September 2 – September 7 (2014)

RANDOM PIC OF THE WEEK

As I was going through the photos on one of my old phones, I found this shot of my church on a blustery night. I think it looks neat and sets quite a mood!

I’m not exactly sure why “Goodbye Yellowbrick Road” by Elton John has been in my head, but I must’ve heard it somewhere in passing. I love the line “I’m not a present for your friends to open.” Great song from Sir Elton.

Tuesday the 2nd – PNEUMONIA CONTINUED! – In case you didn’t know, I’ve been battling a nasty case of pneumonia the past several weeks. And while I’m feeling much better, I’m still burdened by a cough that doesn’t want to leave. When I got up at 2 I called my Ear, Nose and Throat Doctor and made a follow-up appointment for Wednesday afternoon. I walked Roxy and felt pretty good, but still not 100%. I think all the violent coughing really zaps my energy. The key is to get rid of that, and not only will my shredded vocal cords repair, but I’ll start feeling more energetic. Using my personal steamer seems to help, so after our walk I headed back to bed to do some steaming, and then napped the rest of the night. I got up later to write Wally’s Week and do some stuff around the house. I’m taking it very easy in an attempt to hasten my recovery. I made dinner and watched more of the old “Avengers” TV series on DVD.

Wednesday the 3rd – SCARECROW KID! – I headed to my doctor’s office and he said I seemed 100% better. Considering I looked like death warmed over the last time I saw him, this was a good diagnosis. I’m still coughing periodically but I feel so much better. I got lunch at Taco Bell, and picked up my mail at my mailbox. I stopped to get a few grocery items on the way home and then got home and fed Roxy and Spook. I relaxed for a bit, watching more “Avengers” and taking a nap. When I got up later I did some cleaning in the kitchen and set up my new “Halloween Kid” mannequin in the vintage Scarecrow of Romney Marsh Halloween costume I got on eBay. This thing is in immaculate shape! The glitter on the costume is still new looking and it seems like it was only worn once for a very short period of time. The mask is also in mint condition! What a find!

Thursday the 4th – THE POOL IS CRUEL! – Mid-morning I was awakened by the workmen outside working on deconstructing our pool. It’s going to be completely resurfaced, so that means a day filled with the sounds of grinders, chippers and hammers. While I wasn’t that thrilled about the noise, I was thanking my lucky stars they didn’t do this work LAST week! I would have gone crazy, since that was when my pneumonia was at its worst. I popped in some ear plugs, turned up the fans in my room, and tried to get as much rest as possible. In the evening I took the final antibiotic in my prescription, and slept some more. When I got up later in the evening I set about doing bookwork and catching up on other busy deskwork. I prepped some deposits to take to my bank the next day, and I walked Roxy around the neighborhood. It was good to be out, but I really wish I didn’t have the annoying cough.

Friday the 5th – NORMALCY? – Around 1 I got up to let my maids in so they could clean Planet Wallywood. I recorded another comedy bit for “Ellen,” but my voice was still giving me troubles. Until I get rid of this cough, my voice won’t return completely. But I made it through alright. I seem to be OK when recording small bits in my home studio, but I’m in no condition to do a four hour session in a studio yet. The maids arrived and I drove Roxy over to the groomer’s to get a bath. The non-anesthetic teeth cleaners were there, so I got her teeth cleaned too. She was due! I stopped by my vet’s office to get some more food for Spook, and then I headed to the bank to make some deposits. It was almost like being back to normal again! I noticed the weather forecast in Palm Springs was calling for lots of rain and thunderstorms…so I got to thinking. The last time I was there it was so hot and humid it seemed like a steam bath. Knowing that warm, moist air helps my lungs quite a bit, I put in a call to my doctor. Would hanging out in the atmosphere of Palm Springs during the hot and humid conditions be good for my lungs? The doctor called back and said, “Yes, it would be good.” So I started thinking about making a reservation for a few days in Palm Springs. I’d leave Sunday and come back Tuesday, exactly during the time they were expecting rain and thunderstorms. According to the weather on-line they were expecting a lot of rain, because they were on the fringe of that tropical storm down in Mexico. I grabbed a nap and thought about it for a while. When I got up later I called to see if my usual room at the Hyatt was available. It wasn’t, and that was bad. The room I like is on the very top floor, at the very end. That way my all night activities won’t bother the other guests. But if I had to be in a room between other guests, I was afraid that my incessant coughing might disturb them. Not only that, but every time I logged on to check the Palm Springs weather forecast, their chances for rain was becoming less and less. I decided to go to bed and make the final decision Saturday afternoon.

Saturday the 6th – SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO?! – When I got up around 2 I checked the Palm Springs forecast again, and what was once a 57% chance of rain had diminished to 40%, and then 35%. I wasn’t feeling it. If I go to the desert to enjoy some thunderstorms and hot, moist weather…I want it to be a certainty. And it was starting to look like their rainy spell was going to be a bust. So I decided to stay home. I rested some more, then headed to the hardware store to pick up a few items. I pulled the Gran Torino into the McDonald’s drive-thru and grabbed lunch to go, then I sat in my church’s parking lot finishing my lunch while listening to 70’s on 7 on my Sirius XM satellite radio. I locked up and walked across the street to Floyd’s barbershop, as I was due for a touch up on my color and a bit of a trim. I finished up and headed back home to relax, shower and watch more “Avengers” on DVD. I napped until late into the evening, and worked all night doing things around the house. By the time I turned in it was 7am Sunday morning.

Sunday the 7th – SUNDAY SAPPED! – Around 1 I got up to walk Roxy, but I promptly went back to bed to rest some more. For some reason I didn’t have much energy. I got up around 4:45 with the full intention of going to church (I’ve missed the last two weeks and I had missed seeing everyone) but I just wasn’t feeling it. I went back to bed and slept until 11 that night. I must’ve really needed it. My cough is a little better, but I’m trying to suppress it as much as possible. I remember my M.D used to give me a powerful cough syrup that shut down my cough completely. While other cough syrups help to loosen the phlegm, I didn’t need that. I wanted the cough to stop totally. So I contacted him and he phoned some medicine into the pharmacy. Great news! I’ll pick it up on Monday and hopefully start the process of shutting down this damn cough for good. Once I do that, I think I’ll start recuperating much faster. And I have a busy week ahead, so I’m going to need my energy! Keep a good thought for me!

And how was your week?!

PIX FROM THE WEEK

The big and the small of it. Here’s the vintage Scarecrow of Romney Marsh kid’s Halloween costume I picked up on ebay, standing alongside the grown-up version.