The nights are colder

and I'm burning up the fireplace with wood. There is definitely a chill in the air and I am thankful that this is California and not New York. I got up late this morning after coming home late last night from "Beer Breakfast" with my co-workers. What I thought was going to be three people turned out to be eight of us sitting down to breakfast and yes, I did have one beer. I'm not sure if it affects my "rhummy" but it sure doesn't hurt. It was nice to see everyone and hear the tales from the airport still haven't changed. I stayed home for most of the day and tried to whittle my piles of paperwork down to something more manageable. Carmen called me later in the afternoon to help her family do laundry and if I could give them a ride there. I wasn't doing anything but sit, do paperwork and watch T.V. so I went over and lent a hand. The Evan's always have a production of laundry to do and it's a well oiled machine that runs with utter timing. I would offer to help but there is a precision in running the washer and dryer up to folding the clothes which requires patience and the routine that only Carmen and Mama know best. So I just watch in amazement. Later on, we take a ride to Sports authority in Foster City to get Maurice a basketball for practicing. He is such an energetic, smart kid and is all over the place sometimes it's hard for him to listen. As with most kids, they want to touch, see and check out everything in the store, it's hard to contain Maurice's energy. We got the ball and made our way back to the laundry mat to help mama out with the rest of the clothes. As we came back into the laundry mat, mama was talking to another gal there who seemed to know everything about us when we walked through the door. Mama can make friends easily with anyone, man, woman, color or creed, she knows no boundaries. That's a good thing about her and people feel comfortable talking with her as if they're long lost friends. With the laundry done and Maurice's basketball in hand, it was time to go home. Maurice still had some homework to do and mama rested for a bit while that was going on. It was time to get myself home and out of the cold for December is around the corner waiting to lay down it's frigid breath of winter.

My rhummy

is acting up. I woke up this morning feeling stiffer than ever in the right side of my body. My right hand is very stiff and my right ankle is a bit swollen making it difficult to walk. Many times a hot shower does just the trick and I feel as if the RA is seeping out of my body only to return a short time later to settle back in only fiercer. I can really feel the effects of the lowering of the prednisone which I'm down to half a table each day until Dec 1st. Then I go back to see my "RAtologist" for a check up and to start the 3rd phase of my medications.
I have to gather up some paper work sometime to day and get that to my friend, Sarah, who is going see if I'm able to take out a loan on my home. Also, on that note, I have to send in some paper work to my employment to see if they can help me out for the short time that I'm out of work. We have a fund that helps employees out in a time of need, like a welfare system of our own but you don't have to pay anything back. Contributions are accepted and employees that can, take full advantage of donating to the fund. I told myself, If I ever go back to work, even if I have to donate one dollar, I'll contribute to the fund.
I had an enjoyable weekend. I saw the final showing of "Stardust and empty wagons" on Sunday with the Evan's Family. It was even more heartfelt this time and as always the cast was great. They've been portraying the Katrina families for the past year in different cities and to finally have this come to a close and back to San Francisco where it was borne, it has come full circle. There was a cast party afterwards which the Evan's attended and I left to meet with Darrell and Stephanie in Burlingame for drinks. We talked about work and when I'll be back and the party coming up at our friend Gail in December. It's our annual get-together that we try to make yearly at someones house and it will be the white elephant theme.

