Monday was a pretty busy day, and cold. I was hoping to get up a little early to cruise Robby around but things don't always work out as planned. Teresa drove me over the hill to Valley medical Center, I had 3 appointments. They wanted to get all of my preop appointments out of the way in one day so I only had to take one trip over the hill… that almost didn't happen. We got there early because there was no traffic, I forgot it was a holiday, so we decided to go get some Pho next door to the hospital. It was awesome, we also got a spring roll with peanut sauce. My 1st appointment went great, I talked to Dr. Yim and he wanted to make sure everything was a go. Apparently my 2nd appointment was supposed to be bloodworm but they forgot to remind me to not eat anything so I have to go do that on Wednesday and fax them the information, we did get to do the EKG and my heart still pumping. After my 1st appointment they told me that I wasn't going to get to talk to the anesthesiologist and that I would have to come back on Thursday. Teresa has school on Thursday so that would mean I would have to take the 17 bus over the hill to Valley medical Center, I was really annoyed but what are you going to do? We decided that since we were there were going to talk to them and see if we could work something else out, it's a good thing we went there because I DID have a 3 o'clock appointment to talk to the nurse and anesthesiologist… I would have been furious if I had gone home and found out I missed my appointment and had to take the 17 best over the hill on Thursday. Then the nurse tells me that I also need to take a pregnancy test, I take the Depo-Provera shot every 3 months and I've pretty much been celibate for about 10 years so if I'm pregnant it's a miracle. The nurse apologized and said that I have to anyway because sometimes people lie. I am so glad that that day is over. I got back home and rose up to me to bed and I just relaxed and watched TV for the rest of the night.
Tuesday was rainy and wet outside so much to my dismay I ended up staying in bed again. I can't wait until the nicer days get here. The worst part about staying in bed is when I can't even watch any movies or any of my TiVoed programs, I keep getting an error and then the screen goes blank. I wanted to call DirecTV while Karen was here because of course you always need somebody to run around and try stuff and the 1st suggestion on the troubleshooting telephone was to reset the receiver, of course it worked right after that but when Karen left and I decided to do something else I got the same error message and my television is blank. A couple of nights ago when it did that I started watching nip and tuck on Netflix, it looks like a pretty good show so at least I have something.
Wednesday was a great day but cold. It was a great day because Robby and I got out and went for a long cruise. I needed to go get some blood work for my surgery on Friday, we got right in. On the way back the sun started to come out a little bit but it was still colder than I would have liked. I stop by the bank to see why they sent me a new card AGAIN. It was the same old reason… one of the sites that I use my card on online was compromised. I guess that's just what happens when you shop online. It just means that I have to go through and change my credit card everywhere that I use it, such a pain. I came back and luckily Karen was still here, I had to fast so I was starving and very thirsty. I ate some lunch and then I saw somebody at the door. It was Tom in Kelly's friend Phil and his daughter Hazel, Phil is the one that built that on some sink, counter and drawers on my back porch. It was really great to see them and they brought me some really fresh baked bread from San Francisco, I think my uncle and I just about finished it off. Rosa came by and put me to bed, I was so cold that I just wrap myself up in the heated throw for a while. My uncle and aunt came over and we played a couple games of cribbage, my uncle was my partner and we won $3. He always promises that whoever is his partner is going to win big and in his mind he always does. We always have a good time. As I'm sitting here dictating there is a little mosquito flying around my screen, I have a feeling I'm going to have a few mosquito bites by the morning… little sucker. I bought an indoor bug zapper so I'm hoping maybe that will get him before he gets me.
Thursday was pretty much a prep day for my surgery tomorrow so I stayed in bed. I got a really nice massage and we got all the personal care done and I did get a nice long hot bath. I'm ready.
