Thursday, April 27, 2006

Allotment Lady is feeling poorly - So posts might be a bit thin on the ground for a few days.

Wednesday was a ‘washout’

Allotment and chicken news may be a bit thin on the ground for a few days.

I have been feeling really poorly lately, and yesterday was crunch time! Off to the dentist in the morning for an emergency appointment – to replace a filling – but I could hardly walk, and breathing was so painful – even the dentist asked me if I was o.k. LOL Had to have the chair tilted and some towels rolled into sausage shapes to support me LOL - Not like me to be crook!

On the way home, I asked OH to take me to the doctors to see if I could get an appointment that evening. They were so sweet they fitted me in an appointment there and then.

I just wanted a bit of advice about managing the pain which I thought that was due to the old bones or strain – turns out that I have got Shingles! The doc thought I looked too young to get it LOL – that cream I made a few weeks ago sure must have worked then.

I hate taking any drugs for any reason, but I am under strict instructions to take things easy, take all the pills and potions and pain killers, and to ‘not be a martyr and fight it, but to rest and give in to it’ – Doctors orders.

So yesterday was a non starter - I have to admit to having to lie down in the afternoon. Probably the shock of the cost of have a filling - gone up from £4.20 to £46.20 or was it £42.60 OH paid, I had sit down! New NHS charges. I was feeling to ill to be miffed about it, even though I had had my check up a month ago before the prices went up.

The there were the prescription charges for all the drugs - that was shock, as I don't usually 'do drug' preferring lavender oil for headaches, and such like. Must be getting 'tight' in my old age.

Today, Thursday.

A gloriously sunny day. I decided to gingerly take a drive up to the allotment – I figured that I would much rather be out side in the sunshine feeling ill than stuck indoors.

So that is precisely what I did.

I walked down to the bottom of the lottie and let the chooks out – then sat and rested for half an hour watching them. It was a good tonic – out in the fresh air, watching the girls scratching around and fight over worms, listening to the geese and cockerels in the distance, with the sun on my face and wind in my hair.

Ginger, Adelaide and KoKKo had laid three eggs again – big ones as usual – and the girls have never looked better – in their prime.

I read somewhere that chickens do not like long grass - but they seem to seek it out at the edges and get quite excited at what lurks there.


Probably me humanising them, but they really do seem to enjoy it up there, running around the meadow, tucking into dock weeds, and rolling around in the grass – yes Adelaide was actually rolling around in the grass today! Having a make believe dust bath in the long grass at the edge!

KoKKo and Adelaide onto a good thing.

The pain killers haven’t kicked in yet, and I feel rather washed out at the moment, but I walked up the other end with the intention of sowing a couple of rows of tomato seeds.

It took me one and a half hours – would you believe – to sow 2 x 25 feet rows of carrot seeds! I did have to sit down on the grass and rest quite a bit! It was such a lovely day though.

I picked another basket of broccoli which is really looking wonderful – and tasting that way too. It is now in the freezer!

Home for eggs and bacon and home made wedges – perfect.

Dilly is still in fighting mode and goes at me like a woodpecker every time I open the door to the nest box. She makes really weird noises – nothing that I have ever heard a bird make before!

She did come out for a bit of sunshine and a drink and some food, so I got a chance to grab the egg that was in the nest.

Poor thing was so very cross with me, and I felt so sorry for her.

I have read that you should dunk a broody hen’s rear end in a bucket of cold water – to literally cool her off! I don’t know if I could do that though, it seems a bit drastic.

Anyone got any suggestions? It seems such a shame that she is spending hours and hours on the nest box and not enjoying the sunshine outside.

I have put some tubs in their pen, three of them with lavender, and one huge one with mint in it.

Tonight when I put them away, the mint was stripped bare. It was a very tall pot so they must have had to fly up onto the top to eat the leaves I didn’t think that they would bother. But they did – maybe they have a sense of smell? I know that Ginger, Adelaide and KoKKo loved the mint, so I should not have been surprised that Dilly, Pumpkin, and Freckles would love it too.

I have removed the pot to give it a chance to grow again – mint is as tough as old boots so will soon recover.

Only one bantie egg today – and I don’t have a clue who laid it. When I went to put the banties to bed, Dilly was on the nest already and shrieked when I opened the door to look. Freckles was on the roosting bars and complaining, and Pumpkin was outside walking up and down complaining – so I had to gently encourage Pumpkin into the run and now she had gone to roost with the others.

Off to bed. If I miss a day or two or the posts are short you will know why.

Soon be bouncing back like my old self though - I am a tough old bird.

Enjoy the sunshine - and a Bank Holiday coming up too this weekend.

13 comments:

  1. Great to see you back where you belong!!!

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  2. Anonymous11:00 pm

    well shingles is a nasty virus thing really...the doc was right, the more you strain your body now, the longer it will stay...u really must do very little and yet not feel time has wasted... i would think a few days to a week of real rest would do the trick. listen to your doc though...hugs from afar...
    denise t...usa

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  3. I had the shingles 4 years ago. This is not something to take lightly. I hope you do ok. me i was sick for 2 months. They can give you something for pain and if they caught it in time they can give you shots to help. me I stayed at home until I was real bad so was sick long time. God bless you.

