This month's symposium topic is a gnarly one. I can't say I have any good ideas yet. Perhaps later on...
HWD is still sick. He took every day off from work this week except one, and has been sleeping most of the time. As I mentioned before, I've been missing our snuggles. Yesterday I put a mask on and crawled into bed with him and spooned and rubbed his back for a while, it was nice. I've been trying to wash my hands more frequently (including after the snuggle) but it feels inevitable that I will eventually get this ailment, whatever it is. He did do a covid test and it was negative.
But he did finally finish the puzzle I gave him for Christmas - because I needed the dining room table cleared for my friend get together. 😂
The friend get together was good...although one friend dropped out because she has a bad cold (guess it's going around!). She drove my car-less friend over to my place wearing a mask, and stopped in for a few minutes to chat (still masked) and then left.
I noticed a phenomenon that has been puzzling me for a while now. Friend A is a few years older than the rest of us and is getting progressively more hard of hearing. She asks to have things repeated a lot. Friend B is one of the kindest people I know. But when Friend A says "what?" or has an Emily Litella like misunderstanding, Friend B can barely conceal her impatience. She'll repeat the phrase loudly, one. word. at. a. time., with barely concealed annoyance. Friend A seems kind of oblivious to it.
Maybe we need an intervention to get Friend A to try hearing aids. You know...it just occurred to me... hearing aids aren't really covered by Medicare and I know she and her husband need to live frugally so maybe it's a money issue, I don't know.
Did anyone participate in the "No shopping" boycott on Friday? I did. I mean, I went out to lunch because my daytimers group was meeting, but that was at a locally owned restaurant, not a chain. I have a dim view of whether it had any noticeable impact - especially since I saw T. supporters online saying "I'm going to go out and shop til I drop!". I'm guessing the two things cancelled each other out.
This might not come through to the site because I sorta recall SNL clips being blocked in the past. But you can always click through to YouTube if so. 
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How's HWD feeling?
I have a lot of no shopping days. Even the supermarket that's only 3 minutes away on foot feels so far 😂
I hear you, some days I just don’t have the energy for grocery shopping and end up foraging in my cabinets.
HWD got home from work yesterday and said “I felt SO much better today”. Hurrah!
You do what you can for someone you love....and i am confident they feel, and need so desperately, that from you....keep on doing what you are doing...hugs
I felt pretty helpless in terms of being able to do anything to make him feel better. Fortunately it seems like he turned the corner yesterday.
@smartasswoman what you think or feel did not help him feel better...very well could be the thing he needed...sometimes we just don't know...if it's from the heart, it is what he knows and feels
One of the biggest health problems with hearing loss is that it isolates you. When you cannot understand just what is being said around you, you are not a part of the the group. Eventually I think that after awhile one quits going out among people as the isolation at home feels less of a hurt than feeling isolated at home. My one daughter kept at me to get my ears checked. Even made an appointment for me. Was amazed at how much I was relying on being able to see the speakers lips move to understand what was being said. One test was having a friend say ten words to you face to face then ten words back to back. I got 8 of ten face to face and only 2 of ten back to back. Fortunately I was able to get a loan for the hearing aids. Many hearing aid companies have arrangements to pay over time.
I hope HWD recovers very soon and you miss getting whatever he has. If you do get it may it be a very light case.
I did go to a locally owned cafe/bakery with Diane and two friends on Friday.
Sending you big naked hugs.
I agree with you about the isolation. I belong to a Meetup group that goes out to restaurants together and I enjoy getting to try different restaurants and socializing with people. But between the rising cost of eating out and the fact that I have trouble hearing the conversations, I’ve cut back quite a bit.
And that is why my friend group mostly gets together at someone’s house instead of going out somewhere - we can hear each other better.
I’m glad you were able to get hearing aids!
@smartasswoman I was told that part of the problem of hearing loss is the brain seems to have more trouble separating out backround noise from a conversation etc. Also the longer the hearing shortfall goes unhelped the harder it is for the brain to recover that knack.
Gorgeous puzzle!
HWD needs to start taking vitamins and whatnot to boost his immune system. Poor guy has to be miserable.
Your friend could try the OTC hearing aids. I am sure they amplify a lot of static, but they might help her a bit. It must be tough to miss out on so much conversation.
I did not do any shopping on Friday. None of my friends admitted to shopping - liberal or conservative minded. I doubt any of these shopping boycotts even create a dip in the profits.
Hugs!!
He's been steadily taking vitamin C and some "immune booster" supplements. Yesterday he finally turned the corner and he went back to work today, we'll see how it goes.
I've been curious about the OTC hearing aids. This whole discussion spurred me to look into an updated hearing test, so perhaps I'll ask the audiologist about it at my appointment.
I really enjoyed reading this—it sounds like life has been full of ups and downs for you lately. I hope HWD starts feeling better soon! It’s sweet that you’ve been able to snuggle up and be there for him, even with precautions in place. Fingers crossed you stay healthy!
