Saturday 30 April 2016

Saturday Critters abound


What a day it was Thursday. Hubby had eye surgery on his lower eyelid. He's doing well. He looks like I hit him, though, with a good old bruise. It was to remove a lump. He is much better, and the day was a long one.

We left the house at 9:45, for an 11:30 appointment, surgery after 12:30, into the car by 2:00 p.m., and home. I didn't get 'lunch' until 5:00 after taking in his prescription.

Back to my critters.
I was on my way to the pond when I spotted two whitetail deer.

Down at the pond, a song sparrow (you can tell by the black spot), and the wood duck swims to the end of the pond to avoid my camera.



This is silly to show you, but this is how hard it is to take photos of the ducks. This one saw us coming (Daisy and I) and took off. This is why I depend on the Trailcam so much.


Daisy was konked out whilst waiting for Dratted Red Squirrel. She usually awakes quite suddenly, but I managed not to wake her lying in the garden.


Into town for errands, I spotted Annabelle's distant cousin (I presume)! She lives at Canadian Tire, her name is Paulie and she is 7 years there. Paulie is an excellent mouser! Annie, the vet thinks, is about 3 years old.


The highway is a busy with traffic, but the road work: new culverts and eventually new asphalt and a shoulder, will be wonderful. It is necessary, as we have quite a few potholes where the road is worn out with heavy trucks.



Back home, spring flowers and a caterpillar!


This morning, it is zero C. (32 F.) and there was a Northern flicker on the front lawn. Yes, I should wash windows, I know!

Friday 29 April 2016

PART XXXIX: Eye surgery (2nd April: papilloma tumour)

FRIDAY, APRIL 2, 2016

Eye surgery on papilloma tumour

9:45 a.m. We went into the city to have eye surgery by the same physician who worked on hubby's ingrown eyelash follicle. It was a 93-km trip to visit the surgeon.

This is a doctor who specializes in eye surgery in Ottawa. It is a luxurious office, with amazing decor.


Arrived 11:07 a.m. for an 11:30 appointment.
Booties to put on, forms to fill.
Did the paperwork.

He'd been fasting eight hours, which isn't so much the problem as having to miss morning coffee!
They have dippy videos running. This time it was Oprah narrating the sex life of clown fish, Gobi fish, and some other wee fish I do not recall. I managed to read a small book: Harriet Quimby. It's a busy spot, with quite a few patients coming and going. He's doing quite well for himself!
There are two waiting rooms on the outside, another two within the doors.



They escorted JB to the inner room around noon. An eyelid papilloma is any lesion on the eyelid that is papillomatous, that is, of smooth, rounded, or pedunculated elevation.
This small tumour is a result of Papilloma virus.
Usually a benign tumour,
 they sent it off for biopsy.


12:34 p.m. JB came out, he told me he was still in room waiting... He suggested I go have some lunch. I was feeling a bit queasy and thought I'd skip lunch for now. Back to my book. Patients and escorts came and went. There must have been about 10 patients during my time there. Some were there for follow-ups, others for surgery. Since a sedative is involved, one cannot drive oneself home!

day 1
1:38 p.m. He was finally out of surgery. I saw him move from the surgical room to the recovery room. They gave him juice and a warmed muffin. They sit in recovery for 20 minutes to ensure that all was well.

2:00 p.m.  We were out to the car. Recovery instructions and an antibiotic salve prescription.

3:35 p.m.  We arrived home. I threw him out of the car and went into town to have his prescription filled, and find myself some lunch. I should have stopped for some water and a pit stop. Duh.
Prescription filled, I fetched some wine and a roast chicken for my lunch, back to the drug store for the Rx. He had reheated himself some leftover chili and made himself a coffee. Still somewhat relaxed and sedated.

 5:14 p.m. I finally arrived home. There were a couple of scares on Ontario's highways and biways. Sheesh, it is unnerving!

UPDATE: Day 3

shiny with the antibiotic creme

 Each day it gets better.
May 6th

PART XXXIV: Eyelid surgery (Apr. 29)

FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2016

Eye surgery on papilloma tumour

9:45 a.m. We went into the city to have eye surgery by the same physician who worked on hubby's ingrown eyelash follicle. It was a 93-km trip to visit the surgeon.

This is a doctor who specializes in eye surgery in Ottawa. It is a luxurious office, with amazing decor.


Arrived 11:07 a.m. for an 11:30 appointment.
Booties to put on, forms to fill.
Did the paperwork.

