Stable Layne Pt 8 #UseYourWords

Welcome to March's Use Your Words post. This is how it works: participating bloggers submit four to six words or short phrases for a fellow blogger to use to write a blog post. All words must be used at least once and all the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own unique set of words. All words are assigned randomly and nobody knows which blogger will receive the words they submitted.

My words are:

stamp ~ legal ~ suave ~ mercy ~ lost ~ wild

They were submitted by: Jenniy of https://climaxedtheblog.blogspot.com (Thank you for such awesome words, and I promise to do them justice in my actual Stable Layne installment! I am sorry for the delay!)

The title of this post is false advertising, and I apologize. I knew I was going to have a crazy few weeks, and I had asked Karen for my prompt early, so I could work ahead. I had done very well with working ahead on every post, except for this one. I have been working away on it, but it is not done. I still have three words left to work into it. Murphy's Law often catches up to me. This is no exception. This post goes live in the morning, just a few hours from now, and I am not done. So, I had planned on simply finishing it up, and getting it scheduled. Then life happened.

If you follow my blog's Facebook page, you know that I have been having some health issues lately, beyond my regular health issues. I guess, in the grand scheme of things, it could definitely be worse. I think legal issues would definitely be worse. They tend to be stressful, costly, and not always easily fixed. At least with health issues, you can get to answers, with the right doctors. If there is one thing I can say, it is that I have been blessed with some magnificent doctors. In the end, I am at the mercy of fate, and that is not always a good thing, but at least I have some excellent doctors on my side.

As you probably know, several weeks ago, it was discovered that I have a rare disease wreaking havoc in my abdomen. We have been fighting it with medicines, and I will soon go for further tests, to see how well they have helped, and if I will need surgery to further my recovery from the damage it caused, while running wild throughout my abdomen. My doctor and I, are choosing to remain optimistic, that we may be able to avoid surgery altogether. This would be most excellent, since any and all surgeries are beyond risky for me, with my troubles with blood clots.

Of course, with me, nothing can ever go easy. I somehow ended up with an abscess in my abdomen, a few weeks ago, and that definitely through me for a loop. They have no clue what caused it, and though they think it could be a byproduct of the disease in my abdomen, its location does not exactly make the connection a definite. Thankfully, it seems to be healing well, and it is no longer causing much pain. However, it is definitely taking a very long time to fully heal, and the incision has not even closed yet. The good news is that there are no signs of infection, which is the most important thing. The slow healing is probably caused by my blood thinner and the steroids I am taking to treat the abdominal disease. Both of those medicines slow the body's healing capabilities, so it is not too alarming that I have an injury which is healing slowly. Mind you, it is a tad worrisome, because the longer it remains open and unhealed, the longer is remains susceptible to infection.

Then, as luck would have it, my body decided that a rare abdominal disease and a slow healing abscess was simply not enough, and my heart decided to start acting crazy. I was hospitalized in 2014, because my heart was not cooperating. I lived through a scary few days, but the fix was a pretty simple one. They put me on a different blood thinner, one that also helped with heart issues, and it seemed to get my heart right back on the correct track. I have been fine since. Now, I am having the same issues I was having then, only a bit worse this time around, and the fix isn't quite as simple. At least not yet. We are still going through the testing phase, and still working to pinpoint exactly what is wrong, and exactly where the problems are. 

For now, they have added a new heart medication to my routine, to work with the blood thinner. It seems to be working just fine. Though, my heart isn't quite back on its best behavior yet. I am certain the cardiologist will need to experiment with the dose, to find the right one, or maybe even try a different medicine entirely. I am also hooked to a heart monitor full-time, for at least a month, and I will just go on the record that I hate it. I have mostly gotten used to it, but at night, I really hate it. It is hard to sleep with these wires and boxes connected to my body. All hope is not lost though, as worse case scenario, I get fully exhausted and fall asleep. Some nights, I am lucky, and I just sort of fall asleep almost like normal. 

Another thing you know, if you have followed my blog, is that due to dozes of bilateral pulmonary embolisms, back in 2010, my lungs are scarred and my breathing is sometimes affected. Plus, when I battle pneumonia, I tend to get very sick from it, because my lungs just cannot handle the stress of the sickness. Well, my cardiologist just informed me that breathing issues can impact our heart. So, I had to see a pulmonary specialist. I was shocked to discover that I have asthma. Pretty severe asthma. Which obviously explains why I often struggle to breathe. I just figured it was due to all the scar tissue, and did not think too much about it beyond that. So, now I am on daily inhalers and a daily pill. Fingers crossed they work some magic and help my lungs heal and grow strong again. I go next week for a nuclear lung test and a comprehensive breathing test. I am very curious to see what we learn from them. I especially want to see if my lungs have improved any over the last two years. I also have to go for a sleep study, which I am really not looking forward to. Sleep studies will never get my stamp of approval. I think they are one of the worst things ever. I definitely prefer to sleep without any wires attached, and in my own bed.

