Chapter 565 - Bad Habits

Each Sunday for lunch we call at the drive-thru bay at our local cafe for fish and chips which we eat down at the parking area near the weir and read novels. We both look forward to this escape from the mundane activities at home. I'm hoping we maintain enthusiasm for the lunch break for some time yet.

A day ago in attempting to "repair" a pair of her shoes she snipped the uppers until only the sole remained of one shoe. So this morning at 0930 I took her to Kmart before too many of the "unwashed" were about to buy shoes; 4 pairs actually plus a pair of knitted boot-like slippers. On the way in she saw a dressing gown which I was told to buy as a birthday present, not to be worn yet.

At month's beginning she developed a blueish pink spot on her left leg, some 15mm long. Initially I imagined she had knocked her leg during dyskinesia, but when it remained until this week I made an appointment to see the woman GP who thought the spot did not look like melanoma but gave us a referral to a visiting dermatologist but in a round about way suggested the male doctor in the practice has an interest in matters of the skin and has the appropriate equipment for looking at melanomas. The earliest appointment available for the dermatologist was 10th August so I accepted that and then made an appointment for the following day to see my GP. He doubted that the spot was a melanoma and took pictures of it with a mobile phone sized device with an external lens and light ring attached. He was most surprised at the temperature of her legs, commented that her circulation was bad and likely to result in amputations. When queried he only suggested extra socks. Back at home I placed her feet into a vibrating heated foot spa device born years ago for this same problem, but mostly unused since, This GP has been the first to take any notice of the condition. I wrote in this blog years ago about a temperature differential between her right and left legs and feet. I found on line a pair of boot-like slippers containing heating elements powered by a USB power source so are electrically safe; a pair of these have been shipped from places overseas, yet to arrive.

Although I suspect her dyskinesias are less this week I have yet to print out the FitBit charts. Perhaps I should monitor the temperature of her feet to see whether there is correspondence between temperature and dyskinesia but first I must check my IR temperature monitor because it reads in error, lower than actual.

I have been concerned that I may have upset one of the Wild Dog carers with unintentional racial speech, although exactly what I don't know but it can be so easy with voice inflection to give the wrong impression. I sent an email to the Wild Dog rostering person that my PWP missed the carer who we had asked, when possible, to come while I have what is now my regular Friday respite. This morning the carer came to shower and dress her. The carer had been away with 'flu like symptoms and in this season of plague, had taken herself to the hospital for COVID19 testing. She had been told to go away and not worry about testing, but the carer insisted by pointing out that she was in aged care. So I was very relieved to hear I had not been inconsiderate with off-colour humour and quite pleased that the carer was very professional in the way she had dealt with her own health issues.