Hitting the Road

by Fiddledeedee on September 1, 2010

I’m leaving for the Mayo Clinic later today.  The rest of the week will be a whirlwind of x-rays, tests, and doctor consults.  And if I play my cards right, a Margarita. Or five.

We’ve been able to rule out a few things through some blood work and testing.  Basically, something is attacking my joints.  They are effused (that’s fancy medical talk for FILLED WITH FLUID) and that is why I’m experiencing the pain.  But there is no evidence of nerve damage.

I’m having more blood drawn before I leave town, because that’s what I do now.  I give away my blood and parts of myself for the advancement of medical science.  I’m some sort of medical anomaly, evidently.  Which is awesome, because I never like to take the well traveled path.

The good news is that through some basic blood tests, I learned that my thyroid, blood count, cholesterol, sugar level, plus some other important stuff are all fine.  I am extremely low in Vitamin D, but I attribute that to NEVER LEAVING THE HOUSE.  But I can take a pill for that.  

I’m still under orders to rest.  {{{{Snicker}}}}  Last Sunday, Fiddledaddy took the children to the water park ALL DAY, so that I could rest.  I got all the sheets and towels washed and then spent THREE HOURS sewing badges on Cailey’s American Heritage Girls vest.  And let me just say for the record that I’m racking up points with child #2 in the hopes that she will be the one to ensure I end up in a luxury nursing home in my twilight years.  One with a spa, preferably.

Anyhoo.  At the doctor’s appointment the next morning Fiddledaddy ratted me out to the doctor.  And then the doctor gave me a slightly stern talking to.  While Fiddledaddy sat there openly gloating.  The reason he loves this doctor is because this doctor ALWAYS SIDES WITH HIM.

Okay, what’s wrong with this picture?  A doctor tells you that you must rest and not do any housework, AND THIS UPSETS YOU.  I don’t do rest.  I’m a lousy patient.  And I don’t care to take orders.

Perhaps the aforementioned Zoloft recommendation of my (former) orthopedic surgeon should be funneled to Fiddledaddy.  He deserves it.  He has put up with quite a bit from me lately.

But, at least I’m fun.  And my hair looks good.

My hope is to blog live from the Mayo.  At the very least I will Tweet from the Mayo.  I’ll keep y’all posted and thank you, thank you, thank you for your sweet prayers and well wishes.

I feel certain that I’ll have answers soon.

But then what will I write about?

{ 12 comments }

Kellogg’s Breakfast Club – Week #4

by Fiddledeedee on August 31, 2010

The winner of the $100 Visa Gift Card for the Kellogg’s Breakfast Club – Week #3, is #138, Lewis.

AND I’ve posted Week #4, talking about breakfast on the run.  I don’t know about you, and I’m a little ashamed to admit it, but I usually eat breakfast and lunch standing up.  And before the whole knee debacle, sometimes even while sprinting.  Terrible habit.  Anyhoo, head on over to my review/giveaway page to get yourself entered to win this weeks $100 Visa Gift Card, courtesy of BlogHer and Kellogg’s.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Facebook Emoticons

by Fiddledeedee on August 30, 2010

When I first ventured into the world of Facebook, I had no idea what to expect.  I had friends and family members joining simply so they could keep tabs on their children.  That sounded like a great time to me, so I thought I’d join and help them spy.

And then I discovered long ago friends, some that I haven’t talked to in more than 30 years.  Sweet and dear friends from high school that I’d lost touch with after graduating.  Some of them have gone on to, gulp, become grandparents.

That’s just wrong.  Reason #132 why I chose to have all of my children late in life.  So that when I become a grandmother, I’LL BE THE AGE THAT GRANDMAS OUGHT TO BE.  104!

Anyhoo.  I also friended many of the girls that I met when I first arrived in Los Angeles in 1989.  I joined a women’s Bible Study after moving, because I had two girlfriends who had preceded me in the move, and they were joining this women’s Bible Study, and frankly I wasn’t really all that bent to join a women’s Bible Study.  I just didn’t know what else TO DO WITH MY LONELY SELF.

Funny how God thumps us on the head when we’re not even looking for Him.

Every Saturday morning, I met with these women.  The group was led by a woman named Gail.  After a couple of stubborn years, I finally became a Christian.  In earnest.  In large part because of this group of women, and especially Gail.  Gail who was always patient, and never judging. Gail and her husband moved away from Los Angeles in the early 1990′s to begin a new ministry.  I completely lost touch with her.  But I count many of those women that I keep in touch with on FB, and shared those Saturday mornings with so long ago, as some of my nearest and dearest friends.

