Shoshiplatypus

What’s On Your Workdesk this Wednesday?

Not a lot of creativity, but some new stash.

From the beginning, my drawing pens and coloured pencils, gel pens and other writing implements have always been in separate boxes or pouches. I have never had a decent set of colouring pens and have always shied away a bit from Copics etc., not wanting to go down the alcohol-based marker route because my bent has always been water-based. I use permanent black (and sometimes sepia, sanguine or red) fineliner pens for drawing (Zentangle especially) and if I want to colour these, I like to use inks or paints of a different medium so there is no smudging or reactivating of what I’ve already done. I also love the softness and blendability of water-based media.

This week I treated myself to a collection of Tombow Dual Brush pens which have a brush-like tip on one end, and a more standard bullet fibre tip on the other. The brush end is not true bristles, but a long soft nib that allows you to thicken a line with more pressure, and which is also great for colouring larger areas.

I have been watching a lot of YouTube videos on modern brush calligraphy and determined to give this a go. I’ve got a bit fed up with never having the right sentiment stamp. I think I can write my own, and also scan them and convert them into svg images to cut on the cutting machine if I want – it’s just broadening my horizons and giving me more versatility with my materials and equipment.

I found this brilliant case on Amazon. It is really designed for coloured pencils. It has detachable “pages” with a ring-binder system, and on both sides of each page is a row of elastic loops to hold the pens or pencils. They are a little bit tight for the Tombow pens but they go in OK, and if I leave a gap after every third pen, they are not overcrowded. This case holds hundreds! I’ve already put in some other pens, and some water brushes. Inside the front cover is a mesh pocket for paper or a pad, and the case comes with a detachable shoulder strap which I probably won’t use.

The advantage of having the detachable pages is that if you are working on a project, you can take just one page rather than the whole case, which is quite bulky and heavy when full.

There are still loads of spaces. I have yet to add my Zentangle Micron and other fineliner pens, and my coloured pencils. I shall leave my Derwent Inktense pencils in their original tin, and also my Derwent Graphik acrylic markers.

One of the calligraphy people online has done a tutorial showing you how to practise the basic calligraphy strokes, and I’ve been filling pages with these! She makes it look so easy, and her results are so beautiful, and mine are a long way from perfect as yet! It is a lot more difficult than it looks. I’ve always enjoyed doing hand-lettering of all different kinds and shall enjoy taking this further with my new pens. I’ve also found some free downloadable practice sheets, and as you trace over the printed letters you gain skill and muscle memory. I’ve downloaded them but have yet to print them out.

Did I get another delivery from Amazon?

What is it with kitties and boxes? As soon as I put the empty box on the floor, Ruby had to get in it!

Kitties

Several kitty photos this week.

Ruby on top of Lily as usual!

This morning when my Tesco grocery delivery arrived, I found a special Valentine present in there, not for me, but for the kitties!!

The back of the box:

I shan’t be making up the bow tie for either of our two. These are the first kitties we’ve had that haven’t worn collars. We had such an awful time, especially with Ruby, just after they had been spayed and Ruby immediately pulled her stitches out. The vet put her in the Cone of Shame but by the time my hubby had got her home again (5 mins in the car) she’s managed to get the edge of it in her mouth. We eventually had them both in little body suits and that stopped the stitch-pulling, and they were happy with those. Since they are not using the cat flap because they are only out in the garden under supervision after Ruby’s Houdini activities, they don’t need collars (we’ve always had cat collars with magnets to open the cat flap to prevent foreign incursions). Anyway, I might use the little cardboard bow tie in some sort of art project, who knows?

Inside the box:

Lots of fun treats for them!

Last time Tesco sent me a freebie, it was the fabulous vegan box. Their aim is obviously to get you to try stuff and then buy it, and with that they certainly succeeded, because I really liked several of the things they sent, and have subsequently ordered them.

Health update

Colorectal appointment

I did a post last week about my visit to the Exeter colorectal surgeon, and the decision to go ahead with the abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) to tighten everything up and remove the excess skin following my weight loss, and at the same time, repair the parastomal hernia.

