Fasting BG 2021

[bigskygal]

112 this cloudy morning.

60° was the high yesterday, today's forecast is 54°/36° with small chance of rain in the afternoon.

So true Wally and add to that that people barrel down that road far faster than the speed limit. Mama and baby didn't have a chance...

[skb]

Most likely they got hit by a car. Maybe somebody will give them a decent burial.
We don't have raccoons here, but I wonder what is the equivalent species that we have. I think that a Civet Cat comes closest to it. I have seen and filmed a few in the forests but none in our surroundings. Except one time in the middle of the night I had seen something slither up a tree pretty far away from my fencing and I had thought that it looked like a civet.

[Grammabear]

151 this morning. 

I do miss being able to use the 'smart pump' as without the Dexcom sensors, the pump doesn't control anything except the insulin it delivers hourly.  Because Medicare pays for sensors and not test strips for those of us on an insulin pump, I am also without test strips.  I have a few test strips and soon I need to order some from online.  The supplier is still not giving me a shipping date.

[walkerwally1]

86 this morning.  It is going to be a lot cooler today with a high of 69° and windy.  t should be in the low 70s for the rest of the week. 
Racoons seem to be a lot less intimidated by people than most wildlife.  When I lived in the San Gabriel Valley I was in town but near the mountains and Racoons were often seen poking around searching for food.  They are fun to watch and sad to see them as rode kill. 

[bigskygal]

122 this cloudy morning.

64° was the high yesterday, today's forecast is 45°/28° again with a chance of rain. There wasn't any rain yesterday maybe today will be the same.

Kathy, sorry you are having so many problems with your supplies. Before I found decent strip prices locally for my back up meter I ordered from Diabetes Warehouse online. You might check the prices there for strips.

Yeah Wally, all the wildlife around here is very skittish around people except the raccoons, they come up on the porch and will look at me right through the slider. Last night 2 new grown coons came around and finished off the cat food. I guess mama was protecting her food source for baby and now that she's gone others are moving in.

[skb]

I do miss being able to use the 'smart pump' as without the Dexcom sensors, the pump doesn't control anything except the insulin it delivers hourly.  Because Medicare pays for sensors and not test strips for those of us on an insulin pump, I am also without test strips.  I have a few test strips and soon I need to order some from online.  The supplier is still not giving me a shipping date.

I hope that your issues with the company get resolved quickly and that you receive your new sensors soon. 

[Grammabear]

136 this cloudy morning.

Navigating the complicated waters and rules of Medicare is challenging at best and even more sore for insulin pumps and glucose sensors.  Giving Medicare credit though as these supplies are expensive and Medicare allows only 3 sensors per month.  If you have a sensor that fails, you are just plain out of luck.  Dexcom will replace a failed sensor but you always have to wait 3-5 business days before it arrives if then.  In the meantime you try to do the best you can.  The Tandem group on Facebook suggested yesterday several sources for cheaper prices on test strips.  I will look into that today.  I remember John had the same type of problems regarding supplies that I am having.  I do miss discussing these types of things with him.  I, too, miss Shanny. 

On a different note, I was speaking with a cousin who lives in Colorado which is experiencing drought conditions.  Colorado and Illinois both received .6 tenths of an inch of rain for the entire month of September.  In the past few days we've received more rain than the entire months of August and September put together.

[walkerwally1]

103 this morning.  We did hit 69° for a high yesterday and the wind was howling all day and night with gusts around 35-40 MPH.  It is supposed to be the same today but the wind is supposed to be less.  This morning it was 47° and we had the heater on for the first time since last Winter. 
Off in a bit for an Echo Cardiogram for my appointment next week with my cardiologist.  Doctors appointments, testing and some shopping seems to be the only reason I go out anymore.

[bigskygal]

132 this partly cloudy morning. No clue where that came from...

48° was the high yesterday, today's forecast is 48°/27°. It was 29° outside when I got up just before 9AM. I had the fireplace going all night and the portable heater on in the bathroom off the laundry room as there are no heater vents in there. This is Winter mode, hope it will warm up some overnights as my gas bill will go way up if I run the fireplace overnight too many nights. Too early for Winter temperatures!

[skb]

Navigating the complicated waters and rules of Medicare is challenging at best and even more sore for insulin pumps and glucose sensors.  Giving Medicare credit though as these supplies are expensive and Medicare allows only 3 sensors per month.  If you have a sensor that fails, you are just plain out of luck.  Dexcom will replace a failed sensor but you always have to wait 3-5 business days before it arrives if then.  In the meantime you try to do the best you can.   

