The socks grow

I worked more on the basketweave socks last night. (Not that much; I was really tired and wound up going to bed shortly after 8. And I woke up at 9:44 pm, misread the digital clock as "4:44," groaned that I felt like I hadn't really slept, and proceeded to go about getting up and getting ready to work out, until I looked at the clock again....)

The doctor's appointment went pretty well, I guess. I don't have to go back for six months, which is apparently the "reward" for your blood pressure being under better control. (She looked at my little book of readings and said, "No, I'm not going to try an additional medication; it would drop your blood pressure too low.") My bp was still high (like, 160/90 high) at the doctor's office, but she wrote that off as "some people get really freaked out at the doctor's" and I think that's true of me; I could feel my heart beating faster than it should even as I was telling myself, "There is nothing to worry about, everything is fine."

I think it's partly the disinfectant smell. I tend to be very sensitive to odors and to me, that characteristic disinfectant smell is like aromatherapy in reverse - it makes me freak out. Because it's the smell I associate with hospitals (I have never been in a hospital where good stuff happened - oh, I know that's where babies are born, but when my brother was born they didn't allow little kids to visit), and doctor's offices (where my main experiences are not that great, either getting a vaccination or a gynecological exam or I'm hurt or sick and it will be painful to deal with). And also, it smelled like the vet's. And my past few experiences at a vet's - well, they weren't happy experiences. So all the associations with that smell are bad.

But whatever. I had gained a pound or two but it wasn't dire and the doctor didn't comment on it, so I'm not going to stress about it. I am going to try to cut back again on snacks and "stress eating" (I have noticed I am very bad for that.) I'm about 10 pounds away from being below a "milestone" weight, and if I could? I'd like to make that by August. Just to see if I can.

One thing did make me smile (and cackle over it, when I got back to my car). My doctor said, "You know, I decided to try going on a low-sodium regimen, because I recommend it to so many of my patients. You really do have to cut out all convenience foods, and you have to be so careful at restaurants. It's really hard!"

And at that point, I just smiled and said, "Yes. Yes it is." but as I said, I cackled when I got out to my car. So now she knows what I deal with on a daily basis. (I have noticed that it takes me much longer to prepare my meals - there are all those vegetables to heat up, and unless you made some kind of frozen food for yourself on an earlier date, you can't just defrost frozen stuff. And getting carry-out is right out.)

She did not make any big worried noises about my comment that I ate a restaurant meal about once a month; I guess that's infrequent enough not to be a problem.

I will say I had pancakes last night - REAL pancakes, made with baking powder, and not the European-style egg-and-milk-and-a-little-flour things I had been making (Nothing wrong with them, they just aren't what I want when I want what I think of as "pancakes"). Because it was Shrove Tuesday. And where I came from, that means it's either Paczki Day or Pancake Day, depending on your ethnic background. (And there are no paczkis to be found within 50 miles of here, and at any rate, my ethnic background is closer to that of those who celebrate Pancake Day.)

I did put blueberries in them so at least I got a fruit serving out of it.