Coming down from steroids

We had a sort of quiet few days while I was on the steroids these past few days.

On Saturday I had permission from Dr G to go to synagogue, and I enjoyed visiting with the 150 or so people there. All that socializing did wear me out a bit, so I spent the afternoon relaxing on the sofa. At 5:00 PM we had an invitation to a friend's home a little ways north from here, so Rik and I tootled out there for a glass of wine, a nibble and some lively conversation.

Afterwards we decided to have an impromptu date night. We almost never go out on Saturday night, for no particular reason, just never do. We stopped at Third Place Books in Lake Forest Park and ate at the food court, listened to a 15-piece swing orchestra (very hot!) and browsed the bookstore. I found a great book to give my niece for Chanukah. (I've been giving my nephew and niece books for every birthday and Chanukah since they were babies. If only I had written down every title -- I am sure it would make a great but small children's library collection!) Rik came home with two new books as well. I thought about buying The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook or Dahlia Bakery Cookbook: Sweetness in Seattle, but I'm not sure I have room for more cookbooks.

On Sunday we did almost nothing. Rik walked the dog and did some yard work. I spent a lot of time with the newspaper and a book. But around 2 PM we both smelled natural gas, as though the range was leaking. Rik turned off the gas hookup behind the range, and I called Puget Sound Energy. They were terrific on the phone, and a technician was at our home within an hour. He tested everything and sure enough, the central burner was leaking a bit of gas due to a cracked knob. The technician removed the knob, we covered over the space with masking tape, and I called a repair place this morning through The Homeowners Club. Hopefully everything will be checked out on Thursday and it won't take too long to get the replacement part. We don't use the central burner frequently, so it's no hardship to be without it for a week or so. The other burners and oven are safe to use according to PSE.

But what a scare! Natural gas smells like rotten eggs, so it's hard to ignore -- which is the point. I was mildly freaked out by this experience, as was Rik. It took an Ativan and some dinner to settle me down afterwards.

For the last part of the evening I was in my jammies, on the sofa, watching TV and snuggling with Rik and Bobka. No more steroids until my next chemo. This is the week off, so I'm hoping for reduced pain in my feet from neuropathy and a good report at Dr G's in a few days.