I did the whole Bikram class doing modified postures when lying on the floor. The other day, I noticed that while I can lie on my right side with my arm extended over my head and grab my left ankle to do the 'standing' bow posture, I can't do it on my left. When I am lying on my left, I fall over. I asked Heather why she thought that was. Without missing a beat, she said that it signaled weak glutes. So, I started focusing on my left glutes – in all postures. Up to now, I have been thinking about the left and right gluts working together. Now, I do all I can with the left glute and leave the right one relaxed unless needed. This ties in with pulling my right scapula back more than my left. Coordinating these actions, the one with my left glute and my right scapula, get me closer to a straight spine.
I would like to know why I formed the way I did. I suspect it is because of my Morton's toe, where the first metatarsal is shorter than the second. It can result in what looks like a longer second toe than the first, but it's not. It's a shorter first metatarsal. The toe lengths would be fine if the metatarsals were okay. This results in a tendency to roll to the inside of the foot when walking.
A fix to the problem was shown to me twice in my life. Once, when I was nine, my father's podiatrist took me for my flat feet and told me to walk on the very outside edges of my feet with marbles between my toes. I remember doing that exercise -once- in our living room with my parents watching. I don't remember it happening more often than that. We all settled for arch supports, which I wore for years. It didn't resolve the problem. With the shortened first metatarsal, the foot rolls over to the inside, distorting the hip rotation. Is there a correlation between people who have Morton's Toe and total hip replacement?
Today was Yvette's 50th birthday. One of her dogs stayed overnight with the vet in hopes that they could keep it alive using intravenous liquids. Oh, boy. She had terrible problems breathing the other day. Yvette took her to the vet; they suspected heart disease or some problem with the thorax that little dogs are prone to. Either condition could be fatal. She took her back yesterday and was told that she had neither of those problems, but she had gotten hold of some rat poison. The rat poison was breaking down the walls of her blood vessels, and she was leaking blood all through her body. At least, I understood this from how Yvette explained the problem. The vet was supposed to call at eight this morning while she was in the 7:30 am Bikram class. I texted her this morning, saying I hoped it would be a good birthday. She has already lost significant people on significant dates. If Little, the dog didn't survive, she would have died on her birthday.
She called the vet. The receptionist said that the vet was in surgery. Yvette asked if she could know if her dog had survived the night. The vet told her that the dog's survival was questionable. The receptionist said, "Oh! Oh! I hadn't read your chart." The vet came on the phone and told her that her dog had survived and was doing somewhat better.
Little spent the rest of the day at the vet so she could continue receiving fluids intravenously. When Yvette brought her home, she stopped off to say hello. Little was lying in a front pack designed for dogs. She will have to be crated for the next thirty days because she is vulnerable to bruising, perhaps leading to hemorrhaging.
Little got the rat poison on the property. B had used it to deal with his rat problem. He thought he had put it high enough so the dogs couldn't get at it. Little Is an accomplished climber; Yvette says she is like a monkey. The other possibility is that she ate a rat who died of poisoning. Either way, there will be no more rat poison on the property. From now on, all rats will be killed by electrocution.
On the way home, I saw a gaggle of about 20 Iron Man participants on bikes riding together on Queen K. I could see that these were the professionals because they looked like billboards, bedecked with advertisements of all their sponsors. Every year, the international Iron Man competition is held in Kona. It's a full triathlon; the race has to be completed in under 17 hours. To enter this race, you must qualify by coming in first or second in some other triathlon somewhere in the world. Frankly, I think they're all crazy. I spoke to a man who was dating a local triathlon participant. He said her thighs were raw meat — each to their own.
I was preoccupied with the crazy stuff going on in my life as I was driving home. When I don't focus on my driving, I drive slower and slower. I use the cruise control to ensure I stay on the speed limit rather than ten mph below. I had forgotten to turn on cruise control as I came up the hill from the main highway. I noticed a white SUV behind me but was too preoccupied to give it much thought. Then, the blue light on top of the car went on, and a siren sounded. I pulled over. The moment he passed me, he turned off the light and siren. Hmm! Well, that's one way to get a slow-moving vehicle driven by an aunty out of your way.
Shortly after I got home, I got a call from Kathrin. I don't remember why she called, but she gave me news of a medical problem she was experiencing in the conversation. Her tongue was swollen, some of her teeth hurt, and some white thing under her tongue. Mike, her partner, said she should see a doctor. I agreed. I had terrible visions of possible causes for this problem. She said Mike was at work and would take her after he was through. Because that would be a while, and I was concerned, I told her I would take her. I showered, she sent me her address, and I was off.
We went to the Urgent Care unit in the Keauhou shopping center. While waiting to be seen by the doctor, two men came in, and we could see from the shape of their legs that they were Iron Man participants. One was from the Netherlands; his mother had a problem; another was from Denmark; his son had a swimmer's ear. As Kathrin paid, I saw a mother with a sick child on her lap. She looked familiar. I asked her if she recognized me. She explained that she was from New Zealand; her husband was a participant.
Kathrin called Mike as we were leaving the Urgent Care. She asked me if I was hungry; I was. I was looking forward to a hamburger yesterday. As I drove to pick her up, I passed this excellent hamburger joint, Annie's. I made a note and planned to stop off on the way back and pick one up. Kathrin and Mike were up for Annie's. Kathrin and I met Mike there. I was so happy to have that hamburger – and, of course, fries. I finished the fries and half the hamburger; I took the other half home.
I noticed Judy had called while I was out. I went down for a nap and texted her that I would call her later. She was on Lanai, another island, with her sister-in-law, visiting her son, wife, and two children. Her son directs musicals on the island and has won a significant award for his work. Judy was over there to see a performance. I hope there's a video I can watch when she comes back.
Judy said she would give me lots of hugs and moof-moofs when she returned. I felt much better after the activity with Kathrin. I was involved with something other than my upset. It was also good to spend more time with Mike; it was an opportunity to get to know him better.
I walked Elsa, came home, and worked on the blog. I had some killer hot flashes—my own private tropical downpour. I have been seeing an acupuncturist Yvette recommended, who helped her with hers. Besides doing acupuncture, she has me taking Chinese herbs. I'm up to 15 pills a day. I ran out yesterday. Today, they have come back with a vengeance. If I have to take 15 pills a day permanently to keep them at bay, forget it.
Yvette came home with Little in a front backpack. The puppy didn't look happy and couldn't feel well.
I worked on the blog for a while, catching up. For dinner, I had some salad and leftover nachos. I went into the library. I alphabetized another shelf but found no new books. It was very frustrating. Also, it is clear now that one big box was lost during the mailing process. So sad.
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