Posted in How I'm Adapting

The Lost Plant

As it’s been quite lovely weather here for this time of year in little old England, I’ve carried on with my gardening seeing as I’m in full house and garden renovation mode.

The amount of bark I’ve bought is eye watering. But at least I won’t be pulling flowers up as weeds and weeds up as flowers.

For some time I’ve been making my garden ‘eye proof’

As in. The only thing that will need to be done is abit of zhuzhing, hedges trimming and lawn mowing.

I’ve got a cordless trimmer. So I cannot cut through the cord ‘cos I can’t see it.

Also I’ve got one lawn that needs cutting. I had a little one at the front that I’ve now pebbled over. Low maintenance is the word I’m also looking for.

As the years go on I notice the progression of my eye condition when I head out into the garden after a while over the winter months.

Painting my fences (the old ones) from year to year was when I noticed the difference.

When you don’t do something all the time you don’t become aware.

Picking up a paint brush and seeing the ever more blurrier fence, ended up with me painting with my reading glasses on. Was abit of a shock as in “OK. That’s alot worse than last year.”

Then when I was proud of myself for tackling this instead of getting someone to do it for me, someone said “Is it finished? It’s patchy”

I stood back and it was.

It’s OK though. This is the way it’s going to be.

I can’t feel sorry for myself.

I have though, lost a plant.

Not lost it misplaced it.

Lost it after I planted it.

So I had new fences installed earlier in the year. The old ones were hanging on by a thread. Each storm I looked out of the window, one eye open, wondering if they’d survive.

Me and my neighbour kept propping them up until we couldn’t anymore.

The workmen did a good job (Apart from hitting a water pipe, I can’t even go there) All the previous bark was all mulched in the soil during the work, so I had to start again with the weed fabric and the litres upon litres of bark.

Can you tell I’m fed up of it 😁

Now is my chance to redesign the garden and have what plants I’d like in there.

The old ones have gone. Some by accident, some by design.

Some I Google lensed them while walking around if I came across a plant I liked in somebody else’s garden.

Once I’d found out the name, I bought them ready to plant.

My sister helped me go get an olive tree to plant as it would match my gorgeous juniper tree. That was a funny day getting that in the back of a camper van.

My lost plant is a Dahlia Moonfire. Beautiful brown black leaves with big bright yellow flowers. I found this waiting for the bus from my boyfriends house. It’s across from the bus stop in someone’s garden, so I nipped across, leant over, Google lens, jobs a good ‘en.

I cannot see it.

I’ve planted it. I’ve tried to feel for it. It has green buds on. Still can’t see it. I’ve got on my knees, I’ve walked a few feet away.

Thing is, I need to move it somewhere else I’ve decided.

If you see me sweeping my hands over the ground in my garden. I’m not losing it. I’m just trying to find the lost plant.

And no. It’s not that green plant in the photo. That’s a Buddleia ‘Flower Power’ known as a Butterfly bush. So it should attract bees and butterflies. It’s beautiful when grown. Orange and purple poker style flower buds.

I’ve got more bark coming this week!

So I’ll be out there gardening. Making it foolproof, eye proof so when my eyesight deteriorates even more, I can come out and enjoy it without the stress of weeding and pulling up stuff I shouldn’t have. Whilst leaving the weeds.

It’s nearly done now and I’ve enjoyed doing it. I’ve had help from people who have been very kind in helping me chop things down, move stuff I can’t.

I do like to do what I can myself though. Even though those little fences you see as a border? I still have bruises on my hand from hammering my hand sometimes instead of hammering those into the ground. Until my boyfriend told me to put the hammer side ways, which did help me enormously.

Sometimes you can do things you used to do with less central vision, you just have to think out of the box.

A row of wooden fences on the right hand side. Brown bark is next to it then a little fence. In the background there is an olive tree and a green small plant towards the front.
PD 1 A row of wooden fences on the right hand side. Brown bark is next to it then a little fence. In the background there is an olive tree and a green small plant towards the front.
A screenshot of a Dahlia Moonflower. Brown black leaves with a large pom pom style yellow head of petals and a small orange centre
PD 2 A screenshot of a Dahlia Moonflower. Brown black leaves with a large pom pom style yellow head of petals and a small orange centre

Posted in Hospital Appointments

Eye Centre Appointment

I’ve been to my appointment to see the eye specialist.

This was at my local Eye Centre.

The Doctor referred me back to Opmathology after I seemingly got lost in the system during Covid-19 after March 2020. I had my last round of tests just one week before lockdown here in the UK.

I had the usual eye test. I was the same as I was before. This is distance.

Right eye 3 lines down. Left eye 4 lines down.

This is why I don’t drive.

Then I had the eye drops. They dilute your pupils so the doctor can see into the eye much better than without.

I had photography taken of my eye and then saw the consultant.

He looked into my eyes with the prism light and magnifying glass equipment.

We spoke about the tests I had had all that time ago. He said that the large swelling had disappeared on my retina.

I didn’t realise I’d had any I told him.

I explained that I needed cane training due to the difficulties especially at night and also increased falling.

He didn’t seem to have had any of the results. Not even the random field test I’d had in late 2022 either.

So he agreed that we couldn’t go into any certification without a recent field test so he gave me a yellow sheet to hand in to have an appointment sent to me for 4 to 6 weeks time.

The previous doctor said I was partially sighted.

So just waiting on that now.

All in all the appointment and the staff were amazing as usual. I was out very quickly.

A hospital waiting room with blue and light wood chairs in the foreground. Windows are in the background with a large yellow poster with text that reads. Worried about your vision? We're here for you.
PD 1 A hospital waiting room with blue and light wood chairs in the foreground. Windows are in the background with a large yellow poster with text that reads. Worried about your vision? We’re here for you.
A hospital corridor with chairs down the right hand side. Above double doors is a sign that reads Orthoptist.
PD 2 A hospital corridor with chairs down the right hand side. Above double doors is a sign that reads Orthoptist.
Posted in Funny Stories

The sun doesn’t shine on me.

I’ve come out this evening to attend the monthly Pontefract group of VIPs (Visually Impaired People) For our Christmas do.

There’s a reason I attend these groups.

I was thinking I was taking an arty shot of the early evening sun behind the trees, when in fact it was a streetlamp.

Close up view of the train station sign. It reads Pontefract Tanshelf. Behind the sign are trees against the sky. A yellow blob looks to be behind the trees. It's a light with a light coloured pole.
PD 1 Close up view of the train station sign. It reads Pontefract Tanshelf. Behind the sign are trees against the sky. A yellow blob looks to be behind the trees. It’s a light with a light coloured pole.
PD 2 A black pedestrian ramp rises up to a bridge. There are trees in the background. In front of this is the tall street lamp that is on.
PD 2 A black pedestrian ramp rises up to a bridge. There are trees in the background. In front of this is the tall street lamp that is on.
PD 3 A low down shot of the station with the tracks and bridge in the distance. A large puddle is in the very near foreground.
PD 3 A low down shot of the station with the tracks and bridge in the distance. A large puddle is in the very near foreground.