The best laid plans don't always work

My Malay/Muslim friends often end a conversation about the future with "Insha Allah (God willing)" - an apt phrase to recall as we have had to adjust our plans. This week one event through our planning off and another suggested that we had over planned.

Early Tuesday morning Doug awoke with severe shaking and chills. I searched google, but couldn't find a "what to do next" entry. His doctor prescribed an antibiotic and took a blood sample. If the culture was positive Doug would have to go to a hospital. The culture was positive, so Doug spent nearly four days hospitalized and receiving intravenous antibiotics. He was released on Christmas Day and instructed to follow up with his doctor to confirm that all the "bad bacteria" were gone. So our departure from Raleigh has been put off for a few days.

Lessons learned: diabetics should moisturize their feet and pay attention to even small lesions. A random lesson - a Muslim nurse's observed that she couldn't use fish oil b/c it is encase in gelatin. We asked at Whole Foods and learned that Nordic Naturals produces capsules with fish-derived gelatin. A google search found other sources.

The impact of over-planning? We have packed our boots and eaten as much inventory as possible. This morning's snow accumulation would normally lead us to bundle up and walk to the store. Since our boots were packed in a U-pod we drove six blocks to get to the store (a two block walk). The snow and the cold also has delayed our progress in packing the U-pods.