Give credit where credit is due...

My mother's primary physician assigned her a home health care worker after her latest fall and all I can say is that I owe her a debt of gratitude.  She has a straight line to him and his staff and in particular, today have proven to be of great help.

She was on vacation last week but is back on the job. She left us a couple of telephone messages Tuesday but since we were in San Antonio I did not have a chance to get back to her until today (Wednesday). Thanks to her I did not have to make an appointment to take mother to his office to obtain an X-ray order or have to call in for additional medication (no refills on pain medication).

She takes great pride in her work and actually wanted to call 911 to have an ambulance take mother to the ER. She was afraid she might have a pelvic rather than a spine fracture and that getting her in and out of the car would cause her additional injury. I nixed that idea since I had to take her to the hospital anyway for her wound therapy so there would be no benefit if I had to eventually bring her back home in the car...to which she agreed to.

She called the wound care therapy department to let me know that the doctor's office was faxing the order and for me to go down as soon as possible to the Admittance Department as they closed at 5:00 p.m. and if I did not register her she would not be able to have the X-ray's done until tomorrow.

Mother was in severe pain and crying and the lady in the X-ray department showed great compassion. She brought her water, kleenex and got on the phone to expedite her X-ray.  For this wonderful angel, I am grateful as well.

Right now we are waiting to see what the X-ray's show and then proceed accordingly. I want to take this opportunity to thank all the readers that have reached out to me on this blog as well as via e-mail...thank you kindly!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

One step forward, two steps back...

I thought it odd that mother asked my help to get up from her power chair.  If you are not familiar with a power chair it is an electric recliner with a remote control that helps an individual recline or it lifts you up to an almost standing position. We purchased one a few years ago after she had to undergo two Vertebroplasty procedures. https://www.spine-health.com/treatment/back-surgery/vertebroplasty-procedure

The wound therapy specialist was confused when he finished the treatment and mother continued to shed tears and be in intense pain and he was not even touching her.  It soon became clear that while she had pain in her leg, the pain coming from her spine was the main culprit.  This happened Monday and we had an appointment in San Antonio on Tuesday that we could not cancel as it had already been re-scheduled and we needed to get the results of her most recent cat scan.

This is her former Uvalde, Texas doctor that we followed to San Antonio as he is such a knowledgeable, caring and compassionate individual well worth the 340-mile round trip. We were very happy to hear that both her cat scan and blood work came back clear.

This was our third visit to this new location and I still do not have it down pat.  On our way back home took a wrong turn and got lost so decided to put my rarely used smartphone to use.  We were at the height of rush hour traffic so I chose the option of the shortest route and went through areas I had never been to before.  All I have to say is why did I not try this sooner?

We had considered spending the night in San Antonio but after getting lost decided to head home instead and if my night vision failed me to stay in one of the many small towns in between.  Fortunately, with the half moon, there was plenty of light to illuminate my way back to Del Rio.

We got home and just when I thought everything was fine and dandy...I could not get mother out of the car.  She was in so much pain she could barely move and just when she got to the point of being able to get out of the car, she had no strength to stand up much less walk.  Gave her a pain pill and proceeded to unload the car while it took effect. Ultimately, I was finally able to get her in the house.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Got up very early this morning to cancel an appointment I had no idea mother had as I had not written it down on my calendar. Yesterday I received a reminder on our answering machine after we got back from her wound therapy session.  I was fortunate to be able to re-schedule it without facing a $25.00 fee for canceling without giving a 24-hour notice.

Needed to buy some over the counter items but rather than go to a super packed HEB decided to go to CVS across the street.  Goodness, they are very expensive!  Since I had initially ruled out HEB reluctantly made my way to Walmart expecting it to be as jammed packed...thankfully that was not the case...yeah!

Since there is no way I am going to cook a turkey, headed to Hot Pit Bar-b-q across the street from HEB but it did not open until 11:00 a.m.  After my trip to Walmart drove back to buy some turkey legs but someone beat me to them and they only had one left...so mother and I will share it tomorrow.

Gasoline prices only went down by one cent, the going price around town today was $2.18 per gallon for unleaded gasoline which is a real bargain in comparison to other parts of the state and nation.

I want to wish all my readers and their loved ones a Very Happy Thanksgiving.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.
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When will I finally find a quality Internet Service Provider?

After three months with Spectrum, I can definitively say that the honeymoon is over!  Actually, it was over prior to that but I so wanted to give it a chance. Every two or three weeks I get a recorded call saying that they will be working on the equipment and that the telephone, as well as internet, will not be available from 12:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m.

This morning I tried to make a call only to see the telephone display "No Line". I had no idea where my last bill was so I could not locate a telephone number to call. Tried going online to report it but it was out as well.  My uncle calls my mother every night so she was not a happy camper.

By 3:00 p.m. I was furious and decided to drive into town to report it. Have I mentioned that I hate to wait in long lines?  After patiently (not really) waiting for 20 minutes...all they could offer me was to send a technician tomorrow...being that we have two doctor appointments...I had to decline.

Headed to HEB and once again found the whole town there, even ran into some friends from Ciudad Acuña. Could not help but note how ironic it was that Mexican residents come to Del Rio to shop even with the high dollar to peso ratio, while I go to Ciudad Acuña to exploit the favorable peso to dollar exchange.

With our trip to Houston and then my mother's fall, I have not had a chance to do a grocery run to Mexico. Thanksgiving is not celebrated in Mexico or at least I thought it wasn't.  My friends informed me that they liked this tradition and have adopted it along with many other Mexican citizens that reside along the border with the United States.

