Mama makes her daily protein drink, even on vacation

It's great to remember my Mama on Mother's Day. This is the second one without her here with us, but we're doing as well as can be expected. Since 1978 Mama and Daddy, and anyone else she could wise up to the benefits, partook of Shaklee protein drinks, vitamins and minerals, as well as lotions, creams, make-up, laundry and cleaning products. We were, and are, the better for all of it.

Here, in honor of Mother's Day and my little Mama, I give you a series of photos I took which depict the process Mama used to make her daily morning Shaklee protein drink. We're on vacation at the Ester Lee in Lincoln City, Oregon. Our friend Lucy had come from Mississippi to visit, so I took a couple of days off work so that we could go to the beach. Well, not exactly to the beach, but to where we could see the ocean and also go to the Chinook Winds Casino to play the penny machines. The three of us had a blast!
 

After pouring in the requisite amount of milk and scooping in just the right amount of Shaklee Energizing Soy Protein, Natural Vanilla, Mama liked to add several firm, lengthy squirts of Hershey's Chocolate syrup.
 

Next, after setting the blender jar into the base, Mama took great care with the lid. She'd found out the hard way that the lack of a properly, tightly inserted lid meant, at the least, a spray here and there of milky liquid permeated with protein powder. A mess, in other words. Mama did not suffer messes gladly, even her own.
 

One more all important step prior to pushing the first button, checking the seat of the jar in the base. A blender jar spinning out of control more than likely would lead to a mess. Plus, who wanted to waste those ingredients? Not my Mama.
 

Now for the button she always pushed first--a quick mix of the dry ingredients with the milk came about when she held her finger on the last button on the right--the Ice Crush button.
 

Mama's searching for the Liquify button. In the scheme of things, one would not want to push an incorrect button. After all, it's a process with specific steps to be followed. One wants the same drink, day after day, because one realizes the benefits of said drink.
 

Once she had found the button, Mama held her finger on it and looked up at me to ask, "Why are you taking pictures of me doing this?" to which I replied, "I think it's great how precise you are, Mama, and I want to record it for all time!" Naturally, we laughed a lot, as did our friend Lucy.

Of all the photos in this series, this is my favorite. There's my little Mama, smiling at me, as she takes great care with her every morning habit which certainly enhanced her health over the years.
 

I don't have a photo of her pouring the drink from the blender jar into her glass, nor do I have one of the first taste of the morning. But I do have this one which I like a whole lot because she looks settled and satisfied, certain that she's doing well for herself. Which, of course, meant she was doing well for all of us who loved her. Thanks, Mama!

Part 2, our last fun day together, Sunday, August 28, 2011

Our second stop, the beach at Lincoln City. We had to wait quite a while for a parking space, but I was bound and determined to get one so that we could all get out of the car, go to the bathroom, and walk on the beach if we were of a mind to do so.



Somebody's about to get a mouthful of tennis ball and sand!


Had some difficulty getting whoaed up, as they say in NASCAR. Where is it? Where IS it? I see it! Now, if I can just get my right back leg out of this sand! Yes! Here I come, tennis ball! Ready! Set! Go! Full tilt boogie. That's how I roll.



Lincoln City doesn't actually do things backwards. These kites flew above the beach through which runs the "World's Shortest River," the D River. It runs a total of 120 feet from Devils Lake to the Pacific Ocean. Twice a year the city hosts a kite festival here which are known as two of the largest kite festivals in the world, so Lincoln City is known as the Kite Capital of the World. I know for a fact that the wind's always been blowing when I've been at this particular part of the Oregon coast. That's the D River you can see there, dissecting the beach. And, of course, this is not a photo during a kite festival, just an amazingly sunny Sunday around noon.


Sand in my shoes! OK with me. I knocked it out, put them back on, and we all got back into the SUV. Each of us enjoyed our short stop at the beach. Then we went looking for somewhere to eat lunch. Come see all about that soon.

Our short Ester Lee interlude, there on Monday and heading home

A product of the USA.

Breakfast Monday morning, along with toast.



Mama's half, still juicy.


But not for long.


