Today I was waiting until I got a new wireless keyboard installed because my $2.99 keyboard (that I bought as an accessory to my laptop, seldom used,) was drawn into full service to one of my desktops that had died just before I left for the hospital for a colonoscopy.
Hospitals are, perhaps, where we wait the longest. Scheduled .for 12 noon for the procedure, I was finally taken in at 1:30 PM. The nurse who was going to hook me up to the intravenous saline and whatever else they gave for pain and relaxation, told me I was a 'roller'. Unfamiliar with the term in present use, I had images of Las Vegas and knew that meaning to be far from the truth. She said it meant that when she stuck the needle in, instead of going through to its target, the vein just rolled. Not only that but she said she hit a 'valve' and it 'blew up'. By now I figured we needed a plumber, for sure. Instead, she said she was calling in the 'big guns'. A much older nurse arrived, used a thinner needle, tried again, and said she had to call in a specialist. A very kind, gentle, 'expert' told me why they couldn't get blood...asked if I had taken the 'prep to the procedure' which, I assured her, I had as directed.. She told me the reason I saw big veins on the back of my hands the night before, and not today, was that I was dehydrated. Since I had taken all that was prescribed to leave me vying for colon cleanliness with whoever has the Guinness book of records on it, I was plugged into the intravenous bag dripping saline solution. I could only wish they had plumbed me into it earlier rather than trying to find a vein to pierce in my dehydrated hands but that would have been cart before the horse and impossible..
I was knocked out even though I had asked not to be and they said they couldn't knock me out without an anesthesiologist present. I was told they only gave something to loosen muscles and relax one but thqat some patients fall asleep.in waiting mode. I woke up only after the amnesic drug they had given me wore off quite a while later.
A friend drove me home, first stopping at Staples to pick up a new keyboard. However, Morpheus creeped in where computers feared to tread so here I am, a few hours later than usual. Sorry you had to wait for this blog...if any of you actually were kind enough to do so.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
MAY THE FORCE SAVE US FROM FOX CABLE NEWS
We keep hearing about people who still think that Obama is a Muslim and not born in America. I was shocked today to hear four of them who are blood related to me! After hearing them go on, I said, "You must watch Fox News." The answer was, "Of course, what do you watch?" I answered, "MSNBC, CNN, BBC, CNBC..."..at which point I faced a glare with "Of course, MSNBC!" I realized we were two rocks about to collide. I commented, I can see that we are each very fixed in our beliefs and will not agree; we should change the subject." Rather than continue a political discussion, my thoughts are more centered on the distance such stupidity and rigidity people can have. There is so little faith in government that they cannot conceive that his religious beliefs are clear and his birth proven. Instead, I got a tirade about a Muslim president.and when I asked, "Well what would be so terrible even if he were a Muslim?" At that point, it became evident why I have not had contact with these relatives and I can be assured I never will again.
I crossed the room and got into a new conversation, wondering how I can be blood related to these closed minds. I am amazed how insidious we have allowed this cancer of Fox News, Glenn Beck and all the rest of the Teapartiers who spew these lies as truth. At risk of sounding paranoid, I believe that the fact that Fox News is half owned by A Saudi Arabian may well be a part of Osamas bin Laden's plan to break the American economy. Money, for all I know may also go in the pockets of many others who don't realize that their political donations may be fronted by others than whom they seem. I find it very frightening and almost intolerable thast Americans can be so easily be duped. If you are not aware just how much of our lives, entertainment, news, propaganda, political views are fed to us by Murdoch and company...you must click here and read the whole thing. This information may not frighten you but it frightens me. The realization that he is out to make Obama fail and has so much money and fools behind him to do it is really scary. An Australian should not hold that much power in America, especially since he does not like us..
I crossed the room and got into a new conversation, wondering how I can be blood related to these closed minds. I am amazed how insidious we have allowed this cancer of Fox News, Glenn Beck and all the rest of the Teapartiers who spew these lies as truth. At risk of sounding paranoid, I believe that the fact that Fox News is half owned by A Saudi Arabian may well be a part of Osamas bin Laden's plan to break the American economy. Money, for all I know may also go in the pockets of many others who don't realize that their political donations may be fronted by others than whom they seem. I find it very frightening and almost intolerable thast Americans can be so easily be duped. If you are not aware just how much of our lives, entertainment, news, propaganda, political views are fed to us by Murdoch and company...you must click here and read the whole thing. This information may not frighten you but it frightens me. The realization that he is out to make Obama fail and has so much money and fools behind him to do it is really scary. An Australian should not hold that much power in America, especially since he does not like us..
