Well, I’m a four-legged critter now! Yup, I’m on crutches. The docs want me to keep as much weight off this hip joint as possible, so I stopped by St. Vincent De Paul and found a pair for $5. Have you ever tried to get around on crutches? Especially when it entails holding one leg in the air? Did I mention that it hurts to hold the leg up in the air like that?
I figure that for all the stuff I’ve given SVDP over the years I could use some of their help now. I still have a bunch of stuff to go over there if I ever get it all pulled together.
But, I may just have to move the computer back into the bedroom. I’ve had a low-grade fever again today, and slept quite a bit this afternoon. And then there’s the “keep off my hip” thing going on.
~~~~~~~~~
Maybe you girls out there can help me. I’ve discussed the Beau lines on my finger nails before. The chemo has really weakened my nails. I keep them trimmed as short as I can and they still split, or maybe I should say “flake.” Is there anything that I can do, something that I can buy and apply, to help keep the nails from coming apart so easily?
~~~~~~~~~
I got my “You Don’t Have To Be Afraid Of Cancer Anymore” book today. Now where have I heard that theme before? :-P
There isn’t a lot in it specifically about esophageal cancer, but they do cover quite a lot of the rest of them. So it looks like I’ll have to get some reading in.
~~~~~~~~~
BTW, I figure if I commit myself, I’ll try harder to get something done. So, with Ben’s help, I plan on posting my PET Scans tomorrow so you can see that I’m not pulling someone’s leg through all this.
If I don’t get it posted, bitch at me about it, will you? “Bitch avoidance” is a good source of motivation, but you have to bitch occasionally to make it work!! But the carrot works much better than the stick most of the time!
~~~~~~~~~
BTW, I didn’t mention that yesterday I was awakened from a sound sleep about 9:00AM by a group of people at my front door. I got up, answered the door, and was about to point out my “No Soliciting” sticker on the door, preparing to do battle with a group of Jehovah’s Witness folks who don’t believe that I mean what I say when I post the sign, when I recognized my aunt and my mother in the group! I was too focused on the guy in front.
Turns out I was half right; the guy in front was my Aunt Bert’s husband, and I apologize that I can’t remember his name, but he is/was a pastor of a church out west of the Fox Valley.
So, I invited them in, ran, OK hobbled, off to the bedroom to put some clothes on, and came back for a chat. It was heart-warming that, in these days of high gas prices, they would travel all that way, stop by to pick up my mom, and then to drive up here to GB.
They invited me out to dinner, by then it was 11:00, but I still hadn’t taken all my meds yet. I had grabbed my pain meds right away. It’s amazing how quickly we become addicted to those darn things when we have severe pain on occasion.
I had to regretfully decline. Without being prepared ahead of time to go out, I can’t just grab my coat and go anymore. I have some meds that I need to take on an empty stomach. Then I have to wait an hour before there are meds that I have to take on a full stomach.
I don’t know if you remember my ‘Carafate fiasco;’ Carafate 4 times a day, nothing to eat two hours before and one hour after, meant that for 12 hours a day I couldn’t eat, OK, make that suck Ensure. And, as sick as I was, that was about all the time I was awake!
So, although things have gotten somewhat better, it isn’t by a whole heck of a lot. And I do notice when I miss my pain meds, now! Like today! Oh, well.
~~~~~~~~~
“H. Benjamin B.” That’s how they have me listed now at the Aurora Baycare Medical Center. Somehow, they’ve combined my name, H. Benjamin, along with my father’s name, Benjamin B., into one multi-purpose name. I suppose, if my father ever came back, that they want to have all their bases covered. It gives me shivers all over to know that they are on the ball, paying so much attention to the details of my medical treatment.
So, I’m off to wait for Ben to come home and to browse my new book. But one question I have on my mind is, how are you prepared for cancer if it should ever show up in your life? Most of what Conventional Medicine does is move money from your insurance company’s pockets to theirs and does little to prolong your life. Read the medical journals, or read the journalists who report on them. Then start taking the vitamins and herbals that are recommended to prevent cancer. You don’t want what I have, trust me!
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero mucho!
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Now I’m Depressed!
No, not THAT way! Let me explain, officer.
I went in Monday to see a doctor only to hear some not-so-good news. It means that I’m gonna hafta do some work. The news on Monday precipitated a visit with a doctor on Tuesday. The visit on Tuesday turned out to be unnecessary because the imagery that was obtained wasn’t the proper imagery needed for this doctor.
I pointed out that a CT scan was taken, but was told that a high-contrast media was necessary to see what they wanted to see. Today’s CT scan was supposed to take care of that.
So I did my research and found that my Power Port—I’m a Power Ranger now—was capable of accepting the pressures necessary to get all the contrast media into my body in a short period of time. The last time I had a CT w/ contrast I had media running down my arm from the IV. I didn’t want that happening again.
So, I mentioned it to the tech escorting me into the bowels of the department. “Oh, we don’t need to worry about that. We don’t need it for this scan.” WTF? I would have stopped but I was already hobbling as slow as I could, I mean as fast as I could. Oh, you know what I mean.
So, if they don’t need the contrast, why am I doing the scams all over again? I mean “scans.” Got bills that need paying, Aurora? I got an insurance company that’ll pay.
I have been joking lately that I’ve finally reached the group that includes the females, the aged, and the infirmed. I just thought that I’d never make all three categories at once, “Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it. Just shut up and get on the table.” Ladies, I do know how you feel, now.
I asked what the pictures showed since the x-ray taken on 3/19 showed an unremarkable hip joint. The tech, quite properly I suppose, stated that he just runs them and isn’t authorized to interpret them. But he did say that they did look just like hip joints. They looked at both of them. His attempt at humor was appreciated, although not by much. :-)
I mentioned after the CT scam was done, that I needed to see someone about the results of my last two PET scans. To make a long story short—now there’s something new—the tech took me upstairs to the 3rd floor and talked to them about what I didn’t get. Then he took me back down stairs to wait. There are good employees working there. To bad the system wasn’t as good.
Finally an employee came out and said that it would take 2 hours to get what I wanted and asked if I wanted to wait.
I asked if they could send the discs to me like they had on Wednesday. “Oh we can’t do that; these can only go to a doctor through the mail.” So, I get to waste fuel running over to the hospital tomorrow.
Can you see why I get confused?
Why can’t they have procedures in place, with a little check mark next to my name in my records, so they know that, after the doctor has had the chance to surprise me, they can somehow—again, following a procedure—deliver into my sweaty little hands the imagery that I’m looking for?
And it seems that the customer, I mean the patient, needs a champion to get things done. Dr. Patel got me the first two scans. I tried on my own this last time to get the imagery I wanted and you know what happened there. And today, I had a champion in the guise of a technician get me what I wanted, if I’m not being premature.
~~~~~~~~~
So I’ve been playing on the computer trying to get some things done. But I was so-o-o-o groggy. I trundled off to bed in the middle of the afternoon to see if I could reduce the effects of the meds. I fell asleep for a while, but I had strange dreams. I dreamt I was in pain.
Now, I want the imagery from the PET Scans so I can determine the cancerous areas so I can ignore the pain from those areas. That way anything new will be from those areas not associated with cancer. But it’s hard to do that having a 20 second look at a computer screen while the doctor is manipulating the image.
And does it matter if you have real pain or if the pain is from a dream state? It still hurts. And I’m not so sure that it wasn’t real pain that faded just before I woke up.
So, we’ll see how I sleep tonight.
~~~~~~~~~
I did order a book on Cancer. Now, Amy sent a book on cancer that has a lot of good info, but not what I’m looking for.
Have you answered the question what will you do if and when, God Forbid, you find out that you have cancer. What will you do?
I was already so sick, thinking that it was just gastritis, that I didn’t know what to do. In contrast, Bill Sardi comments, “Strikingly, when asked, most oncologists (cancer doctors) would not elect to undergo these same treatments if diagnosed with cancer.”
What to do, what to do? Since I’m on my own now, with the love and support of my family and you guys—Thanks, BTW—I need to figure out where to go from here. And, if I can figure out what you can do to keep yourself from getting into my situation, then at least I will have helped my fellow man as a bad example!! :-)
So, I’ve already downloaded the couple of .pdfs to read. I’ll print them out soon and get them digested. Then I’ll have a 500+ page book to read when it gets here.
~~~~~~~~~
Have I mentioned lately how much I appreciate my kids? When Ben made his comment about the barstools and I picked up on how good an idea that was, I didn’t realize how good that would make me feel. Although I didn’t get the counter done like I wanted, I did get a little further today, and every litter bit hurts, I mean every little bit helps!
So, as you can see, it can get kinda confusing when your world doesn’t make sense. And what’s worse is that when the people who have your life in their hands don’t make sense. Or at least, doesn’t communicate anything approaching sense.
Oh, and hey! Did I mention that I’m starting mouth sores again? Mouth sores? Without chemo?
I need to go in to the hospital tomorrow because I also need to see if I can pick up a couple of letters from one of the doctors that I’ve been waiting on now for a month? The nurses say that he’s having to do the work of 2-1/2 doctors. That makes me feel real confident about the level of care I got, too!!
Anyway, kunolunkwa, y te quiero. And if you happen to see my kids, make sure that YOU tell them that I love them, just in case I haven’t told them lately.
I went in Monday to see a doctor only to hear some not-so-good news. It means that I’m gonna hafta do some work. The news on Monday precipitated a visit with a doctor on Tuesday. The visit on Tuesday turned out to be unnecessary because the imagery that was obtained wasn’t the proper imagery needed for this doctor.
I pointed out that a CT scan was taken, but was told that a high-contrast media was necessary to see what they wanted to see. Today’s CT scan was supposed to take care of that.
So I did my research and found that my Power Port—I’m a Power Ranger now—was capable of accepting the pressures necessary to get all the contrast media into my body in a short period of time. The last time I had a CT w/ contrast I had media running down my arm from the IV. I didn’t want that happening again.
So, I mentioned it to the tech escorting me into the bowels of the department. “Oh, we don’t need to worry about that. We don’t need it for this scan.” WTF? I would have stopped but I was already hobbling as slow as I could, I mean as fast as I could. Oh, you know what I mean.
So, if they don’t need the contrast, why am I doing the scams all over again? I mean “scans.” Got bills that need paying, Aurora? I got an insurance company that’ll pay.
I have been joking lately that I’ve finally reached the group that includes the females, the aged, and the infirmed. I just thought that I’d never make all three categories at once, “Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it. Just shut up and get on the table.” Ladies, I do know how you feel, now.