Friday was the day after my surgery. They are going to tighten the tendons in my fingers so they don't stick out straight and get in the way of everything. Teresa was here at 1:30 AM so we could be at Valley medical by 6:30 AM. The surgery was supposed to take 2 hours but ended up taking 4. I guess it took them 2 hours to bring me out of the anesthesia, apparently my last surgery was the same way so I'm hoping that this is my last surgery… I can't imagine anything else done. I felt really crappy and just wanted to go home and go to bed. We picked up Karen on the way home so Teresa could just drop us off and go home and get some rest, I knew she was exhausted. Karen put me to bed and I finally got something to eat and some coffee. I went to sleep and had woke up because I heard the door. I looked at the clock and it said 8:30 so I thought it was Adriana coming to work in the morning and taking Robby out. When I heard the door open again and looked up and it was my mom, it was only 8:30 PM… I guess I was pretty out of it. I rested for a while and then went back to sleep until Adriana actually came in the morning. My arm and my neck were really sore from lugging this cast around, I would've thought that they would have lighter material by now… don't they have fiberglass casts? I asked the doctor if he could put a divit in the cast wear my wrist would be to make it easier to drive my chair, the dude is kind of on the side of my wrist so I'm hoping that will work just as well. My brother Stanley, his wife Janet and their daughter Corrine are going to come down for the day and spend the night. They gave me Vicodin for the pain but luckily I had some Percocet from my last surgery because Vicodin upsets my stomach, usually they ask you before they prescribe something. The Percocet makes me really warm but it does help with the pain. It feels like skin on my wrist is ripping apart, probably because that's where they cut. It wasn't as hard to maneuver with my cast as I thought it was going to be so hopefully 4 weeks will go by really fast and the improvement will be incredible, I think it will definitely be worth it. Today is the clam chowder cook off over at the Boardwalk and I really wanted to go but I know it was going to be very crowded and with my driving ability being compromised is probably not a good idea to be in big crowds right now.
Saturday I just decided to stay in bed with my arm propped up on a couple of pillows, they wanted to be above my heart for a while. Adriana came in and got me something to eat, vacuumed and cleaned the floor and straightened up for company. She also took Robby for short run so he won't be going stir crazy. I just took another Percocet so I'm getting really sleepy and I think I screwed up my entry for Friday so I guess it's time to take a nap. My aunt came by and said that she was going to go for walk so I told her she would like to have some company Robby would love to go, I always feel better when I'm stuck in bed if Robby can go out for a cruise. I knew it was going to be extremely inconvenient this is making me crazy, I still have about 3 1/2 more weeks. Stanley made a really nice dinner, raviolis and sausage with garlic bread. I'm trying not to take too many pain pills because I know I'm going to be sorry when it comes time to do personal care and I have a pretty high pain tolerance is just annoying. My aunt and uncle came over and we all played a couple games of cribbage, my uncle was my partner and I think we won a dollar or 2. I thought it was going to sleep really good because all day long the pills make me groggy but of course here it is 2:40 AM and I'm wide awake and very frustrated. I just have to keep telling myself it will be so nice in the long run.
Sunday was another miserable day I guess because of the anesthesia and the pain meds, I tried not to take too many pain meds because I know what happens. Somebody said to me “it was your choice to have surgery” and it made me start thinking… I guess I said yes to it without even a 2nd thought. If Stanford offers to give you a free surgery that will change your life and then after you do a couple studies they decide they need to tweak it to make it work better for me and our study should I really say no?? I know in the long run it's going to be better and it probably won't ask me to do any more studies if I don't want to improve and I like the idea that I'm keeping in touch with that circle.
Monday was a typical Monday. I got a massage, personal care took most of the rest of the day and always just wipes me out. Rosa came in to give me a bath but it just didn't feel good, stomach cramps and a headache. I hope it's because of the personal care and not because I'm coming down with the flu. Teresa took my van into get fixed, that took all day. Mother came by and brought me four chicken enchiladas, I LOVE her chicken enchiladas but then I love everything she makes. I watched a scary movie called possession and it was really good, scary. I started watching it last night but Rosa was here and I wasn't sure how she felt about scary movies so I turned it off for later. I watched a couple episodes of teen mom 2, trying to fall asleep. It took a couple of Advil PMs and later a lorazepam and finally my headache went away and I was also really sleepy.
Tuesday was a great day but a bit chilly, I thought it was in the start warming up… maybe it will. I was so sleepy last night and I didn't get to take a bath so Karen gave me about this morning, I didn't want to get out because it felt so great. I got up and took Robby for a really long cruise and came back just in time to rest for a bit before Rosa got here. Of course I was really tired before going to bed and just when I got into bed but now here it is 9:30 PM and I'm wide awake. Why is it that I sleep really good as soon as my morning caregiver gets here?
Wednesday was a very productive day although I didn't get up. I can't wait until everybody gets over this flu so I can have all of my Caregivers back, this flu is really kicking everyone's but. I am thankful that I haven't gotten it… knocks on wood…I am taking every precaution. I can't believe how much I ate today, I usually don't eat this much. I have a bacon, egg and avocado sandwich on a biscuit, a salad and enchiladas and then I had some Swiss steak, mashed potatoes, asparagus and another salad. My uncle and aunt, Lee and Claudia and my mom and I played cribbage. My mom was my partner and I wanted an extra dollar. Tomorrow Bob is coming by with a set of drawers and a cushion for the bench that he made me, I am so excited to see what it looks like. he's also making me a coffee table to match the rest of the furniture he made me and my living room and then under the mirror, in the hallway table.