Thursday, September 2, 2010
PREPARATION FOR A COLONOSCOPY
The only thing worse than having a colonoscopy is preparing for one. At least most people are knocked out when they get the procedure. They wake up feeling great from the residual of muscle relaxants, knowing that it's all over and they can eat and drink again.
Ten years ago when I had my first colonoscopy, I refused to be to sleep. I was given enough meds to assure that I would be relaxed and awake. The monitor was right beside me to watch as the yards of camera on the end of the rotor router traveled to the end of the tunnel. I saw where my appendix would have been had it not been removed I thought back to that time, when Spike Jones had recorded Chloe, Cocktails for Two, and other gems played on the radio (this was before TV was in hospital rooms). I had been given a spinal and since my butt weighs more than my torso, my head had been elevated; I got the air bubble up my spine to produce the mother of all headaches. The sutures from the surgery (arthroscopy hadn't been invented yet, either) made not only laughing painful but smiling, as well. Everything anyone said or was broadcast was funny. It was later that the news invented violence, murders, and sadness.
But I digress. My instructions read that I should not take a long list of things I don't take anyway, like every known over-the-counter pain-reliever and anti-inflammatory. So many seemed like the 'in' thing, like Ecotrin, Bufferin, Nuprin, Motrin. I wasn't to take any iron, though I don't take that either. Three days before the procedure I was not to eat legumes, peas, carrots, tomatoes, watermelon or nuts. I read that too late and since my short term memory priority doesn't cover meals, I had no idea what I had eaten of those on the do-not-eat list which I changed to the do-not-tell list. If the government can make silly rules, I will,too, as well.
The whole day before the procedure only a clear liquid diet is allowed. The only things I allowed myself, so that I didn't have to drink things I don't normally drink, were coffee, tea and bouillon. Be evening I was trying to figure how I could turn the woodwork into clear liquid. At 7 PM as things shifted to no more clear fluids, but specifically 15 oz. of Citrate of Magnesia. Fortunately I don't find that taste too bad as it is sort of like Quinine Tonic on steroids with tartness added. The quantity, however, presents a problem. It should be followed within the next 2 hours by three 8 oz glasses of water. It would have been easier to just put the garden hose in my mouth until my stomach stretched to capacity.
The object is to have your intestines as clean and pure as a brand new and unused, PVC pipe. For anyone who has ever taken a dog to training school, the embarrassment of your dog having an 'accident' while in class is nothing to the embarrassment of having a faint tan hue seen by the camera lens in your colon..
The first 15 oz. of Citrate of Magnesia is followed by another round of the same five hours before the procedure, it is again followed by three 8oz glasses of water within two hours. By now your abdomen looks like one of those water-filled balloons that is deadly if you drop it off the roof onto a pedestrian. After cleaning out the Aegean stables of your colon, you are now ready to face (well not exactly face, I guess) the doctor who will do a 'wrong way Corrigan' looking for mines, in medical terms, polyps...or anything further along the disaster scale. Meanwhile, keep your eye on the goal...there is food to be had again when the all-clear is sounded at the end of the tunnel.
Ten years ago when I had my first colonoscopy, I refused to be to sleep. I was given enough meds to assure that I would be relaxed and awake. The monitor was right beside me to watch as the yards of camera on the end of the rotor router traveled to the end of the tunnel. I saw where my appendix would have been had it not been removed I thought back to that time, when Spike Jones had recorded Chloe, Cocktails for Two, and other gems played on the radio (this was before TV was in hospital rooms). I had been given a spinal and since my butt weighs more than my torso, my head had been elevated; I got the air bubble up my spine to produce the mother of all headaches. The sutures from the surgery (arthroscopy hadn't been invented yet, either) made not only laughing painful but smiling, as well. Everything anyone said or was broadcast was funny. It was later that the news invented violence, murders, and sadness.
