The MEND is Near...

Health

I promised everyone an update on how things are going health wise.

February 20, I had my iron infusion. It wasn’t bad. I think the worst part of it was the length of time it took to get it, and getting the IV inserted. It took half an hour to get my veins ready for the infusion. They give you saline as a starter, then the actual infusion takes about an hour. Then you get another half hour flush of saline while they monitor you to be sure you’re not having any ill effects.

So far so good. I was exhausted from not having enough iron stores to produce enough hemoglobin, which carries oxygen to the body via the red blood cells, but other than that, it went well. Hubby and Son were in the room with me during the infusion and kept me laughing. My anxiety was ultra-high and Hubby knew it so he did his best to keep me relaxed and happy while we were in there.

Many thanks to Nurse Melodie, EMT Nick, and everyone else at Dartmouth General Hospital for taking great care of me, and allowing Hubby and Son to be with me during the transfusion.

I go get my ferritin levels checked in about 5 weeks. If they’re not up high enough, I’ll have to go back for another one. Uggg….

Normal for a woman is about 15, ideally 70. Mine was 7.6 the last time it was checked. Not good. I was borderline anemic too, which can be dangerous for anyone. For a diabetic like myself, it’s worse. Thankfully our family doctor watches me like a hawk and if something goes even a hint out of whack, she’s on it. I’m so grateful for her!

I’m better mentally but still exhausted. I won’t be seeing any improvement for a week or so, then I will start feeling better gradually over a few weeks. Hopefully by the time April rolls around, I’ll be back to somewhat normal, and back to my regular routine. Fingers crossed!

The IV in my left hand. The solution containing the ferritin was a reddish brown, almost molasses color.

I'm exhausted and cold, but glad it was getting done!

Halfway done. It looks black in the bag.

Empty! The flushing process begins.

Writing

Not much is happening in the writing world at the moment. My brain keeps fizzing out each time I open Word. Hopefully in a few weeks, once the brain fog from my iron stores bottoming out goes away.

Amethyst Rose

As all of you know, I am back to creating covers with human generated items, including my own original paintings and so much more. I’ve also been advocating boycotting Generative AI even more, due to the amount of damage it’s doing to the environment as well as it using original art and photos by myself, and so many others.

If you want some really beautiful photos for your next cover, I have a few recommendations for you, photographers and models wise.

FuriousFotog: Golden Czermak is a talented gent, behind the camera as well as in front of it. He is a huge advocate for human produced creativity, from photographs to writing, music and so much more. Plus he’s a really nice guy. I wish I could afford one of his photos for a cover. He’s damn good at his craft. Some day!

CJC Photography: Chris is another amazing photographer and model. Another creative that advocates human produced creativity, he’s another uber-talented. Another one I’d love to purchase a cover photo from!

Kevin R. Davis: Model and one hell of a sweet gent. Like Golden and Chris, he advocates for human generated art, writing and more. One of these days, I’m going to get a cover with him on it, whether it’s for one of my own books or a client’s. He has great chemistry with a lot of male and female models, and has the “silver fox” look down to a science. He only has two accounts, Instagram and Facebook, so if you see anything without the checkmark verifying it, it’s not him. I’ve included his Instagram link if you want to check out his work.

Tony Brettman: Another amazing, sweet gentleman. I’ve talked to him several times and he’s so polite and kind to everyone. My pal Elise even purchased one of his photographs for one of her covers, and I am so jealous. Another one I want to purchase a cover photo of, for either myself or another client. The link goes to his Instagram, where he has all of his other links.

There are so many more, but it would take forever to list them! These four gents are the main ones I talk to on a daily basis. Don’t forget to check them out. They are such great fellows, and I am honored to know all of them.

Nor’Easter Feb 23, 2026

I hope all of you who were clobbered with the snowstorm yesterday are safe and sound. We lost power for a while yesterday, but Nova Scotia Power was on the ball and restored it in about four hours. Other spots around the province were out longer, and I think some areas are still without it, but that’s the norm after a nasty storm like we had. We got about 40 cm, or 16 inches in American, which is a lot for us, but it could have been worse. I understand parts of Rhode Island got hit with over 100 cm (1 metre) or 34 inches of snow. That was reported last night, so it could be a lot more.

Many thanks to the Department of Transportation for getting us plowed out so quickly, NS Power for restoring our power 6 hours earlier than stated, and to all emergency professionals like the Mounties, EMTs, health care workers and so much more for everything. Y’all rock.

I leave you with another amazing track from the 1980s, one my fellow GenXers will recognize… “After All” by the talented Peter Cetera, lead singer and bassist of the band Chicago, and the amazing and beautiful Cher.

Have a great week everyone!