Headache and the Aftermath

September 12, 2009
Woke up today with a pounding headache and a clogged head. I took an OTC allergy pill, which eased a tiny bit of the pressure. Then I took an OTC migraine pill. I knew I should eat something, but was afraid it wouldn't stay down. I felt a film of sweat all over and I could not breathe well. I just couldn't take a deep breath. I ate an apple. Then I was freezing. When that happens, I know it's time to lay down, so that's what I did. I fell back to sleep. When I woke up it must've been about 11. I ate some Cheerios with a banana and had some coffee.

Then we headed out to look at Middlebury. They were having a storytelling festival. I knew it wouldn't be the kind of story work that we do, but we wanted to check it out. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, I still had some headache left and while that went away after we'd walked around a bit, I was feeling the usual aftermath. I was utterly exhausted and foggy. We found the Folklife Center and went inside. The speakers were in a tiny room that was full to overflowing; it was roasting in there; and there was some kind of smell emanating from the gift shop that was just not working for me. One of the things that happens to me when I get a migraine is an extreme sensitivity to smell. There was a photo exhibit that Bill wanted to look at, so Heather and I waited outside. It was humid and uncomfortably warm. On the way back to Shelburne, it got cooler and rained a little. It was a pleasant ride and Middlebury is a nice town.

We moved from the campground on Friday morning. We came to the Shelburne Camping area. They have these nifty little cottages. It's just one room for the 3 of us and one thing we miss about camping is that we at least get some privacy when we all retire to our tents. They do have 2 room cottages here, but they are significantly more expensive, of course, and we decided that the money could be better spent elsewhere. In any case, it has been nice to have something of a kitchen. The refrigerator is not as small as the tiny one we had last weekend in the motel room. It's not full-size either, but it's big enough. And the freezer actually works quite well. The oven works great. There's a toaster and a small coffeemaker. The stove reminds me of the one we had when we lived in North Pole. It was my only experience having a gas stove and it was one I don't care to repeat. It had two temperature settings—high or off. I could not simmer anything. I ended up using my countertop electric burner for many things, since the gas stove was so crappy.

This one is the same. But at least the flame is higher than the one we get on our camping stove, so stuff cooks faster! Anyway, it's a simple place—no sheets on the bed, no towels, washcloths or little bars of soap in the bathroom, which is why the price is reasonable, I suppose. I was shocked when we first got to town and discovered that the Super 8 charged $141 for one night on a Friday or a Saturday. That is not a luxury hotel by any means! But this place is comfortable and clean. It takes less time to do little things here than it did at the campground, so I am hoping that means I can be more productive in other areas. I have all kinds of ideas about how to fill all of the time I will save on things like making coffee, cooking, getting to the campground sink to wash dishes and walking back and forth to the bathroom. Plus, I can take advantage of the wonders of electric lights to work further into the night! It was disappointing to not be able to do as much as I wanted to today because of my headache and the aftermath, but tomorrow is another day!
Last night, before we left the campground, we saw this guy with his leaf blower blowing the leaves from his rug thing that was outside his RV. I was amazed—not only that he was doing that, but that as they were getting ready for their trip he had the thought that he should bring the leaf blower with him! I don't think I would think of that!
We left at the right time. The rain held off until this morning. It rained pretty hard there for awhile.

Bill has been trying to watch the Red Sox game, since our little cottage has a TV and cable, so he gets the New England Sports Network. He used to listen to the radio broadcasts of the games via the web, but now he is back in his home territory (well, kind of—New Englanders make clear distinctions between people based on what part of the region you're from), so he can tune in via radio or TV. Unfortunately for him, last night's game was rained out. Tonight's was delayed for 2 ½ hours. Doubleheader tomorrow. I have been reading and crocheting—working on the lace shawl I am making for my friend. I am almost at the halfway point!

When we were in Middlebury this afternoon I saw a couple of hats in a shop window. One was constructed out of rectangular pieces of fabric and one was squares on old sweaters. I liked both of them. Bill commented that they were nice and I replied that they were, indeed nice, but they would be nicer in yarn, and once I make myself one, it will be nicer! So I was thinking about that, too.

Surprisingly Productive

Turned out to be a pretty productive day, though I had my doubts when I woke up too early this morning, very congested and freezing! I yawned my way through breakfast and then we headed out to go to the bank and to pick up a Tracfone for the trip along with a few other things ( canned fruit, salad dressing, etc.). We got home and I felt worse. Then the headache started with a bit of discomfort that soon progressed into pounding pain. Eating lunch didn’t help--at least right away. But then I made some coffee and took a migraine pill and things settled. I was still tired, but no longer yawning and freezing and the congestion eased somewhat. So I sat and ripped out a vest I’d made for myself in Tunisian crochet a few years ago which fit at the time, but was too big now. I wanted to salvage what yarn I could to reuse. I’d done the front sides earlier in the week, along with another vest, so getting the back done today meant that I was done with that task. And now I have some more yarn--never a bad thing! While I did that I listened to a couple of spoken word Cds I’d gotten a couple of years ago--one about women in US history and one about US poets. Neither was very long, but it was another thing I was glad to have done. I plan to put them on freecycle now that I’ve listened to them. Then I got some more stuff packed, sorted for giving away, and recycled. Got another tote packed. And since Bill finished scanning our old photos yesterday, we were able to put the scanner on freecycle and it is now in its new home. Some people also came and picked up our houseplants and a ladder. Bill wiped the hard drive of our desktop computer and we will be bring that to its new people tomorrow. Things are moving--even though it sometimes doesn’t feel like it! Someone suggested to Bill that Route 2 in Michigan is a really nice way to go, so we looked at a map and decided that this would fit very nicely into the trip. We are disappointed because we sent out a couple of emails to people to were recommended to us and they have not responded. Since they would be people we’d be seeing at the beginning of the trip, we are getting to the point where we may have to just decide when to leave and plan to not stop in those places. We have to make a firm decision on when we are leaving so we can get the utilities shut off and call the person who has already said we’d be welcome at her house and give her a date! I don’t know if they are on vacation or just not interested, but it’s been a week already. I guess this is a good reminder that stuff happens and we will have to be prepared to adapt as we go. And to end the day on a pleasant note, it is raining outside. It’s been below average in terms of temperatures with grey skies and rain on a fairly regular basis. I love it! It’s not what I have come to expect from June in the Basin, but I will take it and consider it a gift!