An Eyeball Exam, Deer in The Driveway, Plumbing Leaks

[Note: this is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland.]

12/5/20

 Aloha All –

I forgot to mention last week that I had my 6-week retina exam last Saturday after our usual morning routine.  Good news!  Two months out since my last injection and still no significant oozing.  Like the last two times, I may go a total of 3 months without an eyeball jab, quite an improvement over the once-a-month routine with the old drug for the previous 5 years!  This drug, Eylea, is new and for me obviously very effective in treating my “BRVO” (Branch Retina Vein Occlusion) of 6 years ago.  Remember, this has *nothing* to do with glaucoma or macular degeneration, which are both risks to all of us in the family.  So far I’m good with those.  This was a sudden burst of one of the veins in my retina, probably caused by two crossed veins that I was born with.  The immediate cause was likely some physical exertion I’ve done many times before, but geezerdom has made the veins less pliable and “poosh,” one or more of them burst like an old garden hose. The swelling , oozing, and loss of blood circulation killed nearby visual cells and so I went from 20/20 in that eye to 20/60 on a good day, usually 20/80.  Left eye still doing good, though. Next appointment is 6-weeks out.    I’ll let you know.

Got more Christmas decorations up this week, and I think I’m done for the outside this year. A new addition is a pair of lighted deer at the bottom of the driveway, where they can been seen from the

street.  These were a gift from friends who thought they were moving back to the mainland this year – until the you-know-what happened.  I tried to give them back but our friends declined.  Putting these babies together was a real challenge.  It was easy to figure out what went where, but the way they are constructed meant you needed three hands to untangle the pieces, which are pre-wired.  Anway, several hours and a few cuts and bruises later, ta-da! We have no real deer on Hawai’i, so I hope they don’t get shot by some die-hard hunter transplanted from the mainland – the propane tank is right behind them.

One house project that looms for next week is the result of getting the deer boxes out of their storage location, which has an outdoor faucet that we use to add water to the pool.  As I was pulling the boxes out I noticed a leak in the faucet.  After trying the usual fixes, it now looks like this is going to require replacing the valve entirely.  I’ve consulted with my handyman and we have agreed to alter the installation a bit so that it will require little to no soldering of the copper pipe.  Of course, the fix requires the water to be shut off to the entire house, and turning it back on requires a successful job.  I know, I could call a professional plumber, right?  But where is the fun in that?!  Stay tuned for a report next time.

That’s all.  Reality lurches forward.  Off to the market and the beach.

Stay warm, stay safe, stay healthy!