has them done. I think I might use a green-tinted stain.

Home Improvement continues

After a storm a few weeks ago we had some roof damage and water damage in the sunroom. Tearing out the wallpaper and carpet was easy compared to fixing the roof! Ginger, William, Max and Renee did all the work. I left them and went shopping for fabric. Does that make me evil or smart? I did join them all at Molly's later for dinner and drinks though :)

another Birthday gift! Thanks Sarah!

My good friend and knitster called today and came over with a gift! She even took me to Hancock and walked that entire store looking for the right fabric for a new fundraising idea I had. The very next morning I had to CO for a cell phone case. I live by my cell phone and the internet and this neat purse needed a nifty cell pocket or pouch. I knit it on size 10's and then hand felted. I almost knit it onto the purse, but decided against it.

Knitter's retreat, a smashing success!

Despite the TN State Parks system's snafu, we rallied and gathered at Embassy Suites. We had a wonderful time. Lots of knitting, some learning, lots of talking, eating and drinking, but mostly lots of knitting. I managed to finish one pair of socks, that's it! I worked on a scarf a bit and some more on the vintage sweater, but it was pretty busy with talking and surfing Ravelry for various yarn and pattern references. I came home with 3 skeins of cotton/silk from MistiAlpaca. I think it's going to be a short-sleeved top, maybe Keyhole?

Memphis SnB (aka DK Knitters) makes the news

We were delighted to host Kate Jacobs, author of The Friday Night Knitting Club, on January 12th, and would like to extend special thanks to the DK Knitters (featured here with Kate) for their help promoting our event, as well as hosting a special luncheon event for Kate! She had a very special time with us at Davis-Kidd, and we greatly appreciate the support and warm response. The Friday Night Knitting Club fans, stay tuned for the release of Kate's newest book, Comfort Food, which will be on sale at Davis-Kidd this May!

gracious knitters...give gifts!

I am the lucky recipient of not one, but TWO knitting thank you's this week. I feel incredibly blessed and very happy! First was Sunny Skye who gifted me with the hand made card selection. They are wonderful and I've already mailed out two of them. I showed Sunny how to knit toe up socks this summer. She hasn't finished her pair, but she's busy with young school aged children and travel. She is still working on them though :)
The other surprise was from Jessica H, a lovely and gracious knitter of many years who was flummoxed by a pattern and sought my help. After a few swatches I found the problem with the pattern and gave her some suggestions. Look what she sent me! It arrived the day before my birthday. Manna from heaven. That chocolate with cranberries and almonds is phenomenal. ::swooning:::
I am a VERY LUCKY WOMAN! THANK YOU KNITTERS!!!! :::hugs:::

Sock it to ME!

The post brought a package from Elann. My friend Tommie graciously gifted me with an Elann Gift certificate last month and when they announced they were debuting sock yarn, we both had to order. Here are some photos of my skeins. I'll let her post her own.

Kendo Dummy

William and Ginger built a Kendo Dummy over a couple of days.

It's home improvement time, it's organization time.

Here are a few projects the family has taken on in the last month or so. We put up 2 new book cases, organized 20 years of photos and cataloged them waiting for the time to scrapbook them. Those 2 large rubbermaid bins were full of photos and have been reduced to the photo storage boxes on the new bookcases.

Never knit socks without consulting the recipient

In an effort to get the 15 year old to wear socks and not just sandals in 20 degree weather, I knit him a pair of sport-weight socks. Granted, they were knit from leftover yarn. The recipient, after posing for the photo, announced he would NEVER wear them because they were "purple". I beg to differ, they are wine. Some of the sock yarn ordered from Elann is for him. He has chosen navy and white, not together mind you. Separate socks in solid colors...such brave choices (NOT)

It's time for a left-handed knitting RANT

In the peace and quiet of my life, bursts of stupid people occasionally happen. I try to remain alloof, I try to be calm, but when I realize you are poisoning perfectly helpless new knitters I must speak out (again.) I have ranted about the left-handed knitting topic previously and do not want to beat a dead horse, but the knitting community appears to be tuning an incredibly DEAF ear to this subject. Knitters beware. If I even hear you HINT that a left-handed person MUST be taught to knit right handed because [insert stereotype and myth here] then I will poke you so hard with size 0 sock needles as to make you think you have been to the acupuncturist. GIVE IT UP! That means you knittinghelp.com and you fuzzygalore.com and a few twerps on ravelry who insist it's a curse. SHUT up and KNIT.
FACT:

1. Knitting is 2 handed, with one hand being a bit more active or dominant
2. yarn can be manipulated with either the right or the left hand
3. stitches can move off the right onto the left needle without hell freezing over
4. patterns do NOT have to be reversed except for button bands (and that depends on gender) and occasionally asymmetrical patterns
   
5. shaping does NOT have to be reserved all the time, it depends on how you knit (that rule applies to right handed combination knitters too)
6. it is MORE important to understand how to do something than to blindly follow any pattern (so patterns should say "right leaning decrease" instead of K2tog.
7. Knitting graphs are universal, look for them and use them left to right
   
8. My DVD teaches left handed people how to knit LEFT handed correctly, most websites and books do NOT and one wonders how they've been in publication this long with these errors!
9. ALL knitters deserve to know there's more than one method of knitting out there. Expose yourself to something new, you might like it.
   

Why we probably will not be driving to Las Vegas

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Given my early onset dementia and fatigue level, I'd say a 22 hour drive would take 3 days, 2 hotel stays and take way too much time and energy. I'm shopping airfare and so far NWA is winning at $360 round trip. While we can always drive to Little Rock and fly from there, that's 2+ hours and gas and time is money. I am guessing I'll get a great deal with NWA closer to July, maybe April?

New Year's Eve with the Softball crew

Thanks to JJ, JD and Mimi for hosting a GREAT Wii tennis tournament and, of course, great food provided by everyone.