You would think that we were the busiest people in the world as infrequently as I've been updating this Blog! But that has definately not the case.

I went back in for my stress test last Monday. I've had a stress test before which was just getting wired up and walking/running on the treadmill. This time I was having a "nuclear" stress test, what they call myocardial perfusion imaging, that looks at the blood flow to the heart muscle which is done both while resting and again after exercise to see if there is any narrowing in the artery. First you get those sticky patches (electrodes) hooked up to the ECG/EKG. Then, through an IV line you are injected with thallium, a radioactive dye which mixes with your blood. You then lay on your back for 25 minutes with your arms over your head while this special scanner, similar to an xray machine takes images of the heart from all directions. Next was on to the treadmill, where the electrodes were hooked up again and the blood pressure sleeves put on. I did AWESOME on the treadmill!!! It was back to the table for another 20 minutes of imaging and I was done. And so the results? I have a very healthy heart - and that's great news.

And so it was back to the courts. And perfect timing too, because today was Polly's last day here. She was taking off- back to Michigan. You can tell it was a HOT morning from the looks of the three of us. This morning I seemed to be teamed up with either Susan or Polly - That's Polly on the left and Susan on the right! Polly only learned to play pickleball this summer;about a month ago. She's a great player and will look to find a place to play back home.

We usually get together with Mo and Jeanne for dinner every couple of weeks. Jeanne is out of town visiting her family in Nova Scotia for a couple of weeks, so we gave Mo a call to see if he'd like to join the two of us. He suggested the Lighthouse. We had not been there but always like trying new places to eat so it sounded like a great idea.
The Lighthouse Point Bar and Grille is located at Lake Sumter Landing in The Villages, and sits right on the bank of Lake Sumter, so you get a beautiful view of the lake while dining - whether inside or out. When it first opened it was almost entirely open, more of a "beach bar" type of restaurant, which is now enclosed, but with a nautical theme, and still with an outside dining area. The atmosphere is very 'friendly', the music is enjoyable and not too loud, the menu is excellent and the prices are reasonable. They are best known for the Haddock - so that was the menu choice for the three of us. And while fried fish is probably not the best choice - the fact that it was fried in trans fat free oil seemed to make the choice OK. Haddock is not a fish that you find frequently here in the south - so this was indeed a real treat for us. And it was excellent.

On Thursday we took a trip to Camping World to pick up a few things for the RV, and then headed down to Wauchula to drop some stuff off and to do a quick check to see that everything was OK. And it was. It's amazing - Peace River does not even look like the same park in the summer, although there were probably 20 or better rv's in the park. We talked with Ranger Bob for a bit - no major news, Elnor is still there................

From there we headed over to Tampa. And now I can give you an update on Rich. The results from the tests done for the Neurologist determined that Rich needed to see a Vascular Surgeon. So, on Friday morning it was off to USF Health. For as many years as we have lived in Florida - this would be our first visit to Davis Island which is where Tampa General Hospital and the doctor's office are located. We will be making our second visit to Davis Island next Wednesday to Tampa General. The problem is with Rich's Superficial Femoral Artery. The Femoral Artery extends down the outside of the lower leg and provides blood to the arteries that circulate the knee, calf and foot. He had the surgery on the right foot back in April. For six weeks or more after that he had to limit what he could do. As a result, the amount of blood flowing to the foot was minimal, because of the inactivity. That's why this problem showed up just after he was able to get back on the court and play pickleball. So noe, a stent will be placed in the Artery, about six inches above the left ankle. If all goes well, the doctor says he can be back on the courts playing again after just a three or four day recovery period, enough time for the puncture wound to heal. More Good News!!!!

And hopefully - for both of us- life will return to "pickleball normal"!!!