Ready…set…art again!

May was a blur, literally a blur as far as my right eye was concerned. It was filled with floaters and black specks. I went from seeing GREAT out of both eyes to seeing blah out of one eye. The floaters and specks arrived when my vitreous humor shrunk from my retina (a common thing when you age) and then pulled some of my retina with it (not a common thing when you age). So, to fix the tear I had to go through laser surgery. “Just an uncomfortable sensation”, said my ophthalmologist. It was painful. Very painful. It wasn’t “pushing a 10 lb. baby through a 10 centimeter hole” painful, but there aren’t many life experiences to compare that to. The pain was in between the baby pushing and drilling a tooth that isn’t quite numb enough. I survived. The floaters and specks started to disappear until they began to reappear. Next chapter…next paragraph.

A call to the ophthalmologist and then we were heading back for an appointment to see what was happening. The laser to fix the torn retina didn’t work and it was in full blown retinal detachment. It was serious. We scrambled to decide how we were going to get the procedure paid for…the first estimate was $8,000…the second was $15,000. Yikes! We were told that if we went checked into the emergency room, our insurance would pay for it. Tried that and freaked out at all of the patients who I felt were waaaaaay worse off than I was - AND it was going to take 1/2 a day before they could see me.

Long story long…. I underwent vitrectomy surgery to repair my torn retina. I didn’t need to win the lottery to pay for it because the financial lady at the eye specialist figured out a way to get some of it paid via Medicare. I spent 8 days face down (24/7 other than 10 minutes out of every hour) until it healed. A gas bubble was placed in my eye replacing the vitreous that was removed and I had to lay low until the bubble disappeared. It did.

A beautiful wedding happened between my wonderful stepdaughter and her fiancée.

Now…it’s time to start again. I can see clearly. I can paint. I CAN ART AGAIN and I can’t wait to show you all of the creative pieces that have been living in my head for 30-ish days.

Eye surgery is not fun!

I am MORE grateful for my eyesight!