I asked what the pictures showed since the x-ray taken on 3/19 showed an unremarkable hip joint. The tech, quite properly I suppose, stated that he just runs them and isn’t authorized to interpret them. But he did say that they did look just like hip joints. They looked at both of them. His attempt at humor was appreciated, although not by much. :-)
I mentioned after the CT scam was done, that I needed to see someone about the results of my last two PET scans. To make a long story short—now there’s something new—the tech took me upstairs to the 3rd floor and talked to them about what I didn’t get. Then he took me back down stairs to wait. There are good employees working there. To bad the system wasn’t as good.
Finally an employee came out and said that it would take 2 hours to get what I wanted and asked if I wanted to wait.
I asked if they could send the discs to me like they had on Wednesday. “Oh we can’t do that; these can only go to a doctor through the mail.” So, I get to waste fuel running over to the hospital tomorrow.
Can you see why I get confused?
Why can’t they have procedures in place, with a little check mark next to my name in my records, so they know that, after the doctor has had the chance to surprise me, they can somehow—again, following a procedure—deliver into my sweaty little hands the imagery that I’m looking for?
And it seems that the customer, I mean the patient, needs a champion to get things done. Dr. Patel got me the first two scans. I tried on my own this last time to get the imagery I wanted and you know what happened there. And today, I had a champion in the guise of a technician get me what I wanted, if I’m not being premature.
~~~~~~~~~
So I’ve been playing on the computer trying to get some things done. But I was so-o-o-o groggy. I trundled off to bed in the middle of the afternoon to see if I could reduce the effects of the meds. I fell asleep for a while, but I had strange dreams. I dreamt I was in pain.
Now, I want the imagery from the PET Scans so I can determine the cancerous areas so I can ignore the pain from those areas. That way anything new will be from those areas not associated with cancer. But it’s hard to do that having a 20 second look at a computer screen while the doctor is manipulating the image.
And does it matter if you have real pain or if the pain is from a dream state? It still hurts. And I’m not so sure that it wasn’t real pain that faded just before I woke up.
So, we’ll see how I sleep tonight.
~~~~~~~~~
I did order a book on Cancer. Now, Amy sent a book on cancer that has a lot of good info, but not what I’m looking for.
Have you answered the question what will you do if and when, God Forbid, you find out that you have cancer. What will you do?
I was already so sick, thinking that it was just gastritis, that I didn’t know what to do. In contrast, Bill Sardi comments, “Strikingly, when asked, most oncologists (cancer doctors) would not elect to undergo these same treatments if diagnosed with cancer.”
What to do, what to do? Since I’m on my own now, with the love and support of my family and you guys—Thanks, BTW—I need to figure out where to go from here. And, if I can figure out what you can do to keep yourself from getting into my situation, then at least I will have helped my fellow man as a bad example!! :-)
So, I’ve already downloaded the couple of .pdfs to read. I’ll print them out soon and get them digested. Then I’ll have a 500+ page book to read when it gets here.
~~~~~~~~~
Have I mentioned lately how much I appreciate my kids? When Ben made his comment about the barstools and I picked up on how good an idea that was, I didn’t realize how good that would make me feel. Although I didn’t get the counter done like I wanted, I did get a little further today, and every litter bit hurts, I mean every little bit helps!
So, as you can see, it can get kinda confusing when your world doesn’t make sense. And what’s worse is that when the people who have your life in their hands don’t make sense. Or at least, doesn’t communicate anything approaching sense.
Oh, and hey! Did I mention that I’m starting mouth sores again? Mouth sores? Without chemo?
I need to go in to the hospital tomorrow because I also need to see if I can pick up a couple of letters from one of the doctors that I’ve been waiting on now for a month? The nurses say that he’s having to do the work of 2-1/2 doctors. That makes me feel real confident about the level of care I got, too!!
Anyway, kunolunkwa, y te quiero. And if you happen to see my kids, make sure that YOU tell them that I love them, just in case I haven’t told them lately.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Well THAT Was Fun!
I had to go out this AM to take care of some paperwork, so while I was out I started looking for a barstool. Since I’ve gotten into drinking so heavily lately…. No, wait, that’s a different story.
I was talking with Ben yesterday, or last night, I don’t remember, and somehow we got on the subject of a barstool. I’m supposed to keep the weight off my left hip and I still want to get the dishes done and the like, so why not work from a barstool?
BTW, I got the X-ray results back from my PCP. The conclusion was that it was an “Unremarkable x-rays of the left hip.” OK, now I’m confused.
Anyway, while I was out I stopped at St. Vincent’s, Goodwill, and Wal Mart looking for a barstool and found nothing worth mentioning. I checked out The Men’s Mall and found a good stool, padded, made in Tennessee, for less than $13. I bought it, brought it home and started using it in the kitchen. Not only did I get my dishes done, but I also got most of the counter top clean, and especially the sink area. That stainless steel really needs the attention or it looks like crap!
So, do you think I’m felling better? If it weren’t for the hip, I’d be getting a lot more done. Tomorrow, I’ll get the rest of the counter tops and the stovetop done!!! Now THAT will take some effort! BTW, I use a product called Greased Lightning. It really seems to work well for me!
I’m just wondering how I’ll get the kitchen floor washed from my barstool. Any ideas?
While I was out, I found that the prices for some things are cheaper at TMM than they are at WM! So I picked up 4 small Corelle bowls. I’ve wanted some “rice bowls” for a long time now. I got used to them when an old girlfriend gave me a set. She was younger then. So was I!
Anyway, I figured now was the time to get them. I know, I know; I’ve been trying to get rid of things and actually discourage folks from getting me “things.” I’m already sorting through what I have so the kids won’t have to at some later point in time, down the road. But I just couldn’t resist. And they were cheaper than at Wal Mart! How’s that for justification?
I found out today that I can actually drop off to sleep, in the middle of the day, sitting upright in a kitchen chair and start dreaming right then and there! Aren’t drugs wonderful?
You’re not going to believe this, but the stink I made at the ABCMC on Tuesday morning about my imagery and records actually resulted in getting a CD of PET scans from 12/14 and 3/21 in the mail today. Are you shocked? Don’t be.
The first two PET Scans came to me on two different CDs for a reason; there are too many files to fit two scans on one CD. So when I received one CD today, I knew something was up. And I was right. The files that I wanted from the last scan on the 21rst weren’t there. There just wasn’t enough room on the CD. Did you miss that? The very important files that I wanted to peruse to understand what’s going on with me a little better weren’t there.
Do you know what I would call any company that provided me with service like this in the private sector? A former supplier.
I’ll have to see if I can’t get things straightened out tomorrow.
Well, it’s off to take some more drugs!! Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
I was talking with Ben yesterday, or last night, I don’t remember, and somehow we got on the subject of a barstool. I’m supposed to keep the weight off my left hip and I still want to get the dishes done and the like, so why not work from a barstool?
BTW, I got the X-ray results back from my PCP. The conclusion was that it was an “Unremarkable x-rays of the left hip.” OK, now I’m confused.
Anyway, while I was out I stopped at St. Vincent’s, Goodwill, and Wal Mart looking for a barstool and found nothing worth mentioning. I checked out The Men’s Mall and found a good stool, padded, made in Tennessee, for less than $13. I bought it, brought it home and started using it in the kitchen. Not only did I get my dishes done, but I also got most of the counter top clean, and especially the sink area. That stainless steel really needs the attention or it looks like crap!
So, do you think I’m felling better? If it weren’t for the hip, I’d be getting a lot more done. Tomorrow, I’ll get the rest of the counter tops and the stovetop done!!! Now THAT will take some effort! BTW, I use a product called Greased Lightning. It really seems to work well for me!
I’m just wondering how I’ll get the kitchen floor washed from my barstool. Any ideas?
While I was out, I found that the prices for some things are cheaper at TMM than they are at WM! So I picked up 4 small Corelle bowls. I’ve wanted some “rice bowls” for a long time now. I got used to them when an old girlfriend gave me a set. She was younger then. So was I!
Anyway, I figured now was the time to get them. I know, I know; I’ve been trying to get rid of things and actually discourage folks from getting me “things.” I’m already sorting through what I have so the kids won’t have to at some later point in time, down the road. But I just couldn’t resist. And they were cheaper than at Wal Mart! How’s that for justification?
I found out today that I can actually drop off to sleep, in the middle of the day, sitting upright in a kitchen chair and start dreaming right then and there! Aren’t drugs wonderful?
You’re not going to believe this, but the stink I made at the ABCMC on Tuesday morning about my imagery and records actually resulted in getting a CD of PET scans from 12/14 and 3/21 in the mail today. Are you shocked? Don’t be.
The first two PET Scans came to me on two different CDs for a reason; there are too many files to fit two scans on one CD. So when I received one CD today, I knew something was up. And I was right. The files that I wanted from the last scan on the 21rst weren’t there. There just wasn’t enough room on the CD. Did you miss that? The very important files that I wanted to peruse to understand what’s going on with me a little better weren’t there.
Do you know what I would call any company that provided me with service like this in the private sector? A former supplier.
I’ll have to see if I can’t get things straightened out tomorrow.
Well, it’s off to take some more drugs!! Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Not Much To Say Tonight, Again
Still recovering from the shock, I guess. And getting up early today for a consultation didn't help. And I'm still kinda wondering what for.
I reported to the doctor's office for my consult and didn't seem to get anywhere. I had to fill out all the paperwork all over again. If these folks were in charge of Homeland Security, I'd sleep a lot easier at night. They had my father listed on my account!! Then, come to find out, before they can talk to me enough to make any sense--although they did charge me for today's consult--they need to take a CT scan which has now been scheduled for Thursday.
I tried to get the imagery from my last 2 PET Scans and I'm sure that you can guess how that went. You can tell that they are socialists and not laissez-faire capitalists. I came home empty handed with some weak promises from a receptionist who honestly said that she didn't know what was up. But I do admire her company spirit for expecting me to believe her promises after overhearing her phone calls to the "people who know."
I'm told that the new pain meds, at the levels I have, will make me drowsy for a while, so I did take a short nap today but it didn't seem to help. I'm also running a low-grade fever again.
I called Nancy today 'cause she doesn't have Internet service and broke the news to her. While on the phone with her, my daughter called so I talked with Amy for a while as well.
I've been trying to get some paperwork done, but concentration does appear to be an issue. I've been complaining to the kids that my success rate with Sudoku has been suffering lately so I should have had somewhat of a clue to what is going on. But I guess I'll just have to see what I can do!
So, before I go back and write a few checks, I thought I'd keep you guys updated.
