And how are we?
No, I mean it. How are we? How are you? Are you doing alright in this war-torn, ever more expensive world we find ourselves in? There’s a comment section somewhere below this blog, so feel free to tell me, even if it’s just to vent.
And me? Well, it’s nice of you to ask. I’m pretty good, thanks. Life continues to be, uh, interesting at times, but I’m fed, I’m warm, and I’m safe, so all in all, I’d call it a win. Yeah, I’d say I’m doing pretty well, really.
Apart from my eyes, that is.
Symptom Addict
Those who have the dubious pleasure of following this blog will know that its author is a man of dubious health. There’s my Spina Bifida, a physical disability I have had from birth and perhaps a bit before, then there’s there’s the Multiple Sclerosis I was diagnosed with some five years ago, a fun little condition that lies somewhat dormant, most of the time, only rearing its head to tell me I’ve been a bit too busy, or I'm harbouring some infection or bug. Those are the days the plug is pulled and the battery drained, the days with the banding and the brain fog.
And then there’s the eyes.
It was problems with my vision that drove me into hospital to get my M.S. diagnosis in the first place (well, actually; it was my mum and dad that drove me, but you get the idea). A strange displacement of objects in both distance and horizontal space that took a whacking dose of steroids to treat (it did nothing for my muscles, sadly), and which, in a more muted form, has flared up a few times since.
Not that I like to complain (see here, here and here for evidence to the contrary), but it does make life interesting.
Funny Onion
The latest in this run of ocular ‘orrors occurred on… (nope, going to have to leave the alliteration there) Monday. It had been a reasonably busy day, and I’d just put the car keys down following a drive back from the cinema to see The Batman (excellent film). It might have been the contrast of bright Spring(ish) day to dark cinema and back again that caused it, or it might have been the twenty-minute drive there and the one to get back, or the fact I hadn’t eaten all that much, or drunk enough. It might even have been the fact that I’ve only recently recovered from Covid (yeah, this is getting complainy now, too) or a heady cocktail of all of life’s travails wrapped up together and served with ice, a slice, and one of those funny little onions, I guess we'll never know.
What I can say is that as I put those keys away and turned on the telly, I started to get a glowy, blurry sensation around the periphery of my vision, something that persisted for maybe half the rest of the evening and left a dull ache pressing at the back of my right eye which has persisted until I got up this morning.
Paracetamol seems to help the ache a little, and I think proper hydration (thanks to the many cups of tea supplied by my lovely, nursey wife, Tina) and being better fed (same), have made a difference, too. Most tellingly, I’ve also had my regular injection of Brabio (the drug I take to ward off attacks). I’ve also not done an awful lot of anything in the last two days. Oh, I’ve written a little, and watched a lot of telly, but there’s been no driving, no reading, and no shooting aliens on the X-Box (I can’t hit a cow’s bum with a banjo at the best of times, so it’s probably for the best).
Driving Force
No, it’s been two days of boring, but much needed, rest and recuperation, and it seems to have worked a trea. Tomorrow, I will venture out on a small trip (supplies are needed), look through my authors copy of New Tales Of Old Volume 2: Wolves Among Us, which carries my short story The Djinn And The Bearded Wolf and is available in paperback from Amazon right now! (link below… plug, plug, plug) Then I'll settle in with the footy and perhaps a well earned Old Fashioned.
As for longer drives, well I need to go to Leeds again to drop Tina off at the bus depot for her visit to London and her daughter, Sarah, at the weekend, but I’ll make sure I’m suitably fit and confident to do so before departing. Apart from that, as I have the house to myself, I’ll be a Stay-at-home-Sammy and enjoy the unfettered use of the telly (Take out and Match Of The Day you say? Oh, go on then).
As for the rest, I’ll just have to keep an eye on my eyes, rest where I can, and make sure I’m dosed up on Brabio. Any ongoing degeneration will, of course, have to be dealt with, but for now, it’s a watching brief.
Until next time
***
Hey, folks! If you would care to take a look at some of my more creative writing, then the links below will transport you to the magical worlds of two anthologies my short (and in one case, very short) stories have been included in. Feel free to check’em out!
New Tales Of Old Volume 2: Wolves Among Us
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09TMVTX9H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Death Ship
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/9198684140/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_TWEMTA3KWK7T89QEZPF6?fbclid=IwAR322Fx5nfgVUQAA62ZZ6CUsNnBm8pbSxPanzz6Qkjg3vAv4ESipq7iKKhs
https://www.waterstones.com/book/death-ship/david-green/s-o-green/9789198684148?fbclid=IwAR2gP4CXHSG7wTccO39wOqXFtI81k0259Ep8DUM48Ki6kTUdlKoF3yafojA
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/9198684140/ref=ewc_pr_img_1?smid=A2XZ7JICGUQ1CX&psc=1&fbclid=IwAR2Wa6sGxb82_VCsC7l1CGXwHjsSwTheqba6jDX_G8EDsywZoGpC93nXr2w
Reaperman
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Reaperman-Drabbles-3-Legends-Night-ebook/dp/B099NNPTQ1A
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