The balance in the force has been restored

or mischief managed

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This is an exciting update on many fronts...

FIRST - my dizziness has been resolved for the most part! You read that correctly, I now have several days in a row where I experience little to no dizziness. This has been amazing. The working diagnosis of my dizziness is "autonomic dysfunction". I have been taking medication since July, but also increased the dose and TADA, it works! The first day I wasn't dizzy seemed like a fluke. But that turned into two days, three days and then six days in a row of no dizziness. I have had more dizzy-free days than dizzy days over the past couple weeks. I still have minor episodes of dizziness occasionally, but they are short lived and infrequent. This has been such a confidence boost.

SECOND - I have been doing and it feels amazing. I have taken pottery wheel classes, pottery hand building classes, and a photography class. I have tried new crochet patterns, made earrings, gone apple picking, pressured washed the patio, painted a closet, volunteered, gone on an adventure and so much more!

One of my friends reached out on a Wednesday about a photography class she signed up for at the local community college. I decided to join her - and it started the very next day on Thursday. The class was called Street Photography. We learned about the history of street photography, saw examples of photos, and talked about composition. Then that Saturday we met up in downtown Chicago and walked around for hours taking pictures. We returned to class the following week and got to see each other's pictures. It was so interesting to see the same places/scenes from each other's viewpoints. You are welcome to go to my Flickr account if you would like to see some of my pictures from that day. One of the "rules" of street photography is that you do not do a lot of post-production editing. The only editing I did to the photos was some cropping. My classmates favorite photo of mine is the one that features multiple street/parking/traffic/construction signs all in close proximity.

The big deal about this adventure was that I went into the city ON MY OWN. I rode the train, walked a mile to meet up at The Art Institute and then walked around the city for a few more miles. I then got back on a train and headed home. I had to walk on uneven ground, find my way through lots of people, cross multiple streets, navigate, process lots of sounds and noise, etc. This was exhilarating, fun and a major accomplishment. Its hard to believe that one year ago I was still hospitalized and bedbound. All the rehab therapy and hard work that I put in over the past year made this possible! I will not lie, I was exhausted the next day but it was worth it.

THIRD - I bought a secondhand bicycle. Her name is Snow White. She has three wheels and a basket. I am waiting on a bike helmet that I ordered (and some cooler temperatures) and then, look out Lombard!

So, there you have it, THRIVING WHILE SURVIVING. I am DOING, CREATING, LIVING, LOVING and so much more.

You are invited to follow my adventures on Instagram and see some of the items I have created on my Tedooo shop. (Disclaimer - the woodworking items were created by my son).