It's not as hard to write about this as you would think. Mostly because it's just about someone that I'm pretty familiar with, I tell myself. I've told Ben that he can be expecting jokes about the situation from me as I get used to it. But, at least, as Cuz says, I have options of what I can do.
You guys, on the other hand, don't have much in the way of options if you continue to keep in contact with me and my blog. And it's that "not being able to do anything" thing that makes it hard on you. I know that; I'm very aware of that. And I feel very sorry for you guys.
So, hang in there and I'm sure that we'll all get through this just fine!
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
I reported to the doctor's office for my consult and didn't seem to get anywhere. I had to fill out all the paperwork all over again. If these folks were in charge of Homeland Security, I'd sleep a lot easier at night. They had my father listed on my account!! Then, come to find out, before they can talk to me enough to make any sense--although they did charge me for today's consult--they need to take a CT scan which has now been scheduled for Thursday.
I tried to get the imagery from my last 2 PET Scans and I'm sure that you can guess how that went. You can tell that they are socialists and not laissez-faire capitalists. I came home empty handed with some weak promises from a receptionist who honestly said that she didn't know what was up. But I do admire her company spirit for expecting me to believe her promises after overhearing her phone calls to the "people who know."
I'm told that the new pain meds, at the levels I have, will make me drowsy for a while, so I did take a short nap today but it didn't seem to help. I'm also running a low-grade fever again.
I called Nancy today 'cause she doesn't have Internet service and broke the news to her. While on the phone with her, my daughter called so I talked with Amy for a while as well.
I've been trying to get some paperwork done, but concentration does appear to be an issue. I've been complaining to the kids that my success rate with Sudoku has been suffering lately so I should have had somewhat of a clue to what is going on. But I guess I'll just have to see what I can do!
So, before I go back and write a few checks, I thought I'd keep you guys updated.
It's not as hard to write about this as you would think. Mostly because it's just about someone that I'm pretty familiar with, I tell myself. I've told Ben that he can be expecting jokes about the situation from me as I get used to it. But, at least, as Cuz says, I have options of what I can do.
You guys, on the other hand, don't have much in the way of options if you continue to keep in contact with me and my blog. And it's that "not being able to do anything" thing that makes it hard on you. I know that; I'm very aware of that. And I feel very sorry for you guys.
So, hang in there and I'm sure that we'll all get through this just fine!
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Monday, March 24, 2008
Ain’t Gonna Say A Whole Lot…
…tonight; I’ll need some time to digest what I’ve heard today. I hope that you’re sitting down!
The cancer has spread big time! It’s all over my body. That hip joint issue—cancer. There is cancer in the liver and lungs and just all over. And the hip issue just started the last couple of weeks. Hmmmmm.
The times of three to six months were bandied about today.
I wondered what was up when Dr. Himmy “got sick.” And I wondered when Nurse Beth was invited to join in my consultation. I still don’t know why she was there, though.
But it looks like I’d better use up my gift cards pretty quick—I had a Caesar Salad tonight and it took them forever to run the gift cards through—before I expire! :-) And, again, I do appreciate the thought behind the gift cards.
But I did get some more Packer Candy, tonight. The current stuff and the NSAID just aren’t handling the pain. The doc wants me to limit using that hip joint. He has ordered me to ride the cane for right now, and using my handicap sticker. I will be even more groggy, and might even need to rent a wheelchair. I may even move the computer back into the bedroom. And I just got most of the paperwork off the floor in the office!!!!
I also have to see another doctor tomorrow bright and early so it looks like I can‘t get too reacquainted with my old friends Ron Bacardi and Jose Quervo tonight. This doc will tell me what they have to do to my joint to provide some “Quality of Life.”
I’ve been wondering what was going on because I’ve been making mistakes on my Sudoku puzzles lately. I got into one that said it was quick and easy and it took 45 minutes for me to finish. But even some of the old standbys have taken way too long to finish. I guess that’s in keeping with what’s going on though. My thought process has been messing up; I figured it was just me.
Before you get too upset, there are a couple of things that we’ll try. Amy, the doc said that he’d get the paperwork back to me very soon, maybe even tomorrow. So, we can get started on that vaccine.
I’d still like to get a second opinion at HLM. I was hoping that I’d be in better shape so that I could enjoy a trip to Florida, but it looks like that’s not gonna happen.
And BTW, just so’s you know, I’m not concerned about dying. It’s all a part of life. And ever since I did get run over by a spotting truck, I have been kinda wondering about it. One of these days I’ll tell you all about it.
So, I’m going to post this and make a few calls. Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
The cancer has spread big time! It’s all over my body. That hip joint issue—cancer. There is cancer in the liver and lungs and just all over. And the hip issue just started the last couple of weeks. Hmmmmm.
The times of three to six months were bandied about today.
I wondered what was up when Dr. Himmy “got sick.” And I wondered when Nurse Beth was invited to join in my consultation. I still don’t know why she was there, though.
But it looks like I’d better use up my gift cards pretty quick—I had a Caesar Salad tonight and it took them forever to run the gift cards through—before I expire! :-) And, again, I do appreciate the thought behind the gift cards.
But I did get some more Packer Candy, tonight. The current stuff and the NSAID just aren’t handling the pain. The doc wants me to limit using that hip joint. He has ordered me to ride the cane for right now, and using my handicap sticker. I will be even more groggy, and might even need to rent a wheelchair. I may even move the computer back into the bedroom. And I just got most of the paperwork off the floor in the office!!!!
I also have to see another doctor tomorrow bright and early so it looks like I can‘t get too reacquainted with my old friends Ron Bacardi and Jose Quervo tonight. This doc will tell me what they have to do to my joint to provide some “Quality of Life.”
I’ve been wondering what was going on because I’ve been making mistakes on my Sudoku puzzles lately. I got into one that said it was quick and easy and it took 45 minutes for me to finish. But even some of the old standbys have taken way too long to finish. I guess that’s in keeping with what’s going on though. My thought process has been messing up; I figured it was just me.
Before you get too upset, there are a couple of things that we’ll try. Amy, the doc said that he’d get the paperwork back to me very soon, maybe even tomorrow. So, we can get started on that vaccine.
I’d still like to get a second opinion at HLM. I was hoping that I’d be in better shape so that I could enjoy a trip to Florida, but it looks like that’s not gonna happen.
And BTW, just so’s you know, I’m not concerned about dying. It’s all a part of life. And ever since I did get run over by a spotting truck, I have been kinda wondering about it. One of these days I’ll tell you all about it.
So, I’m going to post this and make a few calls. Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Dr. "Himmy" Is Sick...
...and didn't even bother to come in today. So much for that appointment.
The PET Scan went well, as far as I know, on Friday. And that's the results that I'm expecting to discuss today. So it looks like I'll have to go in later, 'long about 5:00PM, for a consultation with another doctor.
So, if I don't get something posted quite as early as you'd like, that's why.
I just realized that whichever way the consult goes, tonight might be a good night to get reaquainteed with Demon Rum, or a little bit o' the Irish, or whatever. I'll have to think about that!
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
BTW, in which universe does "shall not be infringed" become interpreted to mean "reasonable restrictions?"
The PET Scan went well, as far as I know, on Friday. And that's the results that I'm expecting to discuss today. So it looks like I'll have to go in later, 'long about 5:00PM, for a consultation with another doctor.
So, if I don't get something posted quite as early as you'd like, that's why.
I just realized that whichever way the consult goes, tonight might be a good night to get reaquainteed with Demon Rum, or a little bit o' the Irish, or whatever. I'll have to think about that!
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
BTW, in which universe does "shall not be infringed" become interpreted to mean "reasonable restrictions?"
Sunday, March 23, 2008
And TWO March 23 'Hoppy' Birthdays!
These birthdays today are a bit different from the others. Both of the people I refer to today have long since passed away. Benjamin L., my grandfather, was born on this day back in 1893. His son, my father, Benjamin B., was born on this day in 1928.
I vaguely remember my grandfather; he died in 1955. I would have liked to learn more about him from my father, but he died six years later, in 1961.
Four generations: grandfather, father, son, and grandson; all born within four days of each other. All with Benjamin in their names. What's so special about the first day of summer, anyway?
I vaguely remember my grandfather; he died in 1955. I would have liked to learn more about him from my father, but he died six years later, in 1961.
Four generations: grandfather, father, son, and grandson; all born within four days of each other. All with Benjamin in their names. What's so special about the first day of summer, anyway?
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Good Saturday!
I’m tired again. But my hip joint isn’t hurting as much.
I slept late this morning; got up around 10:00. I was tired, so I went back to bed, which is kinda unusual for me, after Ben went off to work. I slept until around 6:00PM.
You don’t realize how much you use your hip joint until you injure it. Just to turn over in bed requires use of the joint. Using the joint causes pain, and pain causes an awakening from sleep. A return to sleep doesn’t occur instantaneously. So, too much of that and you don’t get much sleep at all.
However, being awake also means wanting to do things and 'doing things' exacerbates the inflamed joint tendons. Not a plan. So I figured I’d sleep.
When I awakened at 6:00 I wondered how I was ever going to get back to sleep tonight. But since I am already tired, I guess I won’t have any problems. It’s funny how that works.
Not much to say tonight ‘cause I wasn’t up much today to do anything.
So, Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
I slept late this morning; got up around 10:00. I was tired, so I went back to bed, which is kinda unusual for me, after Ben went off to work. I slept until around 6:00PM.
You don’t realize how much you use your hip joint until you injure it. Just to turn over in bed requires use of the joint. Using the joint causes pain, and pain causes an awakening from sleep. A return to sleep doesn’t occur instantaneously. So, too much of that and you don’t get much sleep at all.
However, being awake also means wanting to do things and 'doing things' exacerbates the inflamed joint tendons. Not a plan. So I figured I’d sleep.
When I awakened at 6:00 I wondered how I was ever going to get back to sleep tonight. But since I am already tired, I guess I won’t have any problems. It’s funny how that works.
Not much to say tonight ‘cause I wasn’t up much today to do anything.
So, Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
And TWO March 22 Birthdays!
Happy Birthday guys!
One of the birthdays belongs to someone in my family, someone very near and dear to me. And the other birthday belongs to a friend who read this blog.
So you can see how hard it woud be for me to forget my friends birthday. All that has to happen is that it get mentioned once, I document it somewhere, and it's mine, Mine, MINE forever more! Until I lose my memory, which has happened. :-) But the memory link is there!