He'd been fasting eight hours, which isn't so much the problem as having to miss morning coffee!
They have dippy videos running. This time it was Oprah narrating the sex life of clown fish, Gobi fish, and some other wee fish I do not recall. I managed to read a small book: Harriet Quimby. It's a busy spot, with quite a few patients coming and going. He's doing quite well for himself!
There are two waiting rooms on the outside, another two within the doors.



They escorted JB to the inner room around noon. An eyelid papilloma is any lesion on the eyelid that is papillomatous, that is, of smooth, rounded, or pedunculated elevation.
This small tumour is a result of Papilloma virus.
Usually a benign tumour,
 they sent it off for biopsy.


12:34 p.m. JB came out, he told me he was still in room waiting... He suggested I go have some lunch. I was feeling a bit queasy and thought I'd skip lunch for now. Back to my book. Patients and escorts came and went. There must have been about 10 patients during my time there. Some were there for follow-ups, others for surgery. Since a sedative is involved, one cannot drive oneself home!

day 1
1:38 p.m. He was finally out of surgery. I saw him move from the surgical room to the recovery room. They gave him juice and a warmed muffin. They sit in recovery for 20 minutes to ensure that all was well.

2:00 p.m.  We were out to the car. Recovery instructions and an antibiotic salve prescription.

3:35 p.m.  We arrived home. I threw him out of the car and went into town to have his prescription filled, and find myself some lunch. I should have stopped for some water and a pit stop. Duh.
Prescription filled, I fetched some wine and a roast chicken for my lunch, back to the drug store for the Rx. He had reheated himself some leftover chili and made himself a coffee. Still somewhat relaxed and sedated.

 5:14 p.m. I finally arrived home. There were a couple of scares on Ontario's highways and biways. Sheesh, it is unnerving!

UPDATE: Day 3

shiny with the antibiotic creme

 Each day it gets better.
May 6th

Book Review: Harriet Quimby; Flying Fair Lady

Harriet Quimby

By Leslie Kerr
We hear so little about many of the women of history. Women
July 1st, 1912
who broke ground for us in a time of much sexism, and many barriers to achievement. She remained single in a time when women were to be barefoot and pregnant.

It's a well-written book, and the photos from the archives are fascinating. Kerr has done a great job in her research. I really enjoyed this book, while sadly reflecting on the sexism of the times.

Whilst waiting for hubby to have some eye surgery done (to remove a small tumour), I read this book. It's not a long book, 112 pages, but it is filled with amazing photographs. You can view some on the web page. It was a riveting read.

Quimby moved to New York City in 1903 to work as a theatre critic for Leslie's Illustrated Weekly, eventually writing more than 250 articles over 9 years, establishing herself as a journalist. She was an quite an adventurer, covering important issues such as women's rights, minority and other social justice issues.

She was also a script writer for silent films, in the early stages of the times. She was a model/spokesperson for Vin Fiz, after becoming the first female aviator in the USA. She was fearless. These early planes, hers a new Blériot XI monoplane, was made of light, simple materials. She and her passenger were ejected from the plane, since there were no seatbelts. Her flight instructor, and the plane designer, Louis Blériot, helped recover her body after the incident.

The Wright Brothers didn't want to teach women to fly, but she managed to find a teacher. She had to take aviation lessons at 4:30 in the morning to avoid controversy. She even had to fight to earn her pilot's licence, as the Aero Club didn't think women should fly and didn't want to test her. She was the second woman in the world to earn her licence. She designed her own flight suit, since women were still frowned upon if they wore pants. It's hard to believe how far we've had to come in this day and age.

She has her own Wiki page:
On April 16, 1912, Quimby took off from Dover, England, en route to Calais, France and made the flight in 59 minutes, landing about 25 miles (40 km) from Calais on a beach inÉquihen-PlagePas-de-Calais. She became the first woman to pilot an aircraft across the English Channel.[6] Her accomplishment received little media attention, however, as the sinking of the RMS Titanic the day before consumed the interest of the public and filled newspapers.[7]


Harriet Quimby: Flying Fair Lady

One of the first women to fly, the fashionable Harriet Quimby (1875–1912) came of age in the fading years of a gilded era, determined to have more than the life of a farmer’s wife. Beautiful, intelligent, and forever seeking the next adventure when her life ended tragically at age 37, this extraordinary pioneer had accomplished what most—women or men—only dream about. 

“I think I shall do something someday,” she once remarked. This recognition of her legacy is long overdue.