Thursday, August 6, 2015

Thursday August 6, 2015

So, it's official -- I have shingles. Last week I had a pain in my back and side and then the day before yesterday I started to develop a rash. Which got worse yesterday. I showed it to Russell and he photographed it and sent the photo to his sister who is a nurse and she said it looked like shingles and that I needed to see a doctor. So this morning, with the help of our delightful "landlords" here, I was able to see a doctor conveniently located right around the corner. The doctor confirmed Karen's diagnosis and she prescribed an antiviral drug plus a lotion for the pain. It actually hasn't been too painful. Yet. I understand the painful part comes later. 

At the doctor's office this morning 

Unfortunately, it is supposed to be over one hundred degrees tomorrow. Ugh. And, of course, we have (once again) no air conditioning. Double ugh. Russell and I have joked about starting an air conditioning/ice making company here. What with global warming we think it could be a real gold mine!


We did arrive in Oberwessel yesterday with a minimum of angst. We decided to hire a car and driver to take us from door to door and that was obviously much easier than negotiating the multiple trains that we would've had to take otherwise. With all of our luggage.

Our luggage
Oberwessel 

Oberwessel is a very cute little town and our apartment has a wonderful covered deck that would normally have a view of the Rhine but not this year because the water level is too low. Our hosts, Angelika and Alfred, are super nice and they were a big help finding me a doctor and were very understanding when Russell broke the lampshade on the fixture in the middle of our living room ceiling (don't ask). We are going to take them out for dinner and a boat ride on Saturday to thank them for their kindness to us. Speaking of the weekend -- sadly, we had to cancel our plans to visit Ben and Jürgen. We met them on our Mediterranean cruise. I just don't think it's good to try to do too much right now. The doctor said I need to take it easy and that is what we plan to do. Can anybody say "needlepoint on the shaded deck with an almost view of the Rhine?"


1 comment:

  1. Jim just got over a case of shingles. If it's caught early and you get on the antivirals it should dissipate soon - that's what happened w/Jim. He had some rare form w/o a rash. I really hope that you feel better soon.

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