But I digress. My instructions read that I should not take a long list of things I don't take anyway, like every known over-the-counter pain-reliever and anti-inflammatory. So many seemed like the 'in' thing, like Ecotrin, Bufferin, Nuprin, Motrin. I wasn't to take any iron, though I don't take that either. Three days before the procedure I was not to eat legumes, peas, carrots, tomatoes, watermelon or nuts. I read that too late and since my short term memory priority doesn't cover meals, I had no idea what I had eaten of those on the do-not-eat list which I changed to the do-not-tell list. If the government can make silly rules, I will,too, as well.
The whole day before the procedure only a clear liquid diet is allowed. The only things I allowed myself, so that I didn't have to drink things I don't normally drink, were coffee, tea and bouillon. Be evening I was trying to figure how I could turn the woodwork into clear liquid. At 7 PM as things shifted to no more clear fluids, but specifically 15 oz. of Citrate of Magnesia. Fortunately I don't find that taste too bad as it is sort of like Quinine Tonic on steroids with tartness added. The quantity, however, presents a problem. It should be followed within the next 2 hours by three 8 oz glasses of water. It would have been easier to just put the garden hose in my mouth until my stomach stretched to capacity.
The object is to have your intestines as clean and pure as a brand new and unused, PVC pipe. For anyone who has ever taken a dog to training school, the embarrassment of your dog having an 'accident' while in class is nothing to the embarrassment of having a faint tan hue seen by the camera lens in your colon..
The first 15 oz. of Citrate of Magnesia is followed by another round of the same five hours before the procedure, it is again followed by three 8oz glasses of water within two hours. By now your abdomen looks like one of those water-filled balloons that is deadly if you drop it off the roof onto a pedestrian. After cleaning out the Aegean stables of your colon, you are now ready to face (well not exactly face, I guess) the doctor who will do a 'wrong way Corrigan' looking for mines, in medical terms, polyps...or anything further along the disaster scale. Meanwhile, keep your eye on the goal...there is food to be had again when the all-clear is sounded at the end of the tunnel.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
AMERICAN MINORITY IS FULL OF ISLAMOPHOBIA
To use 'freedom of speech' as a tool for lies and hate that will hurt our relationship with Muslims all over the world who have been peaceful and our allies only makes clearer how many Americans can be manipulated with hatred. To think that they are fooled and are making it worse for our troops in the Middle East is the furthest thing from their minds because they are incapable of thinking things through for themselves and only rely on the word of the con artists and would-be politicians like Sarah Palin, Sharon Angle, and greedy men like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. Beck uses religion and the fantasy that he talks to God directly and Rush Limbaugh is like the snake oil salesman who knows what he has doesn't work but he will get rich selling it anyway, despite the cost to the people who buy.
Do these foolish people not realize that it is only giving ammunition to our enemies as they whip there own sheep into frenzy to commit violence and terrorist killings of those presumed to be the 'infidels' against Islam. There are many articles and comments written on both sides of this issue. One example can be read here.
Josh Rogan wrote an article comparing Shirley Sherrod to Iman Paul. He wrote: "The State Department's top spokesman cautioned reporters Tuesday not to take snippets of edited remarks on the Internet by the "Ground Zero mosque" imam and use them to brand him a radical, lest they repeat the mistakes made by the media in calling former USDA official Shirley Sherrod a racist based on edited clips of her promoted on conservative websites." There is a site which documents Anti-Muslim bigotry. To read the entry for 8/31/10, click here. Mayor Bloomberg was asked to investigate the funding of Park 51. "Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo should not investigate the financing of the proposed Islamic community center near ground zero, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said on Tuesday, reiterating his support for the project.
"I think it's a terrible precedent," he said. "You don't want them investigating donations to religious organizations, and there's no reason for the government to do so."
So if all those people planning to 'regain' our country will stop trying to violate the Constitution and let the people to whom jobs have been assigned by votes or hiring do what they have to do, in peace and without guilt.
Do these foolish people not realize that it is only giving ammunition to our enemies as they whip there own sheep into frenzy to commit violence and terrorist killings of those presumed to be the 'infidels' against Islam. There are many articles and comments written on both sides of this issue. One example can be read here.