Mama's dressed and raring to go. We'd decided to head to the Chinook Winds Casino for a few hours of the penny machines. Doesn't she look great?


Not before I took a few morning photos of the grand Pacific.





Then we went to the casino and played for an hour before Mama began to feel bad. Look at the post for Saturday, July 4, for the details. Since the ER doctor wanted her to head home in an ambulance with lights and siren, I had to drive back alone. Well, it was just me and Duncan in Buick. In order to relieve that highway hypnosis that goes with a lengthy drive, I turned off twice at shopping centers for some stop-and-go, turn left, turn right driving.


At the second one, in Sherwood, Oregon, I came across this beautiful sight, glimpsed at a car wash that turned out to be behind a garage.

My joy at getting the chance to take the photo jolted me really good. I made it on home just fine and went from there for the next two days, as you can read on the July 4th post.

Our short Ester Lee interlude, there on Sunday

I'm settled, on the concrete patio in front of our cottage, my rear in one plastic Adirondack, my feet in the other. It didn't take too long to let Mama out at the office end of the row to make her way to our door on her walker, then get Duncan and our stuff out of the Buick and down the 17 stairs to our door. It did take four trips, thus shortly thereafter I'm settled as you see here. In the background,the white is foam from waves, the lower blue is the Pacific Ocean, and the rest of the blue is the huge sky. You can tell from this photo that our cottage is atop a bluff.


Yep, that's my gray hair despite the fact that along my forehead it surely resembles someone's hairpiece. As I took this photo, the wind whipped around the chair, making me think any minute I'd have to zip the sweatshirt.


I'm smiling because I have zipped the sweatshirt and pulled up the hood, blocking some of the chilly wind so that I can remain outside in the glorious sun.


Gave up and tied the hood tightly. I managed to stay outside a total of 22 minutes.


Mama's settled inside the cottage, her walker doing duty as the leg-extension part of a make-shift recliner. She's got her crossword puzzle in her lap and her pencil in her left hand. With the bright sunlight streaming through the windows, she decided to keep her sunglasses on--otherwise she'd have had to shut the blinds and then miss the view. Can't do that when one is at the coast!


Duncan's settled on the fold-out couch.


Hours later at sunset.


The moon, high above the Pacific--lovely.

Our short Ester Lee interlude, going

How about this pickup truck? Gorgeous, well-loved ride sighted in McMinnville, Oregon, on Highway 18.


Outside McMinnville, at the corner of Highway 18 and Oldsville Road. Look at that sky!


We stopped for strawberry shortcake. Oops! Duncan got a lick of whipped cream. I saw him through the camera and hollered. See my Goodwill Kate Spade, $9.99. I hope it's a real one, but even if it isn't, it's a great red leather bag.


A lovely harvested field on a rolling hillside, on Highway 18 outside Sheridan, Oregon.


Where we ended up on Sunday, June 28, on Highway 101 in Lincoln City, Oregon.


The office at the Ester Lee. Our cottage was due north, at the other end of the row. See the man with the dog? That's the dog park area, with plenty of grass and a rocky path, plus the fake fire hydrants and the narrow building with bags and a trash can. All quite civilized and efficient, except when Duncan and I made our way there after registering, the blustery cold wind caused me to zip my sweatshirt and tie the hood tightly around my face, on the last Sunday in June!

Happy 4th of July, Y'all!

Been closed, sort of, but we're open again here at Portland Oregon Daily Photo.

The closure came about when our trip to Lincoln City didn't go like we planned, not at all.

First change, Mama and I decided to go on over on Sunday--the cottage at the Ester Lee in Lincoln City was available for Sunday and Monday nights. Lamont and Leland planned to drive to a campground at Cape Lookout, north of us by some miles, and spend the night, get up real early and hike the cape. They left after Lamont got off work and got to the campground around 1 a.m. Glad they're young. Mama and I stopped at Spirit Mountain on the way to Lincoln City and played the penny machines for a couple of hours, got to the Ester Lee and checked in, rested up and went to the Chinook Winds to play their penny machines for a couple of hours. She loves to sit there and push that button, wondering all the while if she'll win. I enjoy it, too, for some totally unknown reason. I had enjoyed sitting outside our cottage for a while, but it was extremely windy, cold even, so I didn't miss the actual beach.

