a body update and a neat local event

I confess...I haven't been a very good blogger of late.  Honestly, I'm just a broken record and feel like I can only gripe so much about my health.  I did want to share a new town story though so I'll split out a health update and the amusements of central PA so folks can read what they want.

• Back Stuff

I feel like I'm pretty much stuck in place.  The control medicine (taken on a schedule vs just as needed) does help in that the pain level is much lower when I stay in bed.  It never goes away, but it is much more bearable thanks to the control routine. I was able to sit up and hang out with friends for a few hours last weekend but it definitely brought pain.  Doing much of anything also leads to a spike in pain the next day, even when staying still.  It doesn't feel fair and it keeps me to the bed the vast majority of the time.  Also, the control meds make me REALLY tired.  I've never been a big napper but I've slept long hours at night and two to four hours at some point during the day. 

I do have an appt tomorrow to try another diagnostic injection.  They had to reschedule me from another date which was annoying BUT I was thrilled when they said it was with the doc who has been gone on maternity leave.  As I've said, I've really had an awful time with the Pain Doc but there aren't really other options nearby outside of this clinic and the only other doctor there had been on leave.  I am hoping the lady pain doc is truly back and not just helping out for the one day for some reason.  It would be hugely helpful to have a doc who isn't a total jerk and who actually makes me feel like I'm listened to and who believes there's hope.

I also need to look into a possible venue for pool-based physical therapy.  I've been doing the exercises the PT in Lancaster gave me but it is hard to tell if they are leading to any progress....it hasn't reduced the pain but it may be helping me build back muscle which is important.

• Riff-Raff Day

I continue to be amused by life in our central PA town.  A while back, MM called the trash folks to ask about disposing of an old grill.  They said we could pay around $30 to have it taken or we could wait till Riff Raff day.  We had not heard of this phenomenon but they said that once a year they'll pick up anything, aside from things with environmental issues like a fridge w/ coolant.  We marked it on our calendar and made plans to put out the grill and a few other bulk items.

Our trash is picked up Monday and they usually ask you to put out your stuff no earlier than 6 PM the prior day.  I had to make a CVS run on Sunday and noticed that people had already started piling up Riff Raff stuff by 2 or 3.  I also spotted a few people stopping at these piles to see what had been left.  As I pulled onto our street, one truck was stopped and the passenger was grabbing a lawn chair from our next-door neighbor's house.  I went in to tell MM to put out our stuff and he said he actually already had and that it was gone within 10 minutes.  We watched as more "hunters" drove by, guessing at what items from our neighbors would go first.  MM put out an old computer monitor...the monitor stayed but they cut off the wire within 15 minutes (MM said for copper or gold fibers).

It was amusing to watch as neighbors helped each other carry unwanted stuff to the curb and as folks drove through town, exploring for found treasure.  It really made me smile.  I love that items were getting left and taken.  I don't know if the pickers planed to keep the items or maybe sell them at a flea market, but either way the items were getting re-used rather than tossed in the dump.  Terrific little local tradition.

There had also been a bunch of yard sales on Saturday in advance of Riff-Raff Day.  MM saw a neighbor putting out a beautiful 1930s typewriter.  It was in a suitcase-style holder and all the keys seem to be in working order.  The neighbor asked for $10, MM insisted on giving him $20.  I spotted a few similar items on E-bay for over $200...although it is also just kind of a cool thing to have for a while.  Our friends also grabbed a small stack of records, including Man in the Mirror and an old-school comedy album.  We all laughed when we realized that kids today probably had never seen either type of item.