Medical Mutterings - July 2023 Edition

The past month or so has not gone at all to plan.  Plus, I’ve been a really bad blogger lately.  I’ve not been visiting or commenting on any of the blogs I follow, or even responding to comments on my own blog.  In fact, it was all I could do to make sure a post went up each Friday.  And I can’t even promise I’ll catch up with your blogs soon, because I don’t know if I will.

 

Why?

 

Because it turned out the comment I made a while back – I forget if it was at the end of May or the start of June - about already borrowing spoons from July by that point was more accurate than I thought.

 

I don’t have the energy for a long post, but wanted to explain, so I’ll keep this short:

 

I was so busy worrying about my Mam (who isn’t doing too well, for anyone wondering) that I was not only pushing myself harder than I knew I should be, but also not paying attention to how I was doing physically, other than vaguely registering that I wasn’t feeling too great.  The result being that I ended up very unwell, eventually ending up spending almost a week in hospital after being rushed there with a temperature of 40.3 C and drifting in and out of consciousness, because of a kidney infection that got out of control and ended up spreading in to my blood stream.  It’s a good thing Kelly stepped in and called for medical help for me when he did.

 

Actually, if I didn’t have Kelly I don’t know what I’d do right now.  After several days of IV antibiotics and almost two weeks of oral antibiotics I’m doing better.  But I tire more quickly than ever, so I’m not achieving much each day besides the essential tasks.  Even writing this has tired me out enough that I need a nap, despite my not having done anything else except have some breakfast this morning.

 

Sorry.  I'll visit your blogs again when I can.  And, sorry.  This is the best I can do for an update.

Lilie On The #Dogs June 2023's Vet Trip (Finally)

Hi everyone.  This is Lilie the Westie.

 

I’m finally going to tell you how our vet trip went last month.

 

We had to stand outside for ages and ages, because the person with the car came a bit late.  Luckily Mummy always allows for late pick-ups, so we still made it to the vet (though Mummy called them on the way there, in case we did get there a bit late, so they knew we were still coming).

 

I didn’t know the person driving.  And it was a strange car to me too.  But it wasn’t a taxi.  I know it wasn’t a taxi, because the taxi drivers go away and we have a different one to go home, but this person waited for us like Nana does.  But it wasn’t Nana either.  It was strange.  But Mummy and Daddy told us to get in the car, and they got in too, so it must have been alright.  And we did end up at the vet, and then home again, so there you go.

 

Anyway, me and Logan got weighed at the vet.  I now weigh 9.2 kilos, and Logan weighs 16.2 kilos.  That means I lost about a kilo, and Logan lost about two.  The vet was pleased.  It didn’t matter so much for me, because I was already in my safe weight range (even if only just).  But Logan had been a little over his, so the vet was glad he’s now in his safe weight range again with his weight.

 

Also, other than the issues we knew about with my itchies and my legs – which are staying under control right now – Logan and I are perfectly healthy.  Everyone was happy about that too, of course.

 

So, all in all, it was a pretty successful vet trip.

 

And I love that Daddy came with us.  I love my Daddy!

 

Lots of licks,

Lilie

#SW2023 - Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale Still On!

It’s Summer in the Northern Hemisphere and Winter in the Southern Hemisphere. That means it’s time for Smashwords’ largest mega sale of the year, The 15^th annual Smashwords Summer/Winter Sale, which runs July 1 through July 31.

 

In other words, all this month, you can find most of my books – poetry collections and children’s stories - available for a promotional price at Smashwords as part of their Annual Summer/Winter Sale!

 

Find my books -  and many more - at https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos all month!

 

Or go directly to my Smashwords author page at https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/toriz

 

And remember: Smashwords makes their books available in multiple formats, which means there will be a format that works for you, regardless of your preferred method of reading eBooks.  In fact, since one of those formats is html, if you can read this post, you can read my books!

 

Tell your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, pets, random people you meet on the street... Basically, tell anyone and everyone you think might be interested, or who will listen while at least pretending to be interested.

#AmReading - The Books Of The First Half Of 2023

We're half way through the year, and so far it's been a pretty productive reading year for me.  I'm something like 13 books ahead of schedule on my Goodreads reading challenge goal, having now read 38 of the 52 books I pledged to read in 2023.  At least, that's how it stands at the cut-off point for this post.

 

Anyway, since I keep forgetting to post what I’ve been reading each month, I thought I’d catch you up on what I read during the first half of the year all in one post.  Though I’m not going to include my ratings and reviews, or the post will get way too long.  So, if you want to know what I thought of a particular book, you can either check out my reviews over on Goodreads (which you don’t need to be a member of to see my reviews) by going to my Goodreads page, or ask me about it in the comments section of this post or something.

 

There's quite a variety of genres on the list, such as historical, classics, mystery, children's stories, poetry, fantasy, paranormal romance, and post apocalyptic, for example.  In other words, this post is a perfect example of how diverse and eclectic my reading tastes are.

 

Anyhow, here’s what I’ve read so far this year, whether for book clubs, because I was given a copy in exchange for an honest review, or just because I felt like it, in the order I read them.

 

~

 

The Amish Groom (The Men of Lancaster County, #1) by Mindy Starns Clark & Susan Meissner

The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling by Henry Fielding

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen, #1) by Joanne Fluke

American Demon (The Hollows, #14) by Kim Harrison

Magical Selection by Katrina Cope

A Sicilian Romance by Ann Radcliffe

The Amish Blacksmith (The Men of Lancaster County, #2) by Mindy Starns Clark & Susan Meissner

Dragon Moon (Dragoria: The Lost Dragon Realm, #1) by Katrina Cope

The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole

Million Dollar Demon (The Hollows, #15) by Kim Harrison

Immortal Rising (Argeneau, #34) by Lynsay Sands

The Lost Lands (The Horn’s Hoax, #2) by Hector Cantu Kalifa

Trouble with the Cursed (The Hollows, #16) by Kim Harrison

The Amish Clockmaker (The Men of Lancaster County, #3) by Mindy Starns Clark & Susan Meissner

Conduct Books and the History of the Ideal Woman by Tabitha Kenlon

Demon’s Reign (The Bloodwood Saga, #1) by David Estes & Ben Galley

The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg

The Borrowers Afield (The Borrowers, #2) by Mary Norton

The Amish Widower (The Men of Lancaster County, #4) by Virginia Smith

The Borrowers Afloat (The Borrowers, #3) by Mary Norton

More Poetic Meanderings by K. Morris

King of the Wastes (Hell Divers, #8) by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

The Borrowers Aloft (The Borrowers, #4) by Mary Norton

Poor Stainless by Mary Norton

Ivanhoe by Walter Scott

Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone (Outlander, #9) by Diana Gabaldon

After the Bite (Argeneau, #35) by Lynsay Sands

Shadebound (The Last King, #1) by David Estes & G.D. Penman

Bloodbound (The Last King, #2) by David Estes & G.D. Penman

The Chocolate Cat Caper (A Chocoholic Mystery, #1) by JoAnna Carl

Radioactive (Hell Divers, #9) by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

Fallout (Hell Divers, #10) by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

The Borrowers Avenged (The Borrowers, #5) by Mary Norton, Joe Krush, & Beth Krush

Demons of Good and Evil (The Hollows, #17) by Kim Harrison

 The Chocolate Bear Burglary (A Chocoholic Mystery, #2) by JoAnna Carl

My Friend's Robot Girlfriend and Other Humorous Verses by K Morris

False Colours by Georgette Heyer