So, the final straw in my somewhat camel like back, that led to this post's title being false advertisement, was something that happened early this evening. One of the things that has been happening with my heart, is that I have been getting pains. They aren't the most horrible chest pains. Mostly just quick, intense pains. They often happen during or after I have a tachycardia episode. Well, earlier, I had a super terrible, and long lasting chest pain. It was awful. I felt like I was having a heart attack. My entire left arm went numb, my face went numb, my legs went numb, and I could barely breathe. It lasted for several minutes, and I hated it. Chad was very soothing and helpful. Once it was over, I just knew that I was not going to be able to finish my Stable Layne post. I actually put a lot of thought into those posts. I tend to know what is going to happen, I just don't know how it is going to translate into words. Plus, I have to make sure to use my specific words, that I am assigned. I have most of it written, but I still have two words left to use, and it just is not quite done.

So, here we are. I made the decision to turn this into a post, where I ramble about my issues  update you all on what has been going on, and apologize profusely for the delayed Stable Layne installment. I will spend time this weekend finishing it. I will edit this post, to add a link at the end, to the actual part 8 post, and I will also share the post on my Facebook page. I am sorry that you saw the title, and maybe got a bit excited to find out what was happening with sweet Layne and suave Damon, and then just got loaded down with my health drama. I just felt it would not be fair for me to simply rush to finish it, when I am not feeling my best, and not at my best mentally. I think you will get a much better product, if I finish the post this weekend.

If you could send some positive vibes my way, I would really appreciate it. I could use some goodness right now. Mostly, I just really hope they get all the answers they need, from all these tests. We know my heart is not circulating enough blood, and that my blood is not oxygenating properly. We need to find out exactly what areas of my heart are struggling, why they are struggling, and the full extent of the issues. My arms (most frequently the right), hands, legs, and feet are having major circulation issues, and often go numb and turn purple/blue and freezing cold. So obviously, circulation is an issue. It is possible that the tachycardia is just my heart trying to circulate an adequate blood supply. Why I also have bradycardia episodes is a mystery. Why there are issues is a mystery. Really, everything is a mystery. Hopefully, we solve the mysteries and fix the issues quickly. 

There are a lot of unknowns with my health, and I genuinely feel it is all linked, versus being a bunch of different issues. I just really hope they figure out the link, and we can then solve all the problems. There has to be a root cause, especially since two common things involved with most my issues are my blood/veins/arteries/circulatory system and my immune system (autoimmune issues). Sometimes, I really wish Gregory House were real, and I were under his care. I am sure he would have a lot of fun with my case, and I am certain he could figure it out. Wouldn't that be lovely?! 

Okay, enough about me. Please, tell me what has been up in your world?! 

Don't forget to go see what words my fellow bloggers were assigned, and how they used them. I will meet you there, but first I need more coffee. These days, coffee is my saving grace. Keep an eye out for the actual Stable Layne installment. I will add the link to this post, and share the post on Facebook!! I promise it will be worth the wait!!

Links to March's other “Use Your Words” posts:

Baking In A Tornado

Bookworm in the Kitchen

On the Border

Cognitive Script

Southern Belle Charm

The Blogging 911

Part-Time Working Hockey Mom

Climaxed

Stable Layne Pt 6 #UseYourWords

Welcome to January's Use Your Words writing challenge. Our first one of 2018!! This is how it works: participating bloggers submitted four to six words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once and all the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That is the challenge, here is a fun twist; no one who is participating knows who got their words and in what direction the writer will take them. Until now.

Your words are:

poet ~ snow ~ car ~ hibernate ~ stick

It was submitted by: Karen of http://Bakinginatornado.com Thank you for such great words!! :)

Do you remember the Stable Layne story I had been writing for y'all using my words?! No?! Yes?! Either way, take a few moments to refresh your memory, or to catch up.... 

• Stable Layne Part 1
• Stable Layne Part 2
• Stable Layne Part 3
• Stable Layne Part 4
• Stable Layne Part 5

Caught up?! Good. So I have decided to use this month's words, to pick up where I left off. Then I plan on posting another post soon, fast forwarding a bit, and then I will use future words to continue on the story. Now, where were we?? .... 

