So I wrote yesterdays post the night before (Sunday night) before I actually spent the night in the hospital with Tony.  I had a recliner chair to sleep in.  I thought it would be fine.  They gave me a couple blankets and pillows.  No worries!  Long time readers know that I sleep like the dead.  Pretty much anywhere.  I was confident that would be the case at the hospital.  Except for a couple things.  Turns out my recliner tried to close in on me like a clam shell every time I tried to make it flat like a bed.  And it was noisy.  Think sitting down on a leather couch in the summer noisy.   Another variable?  Routine rounds of blood pressure, oxygen level and temperature every two hours.

Tony likes to have the t.v. on at home so at the hospital I expected it.  I zoned out the t.v. and was almost asleep when a tech came in, around midnight, into a dark room with no lights, turned all the lights off and declared “I am here to check all your vitals!”  Tony, who hasn’t spoken strong at all for the last couple weeks, distinctly said “hey, can’t you see my wife is trying to sleep there!”  Oh my word, I puffy heart that man to the moon and back.  I love how he stuck up for me, even in his weakened state.

I actually don’t know how much sleep I got on Sunday night, not enough, but at around 7:00 we were both awake.  At around 8 I went down to get coffee and breakfast before Tony got sent on his heart catheterization test.  I was impressed that the hospital had Intelligentsia coffee!  I got the dark roast.

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So I accessorized my breakfast with what I saw.  Scrambled eggs, turkey sausage, English muffin, baby spinach and cheddar cheese – all from different parts of the cafeteria, but I knew I could make it work.  Interestingly enough, there were chicken wings next to all the breakfast items, but then I realized that for some people working the 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. shift, that could be their dinner? I was so close to getting the corned beef hash, but I decided against it.

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My breakfast all together, with hot sauce on top for good measure.

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I ended up microwaving this for like 20 seconds to melt the cheese, I took it out of the microwave, and a woman next to me said “where the hell did you get that!” 

This was so filling that it was basically breakfast and lunch, and I had a snack later on, which was so good and only $1.88 – not too bad!

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Tony was pretty busy with his tests.  One took longer than expected, so that threw the whole day off.  He didn’t end up going to dialysis until nearly 5:45 last night.  It lasts anywhere from 4-5 hours so I ended up coming home (so I could get a good nights sleep!) and I have to work tomorrow.  While it breaks my heart to leave him, it’s just not possible, so I am trying not to let the guilt get to me.

When I got home I had some loot in the mail!  I am so grateful to people who send me stuff to brighten up my spirits.  I remembered back in January when so many people sent me DVD’s to donate to the children’s ward of the hospital, and how readers sent me stuff.  And even with everything going on with Tony, I am still blessed.  I got this loot from blog reader Jaclyn.  I love how she had a little note on everything and what’s it’s purpose was!  Thanks jaclyn!  Even socks to keep Tony’s feet warm. Love it.

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And my blog friend and friend in real life  Jacky sending me granola bars and a cookbook – so fricken thoughtful!  Once things settle down, we will meet for drinks and dinner!  I miss your blog posts.  Just sayin’. Open-mouthed smile

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And then my long distance blog friend Fran sent me a card!  It’s funny, because when I brought in the mail I thought what a pretty stamp it was, not even realizing it was from Fran!

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And then my brother and his wife sent a card too – so nice!

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So since I got back home earlier than usual, I decided I need to make myself dinner.   Not a frozen pizza, not fridge diving to see what I could come up with.  I’ve been craving beef for a while, and stopped at my store on the way home to pick up a steak.  As luck would have it, they had filet mignon on sale 2/$10 bucks, so I bought one for $5.  I already had potatoes in the pantry and rosemary in my fridge – so rosemary butter steak and rosemary sea salt pomme frites were quickly on the menu.

This is seriously about a 15 minute meal.  It helps that my deep fridge was still on the counter.  I’ve mentioned it before, but the secret to good fries or pomme frites is to deep fry them first at 350 until they are JUST beginning to brown – you almost want them all to be white still.  Drain on a paper towel.  Cook the steak using my 2x2x2x2 method on an indoor grill.  Two minutes in one direction, two minutes on the other side in the same direction, then do the opposite for the other four minutes.  On the last flip, sprinkle some rosemary and a pat of butter on top. 

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Now that beats hospital food any time of day.  I just wish Tony was home where he belongs, yelling at me from the living room “what smells like ass?!” when I cook Indian food in the kitchen while he’s watching Sunday football.  I want my life back.  I know it will get there, but I know we have a long road ahead of us.  I know Tony will appreciate all the comment on here and on Instagram when he can read them, so thank you to the moon and back for the support these last few weeks.

Make it a great day!  Hugs!