...my son was hospitalized. Not super serious - just not responding to oral antibiotics for lung infection. He'll be allowed to come home on home IV therapy soon.
Just one more brick on the pile, so to speak, as he was hospitalized in St. Louis, Missouri at Barnes-Jewish, meaning a 3 hour drive to see him and a 3 hour drive back.
It's all good, though. He could be a lot worse.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
Difficult Work Week
This week is going to be difficult for a number of reasons.
Last week, one of our firemen died in a non-work related accident. He was working on a vehicle when the jack slipped and the vehicle fell on him, cutting off his air supply for quite a long time. He was kept alive for awhile and when it was determined he would not recover, life support was withdrawn. The family donated his organs so that others might live on.
If that weren't bad enough, one of our policemen had a child die on Friday. The child had a medical condition however the death was unexpected at this time.
Tonight I will have to go to both visitations and tomorrow attend one or the other funeral since they are happening at the same time.
It's really a shame and makes you think about life and how quickly and unexpectedly it can end.
Last week, one of our firemen died in a non-work related accident. He was working on a vehicle when the jack slipped and the vehicle fell on him, cutting off his air supply for quite a long time. He was kept alive for awhile and when it was determined he would not recover, life support was withdrawn. The family donated his organs so that others might live on.
If that weren't bad enough, one of our policemen had a child die on Friday. The child had a medical condition however the death was unexpected at this time.
Tonight I will have to go to both visitations and tomorrow attend one or the other funeral since they are happening at the same time.
It's really a shame and makes you think about life and how quickly and unexpectedly it can end.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Montessori School Grandparent Night
Last Wednesday night I accompanied my grandson to his school's grandparent night.
We were served cold Domino's pizza and Gatorade. The cold pizza did not affect my grandson one bit - he ate two pieces. I picked at one and ate a couple of bits of cold cheese. YUK.
After eating, we all moved to the auditorium to sit in rock hard wooden seats and watch the movie Bolt.
I'm glad I went for his sake, but man it was tough. Next time I'll eat before I go.
We were served cold Domino's pizza and Gatorade. The cold pizza did not affect my grandson one bit - he ate two pieces. I picked at one and ate a couple of bits of cold cheese. YUK.
After eating, we all moved to the auditorium to sit in rock hard wooden seats and watch the movie Bolt.
I'm glad I went for his sake, but man it was tough. Next time I'll eat before I go.
My 32nd Wedding Anniversary - YIKES!
My husband and I celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary on April 28, 2009. It's really hard to believe those numbers. In many respects it seems like only yesterday but then again sometimes I feel every year of it.
Overall I think we've done pretty good.
We went to dinner with the kids that live here in our town and the grandkids. It was very enjoyable, especially now that the grandkids are almost human beings.
Here's hoping for another 32!
Overall I think we've done pretty good.
We went to dinner with the kids that live here in our town and the grandkids. It was very enjoyable, especially now that the grandkids are almost human beings.
Here's hoping for another 32!
University of Illinois Football 2009 Spring Game
On April 25th, my son, his girlfriend and I attended the annual spring football game, which is just a nice way of saying a team scrimmage.
It was general admission and pretty poorly attended, although I don't know why. The proceeds went to Coaches Against Cancer, a charity that I can definitely get behind, in light of my recent bout.
There is a clothing sale in the concourse before the game, and I was able to pick up some shirts for the kids very cheaply.
The special draw this year was the appearance of former football coach Mike White, who signed stuff and gave autographs. I got a pic of him as he passed me.
The game itself was not particularly exciting, but it was a beautiful day and I got to spend time with my son, so all was good.
It was general admission and pretty poorly attended, although I don't know why. The proceeds went to Coaches Against Cancer, a charity that I can definitely get behind, in light of my recent bout.
There is a clothing sale in the concourse before the game, and I was able to pick up some shirts for the kids very cheaply.
The special draw this year was the appearance of former football coach Mike White, who signed stuff and gave autographs. I got a pic of him as he passed me.
The game itself was not particularly exciting, but it was a beautiful day and I got to spend time with my son, so all was good.
Flying Ants
It's hard to believe but my toy room was inundated with flying ants a couple of weeks ago. Yes, I know, sounds crazy, and I have no idea where they came from.
I don't mind regular ants - okay, that is a lie, I do mind them. But flying ones?
I had to remove everything from the room and spray, being careful not to hit any surface that my grandkids would eventually touch. It was really hard!
They seem to be under control for the time being. Here's hoping that they don't come back.
I don't mind regular ants - okay, that is a lie, I do mind them. But flying ones?
I had to remove everything from the room and spray, being careful not to hit any surface that my grandkids would eventually touch. It was really hard!
They seem to be under control for the time being. Here's hoping that they don't come back.