As I mentioned in that post, I contacted the complaints people at the hospital with a view to expediting my operation, so that I would not have to wait the full nine months of Mr. Daniels’ waiting list. I had an email back from them a couple of days later, informing me that they would be following up my two complaints (the loss of my scan results in the system, resulting in several months’ delay in getting a follow-up appointment, and also the treatment I had received at the hand of the woman doing my CT scan back in the summer) and they were sorry to hear about my experiences. They will be contacting everybody involved in what has happened, and aim to get back to me in about two months’ time, which is rather a long time to wait, but I am in their hands and can do no more for now. I replied, reiterating that I would like my operation expedited as soon as possible because I didn’t think it was acceptable just to be put on the end of a nine-month waiting list after I’d already been kept waiting so long because of a breakdown in communication by the hospital. No reply from that email, so I’ve just got to sit tight for now and hope for the best.

Researching tummy tucks

Over the past few days I’ve been finding out more about tummy tucks online, both from people who have had it done, and from professionals (nearly all plastic surgeons). Most people have this done for cosmetic reasons but I have come across several women who had it done at the same time as a diastasis recti repair (a split in one of the abdominal muscles usually brought on by pregnancy) – there are often associated hernias with this condition. I commented after one excellent professional plastic surgeon’s video that I could find nothing about abdominoplasty for ileostomates, and I had such a nice reply from him, firstly inviting me to take part in a live Facebook conference (unfortunately I am not on Facebook) and then telling me that there wouldn’t be much about it, because the procedure is so rarely done with stoma patients. He said that I should discuss details with my own surgeon, which of course I shall be doing; I just wanted to educate myself as much as possible, and maybe hear of the experiences of others in my situation.

The result of my researches is a list of questions and points to raise with Mr. Daniels nearer the time. I had not appreciated just what major surgery this is, and it has a long recovery period. People who have undergone the procedure have been very open about it and discussed all the things that helped, and what to expect as far as post-operative pain, mobility, drains and compression garments were concerned, and the long recovery period. Obviously Mr. Daniels didn’t go into a lot of detail with me last week because it was just the initial decision to go ahead. I think it will prove very helpful to have informed myself as much as possible, so that when I next see him, I can go armed with a list of points and questions to raise with him. If I don’t write them down at the time I encounter them on YouTube, I shall forget!

Many of the things people recommend that you get to aid your recovery and ease your discomfort, I already have – most people say you have to sleep on a recliner initially because you can’t lie flat, with your abdomen being so tight. I already have my recliner, and also my orthopaedic bed, which should allow me to go to bed at night and sleep in relative comfort! I also have shower and perching stools, walkers (a Zimmer frame in the loft, and also a rollator) and various other things that help with my existing condition, so I should be fine.

I also discovered a recent TV programme on tummy tucks, part of a series on cosmetic surgery, so I watched it on catch-up. This was also quite interesting and informative, and proved again just what major surgery this operation is. I do not think I would ever contemplate having it done if it was not medically necessary!

Bladder

I contacted the physio department again on Monday and got their answering machine, and they promised to ring me back. Nothing yet. When I attended the group session, we were told to put the advice into practice, and for most people the various techniques she taught would be enough to solve any problems. In my case, because of the nerve damage, and inability to feel that my bladder is full until it becomes urgent, and also the retention problems I have, I haven’t noticed any marked improvement since the group session. Several of the things she suggested, I had already been doing anyway.

Mr. Daniels said that the operations I have had, especially the initial colectomy, could have affected the nerve supply to my bladder, but I pointed out that the problem didn’t manifest itself until I was coming to the end of my chemo, and that this was a rare side effect of oxalyplatin, the chemotherapy drug I was on. I have had subsequent surgeries, of course, and he added that “maturing ladies” also tended to get problems with their bladders! – so my age may well be contributing to the problem as well. It might explain why the problem seems to have got worse recently.

So this is another waiting game. When they phone me back, they will probably arrange another appointment for me, this time a one-to-one appointment either with the same physio, or with a specialist nurse, and there may be a subsequent referral to a urologist.

Food

Again, no Recipe of the Week this week because I’ve been busy with other things. This week I am doing more cooking again, and yesterday I cooked some delicious vegetable and mashed lentil wraps for our supper, but unfortunately I forgot to photograph them. There’s enough for another day so I shall try and remember to photograph them and upload the link for that recipe. We both enjoyed it very much.

New Year Resolutions

If you set yourself any, how are you doing? So far I have managed to keep two of mine – to get the accounts completed during the first week of the month and not to let them linger on, hanging over me because I haven’t got on with it. The other one covers pretty much all the rest as well: “Tomorrow, I am going to stop procrastinating.”

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