“If this is coffee, please bring me some tea; but if this is tea, please bring me some coffee.”
Abraham Lincoln
I went to a lot of trouble to get a hot cup of coffee. To me, it is the only cup that matters. If I have others during the day, really they are just maintenance.
I woke to the sound of hungry cats, I crawled out of my bed, really my couch, far more comfortable than my bed. I slowly shuffled out to assess the things that needed doing.
Cats were out of water, food and litter boxes needed changing. The fire was low but still burning. Coffee cup empty.
Loaded the fire, kept new logs to the sides, soon cat boxes filled with wood pellets, poop and urine would be helping with the days heat.
Got cat food for the cats. Water soon to follow, last night’s snow melt was ready to go. I filled the cat’s bowls, and the rest went to the stage one filtering bucket. From there it would replenish the stage two container with the Berkey filters.
Overnight the filters made freshwater, that went into a kettle on a camp stove for coffee. I went back to my chores, checked the fire. By the time I returned, the camp stove had run out of propane. I would need to change that.
I felt the kettle it seemed hot enough for coffee. I knew I was wrong as I poured it. I went with that anyways and regretted it. I don’t waste so I drank it. Yuck luke warm brown water.
I watched the latest episode of Kim’s Convenience while I drank that liquid.
After that I could hear the fire crackling, I decided I was going to make a hot cup. Again I filled the kettle with filtered water, this time put it on the woodstove.
If I was to do the litter boxes I would need another bag of wood pellets, those were in the back of the van in the garage. I went out grabbed a 40 pound bag, carefully navigated through the maze of engine hoists and car parts, the very place that had caused broken toes and a fractured elbow, and got back inside. I poured the bag through my homemade funnel fashioned from a Costco water bottle into two big plastic containers. Those made it easier to fill the cat boxes.
Now the fun part, filling the woodstove with poopy pellets, you want to do this quickly, efficiently without causing spillage or smoke. But before that, I needed to check the kettle on top of the stove and make sure it was hot enough for coffee.
It wasn’t so I pulled up my milk crate stool put my back to the fire and waited for me and my water to warm up.
A few minutes later the kettle was steaming, and it was time to do the poop maneuver. I opened the door to woodstove, and hurled the wooden powder as far into the woodstove as I could. It would take three throws to get it all in there. Smoke did happen, minor spillage did happen.
I opened the door to the outside to let the smoke out for a few minutes, cleaning the spillage would have to wait. My Canadian Tire $7.99 on sale wooden handled corn broom has a broken handle for the third time, and is drenched in wood glue and covered with clamps. It should be ready tomorrow.
Now I am finally ready to make that coffee, hot water poured over fresh coffee in a bamboo filter. I can hardly wait.
Coffee in cup morning chores done, I get comfortable on my couch, unlock my tablet start watching Stumptown, have that first sip and it tastes….
Awful, I must have put too much coffee in the filter or the Gods of coffee are punishing me. Oh well, there is always tomorrow.
I spent the afternoon sick again, dizziness, nausea, and both hands numb. All my joints were sore as normal left wrist very sore. Every time I moved my neck I felt some weird sensations in my brain, not sure what that was. I have experienced BPPV twice before, it wasn’t that but something else. I have pain in my lower abdomen and even lower in my groin.
It could be I strained muscles down there, if I did it was in my sleep. I also have an old skull injury from when I was 14, it hurts almost from the inside. Most of this happens when I lie down. When I try to walk is when I have balance problems. I almost forgot the fatigue, memory loss and ever-present tinnitus. Vision problems when I get tired.
I am writing this here so when I find a doctor who will actually do something, I can tell them what is going on.
