Friday, Feb. 03, 2023 - 8:53 pm.
Our first vacation week has come and gone. It's been quite eventful, but reviews are mixed. Andrew and I made a list of things we want to accomplish this month of vacation, but we work on the list as the days go by.
Our health has gotten in the way a bit. After my covid episode, and Andrew's pharyngitis, we were scared we could infect one another. Andrew didn't get covid but I've spent a week coughing and feeling very tired. I went today to see a doctor and he said I was fine though. Which I sort of suspected, but I'd been coughing at night, and I was scared that leaving this untreated after covid would be bad for my future self.
Besides these symptoms, I still have a bit of pain on my right side. And on Wednesday I woke up with a red eye, and up until this morning (Friday), it's been red and teary. I was gonna ask the doctor about it too, but I was already somewhat embarrassed by not having a noteworthy sickness (which is good news, nevertheless), and by the time of my appointment, the eye was feeling much better.
Let the record also show that because of the pain in my rib that's gone on for a month, I've had to sleep on my left side (I can barely sleep on my back), the side where my broken jaw is. So also I've been in pain all over my face, head, neck and shoulders, because of the strain and the pressure I put on that side of my face while I sleep.
Great stuff, innit.
Andrew's no better right now. Because of the pharyngitis, he had to cancel his eye surgery last week. It turned out that the doctor who was gonna perform that surgery was leaving this city, and Andrew was gonna be his last surgery. So Andrew got transferred to another doctor in the same clinic who wanted to assess him again before performing the surgery.
The assessment showed that more tests were needed. We wasted today, the full day, at the eye clinic, because of those tests. He saw this new doctor at 9 am, got one test done at 11 and here it turned out more tests were needed and these were scheduled for today at 3 pm. Those were the scheduled times, but between waiting times and the actual testing we've been at the clinic from 8:30 to 6 pm, only coming home for two hours at lunchtime.
What's worse is that the 11 am test damaged Andrew's eye. He didn't feel so well afterwards, and they confirmed a lesion during the afternoon tests. Andrew was a bit relieved that it wasn't just him, but also: THE DOCTOR HURT HIS EYE. Hence, he couldn't even finish getting all the tests done today and had to reschedule for next week.
So either the first doctor was negligent and scheduled his surgery while missing all these tests that were needed to make sure it was safe... or the second doctor is ripping us off with unnecessary tests. I'm very angry and upset and frustrated for Andrew (as he is!). I'm glad I was with him throughout this ordeal, though. I was with him at the clinic all day. Misery enjoys company.
I was so pissed that I thought about suing the clinic but how does that even work. I read a bit online while in the waiting room this afternoon, but all I got is that I have to pay a lot for that.
All this, and add a heatwave. It's 39°C today. We expect 40° tomorrow. The south of the country is burning, wildfires everywhere. The horizon is covered in smoke. I think of the people outside and of the animals in the city, the birds, the stray dogs and cats, other animals left unattended. I'm in despair, quietly but absolutely.
On lighter, hopeful news:
We heard about a house for sale. It is the very first house we saw, back in September. The house that was perfect for us but that we didn't buy because while we were waiting for our credit pre-approval (to be informed on a Monday), the owner sold it to somebody else (the Saturday before that).
When I told my sister about our house hunting, she said that "what's yours is yours". I wanted to think so about this one house. But it was sold, gone, we had to move on. We looked for other houses, and we fixed on another house, right in front of the first one. This is the one we've been waiting on since November. It was too luxurious for us, but it has the kitchen we wanted. We've waited patiently to this day.
Our real state guy called Andrew a few days ago, and told us that the very first house we saw was going up for sale. The thing is, we know what happened in that house since it was sold: A man died by suicide in there. A friend of Andrew's and her husband N live next door to that house (it would be cool to be neighbors). It even turned out that this man was a cousin of N's cousins.
Nevertheless, we're still interested in that house. I make a living out of the scientific method, but I've seen enough in this life to consider that the house might be haunted by the man that died in there. More than scared, though, I feel sad for the guy if he is indeed trapped in this astral plane or whatever. If we get the house, you bet your ass we'll be having a spiritual cleansing.
So cross your fingers for us! We haven't heard from the real state guy since then. He's supposed to talk to the family these days to see if they decide to sell the house (versus put it up for rent) and for how much.
It'd for sure be much cheaper than the house with the nice kitchen. Whatever will happen to this latter house is anyone's guess. Our real state guy was working with the owner (to sell the house and buy another) but the owner kinda ghosted him. Plus, we know from Andrew's friend that the family is doing renovations, so maybe they decided to stay.
Lastly, I just want to get off my chest that I really want to go to my home country and see my family. I have a week off in May, but with the financial costs of these health inconveniences and the possibility of the house, it doesn't look like I'll make the trip.
Or will I? Stay tuned.