Tomorrow, we’re off to Nelspruit for Tom’s next eye appointment…Quiz Night update…

Tomorrow morning around 10:00, we’ll drive to Nelspruit again for Tom’s next ophthalmology appointment with Dr. Dean, scheduled for 12:15. We’ve been making that drive often lately, but this appointment is especially important. Dr. Dean will examine Tom’s eye and determine whether it has healed enough since his retinal detachment surgery a few weeks ago to proceed with removing the oil placed in his eye during the original surgery.

If the doctor determines that everything looks good, Tom will have the oil removal surgery tomorrow. This is an entirely different procedure from the retinal detachment surgery, and we are hoping it will be the next step toward restoring as much vision as possible in that eye. We certainly don’t take anything for granted when it comes to eye surgery, especially after everything Tom has been through over the past few weeks.

If the surgery takes place tomorrow, we will stay overnight at the same Marriott hotel in Nelspruit where we stayed when Tom had his first surgery. We know the hotel well now, which makes it a little easier. After all, when you’re dealing with medical appointments and surgery, it is nice to have one less thing to figure out.

Tom will return to Dr. Dean’s office on Friday morning for a follow-up appointment. If all goes well, we should be able to make the drive back to Marloth Park sometime after that appointment. Tom has already said that, assuming he is feeling well enough after the surgery, he plans to drive us back to the bush himself. Of course, how he feels after the procedure will determine what we do for the rest of the weekend. We aren’t making any firm plans right now. We will see how things go.

It has certainly been a challenging few weeks for Tom, and for both of us. Between his retinal detachment, the surgery, the many eye drops, the poor vision in that eye, and now the possibility of another operation, we are more than ready for some good news. We are hopeful that tomorrow’s appointment will bring exactly that.

Last night, however, we put all of that aside for a few hours and had a lot of fun at Quiz Night at Giraffe Pub and Grill. We joined forces with another team, Sanyati, for a total of six players. Our regular team of three is Tom, me, and Albert, and our team name is General Electric. For last night’s quiz merger, we came up with a temporary name by combining the two teams: San General.

We all got a good laugh out of that one.

When our family members arrive at the end of this month, they will join us for Quiz Night, and we will return to our regular team name, General Electric. We’ll see if Colleen and Paulette enjoy the game as much as we do.

As always, the questions were quite challenging. There were plenty of moments when we looked at one another with absolutely no idea what the answer could be. But this time, we did much better than last time. We came in fifth place instead of last, and we were all thrilled with the result. It may not sound like a major accomplishment to some people, but when you’re accustomed to finishing near the bottom, fifth place feels pretty darn good!

Today will be a quiet day at home. We need to pack a small overnight bag for our trip to Nelspruit, and otherwise we plan to take it easy. I am making a ketovore dinner tonight consisting of ground beef and scrambled eggs with onions, mushrooms, and cheese. It will be simple, filling, and just right for a night when neither of us feels like having anything complicated.

After dinner, we hope to spend some time on the veranda watching our wildlife visitors. One of the things we love most about being here in Marloth Park is that even an ordinary evening at home can turn into something special when the animals begin wandering into the garden. There are 11 zebras here now, including three moms with babies.

Once it gets dark, we’ll head indoors, stream a few shows, and hopefully get a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow will be another long day, and we want to be rested and ready for whatever the day brings.

Right now, we are taking things one appointment, one procedure, and one day at a time. Hopefully, tomorrow will bring another step forward in Tom’s recovery, and before long, we’ll be back in our usual routine here in the bush. Then again, our big dental appointments are upcoming later this month. It will be good to get all of this behind us.

Depending on the timing, we may not post for a day or two.

Be well.

Photo from ten years ago today, October 7, 2016: