30 Minutes. Gone.

 It's been a rough winter.  

We lost our good friend, Greg on February 4.

February 15, our brother in law Ron passed away unexpectedly.  Two weeks later, Ron's mom Mary, passed.

A week later, Mary's brother passed away in Tennessee.

Donny decided to go with Jan to the funeral.  They would be gone for three days.   She was here to pick Donny up at 10 a.m. Saturday morning.  They left around 10:15.

Right before they left, I told Jan that I was going to clean out the refrigerator.  I was doing it while he was gone because I needed to throw some things away, and that's hard for him to do.  We both laughed about it.  I walked her out the door, said goodbye to both of them, told them to be safe and call when they got there.

Turned around went right back in the house and started on the refrigerator.  First, I got everything off the door shelves.  I used the Method All Purpose Cleaner (green).  Sprayed the shelves, wiped them down and returned what I wanted to keep and pitched the rest.  Then I cleaned the inside shelves.  Top shelf first, then middle, then bottom.  Threw a lot away, and reorganized the rest.

That's all I remember.  

The next thing I remember is answer the house phone, and Donny saying "Nick is on his way over, and I will be there soon."  I vaguely remember that conversation.  He said he also told me to stay in the house.

Evidently (@ 10:47 to be exact) I called Donny.  He and Jan were on their way to Tennessee for the funeral of Ron's uncle.  (I KNEW that.  I just said goodbye to them a half an hour before). 

The first thing I said (according to Donny) was "Where are you?"  He said he was with Jan, going to Tennessee for Mary's brother's funeral.  Then "Why are you going there?" "Whose funeral?"  Then I said "I'll just call Nick."  

At 10:51, I called Nick (in the meantime, Donny called Meredith and told them to get over to the house, something was wrong with Pam).  I asked Nick the same thing.  "Where is your Dad?  I'm confused."  I also told him "I lost 2 hours."

I have NO recollection of either of those conversations.  NONE.  The next thing I remember (vaguely) is the Donny saying Nick would be there soon and he would be there soon.I couldn't understand why he was coming home????

When Nick and Mere got here, he sat on the couch with me.  Asked me MY name, all of our birthdays, who is the President?  Then he told me about the phone call.  

Then Donny and Jan pulled in the driveway.  It was decided that I should be checked out.  

Just so happened that our neighbors (ML and Shirley) son was in town from Florida.  Mike was in high school when we first moved here.  I've know him most of his life.  Evidently he came over, put a mask on, and hugged me.  I don't remember THAT either.  

We went to Miami Valley South.  I don't really remember the ride there, but when we got close, I told Donny "You need to turn here." He almost passed the entrance.  Seemed like I was doing better?  Got into ER and I told them "I don't know what happened.  I know know if I had a stroke or what".  Because I said that, stroke protocol began.  They did all the tests for a stroke, but I had no symptoms - no drooping, no slurred speech.  They did a CT scan of my head, a chest x-ray, urinalysis, blood work.  Everything came back normal.  But they wanted to do an MRI (then also an MRA which looks at carotid artery for blockages).  I didn't want to spend the night, (and neither did Donny want me to), but Nick wanted me to stay for observation.  Ended up, Nick won.  I was remembering a lot more, but no recollection at all of those phone calls.  I really needed to know why that happened.  TIA (mini stroke) was mentioned as well.

Didn't get much sleep, every four hours they took vitals and did the stroke protocol stuff.  At 7:15 a.m. there was a knock at my door - they were there to take me for the MRI.  

After multiple tests, it was determined that I am very healthy.  Perfectly healthy.  Everything came back great (which is exactly what you WANT to hear), but still no answer as to why I have no memory of that half hour.  

I told Donny it's like when you get anesthetic for a colonoscopy.  They tell you to start counting down from 10.  You don't even get to 9 and you're already out.  Then 15-20 min later you start coming out of the anesthetic.  Also compared it to being hypnotized.  Like, they can get you to do things while you're hypnotized, but you don't remember.  Then, they snap their finger (in my case, the phone rang) and you're out of it.  

I'll have one more test, an EEG, to rule out a seizure.  Since no one was here to witness this "event", they want to rule that out too.

One other possibility is TGA.  Transient Global Amnesia.  The Nurse Practitioner said she's diagnosed about ten people with that.  Similar to a TIA, something happening in the brain, but only temporary.

