We had some nice plans for this weekend. We were going to visit my Florida dad in their Pennsylvania house, spending some good quality time with them, seeing how Phoebe socializes with their dogs, working with my dad through past issues once and for all, going to my grandmother’s house for a hike in the mountains, some antique shopping if it rained and we couldn’t hike, etc.
As of right now, though, the hike is most definitely out. I think I might have pinched a nerve yesterday, as I had so much pain in my left hip and knee that I could barely walk. Terry’s back is still sore from his unfortunate meeting with the steps at the beginning of the week, too. Add that to the fact that I’m still having the wierd tingling stuff and it’s just not a good idea to go for a hike in the summer heat. I’m focusing today on drinking a lot of fluids and trying to work on my electrolyte balance. I have a feeling that the strange feelings may be due to dehydration. I drink a lot of water normally, but have not stepped up my intake during the heat wave. That combined with IBS problems most likely equals dehydration. And the sheer amount of water I shoved in yesterday did not do the trick, so I’m pretty sure I’m low on electrolytes, as well.
At this point, I am still planning to go visit my dad, provided we can both stand to be seated in the car for the 3-hour drive. It’s just that our activities there may be somewhat limited. I still want to visit my grandmother’s house, though. I have a feeling this is my last (and Terry’s only) chance to see the place before my grandmother moves into an assisted care or aging facility. Winters on the mountain where she lives are brutal and there is no one left up there to really help her anymore. Her brother passed away last year and his wife was just placed in a nursing home a month or so ago. The landscape of the area is changing, despite being known by the name of generations of her family that were born and raised there. The culture has changed and children no longer build or buy homes in the same area where their parents have lived their entire lives. My grandmother’s children have all moved away. It’s sad, really. The end of an era. And one that I want to make sure is captured on (digital) film for posterity.
We’ll see what happens, though. I need to be flexible and make sure that I make decisions that are the best for both of us right now, depending on how we are feeling. We still have a few more weeks before my dad goes back to Florida, so we can always postpone.
