Greetings Dearest Unravelers!
Welcome to the last Wednesday in August… I know. How on earth is that possible?!
I am sure you are all asking about the PLUS portion of the title… yes, you will get a bit more than making and reading today as I will give you all a small update on my Grand Procedure from yesterday! (so skip ahead to the ** if you are so inclined!)
The Grand Procedure is absolutely not on anyone’s list of things they love to do, but the actual procedure is not the hardest bit IMO… the Prep is the most odious bit! It seems each time I do a colonoscopy the prep work is always tweaked a bit from the previous time but this time… massive tweaks. The consumption of the Jug of Delight was broken into two parts. So Sunday night I began… half of the jug taken in 8 oz portions at 10 minute intervals beginning at 6PM… and repeat again at 11PM to finish the second half of the jug. Sleep much? Nope, nary a wink! But I did have a morning appointment (albeit the last one of the morning) because if not… I would have had to consume the second half Monday morning, oy!
When I moved to Pittsburgh, I was fortunate to get a female gastroenterologist, I really like her. But you get the “next in line” for anesthesiologist…which is kind of important because they are the one that sends you to the land of sweetest dreams. This time my anesthesiologist was a woman as well… who listened! My outcome post-procedure was much improved thanks to an anesthesiologist who listened and made adjustments. I had two sessile polyps removed… and I am waiting on the results… and I am not thinking about them… much but I will absolutely update you all when I know my results.
And for the nappers out there… Me nap? Really, never, unless I am sick but I did take a lovely little nap yesterday afternoon and, post nap, managed to make dinner for Steve and I last evening! Good things indeed!
**Now how about a tiny bit of a making update. I managed to finish a sleeve and get the second sleeve started on Sunday before I was preoccupied with the Jug of Delight, lol.
I did not do a lick of knitting on Monday because I figured if I could not drive a vehicle, how safe was it to knit where I had to keep track of rows for decreases. LOL
And Tuesday the Great Fall Clean Up in the house began… a precursor to the Greater Fall Clean Up outdoors… so not much no knitting yesterday either… nor was there much spinning but there was some!
However, there was some very good reading this week! And I will close out August listening to Pilcher’s The Shell Seekers!
Trust by Hernan Diaz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A tale told by multiple narrators… each revealing more of the story.
Fascinating. Curious. And yes, it makes you wonder about truth and ultimately trust. (And it gives the reader an insight to the Stock Market Crash of 1920’s)
I listened to this story and the narrators were all excellent. My opinion of the characters changed many times through the course of the unraveling of the story.
I highly recommend!
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book… oh, this book. A friend called it a “gut-punch” and it is certainly that. It is also a story that is revealed slowly, over time… and done so incredibly perfectly.
I cried, lots. But by the time I had roughly 200 pages to go… I was numbed to it all. My heart flipped from Jude to Harold, Andy, Willem, JB, Julia, Malcolm, etc. And still… I could not stop.
So how do you help someone who does not believe they are worthy of your help? Your love? Your kindness? Your friendship?
And how much sadness can one group of friends survive? This group had more than their fair share… too much.
The ending did not surprise me… but Howard’s conversation with Willem broke me.
This was my first dip into Yanagihara’s writing and it won’t be my last… I find myself wanting to devour all her books. She is a masterful writer!
I recommend… with caution… it is a hard read but so worth it!
And that is all I have for today! I hope your making was more productive than mine!
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Good to hear that your procedure is over and done with! Fingers crossed the results come back in a good way. Trust is on my TBR list…I may skip the other book you read (not wanting to read about sorrow…). I’m reading Sorrow and Bliss but really am pretty bored with it. I’m about a third of the way through and keep hoping something…anything…will happen!
That 2litre jug of ‘yuck’ has been the bane of patients right back to the 1990s (and further) when I was admitting patients to a day clinic for that procedure. I heard all about it and the effect it had! Here’s hoping your histology results are ok and it’s a while before you need another one (if ever)
I’m away from home at the moment so my reading is limited to what I can get rather than what I want. Last weeks read ‘The Great Gatsby’ was a spur of the moment pick…an interesting one I must say.
I’m glad that your Grand Procedure went as well as possible, and I’ll keep my fingers crossed for good results. I’ve ripped out plenty of rows after a glass of wine, so there might have been much unraveling if you had knit post-anesthesia. Trust sounds interesting and I’ve always been a little afraid to read A Little Life. Maybe I should at least give it a try!
So glad you survived the ordeal, and good luck on the results. Amazed you managed any knitting or reading with that hanging over you. Take care, xx
The only good thing about the procedure is that, if all goes well, the next one is 10 years away… Talking of time flying – we still have another Wednesday in August. You made me look 3 times 🙂
That prep . . . worst part, for sure. I’m glad you’ve got it behind you . . . although waiting on results (of any kind) is always unnerving. Sending all the good waiting-juju. XO So. Inquiring minds want to know . . . What’s involved in the Great Fall Clean Up??? 😉
I’m glad to hear everything went well on Monday. I am not looking forward to my turn (still several years off) primarily because of the prep. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for good test results!
I hope there’s more knitting time in your immediate future, but it seems like you’ve filled your time with some excellent reading. Both books are on my TBR list!
I’m glad your procedure went well and I’m hoping for good results!
I have heard so many good things about A Little Life, but I don’t know if I can handle the sadness. Maybe someday!
I can never get past the heart-breaking gut-wrenching cover image on A Little Life.
I am so grateful for your book recommendations! I used my August credit to get the audiobook of Trust and requested A Little Life from the library. And along the way to the second one I saw A Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog by Dean Koontz and requested it, too.
Here’s hoping the results from your Procedure are what you are hoping for. I had to schedule a 5-year follow-up colonoscopy after the last one showed polyps. Next year is the 5-year point. Like you said, the prep is the worst. I will always remember administering myself an enema in the Walmart bathroom before a sigmoid colonoscopy. Yuk!
So glad the colonoscopy is behind you – so to speak. LOL. You are probably very smart not to have tried to knit afterwards. Do I see a little fiber in the photograph? I hope the rest of the week is a little easier.
So happy that procedure is over – whew! And yay for having an anesthesiologist who listened to you. I’ll send you good vibes for the results.
And so much to love here – your spinning and your knitting photos are gorgeous, as usual. I’m still waiting to read Trust and you’ve made me even more excited about it! And A Little Life… I gave it 5 stars despite being agonized by nearly every page. I’m glad that it was your cup of tea.
I’m glad your procedure went well, I need your calm energy 🙂 I will be decorating for FALL the first week of September. That always cheers me right up!!