At the Doctor's office, plus details of the nervous system

  

Many old chairs, hooked together, but providing lots of space in the waiting room. A wonderful mural on the far wall is always nice to gaze at.

I was there to check on progress 2 weeks after arriving with bad cough. Though I had taken antibiotics, they didn't affect the cough, just were there to prevent pneumonia, apparently. The cough gradually improved by my doing all the preventative things I had, lots of nebulizing, shaking with a vest on, and taking mucous thinning things. And rest.

So I saw my new nurse practitioner. I like her. She seems down to earth, and has a sense of humor.

This was a new to me exam room, with a faux window painted on the wall. By the same artist who did the painting in the waiting room. She did an excellent job of matching the real woodwork near the ceiling.

I don't know why I didn't determine the artist's name.

I hope to not visit her again for a while!

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For those who like scientific things...I'm sharing something I found fascinating. Our nervous system!

Though these images are somewhat disturbing, since we're used to seeing a skeleton of bones to represent our bodies...I find them very intriguing.

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Sharing with My Corner of The World 

and Wordless Wednesday

Today's quote:

There must be always remaining in every life, some place for the singing of angels, some place for that which in itself is breathlessly beautiful.

HOWARD THURMAN

Mural is finished! and must mention "Igikai"

"Igikai" is a Japanese word for 'your reason for being'.
Ikigai: the intersection of passion, mission, vocation, and profession.

It's where what you love meets what you're good at, what you can be paid for, and what the world needs. 

I'm sharing this post with my other blog, Living in Black Mountain. Of course!

I quiet forgot...this is for Monday Mural! Finally did it on the right day!

I would have had to cross the street to capture the whole building. Maybe next time I'll be on that side of the street! 

Old Gas Station and Mural update

  State Street, Black Mountain NC

OK, on June 28 I parked and walked along the curb to see what was happening. One thing was that there really wasn't room to walk by active traffic...most of whom are from out of town and don't follow the 20 mph speed limit.

This is the first time I've seen workers there...back in the darkness of the interior. I have read in a local social media that the gas station will be turned into a nice restaurant!

And just as the mural suggests, this building will house glass blowers. I hope they don't remove the mural, but how will we get in to see them otherwise? 

I think last week some school students were invited to paint the flowers.

 The people are also beginning to look alive.

Another shot from my car on June 29th...there are workers sitting inside the garage at least...

A big whoopee, I stopped at a red light, and got this shot...see that person painting the mural!!

Inch by inch, or stroke by stroke...this mural is coming alive!

I do hope it will be preserved when the shop behind it opens!

My Doctor's Old Fort Office

 He has an office in a little nearby town called Old Fort NC. It was the staging point (probably a fort at the time) from which the first settlers to Black Mountain left. (known as Greybeard at that time)

But in order to see my Doc on Tues. I drove over the big Swannanoa or Old Fort Gap. That means on I-40 going east about 10-12 miles, most of which is coming down the mountain side in multiple switchbacks, with the semi-trucks in their own lane to the right, and the hot-rods in the leftmost lane, while I put put along at the speed limit or below, all the while staying within my lane. Today only one truck decided to pass the others, but it was in the return trip, so he was going slower uphill, and apparently whoever he passed wasn't keeping up with the 35 MPH speed the trucks were limited to travel. I veered into the hot-rod lane and they just had to deal with it...me passing the semi, passing another semi.

They (hot-rods) got ahead as soon as I went back in my safe zone.

Anyway, Old Fort has a nice history, and some nice places to have a brew and lunch, but I didn't have that in mind.

I liked finding the quilt on the side of the train station. It, like Black Mountain's depot, no longer has any rail trade going through it, though freight trains will toot as they go over the streets in each town.

Sounds like a good crowd for the Fourth...with free ice cream and watermelon! And a friend said there's also a rodeo!

Ah, this explains why the entrance doesn't look very businesslike!

Across the street is the famous (?) Arrow Head.

Family Care...as it looks on the outside.

I don't know how they got the door to look like black blocks, but it had a window in it.

My guess is this is Catawba falls, very near town. However it's closed as there were dangerous areas where people could fall. That says to me that some re-engineering may happen.

I stared at this for long time, till I noticed the Arrowhead is covered. It must have been the unveiling of it.

I believe this is Linville Falls, Upper Falls.

Andrews Geyser is a fountain which used to be controlled by the inn pictured here, which burned. But someone does turn the fountain on, because we went to see it after my Doc visit!

A feed and seed store...and I don't know if it's still standing.

The entire waiting room has this lovely mural of old times in Old Fort.

