Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Yard Update

Our evil neighbors who offered to pay for their half of the fence, actually haven't paid us. They even had the nerve to tell the entire neighborhood they would pay, but now they are going back on the deal and acting like they never said they would help pay for it. Their oldest son even managed to break one of my solar lights in the front yard too (they have not paid to replace it). Youngest son of theirs broke a few slats trying to get into our yard, but we had replacement wood and I fixed it within an hour of noticing it. Peachy. Wonderful people, really. Good neighbors said that they were probably all for paying it when it just an "idea", but changed their minds once they actually saw the work being done (this idea was mentioned to evil neighbors a week before we actually installed the fence, and we gave them a timeline). We figured they would change their mind, so we actually installed the fence about 8 inches onto OUR property. This way, even if they wanted to paint it, they can't touch it at all. If anything happens to the fence, they are liable for it. Apparently, they don't realize how big of a bill they are racking up with us so far. I have kept a tally of everything their kids have done to my yard, and how much they owe us for their half of the fence. I don't think I will press the issue unless it gets to be a huge amount.

Okay, so my fence was actually installed within a week of my last posting. However, the gates near the driveway tend to bend in the wind and we had to brace it. It will be fixed as soon as I finish the pathway and the extra brick driveway. It also has problems opening due to my ground being littered with all of that gravel. Yes, we kept the gravel there and are planning on putting the sand on top of the gravel (less work) for the brick path. We still have piles of gravel and rocks that no one wants.

Since my last post we actually leveled out some of the mounds in the front yard, and have closed the river in the front yard. It's just dirt now, so I'm sure it looks horrible. Our good neighbors have been stealing our plants, with our permission. However, the poplar trees in our yard (front and back) can't be removed without a saw. So, next year we will be removing those and planting better ones (with much smaller roots). The problem with the poplar trees is that their root systems are so long, that they actually go from backyard to frontyard (and vice versa). I even have some of their roots starting to try to make more trees in my yard. I thought they were a new form of weed, but it turns out they actually aren't weeds... The roots are starting to break apart my foundation on the house, so every week I go outside and rip them out.

I HAVE started on the brick path, but it turns out the worst part about that is actually removing the old bricks. Each weigh a lot, and it's been about 100 degrees here. So, I manage to get 5 bricks out (not many at all) and then I'm too hot to continue. We put up the pool, so I am constantly dunking myself to stay cool.

We ordered my rose bushes, but they will not be arriving until next April. Something about them not blooming in the winter. We are also picking out our trees very carefully. We figure we want the new trees planted before we remove the old ones. We'd rather not lose the only shade we have in our yard.

No one has come to pick up any more rocks. I have resorted to putting parts of the piles into the car and dumping them at the local river. It actually turns out that the old owners were stealing them from the good neighbors' yard. This is such a lovely neighborhood. The good neighbors have been taking what they can, but so far, we have only managed to fill in the "river" of the front yard, remove a few bricks, and two mounds. It's a lot of work for me. I can't manage to get the grass to grow in the front yard where I removed the mounds. I have tried every trick you guys told me to try, and I am resorting to ordering sod next year.

So yeah, that's my update. I'll even give you a picture of the mound we removed in the front, and where we filled in part of the river. As you can tell, I did put down some grass seed...and yes I did remove the rocks before I move the dirt to fill in the holes. It turns out if I leave the rocks underneath the soil, the rocks will actually heat up in the sun and kill our grass. (Good neighbors had the same problem)

http://i56.tinypic.com/24e99pd.jpg

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Nerve Endings Updated

This is now the 3rd update on the nerve endings. So, I just had my 2nd treatment done and I'm still feeling some of the effects of it. I obviously am still having cysts, but not as often. I also noticed something new. The treatment actually messes with my menstrual cycle. It's been about two months since I last pms'd. I think this is due to the fact that this treatment is pretty painful, so it threw my body for a loop.

I have talked to my doctor again about what the purpose of this treatment is. The purpose is to permanently kill my nerve endings. Meaning, the more times I go in to have this sort of treatment, the less times my cysts pop up and hurt all the more. So far, I am about 2 months in between treatments before I give up and call the doctor.

Does the pain during the treatments lessened over time? No, the treatment actually hurts the same amount each and everytime.

Does the treatment stop the cysts from regrowing so much? Yes, to an extent. As we have seen before, nothing is 100% perfect. It DOES lessen the cysts, but not by too much. Thus far, this has been the only thing to have come somewhat close to even lessening it - including the marsupializations.

So why put up with it if it's not doing that much? Well, obviously if it's doing something then it is worth the effort put into it. If there is a slim chance of helping the situation, I will try it or have already tried it before.

Are there any other side effects besides pain? Yes, actually. The treatment has caused a lot of my cysts to fill with a brownish goo. I'm told that this is because my nerve endings are dying, and this is what they look like afterwards. So, expect to have that come out of your cysts.

Another side effect would be on my husband. He has become increasingly overwhelmed. He feels downtrodden because he cannot help the situation, and has to constantly be picking up my slack. Remember to keep an eye out for your partner's needs too. I have been ignoring his needs (emotional needs) lately, and it has obviously taken a toll on him. He feels bone tired lately.