Sorry for my ignorance but how long does a sensor last ? If they are giving you 3 per month, I assume that it should last at least 15 days. In which case building a back-up of spares doesn't seem very difficult.

[Grammabear]

100 this sunny morning.

Wally - I hope your cardiology visit goes well and he gives you good news.

Barbara - We still have our A/C unit going because the weather cannot seem to make up its mind.  One day it is super humid, the next day one needs a sweatshirt when going outside.

skb - Each Dexcom G6 sensor is hardwired to last 10 days.  Dexcom's official position is that they cannot be made to work longer...but in reality they can (if you perform a series of intricate maneuvers).  I only just learned about this trick in the past two days. People like me that use the Dexcom G6 sensors are totally dependent on outside sources to do their jobs:  1)  the Durable Medical Equipment company to send the sensors on time and 2) the Doctor's office to keep and send chart notes and records to the DME also in a timely fashion.  If one or both of these entities don't do what they are supposed to, then the person wearing the Dexcom sensor is just plain "out of luck".  In my case, both entities dropped the ball so to speak, so I have been without a sensor for almost 3 weeks.  Supposedly my shipments from the DME is being shipped tomorrow.  When it will arrive to my home is anyone's guess.  Dexcom G6 sensors cannot be purchased without a prescription from a Doctor, so there are just a lot of potential loopholes and Covid does not help.  Many businesses are hurting for dependable employees.

[walkerwally1]

97 this morning.  Another high of 69° yesterday but the wind  dis back down and the afternoon was quite nice.  It is supposed to start warming up now and we will be around 80° on the weekend. 
Thanks Grammabear, this is just a routine test my cardiologist has me do a couple of times a year as  follow up for the artificial heart valve.  My appointment with the cardiologist is next week and I don't expect any changes.
I don't envy the problems you have to deal with just to get supplies you are dependent on. 
I just watched the blast off taking William Shatner ( Captain Kirk ) into space.  He is 90 years old and I have to give him credit.  At 79 I don't think I would be ready for that.

[bigskygal]

112 this cloudy morning.

45° was the high yesterday, today's forecast depending on which site I believe is either 45°/18° or 45°/29°. I'd like for the second one to be right! It was 19° outside when I got up just before 9AM too cold, too early in the year!

Grammabear, I sure hope you get your supplies soon! I had no idea how problematic the supply system was for the pump devices!

[skb]

skb - Each Dexcom G6 sensor is hardwired to last 10 days.  Dexcom's official position is that they cannot be made to work longer...but in reality they can (if you perform a series of intricate maneuvers).  I only just learned about this trick in the past two days. People like me that use the Dexcom G6 sensors are totally dependent on outside sources to do their jobs:  1)  the Durable Medical Equipment company to send the sensors on time and 2) the Doctor's office to keep and send chart notes and records to the DME also in a timely fashion.  If one or both of these entities don't do what they are supposed to, then the person wearing the Dexcom sensor is just plain "out of luck".  In my case, both entities dropped the ball so to speak, so I have been without a sensor for almost 3 weeks.  Supposedly my shipments from the DME is being shipped tomorrow.  When it will arrive to my home is anyone's guess.  Dexcom G6 sensors cannot be purchased without a prescription from a Doctor, so there are just a lot of potential loopholes and Covid does not help.  Many businesses are hurting for dependable employees.

That is a lot of hard work. I'm glad that you have learnt some new tricks and will be able to avoid this situation in the future. Hope you get your supplies ASAP.

I just watched the blast off taking William Shatner ( Captain Kirk ) into space.  He is 90 years old and I have to give him credit.  At 79 I don't think I would be ready for that.

Very creditable indeed. He must have worked hard to maintain that fitness. Very well deserved, I should add.

[Grammabear]

121 this morning.

We have received rain off and on for about a week.  I don't know about the 'official' position on how much rain we got, but I do know it is only Oct 14 and we have already received more rain in Oct than we did the entire month of September.  Rain at this time of the growing season is really not all that helpful.  Some crops like soybeans are already being harvested.  Corn is still standing in the field getting wet.

The diabetic supply chain has always been difficult to traverse.  It is just getting harder now because of unemployment making it more profitable for people to stay home.  I can't speak for other places, but for here there are 'help wanted' signs just about every place that employs more than 5-10 people.