Layne, Damon, and Marcus spent the next hour getting everything in order for the party. All the necessary food and pantry staples, had been put into their correct places in the garage kitchenette. The sodas that Damon and Marcus had brought, had been put in the fridge, ice was made and ready, the grill was all set to be fired up, the tables and chairs were out. Since there was no snow on the ground, she had spread the tables all around the patio and even put some out in the yard.

Damon had shown Layne several simple exercises, ones she could easily incorporate into her daily activities. Marcus had done them with her, and it had really helped her relax. Maybe it was all the daydreams, or maybe it was the feelings she had been feeling, but she had felt so tense around Damon. Having Marcus around had definitely helped her feel less nervous, and she actually found him to be quite funny. 

It was obvious, watching how well Damon and Marcus got along, that they were very close. She had found out that Marcus was a fireman. It also seemed that he was single. The more time she spent around him, the more she knew she just had to introduce him to her friend Jules. Lucky for them, she would be coming by soon, to deliver all the baked goods, that had been ordered for the party.

As Layne finished putting the last of the plastic utensils into the utensil tray, she looked up catching Damon staring at her. She felt her cheeks burn, as they turned bright red, she quickly glanced down. "Do I have something in my hair or a smudge on my face?" Damon laughed as he walked over to her, reaching up and gently rubbing his finger along her jaw, holding it up for her to see little specks of green glitter covering his finger.

They both laughed. "I guess I got more of the glitter on me, than I had thought," she said. "I knew I should have just left that darn glitter garland in the bin, but I just thought it was just what this kitchenette needed."

Damon looked into her eyes, and she may have felt her heart skip a beat or two, "The kitchenette did need it. It looks perfect. Don't worry, you did not get much glitter on you. It just happened to be that a streak of it was on your jaw, and you caught my eye, and I saw it."

"So sparkly I can catch a person's eye eh?" she laughed, as she quickly busied herself with filling a napkin holder.

"Well," Damon said, as he leaned against the counter next to her, "I don't think it was the smudge of glitter that caught my eye."

She looked up at him, feeling her cheeks becoming warm again. "Not the glitter," she said softly.

"Not the glitter", he repeated after her. "More you, less the glitter."

Then it happened. He leaned in and brushed his lips against hers. A simply, sweet, perfect kiss. It was so perfect, a poet probably would have trouble putting its perfection into words. As she looked up at him, biting her bottom lip, watching him smile, she knew she was in trouble. He must be feeling it too, or he never would have kissed her.

Feeling like she had to break the silence, she said the only thing her mouth seemed capable of saying, "Hi."

He chuckled softly, "Hi."

All she could think of was dragging him into her house, and making him hibernate with her for the rest of the winter, getting to know each other, and seeing where these feelings took them. For the first time in months, she was thinking about something other than her accident and her painstakingly slow recovery. For the first time in years, she was thinking about something other than a solitary life. For the first time in years, she was thinking about possibilities outside of her Master plan. 

Just when she was about to make a fool of herself, and kiss him again, the slamming of a car door broke their comfortable silence. They both turned in time to see Marcus helping Jules carry boxes of delicious baked goods into the garage. They were both smiling and chatting.

"So, I was finishing up hanging that lighted garland, and I saw this angel drive up," Marcus said to Layne and Damon, as Jules laughed. "Only I did not know she was an angel, until I offered to help her with her boxes, and saw all the delicious goodies she had."

Damon started laughing, "A woman with baked goods would definitely be your definition of an angel," he said as he helped put boxes onto the counter. "This guy right here may look fit as can be, but do not let that fool you. He eats more than a horse, and has a serious addiction to baked good, especially cookies and pies. His physical fitness is thanks in part to the hours he spends working out, to combat the copious amounts of baked goods he eats."

Marcus tried to defend himself, "Listen, I am not that bad. In fact, I have you to know, I have seriously cut back. I only visit Jules' bakery three times a week now."

"You visit Jules' bakery three times a week?" Layne asked in shock. "So you two know each other already?"

Jules was shaking her head and Damon was looking confused. "Who knows each other? The Angel and I? Why would we know each other?"

"Well, you said you visit Jules' bakery three times a week" Layne said, "So, I just assumed you two knew each other."

Marcus, looked down at the boxes, and for the first time realized they were from Jules' Bakery. "Oh my gosh! These are from Jules' Bakery! You must work there!" He grinned at the woman that now seemed even more like an angel.

"Well," Jules laughed. "I guess you could say I work there. Hello. My name is Jules" she winked and held out her hand to Marcus.

"You're the Jules." Marcus said, as he shook her hand. "The very Jules who created the Four Nut Peanut Butter Cookies?!"

"The one and only," Jules replied, a smile lighting up her face. "Those happen to be my favorite thing to not only make, but my favorite treat to eat."

Damon looked over at Layne and whispered "This is going to end in a marriage."

Layne could not help but hope it ended in more than just one marriage. She smiled at Damon, and mentally told the butterflies in her stomach to calm down. Too bad she could not reach inside, and scare the butterflies off with a stick. She knew, beyond any doubt, she was in over her head, and for once she did not care. She liked it. She liked these feelings, and she certainly liked Damon. 

To be continued....

I hope you like where the words are taking Layne, Damon, and their friends. Now, go grab some coffee/tea/water, get comfortable, and meet me over at the rest of this month's Use Your Words posts. I will meet you there promptly after I get a refill of coffee.

Links to January's other “Use Your Words” posts:

Baking In A Tornado

Bookworm in the Kitchen

On the Border

Cognitive Script

Part-time Working Hockey Mom

Southern Belle Charm

Climaxed

The Blogging 911

Stable Layne Pt 2 #UseYourWords Aug 2016

Today’s post is a writing challenge. This is how it works: participating bloggers picked four to six words or short phrases for someone else to craft into a post. All words must be used at least once and all the posts will be unique as each writer has received their own set of words. That is the challenge, here is a fun twist; no one who is participating knows who got their words and in what direction the writer will take them. Until now.

If you read last month's Use Your Words post "Stable Layne", then you know I used last month's words to tell the start of a story. Originally, I wrote it because the words just formed into the story in my head. I really had no idea if I would finish it, even though I already have the entire basic storyline in my head. To be very honest, I even have an offshoot storyline in my head also. Well, enough people seemed interested in wanting to know more of the story, I decided to continue it. I figured it would be best to do it with this month's Use Your Words post, and then I saw the words I was assigned. I almost chickened out. Well, here we are, and I decided to just to do it. I am up for a challenge. Right?! I hope.

My words are:

Scooby Doo ~ Shaggy ~ (your name- Jules) ~ Marty McFly ~ Professor X

They were submitted by: http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/ (Thank you for such challenging words!!)

Layne took a deep breath, and tried hard to focus back on the task at hand. Following Mr. Gorgeous to whatever room Gwyn would be giving her the physical therapy session in. "Sorry," she squeaked out, trying to hide her obvious admiration of the man before her. "I must have stood up too quickly."

Then it happened. He touched her. The gorgeous man reached out and gently gripped her shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked, concern showing in his voice and gorgeous blue eyes. "We can stop for a minute, if you need to get your bearings."

"No," she said quickly, her cheeks burning bright crimson. "I am fine. Really. I just had a few moments of dizziness, but it is gone. I am right as rain, honest."

He smiled, slowly continuing down the hallway, his hand remaining on her shoulder, supporting her. "Okay," he said, the warm buttery smoothness returning to his tone. "Just let me know if anything is too much for you, and we will slow down. The goal is not to do too much, it is to do just enough."

Layne tried not to focus on his smile, the sheer beauty of it, or the way it lit up his already bright blue eyes even more. She tried to get her thoughts to focus elsewhere, and not on him. Mr. Gorgeous. Yes, that is definitely what she would call him. Call him. Man, she would love to have his number, so she could do just that. Right after she called her best friend Jules, and told her all about him. 

He led her into a large room, that had various pieces of exercise equipment all around it. Some of the equipment she was well acquainted with, and others she had only seen from afar. She did her best to exercise and stay fit, but riding and working with horses, was definitely her main form of exercise. Over, in the far corner, she saw a man that looked like Professor X lifting weights, but other than that, they were alone. His resemblance to one of her favorite movie characters wasn't just because he was bald and in a wheelchair, but he had the same overall look as well. She wondered if he shaved his head because of the strong resemblance he had to Patrick Stewart, or if it was just a happy coincidence. 

"I don't want to start off too crazy," Mr. Gorgeous was saying, his voice breaking through her thoughts. He led her over to a cushioned bench and stopped. "We won't do much today. I will mostly assess what you are capable of doing, and what limits you have. Then each appointment, we will work to lessen and eliminate your limits" He finished with a warm smile, that made her body tingle.

"Ummm," she stared at him, confusion filling her eyes. What did he mean by we? Would he be working with her and Gwyn? "Where is Gwyn?"

"Oh!" he said, a frown briefly adorning his beautiful face, and she found herself longing for his smile. "I forgot! You were one of the clients I took from Gwyn! You were expecting her huh? I am sorry! Forgive my lack of manners. I am Damon." He reached out his hand towards her. "Usually my clients come here expecting me. I am sorry that I forgot you were originally scheduled with Gwyn."

She quickly shook his hand and pulled her hand back, biting her bottom lip. This was not going how she had planned. She thought she would come and workout with some chick named Gwyn, possibly finding out some information about her history with Zayne, and then get back to riding horses as soon as possible. Now, she was going to be stuck here, appointment after appointment, with the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. Not at all what she had planned. 

"I am sorry," he said, his voice showing concern and possibly disappointment. "I assumed Gwyn had told all the clients she gave to me about the switch. Otherwise, I would have called you myself. Is this going to be a problem?"

"No," she said, trying to hide her nervousness. "Not at all. I was just taken by surprise. No big deal. I mean, if you work here, you are obviously qualified, and that is all that matters. I just want to get back on my horse." She turned around and busied herself with taking off her jacket, and laying it over the bench. She should have worn something more than sweats and a tank top. She took several deep breaths to steady her nerves. 

"I will give you a few minutes to get situated," he said, his voice having returned to his normal tone. A mix of sultry and energetic. She could not remember a time she had been this affected by a voice before. She kinda liked it, and kinda just wished he would never speak again.

She turned and watched as he walked over to a cabinet, and watched as he went through boxes of supplies. She took a seat on the bench and gave herself an internal pep talk. She could and would do this. This was the next step in getting her back in the saddle, and that is all she wanted. So what if this step included a man that looked like a Greek god. She hadn't felt this instantly attracted to a guy, since the time she was instantly attracted to Marty McFly, the very first moment she saw him on her TV screen, when she was a kid. Now, she was a grown woman. A thirty-three year old woman. Yes, she could do this. She would come to every appointment, do the necessary physical therapy, and get her clearance for Doc W. 

She had been so lost in thought, she had not noticed him returning to her side, and jumped just a little bit, when his voice broke into her thoughts again. "So, ready to start?" he asked, his voice showing amusement, "Or do you need a few more minutes with your thoughts, Miss Deep Thinker?"

"No, I'm fine," she quickly answered, looking down, hoping he could not see the full effect of her blush. "I was just thinking about Back to the Future."

He laughed loudly, so loudly Professor X looked their way. "Why on Earth would you be thinking about a movie from the eighties?"

"Oh," she mumbled, trying to think of a reason, that did not involve the words gorgeous or crush. "I was just thinking about time travel. How I wish I could go back and change things. Go back to before the accident, and avoid it all together."

He looked at her, a mix of concern and understanding showing in his eyes, he reached out and gently rested his hand on her arm, sending an immediate flame to her very core. "I can understand that, and I am sorry that you can't. I am sorry that we cannot change the past. We can however shape the future, and I will help you to get back to where you were physically. I may even be able to make your better than you were."

She laughed, relaxing a bit, looking up into his eyes. "I doubt that, Damon. I'll happily settle for back to where I was though."

"Doubting me already?", he asked, showing mock shock and outrage.

"No," she said, standing up to stand next to him. "I just know to be better than I was, habits would also need to change, and I have no intentions of giving up pizza or ice cream, or my Saturday mornings with Shaggy, Scooby-Doo, and nearly an entire box of Lucky Charms. I also don't intend to step foot back into a gym, once my physical therapy is over."

"Well, we will see about that last part," he said, a mischevious grin playing across his lip. "Seriously? An entire box of Lucky Charms?!" He quickly looked her up and down. "Where do you put them? You don't look big enough to hold an entire box of sugary perfection."

"Oh," she said, trying hard not to blush under his gaze. "It's all there. Trust me. It has been a tradition for over five years now. I have not missed a single Saturday morning, and I have watched most episodes of Scooby-Doo at least twice."

(to be continued)

Well, there you have it. Stable Layne part deux. I hope you enjoyed it! I will probably reveal more of the story in future posts. It was tricky to use this awesome assortment of words, but I did my best! Now, go and see what words my blogger friends received, and how they used them! I will see you there, right after I get another cup of coffee!

Links to the other “Use Your Words” posts:

Baking In A Tornado

Southern Belle Charm            

Spatulas on Parade

The Diary of an Alzheimer’s Caregiver

On the Border

Confessions of a part time working mom

Sparkly Poetic Weirdo

Never Ever Give Up Hope

Climaxed

Dinosaur Superhero Mommy