Thursday was a really great day. Susan came over and gave me a massage and I was so relaxed I was asleep by the time she left. Karen came early and took Robby for cruise, I was stuck in bed again, and gave him a shower… he is always so happy after a shower, or maybe he's just glad that it's over? Bob came by and brought my drawers and the cushion and pillows his life made for my bench, they both looked AWESOME. I just rested most of the afternoon and thought about what I was going to do when I got up tomorrow, it's going to be like 72° out so I'm really looking forward to it. Heather came over and cooked and of course it smelled wonderful thing here. Teresa bought my van back, she took it in this morning to get some sensors put around the van just in case. Apparently they start out beeping slowly and the closer you get to an object the faster they beep and if you still get too close it hits the brakes, it's amazing what they come up with these days.
Friday turned out to be a great day. It started with personal care so for the 1st half of the day I felt really crappy but as soon as I got up and got outside it was all worth it. I think it got up to 72° and it was almost too warm, I had the bright idea of wearing a formal underneath my shirt. I took Robby for cruise through the lagoon, down past the surfers Museum and back and down to the end of the wharf and back. By that time it was getting really warm and Rocky needed water, he was exhausted. There wasn't a lot of people out and about but the traffic was ridiculous, what's up with that?? We got back home just in time, Rosa showed up to put me to bed.
Saturday didn't go as I had planned. I got a heat rash from being too hard on Friday so I decided it's better to stay in bed and on my side with the fan on all day, it's either one day now for a week when it gets worse… as much as it sucks I would rather just do one day now. Adriana wanted to go for a jog so she took Robby and look like they have a really good time, she sent me a picture of them down by the surfing Museum. It's not the most comfortable thing laying on your side and for some reason I have lot of anxiety that I was trying to talk myself out of all day. I tried to relax and just watch a couple of movies. I just have to lay like this until Rosa gets here and then take a nice long hot bath and I can be on my back again, I hope the rash goes away. I was going to go ahead and get it today and then if it got worse stayed down tomorrow but Adriano said it would be better to stay down today that way if it doesn't get better tomorrow I have another day to rest. Monday I have 3 appointments of Valley medical to get ready for my surgery on Friday, good call Adriana. I was getting ready to rest for the evening when my uncle came over and challenged us to a cribbage game, who could refuse? My mom was my partner and we lost $3 BUT we had fun and that's all that counts right??
Sunday ended up being another day in bed, I wish everybody could get over this flu… at least I'm glad I never got it. I decided if I didn't do personal care today and take a bath I don't know when I was going to do it, next week is a very busy week. I got a new hospital table and aunt and uncle put it together for me tonight, it's shorter and wider than the ones that I am used to but I think it just might work. Shorter is good because that just means I can put as much clutter on it. The bath shirt felt awesome, the temperature was perfect and my body stayed straight right in the middle of the tub… I really didn't want to get out. After my bath I tried to relax and watch Hotel Transylvania but it made my television go blank, my aunt came over and fix it so of course what do I do? Try to watch it again. I had to wait for my mom to come down and see if she could fix it, and had to try to remember what my hand did, and we got into work again… I think I'll just delete Hotel Transylvania.
Monday was a pretty good day. I'm trying to stay away from everybody because everybody seems to be getting sick… if you are sick please stay away. I got a massage from Susan and personal care took pretty much all day. I have always wanted to make the door from my bedroom to my back porch wider so that I can fit my bed through it, not only so I can be pushed outside but in case of emergency. Susan's husband is a contractor and he's going to come over and give me an estimate, I'm so excited… just in time for summer.
Tuesday was really cold but a great day. Karen got me up and Robby and I headed over to Sunshine Villa to get a manicure and a pedicure, well me not Robby. I so Rosa over there and she looked really tired, I hope she's not working too much. Samantha did a really good job and I love it, it's a diamond dust purple color. After that Robby and I cruised down to the end of the boardwalk and back and headed over to Dominican Rehab to meet with Andrei and Jack to do some more work on my chair. They put the lateral back on but moved it out a little bit so it's not pushing me over to the right. We talked about moving the joystick over to the left-hand side and see if I can drive like that but I'm just not sure that that's going to work, I think it will be very frustrating and I probably won't want to get very far from my house. I drive more with my upper arm and shoulder and my left arm just doesn't have that capability. Not to mention the left side is where I have Robby on my arm and I don't know what I would do about that, I can drive and risk that few will pull my arm and make me crash. I'm going to ask them on my preop point but appointment what they suggest or what people usually do. Staying in bed is just not an option a for 4 weeks. Teresa met me over at Dominican rehab with the van and I'm so glad because it was still cold outside. We came home and she put me to bed and cleaned out the refrigerator, it was a mess.
