¡Buenos días a todos from the Old Pueblo! It is 8am and 45F (7.2C) with an expected high of 70F (21.1C) and sunny skies in Tucson. We have had some frost warnings this past week, so I had to cover my plants to keep them warm.
This has continued to be another difficult week health-wise. I saw the pain specialist on Tuesday and my blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) is dangerously high. I am sure it is because of the severe pain in the lumbar spine, as well as the difficulty I have had with the Cigna Medicare supplement doing something other than collecting $35 with every office visit. This is not good given that I am a walking stroke risk. Thus far, they have collected $280 for office visits since January 1st. That does not include drug co-pays since that time, which have totaled $500 thus far. I have no doubt that the uncontrolled hypertension is due to stress with this insurance company and the severe pain. I will see my primary care provider next Wednesday and have an appointment with the new insurance broker next Thursday. The neurologist is re-issuing the request for an MRI of the lumbar spine, as well as a CTA of the head and neck (both done over 2 years ago). Then I will see the pain specialist again for a follow up spinal injection to control the pain. Sadly, I cannot take standard pain medication (e.g., ibuprofen) because of the other anti-stroke medications, along with other medications that I am prescribed.
I am keeping stimulated in a healthy way by working on the chapter on multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS) for the 3rd edition of Women and Health. Keeping mentally stimulated helps to reduce my stress levels and keep my mind off the pain. I find it interesting that most of the theoretical information on MCS, including the unexplained illnesses like fibromyalgia and Gulf War Syndrome were based on research that my colleague Iris and I and our team of researchers published between 1995 and 2010! I am finding it interesting how these illnesses are being written currently relevant to industrial/occupational workers in industries that use paints, solvents, pesticides/insecticides and so forth, and are now including relationships with electromagnetic fields, as well as climate change.
My daughter sent a FaceBook message around yesterday announcing that she has started selling hot/cold packs filled with fresh died lavender, or rosemary, or unscented on Etsy. She is calling her business JJHealingArts. The herbs that she uses are grown in her own garden. I am so proud of her…well, I would be even if she was not doing this on Etsy. I am sure she is supplementing her income as an 8th grade teacher. Her pay is pitiful, and she spends more than the allotted $250 or so for the underserved students whose families do not even have the basic finances for pencils, paper tablets and so forth. I am looking forward to seeing Jennifer and Curtis, who are arriving next Friday for a two-day break here in Tucson.
Genealogy has also been a boon for taking my mind off of health issues. I am adding to and connecting the Draper and Gager families of Ontario, Canada in the late 18th to early 19th centuries. Several of these families fought in the American Revolution and were given land grants in Canada. Many of the profiles lack biographies and proper sources, and I have found several with ancestors already listed on WikiTree, but not connected.In between adding to these profiles, I continue to work on the pre-1500 Baldwins of Buckinghamshire. It is taking a fair amount of time improving the profile of Sir John Baldwin, Chief Justice of Common Pleas, as several of his children are conflated with other Baldwins (my ancestors) in Buckinghamshire. I am working from my original 1881 Baldwin Genealogy text, downloads from articles about the Bucks Baldwins in the NEHGS Register from the 1800s, and Hilltop Villages of the Chilterns by David and Joan Hay, a book I purchased on Amazon. All these references suggest that Sir John and the other Baldwins are related, but it has been uncertain as to how. I think I have determined how; however, I am still putting the genealogical puzzle pieces together.
Speaking of puzzles, did any of you catch Finding Your Roots this past Tuesday featuring Joe Manganiello and Tony Gonzalez? Good gosh! That search for Joe Manganiello’s family on both sides was stunning! It was also an excellent exemplar for ethics in obtaining permission to further the searches…for both men. And it was nice to see CeCe Moore working on the DNA to track family. Do you all realize that it was about this time 2 years ago that several of us were working on Henry Louis Gates’ and CeCe Moore’s WikiTrees?
Pip, thank you as ever for wrangling the chat.
I miss you! And to all my cousins on the Chat have a fun and healthy second weekend of February 2023.