Josh Rogan wrote an article comparing Shirley Sherrod to Iman Paul. He wrote: "The State Department's top spokesman cautioned reporters Tuesday not to take snippets of edited remarks on the Internet by the "Ground Zero mosque" imam and use them to brand him a radical, lest they repeat the mistakes made by the media in calling former USDA official Shirley Sherrod a racist based on edited clips of her promoted on conservative websites." There is a site which documents Anti-Muslim bigotry. To read the entry for 8/31/10, click here. Mayor Bloomberg was asked to investigate the funding of Park 51. "Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo should not investigate the financing of the proposed Islamic community center near ground zero, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said on Tuesday, reiterating his support for the project.
"I think it's a terrible precedent," he said. "You don't want them investigating donations to religious organizations, and there's no reason for the government to do so."
So if all those people planning to 'regain' our country will stop trying to violate the Constitution and let the people to whom jobs have been assigned by votes or hiring do what they have to do, in peace and without guilt.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
HOW CLOSE IS CLOSE IN RELATIONSHIPS?
Closeness can be an emotion or physical proximity. Doing many things with 'friends' may shared interests, thoughts and opinions does not necessarily tell whether an emotional closeness may or may not exist. Years ago, a true friend, whom I had not seen or been in touch with in several years, phoned me from across the country to share a personal quandary with me. Our conversation as though we had never been apart. The special affinity we shared, the feeling that we trusted one another's opinion and held a deep respect and mutual regard for the other, was overwhelmingly acute..
Interest groups are an interesting connection for people whether it is a grief group, AA, a reading group, a woman's cookie sharing group or a gradually eroding group of seniors.. The Board of Directors of our now defunct Greater Boston Seniors Computer Group couldn't bear to part when we stopped our planning meetings, so we, the BOD, have been meeting to talk about computers though many other subjects have been tossed around for the past five years. A highlight is that we then go out to lunch and the camaraderie of those meals is priceless to us all. Since it started as a group of seniors, we are like the Shakers...there is nothing to being new life into our group and we gradually lose members by attrition, usually health (or more precisely, the lack of it)..
In an attempt to analyze why so many disparate people may feel and identify closely in so many ways I finally realized that our closeness comes through all the life events we shared during that time and from the duration of time we have spent together which made us know each other so well.. In time, I realized similar elements in other groups in which I have been involved. .A group may come together for a common goal or interest but other dynamics bring us together. I was in a photography club many years ago, before digital cameras. We proudly shared our pictures in competition but I doubt that too many of us took the results of the judging seriously. The competition was, for most of us, just a reason to be with people who made us feel close and for whom we grew to care.
It brought me to think about the useless criteria many use to describe friendship. Like any love, it is not a one-size-fits-all description of a relationship. People talk about 'best' friends, 'good' friends, 'casual' friends, and 'acquaintances'. These labels do not include loyalty, commitment, enjoyment of one anther's company and reasons for it which usually differ from other similar relationships.
I, for one, value all my friends and acquaintances and know I am not an emotional island. When I lose one, for any reason, I am deeply saddened and the closing of that relationship in my ongoing memory bank is felt intensely. Nevertheless, we will all keep losing them until we stop being able to feel, remember, or make contact through our own pain. The experience of relationships will unlikely be the same for each of us within those relationships and we will all go on being who we are, as different as that may be.
Interest groups are an interesting connection for people whether it is a grief group, AA, a reading group, a woman's cookie sharing group or a gradually eroding group of seniors.. The Board of Directors of our now defunct Greater Boston Seniors Computer Group couldn't bear to part when we stopped our planning meetings, so we, the BOD, have been meeting to talk about computers though many other subjects have been tossed around for the past five years. A highlight is that we then go out to lunch and the camaraderie of those meals is priceless to us all. Since it started as a group of seniors, we are like the Shakers...there is nothing to being new life into our group and we gradually lose members by attrition, usually health (or more precisely, the lack of it)..
In an attempt to analyze why so many disparate people may feel and identify closely in so many ways I finally realized that our closeness comes through all the life events we shared during that time and from the duration of time we have spent together which made us know each other so well.. In time, I realized similar elements in other groups in which I have been involved. .A group may come together for a common goal or interest but other dynamics bring us together. I was in a photography club many years ago, before digital cameras. We proudly shared our pictures in competition but I doubt that too many of us took the results of the judging seriously. The competition was, for most of us, just a reason to be with people who made us feel close and for whom we grew to care.
