Badger Galore
Staying ‘Up Over’ for a while.
"Eh?!!!!"
So...this week I have mostly been deaf!
It all started last Sunday when my left ear was acting a bit strange as if someone had turned up the bass on it. So on Monday I went into town and got some eardrops to help clear out the wax. I put drops in both ears before bed on Monday but it made me feel a bit dizzy for awhile which wasn't very pleasant.
On Tuesday I added drops again in the morning and once more felt dizzy so decided I wasn't going to use them anymore.
I woke up Wednesday morning and couldn't hear anything. I couldn't hear the roosters crowing, nor the birds singing and had not even heard the flippin' possums, still climbing up the window frames trying, in vain, to get into the eaves. That could be seen as a silver lining I suppose, looking back, but at the time I was pretty alarmed. I was totally deaf. I got up and went downstairs and got two spoons out of the drawer and banged them together and could hardly hear the noise.
I googled 'sudden hearing loss' and Google said ' treat it as a medical emergency' so I drove straight to the hospital. It was strange driving in the car and not hearing the engine.
I was the only one waiting at Emergency and didn't have to wait too long to see a doctor. She checked my ears and said that basically they needed syringing. They did not do that procedure at the hospital and I was told I would need to see my GP. The doctor very kindly rang my GP to make an appointment but the only available appointment was over a week away. She booked me in but I said that I was going to try and see another doctor in the meantime. She gave me a prescription for some antibiotics in case there was some infection but she could not see clearly to know for certain. I was to keep adding the wax removing drops too even though they made me feel a bit dizzy.
I left the hospital and went into town to see if I could get an appointment at another surgery. I have had a flu jab and a skin check at another surgery as an employee of the local council so tried there and got an appointment for later that day at 4.00pm.
I went back into town for the appointment in the afternoon. The doctor again looked in my ears and said that, yes, they needed syringing. I was to keep adding the antibiotic drops and the wax removal drops and make an appointment for Friday.
Adding the drops over the next few days was easier as they no longer made me feel dizzy. The hearing in my left ear came and went but my right ear stayed completely blocked.
I was back at the doctors on Friday to get my ears syringed. I was a bit nervous about it wondering if it would be uncomfortable or even hurt. I had to lie down and the doctor was putting something in my ear. I could feel his hand was shaking and began to wonder if he had ever done this procedure before. I was expecting him to put liquid in my ear and syringe it out but in fact he used some kind of suction device, like a mini hoover, to suck the wax out. My left ear had improved with the drops but I could hear bits flying out of my ear canal into the suction device. It was my right ear that I was most worried about though. He moved the equipment over to my right ear and set about hoovering that out. I didn't notice anything until he switched the machine off and was delighted to find that I could hear again with my right ear.
Both ears were a little tender afterwards but I was relieved to be hearing again. A few days later and my right ear, though much better, does still not feel fully clear but I have the other appointment with my doctor later this week.
Trips with Tracy.
So...Tracy has been visiting us this last week now that there are no border restrictions between Queensland and New South Wales. We spent a day bushwalking from the Day Use area at Girraween to Mount Norman and yesterday visited Nundubbermere Falls...
Reptilian visitors of the day.
The Battle for the Eaves.
So...despite there being two perfectly comfortable possum boxes around the deck area of Blue Moon, our resident possums have taken to climbing up the bedroom windows and sleeping in the eaves. They cannot get into the roof after our other battle last year when we blocked off all those gaps. Now they have taken to resting during the day on the shade cloth that we put up to cover the roof beams. They have found ways to squeeze under the edge of the cloth or between the join of two pieces of cloth and sleep in a shade cloth hammock.
We are not having it and so the other day we did what we should have done ages ago and stapled all the edges of the shade cloth to the wall and sewed up the join between the cloths that Galore had found.
Galore was the first to discover that she could no longer get into her old eaves hammock and after many desperate attempts retired to one of the perfectly acceptable possum boxes that I have relined with fresh straw and eucalyptus leaves. Last night Galore slept elsewhere but it was Baby's turn to discover it could no longer get into the eaves and it too desperately clambered all over the roof looking to gain access before giving up and retiring to the the same box Galore had slept in the night before.
I don't know what is going to happen if they both decide to sleep here on the same night, but there are two separate boxes available so hopefully they can work it out. I doubt it will be the last time they try and get back in the eaves but soon they will realise it is a waste of time and hopefully we will no longer be woken pre dawn by them climbing noisily up the window frames.
A feast of fruit.
So...when we were in drought we kept our fruit trees alive by watering them with our shower and washing water. Since the drought broke and we have had a lot of water and the fruit trees are loving it. Soon we will be able to enjoy their fruits!
