I'm out of here...

Monday turned out to be a pretty good day. I flipped from side to side until the nurse got here at 3 PM. She said I looked great and I could start getting up on Wednesday for a couple of hours, I was so excited until I got a call reminding me that Dr. Owens is coming over on Wednesday for a home visit. I think I’m going to try to get out for a couple of hours today at lease to run Robby, that is what I miss the most. My brother David e-mailed me and said that him and his son were going to come and visit November 6th, I’m really going to try to be a more while they’re here. My new mattress is on his way, it should be just a couple of days. What a great day!

Tuesday was a day that I have been waiting for for three weeks, my first day up and out of this bed. It was only for two hours but it was great to be out. I cruised over to the boardwalk, which was almost totally empty, and just sat there and stared at the ocean, it was so beautiful. It got to be a little cold so I taxed Teresa, who was here, and asked her if she wanted to go somewhere and get something to eat. Unfortunately she was cooking bacon so I headed home. When I got to the war the right leg of my chair popped off, luckily Teresa duct taped it so it didn’t fall completely off. I came back home slowly watching my leg so it didn’t come completely off. Well, almost a perfect day. I turned on the headlight on my chair because it was getting dark and as I came up the driveway the lights on the van started blinking, at first I thought Teresa was in it because I text her to tell her I was limping home but then I saw her in the kitchen. What a cool feature on the van. Hopefully ATG will have my parts in and I can go back out on Saturday. At least I got some bacon when I came back home.

Wednesday was just a really anxiety filled day for me, I don’t know why. It seemed like my body was twitching all day and I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin. Of course I ran out of my anxiety pills and I was afraid to call them in for a refill because I have been using them a lot and I didn’t want my doctor to think I was getting addicted or anything. I remember when I was in Seton I took one every day and that was for three months, this has only been three weeks, and I never got addicted. My doctor is coming to see me today so hopefully she can see that I’m not addicted to anything.

Thursday turned out to be a pretty good day. I didn’t plan on getting up but Friday night Teresa said she would be here at 1:30 PM so I could get up at 11 a.m. and she will put me back to bed before the visiting nurse got here. It was such a beautiful day outside so Robby and I cruised through the lagoon, down to the end of the wharf, through the vacant boardwalk, back to the end of the wharf and then back home. I stopped a bunch of times just to look, I have forgotten how beautiful everything in Santa Cruz is. It felt really great to be out again and I can’t wait until I don’t have to come back home until it’s time to go to bed. The visiting nurse came in and said that everything looked great and I can get up every day now for a couple of hours.

Friday was a really long and boring day. The newest girl came in the morning so I didn’t even get to turn all day until Teresa got here at 5 PM, by then I was so bored and going crazy. Teresa turned me for a while but then had to put me back on my back because it was cribbage night. Lee and Claudia, my aunt and uncle and my mom and I played and I lost three dollars. I couldn’t keep my eyes open so we quit after three games. Teresa brought Halloween cookies and they were pretty good. The good news is everything is looking great and I get to get up for a couple of hours tomorrow, the weather is supposed to be beautiful but Santa Cruz is probably going to be crowded. I can’t wait to get up and out of here.

Saturday I had planned on getting out but after doing the morning care I was so exhausted I just wanted to take a nice long hot bath and go back to bed. My neighbors were having a Halloween party, they always have the best parties, and I was really looking forward to going but I ended up doing nothing.

Sunday I really did too much and wore myself out. After I got dressed I ran Robby downtown and met Teresa for shopping, I needed some new slippers because everybody is getting tired of looking at the same ones I wear every day... I was told this. Then Robby and I ran down and met Teresa at the Halloween store to see what they had, they didn’t have much. Robby and I then met her at Ross and we found some more slippers. We were supposed to go to Trader Joe’s and CVS but I was exhausted and still needed to drive my chair back home, I don’t know how I did it but I did it. I ended up staying up two hours longer than I had intended and although I had a great time I really need to stick more to the schedule. It was an awesome day.

Getting closer and closer...