It brought me to think about the useless criteria many use to describe friendship. Like any love, it is not a one-size-fits-all description of a relationship. People talk about 'best' friends, 'good' friends, 'casual' friends, and 'acquaintances'. These labels do not include loyalty, commitment, enjoyment of one anther's company and reasons for it which usually differ from other similar relationships.
I, for one, value all my friends and acquaintances and know I am not an emotional island. When I lose one, for any reason, I am deeply saddened and the closing of that relationship in my ongoing memory bank is felt intensely. Nevertheless, we will all keep losing them until we stop being able to feel, remember, or make contact through our own pain. The experience of relationships will unlikely be the same for each of us within those relationships and we will all go on being who we are, as different as that may be.
Monday, August 30, 2010
THOUGHTS THAT JUST GO 'POP' IN MY HEAD
Where is Scotty when the Chilean miners need him to 'beam them up'?
*******
13-Year-Old Motorcyclist Killed in Indy Crash:
Fatal Accident During Warm-Up Lap Claims Teen's Life
Aug. 29, 2010 Quote from his father was, " He passed doing what he loved and had his go fast face on as he pulled onto the track." Is this rationalization or is the father emotionless? It takes someone special to allow their children to start so early in races that can kill them, but like anything else, I guess you have to live by "You either make it or you don't". You also have to have faith that your child will be among those who live and become great.
******
Peter Montgomery writes: "Beck madness continues as he tries to launch another religious Great Awakening to shape American history." "Divine Destiny was a three-hour mix of gospel music and patriotic songs from an “all-star” choir of local singers and dancers, inspirational exhortations for people and churches to do good work in their communities, and speeches by Religious Right figures about America’s need to repent for the nation’s sins and turn back to God." For those of us who do not get the same messages from God that Beck claims to receive, I am convinced that it proves there is truly a sucker born every minute and that he will believe Barnum made this quote (which he didn't). While the group is busy atoning for the sins, supposedly from the rest of us, we will be busy trying to help the rest of our people who don't have the luxury of attending protests and are too busy trying to survive while the religious zealots narcissitically believe they have all the answers to the problems they are busy creating!
Sunday, August 29, 2010
WHAT BOOKS CAN MEAN TO US
Books can be relaxing, energizing, or just plain boring but you really can't know until you read to find out. Wine can be just as much a surprise in a less expensive bottle with great taste as an expensive one that lacks character. They imitate wine: white wine loses identity if kept in a bottle too long just as some books lose there relevance if not read in a reasonably timely matter as their published. Some are like red wines, which do not lose their essence and bouquet no matter how long they are on the shelf. Books like Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice have kept their appeal to all manner of readers for almost 200 years.
Unlike wine, books can have many other characteristics. All today's knowledge is contained in books somewhere but, fortunately.you don't have to have all the books to gain the knowledge, just a computer with access to the Internet. Novels can capture our imaginations by using today's knowledge to think of what might be possible in the future. We call this science-fiction. When we are bored and can't find things to do, we examine instruction books on crafts.and the art of almost anything you can name. When we want to share the thoughts of scholars, biographers, historians, and related others we read non-fiction and when we just need to be entertained, relaxed and allowed to sublimate...we read novels.
While many people need pets for touch and caressing and blind adoration, a book can make someone feel all the things necessary for their existence. All you need is the ability to convert the written (or typed) words into pictures both physical and emotional. We know that many cannot enjoy books whether because their vision disallows it or their ability to comprehend the written words is lacking. For these people, I can only have great sympathy because for me it would be like being stripped of the use of one of my five senses.
Unlike wine, books can have many other characteristics. All today's knowledge is contained in books somewhere but, fortunately.you don't have to have all the books to gain the knowledge, just a computer with access to the Internet. Novels can capture our imaginations by using today's knowledge to think of what might be possible in the future. We call this science-fiction. When we are bored and can't find things to do, we examine instruction books on crafts.and the art of almost anything you can name. When we want to share the thoughts of scholars, biographers, historians, and related others we read non-fiction and when we just need to be entertained, relaxed and allowed to sublimate...we read novels.
While many people need pets for touch and caressing and blind adoration, a book can make someone feel all the things necessary for their existence. All you need is the ability to convert the written (or typed) words into pictures both physical and emotional. We know that many cannot enjoy books whether because their vision disallows it or their ability to comprehend the written words is lacking. For these people, I can only have great sympathy because for me it would be like being stripped of the use of one of my five senses.
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