Despite the challenges, it’s good your friends get-together happened. It’s always interesting to observe group dynamics, like the interaction between Friend A and Friend B—it’s such a relatable situation.
As for the "No shopping" boycott, it’s great that you participated in a way that aligned with your values. Supporting a locally owned restaurant is always a win in my book. Whether the boycott had a noticeable impact or not, your intention and actions show thoughtfulness.
Thank you.
I went for about three years without much physical contact (pandemic, no partner, etc). So you'd think I could handle a week, but I've become very accustomed to my hug fixes!
I think the boycott was ridiculous. One day of bad sales (if they even had a noticeable difference) will be offset at some point when people go back to their over consuming ways some other day. Frankly, most of America could use a "boycott" most days of the month and maybe they could climb out of their trillion dollar cc debt.
Definitely true that most of us could use to trim back our consumption. I pay off my credit card bill every month, but have been trying to cut back on frivolous impulse purchases. Mostly because I already have too much "stuff"!! (gotta admit though, that silicone bowl for making popcorn in the microwave was a winner 😂)
Hearing has gradually become a slight "thing" for me, over the years. I'll blame my love for live shows and almost forty years in a silly band for THAT deterioration. WE took a sound meter up on stage with us many times — just to see what levels we could hit: 112 dB was our record. That's equivalent to a bunch of chain saws and thunder-claps. We were young and really stupid. Although (in our defense), Google hadn't yet been invented, so we had no clue. 😲
I now focus on people's lips more closely and say, "Beg your pardon?" more often than I prefer. These days, I wear earplugs when I go to live shows, and I've become extremely patient around people who have trouble hearing.
That boycott?
I took part indirectly... sort of. My poor "old" credit card had become demagnetized so I was waiting for my NEW one. I didn't really need anything anyway. Tomato soup and stale bread can cleanse the soul — once in a while. 😶
I'm sure your band time didn't help. You actually might have been slightly better off to be on stage behind the amps, with only monitors pointing at you.
I agree that it's really helpful to look at someone's lips. Although it wasn't quite good enough last night when I was in a loud restaurant and trying to hear the soft spoken woman sitting diagonally from me.
Demagnetized? Is that even a thing any more? 🤔 I thought embedded chips got rid of that problem.
@smartasswoman
WE pushed that envelope on stage, and our monitors were sick.😶
But you're right: I think my ears rang more when I was out "there" watching a show.
True, about soft-spoken people. I kinda "fail" in those situations, as well.
My card was very old, beat-up, and due for an upgrade. 👍
It's perfect
The ex-long distance guy was HOH. TV blasting, audio on his tablet blasting. Didn't dare shout something from another room or I'd get blasted. He had hearing aids but they never worked the way he thought they should so he didn't use them ... even when he had a doctor's appointment. Errrggggh!
I think someone would be doing Friend A a favor by bringing up the subject.
My sister is similar with the hearing aids - she hates them and often leaves them out. The last time I spent a couple of days with her I could see that it was causing friction with her husband - he was doing the One. Word. At. A. Time. thing every time she didn't hear him.
All of this is reminding me that I should probably be re-tested; it's been four or five years since the last one (which showed a small deficit).
I never realized what a cuddler you are! Don't think I'd be cuddling someone what ails them is defined as "whatever it is".
Working around those noisy airplanes has definitely taken it's toll on my hearing but feel aids would be counterproductive. I'm always complaining about TV volumes (set by others-who have aids!) as it is now. And. Yes. I. Know. The. One. Word. Drill. All. Too. Well.
I went out to dinner with a meetup group last night and one of my friends was talking about having had RSV...I hope that's not what this is. I've been meaning to get a RSV vaccination for a long time and it keeps slipping my mind.
I use subtitles on my TV full time because I don't want to become one of those LOUD TV houses. It was unbearable at my parents place. They also had the phone ringer turned up so high that I would jump a foot out of my chair every time the phone rang.
My experience of friends and family about a loss of hearing ranges from comical to frustration. Both sides seem to deny it.
I knew about a shopping boycott in Ameriva and Canada though such a boycott never reached here in Europe.
I think Zelensky needs more than a shopping boycott. I'm still in shock about that meeting. I think Zelensky was bullied but I also think he didn't read the room well. I think Vance and Trump wants Zelensky to grovel. It was a very unedifying experience to watch as if diplomacy has now been turned into a television realty show. I just wish Trump would honestly say that America doesn't give a shit about Ukraine and let Europe take control. I'm sure Trump wants to remain in control so he won't allow that to happen. It seems he just wants Ukraine's minerals and a Nobel Peace Prize to boot.
A lot of us are in shock. A planned ambush in front of television cameras - it seems he still thinks he's doing a reality TV show. And it seems not even this is enough for the veil to be stripped off of his supporters' eyes.