House of Howard Update

 (So I have tried to get photos to load on here from this iPhone a couple of times, but they refuse to cooperate so phooey on it for now.)

Here is a brief rundown of life as it is going for members of the House of Howard. 

Last Saturday Ellen and I went to her college’s summer orientation. It was fun and I think it helped to relieve some of Ellen’s nerves about her upcoming college career. She got her schedule and bunches of info, met a few of the other incoming college freshmen. I think she is looking forward to it. 

In the meantime she is working 3 days a week at a local resort; Friday Saturday and Sunday, in the office fielding and making calls and all the etceteras that go along with a little convenience store. She works the evening shift Fri and Sat,  then works a 12 hr day shift Sunday from 8 to 8. She is enjoying it much more than she enjoyed cleaning the cabins last summer. Haha

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Gary is keeping busy with hauling gravel, water well repairs and general outside chores. He is working on changing our farm truck from a pickup to a flatbed. It’s going pretty well. 

So far this summer he hasn’t had a call to bury a dead animal yet.  Last summer he buried a horse and a goat or two.  Ha.  Not that he likes doing that, but he feels sorry for people.

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As for myself.  Weeeellll, I am keeping busy too.

The alpha-gal syndrome is keeping me busy doing research and looking for things I can tolerate.  I have learned that I need to avoid dairy as a matter of course; even dairy in things like chocolate or baked products.  If I fudge and have something like M&Ms or something along those lines I can tell the next day.  It doesn’t give me diarrhea per se, right away, but cleans out my system pretty well the next day. Then it leaves me feeling super fatigued, like just bone tired shaky, for at least a day or so until it clears out of my system.  I am supposed to be ok to eat pork, but I haven’t wanted to risk it.  Maybe after I’ve learned my triggers and cleaned out as many histamines as I can think of I will very cautiously try a bit of bacon or something.  We shall see.   Of course I will have Benadryl on hand; even though it knocks me out. My sister-in-law Gail was told by a colleague that she was told to take Children’s Benadryl liquid daily, which is non-drowsy, but I am leery of doing that for fear of becoming immune to it…if that is even the correct phrase.  I take it when I know I’ve messed up and had dairy, but otherwise I avoid any meds at all.  

In other news this summer I am taking up a kind of summer job helping a friend clean Airbnbs.  Well, there is one local Airbnb house I will clean for her, which will give her and her family more time to clean a couple of others.  I went today and helped her kids clean the house so they could show me the ropes.  It won’t be too bad, the most time consuming thing is waiting on the laundry to get done…the sheets and towels.  I figure a few hours a day 3-4 days a week will keep me from moping around and feeling sorry for myself, plus give me some extra money to boot.  The exercise won’t hurt either.  Haha!  

Cheers















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