In Search of the Best Strawberry

This morning I picked strawberries at Buckwheat Farm in Apex, North Carolina. I’ve picked at other places before (and know that different years produce different crops), but this year at this farm – the best. I mean huge and plentiful. Picking strawberries scares me because I know how much it hurts – but it’s worth the price I’ll pay later today for yummy, sweet treats.

I brought only a small basket (didn’t want to over-overdo it). In less than 15 minutes, the basket was full – that’s how plentiful the plants were. I know, I could buy fresh strawberries, but there’s nothing like being out there and doing it yourself. You pick that first strawberry and pop it in your mouth … the immediate rush of flavor. You try to pop more in your basket than in your mouth (I did). You get the smell of fresh strawberries and the bright color all over your picking hand. Small pleasures and treasures.

Yum! And ouch! I can’t even think about cleaning them now. Where other people might pick more and come home and immediately clean and eat and make strawberry shortcake … it will take me several days to do that much work. For now, I’ll rest and know that although my pain affects EVERYTHING I do, it doesn’t own me and mean I can’t do some small pleasurable things sometimes.

At the strawberry farm, a daycare class of little kids was there. I bet they ate way more than they put in their baskets. How fun! Someday, no matter the pain, I hope to take my grandson strawberry pickin’. Here’s to strawberries and the joy they bring – betcha can’t eat just one!

Brunch at Brigs

Yesterday, I met Wendy at Brigs Restaurant in Cary, NC, for brunch. Yum! We both had huge omelets, fresh fruit and an English Muffin (I really like English Muffins ... why don't I buy them to eat at home?).

Wendy is a ‘person with pain’ friend from my chronic pain support group. In real life, we probably wouldn’t have found each other and been friends. She likes to DO BMX; I like to WATCH NASCAR. She has two teenage girls; I am much older with no children at home. She has a big personality and loves to go do things with friends; I am more comfortable home alone in my cave. But, we have become good friends because we look beyond the differences and see the common ground (pain and the fight to get effective pain care) and how we can help and support each other through our good and bad days.

Wendy knows that I’m not much of a phone person (I prefer email), but she likes me anyway. Before I meet up with her, I’m always worrying … what will we talk about, why am I doing this … Then we meet and we are non-stop talking, sharing, laughing, learning.

I’m always amazed at how different people handle their pain. I choose to limit my activities to one a day. Going to brunch was my activity for the day and then I went home to rest. For Wendy, if she can get the energy and motivation to move at all, she keeps going till she can’t. Then she’ll climb in bed for a couple days if she needs to.

Whatever works. What works for you? How do you manage your life with pain?

Why am I Painting ... and Hurting Myself

Big time ouch yesterday and today. I tried to do some painting yesterday. Big Mistake. BIG Mistake. I sure am paying the price today.

So, why am I doing the painting? A while back we hired a ‘professional’ paint company, First Aid Painting. NO! Please save yourself and don’t call them. I must admit the owner is a great salesman and has a great reference book. But, when it came down to doing the work, it didn’t work. Long story short – he did NOT live up to the signed contract or his verbal commitments. After several failed attempts on his part, I wrote and said no more and asked him to call to make arranagement to pick up his four ladders. He never called. I guess he’s too embarrassed to speak with me ever again.

Although most of the house is completed, the deck still needs painting. What was I thinking? It’s not hard work, but holding a paint sprayer definitely took a toll on my back. And the job still isn’t done. Guess I’ll head to Craig’s List to find an inexpensive handyman to do the easy, but tedious and physical task.

So much for professional painters. And today, I take the maximum allowed dose of my prescription pain medication and REST.

Computer Work is a Back Killer

Most people may assume that sitting in front of a computer is easy work. Some may say they get tired of sitting all day and it hurts their neck or something. But, how many people realize that for every click of the mouse or character typed a muscle is engaged in your back (in addition to the neck and tightness average people feel). For me, that means torture. For me, that means minutes in front of a computer instead of hours.

Today, I began distributing my release/announcement titled “Cary Resident Takes on Statewide Pain Awareness and Action Efforts (Advocate Awarded Scholarship to American Pain Foundation’s Advocacy Summit)” Yee-hah. I guess announcing me as a NC American Pain Foundation Action Network Leader makes it more official.

For now, after more than 5,000 (800+ in this blog post alone) characters/arm movements, it’s definitely time to rest. I think I’ll post the release here, when I’m sending it out to others … tomorrow.

Southern Women's Show -- A Family Tradition

Today I went to the Southern Women’s Show in Raleigh. In the 1990s, my daughter and I went EVERY year to the show in Nashville. I would take off work, keep her out of school and we’d go enjoy a mother-daughter day of makeovers and fun. Back then, Kroger had an entire section of delicious samples to test. Those are good memories for me.

Nowadays, the food samples are few (they did give out Skinny Cow ice cream, yummy), the lines are too long and I am too tired to make it a major event.

There must be a lot of people in pain, because there were a lot of pain-reducing exhibitors. One was a Go Green Pain Relief which offered a spray “all natural pain relief.” It included grape seed oil, jojoba oil, aloe vera, vitamin e and Australian oil of Eucalyptus and promised to relieve or stop pain from arthritis, fibromylgia, lupus, etc., etc. The lady rubbed some smelly stuff on my neck and shoulder. It did make my muscles relax immediately – for about 10 minutes. Then – not so much. And it only cost $49 – I didn’t buy it.

I did get a free ‘computerized spinal examination through surface sEMG which measures relative levels of electrical activity generated when muscles contract.' Sounds like a bunch of goobledy-gook. My graphic didn’t have much green (normal) but lots of reds which show high tension on my left side and below normal tension on the right side. The structural damage in my back from my broken back at T5 means I overcompensate (work harder) on my left side and don’t do much with the muscles on my right side where the pain is. Makes sense to me.

If I thought it would do any long-term good, I’d go to the chiropractor, but I’ve done that before and it doesn’t fix the damage nor the pain. Guess I’ll just take a pill, lie down and relax to relieve the pain. I’m still glad I went. The memories of time with my daughter are good!