Halloween Surgery?

It has been almost 2 years since Walter had a corneal transplant and lens replacement surgery in his right eye. His sight has been up and down since then.

One issue a corneal transplant does not address is high eye pressure problems also known as glaucoma. It was high eye pressure that took the vision of Walter's left eye some years ago and he is on multiple eyedrop medications for glaucoma in his right eye as well. Even with three different medications the eye pressure is too high so Walter was referred to be evaluated by the same glaucoma specialist he first saw about three years ago.

The glaucoma doctor told Walter about a surgery that would likely relieve his eye pressure problems. They basically add a small metal plate up under the upper eyelid and create a space for fluid to drain. Then they add a shunt (a tube, or as Walter likes to call it "a drainage pipe") to enhance the eye's natural drainage system.

The doctor had us try a different medication routine first, but that effort failed miserably. I couldn't go to Walter's eye doctor appointment today because I was with Mom at her MRI. When I got home Walter broke the news that he is scheduled for surgery on Halloween.

That's probably good news because it sounds like this surgery has a good potential to help him. At the least it should forestall further decline in Walter's vision from the high eye pressure. Without it his right eye would surely go the way of his left (to black). Also, he may experience some vision increase from the surgery because the undrained fluids that collect behind his cornea cause cloudy vision which has been a persistent problem for Walter. And if all goes well he may be able to do away with his glaucoma medications for the right eye.

Of course the surgery comes with risks as all surgery does. There will be an hour on the operating table with general anesthesia. But it appears to be a more straightforward (easier) procedure than the one he had two years ago, so we are optimistic.

Maybe I should get Walter a black eye patch to go over his surgical eye patch so he can be a pirate for Halloween. What do you think?

Mom is Bedridden

My mom is pretty much bedridden with her pain now. Since Friday she has had to stay in bed for most of each day. She gets up to use the bathroom, eat some small meals and take her medications. She is always eager to get back to her bed because the pain is not under control.

The epidural that was suggested last week went by the wayside when they decided they needed to get an MRI first. Today was her MRI. Tomorrow she goes back to the doctor. He may or may not have the MRI results by the time she seems him, we'll see.

An epidural injection is still a possibility I think provided the MRI doesn't show something unexpected. The difficulty with getting that done earlier was finding who was the right doctor who could refer her for it. They tried referring her to a neurosurgeon and turns out the neurosurgeon doesn't want to see her unless she's a surgical candidate. So they need to find someone else. All the while time is passing.

Mom's doctor is one of the most senior doctors there so hopefully he will know who to send her to if he agrees that an epidural is a good idea. In any case she needs some different treatment from what they have tried so far. Her current treatment is not WORKING.

As Mom put it today "I hope they figure out what's wrong because I'm ready to have this torture over with."

Rockin' Out Cockatoo

Every once in a while someone sends me something that's just too fun not to share. Check out this link where you will find an amazing video of a dancing cockatoo. This bird (Snowball is his name) dances to the Backstreet Boys beat and sings too! I thought it was hysterical and I couldn't resist dancing right along with Snowball. How about you?

A Day Without Connectivity Is Like a Day Without...

Today was a very strange day at work. Our connectivity to the world was down pretty much all day. That means no phone service to the outside world, no email to the outside world and no internet connection. Yikes!

As it turns out there was a construction mishap near our building which caused a Qwest fiberoptic cable to be cut. In the late afternoon we finally had phones back but it wasn't until after 6pm that our email and internet connection were working again.

These days it's very hard to go without connectivity and still get your work done. It felt so odd. I found myself having to think out of the box for different ways to get things done. And all day long I was adding to a list of things to do "after we are connected again." I felt out of my element a bit. Sort of discombobulated if you will. Some people remarked that they were actually getting work done without the phone ringing constantly. I heard others saying it felt like a snow day. On a snow day not everyone makes it to the office so you don't have the full resources and expectation of communication with other people in their offices.

We don't think about all the ways we rely on the web for everyday tasks now. Transferring money in your bank account; ordering prescription refills; checking the weather report; looking up a bus schedule; getting directions; posting pictures to share; emailing friends and family. The list goes on and on.