With no medical reason for this episode, the only other options are either the chemicals in the spray cleaner I used caused an "anesthetic" type blackout, or someone (Ron? Roz? Mary? Melissa? or all of them got through to me and I needed to get Jan and Donny off the road.  Jan said "maybe I needed to be on this trip alone?  Donny said "maybe an accident was going to happen?")

In any event, I'm kind of leaning toward the chemicals in the cleaning spray.  I had my head in the refrigerator wiping it out, long enough in inhale the fumes for several seconds.  

But how in the world did I pick up my phone and call JUST Donny and Nick?  They are both in my favorites, but not next to each other.  I have over a hundred contacts.  How was I functioning enough to make those phone calls, but not functioning enough to remember any of it?  20-30 minutes.  Gone.

Donny ended up staying home.  Jan drove to Tennessee by herself.

I was discharged Sunday afternoon around 1, in time to get home, take a shower and see some of Max's lacrosse game.  Then to Nick and Mere's to give her a hug for her birthday.  Then straight home, where I fell asleep for two hours.

Had a good nights sleep, but still tired.

And still trying to figure out how this all happened.

Very thankful that I am as healthy as all the tests show, but SOMETHING happened.

The Critical Care Neurologist that I talked to on FaceTime said "You obviously have a lot going on in your life.  Sometimes your brain can just shut down."  He said a lot more than that, but that was the gist.

I said "I know, I need to be positive."  He said "Not just that, you need to deal with the negative. If you need to talk to someone, then talk to someone!"

Great advice.  I HAVE had a lot going on.  

But I'm still confused (not like I was Saturday) about this.  

I'll stick with the last two alternatives.  Cleaning fumes acted like an anesthetic OR I had a visit from some people that love me and needed my help to get Donny and Jan to turn around.  (I was really ok with Donny being gone for 3 days.  We've been together 24/7 for an ENTIRE year, and he needed this time with his sister.)

And bottom line, I'm HEALTHY.  

That's all that matters.

I believe you get signs when you need them.  Marie (my mom's name) was there. Becky and Valerie are two of Donny's cousins who passed).  I was being watched over.

Donny's sister Jean works in Nutrition services at MVH.  She called because I didn't order dinner.  Sent me a nice snack tray for the evening!   I had great doctors/nurses/PCT's (every time they came in to check on me in the middle of the night the nurse brought warm blankets.  It was freezing in that room!)

  But there is still NO PLACE LIKE HOME.

Pandemic ~ One Year Later

 Was going to work on this this weekend, but something came up.  That's the next post.

On March 15, 2020, I started a journal.  Wanted to keep track of what was looking to be a health crisis, not just for the US, but for the entire world.  Although in the beginning, it seemed like we were on the right path, instead of following science, the crisis got political.  Looking back, I do remember the experts (Dr. Fauci specifically) changing his guidance on some things.  Masks for one.  First, they weren't necessarily that important.  However, the more that was learned about Covid-19, the recommendations changed.  All perfectly logical.  

The first time I remember going out after everything closed down was in May.  Two months went by and we didn't do much.  I did go to the grocery store, but always went very early (usually 7 a.m.) And always wore a mask.  Not everyone did.  By May, I was more comfortable wearing a mask and finally felt comfortable enough to make an appointment to get my hair cut.  My stylist was at Town and Country.  After a much needed haircut, I went to Bath & Body Works to pick up a few things.  I remember running into Rick and Jacob Fortener.  They were shopping for Jodi's birthday (May 18).  The store was set up with arrows on the floor to maintain social distancing, and the employees were all wearing masks.  (They were not mandated yet, but recommended by CDC).  I was wearing one, Rick and Jacob were not.  And I got a funny look from them when they saw me.  Kind of like I was crazy.

Eventually, Governor DeWine mandated mask wearing and recommended social distancing.  It took awhile, but in Ohio, people started complying. (Although there were protests at the State Capitol - people protesting that their "rights" were being taken away.  Couldn't be farther from the truth.  The purpose for wearing a mask WAS and still IS to protect the people around you.  Most rules are made for safety reasons...wearing a seatbelt, putting your baby in a car seat, not smoking indoors.  No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service.  We don't complain about THOSE things!!!)