Monday I stayed in bed again. I got a nice long hot bath and that felt great, I’m not as anxious about staying in bed anymore... getting used to and I guess but I can’t wait to get up and out again. The visiting nurse today was Brigitte and it was really great to see her, she was my visiting nurse two years ago when I got out of Seton and was nursing my pressure sore. I didn’t sleep much but I was very comfortable. I decided to switch sleeping on my sides during the day and lay on my back that night, but I have to lay flat. My body is getting really tired of being on my side and after a couple of hours I’m starting to sweat and get really uncomfortable.

A Dog’s Plea
Treat me kindly, my beloved friend, for no heart in all the world is more grateful for kindness than the loving heart of me.
Do not break my spirit with a stick, for although I should lick your hand between blows, your patience and understanding will quickly teach me the things you would have me learn.
Speak to me often, for your voice is the world’s sweetest music, as you must know by the fierce wagging of my tail when your footsteps falls upon my waiting ear.
Please take me inside when it is cold and wet, for I am a domesticated animal, no longer accustomed to bitter elements. I ask no greater glory than the privilege of sitting at your feet beside the hearth. Keep my pan filled with fresh water, for I cannot tell you when I suffer thirst.
Feed me clean food that I may stay well, to romp and play and do your bidding, to walk by your side and stand ready, willing and able to protect you with my life, should your life be in danger.
And, my friend, when I am very old, and I no longer enjoy good health, hearing and sight, do not make heroic efforts to keep me going. I am not having any fun. Please see that my trusting life is taken gently. I shall leave this earth knowing with the last breath I draw that my fate was always safest in your hands.
Author Unknown

Tuesday nothing has really changed, still in bed but getting closer to getting up. Teresa brought some pork tacos and they were awesome. Brigitte, a visiting nurse that came to see me two years ago came to see me again... it was really great to see her.

Wednesday I kind of expected see a visiting nurse but no one called, I want them to tell me that I can get up in my chair for a least a couple of hours... I would be out of your and enjoying the beautiful weather we have been having. We use the electrodes on my back, my butt and my legs. I’m trying to do ever I can to get back into shape for driving my chair. Also doing neck and arm exercises. I will be ready when the time comes.

Thursday was just another day in paradise. Teresa noticed the night before that Robby has a bunch of sores on his belly so we decided we’d better take him to the vet first thing in the morning. Usually they let us drop him off and they will call us when it’s time to get him but they made Karen wait there while they ran a bunch of tests. Is that right levels are low and he was a little bit dehydrated, this puppy drinks a TON of water. They had already tested it before I wanted to test it again and then thinking about putting him on allergy shots... $400 later Karen came back just in time to go home. Teresa got here just as Karen was leaving. Kathy, the wound care nurse called and said she was on her way and the rotor router guy came to fix the sink. Kathy didn’t really give me any indication when I can start getting up for a couple of hours so I guess I just wait and see. I’m waiting for a good clock so I can order some night owl cookies, they come nice and warm and they are so good.

"I RESCUED A HUMAN TODAY" 

Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her.

I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn’t be afraid. As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn’t want her to know that I hadn’t been walked today. Sometimes the overworked shelter keepers get too busy and I didn’t want her to think poorly of them.

As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn’t feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone’s life.

She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her. Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well.

Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms.

I would promise to keep her safe.
I would promise to always be by her side.
I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes.

I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven’t walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one.

I rescued a human today." ~by Janine Allen

Friday was massage Day and boy did I need it after being stuck in bed for over two weeks. Unfortunately my massage therapists is going on vacation for two weeks so I don’t know if I should ask somebody else or just skip it, I’m really hoping that I’m out of here by Friday.

Saturday was pretty much the same thing except I got to take a nice long hot bath. I can’t wait to get out and cruise around even if it’s only for a couple of hours.

Sunday Karen brought Juno and Lucy, her two cats, so that Teresa could cut their toenails. Teresa made a ravioli lasagna and some garlic bread, it was the best thing I have had for a long time.

Getting closer to freedom...

Monday was just another day of staying in bed. I just about think that I’m going to go crazy and then I remember the days when I was in Seton Hospital eating nothing but oatmeal, cottage cheese and tuna fish sandwiches. It was always so cold and there and I had to watch the same stupid television programs over and over. I guess it’s not so bad here in.