And I get to keep up with them now, so far away, because of Facebook.  Yesterday, I opened my e-mail to discover that one of my Bible Babes had recommended that I become friends with Gail.  GAIL IS ON FACEBOOK.  So of course I friended her.  Then I started sobbing joyfully as I typed a little note to her, telling her that I was so glad to have found her again.

I suppose the tears flowed because I’ve thought of her so many times over the last number of years, and wondered how she was doing.  And I wondered if she had any idea how she impacted my life on those Saturday mornings.  How, because of her, my life took such a sharp turn, and has never been the same.

God uses people to plant seeds.  And I think that we can have absolutely no idea how He uses us.  And I also firmly believe that Heaven is going to be one big surprise party.

After I recovered my emotions, I read on, and read a conversation that a high school friend was having.  I began laughing uncontrollably, because, well, something highly inappropriate, but really really funny was written, and, well, you all know my sense of humor.  And the lack of taste that goes with it.

I scrolled further down, and discovered, much to my horror, that a dear high school friend had lost her younger brother in a house fire the day before.  I know this family well.  Her oldest brother is a brother to me.  I keep in touch with 2 of the sisters and a sister-in-law on Facebook.   My friend, Greg, the oldest brother, and I have kept in touch for many many years.  When his entire family was vacationing nearby last summer, we went and spent the day with them.  I hadn’t seen him in a few years, and I hadn’t seen his parents or siblings since high school.

I began sobbing again. For a very different reason than just a few minutes before. My heart was breaking for my dear friends and their precious parents.  If not for Facebook, I would have been completely ignorant of the situation likely for many days.

I had only been seated in front of my computer for about 10 minutes.  But in those few minutes, I experienced the gamut of emotions.  I had to walk away, and get quiet with God.

I would have never thought that Facebook, with all the pithy commentary of friends, old and new, could ever affect me like it has.  But it has become a way for me to reach out to people in my life, to laugh with them, to cry with them, and more importantly to remember to hold them up in prayer.

Funny how God can work in places we least expect it.

So, do you use Facebook?

{ 24 comments }

Mayo or Bust

by Fiddledeedee on August 27, 2010

I wanted to let you all know that I fired my Orthopedic Surgeon (in my head) and am aiming the van north to go to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville the middle of next week.  Bottom line, when he suggested that I see a Psychiatrist to deal with MY RAW EMOTIONS and that some Zoloft might be just what I need to feel better, well, check please.

Don’t get me wrong.  I have nothing against Zoloft.  In fact, I’ve been campaigning for it for years, but Fiddledaddy set me up with a Blog instead.

The final straw was when the doctor, who has operated on me TWO times in the last 6 months, completely forgot that he told me last visit that my knee pain was attributed to a deep bone bruise and that I needed to take it easy and heal.  Because he has done a 180, and thinks my pain is attributable to lack of mobility and he wants me in Physical Therapy 3 times a week for the next 2 to 3 months.

Oh, and he said something to the affect that pain is subjective, and some people tolerate it better than others.

Hello?  I cannot walk without a brace?  And even then I move at the speed of smell.  With a pronounced limp.  But he thinks my knee looks great and has improved.  And that I need to look at the positive.  I tell you what.  I looked at positively tossing him out the window.

By this time, I was in full blown melt down and I thought Fiddledaddy’s head was going to explode all over the doctor’s nice white lab coat.

Buh-Bye!

I have a great deal of peace about going to Mayo and having doctors that are on the cutting edge of Orthopedics look at all my records and give me a 2nd opinion.

So, next week I’ll be packing up my laptop and blogging live from the Mayo Clinic.  A road trip.  It’ll be fun.  There.  THAT’S looking at the positive.

As far as all the nerve function I’ve lost in my arms and hand, I feel like my family doctor has all of that well in hand.  I’ve had blood work drawn, x-rays done, and the x-ray on my left elbow warranted an MRI yesterday.  This was my first foray of the entirety of me going into the metal tube.   I held fast to the panic button, in case claustrophobia took over, or they started playing Barry Mannilow over the headset.

Either way, it wouldn’t have been pretty.

Now I wait.  But I’m not stressed.  One day at a time.

Thank you so much for all the sweet notes in my e-mail box, filled with your encouragement and prayers.  You guys are better than Zoloft any day of the week.

Have a great weekend!

{ 26 comments }

Up on a Roof

August 26, 2010
Thumbnail image for Up on a Roof

Last night I was sitting at my computer minding my own beeswax, when I heard a horse trollop across our roof.  Back and forth, to and fro, hither and yon galloped the horse. Reasoning took over and I realized that it would be highly unlikely that a horse actually made it up to our roof, [...]

Read the full article →

← Previous Entries