Ordinary day in Billings, Montana

January 26, 2022

An ordinary day here in Billings, Montana. 

My doctor’s nurse phoned a prescription into the Osco pharmacy for amlodipine 2.5mg tablets.  She did this because I had been trying unsuccessfully to split the 5mg strength with a pill cutter. 

This had worked for me for several months until Rene, our pharmacist, was unable to get the brand I had been splitting in favor of a much smaller pill.  The teensy pill was difficult to split.  Impossible, really, so friable it exploded beneath the blade of the splitter. I tried taking the whole 5mg tablet but my blood pressure dropped below 90/60. Then I tried taking a 5mg tablet every other day, but I suffered low blood pressure the days I took the pill.

I think of other ways I could have resolved the problem.

True, I could have dissolved the 5mg pill, then drank half the solution, but I didn’t think of that.  Instead, I left a message with the nurse to phone in a prescription for the lower strength tablets.  Like that. And she did.

Problem solved. New problem:

Last week my brother-in-law broke the sheetrock in his sister’s double-wide.  His leg gave out and he crashed, leaving a great broken area of wall near her front door.  Looked like the wall was crushed inward.

I agreed to help ameliorate the damage.  My job is to repair the sheetrock, so today I made a trip to Ace Hardware to buy joint compound, tape, a 5-inch taping knife, 1-inch sheetrock screws, a piece of 1×3” lath, a razor knife, and some 2-inch sheetrock screws.  The taping knife cost the most.  I probably already own one of every known size, but I couldn’t find a small one this morning.  

When I examined the damage to my sister-i-l’s wall last week the broken sheetrock looked very thin, possibly 1/4 inch.  Where would I buy a sheet of that?  How would I transport it– on our passenger car roof?  I’m thinking I don’t want to try replacing it.  I’m going to repair it.

I had lunch at home with P.  I resolved to repair her sister’s sheetrock tomorrow, but I’m keeping the joint compound in the house tonight, thinking if it freezes it’ll be ruined.  Lunch was some leftover soup from a couple nights ago.

P. and Gunther were antsy, so we drove over to Norm’s Island park to do some dog walking. 

Gunther wouldn’t cross the footbridge to the island.  Therefore, we walked toward Josephine Crossing housing development.  I couldn’t talk either of them into crossing the ice to the island when we neared the Yellowstone River, either.  

We walked until we frightened an amazing number of Canada geese that rose up in a gauze-like swarm all honking in a sort of roaring sound.  I felt a bit guilty, but the geese would be fine, I know.

Back home I bathed Gunther because he was sandy and muddy from our walk.