I'm a big fan of Web 2.0 applications. So some of my notes and information that I use on a daily basis reside on the web. I had to do without those resources today. It wasn't horrible, and I wouldn't mind if this happened once a month. But I think I would prefer that it were scheduled and not a surprise. I was thankful that I didn't have any critical needs that couldn't be met in another way. And may I say, Yay for cell phones!

If you found yourself unexpectedly without internet connectivity for a full day, what would you do? Something fun I hope.

Now that we have the internet back I think I'll go look up a bus schedule to take me home.

Mom Still in Pain

My Mom is still having a very difficult time of it. The pain medications are just not helping enough and now she is taking medications to combat the effects of the pain medication. She has had several tests including x-rays which did not show a fracture. But she has severe degenerative disc disease and that contributes to this big muscle spasm she's experiencing.

At the last appointment they said they were going to refer her to someone who could give her an epidural injection. There were problems with that referral (somehow I got a call from a neurosurgeon) and now the primary doctor thinks there must be some other reason the pain is not getting better. Like perhaps a fracture that does not show up on an x-ray. So they want to do an MRI as the next step. Great idea, except that I couldn't get them to schedule an MRI before next Tuesday and today Mom says her pain is getting worse. Aargh!!

An occupational therapist visited Mom today and he agrees that she needs something done quickly. He's going to talk to a visiting nurse and see if they can pull some strings to get the MRI done sooner. I sure hope something works soon. No one should have to live their life in that much pain.

How Old Are Your Spices?

When was the last time you cleaned out your spice rack? Do you have any spices which you purchased for a single recipe and have never used since? Anything been languishing for years having long since lost its aroma and flavor?

Today I ran across this great blog post about how to tell how old your spices are. I thought it was kind of interesting. If you use McCormick's spices in some cases you can tell age by looking at the packaging or using a date code on their web site.

If your spice rack needs cleaning out you might want to take a look. Have a good weekend folks.

Happy Birthday to Walter

I wanted to take a moment to say Happy Birthday to my sweetie Walter. He had a birthday on Monday. When I asked him what he wanted for his birthday he said "not to be [his age] years old." Well, I'm sorry, Dear, but I can't make that happen for you. If I could, I surely would. I would even give up the senior citizen discounts we'll be getting soon. ;)

We spent the majority of Walter's birthday in Olympia taking Mom to an appointment and helping her with a few things. When we returned to Seattle we kept driving until we got to Lynnwood and tried out the new Claim Jumper up there. The food was wonderful as we expected but the decor is pretty modern and doesn't quite measure up to the character of the Southcenter Claim Jumper. I got a big plate of jambalaya which left me overstuffed and with enough leftovers that Walter and I shared them for dinner the next evening. Walter had a giant Idaho stuffed baked potato.

For Walter's birthday gift we are planning a trip to North Bend to do some much needed clothes shopping. We always find some good deals up there at the outlet mall. Due to bad weather and extra trips to Olympia we didn't get to go last weekend but we're planning on it this coming Sunday. It should be a good time to enjoy the fall color in the mountains as well.

Walter has been so patient and understanding and supportive while my Mom has been sick. His great attitude has made things so much easier for me. And what a great sport he has been considering his birthday didn't get center stage as much as deserved since my focus has been on Mom.

Happy Birthday, Walter and may you have many decades more birthdays to celebrate.

Quiet on the Blog

It's been quiet here because things have been hectic in life. Mom saw doctors on Monday and Tuesday and she's still feeling pretty bad. Her back is killing her and her pain medication makes her too nauseous to eat much of anything although she is hungry. At my request doctors ordered new medications today. They took x-rays of her back and she doesn't have a fracture. Physical therapy will visit tomorrow and hopefully they can try some back massage. I sure hope something works for her soon. No one should be in constant pain like that.

It's Animoto Time

I found a great new site called Animoto where you can create your own 30 second (or longer) videos from your photos and music that you upload or choose on their site. The resulting videos look slicker than a slide show and it's super easy to put together.

The only thing a little limiting for me personally is that they have a very narrow selection of music to choose from. And the genres available are not necessarily my cup of tea. All that means is that I need to learn how to download mp3's I like from another source and then I can use them in Animoto videos. I have lots of friends well versed in downloading music to help me and I'm always up for learning something new.