Wednesday didn't turn out to be such a good day. I got all the way up in my chair ready to face the day but then ended up going back to bed because of bladder problems, I hope it's not an infection. I pretty much slept the rest of the day and most of the night, I hope I sleep through the night. Heather came over and cooked a bunch of food, she has been sick for a couple of days so she was kind enough to stay away. My mom is also sick and I have surgery on a couple of weeks so I can afford to get sick. I didn't watch one movie today called the odd life of Timothy Green, who was definitely and odd movie. I watched a couple of episodes of Dr. Phil and then a couple episodes of American horror story: asylum. All in all I guess a pretty relaxing day, it looked like it was really nice outside but it only got up to 57°. We'll try again tomorrow.
Thursday I stayed in bed but it was a good day. I was going to get up because I stayed in bed yesterday but Teresa is getting the flu and couldn't come in to put me to bed. I got a nice long massage, personal care about wasn't as terrible as it usually was and a nice long hot bath… I feel relaxed and terrific. Robby got to go for a walk twice so I feel like it was a great day.
Friday was a really great day although it was very cold. I got up and took Robby for little cruise around the lagoon and then I came back to me Eric to get an estimate for widening the door from my bedroom to my back porch. It always kind of bothers me that in case something happens I'm not able to have my bed pushed outside so I decided I better just do it. It also might be nice in the summer to push my bed out on the porch and visit with everyone, I'm really excited. Eric said that he would have to find a 4 foot door and it would take him about the day to research everything and then he would have an estimate for me. We rested for a bit and then I took Robby out for a cruise a couple more times, I only went as far as Depot Park because by the time I got there it was really cold and I was ready to turn back. I can't stand the weather but not at 6 miles an hour. I need a windshield for my chair. Teresa still wasn't feeling well so Rosa came to put me to bed. Heather came over and cooked some stuff, it smelled really good in there. My uncle came over to see if I wanted some chicken soup, they make the best soups ever so how can I turn it down? I wasn't disappointed, it even had dumplings. I watched a couple of episodes of real life and then a couple episodes of hoarding.
Saturday was a pretty good day, very cold outside once again. I decided to stay in bed because it's cold, because it's the weekend and because I didn't have an evening caregiver. I was actually looking forward to spending the whole day in my room by myself. Heather came by and brought some kind of tuna/wasabi thing that she made… man was a good. She also brought me some kale chips, I have really gotten to like those. I watched a movie called paranormal activity 4 and was very disappointed, I saw the 1st 3 and they were pretty scary but this one was just boring… I kept waiting for something exciting to happen but it never did. My uncle came over and brought me a salad, an awesome salad loaded with everything and my aunt came over with some chicken vegetable soup, they are an awesome team. She makes really good Swiss steak with mashed potatoes and she was making some but it wasn't going to be ready in time. I watched a couple episodes of hoarders, intervention and deadly women. I can't wait to get up tomorrow and I'm sure Robby feels the same way.
Sunday was a really great day that almost didn't happen. I had breakfast, got dressed and was ready to get up and my lift wasn't working… the most frustrating feeling in the world. Luckily it just wasn't put on the charger right so all I have to do was wait an hour, what a huge relief. Robby and I went for a really long cruise through the lagoon and on our way up to Westcliff we ran into Denise and Nena, Dr. Owens friend and her daughter. It had been a long time since I had seen them both and it was great to see them, hopefully during the summer we can start having barbecues together again. We cruised down Westcliff about halfway to natural Bridges Beach and then back and down to the end of the wharf and back. By then it was getting a little chilly so we decided to head back just in time to catch Heather cooking in the kitchen, I visited with her for a while and it was going to go back out and cruise for a little bit again but my house was just so warm and comfortable I decided to stay. Rosa came by and put me to bed. I had some bacon in the refrigerator so she cooked it for me for breakfast this week, it smelled so amazing of course I had to have a piece… is there anything that smells or tastes better than bacon?? I started to watch a movie called possession but it looked like it was pretty scary and I didn't know how Rosa felt about scary movies so I decided to turn it off until later, I hope it's better than paranormal 4. Actually already tell that it was so I'm excited to continue watching it.
