That thing where your cells "need oxygen" and "can't function without it" sounds like a story made up by Big Hemoglobin to sell more beans for the iron content.

...

So I'm back from the emergency room, where I went after consultation with the chemo after hours triage and a couple questionable numbers on the pulse oximeter. Which I calibrated against the ER machine. I did also get the ER machine to throw some bad numbers, but in a way that suggested that it may have been an error caused by not enough red blood cells for the light to interact with correctly. Which is delightful and hilarious. We were there for not quite 4 hours. I gave someone in the waiting room my orange soda and marzipan bar, since it looked like she needed it more than I did.

I'm not yet at the threshold where the ER wanted to give me a transfusion. We'll see how it goes.

"fatigue" is understating the sheer muscle and joint soreness here.

It was much worse before the meds kicked in. So that helped, but I'm still awake.

Let us merely say that Mistakes Were Made, and I wouldn't wish my Thursday evening through today on anyone I have decent human regard for.

I had two cups of coffee at the hotel, see. Then I had a nutritional drink (with lactose) without any milk pills just as I was on the road to recovery on Saturday night.

***

I did attend my physical therapy appointment on Friday, even though I was comprehensively flattened. I'd burned through my usual reserves and no longer really had upright in me. I got a set of horizontal rehab exercises that were about the correct speed.

I don't know why, but it seems like intestinally centered woe puts me to sleep (not good or solid sleep, but sleep) so I didn't get that much gaming done while I was down.

Belovedest and I started Gideon the Ninth on some of the Seattle trips, and they are coming to understand exactly what kind of petty bitch Harrowhark is.

I did get my Halloween chemo bumped to Wednesday, but I can arrive in costume all the same. The parasol arrived today. Very good snap to it.

A cool thing: someone in my wider circles came out as non-binary recently, and it's been fun getting used to the idea and practicing their new pronouns. I've added "with limited legacy support for __" to my book of explanations, as a computer metaphor for certain types of Not Wanting To Have That Fight Now or Here. Yes of COURSE this used to work on IE6, but it might not tomorrow.

Yellface remains soft and warm.

I got Belovedest an inflatable lawn dragon. They're about as noisy as a computer, due to the fan.

Finally got around to doing the hardware store order, and Sunday night Belovedest did the necessary sawing and pounding to get the knobs in place. Now the risk of one of the Ladies breaking containment is much reduced. Corner room door and basement stair door. Now it seems like the only original knobs are the main bedroom and perhaps the least-used outside door.

A few weeks ago I got my hands on one of those laundry sorters that I've always wanted. That resulted in three upheavals of the bedroom before I was satisfied, but it's a good change overall.

More recently, a set of the tough vinyl medical recliners that a person would be settled into if getting a large whack of fluids. Those only barely fit into my Toaster. I am receptive to Belovedest's suggestion that the downstairs one go into Sewzb0t Parlor, but that means tidying (which I need to do anyway).

My Toaster had been growling a little, only audible at low speeds. Turned out to be the AC compressor. A portion of the audience may be thinking "oh, I suppose you could do without AC in the car?" to which:
Have you met me? I start melting above 75F, which the PNW exceeds in the summers these days
and more saliently, since I was thinking about that too:
The belt for the AC compressor serves the alternator and water pump, and there is no bypass.

So Belovedest's credit card is steaming gently, and my Toaster didn't die terribly on the road.

It also needs some alignment and tire stuff, and I'm vaguely wondering whether I could just not drive for a little while.

Yellface continues to be The Softest.

I'm awake because I had therapy homework-ish, and it turns out that going over The Greatest Hits is emotionally stressful and not hugely compatible with sleep. First session was two weeks ago. I'm starting because basically the pandemic erased my ability to even, but also I hadn't really got my ducks in a row to sign up after the move into the PNW (2017). The discerning will of course note that this is 2021.

I finished the first quilt for Ev and have started piecing together the larger rainbow quilt. I de-linted the bobbin area, which was not as scary as I was expecting. Sunday I sewed a little pocket/bag/purse for my phone when I'm not wearing a thing with an appropriate pocket. It seems silly to wear a purse in the house, but it's great to have my phone on me when I wander places.