Here it is Wednesday already and I missed posting on Tuesday. Was it so full a day? Not really but I did spend less time at this desk than I did between my bed and the loveseat in the family room, keeping my foot elevated. Since I was going to the doctor for my annual checkup, I wanted to not have any ‘red flags’ waving to draw her attention, such as my puffy ankle on my left foot. When I had called in my refills to Wal*Mart over a week ago, the recorded voice told me all three were ready for pick-up. When I got there, however, the technician (love that term for clerk!) informed me only one was ready but phone calls had been placed to the doctor’s office regarding the other two. Okay, I guess….
A couple days went by and I had not heard from either the doctor’s office or the pharmacy so I called the office to check the status. Primarily I was concerned about the blood pressure medication and that was the one called in to the pharmacy. I did not get my prescription for the ‘bad knee’ which allows for my ankle not to swell on the same leg. When I showed it to her yesterday (so much for avoiding red flags), she totally dismissed it, saying she had seen it much worse. When???? Okay, fine, if she has no problem with it, neither do I! It just feels funny to me, sort of inflexible. I attribute this to all the water I am drinking these days, as well as not having my ‘bad knee’ medicine!
When I got to the doctor’s office, things moved along quickly, almost rapid-fire. The young lady working with me, Hannah, was relatively new so it took her a bit longer to do things. When “Betsy” came flying, as she usually does, she began grabbing instruments and checking me, ‘double-teaming’ as she described it. Hannah left then and the doctor went ahead with filling in the blanks on the laptop records. Things I would have thought were already part of my chart, having answered these things several times before.
“Have you had any surgeries?” Well, you can play tic tac toe on my abdomen which I thought was in your records…”Dates?” Oh my goodness, the dates??? “What color were the surgeons’ eyes?” Not really, but it was nearly that bad. “How old was your father when he died?” Um, I know what year it was, but how old, let me do the math….”Do you see the dentist at least twice a year?” Do I need a breath mint or what?? She just wants to make sure I am taking care of myself from head to toe. Betsy told me she appreciated my humor and my patience with the new girl, and with her. “Do you wear wraparound sunglasses?” WHAT??? Granny glasses? Absolutely not! She told me they would help prevent the creases between my eyes and in the corners. I told her my son compliments me on the ‘sunbursts’ around my eyes. He calls them tattoos in reverse, because they are lighter than my face!
The barrage continued with information regarding getting or not getting the flu shot last fall/early winter. No, because I already was sick and could not have the shot. Now I have to wait until next fall to have the shot. Okay, I can do that. Do you have a fire extinguisher? No, but there is one on the building at the top of my stairs. “You have been divorced once?” Yes, once was enough, thanks.
“Do you have loaded firearms in your home…?” Okay, hold it right there!!!! I was surprised by the extinguisher question and the divorce question but when it comes to loaded firearms, I got irritated. I asked, “Okay, who wants to know this?????, indignantly. That is so nobody’s business if I have a fire extinguisher or a loaded weapon, other than my stove! She said it is for her records, and if I answered “Yes” then, she would have to remind me to store the weapon separately from the bullets, out of reach of small children, and so on. That, to me, is so incredibly over-the-top of a well-woman exam. However, I regrouped and kept my humor, informing her of the cannon I have in the river room, aimed at Mandarin. They had better not provoke me or it’s curtains for them! I wonder if I can decline answering these questions, like I decline being weighed! Betsy also informed me it is time for her annual physical, too, but she just hates going to the doctor! Well, we have that in common!
The doctor is highly complementary otherwise, besides the lifestyle questions, and told me that I looked good. She mentioned to Hannah that I always wear nice colors. Betsy again remarked that she wants after my moles (skin tags) but we have to wait until I return in 6 months when the sun season is over. In an hour I was out the door, with my orders for a mammogram in hand and the scrip for the bad knee medication phoned in to Wal*Mart. That way, I won’t have to linger in the store and be tempted to buy stuff while I wait. I do need some AAA batteries (should buy stock in Rayovac!) and might replace my mouse on the laptop. I have to go through all sorts of contortions to activate the mouse these days and it just might be getting tired. The laptop gets more use than does the desktop and that is my original wireless mouse. Wal*Mart has lesser expensive mouses than does Office Max but, unfortunately, I have to go through the DVD section to get to the computer supplies. Should wear blinders! Or wraparound sunglasses!
No comments:
Post a Comment