August 22nd 2022

Good morning!

Joe, it's nice to have something to look forward to.

I got my car insurance bill and it's considerably higher.  I shopped around and there are some better prices.  Interesting that when I went to get an online quote they found my car based on my address and my current insurance without me having to tell them.  I guess there are no secrets anymore.

Another tech from our sister unit that I like a lot volunteered to float so no controversy with the one that seems have a "family emergency".  

Off today.  Going my six months check up with my doctor.  It should be quick.  I'm not going to complain about anything and ask him to keep the current sleep regimen of trazodone and clonazepam.  His initial idea was to start the trazodone and get rid of the clonazepam.  I only take the clonazepam on work nights and if I'm really anxious so I want to keep it.

I got a new book that interestingly is set in University of North Carolina in 1977 the same year I was a freshman there.  So long ago...yikes.

Have a great day.  

Good MORNING! I can't believe I am here and it is only 9 AM! But, I got up at 6 AM so we could get to the doc's office on time.

So, here's the latest scoop. Hubby is to go to outpatient to have a cath inserted and just drain out what's in the pleura. No Jackson-whatchacallit this time. They just called and said he should come today at 1 or 1:30 PM.

He was sick and shaky this morning, threw up a few times. Last drink was yesterday afternoon, and he is going out to the ABC store now to stock up, because the doc said he wants to see if he can get the lung problem straightened out first, without having to deal with the DT's. If necessary, they will hospitalize hubby and put in the bulb-drain, but not right now, the doc says. I guess then they'll see how much they pull out of him this time, and send it to the lab to see what's in the fluid and go from there.

I am still of the opinion that he should go into a residential rehab program ASAP,  but we'll see what we see when we see it. Hmmm.

Guess I should go wake Nannie up and give her her morning yogurt and meds. Then we can feed her lunch before we are off to the out-patient place. w00t.

....to be cont'd....

Stars, I hope that things work out for your husband.  I agree that the lung issue is pressing, but too bad they couldn't send him to detox after draining his lung.  

All the best.

Good day, all. Hope your weekends were relaxing or at least not too taxing!

Tweety -- yeah, you just can't please some people. But being mentioned in a positive Google review is cool! We had a tech at one of my contract jobs who behaved that way over being floated to another unit. Between that and a couple of other things she did, she lost her job. 

Joe -- that sounds like a good thing to look forward to for the end of the week. Hope work goes smoothly.

Happy anniversary, J22!!

Stars -- hoping this all works out well for your dh. I suppose the doctor's reasoning makes sense. 

Remember that back pain I was having? Well, all last week I was feeling just a bit under-the-weather and couldn't figure out why. Went home early Friday and did a home Covid test that was negative. Saturday had some itching and noticed some bumps on my lower back/hip and thought I had some hives, which isn't unusual, so took a Claritin before bed. Sunday the itching persisted so I looked everything over and realized I have shingles. Saw the PA this morning and have a script for valcyclovir and gabapentin. I won't take the gabapentin unless it gets quite a bit more painful. Right now it's just annoying. I had shingles in the same dermatome in 1983 when I was a 20-year-old college student. Had been meaning to get a vaccine lately but it never seemed urgent ? If I was sure it wouldn't come back for another 39 years I could skip the vaccine, 'cause I won't be here that long!

It's the second squirrel baby boom of the season, so I fed 8 baby squirrels yesterday. And chopped up lots of fruit and veggies for the various critters.

Hullo. I am struggling to stay awake during an online TB discussion. They are rehashing a treatment for a patient who doesn't seem to tolerate the meds. Before that, I was watching a video on TB labs that was also soporific. I took a short walk over to the Bagel shop for lunch and it is so nice outside. About 75 degrees and not too humid. The down side was a)having to come back to the office and b) and the unhoused people who seemed to be impaired. I just don't know how they survive. So sad. 

Wishing good thoughts to Mr. NoStars for healing. And to you, too Annie. I had shingles once on my face. I've read that once you have an outbreak your chances for subsequent ones are decreased, except for depressed immunity. 

Hi Tweety. I hope your car insurance situation can be improved. I am still playing tag with mine, trying to see if I will get anything for my poor wrecked car. Luckily, it was an older one my son was driving, so we don't depend on it. 

Joe, a convention sounds likes a nice change of pace. I hope J continues to improve. 

Cheers. 

You know it's pretty sad when the only time I have time to spend with hubby (outside the house) is when I go to the doc w/ him or vice versa. Fortunately Napping Nannie is safe at home by herself, she slept the whole time we were gone, both times. Feed her and make sure she pees before we leave and then there's no worries!

They took out 940 cc. The bottom of his left lung is kind of mooshed- up and thickened up by the fluid pressing it up all the time. They took a chest xray and ultra-sounded it before, and repeated the same two after, and sent a (tea-colored fluid) spec to the lab. The "catheter" they used to withdraw the fluid is maybe 5-6" long, but extremely thin; it looked to me more like a needle than a catheter. (potayto/potahto). He had some cramps when the lung was trying to expand to fill the suddenly empty space, but the relief in his actual breathing eased about 12 minutes after they put the bandaid on him. (He was disappointed it wasn't a Sponge Bob Square Pants bandaid; they didn't even have Scooby Do!)

Next up is we hear from his PCP and then...and then... ("and then along came Jones") I don't know what; maybe the Librium taper. I took Librium long, long time ago for depression, but I don't recall that it helped in any noticeable way ... NO ANYTHING! I thought it might have been a placebo, but the pharmacist said it wasn't. 

 I just want to pump hubby full of "Instant Booze-Be Gone".

But frankly, my dears, I'm tired of thinking about it.