Monday after Mama and I got up, spent some time looking out our many windows, eating watermelon for breakfast, we decided to go play the penny machines for an hour or so at the Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City. Not a surprise, right.

Second change. About noon she said she couldn't see right, she could see me but things didn't feel right. So I said, "Let's go and eat a hot meal at the Pig and Pancake, a nearly place several people had told us to try. She agreed but accidentally pushed the maximum bet on her machine, $1.80. It went to a bonus and when she played, she won $45! So I said, "We're really going now." So we got up and walked over to the cashier's window to cash in our tickets from the machines. I asked her to stand at a nearby counter while I went to the window. I looked over at her once I had her money and she was leaning on the counter with her elbows, her feet out from the counter like when someone is stretching their calves. For a split second I wondered if she was having a cramp and trying to get rid of it. I asked, "Mama, can you come over here?" "No!" she said. I immediately realized something was wrong and asked for Security. A man nearby helped me get her into a chair to wait. She said she thought she was OK but didn't understand what had happened.

They came and took her in a wheelchair to their first aid room, checked her out and said we really ought to go to the hospital to get her checked there. She didn't want to ride in an ambulance, so they gave me a map and we went there--it wasn't very far at all. The staff there at the Lincoln City, Oregon, hospital was great. The doctor read two different EKGs and compared them with some from January 2008 when she was in the hospital in Portland. He told us that there was a radical difference in the new ones and the old ones, that it seemed that there was a part of her heart that was not getting enough oxygen. He went on to say that he wanted to send her to Portland in an ambulance, straight to her hospital and to the care of a cardiologist. She asked, "Do I have to go in an ambulance?" He replied, "No, but if you don't go in an ambulance, I have to release you as against medical advice." I said, "Mama, we're not doing any AMA, Mama," so she signed the paperwork and they got busy setting it up.

I had talked to Lamont--the guys were still hiking--around 2:30 p.m. and told them what was going on. They decided to just go back to Portland once they had returned to the car. I decided to go on back to the Ester Lee, pack up and head to the apartment so that I could put Duncan in his kennel and head to the hospital. Mama agreed that would be best, that she could wait for the ambulance by herself. The staff didn't know how long it would take anyway, that they couldn't order the ambulance until they knew that she had a room at the hospital in Portland. One of them told me that she'd be going with lights and the siren, so there was probably no way I could get there before her.

So I drove back to the cottage, ate a peanut butter sandwich, some Pringles and a few Oreos, drank some milk, took a shower and washed my hair, packed our stuff and made five trips up and down the 17 steps to the car. All in an hour and 15 minutes. I went to the office to turn in the keys--Mama called from the ambulance to tell me she was on her way. I could hear the siren.

Duncan and I made the 86 mile drive OK(which takes much longer than you would think--most of it was 55 mph max, some 45, some as slow as 25 mph, up as high as 760 feet and then back down to a valley floor, through several small towns--some with a four-lane, some with just a two-lane highway). Twice I turned off into shopping centers to drive at a different pace, to sort of get myself out of that highway trance that can come on after a while. I had the radio on and three windows down, too. Lamont called at some point, after I'd called and he didn't answer so I hung up, not sure if they were on a highway or not--we really shouldn't talk and drive, should we? When he called he said they were home. I told him approximately what time I thought she'd be at the hospital, between 6-6:30 p.m. Leland called when I was only a few miles from home to tell me what room she was in. That made me feel good, to know that they were there.

I parked at apartment's front sidewalk, put on the flashers, grabbed Duncan and the few frig items we had and came up. I put him in his kennel with his food and water and put the cold stuff in the frig. As I got into the elevator, Leland called again and said that Mama wanted her shoes. Her stuff was still in the car, in the bag the Lincoln City ER had given me, so I told him that I would be there in a few minutes.

She looks OK, lying in the bed, with her two tired grandsons beside her, and her tired daughter on the other side of the bed. We didn't get to see a doctor before we had to leave--all three of us were yawning some, so Mama told us to go on home. Leland came with me and helped get our stuff into the apartment, then drove off in the car. Thank goodness I didn't have to try to find somewhere to park the thing!

