My Heart's in Good Shape

Tuesday was an adventure day. My poor Sheba endured a very hot and boring day, but Dianne and I had a more refreshing experience.

We caught the 10:00 am ferry and went directly to Bowen Park to walk Her Highness by the river and so Dianne could see one of my favourite walking places in Nanaimo. Then we tried to go to two different restaurants that I wanted to try, but neither one was open on Tuesday, so we went down to the waterfront and ate at a fish and chips place on a barge floating on the water where we had a lovely cool breeze.

Sheba waited in the car. We had all the windows open, a bed in the van for her and lots of water in the car, but she was clearly unhappy with the heat even though most of the car was in shade. However, I had treats to revive her enthusiasm when we returned from a short lunchtime, and then we went to the hospital.

My pacemaker is fine, and it is assisting my heart perfectly. It was good news, but it left me wondering why I have been so short winded and weak of late. I will blow into my respirometer today to see if I see some kind of significant reduction in my lung capacity. That may lead to some insight. Otherwise, I may just have to ride out this heat. Today is likely to be the hottest day yet. We may reach 34° on the island today, but next week looks like it may be cooler.

Di leaves today, so we’ll have a nice lunch in the garden before she goes, and then I’ll be chilling for the balance of the day, then watering in the afternoon.

This morning, I had a visit from my family of four Pileated Woodpeckers. They are magnificent birds. They are brave, very beautiful, large and quite noisy, and I love them. Watching momma feed her kiddies is a thrill. And because it is hot, when I was watering the gardens this morning, I had two small birds practically landing on me as then sought to drink and splash in the water. And finally, when I was putting water in the foundation with the hose, just standing there, a tiny bird came and landed on the spout at the top of the fountain to drink. It was three inches from my hand. I felt honored and very lucky to be so close.

After so demanding a day yesterday, I am thrilled to be starting a lovely, slow day at home.