Nathan Gunn in A Brief Encounter - Houston Grand Opera
Ah, if only I could force myself to go back to Texas. Alas, I have been there 4-5 times for work and after the last visit I promised myself I would never return.
If I could return, I would definitely go to Houston to see my boyfriend Nathan Gunn in the world premiere of this opera, A Brief Encounter.
The story of the opera involves a married woman and a married man meeting by chance in a train station, falling in love, and parting forever, realizing that the love can never be fulfilled. Just a little light drama. GAH! I hate stories like this. Reality is all well and good, but whatever happened to the guy getting the girl?
Here are some photos I've harvested from the web over the past few weeks:
It's almost unfair, isn't it, for Nathan to be so good looking and so talented. An embarrassment of riches, really. Hopefully his wife is suitably appreciative.
If I could return, I would definitely go to Houston to see my boyfriend Nathan Gunn in the world premiere of this opera, A Brief Encounter.
The story of the opera involves a married woman and a married man meeting by chance in a train station, falling in love, and parting forever, realizing that the love can never be fulfilled. Just a little light drama. GAH! I hate stories like this. Reality is all well and good, but whatever happened to the guy getting the girl?
Here are some photos I've harvested from the web over the past few weeks:
It's almost unfair, isn't it, for Nathan to be so good looking and so talented. An embarrassment of riches, really. Hopefully his wife is suitably appreciative.
Food Network's Dinner Impossible with Robert Irvine
Can I just start this by saying that I love Robert Irvine? I really, really love him. In fact, were he to offer, I'd gladly have his baby. Well, if I could still have babies - the whole menopause thing sort of killed that. But I digress. Robert is not only majorly hot with a great body, but he's funny and a great chef. Click this for his info: Robert Irvine Bio
For those who don't know, the premise of the show each week is that Robert goes to some location and is given a cooking challenge that he must complete. Don't know what would happen if he didn't complete it - that is never mentioned. But, for example, in one episode he was tasked with cooking for 2000 persons at an NBA Allstar charity benefit. He had to make five dishes named after teams in the western division and five dishes for teams in the eastern division. (For example, Denver Chicken Nuggets.) He was given 9 hours to complete the task. He has two other chefs that accompany him on all the challenges and he uses chefs that work at the various venues as well.
In the basketball challenge, he wasn't content with just 10 total dishes, he upped the ante by doing another 20. A total of 30 dishes for 2000 people.
It's fun to watch. He has to go get ingredients, he has to organize the dishes and he is both comical and interesting to watch. He yells a lot, but that's okay - he is hot even when he's yelling.
If you haven't had a chance to watch this show, you should definitely check it out. Oh, and Robert is MINE. Hands off.
For those who don't know, the premise of the show each week is that Robert goes to some location and is given a cooking challenge that he must complete. Don't know what would happen if he didn't complete it - that is never mentioned. But, for example, in one episode he was tasked with cooking for 2000 persons at an NBA Allstar charity benefit. He had to make five dishes named after teams in the western division and five dishes for teams in the eastern division. (For example, Denver Chicken Nuggets.) He was given 9 hours to complete the task. He has two other chefs that accompany him on all the challenges and he uses chefs that work at the various venues as well.
In the basketball challenge, he wasn't content with just 10 total dishes, he upped the ante by doing another 20. A total of 30 dishes for 2000 people.
It's fun to watch. He has to go get ingredients, he has to organize the dishes and he is both comical and interesting to watch. He yells a lot, but that's okay - he is hot even when he's yelling.
If you haven't had a chance to watch this show, you should definitely check it out. Oh, and Robert is MINE. Hands off.
Breast Cancer Survivor and Yoga Clinical Trial
I mentioned a month or so ago that I had been asked to participate in a clinical trial to see if yoga would have any effect on the sleep and overall well-being of breast cancer survivors.
In case you weren't aware, a breast cancer survivor has one hell of a time getting a full night's sleep. It is not known why but waking up frequently and being unable to go back to sleep is a real problem.
Two weeks ago I started my part of the study. I am in the control group. I was asked to wear an actigraph on my non-dominant wrist for a week, never taking it off. The thing measured my sleep and activity somehow - it's all magic as far as I know. Anyway, I wore the thing which was similar to the ugliest watch ever made.
I was asked to fill out several questionnaires regarding the amount of sleep I was getting, how many times I got up, what times, how many hot flashes in a day, etc.
I turned it all in to the Cancer center last week and now I will continue filling out questionnaires without taking any yoga classes.
In four weeks I will wear the actigraph again and after that week is over, I will be able to take 4 weeks of yoga for nada. That's right, for free.
That was the big draw for this study - the fact that I got to get free yoga classes.
