True to my word, off I went for a walk yesterday afternoon. As it was a pretty warm day I waited until 6 pm – and then nearly changed my mind again because it was already so late LOL! But in the end I did make a whole round from Gharb to Ta’ Pinu and back again from the other side. It took me about one hour, and half-way through I was awfully tempted to phone hubby to scrape me off the tarmac of the “new” Ta’ Pinu road (by the time they officially open it, it’s gonna be an old road!!). But on I plodded, nearly breaking out in tears of joy when I finally put the key into my front door again.
Of course I took my camera with me…
At night every muscle in my back kept screaming at me – perhaps I overdid it after so many months of quasi immobility. But I will do it again this afternoon, that’s a promise!
Posted on September 18, 2010 - 12:06 pm. 1 comment
Temperatures around 28-29°C are forecast for the next 5 days, but all in all cooler weather has made it to Malta, even some rain. It’s so enjoyable to be outside without breaking out in sweats by simply being there! Mornings and evenings I walk around in the garden; I’m probably fooling myself if I think that counts as putting my muscles to work, but it’s a start, no? I’m beginning to feel like a hermit, hardly seeing the world any more. I’ve resolved that this afternoon I’ll start a routine of properly walking outside the confines of our property, probably to Ta’ Pinu and back. Let’s see how that goes!
Took these pictures this week… it really is time I went out for something else to shoot, isn’t it?
Posted on September 17, 2010 - 12:10 pm. 2 comments
Took these photos last Friday morning on my way to work. The first rainfalls were of course not enough to paint Gozo’s sun-scorched earth green again. But at least the sky has changed somewhat in appearance… I really can’t wait to see other colours than brown and yellow!!
Scorched countryside around Ta' Pinu
Scorched earth & prickly pears
Posted on September 12, 2010 - 11:49 am. 3 comments
Sitting in the garden, enjoying a relatively cool and quiet Sunday morning. Relatively cool meaning absence of stifling heat, while relatively quiet refers to the missing chainsaw and similar mechanical noises – I’m trying to ignore the usual Sunday morning traffic on the main road…
My long-awaited appointment with the rheumatologist has come and gone – and I’m not much wiser. Apparently I’m not suffering from fibromyalgia; I was sent home with the suspected diagnose of inflammatory polyarthritis, with new medication (Arcoxia 90mg) and the recommendation to have an isotope bone scan. I’m going to be informed on Monday how much that’ll cost to do privately as the waiting list at Mater Dei Hospital apparently is 4 to 5 months. In any case, it’s not possible to have it done here in Gozo. Meanwhile, pain is still rampant…
As you’d expect, I read up on all the “new” terms I faced yesterday. Polyarthritis is defined by the fact that more than four joints are affected. While I wasn’t very comfortable with the thought of having FM, I can’t say I’m thrilled with the idea of having arthritis! I’m not very convinced of that diagnose though; the pain doesn’t seem to affect joints but rather muscles. But I guess that’s where that bone scan comes in…
So in a nutshell, the waiting game is far from over. I’m so ready for some ground-breaking change letting me get on with my life!
Posted on - 9:42 am. 2 comments
Sleep… what an elusive commodity these days! Having kept a diary over the past three weeks where I record pain levels, what meds I take and at what time, I found that I function best by taking two panadols at 2 am (pain always wakes me up at that time) and another two at 2 pm. I’m still on Nortrilen but it doesn’t seem to make a difference whether I take them or not. I’ve resolved to be an obedient patient, at least until I see the rheumatologist on Saturday. Not too much longer now… Isn’t it disconcerting how you potter through a week’s worth of hours without even realising it?
Woken up at 6.45 by my alarm clock that I forgot to turn off for today’s public holiday, I thought it was healthier to take my coffee out in the quiet garden than staying in bed grumbling about lost sleep. I’m glad I did, too, because otherwise I would have missed this wonderful cloud display!
I’m so longing to go out for a proper photo-shoot again… *huge sigh* I’ve finally become a member of the Malta Institute of Professional Photography (MIPP) and have every intention to make more out of this hobby. Maybe one fine day…
Better days will come! Better days will come! Repeat until true…
Posted on September 8, 2010 - 9:51 am. Add a comment
Mushroom cloud over Gharb
About an hour ago, 3 massive explosions shook our house… the picture above shows what we saw from the first floor roof. Yet another fireworks factory has blown up – won’t they ever learn? 