Here I thought that Mexicans came to purchase turkeys for their Christmas as well as New Year's dinner as turkeys are very expensive in Mexico.

While they informed me that that was indeed the case, the Mexican government was wise to it and now banned the entrance of turkeys (seemingly to protect the national product) until close to Thanksgiving if not on that very day.

This evening (which is now yesterday) both the telephone and internet came back on to my mother's delight.  How I wish Google Fiber would see fit to bring their service to this area...but I won't hold my breath on that :-(

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Crappy Weather / Fill-up / Appointments Galore

We have had crappy weather lately. It has been cloudy, humid and rainy but at least this has kept the temperatures down.

Finally filled up my car at $2.19 per gallon for regular unleaded.  I usually fill up at Stripes and noticed that a lot of pumps were out of gas...perhaps people made a run on it before the next price hike?

Monday we had two separate doctor's appointments, today the home health care worker came over, tomorrow we have another appointment at the Wound Care Unit of the local hospital. At least she is making progress even though by looking at a picture you would not know it unless one was knowledgeable about this type of things which I do not happen to be.

Monday the doctor finally authorized the use of a topical numbing ointment as well as Tramadol to deal with the pain because believe me she is in a LOT of pain.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

Spurs Corner

I do not know why I thought tonight's game against the Dallas Mavericks would be a cakewalk because it wasn't.

Manu never ceases to amaze me.  Can hardly wait until Kawhi and Tony are healthy and playing again.

GSG!!!

Tiny Teardrop

Earlier this week had to make a run to Walmart where I spotted this cute little teardrop being towed by a motorcycle.

It is the smallest teardrop I have ever seen.

I took the first two pictures before I spotted a guy eating in the picnic area and I asked him if it was his...he said it was and I asked his permission to take this last picture and he graciously allowed me to.

Would have loved to have asked him a couple of questions but I respected his privacy as he was eating and obviously passing through town.

When I came back out he was no longer there so I do not know if he was shopping or taking a nap but his teardrop was a hit as other people were snapping pictures right and left.

On another note, gasoline prices have gone up by .05 cents in two days. Regular unleaded is now selling for $2.19 per gallon.

Today we had another appointment at the wound care unit of our local hospital.  I have to take mother there three times a week. Wednesday and today were sheer torture as they had to remove the yellow part of the wound. Thankfully her doctor finally prescribed some pain medication as Tylenol and Aleve are basically useless in her case.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

The Harvey Effect at the 2017 CASI Chili Cook-Off

While I was unable to make my yearly pilgrimage to my favorite desert this year, my two dearest friends and their entourage were.

I was told that there certainly was a Harvey effect (Hurricane Harvey that hit the Texas Gulf Coast in Aug 2017)...attendance was visibly down and there were not as many booths in participation on Saturday when they give out a lot of trinkets and have showmanship teams.

There are usually two bands going on at the same time. One at the main Pavilion and another at Krazy Flats (the wildest one).  The bands traditionally play on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday on both stages.  This year the bands only played on Thursday and Friday.

Krazy Flats being the spectator's area and where most of the younger attendees camp...was per my friends...awfully tame and low key than in prior years. There is a big camp there complete with dance poles and non-stop music that simply did not show up this year.

There were many other camps that are staples that were a no-show. Of course, that did not keep my friends from having a great time on their own. My best friend Ms.D even did a "Grito" on my behalf.  Lol, I can only imagine if you are not from Texas, you might be wondering what the heck that might be? I will just let you Google it...jajajajajajaja...:D

Not to be presumptuous but I was given a standing ovation in Buenos Aires, Argentina for said "Grito"...Ok, let's just say I had a bit too much wine at the time, but I did strike a note for my Mexican origins...as I firmly believe one must never forget where one comes from.

I spoke to my friends as they made their way back to Houston. I was promised pictures and videos but if you are new to my blog you must know that it takes at least a week if not more of rest to get back to your old self and recoup after partying in the desert for a week..unless you are under thirty and that is not the case with either myself or my friends!

So hold tight as I will sooner or later post pictures of both the 2017 CASI Chili Cook-off as well as of the Día de Los Muertos celebration held at the Terlingua Cemetery.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.

HEB shopping on Saturday

I am becoming loonier by the day...so much so that I actually went to HEB at 11:00 a.m. While I avoid grocery shopping on weekends, I had to go buy some medication for mother as she has been in a lot of pain since she fell.

We only have two grocery stores in Del Rio...HEB and Walmart...but this town is growing by leaps and bounds and it's time to allow some more competition to set up shop here.  I swear the whole town was there.  Even ran into people I had not seen in a long time, some whom I would have preferred not to have seen.

They have been remodeling this store and have moved everything around. Took me longer than expected due to all this rearrangement.  They have even added a curbside pick-up area something I needed a couple of years back when I was diagnosed with Fibromyositis and could barely get around.

Considered running more errands but the crowds at HEB zapped my energy and decided to go home. I will NEVER come back on a Saturday unless it is a matter of life or death!

Temperatures have been in the 80's and the humidity has been high but a cold front is expected by Wednesday, can hardly wait!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.


Spurs Corner

I am so glad we broke our losing streak.  I enjoyed the game last night and seeing the young acquisitions in action...I was quite impressed!

Congratulations to the Houston Astros!

I am so happy that the Houston Astros won their first World Series...it was a long time in the making...our city really needed something like this after Hurricane Harvey.  Congratulations!!!

Courtesy of the Houston Chronicle

I can only imagine how crazy it must have gotten in Terlingua last night!

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.