Now, I know, I know, I'll see it when you visit my blog, so there's no need to respond. You know how I am about privacy, and so I won't put names to dates and verse vice-a! :-)
Just let it be said that I remembered, and wished you both the Happiest of Birthdays during this, the early days of a new spring!
Happy Birthday!
One of the birthdays belongs to someone in my family, someone very near and dear to me. And the other birthday belongs to a friend who read this blog.
So you can see how hard it woud be for me to forget my friends birthday. All that has to happen is that it get mentioned once, I document it somewhere, and it's mine, Mine, MINE forever more! Until I lose my memory, which has happened. :-) But the memory link is there!
Now, I know, I know, I'll see it when you visit my blog, so there's no need to respond. You know how I am about privacy, and so I won't put names to dates and verse vice-a! :-)
Just let it be said that I remembered, and wished you both the Happiest of Birthdays during this, the early days of a new spring!
Happy Birthday!
Friday, March 21, 2008
A March 21 Birthday!
Happy Birthday!
I was lying in the hot tub, soaking up as much heat as I could when I remembered something I had wanted to add to today’s post. I feel a lot better, BTW.
I have a birthday in the family today. Rather than broadcast whose and how old, etc. I figured I’d just post a birthday wish here. Although this person is getting rather old. :-D
I had spoken with my son about it before he had run off to work today, but it was this afternoon that I finally decided to say something about it here.
So, again, Happy Birthday, with love, and I wish you many, many more!
I was lying in the hot tub, soaking up as much heat as I could when I remembered something I had wanted to add to today’s post. I feel a lot better, BTW.
I have a birthday in the family today. Rather than broadcast whose and how old, etc. I figured I’d just post a birthday wish here. Although this person is getting rather old. :-D
I had spoken with my son about it before he had run off to work today, but it was this afternoon that I finally decided to say something about it here.
So, again, Happy Birthday, with love, and I wish you many, many more!
Real Moody Today For Some Reason
I was up after midnight but still got up at 6:00 for my 7:15 PET Scan appointment. So I’ve been tired all day. I even fell asleep on the table.
The procedure went well, other than falling asleep. The technician was rather talkative as he showed me back toward the familiar sections of the facility. Now, I don’t want to be reading too much into this, based on a sample size of 4 scans, but it may bode well for the results on Monday. He was talkative back when the diagnosis was “Dramatic Improvement.”
~~~~~~~~~
I stopped by Wendy’s on the way home to try and use up my gift cards. Thank you, BTW! You know who you are!!!!
I’m always complaining about the graduates of the government schools. The dropouts almost always seem to do better. Why is that? Even back when I was a kid there was a saying that A-students went on to teach, while B-students ended up working for C-students.
But you’d figure that an order taker/ assistant manager would know how to handle gift cards. I received two cards. The first had already been used so I know it worked and still has some credit on it; the other card hasn’t been touched at all. When I offered the first card I was told that the card had been declined. The same explanation came when I tried to use the second card. Looking at the receipts offered to me to prove that the card had been declined I read “Invalid user ID/pswd.”
What would that tell you? The user of that little card reader couldn’t input their ID and password correctly. Yet they made it sound like I tried to rip them off with using bogus cards. And this was the ranking person in the restaurant.
Imagine what would have happened if I had only those cards to pay for my order! Just one more reason I don't trust digital cash.
At least this time I got a decent amount of gravy. Although I am a fan, now, of the B&G, the breakfast burrito isn’t very good at all! The way the restaurant is run leaves something to be desired. I remember when Wendy's was a step up from the rest of the fast foods. Now, the food is barely any better, just more expensive.
~~~~~~~~~
I got home and lay down for a while. Then I got back up and drove over to mi amiga’s house and got to play with her daughter, Daniela, for a couple of hours. Her daddy was there and printed out a calendar with her photo, and a page of other photos, for me to have. No, he’s not proud at all! :-)
She is so cute, though. Six months old last week, standing up pretty well while hanging on to something, and getting ready to cut some teeth; I want one!!!
If I ever get my scanner working, I’ll put her pics in my computer. I did get a video of her making funny fussing noises for some reason. I need to get that into the computer; it wouldn’t work in my handheld. I wonder if it will work in my iPod.
Is it strange that I go to my friend’s house, play with her daughter, and spend most of the rest of my time talking to the proud papa? Well, they are latinos after all… No se!
~~~~~~~~~
Stopped to grab a couple of staples at the store, and could barely walk out afterward. Obviously, I had overstayed my pain and anti-inflammatory meds. Been that way the rest of the day.
So, is it the pain meds, the anti-inflammatory meds, the meds given for the PET Scan, and the lack of sleep responsible for my run down, drug out mood? Don’t know. Moods are funny that way.
I thought it funny when I ran across a Pisces bookmark I purchased in Ybor City, Florida, a year or two ago. One comment about the personality of a Pisces was “Self-pitying when low.” Haven’t checked lately but I must be at least a quart low about now.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
The procedure went well, other than falling asleep. The technician was rather talkative as he showed me back toward the familiar sections of the facility. Now, I don’t want to be reading too much into this, based on a sample size of 4 scans, but it may bode well for the results on Monday. He was talkative back when the diagnosis was “Dramatic Improvement.”
~~~~~~~~~
I stopped by Wendy’s on the way home to try and use up my gift cards. Thank you, BTW! You know who you are!!!!
I’m always complaining about the graduates of the government schools. The dropouts almost always seem to do better. Why is that? Even back when I was a kid there was a saying that A-students went on to teach, while B-students ended up working for C-students.
But you’d figure that an order taker/ assistant manager would know how to handle gift cards. I received two cards. The first had already been used so I know it worked and still has some credit on it; the other card hasn’t been touched at all. When I offered the first card I was told that the card had been declined. The same explanation came when I tried to use the second card. Looking at the receipts offered to me to prove that the card had been declined I read “Invalid user ID/pswd.”
What would that tell you? The user of that little card reader couldn’t input their ID and password correctly. Yet they made it sound like I tried to rip them off with using bogus cards. And this was the ranking person in the restaurant.
Imagine what would have happened if I had only those cards to pay for my order! Just one more reason I don't trust digital cash.
At least this time I got a decent amount of gravy. Although I am a fan, now, of the B&G, the breakfast burrito isn’t very good at all! The way the restaurant is run leaves something to be desired. I remember when Wendy's was a step up from the rest of the fast foods. Now, the food is barely any better, just more expensive.
~~~~~~~~~
I got home and lay down for a while. Then I got back up and drove over to mi amiga’s house and got to play with her daughter, Daniela, for a couple of hours. Her daddy was there and printed out a calendar with her photo, and a page of other photos, for me to have. No, he’s not proud at all! :-)
She is so cute, though. Six months old last week, standing up pretty well while hanging on to something, and getting ready to cut some teeth; I want one!!!
If I ever get my scanner working, I’ll put her pics in my computer. I did get a video of her making funny fussing noises for some reason. I need to get that into the computer; it wouldn’t work in my handheld. I wonder if it will work in my iPod.
Is it strange that I go to my friend’s house, play with her daughter, and spend most of the rest of my time talking to the proud papa? Well, they are latinos after all… No se!
~~~~~~~~~
Stopped to grab a couple of staples at the store, and could barely walk out afterward. Obviously, I had overstayed my pain and anti-inflammatory meds. Been that way the rest of the day.
So, is it the pain meds, the anti-inflammatory meds, the meds given for the PET Scan, and the lack of sleep responsible for my run down, drug out mood? Don’t know. Moods are funny that way.
I thought it funny when I ran across a Pisces bookmark I purchased in Ybor City, Florida, a year or two ago. One comment about the personality of a Pisces was “Self-pitying when low.” Haven’t checked lately but I must be at least a quart low about now.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Which Would You Choose?
I had to make an interesting choice today: morphine or Mobic, an NSAID. I went with the NSAID.
[sarcasm on]The left hip joint has been feeling just wonderful today. [sarcasm off] So I called the Clinic this morning to schedule an appointment to see the doctor. Luckily, they could get me in this afternoon.
So, if you called this afternoon and I didn’t answer, that’s probably where I was. And I am suffering some cancer drug hearing impairment, as it turns out. Several times when I should have heard the phone, I only noticed the vibrating feature.
Evidence so far would indicate that it isn’t the joint itself, but the tendons, that are causing the pain. They took an x-ray today to see what they can see. If that doesn’t work it sounds like MRI time. I can’t recall having one of those. So for now my choices were to live with stronger pain meds, or go with an anti-inflammatory that, combined with my Warfarin, can cause me to bleed internally.
Why isn’t it ever easy? Then again, for me, maybe it is. It could be a lot worse.
That’s one of the things that I discussed with Nurse Diane today. She’s the one who kept calling me “Sir” during several phone conversations that we’ve had and who is undergoing cancer treatment. She was encouraged to hear that I’ve had some of the same symptoms that she has been having. And we discussed how hard it is to get people to understand and believe us sometimes about what we are going through.
She called another nurse over, saying, “Come over here. Ben’s been having the same symptoms that I complain about. I’m NOT crazy!” So we three discussed symptoms for a while.
We also discussed the problems that the people in our lives have watching us in sickness and in pain and how they feel so helpless to do anything that can ease our suffering. I wanted her to know the situation from the other point of view, too. I can’t imagine being married and having to go through all the pain I would be causing my partner. It’s bad enough having to have my kids go through it. But then again, I am a pretty big softy!
~~~~~~~~~
I got to use my handicapped parking permit today!! When I stopped by Shopko, all the normal spots nearby were filled, so I broke down and used the permit. I didn’t at the Clinic; there were other spots near enough that I didn’t need to. But then again, they made me walk all over at the Clinic. Maybe I should have parked closer.
Walking exacerbates the problem, the pain. My attempts at exercise have probably contributed to the inflammation. So, I really should be limiting the amount of walking I do. Good Luck with that!
You know me; I’ll keep you updated! Speaking of updated, I kinda updated the Sticky Schedule recently if you hadn't noticed.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
[sarcasm on]The left hip joint has been feeling just wonderful today. [sarcasm off] So I called the Clinic this morning to schedule an appointment to see the doctor. Luckily, they could get me in this afternoon.
So, if you called this afternoon and I didn’t answer, that’s probably where I was. And I am suffering some cancer drug hearing impairment, as it turns out. Several times when I should have heard the phone, I only noticed the vibrating feature.
Evidence so far would indicate that it isn’t the joint itself, but the tendons, that are causing the pain. They took an x-ray today to see what they can see. If that doesn’t work it sounds like MRI time. I can’t recall having one of those. So for now my choices were to live with stronger pain meds, or go with an anti-inflammatory that, combined with my Warfarin, can cause me to bleed internally.
