GRATITUDES:
1. Thunder and lightning
2. Rain
3. The “cloud towers” that we get here in TX
4. The smell of citrus blossoms in the air, rare here in the South but still sometimes noticeable

Did I call it or what? Even as I type I’ve got someone else’s blood slowly dripping into my circulatory system. (To the anonymous donor, a big THANK YOU!) That also means that I’m once again a sludge puddle, but I shouldn’t have much issues with weak spells while in the shower, at least not today. Of course, I’m also ravenously hungry, it’s 9:30 in the morning, and the breakfast trays STILL haven’t arrived. At this rate I’ll be having breakfast alongside my lunch! As early as they seemed, the food deliveries on the North side were far more consistent.

Aaaaand… I’m free of the old ball and chain! WOOT! I was disconnected this morning after the blood transfusion was finished. Now I don’t have to drag that cranky-ass wheeled monster around and I can get up and move around unimpeded to take a shower or use the toilet. Of course, I still have to wait for fresh towels to be delivered but it’s a huge improvement. I detest that thing. Now, though, I have to be much more diligent in my water intake, which normally wouldn’t be a problem but now, with my taste buds dialed up to 11, is considerably more difficult. The water from my pitcher tastes funny, almost as though someone had chucked a few heaping tablespoons of sugar into it. Blech… And I don’t want to ask for bottled water, because even though it seems to taste better, ummm… single-use plastics. I’ve raised a few eyebrows over my adamant refusal to partake in bottled water and one nurse even tried to talk me out of using my filter pitcher entirely, but I may have shouted her down. Gently, of course!

Bored. Bored, bored, bored-bored-bored-BORED. Why does that look like “Bo-red”? Next on my agenda: counting and naming my ceiling tiles.😆

The food fantasies continue. There may be a bright spot, however. My nurse told me that patients are allowed to order from local restaurants and as long as it can be delivered to the hospital, someone can go downstairs, pick it up, and bring it back to the grateful (and hungry) inmate. I may have to look into this because there are things on the hospital menu that I can no longer even look at without gagging a little bit. There’s a Mediterranean restaurant fairly close by that may be my first target. Chicken shawarma and dolmas sound incredibly good right now!