Anyway, things got pretty quiet, we got used to FaceTime, Houseparty (with my high school friends), and for us, no indoor restaurants.  Ordered out a lot, and a lot of places started having curbside pickup.  Even though we didn't go out, we wanted to support local businesses, and I didn't want to cook all the time!

Summer was good.  We bought a pool, had friends over on the deck.  All the concerts were cancelled, which was a bummer because we loved having Mange and Mary, our friends from Portsmouth here for visits in the summer.  Our big vacation to Yellowstone was postponed.  Lots of things put on hold.

We did get to see Andrew play a few games of football in the fall, Max chose not to play last year.  Masks were required at all game (all outdoor events).

Nick and Mere lost their jobs in the spring.  

The first few months, we got some things done around the house.  Should have gotten a lot more done, had NO idea this would last more than a year.  In the beginning, I was assuming that by summer, everything would be back to normal.  If not summer, surely by the fall the kids would be back to school, sports would go on, activities would open back up.

By late fall, Nick got another job, working from home.  Still working from home, seems to be a good fit for him.  They chose to have Andrew and Max do remote learning.  Andrew went back for the last quarter.

In November, we were getting a little more comfortable being around Nick, Mere and the boys. The weekend after the election, we picked Andrew and Max up and drove to Portsmouth to show them the murals on the wall by the Ohio River, and to visit Mange and Mary.  It was a good day trip - hadn't been anywhere for a long time.  On the way home, we got a call from Jan that Mike was on his way over to their mom's.  She called him asking for Donny's number - she couldn't find the kids. (?) She seemed confused.  So Mike picked her up and brought her to his house for a "couple of days".  The next morning, Sunday, November 8, Donny, Jan and Jen went to Mike's.  They all decided that she needed to be seen. So they took her to Miami Valley South.  They immediately diagnosed her with pneumonia.  Then tested her for Covid.  If she was negative, they could keep her there and treat her.  If she tested positive for covid, they would have to transport her to Miami Valley downtown.  She was positive.  By the time they got her there and situated Sunday night, it was hard to get in touch with her.  Donny did talk to her Monday morning, but was unable to reach her the rest of the day.  That night, we got the call that her heart stopped, but they revived her because she didn't have a DNR. They needed to know what to do if her heart stopped again.  After consulting his seven siblings, it was decided not to resuscitate if it happened again, which it did Tuesday morning around 8 a.m.  We lost our Mom, Mother in Law, Sister, Grandma, GG, Aunt and friend that morning.  To covid.  It was getting real.

After that we were even more careful (if that was possible), but we made it through the winter.  Took a walk every single day, unless it was raining or icy.  Even when it got in the low 20s.  It was good to get out and get fresh air.

Finally vaccines were out.  In Ohio, they started with first responders, Dr.s, Nurses, then teachers, people with medical conditions.  Then by age groups. 75/up, 70/up, 65/up - Donny got his first shot on Feb. 12, second shot on Mar 5.  Pfizer.  He is now fully vaccinated, 2 weeks past second shot.  I got my first shot Thursday, Mar 11.  Second shot coming up, April 1.  I'll be ready to start putting things on the calendar middle of April.  Nick and Mere have both had their first shot as well.  Wish we could get the boys vaccinated too.  I would feel MUCH better.

Spring is here, and while Covid is still out there, and they anticipate a rise in cases (because some people refuse to get vaccinated - lots of misinformation out there STILL), we are protected.  Sounds selfish, but it's not.   We all have a choice to make.  If you choose not to be vaccinated and you get covid, it's on you.We will continue to wear masks until it is safe not to do so. 

Already met Ed and Lynn for dinner (Lucky Star Brewery on patio) and looks like it's going to be a weekly meeting again.  That's good.

On Feb 15, we lost ANOTHER family member.  Jan's husband, Ron.  My favorite brother in law.  (Sorry Mike, Tom, Steve, Steve, Jamie).  Ron and I got along really well.  We were the "outlaws".  We spent a lot of time with Jan and Ron.  He died unexpectedly.  A week later, his mom, Mary, died.  Then a week later, Mary's brother in Tennessee passed away.  Three funerals in three weeks is a lot for ANYONE.  (that's the next post.)

Even though we didn't do much, I continued to take pictures.  Not only am I documenting the Pandemic in writing, but in pictures too.

Here we go....(the format for the blog changed, and I am having a hard time figuring out how to put these pictures in chronological order.  So I'll just caption each one, out of sequence).

Jan, Mike, Judy, Donny.  We took Jan out for her birthday March 10.  Her first one without Ron.

Finally get to watch the kids play sports again!  Andrew's lacrosse game. In March, still chilly out!

Decided to paint Melissa's room.  Now Andrew and Max's room and Mange and Mary's room.

After Max's lacrosse game (March).

Max's school picture.  Fifth grade.

Celebrating Nick's birthday (Mar 3) with Jan, Ryan and Chris.

Chris, Max, Donny, Ryan, Jan, Andrew at Max's game.

Notre Dame's Pink Game was Feb 14.  They auctioned off the warm up t-shirts the girls wore that day.  I won one!  Had FORT put on the back.

Maddy at the Pink Game.

We were invited to the UD Women's Pink Game.  They honored Melissa, and Tom Archdeacon did a wonderful article about her.  The next morning, Bill Heath called, he matted and framed the article for us!

Donny needs a haircut.

Our good friend, Greg Nelson, passed away too.

Thursday, Feb. 4 in Jacksonville, Florida.

Donny, John, Dave, Greg and Rick. Our "Fairmont Friends".

Maddy got us tickets for a Notre Dame game.  We drove four hours for a two hour game, then drove four hours home.  It was a welcomed respite after a year indoors.  Kind of a "mini vacation"!

We wondered if our squirrels would be able to get to our new bird feeder.  Didn't take them long.

This was February.

Another treasure we found from Melissa.

Andrew and Max spent the night (January). Max helped me make these Apple Bites.

SO GOOD to see my Grandsons!!!!

Nephew Chris got us this 2021 Inauguration Coin from the Secret Service.  

Donny at his Mom's grave. (Feb 5, her birthday).

Donny at Melissa's grave.

Don't always agree with this.   I need to KNOW the reason.

I do believe this.  I needed this reminder every day the last year.

Christmas 2020.  Nick, Mere and the boys came over for gifts.  Then went to David's to visit Melissa, John, and JP.   Not a typical Christmas.  We will OVER DO it next year!!!

Max, Nick, Donny

The fam.

Donny found these Christmas vests of his mom's.  We decided to remember her by wearing them!

Donny wearing his mom's vest.

Did our family Christmas pictures after we went to see a Christmas lights display - Land of Illusion.

Thanksgiving dinner.  Dropped off by Nick and  Mere.  Matt and Teresa dropped off Thanksgiving dinner too!  We were good to go for a week!

Nick and Mere, dropping off Thanksgiving dinner.

Staying careful, even around family.

Thanksgiving 2020.

Donny found this in his Mom's jewelry.  Her "Mom" neckless and his dad's wedding band.

A Thanksgiving meme.

Truth.  Although in March 2021, some people STILL don't accept this.

Our visit to Mange and Mary's. November 7, 2020.

On the Ohio River.

Andrew's school picture.  7th grade.

Halloween, Pandemic style.

Didn't hand out candy (traditional style), wrapped candy in a baggie, they picked it up!

Family pictures in October. Beautiful day!

Andrew's football game.

Went to Myrtle Beach in October for Senior Softball Tournament.  Donny's team won!

Myrtle Beach. On the beach.

We voted!!! Early.

Dr. Fauci? Trump?

Love my GRANDSON!!!!

My family.

Andrew's game at Fairmont.  All three of them played football on this field!

The app I used every Thursday at 4:30 with my high school girl friends!  Susan, Sharon, Karen, Patty.

Nick had a part time job announcing high school sports Fall 2020.

In the Spring - before covid.  Karen and Charley were in town and finally stopped by to visit!

Another of Andrew's games.  Fall 2020.

My birthday. August 22, 2020.  And my high school friend, John's birthday too. Jennifer visited too.

Took a walk and this beautiful German Shepard (pup) started following us.  Finally found his owners.

Andrew's game.

Max's birthday (Aug 20, 2020)

Andrew showing off his new uniform. (On FaceTime)

Our summer VaCa. Our very own pool.

Max.  Showing school spirit.

By the beer, looks like a visit to Eudora.

We made new friends during the Pandemic.

Took Andrew and Max fishing at Delco.

More blue hair.

Truth.

One of our very talented neighbors ~ every day there was something new on their driveway!

This was the most shopping I did in the last year...for new masks!

A getaway for the Pandemic - Indian Lake for a week!

Me and Andrew - Indian Lake.