Why isn’t it ever easy? Then again, for me, maybe it is. It could be a lot worse.
That’s one of the things that I discussed with Nurse Diane today. She’s the one who kept calling me “Sir” during several phone conversations that we’ve had and who is undergoing cancer treatment. She was encouraged to hear that I’ve had some of the same symptoms that she has been having. And we discussed how hard it is to get people to understand and believe us sometimes about what we are going through.
She called another nurse over, saying, “Come over here. Ben’s been having the same symptoms that I complain about. I’m NOT crazy!” So we three discussed symptoms for a while.
We also discussed the problems that the people in our lives have watching us in sickness and in pain and how they feel so helpless to do anything that can ease our suffering. I wanted her to know the situation from the other point of view, too. I can’t imagine being married and having to go through all the pain I would be causing my partner. It’s bad enough having to have my kids go through it. But then again, I am a pretty big softy!
~~~~~~~~~
I got to use my handicapped parking permit today!! When I stopped by Shopko, all the normal spots nearby were filled, so I broke down and used the permit. I didn’t at the Clinic; there were other spots near enough that I didn’t need to. But then again, they made me walk all over at the Clinic. Maybe I should have parked closer.
Walking exacerbates the problem, the pain. My attempts at exercise have probably contributed to the inflammation. So, I really should be limiting the amount of walking I do. Good Luck with that!
You know me; I’ll keep you updated! Speaking of updated, I kinda updated the Sticky Schedule recently if you hadn't noticed.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
You Could Knock Me Over With A Feather
No, there isn't any good news. Quite the opposite!
I think I need to call a doctor. Remember that I mentioned my old "getting run over by a spotting truck" injury to my left hip joint from 3 years and 11 months ago tomorrow was acting up? Well, now it's acting up big-time! It wouldn't take too big a feather to knock me over right now.
I guess that I just can't get enough of that pain thing. So, I may have to go back to the doctor and be put on aspirin or something.
I have been exercising as much as I can and my calfs (calves?) are showing it. I'm starting to get my 'hard body' back! OK, so maybe there is some good news after all. Now I need my arms to tighten up so they can support my weight when I have to use my cane. BTW, thanks Kris for the cane; it has come in handy quite a few times.
Maybe I'll get to use my temporary handicap parking permit after all!
Don't have much to tell tonight. There's a lot going on, but we need to make more sense out of the situation before I can say anything. Let's just say that Type Number Three has proven to be true to form. The question is "what to do; what to do."
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
I think I need to call a doctor. Remember that I mentioned my old "getting run over by a spotting truck" injury to my left hip joint from 3 years and 11 months ago tomorrow was acting up? Well, now it's acting up big-time! It wouldn't take too big a feather to knock me over right now.
I guess that I just can't get enough of that pain thing. So, I may have to go back to the doctor and be put on aspirin or something.
I have been exercising as much as I can and my calfs (calves?) are showing it. I'm starting to get my 'hard body' back! OK, so maybe there is some good news after all. Now I need my arms to tighten up so they can support my weight when I have to use my cane. BTW, thanks Kris for the cane; it has come in handy quite a few times.
Maybe I'll get to use my temporary handicap parking permit after all!
Don't have much to tell tonight. There's a lot going on, but we need to make more sense out of the situation before I can say anything. Let's just say that Type Number Three has proven to be true to form. The question is "what to do; what to do."
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Om Mani Padme Hum
I’m cool; I’m cool. It just takes a while to get over it, that’s all. Not that I can ever get over it. But at some point you have to just write it off, let it go, and get on with life.
This past week hasn’t been a particularly good one. I’m used to the ‘being sick’ part, and as ‘being sick’ goes, this last week has been pretty good. I’m starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. Then again, being the pessimist that I am because I like being right, I realize that the light at the end of the tunnel may just well be a train! But I keep hoping.
This past week has been pretty bad due to the actions of my fellow humans. I’d like to describe just one incident from last week, if I may.
Like a lot of people, I needed to obtain a loan to purchase my current vehicle. At the same time, I took out a Death and Disability insurance policy on the loan. If I die, the kids get my vehicle free and clear. It’s while I’m disabled that things get sticky. Insurance companies don’t like to pay off on policies.
Late last month I got a nasty letter saying, “Since you haven’t seen fit to fill out the form we sent you and return it to us, we’re going to terminate your policy in two weeks.” I called and responded that I’d be happy to fill out their form; they just have to send me one! I haven’t received any mail from them until the nasty-gram. They said they’d send another one out right away.
Ten days later I was still waiting for the USPS to “deliver de letter, de sooner de better!” (It still hasn’t gotten here. I mean Minneapolis isn’t THAT far away.)
So, another call to the insurance company last Thursday resulted in “We’re so sorry. It went out the same day we last talked, blah, blah, blah!”
It makes you wonder why they didn’t send a form along with the nasty-gram, doesn’t it?
So, rather than have them mail another and have the USPS use the letter to toss under the wheels so the mail truck can get out of another snow drift—OK, what’s your guess where it went?—I asked if they could fax the form directly to my doctor. They said “Sure, we can do that. We’ll do it right now. What’s the fax number?” So I gave them the fax number and off we went, I thought!
I needed to let the doctor’s office know whom the fax was coming for, and what I needed from them. It just happened to be 8 minutes after 5:00PM but I called the doctor’s office anyway. I got the after-hours computerized answering machine. I stayed on the line to talk to a person and requested that I be transferred to my doctor’s office’s voice mail. “We can’t do that. You’ll have to call back during office hours in the morning. This line is just for emergencies.” That’s why it took so long to get through the computerized menu!
So I set my alarm and called back bright and early. Of course I got the old “Due to the high volume of calls it may take until Doomsday for us to answer the phone but we will take you in the order in which you called. BTW, we may monitor this call for Quality Assurance purposes.” I wish they would have.
After about a 10-minute wait I finally got a human, and I’m being kind. There’s another word lurking in the back of my thoughts even today, three days later.
I asked for my doctor’s office and the, the, ah….woman… said that they don’t do it that way. I have to leave a message and they may return my call. Then she wanted my name so she could call up my record and leave my message and that’s when all heck broke loose. I tried to explain that I don’t use my first name, just my first initial and that I wasn’t sure how they had it in the computer.
She wouldn’t accept that. I had to give her my “legal first name.” I tried to tell her that even if I gave her that name, it wouldn’t be in the computer because I DON’T USE THAT NAME and the account wasn’t set up with it. But she wouldn’t listen. She said, quite snottily, “You are just wasting our time if you don’t give me that name.”
That’s when I lost it. I hung up on the, ah, the…woman!
I got dressed and drove to my doctor's office so I could actually talk to a human. I handed the receptionist, Bonnie, my driver’s license and said, “That’s my name. I need to know if a fax was received last night regarding my disability status.”
Bonnie looked at me kinda strange, and said that she’d check. She came back and said that nothing had been received.
Even when I give them the fax number, the insurance company couldn’t deliver the fax. Or maybe AT&T was on strike. (OK, what’s your explanation?)
So I called the insurance company and asked if the form had been faxed. “Of course it was.”
“Well that’s funny because I’m here at my doctor’s office and they have no fax to back up your statement.”
“Ah, ah, ah….”
“Do you think that it is possible that you could fax it here while I wait?”
“Ah, yeah, sure, we can do that? What’s the fax number?”
“Well just take a look at the fax transmission verification report.”
“Well, I, uh, I don’t seem to have one in your file.”
“Fine, just let me ask the receptionist.”
So, I got the insurance company to finally get the form to me through the use of my doctor’s office. The girls, excuse me, NO! Don’t excuse me! I’m not calling them by the same description that I gave that other, that, …woman! The girls in the office did a wonderful job and got the darned form filled out and back to me very quickly.
I filled the rest of it out, photocopied it, had it faxed to the insurance company, and mailed them a copy as well. I’m sure time will tell that I should have sent it registered mail, but by then I was so pissed I was seeing red, hence the title of this screed, Om Mani Padme Hum.
So, how was your day? LOL
Would it surprise you to know that was probably the least of my worries last week? You may eventually hear about more as time progresses. And it gets weirder.
~~~~~~~~~
As long as I was out I stopped by Wendy’s and tried their biscuits and gravy again, eating it there instead of taking it home and eating it hours or days later. It’s still pretty good! A little short on portions, but still good!!!
~~~~~~~~~
I received another photo of a little angel and her mother. I think it’s going to have to go up on my screensaver.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen mom. I probably saw her the last time at her mom’s wedding, when we were all a little younger. But I’ve been getting pics of the angel fairly regularly, thanks to grandma!
I would post the photo but I don’t have permissions, so I’m going to cheat just a bit. I ran it over to a photo-editing program and cropped everything but the eyes of the angel. You have to see these eyes. And I’m wondering how they will turn out in this format, so let me finish this up and post it.
~~~~~~~~~
BTW, I keep posting the link to the Fully Informed Jury Association via a quote by L. Neil Smith. I just might have to stop. If you know your jury rights, would it surprise you to know that the judge and prosecuting attorney don’t want you on the jury? Read the adventures of one juror.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
This past week hasn’t been a particularly good one. I’m used to the ‘being sick’ part, and as ‘being sick’ goes, this last week has been pretty good. I’m starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. Then again, being the pessimist that I am because I like being right, I realize that the light at the end of the tunnel may just well be a train! But I keep hoping.
This past week has been pretty bad due to the actions of my fellow humans. I’d like to describe just one incident from last week, if I may.
Like a lot of people, I needed to obtain a loan to purchase my current vehicle. At the same time, I took out a Death and Disability insurance policy on the loan. If I die, the kids get my vehicle free and clear. It’s while I’m disabled that things get sticky. Insurance companies don’t like to pay off on policies.
Late last month I got a nasty letter saying, “Since you haven’t seen fit to fill out the form we sent you and return it to us, we’re going to terminate your policy in two weeks.” I called and responded that I’d be happy to fill out their form; they just have to send me one! I haven’t received any mail from them until the nasty-gram. They said they’d send another one out right away.
Ten days later I was still waiting for the USPS to “deliver de letter, de sooner de better!” (It still hasn’t gotten here. I mean Minneapolis isn’t THAT far away.)
So, another call to the insurance company last Thursday resulted in “We’re so sorry. It went out the same day we last talked, blah, blah, blah!”
It makes you wonder why they didn’t send a form along with the nasty-gram, doesn’t it?
