Monthly Archives: January 2025

Saturday:

Felt as if I were coming down with flu including a bit of a sore throat. Lost my appetite so I only ate half of my MYLK Surloin Steak micro meal. Slept very little and badly.

Sunday:

Definitely feeling worse, so much so that by mid afternoon, despite my aversion to taking them, I took a RATS test early afternoon.

Tested positive, the first time ever. It being the weekend I called the Hastings Health Centre and advised them I had Covid and wanted some anti-virals to speed recovery. All I got was a machine but they did ring back and after I mentioned I was 78 they said they’d get a doctor to call me back. Early evening a doctor did call back and she agreed to send a script to the pharmacy in the Health Centre, it being open until 8:00pm.

Rosie was out but offered to pick the script up on her way home. However an hour or more after my phone call the pharmacy hadn’t received the script. Later I called the pharmacy and was assured the pills were ready and waiting on the shelf so when Rosie went in again after her dinner they were ready. Throat very sore by now and with great difficuty I was able to drink the medicines but neither eat nor drink anything else.

Watched TV for much of the night as I couldn’t sleep. Used up some Ibuprofin tablets I already had to try and calm the throat – with little success.

Monday:

Another day without eating or drinking except for my evening meds.

I called the Health Centre again to say I was feeling worse but, it being a week day, they just put me through to my regular GP. Reception saod that Dr Jamieson had a full day but could ring me tomorrow. So I rang back the Health Centre Emergency Out-Of-Hours number again and theybegan search for a doctor to ring back this afternoon. Meanwhile the GP’s surgery called me back to say she’d talked to the doctor and he would ring me back later today.

Dr Jamieson did call back late afternoon and he prescribed some throat spray as a stronger alternative to the Strepsils throat tablets I’d been havin as ofter as possible since the weekend. He also prescribed some stronger throat lozenges. Another late evening call for Rosie to pick them up.

Tuesday:

Another terrible night with little sleep and no improvement to ability to swallow so I got in touch with the doctor again. This time he couldn’t offer any strong medicine for my throat – I’d not had any food or water except for forcing down ills once a day since Saturday lunchtime – but prescribed some strong codeine tablets, which Rosie picked up.GP said that if the codeine didn’t work I should go to ED and get them to check my hydration because having not drunk more than a cup of water since Saturday afternoon I was possibly becoming too dehydrated.

Luckily for me Marcus marched over to see for himself how I was and, fortuitiously, Gill rang for the same reason. This was mid afternoon. Hearing what the GP said they were both pf the opinion I needed to go to the Hawkes bay hospital ED straight away. The codeine had had a couple of hours to work but with no obvious effect on my throat. Anyway I agreed to go and get hydrated.

Marcus took me in late afternoon and despite being very busy – but no more so tat usual said the nurse – they took me in and shunted Marcus and me into a small waiting room. Time ticked on bye; nurses came and took my vital signes a couple of times but I think it wasn’t until maybe 2:00am that a doctor was able to see me. Soon after midnight they gave me the first litre of electrolyte, it took several hours to finish. The doctor was excellent, very thorough and confirmed that based on the “bloods” they’d got I was indeed dehydrated and he did not want me to leave the hospital until my kidneys were back to normal so I should expect a few days in hospital.

After the doctor had gone and it was clear nothing more was going to happen until tomorrow daytime Marcus went home, after 3:00am.

Wednesday:

Witdh the pills they gave me and the throat spray my throat was getting better. Beginning this morning I was able to down cool tea with milk and sugar and yoghurt.

Someone came a took readings then around 5:30am I was moved to another part of the ED. smaller than the first room and with less equipment in it. At 7:30am I was moved again to a permanent room up on the third floor, ward B3 for “neurology and Covid”. There are two rooms, single occupancy and self-contained for patients with Covid. I started on the second litre of hydration electrolyte.

Multiple rounds of nurses and other carers who took vital signs then disappeared. Early afternoon the doctor came; corroborated the overnight doctor’s diagnosis and said the bloods showed damage to my kidneys and I’d need to stay at least another day.

Marcus very kindly brought in some pyjamas, charging plugs, shaver, etc. including my anti-viral pills and stayed for a couple of hours. The rounds of nurses and carers continued. The final one left at around 10:30pm – but no, another round of vital signes measured around 11:00pm which woke me from slumber. Then I couldn’t get back to sleep so rang for a cup of tea which did help.

Thursday:

Sore throat banished; I’m eating and drinking plenty of liquids.

5:00am and another round of vital signs and then back to sleep until around 7:00am when there was another round of vital signs including an extra blood test. Breakfast at 8:00am which I observed was almost the opposite of the ingredients I’d checked on the list I was asked to fill in yesterday. Every meal they give me slices of glutinous bread and had-to-swallow elements. And only the meal-serving staff seemed a bit surly but perhaps they too, like all the rest of the staff, are run off their feet.

Marcus came around 8:00am and left my anti-virals, returning again at 9:30am with and left to drive his tour bus to the Gannets an hour later. I began my third litre of electrolyte.

Doctor came and said my kidneys were back to normal and I could go home after lunch. Marcus was away driving a tourist coach to the gannets so Chrissie came and picked me up aftwr lunch. I was very pleased to be home again.

