I'm back. It's been almost a month since my last post, but I have more than just holiday mayhem to blame for my absence.
Alright, I admit that I didn't post in the first two weeks because I hadn't finished anything worth writing about, or basically anything at all.
And then, my husband had surgery on Monday, December 15, Mother Nature blew into Colorado causing massive power outages, my husband had emergency surgery on Friday, December 19, due to complications (aka a blood clot), Christmas wasn't slowing down for anyone, and here we are...but I do have a couple of books finished to report on and things are looking up.
The Literal Backstory (not for the squeamish, potentially too much info)
It all began... back in November 2024 when Jeff was playing pickleball with daughter Emily and hurt his hip. After many doctor visits, x-rays, and MRIs, the diagnosis was that he had a couple of things going on.
Arthritis in his hip that means hip replacement is probably in his future. But the biggie was that a couple of discs in the lower back had disintegrated (due to age) so much that they were causing a bulge on his spinal column. He had multiple injections of steroids to try to avoid surgery, but they didn’t help much or for long. When we went to Baltimore and Gettysburg, walking was painful, but standing was worse. Despite that, we did have a great trip.
His neurosurgeon and he agreed that surgery was the best option for the long term. He was originally scheduled for surgery on January 6, but there was a cancellation and since the pain was worsening daily, he took the cancellation. On Monday, December 15 he had a 5-hour surgery to clean out the corroded disks and replace them with a combo substance that is held together with pins and rods while the new stuff fuses together to create bone (a six-week process before he can start PT). The surgery went well and Jeff came home on Wednesday, December 17. However, by end of day on Thursday, he was experiencing sharp pain in his right thigh, and he had stopped being able to pee. We called the doctor at 6 am on Friday, right when Xcel turned off the power to our house, and they said to go to the ER at the hospital in Louisville (CO not KY) where Jeff had the surgery. Emily came over and drove us down because we couldn’t open the garage door because the power was out.
An MRI revealed that Jeff had a hematoma (aka blood clot) above the surgical site and it was pressing on the spinal column, inhibiting the valve that opens and closes, enabling him to pee, and causing the pain. The doc and team went in a second time. An MRI after the second surgery showed that they got most of the problem but not all, so they put in two drains and put him on a blood clotting med post-surgery.
The drains worked well, and they were removed on Sunday, and he came home in the afternoon. So far, he is doing well, although he has to have a catheter until Jan 2 (that was the earliest appt we could get), while his bladder heals from being stretched. He will be seeing a hematologist in late Jan to check whether he has any blood-clotting issues that might surface in the event of future surgeries.
The big concern now is that there is not permanent nerve damage, but his spirits are good and he hasn’t experienced the kind of pain that he did last week. So, fingers crossed that all will be well.
The moral of the story...go for a walk instead of playing pickleball!
What I've Been Reading
Reading is truly the best medicine. Audiobooks kept me company on the solo trips to the hospital, and regular books provided a welcome respite from worry and fatigue. I was able to read in a cold, dark house while the wind raged due to my around-the-neck reading light.
The Autobiography of Santa Claus, by Jeff Guinn - a solid 3-star holiday book. The premise if very cute, and this reads like a young YA novel, providing a good survey of the past 2000 years of European/North American Christian history. The story starts in Turkey with St Nicholas as a big-hearted orphan boy who falls in love with giving gifts (using the money left to him when his parents died) to those less fortunate. The magic is that Nicholas is blessed with seemingly eternal life and the ability to move around very quickly--he acquires a wife and helpers, some of whom are quite notorious (e.g., Attila the Hun, King Arthur, Leonardo da Vinci, Ben Franklin). We learn how his reality adjusted to the myths about him--e.g., why he acquired reindeer and how they learned to fly. There is a running and tiresome joke about his girth and love of food.
I don't mean to sound negative--I enjoyed reading this book. It was easy and earnest and feel good, all of which I needed and appreciated. However, I probably would not read anything more in this series--it is first in a series dubbed The Christmas Chronicles.
Selected Tales from Beatrix Potter - this was a gift from Michelle, by GoodReads buddy and host of True Book Talk, last Xmas, and I loved every story and especially Potter's charming and iconic illustrations. In addition to rereading about poor Peter Rabbit, I also read about Timmy Tiptoes, the Pie and the Patty-Pan, and Johnny Town-Mouse. This lovely book now has a place of honor on my shelf with the china Potter figurines my mother gave me when I was pregnant with my first baby.
The Last Bookshop in London, by Madeline Martin - loved this book so much that I almost gave it 5 stars. I do wish GoodReads allowed half stars! Here's the GoodReads blurb:
Inspired by the true World War II history of the few bookshops to survive the Blitz, The Last Bookshop in London is a timeless story of wartime loss, love and the enduring power of literature.
August 1939: London prepares for war as Hitler’s forces sweep across Europe. Grace Bennett has always dreamed of moving to the city, but the bunkers and blackout curtains that she finds on her arrival were not what she expected. And she certainly never imagined she’d wind up working at Primrose Hill, a dusty old bookshop nestled in the heart of London.
Through blackouts and air raids as the Blitz intensifies, Grace discovers the power of storytelling to unite her community in ways she never dreamed—a force that triumphs over even the darkest nights of the war.
Grace is a wonderful heroine who discusses the magic of reading and does her bit in the war by ensuring that others can find solace, comfort, and courage in books.
My brother Mark recently sent me an article in the San Francisco Chronicle about How reading can help older adults boost brain health and moods. It was an interesting article, but one of the main takeaways for me is that reading is actually a social activity. Even if you aren't in a book club or engage with something like GoodReads, you are still making connections with the author, the characters and their stories, and the countless other people who have read and loved the book.
I also really enjoyed reading about the Blitz in London. Interesting side note, Grace and her love interest (an RAF pilot) get to know each other over the years through their letters. They actually only occasionally meet up when he has leave. This exactly mirrors my own parents' courtship--they met and dated once or twice and then wrote to each other for over a year. My dad gave my mom books to read and my mom recommended music for my dad to listen to.
Madeline Martin has a slew of similar books that all look equally good, so new favorite author?
What I've Been Watching
Thanks to everyone who posted about The Diplomat. Before Jeff's surgery we had made it through season 1 and had just started season 2. So good.
Also, we started Nobody Wants This at about the same time and got about as far. Through season 1 and a few episodes in season 2. It stars Kristen Bell, who I thought was great as Veronica Mars, and the rabbi looked and sounded so familiar I had to IMBD him and discovered he was Dave Rygalski (Lane's first boyfriend) in Gilmore Girls (aka Adam Brody). The writing is absolutely excellent and the cast delivers!
I've also been watching Netflix Xmas rom-coms with daughters and Jeff when he finally came home--they're easy, uncomplicated, and just fun. My favorite was Jingle Bell Heist, but I also liked A Merry Little Ex-Mas with Alicia Silverstone, My Secret Santa, Christmas at the Chalet, and Christmas on the Alpaca Farm. This is the absolute first year I have indulged, but I needed indulgence to get me through the past two weeks.
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