So, rather than have them mail another and have the USPS use the letter to toss under the wheels so the mail truck can get out of another snow drift—OK, what’s your guess where it went?—I asked if they could fax the form directly to my doctor. They said “Sure, we can do that. We’ll do it right now. What’s the fax number?” So I gave them the fax number and off we went, I thought!
I needed to let the doctor’s office know whom the fax was coming for, and what I needed from them. It just happened to be 8 minutes after 5:00PM but I called the doctor’s office anyway. I got the after-hours computerized answering machine. I stayed on the line to talk to a person and requested that I be transferred to my doctor’s office’s voice mail. “We can’t do that. You’ll have to call back during office hours in the morning. This line is just for emergencies.” That’s why it took so long to get through the computerized menu!
So I set my alarm and called back bright and early. Of course I got the old “Due to the high volume of calls it may take until Doomsday for us to answer the phone but we will take you in the order in which you called. BTW, we may monitor this call for Quality Assurance purposes.” I wish they would have.
After about a 10-minute wait I finally got a human, and I’m being kind. There’s another word lurking in the back of my thoughts even today, three days later.
I asked for my doctor’s office and the, the, ah….woman… said that they don’t do it that way. I have to leave a message and they may return my call. Then she wanted my name so she could call up my record and leave my message and that’s when all heck broke loose. I tried to explain that I don’t use my first name, just my first initial and that I wasn’t sure how they had it in the computer.
She wouldn’t accept that. I had to give her my “legal first name.” I tried to tell her that even if I gave her that name, it wouldn’t be in the computer because I DON’T USE THAT NAME and the account wasn’t set up with it. But she wouldn’t listen. She said, quite snottily, “You are just wasting our time if you don’t give me that name.”
That’s when I lost it. I hung up on the, ah, the…woman!
I got dressed and drove to my doctor's office so I could actually talk to a human. I handed the receptionist, Bonnie, my driver’s license and said, “That’s my name. I need to know if a fax was received last night regarding my disability status.”
Bonnie looked at me kinda strange, and said that she’d check. She came back and said that nothing had been received.
Even when I give them the fax number, the insurance company couldn’t deliver the fax. Or maybe AT&T was on strike. (OK, what’s your explanation?)
So I called the insurance company and asked if the form had been faxed. “Of course it was.”
“Well that’s funny because I’m here at my doctor’s office and they have no fax to back up your statement.”
“Ah, ah, ah….”
“Do you think that it is possible that you could fax it here while I wait?”
“Ah, yeah, sure, we can do that? What’s the fax number?”
“Well just take a look at the fax transmission verification report.”
“Well, I, uh, I don’t seem to have one in your file.”
“Fine, just let me ask the receptionist.”
So, I got the insurance company to finally get the form to me through the use of my doctor’s office. The girls, excuse me, NO! Don’t excuse me! I’m not calling them by the same description that I gave that other, that, …woman! The girls in the office did a wonderful job and got the darned form filled out and back to me very quickly.
I filled the rest of it out, photocopied it, had it faxed to the insurance company, and mailed them a copy as well. I’m sure time will tell that I should have sent it registered mail, but by then I was so pissed I was seeing red, hence the title of this screed, Om Mani Padme Hum.
So, how was your day? LOL
Would it surprise you to know that was probably the least of my worries last week? You may eventually hear about more as time progresses. And it gets weirder.
~~~~~~~~~
As long as I was out I stopped by Wendy’s and tried their biscuits and gravy again, eating it there instead of taking it home and eating it hours or days later. It’s still pretty good! A little short on portions, but still good!!!
~~~~~~~~~
I received another photo of a little angel and her mother. I think it’s going to have to go up on my screensaver.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen mom. I probably saw her the last time at her mom’s wedding, when we were all a little younger. But I’ve been getting pics of the angel fairly regularly, thanks to grandma!
I would post the photo but I don’t have permissions, so I’m going to cheat just a bit. I ran it over to a photo-editing program and cropped everything but the eyes of the angel. You have to see these eyes. And I’m wondering how they will turn out in this format, so let me finish this up and post it.~~~~~~~~~
BTW, I keep posting the link to the Fully Informed Jury Association via a quote by L. Neil Smith. I just might have to stop. If you know your jury rights, would it surprise you to know that the judge and prosecuting attorney don’t want you on the jury? Read the adventures of one juror.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Saturday, March 15, 2008
The Old Ben!
That’s how I feel today, like the old Ben. Now, I don’t mean the Ben from two years ago,; I feel like the Ben from twenty years in the future!
Remember back when I had pain in the joints and I asked one of the Doctors of the Day if there were something I could take for the joint pain and he kicked me off the PC altogether? That’s how I feel now.
Three years, ten months, three weeks, and three days ago I was crossing a parking lot and I had a spotting truck run into me, knocking me unconscious and putting me in Emergency. My left hip joint was affected at that time. I had a big ol’ bruise on my left thigh. I had various aches and pains for several weeks.
It’s that same joint that is causing me fits right now. At the same time, other joints in my body are aching as well. It’s called a flare. When one hurts, they all hurt. Before, I found that I was low on magnesium. Supplementing my magnesium helped immensely with the joint pain. Right now, I’m not so sure. It’s not working very well.
When this is done, I'm going to soak in a hot bath!
~~~~~~~~~
There are thing in my life that I would like to improve. I hope that you have similar goals. Many things I’m pretty good at, depending who you ask, but there is one thing in particular that I would like to improve.
I got some paperwork recently from one of my doctors. Included in with all the documents was a hand-written note. You have to understand; I’ve talked to this woman several times on the phone, three times or so in person, and have seen her husband twice.
But she touched my heart with her note. It was simple:
This woman is going through similar issues to those I face. When I’ve seen her, she’s always been in good shape, while she’s has gotten to see me in a variety of conditions. When we’ve talked, I’ve always tried to pass on the things that I’ve found that helped me.
Now, knowing what I know, with one simple note, she brightened my day immensely.
Some day, I would hope to be able to touch people the same way that she has touched me, and made me feel much better.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Remember back when I had pain in the joints and I asked one of the Doctors of the Day if there were something I could take for the joint pain and he kicked me off the PC altogether? That’s how I feel now.
Three years, ten months, three weeks, and three days ago I was crossing a parking lot and I had a spotting truck run into me, knocking me unconscious and putting me in Emergency. My left hip joint was affected at that time. I had a big ol’ bruise on my left thigh. I had various aches and pains for several weeks.
It’s that same joint that is causing me fits right now. At the same time, other joints in my body are aching as well. It’s called a flare. When one hurts, they all hurt. Before, I found that I was low on magnesium. Supplementing my magnesium helped immensely with the joint pain. Right now, I’m not so sure. It’s not working very well.
When this is done, I'm going to soak in a hot bath!
~~~~~~~~~
There are thing in my life that I would like to improve. I hope that you have similar goals. Many things I’m pretty good at, depending who you ask, but there is one thing in particular that I would like to improve.
I got some paperwork recently from one of my doctors. Included in with all the documents was a hand-written note. You have to understand; I’ve talked to this woman several times on the phone, three times or so in person, and have seen her husband twice.
But she touched my heart with her note. It was simple:
Dear Ben;
I hope this note finds you doing well. You are such
a strong person. I think about you a lot. God Bless You and look
after you.
You are in my thoughts!
This woman is going through similar issues to those I face. When I’ve seen her, she’s always been in good shape, while she’s has gotten to see me in a variety of conditions. When we’ve talked, I’ve always tried to pass on the things that I’ve found that helped me.
Now, knowing what I know, with one simple note, she brightened my day immensely.
Some day, I would hope to be able to touch people the same way that she has touched me, and made me feel much better.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero!
Friday, March 14, 2008
Let's Just Pass...
...on the blog tonight. I did have one thing go right today, and I'm amazed at the effort it took to get it done. You aren't going to believe what you have to do when dealing with insurance companies. Then again, maybe you will.
I've done more today than I've done in months, so I must be getting better. But now I'm tired, slightly fatigued, and slightly out of breath. I'm not really out of breath, but that's doctorspeak for what happens to me when I do overexert a bit.
So, I'm going to sit back, watch a couple of episodes of Jericho and talk to Ben when he gets home. Besides, I made two posts yesterday.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero.
I've done more today than I've done in months, so I must be getting better. But now I'm tired, slightly fatigued, and slightly out of breath. I'm not really out of breath, but that's doctorspeak for what happens to me when I do overexert a bit.
So, I'm going to sit back, watch a couple of episodes of Jericho and talk to Ben when he gets home. Besides, I made two posts yesterday.
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Let Me Say This About That
If you haven’t read the other post for today, this might not make too much sense. If you have, as you can tell, I haven’t let it go yet.
Back in the early ‘70’s, a guy by the name of Robert J. Ringer wrote a book called Winning Through Intimidation. Now, it isn’t really about intimidating people, but rather how not to be intimidated.
But I read his book a long time ago. My paperback is pretty ratty-looking today. What impressed me the most, what I “took away” from the book was his Three Type Theory as illustrated by a card game. To quote from the book:
Later in the book, I wasn’t able to find his quote, Ringer does say that there is a Type Number Four who says that he isn’t after your chips, and really means it, but the number of people like that are so small that they are statistically insignificant.
Having read this so many years ago, I am still amazed how often I forget this advice. But, it forms the basis for the fact that I am loath to accept any charity because it has the nasty habit of turning on you. As Heinlein pointed out, “There Ain’t No Such Thing As A Free Lunch!” (TANSTAAFL)
Months ago I was assured that an act of largesse on the part of someone was quite valid and that I wouldn’t have to worry—I even commented on it in a post here—only to have that act rescinded today, and now I’m back to having to worry.
I’d like to believe that it was a case of Type Number Three in action. I’d hate to think that it was a case of Type Number Two. But it is still small consolation. And I do take it personally.
But I guess I should be thankful. This frees me from any gratitude that I may have held toward this person and the people they represent.
Back in the early ‘70’s, a guy by the name of Robert J. Ringer wrote a book called Winning Through Intimidation. Now, it isn’t really about intimidating people, but rather how not to be intimidated.
But I read his book a long time ago. My paperback is pretty ratty-looking today. What impressed me the most, what I “took away” from the book was his Three Type Theory as illustrated by a card game. To quote from the book:
What this theory states is that there are only three types of people who exist
in the business world (again, with the one exception being a person who stands
to directly benefit as a result of your earning, and receiving, income), as
follows:
Type Number One:
This type lets you know from
the outset—either through his words or actions, or both—that he’s out to get all
of your chips. He then follows through by attempting to do just
that.