It's along a curved wall...with all these glass bricks to bring light inside. I've probably posted about this office before, because it is so outstanding. But I don't particularly like it because there are all these hard surfaces and high ceilings so the sounds all kind of sound very loud.

It was fun to see a print of a puzzle of a Norman Rockwell print. I felt just a bit like the boy, but only got a new prescription, no shots this time! 

Sharing with Sepia Saturday, for there are plenty of sepia photos in the waiting room!

The price of my life!

Before starting in on factual complaints...must share gratitude for the lovely mural which I've been watching. Here's how it looked Mon. evening.

Again I was along in this lane, with a red light ahead of me, so I did the slow down and snap routine.

Love the darker turquoise background! I will see what happens the next time I get a chance to drive by. OK I admit, I do sometimes go out of my way a bit. Lots of us Black Mountainers know some short cuts to avoid the light in the center of town, which goes through a long cycle that's even longer if the pedestrians have pushed for a cross walk light.

Here's the little gas station, and yes, on Tues afternoon, I captured the mural also. Looks pretty much the same though!

 Energy Pricing:

I must whine a bit right now. I drive an older Toyota, with a 10 gallon gas tank, or maybe 10.5. The other day I filled it up, and it cost $40. The price had been 4.69, but I had coupons for 15 cents off a gallon...and there I was. Liquid gold it has been called before. And I feel for the big SUV's with big gas guzzler engines!

I posted in my facebook account that Heather Coxe Richardson had given a good synopsis of what's happening with the US gas prices.

"What appears to be driving U.S. gas prices is the pressure investors are putting on oil companies, whose officers answer to their investors. Limited production creates higher prices that are driving record profits. In a March 2022 survey of 141 U.S. oil producers asking them why they were holding back production, 59% said they were under investor pressure. Only 6% blamed “government regulations” for their lack of increased production."

And I remember many a day and night in the last month when I could have windows open to cool mountain air until around 10 am, then closed them for the next 8 hours. Thus my elec. bill was $43. It will likely be higher now that I'm hermetically sealed and air conditioned...I'm so grateful!

Gun control

The there's the gun problem...another facebook post...

Our idiot representatives in government have some stop-gap gun-purchasing measures that will pass probably. They are not anything like this. Nor like the way the UK or Australia, or who knows what other countries are doing WHO DO NOT HAVE EXTREME GUN VIOLENCE KILLING CITIZENS AND CHILDREN!

I'm so ashamed of us. We have such a good idea, a democracy. We are so far from living up to the standards which are possible for us.

I avoid spending money because I want to be economical and get the best deals.

But I also want a recliner to replace my love seat. The love seat is an overstuffed brown leather. It's really comfy for just sitting back and relaxing. I advertised on my local group of FB to give it away, but that 2 strong people would have to carry it out and down 4 steps and 50 feet to the parking lot. I didn't have a single person interested!

The loveseat had been freely given by a friend, and I'd love to send it to another home free as well.

So no recliner at this point.

I am thrilled that this last weekend we had cooler weather come through our mountains. Nights were so cool I turned my little split heater on. I imagined a cat curled next to me, to no avail!

I also need to get on the phone to all my medical providers to get statements sent to me for use as a deduction on my rent (a subsidized situation which makes it affordable!)

Today's quote:

It's like, at the end, there's this surprise quiz: Am I proud of me? I gave my life to become the person I am right now. Was it worth what I paid? -Richard Bach, writer (b. 23 Jun 1936)

The mural Update:

 

On the evening of June 16 I drove by and noticed the white has returned...and looks like snowcapped mountains! Much better, says I.

If they work on it Friday, or Saturday...I'll add more photos. I may have to park one of these days, rather than slowing down and clicking these "on the run pass-by shots."

The update follows. A semi truck was patient as I stopped before the front of the line...being first at the red light. What difference did it make? Well, the phone misbehaved, and kept giving me a movie, so I took 6 seconds...and tried again for a photo. Finally made a screen shot, sent it to myself, and of course drove home. 

Saturday, June 18, 2022  Looks like a bit of work on the figures. And a filled in background of another turquoise, which I prefer!

Update on buildings and mural

 Tues evening, not much has changed, though a lot of the equipment and scaffolding are gone from the little filling station building.

And I didn't see much difference in the mural. Perhaps it was too hot today to work on it.

End of day, Tues, June 14, 2022

Last week's version. Oh, I see the white has gone away that was in the sky...I rather liked it!

Today's quote:

No, no, you're not thinking, you're just being logical. -Niels Bohr, physicist (7 Oct 1885-1962)