I have a Susan Bates crochet hook that belonged to my mother. She bought it in either the 1960s or early 70s. But she gave up knitting and crocheting and switched over to other types of crafts during the 70s. When I took up crocheting and knitting in the 1980s she gave it to me along a pair of knitting needles she still had.

It's cloudy but mild. It was lightly raining when I got out of my dermatologist appointment yesterday. The rain turned heavy later in the evening. The doctor wants me to continue using the rash cream and gave me samples of ointments for my dry skin problems on my face, and hands and wrists. She gave me a manufacturers coupon for the brand for the face creams. It's the LaRoche Possay brand that you can find at Walgreens, CVS, Ulta Beauty, etc.

I got the four pails of leaves out to the curb last night and they picked them up at lunchtime. It's going to be awful raking on the weekend and next week because that polar vortex bitter air in the midwest will make its way here. They're saying we may get a rain/snow shower mix next Tuesday.

I'm under the weather today with IBS-C of all things. Normally I have IBS-D which is more manageable. I'm all achy and crampy, slept very poorly last night, feel very tired. Today I am having a light soft foods diet, hoping my digestive system will settle down soon. I was planning to walk to the Walgreens this afternoon with the one day of mild temperatures but feel too lousy.

I received a letter in the mail from the hospital healthcare system that's having the dispute with Horizon BCBS where everything will go out of network on March 1st if an agreement isn't reached. They suggest patients call Horizon to complain and list health insurance companies the hospital is in network with people could switch to. I hope this gets worked out like the dispute between United Healthcare and the major university medical center over in the next county did last year.