I called Mama to tell her that Duncan was fine, that he'd poured out his water and somehow had food in both bowls, now, not just his original food only bowl! She laughed, then told me that Dr. L (I can't spell is whole name) had come about 20 minutes after we left and said nothing by mouth after midnight and that he'd see her in the morning to let her know what they'll do to try to figure out what's going on. All three of us will be there tomorrow, off and on.

Duncan has been walking around, looking for her. Bless the little guy. We're off to bed now--I'm too tired to proofread this.

I'll let y'all know more when I know more.

Update #2
Tuesday she had two tests in nuclear medicine involving a radioactive isotope and an ultrasound in her room, plus several EKGs. None of these tests provided a definitive answer as to what had happened on Monday. It was a long, long day, waiting for the doctor to come give us the results--Mama had left for the first test at 7:10 a.m., and we finally saw the doctor at 7:35 p.m. The doctor, cardiologist Dr. Ratkovec, looked over all of the results, asked some questions and decided that the electrical impulses in her heart were not quite right and that at some point in the future she might be a candidate for a pacemaker. In the meantime, Dr. Ratkovec wants her to wear an event monitor for a month. All we know about that is that Mama's to push a button on it when she feels a spell coming on so that it can record what's happening which can then be sent to the doctor using our land line phone. We're supposed to find out all about it this afternoon at 3:30 p.m., if the referral from her primary care doctor gets processed quickly enough. You see, her Medicare supplement will not pay if the primary care doctor hasn't done the referral. It doesn't matter that the cardiologist wants it and has referred her for it. Plus, her primary care doctor hasn't even seen her through this. Ah, the joys of bureaucracy.

About her spells--the one Monday was not like the others that she has had and will have again, I imagine. At those times, she'll look over at me from her recliner, put both hands up by her ears and say, "My head feels crazy." I haven't been able to get a clearer explanation from her about that, but Dr. Ratkovec mentioned "shadow coming over you," and Mama said, "Yes! That's sort of what it is." This happens probably twice a month, thus the event monitor for a month.

We got home last night around 9 p.m., tired and ready for bed. Duncan was so glad to see us! All of slept until around 8 a.m. this morning--well not real sleep for me after 4:45 a.m. when I started wondering what was next, etc. I did go back to sleep several times, thank goodness!

I ought to be able to go to work tomorrow and then the office is closed Friday for July 4, so I'll have a three-day weekend to keep an eye on her. I think she's fine, but I'm glad the doctor is still looking for answers.

Mama says thanks to everyone who sent her their prayers and well-wishes. Me, too!

Update #3
We made it to the appointment at 3:30 p.m. The approval came through at 2:30 p.m. which gave us plenty of time to get Leland back home after he came over with the car and then to the doctor's office. Mama is now wearing her event monitor, a device named King of Hearts. It's always looking, the technician said, at her heart and then will record what's going on if Mama pushes the button which she should do if she feels that my-head-is-crazy feeling or something like what happened to her on Monday. While I hate to think of such happening to her again, I want it to so that it can be recorded and then looked at by the doctors. It might provide them with a next step in Mama's care. What I really like about it is that when she pushes the button, it captures the 50 seconds prior to the push and the 50 seconds after the push, therefore hopefully capturing the event and the recovery form the event.
I will have to change the two leads on her chest every day--in the evenings. We have to return the device by July 31.

Mama once again thanks everyone who has sent their prayers and best wishes for her health and well-being. So do I, for hers and mine.

We've spent a very good almost two hours watching "So You Think You Can Dance." Each year we've fallen even farther under it's spell. Y'all should take a look at it, honest. And think about supporting The Dizzy Feet Foundation, a way to keep dance available for the talented without their own resources. Look at http://www.dizzyfeetfoundation.org/ and donate if you can.

OK, I'm off my high-horse.

Last update.

Mama's tired, weak, but mostly herself, thank goodness. We're about to watch the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona--what a stupid name for a race. It ought to still be called the Firecracker 400, for Pete's sake. It's on the 4th of July!

Sorry, I got back on the high horse for a minute.