Winter season

is upon us. It is cold and dreary outside and I'm still in bed thinking back on the type of week I've experienced. My family and I went to my friend Carmen's for Thanksgiving dinner that got a late start and the turkey finally was done...about midnight. The turkey was so delicious and all of the food cooked was very excellent. Except for the gumbo, which was overcooked, actually burned on the stove, by accident and poor mama Diane was to blame. She was making a nice pot of wasabi mashed potato and may have accidentally turned on the back burner where the large pot of gumbo was resting. The next thing we knew, there was smoke billowing from the gumbo pot and mama rushed for the pot to turn it off and my daughter and I ran to open the windows while the smoke alarm was blaring it's signal. In the meantime, Carmen was in the shower shouting to us, "Mama? Is there something burning? We couldn't hear her because Maurice's Nintendo Wii was on loud. After getting the pot off of the stove, windows were opened, Carmen came out of the shower in her robe and inspected the gumbo pot and immediately noticed that it was her labor of love all evening, her gumbo pot that had been overcooked and burned the fixings that had settled to the bottom. Visibly upset at her mother, this had changed the whole dynamics of the evening. My brother arrived with my son with some provisions from the store including two bottles of liquor, one rum and one brandy which mama took no time in opening and held the coveted glass to her heart as if praying and drank it.
Things finally cooled down and we salvaged what we could from the gumbo pot, sausages, crab and shrimp. It was still good eating and along with all the other fixings, it was a good meal. The turkey was done about midnight and by this time we were all stuffed but managed to eat a little of the very moist turkey meat that Carmen had cut for us. 1:00am rolled around and it was time to go home.
Friday took us to Target to get some shoes for Maurice. Nani didn't go to work since she managed to get up at 2:00pm and tagged along with me. Bridgepoint Center in Foster City was very crowded and because the "parking goddess" was with me, we found an excellent spot right in front of the store. Carmen found a few good pairs of shoes for Maurice at clearance and we headed home but not before gassing up my big truck. In San Mateo off of 92 is a great gas station where the prices are always about 10 cents cheaper than anywhere else.
We stayed for dinner of leftovers from last night minus the gumbo, which I'm sure Carmen stated that she was throwing it out. Leftovers at the Evan's is always good and wholesome food. Mama seemed to be doing fine, she was still in her pj's. After leaving the Evan's, Nani and I went home, made a fire and watched T.V.
Saturday was pretty much chore day. Washing and drying clothes, cleaning up the yard while it's still dry and getting out the yard waste and securing the tarp before it starts to rain. My lemons are still green and waiting for it to turn yellow. Maybe I need to add more citrus food. The afternoon rolled around and I was tired. I took a long nap which they say is now beneficial for you. Tomorrow, I'm getting together with the Evans' to see the last of their play, "Stardust and empty wagons". It should be a packed house and I'm looking forward to it.

Stiff joints

this morning. It seems that my "rhummy" is back since the lowering of my prednisone medication and I am feeling every little ache. I'm on half a tablet until December 1st and still taking the folic acid and vitamin daily. The methotrexate is still once a week at four tablets. It hasn't been easy this week. My once swollen ankles are back especially the right ankle. It is much harder to walk today than the past days. There is a varied amount of stiffness in my finger joints as well as parts of my back but I'm trudging along in my day just a little slower than usual.
I've been to the play "Stardust and empty wagons" three times since it has been back in San Francisco. It is a wonderful production of talented cast members portraying actual Katrina survivors from Hurricane Katrina. Live music by the Hot 8 band is not to be missed, they are an awesome band playing beautiful rhythm and flavors of New Orleans. The play is a heart rendering story about the lives of Katrina survivors and how they survived the hurricane and horrendous flooding, what they went through getting their families out of New Orleans and to this day dealing with the mismanagement of FEMA and where they are now. Listening to their stories unfold and told in a way that lets you embrace them as long lost family and to encourage their fight against a government that does not have a clue and can't seem to get it together in this day and age! The last day for the play is Sunday November 25th at the Brava Theatre in San Francisco. Take your family and friends to see it. You won't be disappointed.

Reducing my medication

two weeks ago and I'm totally feeling the effects of it. At my last doctors visit, he lowered my prednisone from 1 and a half to half a tablet on all odd days and one whole tablet on even days. Tomorrow, I will be switching again to half a tablet everyday until December 1st. The stiffness in my fingers have definitely come back to the point of where i cannot make a closed fist anymore. The stiffness in my left shoulder blade is more prominent. It takes me awhile to get "warmed up" and then I can move more easily as my day goes on. In December, my doctor will be putting me through phase three of my medications which will involve a series of shots. I don't know how long I will be on these medications but the thought of needle injections Is not high on my favorite list.

Holidays

I'm sorry for not writing anything in between. Life has kept me busy. My second daughter Pua is in Sacramento. She was in the hospital and is now at a Mental facility which has close monitoring of their patients. That's a good thing for her because she needs the discipline of being in a controlled facility, medication fed and cordoned off from society because of the effects from "falling off the wagon" can do to you as a young person. She is easily influenced, boyfriends come and go like running water and none of them really care about her but that's OK because none of them matter to her. She will take the "drink" or an occasional drug offering (inhaled or ingested) from whomever will offer it to her. As far as I know and have seen, she does not "shoot up" any drugs. She worries constantly about the medication she's taking and knows what ones work for her and which ones that do not. She is very vocal to her doctors and will let them know which ones make her gain weight or make her fatigued. She's a wonderful advocate for herself, loves to write poems and stories about her young life. Pua can get highly charged about a subject and is very passionate about life sometimes. Then there are the darker days where her voices have taken over and say things to her that one can only imagine. She has tried to kill herself several times by either overdosing on her medications or slitting her wrists. Pua will have conversations with them as if they were right there in front of her, cursing, angry and screaming at them to leave her alone. I can see the tiredness in her face and in the whole of her body when she goes through episodes like this. She excuses herself to nap and all the while she is awake and can't sleep because of the silent torment that her voices have waged war against her. To my little girl, now a woman, the thought of death comes easily.