Friday:

Slept quite well. Took Bangle for a coffee and apple turnover and a walk along the Tainui reserve. Rosie/Chrissie had picked up my MYLK order yesterday and so I was all set to begin life as usual. Marcus took Bangle with the other dogs for a walk.

Talked with Bridget in Khandallah and signed a form for MillVale so the plan to move Karola from Summerset Palms to Millvale on Monday can go ahear. Rang Jenny and briefed her on events. Bridget is flying up here on Sunday; Marcus has offered to ferry her from the flight. Bridget will return to Wellington late afternoon on Tuesday.

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Good start to the day and Bangle and I went off for out walk around 11:00am. Pie and coffee on a bench in the dog park. In the afternoon got hooked on some YouTube videos about vitamins, the Covid vaccines, and supplements. Happily interposed with several compilations of video clips of David Mitchell and others.

Geoff has a full collection of DCI Banks TV shows and a new show on UK TV called Patience which is plenty to look forward to.

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Rosie kindly took me to get the weekend MYLK meals and one or two other groceries. Marcus and Chrisie both have colds and are bit under weather. Marcus hoped to take the Landrover in to his garage nearby but it’s closed until next week.Tried unsuccessfully to get Bridge an Oura ring like mine online but got stuck as web page says it will not ship to New Zealand although it was happy to do that for me last month.

Eye check with Phil Donaldson at Shatky Visique in Hastings. Yook an hour, lots of tests with different machines. Apparently eyes pretty much as they were a year ago, which is good, although I am encouraged to get cataract operations which will make viewing TV easier in particular. Also might be valuable to help pass driving test in a couple of years.

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Went and picked up Karola at lunchtime. Had arranged with Kim that if Karola wanted her hair done she would have my slot and I’d make another appointment. In the end she didn’t so I had mine cut and then we three had our usual outing at Miss Browns, round the corner from Kim’s hairdressing salon.

Bought online a pair of All Birds women’s lace-up shoes, two sizes up from what Bridget wears. Feet get swollen due to too much sitting aroiund so I thought this might be more comfortable for Karola. They came today and we’ll take them round next week.

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The two chicks under the current broody hen are well feathered now and their mum is very ferocious if anyone else comes near so I think they can join the rest of the free-range flock shortly.

Weekly shopping but fish deferred till Thursday as Chrissie made me two meals of egg pie – two big slices out of a large pie she made for her family.

Very Protective Mother And Her Two Chicks

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Had good lunch and walk with Bangle in dog park midday. Bangle went with Marcus and the pack late afternoon.

Got hooked on lots of YouTube videos of old UK TV show snippets including lots with David Mitchell in them.

So nothing useful done today except that I did take Landrover to VTNZ in Orchard Street just before closing. Quite a lot of things to fix before it’ll get its WOF.

The Karamu Pack (photo courtesy of Chrissie Ormond)

Second Lot Of Chicks

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Heavy showers and occasional bits of sunshine. I went with Bangle for our often walk in the park with pie and coffee but this time by the time we got to the park it was bucketing down. After ten minutes of this and people scurrying for vehicles Bangle and I went back home and had my lunch sitting on the cottage verandah.

Late afternoon as the weather had cleared up for an hour or more we did another run, this time with coffee and an apple turnover. It was spitting when we got to the park but we trotted along to the covered picnic table where the dogs swim and had lunch there. Walk there and back was pretty dry and Bangle and I both got in some needed exercise.

Chrissie took Bangle with the rest of the dogs for a walk round the orchard as dusk approached.

I’ve offered Chrissie and Marcus the loan of my Whisper electric bike and its trailer. Chrissie also has the idea that the slower dogs, Bangle and Cyril, might sit in the trailer as they can’t keep up with cycle.

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Spent big chunk of the day reading the novel Jenny lent me, Follett’s NEVER. Very thought provoking and seemed credible to me, the discussions of the way CIA and government troops and terrorists worked and especially the way North Korea’s leader could likely play USA/South Korea against China. A little bit depressing but not too much “in your face” grimness. I do enjoy novels which have credible story lines about how global politics probably would play out.

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Rosie drove me over to take Karola out today; Karola was in good spirits though I am concerned that she does seem to be aging fast with her feet and legs. We shared a good omlette with ham, cheese, tomato as usual and coffee.

Afterwards I dropped in at Millvale House and had a brief chat with Frances Vincent, the operations manager. I am to ask Jodi to send over the documents for Karola, Jodi is out till next week and the clinical manager at Millvale are not back till next week anyway.

Nourish-For-Nil is still closed so gave dozen more eggs to Chrissie; no runner beans in couple of green grocers we tried so season is very short for them.

Bangle joined the other dogs on Chrissie’s evening walk. Marcus mowed the lawns this afternoon.

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Slow day, sultry weather. Mostly TV viewing.

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The time I spent awake was watching YouTube videos including many old British management training videos with John Cleese and French & Saunders and many many more faces I recognised from 1950s onwards.

Henare came over and worked is remaining hives with help from Marcus.

I had lunch – pie and coffee – with Bangle in the regional park,

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