Monday was a great day. Personal character a really long time so I ended up staying in bed but we always make the best of it. Otis came by and cleaned up my morning glories, a lot of them got frostbite. He brought a couple of his dogs but Robby wouldn't play with them, he just hid in the back. I hope it's not because he is in any way traumatized from being attacked. He is starting to act a little weird when we see another dog, not every dog so it's hard to say. If one is going by and leaps in the air like he wants to play Robby will leap in the air and bark. I am trying to work on it so we will overcome. We were supposed to go to the wooden nickel for lunch but my aunt and uncle could go so David, my mom and I decided to just ordered Chinese food, we got a little bit of everything and have a ton of leftovers. just as we started eating Stanley came in, the evening was complete. Just as we were finishing eating Rosa came in to give me a nice long hot bath and put me back to bed. Such a great day!
Tuesday was also a really great day. I got up and Stanley made breakfast, scrambled eggs, sausage and pancakes. I cruise Robby up to Dr. Owens office to get some paperwork and then came back and hung out with my brothers for a while, it's so nice to have them here. We were going to go on a tour of the Santa Cruz guitar store but they had to cancel because they were out of town so hopefully next time. Stanley could roast and my aunt made twice baked potatoes, cauliflower with cheese and garlic bread… I try to hold it down because I don't want to gain weight but it's really hard with all this delicious food around. David got a lot of things cleaned up in my room, there were lots of extra cords in all of the shelves… it's so nice to have everything so claim. He also moved my home entertainment speakers down, they were up in the corner behind the bar for the lift… everything sound so much better. Teresa came and put me to bed and I got to hang out with my brothers again, David was showing me how easy it is to use the Xbox so I can't wait to try that out.
Wednesday was awesome. I got up and went for a cruise with my brothers, and Robby of course, down to the end of the wharf and back. We came back home and hung out for a little while and then Stanley had to go. David made some raviolis with the leftover spaghetti sauce and we have some garlic bread. Rosa came to put me to bed and Dave headed off for the airport. My uncle and aunt, Lee and Claudia and my mom and I played cribbage, I lost $3. The house is very quiet now, I can hear Robby snoring.
Thursday was a nice day outside, unfortunately I never made it up and out of here. Personal care took way longer than anticipated and my stomach was upset the rest of the day. I was going to take bath when Teresa came by but I still wasn't feeling very good so I just put it off until tomorrow. Tomorrow's going to be another beautiful day outside. Tonight I just relax and catch up on my TiVo shows.
Friday it was just so beautiful outside I had to get up. I got my massage from Susan and got to get up and out of here. Robby and I cruised to the lagoon, way down Westcliff and back, down to the end of the wharf and back and through the boardwalk. Everywhere seem to be pretty much deserted so we practiced some of our commands at the end of the boardwalk, Robby does so well. We didn't want to but we came home and rested for a bit and Teresa came and brought Charlie Hong Kong's, I could never get tired of that stuff. I have learned to just eat half of it so that I can have the other half in the morning with a poached egg. My new usual his pad Thai noodles with garlic tofu and prawns, we also get some steamed vegetables on the side. Teresa gave me a nice long hot bath and I went to bed feeling relaxed and great. Teresa also went out and straightened up the garage, it was such a mess. Instead of putting things away nicely everybody just shoves.
Saturday I didn't feel really good but I didn't know why. I woke up at 5:00 AM with a major anxiety attack, I don't think I have ever had this battle one. I tried listening to music and listening to audio books to make myself calm down but my heart was just beating like crazy and that's hard to ignore. While Adriana was getting my breakfast I pretty much decided I wasn't going to get up and try to drive around if I felt like this. I had some breakfast, my leftover pad Thai noodles, and some coffee and thought it would make me feel better but it only made me feel worse… I should've known coffee was a bad idea. A light breakfast and waited around for a little bit but didn't feel any better and all I wanted to do was sleep. My aunt and uncle came over and we played a couple of games of cribbage, I was down to dollars but have fun. While we were playing cribbage Heather came in with her new girlfriend and wow did they look sharp. They were going to a formal dance at the coconut Grove so of course we had to take some pictures. They both look so happy they just made my day. It's the 1st time that I met Mariposa and she seemed so sweet. It's so nice to see Heather this happy, never really seen it for a long time.
Sunday was a good day. It was cold outside but not cold enough to where I was uncomfortable, it was great to get up and get outside again. Robby and I cruised through the lagoon and down to the suffrage museum when Adriana texted me and said she was ready to go to Costco, I met her at the wharf and we went to do some shopping. I figured that since it was Super Bowl Sunday nobody would be there… WRONG. Not only was everybody there but they were rushing and pissed off because they wanted to get back home and watch the Super Bowl. It still was a nice day and of course by the time we got back the sun was out and shining. Karen came in and put me to bed and I watched a little bit of the puppy bowl and then fell asleep, I was really tired. I did do my part for Super Bowl Sunday and I had a chicken bake and buffalo wings for dinner.