Type Number Two:
This type assures you that he’s
not interested in getting your chips, and he usually infers that he wants to see
you get everything “that’s coming to you.” He then follows through, just
like Type Number One, and attempts to grab all of your chips
anyway.
Type Number Three:
This type also assures you
that he’s not interested in getting any of your chips, but, unlike Type Number
Two, he sincerely means it. That, however, is where the difference ends;
due to any one of a number of reasons—ranging from his own bungling to his
personal standards for rationalizing what’s right and wrong—he, like Types
Number One and Two, still ends up trying to grab your chips.
Later in the book, I wasn’t able to find his quote, Ringer does say that there is a Type Number Four who says that he isn’t after your chips, and really means it, but the number of people like that are so small that they are statistically insignificant.
Having read this so many years ago, I am still amazed how often I forget this advice. But, it forms the basis for the fact that I am loath to accept any charity because it has the nasty habit of turning on you. As Heinlein pointed out, “There Ain’t No Such Thing As A Free Lunch!” (TANSTAAFL)
Months ago I was assured that an act of largesse on the part of someone was quite valid and that I wouldn’t have to worry—I even commented on it in a post here—only to have that act rescinded today, and now I’m back to having to worry.
I’d like to believe that it was a case of Type Number Three in action. I’d hate to think that it was a case of Type Number Two. But it is still small consolation. And I do take it personally.
But I guess I should be thankful. This frees me from any gratitude that I may have held toward this person and the people they represent.
You Wanna Talk Stress?
OK, my stress level has jumped considerably. Between the hospital, work, and insurance companies (plural), they have really put the screws to me this week. I thought I was supposed to keep my stress level down? And silly me, I thought that they’d help.
I’d really like to be able to talk about what’s going on, but I’m going to have to keep things quiet for now. The kids are aware of what is going on. But I may need to get some professionals involved.
But think about it. The hospital knows that I’m a cancer patient. They should know that in order for me to get better, they would have to keep their dealings with me at a low stress level. NOT!
Amy took a job in Florida working with a BayCare hospital in Tampa. I’m assuming that it is “Tampa Bay Care.” She says they’re not the same company. And that they call their “patients” “customers!” Looks like I need to move.
I had to call another insurance company that pays my auto premium while I’m “disabled.” They sent me a letter in late February, telling me that I have ignored the forms they sent to me and that they were going to discontinue paying my premium. I called back and said that they never sent any forms to me, because I never received them. They said they’d send them right out, again!
You guessed it; I still haven’t received any forms. I called today to complain, again. They said “we’ll send out more forms, blah, blah, blah.” I told them to fax the forms to my Doctor. While they checked to see if they had his fax number, I jumped on the Internet, and had his number very quickly. So I gave them the number.
Then I called the doctor’s office to let them know what was going on. It was just a few minutes after 5:00PM and all I got a recorded message. I hung on to get an operator and asked for the office voice mail. She said I’d have to call back after 7:15AM. I explained the situation and said that I just wished to leave a message. “Call back in the morning.” Customer service?
How much do you want to bet that I’ll still have to leave a frickin’ voicemail in the morning? How much? Anybody out there with a little sporting blood in their veins? Or are you too used to being treated like a nuisance instead of a customer?
~~~~~~~~~
But enough about that, my stress level is getting too high, again.
I started my beard again. My hair, what little there is on the top of my head, OK on the side of my head, has been growing out. I actually had to trim a little around the ears today.
Since the stubble on my face seemed to be growing thicker, I figured that I’d give it a try and try to get back to my personal self-image.
~~~~~~~~~
Have I mentioned lately how much I love my kids and appreciate them? You’re letting me slide here folks.
I got a call from my daughter today to catch up on a few issues. When my kids were little, I never “gave” them the answers. I made them think about things for themselves. Sometimes I actually gave them bogus answers on many occasions, just to make them discount what they heard and think about the answer they were looking for.
My son took things in stride and simply looked for the proper answer. But my daughter…. She liked to confront me with my stupid answers while looking for the answer.
I mentioned today that the stressful situation on Monday, nearly “blapping” after four decades of avoiding that situation, made me realize that I was, after all was said and done, still a human. And that I had had such higher aspirations than that.
Boy did she let me have it. I haven’t laughed so hard in quite a while. She was laughing just as much. She certainly helped relieve some of my stress today.
~~~~~~~~~
After all that, I may be doing better physically. I hate to get my hopes too high right now. But, I missed a dose of pain meds today and didn’t really notice until it was almost time for my next dose. That’s always good.
Kunolunkwa, y te quireo!
"As a juror, I will exercise my 1000-year-old duty to arrive at a verdict, not just on the basis of the facts of a particular case, or instructions I am given, but through my power to reason, my knowledge of the Bill of Rights, and my individual conscience. When needful, I will judge the law itself." -L. Neil Smith
I’d really like to be able to talk about what’s going on, but I’m going to have to keep things quiet for now. The kids are aware of what is going on. But I may need to get some professionals involved.
But think about it. The hospital knows that I’m a cancer patient. They should know that in order for me to get better, they would have to keep their dealings with me at a low stress level. NOT!
Amy took a job in Florida working with a BayCare hospital in Tampa. I’m assuming that it is “Tampa Bay Care.” She says they’re not the same company. And that they call their “patients” “customers!” Looks like I need to move.
I had to call another insurance company that pays my auto premium while I’m “disabled.” They sent me a letter in late February, telling me that I have ignored the forms they sent to me and that they were going to discontinue paying my premium. I called back and said that they never sent any forms to me, because I never received them. They said they’d send them right out, again!
You guessed it; I still haven’t received any forms. I called today to complain, again. They said “we’ll send out more forms, blah, blah, blah.” I told them to fax the forms to my Doctor. While they checked to see if they had his fax number, I jumped on the Internet, and had his number very quickly. So I gave them the number.
Then I called the doctor’s office to let them know what was going on. It was just a few minutes after 5:00PM and all I got a recorded message. I hung on to get an operator and asked for the office voice mail. She said I’d have to call back after 7:15AM. I explained the situation and said that I just wished to leave a message. “Call back in the morning.” Customer service?
How much do you want to bet that I’ll still have to leave a frickin’ voicemail in the morning? How much? Anybody out there with a little sporting blood in their veins? Or are you too used to being treated like a nuisance instead of a customer?
~~~~~~~~~
But enough about that, my stress level is getting too high, again.
I started my beard again. My hair, what little there is on the top of my head, OK on the side of my head, has been growing out. I actually had to trim a little around the ears today.
Since the stubble on my face seemed to be growing thicker, I figured that I’d give it a try and try to get back to my personal self-image.
~~~~~~~~~
Have I mentioned lately how much I love my kids and appreciate them? You’re letting me slide here folks.
I got a call from my daughter today to catch up on a few issues. When my kids were little, I never “gave” them the answers. I made them think about things for themselves. Sometimes I actually gave them bogus answers on many occasions, just to make them discount what they heard and think about the answer they were looking for.
My son took things in stride and simply looked for the proper answer. But my daughter…. She liked to confront me with my stupid answers while looking for the answer.
I mentioned today that the stressful situation on Monday, nearly “blapping” after four decades of avoiding that situation, made me realize that I was, after all was said and done, still a human. And that I had had such higher aspirations than that.
Boy did she let me have it. I haven’t laughed so hard in quite a while. She was laughing just as much. She certainly helped relieve some of my stress today.
~~~~~~~~~
After all that, I may be doing better physically. I hate to get my hopes too high right now. But, I missed a dose of pain meds today and didn’t really notice until it was almost time for my next dose. That’s always good.
Kunolunkwa, y te quireo!
"As a juror, I will exercise my 1000-year-old duty to arrive at a verdict, not just on the basis of the facts of a particular case, or instructions I am given, but through my power to reason, my knowledge of the Bill of Rights, and my individual conscience. When needful, I will judge the law itself." -L. Neil Smith
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Not Much To Tell
I’ve had a low-grade fever today and have been feeling poorly. My feet are acting up again and even my stomach is feeling a bit sore.
I walked over to The Men’s Mall to get some screws to fix my end table that suffered the “casualties of the Holidays.” I still need to put the door back on.
I fixed more Tuna Helper, today. I had to toss two cans of tuna that I had in the cupboard. They were under pressure and even I know that’s not good. I’ll toss the rest later. And I still need to do the dishes.
~~~~~~~~~
I mentioned RateMyCop.com yesterday and how it appeared that they were already “off the air.” Well, they were. Their hosting company, GoDaddy, pulled their plug without even telling them apparently. RateMyCop then paid for another hosting company only to have them pull the plug as well.
See what happens when you want to hold the “po po” accountable for their actions?
BTW, that is the focus of the article at Nuremberg II. People have to be held accountable for their actions. They can’t get away with just saying, “My government made me do it.”
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero.
I walked over to The Men’s Mall to get some screws to fix my end table that suffered the “casualties of the Holidays.” I still need to put the door back on.
I fixed more Tuna Helper, today. I had to toss two cans of tuna that I had in the cupboard. They were under pressure and even I know that’s not good. I’ll toss the rest later. And I still need to do the dishes.
~~~~~~~~~
I mentioned RateMyCop.com yesterday and how it appeared that they were already “off the air.” Well, they were. Their hosting company, GoDaddy, pulled their plug without even telling them apparently. RateMyCop then paid for another hosting company only to have them pull the plug as well.
See what happens when you want to hold the “po po” accountable for their actions?
BTW, that is the focus of the article at Nuremberg II. People have to be held accountable for their actions. They can’t get away with just saying, “My government made me do it.”
Kunolunkwa, y te quiero.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Rate A Cop!
As a kind of follow up to my Thoughts on the Police post from February 17, I decided to post this information.
It seems there’s a website that’s getting a lot of flack from quite a few police departments and organizations. This article explains what’s going on. It seems someone has come up with a web site that allows you, the masters of this country to rate the service you get from your servants, the police. It seems that the police doesn’t want that to happen,
The site is RateMyCop.com. Now, it may just be a coincidence that when I went out to view the site, it was “currently unavailable.”
The reporter said that, “The First Amendment would be the site’s protection.” Well we already know how that’s going to turn out, now don’t we?
Meanwhile, back in Utah, the incident that had politicians calling for hiding any documentation of police misconduct from the public garnered the man that was tasered by the police officer $40K despite the fact that the cop was cleared of any wrongdoing.
~~~~~~~~~
You may have noticed that the archive section over there on the left has changed. I got a question, which I interpreted as a request, to make life easier to access the older posts. A new reader wanted to start at the beginning post and read all six months worth of belly-aching in order. But it was hard under the former system to do that. This system will allow for starting and stopping a little easier.
