I've been missing for a while ...

Good morning from the Goldfields of Western Australia.

I've been missing in action for a while ... log into my author wix site to tell you all I haven't fallen off the edge of the world and discover ALL of my blog posts require re-publishing! WTF?! Ugh. You might all get notifications as I hit re-publish and I apologize whole-heartedly if you get bombarded with email notifications when I do. I'm SO sorry.

I haven't only been absent from this site. I've been absent from all social media while I've been working on something. I'm still writing for those of you who are waiting for Detraction to be finished (2nd book of His Word - Shattered Series), and I will be getting back into that full time now that this other project of mine is finally live. I now make jewellery and accessories - this is the link for those who wish to check it out - HOME | Handmade Jewellery (wixsite.com) - Any shares would be very welcome and earn my heartfelt thanks.

I've also had a few dental appointments, travelling 140kms getting there and back a few times. I'm a very nervous patient and warned the dentist when I went in for a consultation - which is when he discovered I required an extraction (along with some fillings) - not pleasant - but then again, when is a visit to the dentist ever pleasant?! In my opinion, never. And why do they insist on asking you questions when your mouth is open and there are tools inside it? (Yes I know how that sounds *eye roll) That never fails to amaze me. How are you supposed to answer? Luckily, the questions he asked only required an "Ah-ah" for no, and an "Huh-huh" for yes - trying to stop my head from shaking from side to side or nodding at the same time was hard. Anyway, I had the extraction, with the aid of some medication to help me with my nerves, and have since also had some fillings. As it turns out, the location of the fillings (on the gum line) are unusual - that only happens with a medical condition, apparently, so the dentist told me. He first asked if I was a diabetic - which I'm not, hence the "Ah-ah" answer. Then came the question if I suffered from gastric reflux - which I do, hence the "Huh-huh" answer. That, combined with the fact that my mouth doesn't produce enough saliva from medication I'm taking, are the culprits for leaving me with decay on my gumline. So, now, when I brush my teeth, I have to just spit, not rinse, so the fluoride stays behind to help protect my teeth.

Hubby has decided to give up smoking during this time. The doctor we go to put him on Champix to begin with, which was fine. He did the first month (called a starter pack), then went back to the doctor to get the remainder of the course. Not one pharmacy had any in stock, and we tried about 5 in total, including the one in our own town. Apparently, this is made by Pfizer who have been busy making the Covid vaccine, and no one was expecting any stock for a couple of months! So, back to the doctor we go to get another type of aid for him to continue to give up. Trying to refill that medication yesterday was almost as difficult - because there are a lot of people trying to give up at the moment, that medication is running very low everywhere. Luckily, he got some. And, because hubby is giving up, that means I have to. But I can't take the same one as hubby due to medication I'm on to help me sleep (I'm normally an insomniac who survives on a couple of hours sleep a night - which has decided to kick back in for the past few weeks), so the Doc put me on some patches. I've only had about 5 of them so far, while still smoking (as is recommended). Apart from having very little sleep, I have developed a damned cough that makes it even harder to sleep. I think I'm destined to only have a couple of hours a night. Apparently, according to the little leaflet thing in the box, a cough is one of the side effects. It's annoying as hell.

I have also had both Covid vaccines. My second was last week. Covid is running rampant over in the eastern states. The number of delta community transmissions in New South Wales is becoming scary. Yesterday, they had 825. The state is finally in total lockdown - with a curfew (no one out between 9pm to 5am) beginning on Monday. The premier took her sweet time implementing that, as well as the initial lockdown. Now, the adjoining state of Victoria have had a sudden rise in delta and is also back in lockdown. Our town is rural and we get a lot of travelers who go through with caravans - just lately we've seen a lot of interstate plates - mostly from Queensland, but there have been some from New South Wales, and Victoria, who stop at the local supermarket in town - the very same one we have to visit for small things like bread/milk etc. - it's really a corner store to me - they don't offer much in the way of selection, but it's good enough to get the basics. So, now, we don't want to visit the supermarket unless we really, really have to. Hubby has only had the first vaccine - his second isn't due for another 8 weeks. I had Pfizer, he had AstraZeneca - I didn't really have any side effects (except for feeling more tired, but I'm quite used to that) and a sore arm, but hubby got sick with his for a few days, so he's not looking forward to the second one. I suffered with flu-like symptoms after my second one which made me feel like shit, but it seems to be over now. Again, a sore arm, but that's all good now too.

Unbelievably, our little grandson will be turning one next month! God time flies! He's such a little cutie and now has quite a lot of teeth that he apparently likes to use. I'll attach a photo of our daughter when she took him to the beach last weekend - she's his auntie.

Our old cat is still around after his seizure. He can't jump up on the kitchen counter any more, and his balance has been affected - he's never sat on the arm of a couch/lounge chair before, but he's taken to doing that now - we think he's copying our younger cat because that's what he does, but the older one keeps falling off onto the floor. So we've taken to putting cushions on the arms so he can't sit on them when we're not sitting in them. He doesn't hear us calling him, but he sure hears the click of the kettle being switched on or the door of the fridge opening up - that's when he demands some milk! And he doesn't shut up until he gets a little bit. "My name is Jasper, and I'm a milk addict"!

Now I better get my ass into gear and at least have breakfast and get dressed before I re-publish all my damn blog posts. Again, I'm sorry for all the notifications you're going to get when I do.

Have a fantastic day/night.