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Update 8th September 2010…
The final result of this sad event: This morning the Times reported that the 6th victim has died from his injuries. One whole family practically wiped out. May they rest in peace – and may the government finally wake up and do something about the way this dangerous craft is being carried out – before people die who don’t have anything to do with it…
Posted on September 5, 2010 - 7:12 pm. 3 comments
Well, better late than never! I just realised that my Munich photos are still missing from my blog. You might have seen them already on Facebook, but here you’ll find larger, better quality versions.
If you are currently suffering rain, rain, rain in Munich, you might find consolation in these pics… I wonder if Munich has ever seen a hotter summer than when I was there last July!!
I wish we had this kind of fountain in Gozo…
And finally, remember: even if it’s raining – the sun is still somewhere up there!
Posted on - 9:07 am. 3 comments
…’cos I just didn’t have anything better to do. I felt pretty good this morning – after having slept rather well last night, 7 hours in one piece! – but not strong enough to venture out into the world with my camera. Being thoroughly fed up of exclusively shooting cats, I chased around for some other subject. And found these shadows…
olive twigs on the table
water bottle on the garden path
yucca palm behind an umbrella
bamboo blind on the sitting room wall
Posted on August 29, 2010 - 5:43 pm. 4 comments
I had written a long blog post about my aches and pains and my occasional surrender to a couple of Panadol. Then I deleted the whole bloody post again because deep down I know that you don’t really want to know. Suffice it to say nothing has changed at all, but at least I have an appointment with a rheumatologist in 2 weeks’ time. Yeah, that says a lot about the dismal state of health care in Gozo… I’m trying to see these two weeks in perspective to my nearly five months of suffering. I tell ya, it’s so damn hard not to resort to cynicism!
Tonight there is going to be a ‘healing service’ in our Church square, just metres away from my home . The announcement in last week’s bulletin somehow caught my eye, and I’ve been thinking about it every day. That’s rather strange as I don’t actually believe it works. Some time ago I saw something on a local TV station about these services given by “Dr John” and all I could think about was the cult-like taste it had to it. And yet… I can’t help thinking about how apt the timing is. Probably goes to show how ready I am for a miracle! Which, I must stress, I’m way too cynic to believe in happening. I admit sometimes it sucks to be me…
On the other hand, there are things that still manage to pull my attention away from my own misery and put things into perspective. My friend Lisa, who I’d finally met in person in Munich last month, is just now having a tough time after her routine mammography last week showed up a calcification that needed checking out. She was supposed to receive the results yesterday but then was put on hold until Monday as further tests became necessary. Lisa still doesn’t know whether it’s all good or bad, and frankly, if I was in her shoes it would freak me out.
Honey, I’m thinking of you, Jenna and Keith, and sending sunshine and lots of virtual hugs for you all across the ocean! I hope that by Monday the spook will be over and you can get on with your lives! xxx
Posted on August 28, 2010 - 1:26 pm. 3 comments
Max, looking cute
It’s been an eternity since I last took photos, so I took advantage of waking up so dreadfully early and spent some time in the garden before the sun started creeping over the wall. I fed the cats – I think they were very surprised to see me out so early! – walked a bit around and finally sat down, waiting for an opportunity to “shoot” them. Came up almost empty-handed though, they only ever pose when I’m not armed with a camera! And it was already sooo bloody hot that even just sitting there motionless, the sweat started running down my face… Can’t wait for autumn to arrive!
Max playing in the garden after breakfast
Ok, change of subject. After my post of last weekend three people suggested – independently from each other – that my symptoms might be those of fibromyalgia (FM). As you can imagine I proceeded to soak up everything related to this condition via google. If that is really what I have (I have not been diagnosed yet), it’s good news because it isn’t life-threatening, and bad news as it cannot be cured. Mind you, I don’t have all the symptoms; one of the defining criteria, the ‘painful response to pressure’ , is mostly absent, and even with the shortage of sleep that I’ve had I can’t really say that fatigue is part of my symptoms. I do usually get really tired after lunch-time but that is no surprise, is it?
I went back to my GP on Monday and told him what I’d learnt about FM. I went home with a bottle of Nortrilen (Nortriptyline), which is – once again – an antidepressant, which is often prescribed for fibromyalgia patients. So far it hasn’t done anything, either good or bad… patience is the name of the game. Which, as you probably know by now, is something I don’t have at the best of times – and these times are really, really not my best! *sigh* This morning my doctor phoned me to inform me that the blood tests of last Monday had come all back “totally normal”. Also, he is going to make contact with a rheumatologist, who is specializing in the field of FM and whose name I’d been given by someone diagnosed with it, over in Malta. I wish things would move faster; I don’t know how much longer I’ll be able to deal with this permanent feeling of having been run over by a semitrailer…
Posted on August 21, 2010 - 5:37 pm. 3 comments
