Protuberance Gone

After what seemed an eternity, the "protuberance" as I chose to call it, finally dropped off leaving hardly a trace. Whether its disappearance is a good thing or not, I don't know. Maybe it heralds a new phase in my deterioration or maybe I am simply healed of a mysterious affliction. Anyway it's a relief to have it gone.

My left bottom molar continues to be a source of minor annoyance, remaining sensitive to hot and cold. Presumably the nerve in the tooth will simply die and the tooth will eventually crumble. I'll keep monitoring the situation. I'm loath to visit the dental mafia unless things become really grim.

Now that I'm settled back in Maleo, I'm getting into a routine of walking every second day and doing my stretch band exercises for my legs at least once a day every day. Most days I also use the stretch band for my upper body as well. Overall I don't feel too bad but I'm aware of my increasing fragility. Increasingly I don't want to be bothered with matters that cause me stress. I'm happy just to dither about.

Mentally, I've decided to persist with my online chess. I figure I can only get better or languish at the same level as I'm at now. I find the 10 minute per side plus 5 second increment suits me well enough. I just need to manage my time because I often obtain winning positions but squander them in time trouble or because of chess blindness. It's important for maintaining a semblance of mental acuity.

Just as I finished writing this last paragraph, a family friend whom I've played chess with once before called up for a game. He's coming over soon. Last time we met, he won four games out of four convincingly so I'm apprehensive but it's all practice so ... and after two lengthy games I came away with a draw and a loss but it was.a hard fought loss and my opponet was clearly impressed with the level of my play. We are fairly evenly matched when we play at a slower pace which is what happened this time around. Last time we played I more or less matched his very rapid play but this time I played at my own pace and fared much better.

Tooth Trouble Again

The nagging cold, a cold that had overtaken me soon after being assailed by the chronic cough of my chess-playing nemisis, has segued into a problem with my leftmost, bottom molar. It has suddenly become sensitive to hot and cold. This is not a welcome development and presages the need for further dental appointments.

It's just another symptom of my body's decline, a decline that is gathering velocity. Teeth trouble and old age form an age-old partnership I suspect. I started writing this post on March 26th and now its April 4th. Nothing much has changed. My molar is still troubling me and the mouth ulcers that troubled some months ago are threatening to return.

After not walking any great distance for some time, I decided to walk around the block on my birthday. The distance seemed much greater than I remember and I certainly felt out of practice. I've been doing my stretch exercises more regularly and feel well enough at the moment except for the molar problem.