As a former QA guy, I try to take care of my customers! :-) But I don’t know if I’ll write the book that she wants….
I am wondering though, is there any reason why I should allow the search engines to crawl all over my blog? As we approach 2,000 views, not counting mine anymore, I get a lot of hits for things like curamin, hydrocodone, hunting stories, and all sorts of things. Just wondering.
~~~~~~~~~
Are the new hours of daylight bothering anybody else? For some reason, it really seems to throw me off. Then again, I don’t have a schedule to keep while the rest of you do. Sorry!
~~~~~~~~~
I slept in today until almost noon, got up, got dressed and went out to check the mail. While I was out, I drained the big puddle that was forming on the sidewalk, and removed some ice from the drive so the water could drain. Had I more energy, I would have removed all the ice, but I ended up in the back of the vehicle several times trying to catch my breath.
And my back needed some support. After I came in, I slept for an hour or two just to catch up. I really do like valerian root!
I apologize if I have given the wrong impression about what ails me. Sunni gave some great suggestions to help calm an upset tummy, but that isn’t really the issue.
There have been comments about my ability to watch the depictions of autopsies on TV while I eat my meals. I even continued to eat tonight while Himmy was “blapping” his cookies on one of the chairs in my office. He got down, wandered around for a while and is now in the other chair in the office! Who said cats are stupid?
That type of thing doesn’t bother me.
Remember back when I got started on the chemo and I commented on the “hiccups and palpitations?” What I’m experiencing now is just an extension of that, I believe. The Blob, my own personal tumor, is just at the top of the stomach. The cancer is in the lower esophageal wall, which also contains the muscles that control the lower esophageal sphincter. That is the area that was getting hit by the radiation up until two weeks ago tomorrow.
Like an open wound, the area can be very sensitive. Most of the time it does just fine, but there are times when if I don’t treat it right, it wants to let me know in no uncertain terms that I did something wrong. That’s what happened ‘that day that shall live in infamy;’ can it have just been yesterday?
Apparently, my timing with my pain meds and the ingestion of my meds in pill form wasn’t right. The pills irritated the Gastro-Esophageal Juncture and it tried to rid itself of the offending substances. It will be a long time before I forget that spasm of my stomach.
So, I take my pain meds first. A bit later I take my pill meds. I try to drink something, something warm preferably, for a while before taking any pills. Then I eat something soft. I hate to say it but the Tuna Helper seemed to work just fine and it actually tasted pretty good.
While I’m just a snorkeler, my son is into SCUBA diving. We usually run down to Florida and hit the water for some fun. I’ll paddle around on the surface while my son plays 40 feet below me! It was during one of these dives that I got to see my first baracuda —“Ba-ba , ra-ra, cu-cu, da-da!” You may have to be as old as I am to remember that little radio ditty—so thanks to him, I got to watch my first baracuda as it circled us from about 30 feet way.
Anyway, my daughter got her brother some dive magazine subscriptions for Christmas this past year. We read them at the kitchen table. There was recently an article about “mal de mer” otherwise known as seasickness. It was an interesting article although I have never experienced it. But it’s the kind of thing that someone going on any cruise needs to know, diving or otherwise.
Sunni recommended a sugared soft drink and ginger, as in ginger ale. Both were mentioned in the article. It’s kind of funny because I’m a big fan of non-alcoholic ginger beer. I think I got my son started on it as well. He likes the Jamaican style, while I like the more mellow style, like Stewarts’s Ginger Beer.
My problem is that ginger augments the effects of the rat poison I take. As a result of Monday’s tests, I have to reduce the amount of Warfarin that I’m taking for the next couple of weeks because my INR is too high, again. I was surprised at how much blood was on the gauze after they removed the needle from my port.
However, I have been drinking A&W Root Beer ever since I found out that candida albicans needed an alkaline environment to survive. And I was having a problem with thrush for a while early in my chemotherapy.
So, again, I apologize if my choice of words, or the way I represent my problems might cause some misunderstanding. I blame it on my chemobrain.
I was engaged in a “discussion” in another venue when my partner disagreed with my choice of words. He had a different connotation than the one I was using for the word I used.
To try and make my big point and not get hung up on hair-splitting connotations, I conceded the word choice and tried to continue to make my larger point. He then proceeded to make a big deal out of my “error” in words and started to make fun of my error. And this is from a guy who knows about my “condition.” Imagine what someone who doesn't know would do to me!
So, I guess I’ll have to restrict my discussions to my blog where everyone knows that my brain is fried right now, but I’m hoping that it will start functioning again after all the toxic chemo and radiation effects have been chelated from my body.
But, again, I apologize if I sometimes might not make sense, or don’t use the right word, or give a false impression.
Four pages! For someone who can’t communicate his thoughts well, someone who can’t pick the right words, I guess I try to make up for it in volume. ;-)
Kunolunkwa, y te quireo!
It seems there’s a website that’s getting a lot of flack from quite a few police departments and organizations. This article explains what’s going on. It seems someone has come up with a web site that allows you, the masters of this country to rate the service you get from your servants, the police. It seems that the police doesn’t want that to happen,
The site is RateMyCop.com. Now, it may just be a coincidence that when I went out to view the site, it was “currently unavailable.”
The reporter said that, “The First Amendment would be the site’s protection.” Well we already know how that’s going to turn out, now don’t we?
Meanwhile, back in Utah, the incident that had politicians calling for hiding any documentation of police misconduct from the public garnered the man that was tasered by the police officer $40K despite the fact that the cop was cleared of any wrongdoing.
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You may have noticed that the archive section over there on the left has changed. I got a question, which I interpreted as a request, to make life easier to access the older posts. A new reader wanted to start at the beginning post and read all six months worth of belly-aching in order. But it was hard under the former system to do that. This system will allow for starting and stopping a little easier.
As a former QA guy, I try to take care of my customers! :-) But I don’t know if I’ll write the book that she wants….
I am wondering though, is there any reason why I should allow the search engines to crawl all over my blog? As we approach 2,000 views, not counting mine anymore, I get a lot of hits for things like curamin, hydrocodone, hunting stories, and all sorts of things. Just wondering.
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Are the new hours of daylight bothering anybody else? For some reason, it really seems to throw me off. Then again, I don’t have a schedule to keep while the rest of you do. Sorry!
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I slept in today until almost noon, got up, got dressed and went out to check the mail. While I was out, I drained the big puddle that was forming on the sidewalk, and removed some ice from the drive so the water could drain. Had I more energy, I would have removed all the ice, but I ended up in the back of the vehicle several times trying to catch my breath.
And my back needed some support. After I came in, I slept for an hour or two just to catch up. I really do like valerian root!
I apologize if I have given the wrong impression about what ails me. Sunni gave some great suggestions to help calm an upset tummy, but that isn’t really the issue.
There have been comments about my ability to watch the depictions of autopsies on TV while I eat my meals. I even continued to eat tonight while Himmy was “blapping” his cookies on one of the chairs in my office. He got down, wandered around for a while and is now in the other chair in the office! Who said cats are stupid?
That type of thing doesn’t bother me.
Remember back when I got started on the chemo and I commented on the “hiccups and palpitations?” What I’m experiencing now is just an extension of that, I believe. The Blob, my own personal tumor, is just at the top of the stomach. The cancer is in the lower esophageal wall, which also contains the muscles that control the lower esophageal sphincter. That is the area that was getting hit by the radiation up until two weeks ago tomorrow.
Like an open wound, the area can be very sensitive. Most of the time it does just fine, but there are times when if I don’t treat it right, it wants to let me know in no uncertain terms that I did something wrong. That’s what happened ‘that day that shall live in infamy;’ can it have just been yesterday?
Apparently, my timing with my pain meds and the ingestion of my meds in pill form wasn’t right. The pills irritated the Gastro-Esophageal Juncture and it tried to rid itself of the offending substances. It will be a long time before I forget that spasm of my stomach.
So, I take my pain meds first. A bit later I take my pill meds. I try to drink something, something warm preferably, for a while before taking any pills. Then I eat something soft. I hate to say it but the Tuna Helper seemed to work just fine and it actually tasted pretty good.
While I’m just a snorkeler, my son is into SCUBA diving. We usually run down to Florida and hit the water for some fun. I’ll paddle around on the surface while my son plays 40 feet below me! It was during one of these dives that I got to see my first baracuda —“Ba-ba , ra-ra, cu-cu, da-da!” You may have to be as old as I am to remember that little radio ditty—so thanks to him, I got to watch my first baracuda as it circled us from about 30 feet way.
Anyway, my daughter got her brother some dive magazine subscriptions for Christmas this past year. We read them at the kitchen table. There was recently an article about “mal de mer” otherwise known as seasickness. It was an interesting article although I have never experienced it. But it’s the kind of thing that someone going on any cruise needs to know, diving or otherwise.
Sunni recommended a sugared soft drink and ginger, as in ginger ale. Both were mentioned in the article. It’s kind of funny because I’m a big fan of non-alcoholic ginger beer. I think I got my son started on it as well. He likes the Jamaican style, while I like the more mellow style, like Stewarts’s Ginger Beer.
My problem is that ginger augments the effects of the rat poison I take. As a result of Monday’s tests, I have to reduce the amount of Warfarin that I’m taking for the next couple of weeks because my INR is too high, again. I was surprised at how much blood was on the gauze after they removed the needle from my port.
However, I have been drinking A&W Root Beer ever since I found out that candida albicans needed an alkaline environment to survive. And I was having a problem with thrush for a while early in my chemotherapy.
So, again, I apologize if my choice of words, or the way I represent my problems might cause some misunderstanding. I blame it on my chemobrain.
I was engaged in a “discussion” in another venue when my partner disagreed with my choice of words. He had a different connotation than the one I was using for the word I used.
To try and make my big point and not get hung up on hair-splitting connotations, I conceded the word choice and tried to continue to make my larger point. He then proceeded to make a big deal out of my “error” in words and started to make fun of my error. And this is from a guy who knows about my “condition.” Imagine what someone who doesn't know would do to me!
So, I guess I’ll have to restrict my discussions to my blog where everyone knows that my brain is fried right now, but I’m hoping that it will start functioning again after all the toxic chemo and radiation effects have been chelated from my body.
But, again, I apologize if I sometimes might not make sense, or don’t use the right word, or give a false impression.
Four pages! For someone who can’t communicate his thoughts well, someone who can’t pick the right words, I guess I try to make up for it in volume. ;-)
Kunolunkwa, y te quireo!
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