The last study I participated in was regarding chemotherapy, and being a novice at cancer I said, sure, I'll do it...but I could have royally screwed myself because one group had 6 chemo treatments and the other 4. Luckily I got the 4 - it is so horrible that 6 is just unfathomable to me at this point. I would have really hated myself if I'd had to do 6 just for some stupid study.
Anyway, looking forward to the yoga lessons soon.
In case you weren't aware, a breast cancer survivor has one hell of a time getting a full night's sleep. It is not known why but waking up frequently and being unable to go back to sleep is a real problem.
Two weeks ago I started my part of the study. I am in the control group. I was asked to wear an actigraph on my non-dominant wrist for a week, never taking it off. The thing measured my sleep and activity somehow - it's all magic as far as I know. Anyway, I wore the thing which was similar to the ugliest watch ever made.
I was asked to fill out several questionnaires regarding the amount of sleep I was getting, how many times I got up, what times, how many hot flashes in a day, etc.
I turned it all in to the Cancer center last week and now I will continue filling out questionnaires without taking any yoga classes.
In four weeks I will wear the actigraph again and after that week is over, I will be able to take 4 weeks of yoga for nada. That's right, for free.
That was the big draw for this study - the fact that I got to get free yoga classes.
The last study I participated in was regarding chemotherapy, and being a novice at cancer I said, sure, I'll do it...but I could have royally screwed myself because one group had 6 chemo treatments and the other 4. Luckily I got the 4 - it is so horrible that 6 is just unfathomable to me at this point. I would have really hated myself if I'd had to do 6 just for some stupid study.
Anyway, looking forward to the yoga lessons soon.
University of Illinois Ultimate Basketball Challenge 2009
On April 15th we went to the Ultimate Basketball Challenge at the University of Illinois. Basically the able-bodied men’s and women’s basketball teams play the men’s and women’s wheelchair teams. The cool part is that everyone has to play in wheelchairs. I think it gives everyone a new respect and admiration for the wheelchair athletes.
The grandson, granddaughter and a friend were able to get posters and their basketballs signed by all the athletes and by both the men’s and women’s basketball coaches.
The game was a lot of fun to watch and we all had a good time.
The grandson, granddaughter and a friend were able to get posters and their basketballs signed by all the athletes and by both the men’s and women’s basketball coaches.
The game was a lot of fun to watch and we all had a good time.
National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week 2009
The week of April 12-18, 2009 was designated by Congress as National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week. I created a slideshow video:
I also created a collage photo that we embedded in a matte that was signed by our user agencies. The plan is to frame it and hang it in our Comm. Center.
We celebrated the week by allowing the telecommunicators to wear goofy dress all week (one day was pajama day, one was Hawaiian day, etc.), we provided a lunch and huge cake on Wednesday and we had a drawing everyday for some pretty awesome prizes. Here's the cake:
This week is dear to my heart. I was a telecommunicator and telecommunicator supervisor for 18 years before taking my present position and although I gained immense satisfaction from helping people, it would always have been nice to be recognized. The telecommunicator (or 911 operator) is really the forgotten hero in the public safety equation. But I'm happy to celebrate and give all the staff of our center their props for this one week.
I also created a collage photo that we embedded in a matte that was signed by our user agencies. The plan is to frame it and hang it in our Comm. Center.
We celebrated the week by allowing the telecommunicators to wear goofy dress all week (one day was pajama day, one was Hawaiian day, etc.), we provided a lunch and huge cake on Wednesday and we had a drawing everyday for some pretty awesome prizes. Here's the cake:
This week is dear to my heart. I was a telecommunicator and telecommunicator supervisor for 18 years before taking my present position and although I gained immense satisfaction from helping people, it would always have been nice to be recognized. The telecommunicator (or 911 operator) is really the forgotten hero in the public safety equation. But I'm happy to celebrate and give all the staff of our center their props for this one week.
Man, Am I Behind or What?!
I've been woefully neglectful of this blog - and it's almost been a month since I posted.
Let's play catch-up.
I went on a business trip to Peoria, IL earlier in the month, staying at the Stoney Creek Inn. It's a quaint hotel that has a backwoods theme as you can see:
The conference was extremely boring. It was actually torture to sit all day and listen to someone lecture about how great they were.
One evening I went to the nearby casino and played craps. I ended up winning $81.00. Here's the payout:
That is about the first time I ever won and walked away without losing it all on some other game. Go, me!
That takes care of the first week of April, more or less.
Let's play catch-up.
I went on a business trip to Peoria, IL earlier in the month, staying at the Stoney Creek Inn. It's a quaint hotel that has a backwoods theme as you can see:
The conference was extremely boring. It was actually torture to sit all day and listen to someone lecture about how great they were.
One evening I went to the nearby casino and played craps. I ended up winning $81.00. Here's the payout:
That is about the first time I ever won and walked away without losing it all on some other game. Go, me!
That takes care of the first week of April, more or less.
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