Of course I had to try this out so I uploaded some pictures of my mom and photos of flowers in her yard. If you don't like the results you can have the same pictures "remixed" to create a new video. They say no two videos will come out the same. Here are my two 30 second videos using the same pictures and same music. Which do you like the best?





Animoto was created by some guys from the film production industry. Thirty second videos are free and full-length ones are $3 each. If you feel like taking on a fun project, give it a try yourself.

Setback for Mom

Mom hasn't been feeling too well the last few days. She has had some back pain which became pretty significant by the end of last week. On Friday morning she wasn't able to keep her breakfast down. I took her to a doctor where they told us she should take Vicodin for the pain but there wasn't much else they could do for it because she has degenerative disc disease and spurs that come out from her spine which will sometimes cause pain like this.

What the doctor didn't address was her inability to keep food in her stomach. That has continued through the weekend and today was the first time she could eat anything without it coming right back up. I was going to take her to the emergency room but when I called her this afternoon she said she is feeling better after reducing the pain pill to 1/2 pill at a time. So far today she has not thrown up. I'm going to check on her after she eats some dinner and if she can't keep it down will take her to the ER tonight. Otherwise I plan to call and get her in to see a doctor tomorrow.

Good Eatin' at Northgate

We in the Northgate area have endured a lot of construction at the mall and the surrounding area recently. I think the construction will continue for quite some time to come, but one payoff has already come to fruition.

Four new restaurants have opened at the mall in the last month with one more to come. Walter and I visited one the other night - Panera Bread. They of course specialize in artisan breads and they have great soups and salads. We had never been to a Panera before and were favorably impressed with their BBQ Chicken and Roasted Wild Mushroom Crispanis. We look forward to returning many times to sample additional items on their menu.

The other new restaurants at Northgate which are already open are Blue Fin Sushi and Seafood, the Ram Restaurant and Brewery and Stanford's Restaurant and Bar. My friend Colette visited Stanford's recently and gave it a thumbs up.

Walter and I plan to try all of these new eateries. And we're really looking forward to the opening of Romano's Macaroni Grill which is almost ready too. I hope the Northgate area can support so many new restaurants without any of the old ones closing.

A Whirlwind of Appointments

Whew, what a crazy week. It occurs to me that as of tomorrow I will have accompanied Mom and Walter on medical appointments every day for a week except for Sunday. The schedule went something like this:

• Friday - Walter appointment with eye surgeon (cornea specialist)
• Saturday - Mom had to go to the eye doctor for her eye infection
• Monday - Mom's follow-up appointment with the eye doctor
• Tuesday - Mom's appointment with her primary care doctor
• Wednesday - Walter's appointment with glaucoma specialist
• Thursday - Mom appointment with primary care doctor about a new issue. She needs a test and consultation.

The upshot of all these appointments is everybody's pretty much doing okay. Mom's eye infection is much improved although she will be on antibiotics for a while and we're keeping an "eye" on it. She had a good visit with her primary doctor but a couple (hopefully minor) new issues have come up and she needs to see him again tomorrow.

Walter's sight has been slowly improving and seems almost back to where it was before August 1. The glaucoma specialist is changing up his medications in an attempt to bring his eye pressure into normal range. The goal is to avoid long-term sight decline and maybe even have a potential for more sight improvement.

I think we're all hoping that things slow down a bit and everybody stays healthy. Everyone has been very understanding and we appreciate all the well wishes we've received from our friends.

A Tale of Two Eye Appointments

Well it's official. Mom has a raging eye infection. When we saw the doctor on Saturday morning he drained the area as best he could and put her on antibiotic pills and drops. If it's not better by tomorrow she will have to see an ophthalmologist, but she tells me by phone that it is indeed getting better. Whew. She goes back for a follow-up appointment first thing tomorrow morning.

Walter's appointment on Friday went okay. No change on the eyesight. His eye pressure has been moderately high for a while so his doctor wants him to see a glaucoma specialist again to see if there is anything more that can be done to bring down the pressure safely. He already takes 3 eyedrop medications for glaucoma. He has an appointment on Wednesday and then goes back to his regular doctor (cornea specialist) three weeks later.