On Thursday my friend Pam came over to get me started on sock-knitting again. In return I rehomed my late friend Annie's peg loom and other weaving things with Pam, along with a sack of Annie's fleece (Alpaca). A little bit less in the Junk Room now, and they have gone to the Right Home.
Pam showed me how to get started on the magic loop needles, but I fear we were talking too much for me to pay sufficient attention. I tried to carry on but got in a pickle, as I had forgotten much of what she'd showed me. I made errors, unravelled it, and then got started again in a very wonky way and if I were to show you the ends (or sides as you are looking at the sock in the photo), you would notice a large hole which I shall have to repair later with needle and yarn, but I am now getting on famously and enjoying myself . It has been 5 years since I first learned sock-knitting, and about 4 years since two pairs got abandoned at the heel stage and probably a year since I did much crafting, as we have been so busy with the antiques and Fairs. I shall stick to magic loop socks in future I think. Much easier than playing pick-up-sticks with DPNs.
As for the Asthma, it has been a bit dodgy for a couple of months now. I had my asthma review two weeks back and the Respiratory Nurse, who I trust implicitly and WAY ahead of my GP, who is not an asthma specialist, said I needed to have a stronger inhaler to get my asthma properly under control. Reluctantly (as it seems like Getting Worse) I agreed to try a once-a-day inhaler called Relvar. Well, it worked for the first 8 hours, though my lungs felt like they had been in a sand-storm in a desert. Then it ceased to work - just walking about the room was a struggle and trying a few steps up a slight slope had me gasping for breath in the afternoon. I went on until the evening, when I started to worry about getting through the night (as it was once a day only). I spoke to the OOH Doctor and he said there would be no problem in my topping up with my old Fostair inhaler. Well, I ended up doing that for 5 days, getting no better in the breathing department. I put myself back on the Fostair, but continued to struggle and my Ventolin inhaler has been in my pocket all the time.
I spoke to my GP a few days later and asked for the other alternative the Nurse and I had discussed, which was the next strength Fostair. I tried that - lungs still felt flayed, I still couldn't climb even slopes, and was waking at night too. I thought it might be pollen, but peak flow levels still where they normally were.
On Thursday I got an appt. with one of the other GPs at my surgery, and asked to have a fresh prescription for my old Fostair. She declared my breathing clear, and NO asthma problems (???!) I am taking it at twice the usual number of puffs, as indicated when I have breathing problems. Today I rested up, and have been amazed to find that my peak flow has shot up to 500, and stayed there. Now, 500 is a mythical figure to me - unattainable I thought, although I did have a brief blip with it in February. I will speak to the nurse on Monday and see what she thinks. Perhaps the stronger Fostair at one puff twice a day may do it (since two puffs was making me worse).
Bookwise, I am having a Val McDermid season and got this one, which is ticking the right boxes for me. No murders in this one, well - YET! I also had a rush of blood to the head and bought myself (Amazon Prime) a boxed set of 6 seasons of Wire in the Blood, which I watched 4 episodes of back-to-back this morning. I've never done any back-to-back programme watching before and it was a good distraction from asthma problems.
Let's hope I can get my asthma right as we have a small window of opportunity to have a couple of days away, but only if I have sorted my breathing out - don't want to end up in A&E in the West Country . . .