Tuesday was yet another day of staying in bed. I’m trying to eat a lot of protein and drink a lot of tea. The visiting nurses are supposed to come by today and check it out, I hope it’s good news. Teresa and Karen have been on top of everything and taking really good care of me, I don’t know what I would do without them. Jess, Teresa’s boyfriend, has been taking Robby to play with their animals and for long walks.

Wednesday was pretty much the same old thing, laying on my right side until I can’t stand it anymore, two hours on my back and and then back on my left side. It is getting better but it takes a long.

Thursday was the same thing all over again. Thank God for Jess and Teresa for taking Robby to the beach every day to play and thank God for Karen for putting up with my crankiness and. Nothing really exciting happened.

Friday was the same old thing BUT my family came down from Modesto. It was really great to see them and they took turns keeping me company, I hope it wasn’t too cranky. Corinne brought one of her friends, Jordan, to hang out at the Boardwalk with. I have some coupons for some free movie rentals so that kept them pretty busy.

Saturday was my support group Halloween party, I was really sad that I had to miss that. Teresa went to drop off some stuff for me and ended up staying in talking to everybody. Then Robby visited with some patients, she took him to the beach and then came back. My brother barbecued ribs and steak and made some brussels sprouts with bacon and some asparagus, it was awesome. Oh he also made egg and bacon omelette’s and toast for breakfast.

Sunday was the same old thing again, flipping from side to side. For some reason my body REALLY hate being on my left side and after a couple of hours I start sweating and I just can’t stand it any longer. We ordered pizza from Woodstock and my family left for home. I am thankful that I am at home instead of at Seton. They’re coming out on Tuesday to reevaluate my bed and get the low loss air flow mattress I should’ve gotten a couple of years ago. The pressure sores started I’m sure from having too much air in my cushion and then I thought it would be better staying in bed but when the nurse felt the mattress she said it was just making it worse.

Will I ever get out of this bed...

Monday was such a great day. It started out kind of sad because Kelly took Bailey to the vet and found out that he had a heart murmur and bladder stones, she was so sad I wanted to cry with her. We decided to go ahead and go to the Monterey Bay aquarium, we wanted to go there all summer. Before we went into the aquarium we found a restaurant on the Bay simply called C and decided to give it a try, there are restaurants inside the aquarium but the restaurant was so beautiful and had such a great view that we decided to go in and try. It’s a good thing we did because the food was AWESOME, Kelly as a chef and she was very impressed and that says a lot to me. We sat down and looked out the window and watched a couple of otters playing in the water. They brought us some herb bread with goat cheese butter and olive oil drizzled on top, so good. We started with a crab cake with balsamic onions beets white truffle vinaigrette. I had rock shrimp, artichoke, spinach, goat cheese and crispy potatoes and Kelly had local smoked sardines, sundried tomatoes and toasted bread crumbs. That right there made the trip worthwhile, although it only took about 50 minutes to get there so we will definitely go back next year... at least once. We went to the aquarium and did the full loop and took lots of pictures. We went shopping at a little place called “after the quake” and got some really cute stuff. I got a couple of Christmas ornaments, one a really cool angel made out of shells and the other was a starfish with sunglasses, a little bikini... the top of the bikini was made out of shells, some big sunglasses and a surfboard. I also got some seahorse earrings and a matching necklace for my mom and got blown wine bottle collapsed and fold it in half with a Tuscany picture on the front, it looks perfect in my kitchen. It started to rain on the way back so we stopped and got a soy mocha and waited for the rain to die down. On the way back a friend of mine text me and said that there was a bus accident in Marina and would probably slow us way down, there’s really only one way to get from there to here but it was definitely all worth it.

Tuesday was really sad because Kelly was leaving. My mom woke up with a flooded bathroom so we called out the plumber, that was expensive but everything is working now. We visited for most of the day and then Kelly left, very sad. The time usually does go by very fast and her and Tom will be back before we know it, probably around June.

Wednesday my personal care took a long time so I just took a hot bath and went back to bed. I wouldn’t have been able to get up anyway because my wheelchair was in getting a tune up. I wanted to make sure that everything was tightened up and the legs were going to fall off while I was out and about by myself. Teresa brought some boneless wings from wing stop and some french fries, they were really good. Teresa and Karen started decorating for Halloween, I can’t wait to get up tomorrow to see what they did.