Tilton Hilton at Indian Lake - Andrew, Donny, me

Nick, Max, Mere.

Found Andrew a bike!  They were really hard to find during the Pandemic.

More of our neighbors sidewalk art.

Had the kids for the day - went to Woodland Cemetery. Found Orville and Wilbur Wrights grave. Great view of the city!

Max, Max, Andrew, Donny.

BLM protest in Kettering at Lincoln Park.  Peaceful protest.

Walk with Andrew.

Donny's birthday.

Orv & Wilma at Carillon Park.

Made sure Rosella had a mask.  Spring 2020.

Politics got ugly.

Our squirrel, looking in the back door, waiting for nuts.

Took a walk on the trails at Sugarcreek.  Spring 2020.

Fairmont celebrated their Seniors at Roush Stadium.  May 2020.

Lots of FaceTime with the kids.

Something that popped up from my phone calendar.  One of the many things that were cancelled.

Donny found something to do - organize pictures!

Another funny meme.  This one.  Always lands on "Beer"!!!

Easter basket drop off!

Houseparty with Patty, Susan and Karen

Houseparty was always happy hour with my friends.

Friend Carol, down the street, put her Easter Bunnies out with a sign to "Take your Picture with the Bunnies!"

Gratitude.  We were thankful for a lot, even in the most difficult times.

Zoom with Ruggers.

First time we saw Nick, Mere and boys after lockdown started.  We made sure to "socially distance!"

More sidewalk art from our neighbor.

Me and Shelly.  She and Bruce did not leave their house for almost a year.

Read this in the paper about the last Pandemic.  We've been to concerts at the Majestic Theatre in Chillicothe!

Shortly after lockdown started, I fell on a walk.  Really screwed up my knee.  Happened in front of Delco, about mile 1 of 4.  I made the walk the rest of the way home!  Didn't realize how bad it was.

Some things to remember in hard times!

One of the places we ordered carryout.  This meal was great!

Puzzles were big the first few months of the pandemic.

Max bored.

March 2020.  Just the beginning.

The next few pictures were Pre-Pandemic.  We had no idea what was coming.

This is us with Makira Webster.  She got the Fort Spirit Award, March 2020.  

This was a Friday.  The day all schools in Ohio closed (at the end of the day).

Andrew at his DARE Graduation.  Right before everything shut down.

UD Women.  A10 Champs.  We were there!  February 2020.

A10 Champs Celebration - February 2020.

Franz luncheon after Jim Frommeyer's funeral.  A week before everything locked down.

Andrew's lacrosse game - Spring 2020.

Fairmont girls District Champions. February 2020.

Nick' 40th celebration at Eudora.  Mar 3 2020

Jan, Nick, Ron.

THOUGHT we were going to have a FORT 5k last year...Never happened. I thought this was good to share to promote the 5K.

Babysat Ace a couple of times that month (Feb 2020) too.

JaVonna found us at the UD game.  Always stops by to say hello!

Makira with her Fort Award.

Fairmont girls in tournament.

All of these girls are playing in college this year. Maddy, ND, Madison (Belmont-in fact, play in NCAA tournament today!) Makira, Kiera, Junior colleges.

Two students at Prass - where I was subbing.  Feb. 2020.

Last time we celebrated Roz's birthday with her.  Olive Garden. Feb 5, 2020.

More Fairmont BB.

My First Vaccine. March 11, 2021.

Pink Game.  Cassie and Casey.

Got to meet Tom Archdeacon at the Pink Game too!!!

Winter 2020.  Stopped to visit John and Diana in NC after our cruise. No idea what was coming a month later.

Also stopped to visit Emily in Melbourne after the cruise.

St. Thomas.  Megan's Bay.

Michael Breslin's show at Fairmont.  This is the Rotert side of my family.

Tony, Leanne, Michael, AJ, Danny, Katie, Jimmy, me, Donny.

***

While the pictures are out of order, as you can see, life did not stop.  While we didn't do much, we tried to stay busy.  But we stayed safe, and we able to avoid getting covid.  We know lots of people who did get it, mostly mild cases, a few long haulers, and sadly the death of Rosella to covid.

  We are getting close to be able to get back to a little bit of normalcy.  Maybe a few concerts this summer.  Maybe a vacation.  But a future of remembering to be thankful for what we have, and to NEVER take anything for granted.