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  4. Anonymous12:01 am

    Haven't stopped by for awhile, but couldn't resist coming by to catch up. Am off work today with only a minor little problem, but imagine my surprise to find you've been under the weather. I didn't know that could ever happen to you. You seem so invincible.

    Don't fool around with a spinal injury as it's nothing to horse around about, or should I say, don't be afraid to be "chicken" giving yourself some nesting time. Also, hope those shingles go by the wayside soon.

    My you've been busy since I was here last, couldn't begin to list all your accomplishments. Enjoyed your photos of the flower arrangements. The chooks all seem to be pretty as ever. Your garden items are flourishing, now just have to get you flourishing again, too.

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  5. Anonymous1:54 am

    Hey Lottie, Im so glad to see you are back here. I've missed you and your down home stories and adventures.

    Sorry to hear your not feeling well. If you don't take it allready try some evening primrose tablets for shingles. My sister's friend suffers from shingles and she swears by primrose.

    Hope you feel 100% soon


    Rgds

    Dagodame

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  6. Prescription:- Get up, have a cup of tea,lie down in the sunshine(on your carpet or a chaise lounge)get up after say half an hour, another cup of tea, light breakfast, kippers if you want them! Sit in a comfy chair, read until you nod off, light lunch, nice cuppa, some fruit, lay down in the sunshine again, nod off, get up and so some very gentle stretching,some mint tea, sit down and read again, nod off, get up have whatever you fancy for tea, sit on the sofa, watch some gentle comedy and then have a nice long,not too hot bath with lavender and cammomile flowers tied in muslin/cotton under the running tap, nice cup of low caffeine tea/horlicks, go to bed and sleep in the next day. Repeat the prescription for several days! Wouldn't it be nice??

    Sorry you are not feeling 100%, but maybe your bodys' telling you something? Slow down?
    So, 'Tough old bird', take it easy and get well in your own time, no rush!
    Loadsa healing vibes coming your way LOL! Thinking of you,
    take care,
    hugs Sandie

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  7. Anonymous3:12 pm

    Kooringa, just in case you aren't watching the Omlet forum at the moment, there's a post you should read in the Chicken section regarding Fluffy & Chloe. Thinking of your Carrot Crunchers at the allotment! Jools.

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  8. I don't visit the forum any more so hadn't seen the topic.

    Thank you so much for warning me

    I do peg down the run skirt up the allotment - but will get OH to take me up there in a minute as there are foxes up the farm.

    I love my chooks to pieces and could't bear to loose them to a fox.

    Thanks you so much for alerting me to weak spot.

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  9. Thanks one and all for your kind wishes.

    Had to phone the doc today cos the pain killers weren't working.

    It is so rare for me to visit the doctor or to take a pain killer, but the pain is off the Richter scale.

    I do take evening primrose - maybe I will double the dose - thanks for that.

    I only drink hot water - with a slice of lemon if I am feeling especially adventurous LOL

    I love the sun, but the sun doesn't love me - fair English Rose.

    But rest assured and not laying around doing the sick note thing, but am pottering in the fresh air.

    Will try and have something to write about over the weekend if the pain eases. Trouble is all the leisons are where my damaged spine is - so sitting here typing is a tad bit uncomfortable.

    I am so very lucky to have you all sending you kind wishes - and any more tips to help the shingles will be tried and tested - within reason.

    I don't have cammomile flowers but do have lots of lavender - might have some cammomile essential oil or something similar so will give that a go Sandie.

    I am doing lots of positive thinking at the moment. Mind over matter and all that.

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  10. Anonymous7:20 pm

    Let hubby do the cooking for a few days AL ,I've never had shingles but I had chicken pox when I was 22 and it was rotten. I was staying with my almost MIL at the time and the doc wouldnt let me go home for 2 weeks(my elderly mum might have caught shingles from my pox).
    Get plenty of shut-eye that's natures cure.

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  11. hydrocortisone cream helped me a little with the itching but for the time i think all you can do is take pain killers and rest. being brave is not the ticket, i worry as to how you are taking care of the chickens, please ask your oh to do that for a while and let everthing else go.i wish i could tell you something that would help but i can't except pain killers. truth is i thought i would die.It terrible! love patsy

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  12. Thanks folks. Doc gave me extra extra strong pain killers so have 19 to take a day - and the antiviral stuff - I'll be rattling so much you will hear my coming!

    The sores usually go in a couple of weeks but he pain can be indefinitely - but as I am 'young' positive and fit, he hopes that that won't be the case with me.

    You bet it won't. I love to see to the chickens, they make me smile and are a distraction, but I promise that I will get my other half to do anything that I can't manage. He is brilliant anyway.

    I won't do anything daft as I want to be up and running and back to normal before the pesky weeds start taking off - and I have lots of seeds to sow and also to transplant.

    The best tonic for me is to be out in the open air - just walking about the garden or pottering or watching the chooks, so that is what I'll be doing, weather permitting!

    Thanks for your kind words everyone, I will soon be firing on all cylinders again.

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  13. Anonymous11:31 pm

    Glad your Triplets are safe & sound! Also glad you're blogging again as I like to keep up to date with their exploits. Take care.
    Jools.

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