Thursday I was so excited to get up and be able to get outside. Unfortunately it rained practically all day. I saw the sun come out so Robby and I made a break for it and went for a cruise, after a while it started raining so we came home. A couple hours later the sun peeked out again so we once again made a break for it. While cruising we found a really cool stick with a bunch of Moss on it, I’m into collecting cool sticks for my air plant terrariums. It was really wet and Robby didn’t like the feel of it in his mouth, I have to have him pick them up and put them on my lap, so he tried to scrape off the moss. He finally got it in my lap and it was soggy and gross but we made it home with a perfect stick. We went out for another cruise and then came home and watched Teresa and Karen decorates the more for Halloween, my house looks so awesome.

"Dogs have a way of finding the people who need them,
Filling an emptiness we don't even know we have." ~ Thom Jones

Friday I got my massage and decided to stay in bed for another day, my pressure sores are getting better but it just takes time and it’s very boring staying in bed all the time. Of course the weather is beautiful outside today.

Saturday was another day stuck in bed. To me the pressure sore doesn’t look that bad and I usually heal very quickly but I have to remember that I’m getting older and skinnier so I just have to treat it like it’s really bad.

Sunday I stayed in bed again and Karen called in sick so Teresa came in to take care of me. Dr. Owens came over to look at it today, and brought the puppies to play, and said that Theresa was doing the right thing and that she would have home health care come out and look at it tomorrow. Thank God I have Teresa and Dr. Owens. It looks like I’m going to be stuck in bed, on my side for a while. Lots of protein and good thoughts.

Will I ever get out of this bed...

Monday started out to be a really bad day and ended up being a really good day. Kelly and I were going to go have sushi and then go to the movies to see “crazy stupid love”, it looked like a really good movie. When Karen was cleaning Robby’s ears he yelped and then was shaking his head so I decided I better get him to the vet quick. I called and they said they had an appointment in 15 minutes so I jammed down there, Kelly and Bailey went with us for moral support... Bailey was so thrilled that nobody was poking him. After that we went to the bank to get a cashiers check so the guy could start working on the additions to my back porch, I am so excited and wanted to do this for a long time. He’s going to put a sink, a pass-through to the kitchen window, some shelves, some drawers, lights and the big heat lamp... I will be able to sit outside even when it’s cold. Kelly rode her bike and we decided to go down to Charlie Hong Kong’s and get some noodles, as usual they were awesome. On the way back we stopped at the battery and got cupcakes and coffee mocha drinks, it just doesn’t get any better than this.

Tuesday the weather was beautiful. Years ago I had a support chat room on AOL and I met a lot of great people. One guy I met named Jesse lived in Washington and we always got along really well. He has a sister that lives in Merced and one year he came to visit her so I drove up from San Jose to meet him and his family, a great bunch of people. He was a paraplegic injured when his seatbelt threw him out of the back window of a Hyundai, he had to wait several years for a settlement but finally got one. He was visiting his sister again in Merced and drove up here to Santa Cruz to see me. He got here and then we went to lunch and then he left, a short visit but very nice. I came back and took a nice long hot bath and went to bed, a really great day.

Wednesday was another long day but I got to take another bath, it felt so good. Kelly and her friend brought back some Indian food, it was really good.

Thursday I was supposed to go to San Francisco with Kelly, our last chance to go before she leaves, but I do have an open pressure sore on my butt so I thought it would be better to stay in bed before it got worse. My mom and Kelly went into San Jose saw was nice to have the house all to myself, I just rested all day and played words with friends.

Friday Kelly and I were going to go to Big Sur when Phil called to say he wanted to come and take some measurements, Phil is going to install a sink, counter, passed through to the kitchen, shelves and drawers outside on my patio... I am so excited, I have been wanting to do this for a long time. We went to the roadhouse restaurant and had a great meal, I had a calamari salad and Kelly had an heirloom tomato salad.

Saturday I was supposed to go to Los Gatos to meet a friend’s new baby twin girls but I was just miserable in my chair so I decided to go back to bed. I always miss the fun stuff. Teresa and Karen cleaning the garage and it looked awesome.

Sunday was another really long day with only a bath and then back to bed, getting really tired of this. Kelly made a killer blueberry scones, I saw her take some across the street so I snuck up and had Karen grab us a couple to have with our tea.