Hope your 4th has gone well so far. Ours is uneventful which is fine with the two of us. The guys finally have some neighbors who are entertaining, so they're going over there. Good for them, to be guests for a change!

ELLEA, Thursday, November 6, 2008

Each of us got another good night's rest. The only downer of the entire short trip to Lincoln City was just that, it's short length. Nevertheless, we knew we'd best eat up, pack up and head out by noon, check-out time at the Ester Lee. Lucy and Mama both used the microwave to heat up leftover coffee. I'm not a coffee-drinker, never have been, never will be, I can say with certainty. Lucy's new jammies suited her very well, and she's wearing the earrings she found at the outlet mall.

Mama did very well with a blender new=to-her, mixing her protein just like she likes to do each and every morning. It always gives her an energy boost and serves for nourishment until lunch time.

One thing I learned early on up here in Portland is that one cannot under estimate the importance of keeping one's hood out of one's eyes, hence the cap with the bill. Let me say that I have not got it cocked to the side because I'm a member of some gang. I have to set my Los Lonely Boys hat on my head like because I have a barrette holding back my hair on the left side of my head. Mama took this photo, by the way, and did very well. She's famous for cutting off folks' heads! I guess you've guessed that I'm dressed like this and Duncan's wearing his coat because it's raining outside, and it's his morning walk time. A strong wind blowing from the south managed to spray my glasses, right beneath the bill of that cap and my hood both!

The sweethearts happily played Hand and Foot until time to get ready to go.

I spent some time watching the waves, heading north at a sharper angle to the shore than the ones on Tuesday or Wednesday. My goal was to get a decent wave photo and a bird photo. Look at these iPhoto enhanced and cropped photos to see all I was able to get--I'm satisfied, for this time.

It looks like a pelican to me, flying south into the wind.

Yep, I got every bit of it back into the trunk!

And turned in the key at noon, on the dot. Then I took this photo from the office windows. At some point, I'd like to stay with the guys, their girlfriends, Mama and Duncan in the cottage, the top story one that has the tan SUV parked at the door, or the one you see on the right, with the brown door, if it's just Mama, Duncan and me.
Right after I left the key in the office, we headed back to make our exit at the north end of the parking lot so that I could get a clear shot of Cottage 232. That's it with the door open--the housekeeper didn't waste a moment going in to get to work, looks like. That round window was in the bathroom, and that's the chimney for the gas fireplace at the other end of the cottage. I slept near those two windows on the corner to the left of the door, on a twin bed straight across from that great big picture window in the living room and next to the fireplace. Mama, Duncan and Lucy slept in a bedroom diagonally across from my corner, with a pretty good-sized window overlooking the ocean.

A few miles north, on Highway 101, there's a public parking lot with access to the beach. We pulled in there so that I could take a few more photos and the gals could get one last look at the Pacific Ocean. First thing that caught my eye--an exuberant dog, digging sand at high speed which he had halted before I could get the camera ready! However, I like this shot of three different types loving a windy, cold, lightly rainy day at beach.

Next I shot several photos of the gulls enjoying a sort of inlet and/or the beach. I've cropped and/or enhanced these photos, with iPhoto. I hope they look OK. You certainly do get a feeling for the wind when you see those waves.





Notice the wind buffeting this bird's feathers? Is it a crow?


Before my hat flew off my head, I stuffed it into my coat and quickly walked back to the car. Our next stop, for 30 minutes, an antique mall on Highway 101 where Lucy and I took a quick look--Mama and Duncan waited in the car. Then we were off for Spirit Mountain and the penny machines! Look at the beautiful sight that greeted us as we pulled into the parking lot!

While we didn't win big, we did manage to hear some bells and whistles and see some flashing lights, including one of my favorite neon signs on Barbur Blvd.

A few minutes after taking this photo, I parked the Corolla in front of the Doug Fir. Inside at the bar, Lamont waited for us to join him. One of our Mississippi buds, Chris, works there so we got to see him, too. Plus the three of us split a couple orders of their crispy, tasty fish and chips before heading home to the apartment.

All told, our mini-vacation to the coast made each of us very, very happy.