Q: How many critics does it take to change a light bulb? A: Critics can’t change a light bulb. But they’ll watch you do it and tell you a hundred ways you could have done it …
I know that I promised in Major Excitement to post about the Nicholas Brothers and this is it! I can’t remember the first time I saw the Nicholas Brothers in a movie but I’ve sought them out ever …
Today is known as International Goof Off Day. It is a day to relax, enjoy and goof off. Do something fun and leave the work until tomorrow. Even though I have 5 (yes, five!) part-time …
Spring has sprung, the grass has riz, I wonder where the birdies is. Some say the birds is on the wing, but that’s absurd, the wing is on the bird. That’s how I …
I was reading this great article at https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/best-scenic-train-rides-us?wpsrc=thrillist and saw that the header image was a train we were on in 2007, the White Pass & Yukon Route out of Skagway, Alaska. The Thrillist folks said “As …
Little Free Libraries are pure literary generosity.
These charming book exchanges, which stand in front yards across the country (and around the world), are typically self-sustaining. Neighbors take a book when they see something they like, and donate a book when they have one to share.
Through this cyclical system, Little Free Libraries are kept full, with inventory that constantly changes.
But, recently, there have been reports of ne’er-do-wells who don’t get the honor-system concept. Instead of choosing one book, or dropping off a title or two, these killjoys take all the books — every last one — leaving nothing but empty shelves for the next patron to find.
Luckily, nothing like this has happened to our LFL, Greenbriar Little Free Library #33664 (https://www.facebook.com/GreenbriarLittleFreeLibrary/), although I read stories about theft and vandalism on a Facebook page for LFL stewards.
What do you think? Is it possible to steal something that is free?
See a penny, pick it up… All day long you’ll have good luck.
When you are out and about today, look on the ground for pennies. It just might be your lucky day!
My mom is forever picking up pennies – or anything that’s cash-looking. She’s made a record over the years of how much money she’s found on the street and the total amount is pretty staggering.
Finding a penny has long been considered a good omen, suggesting something good will happen in the life of the finder. Some superstitious people believe that you should only pick up a penny that’s lying face up.
Some believe we should no longer mint pennies because they cost more to make than they are worth.
Years ago a penny was able to buy something – like penny candy. Today, due to inflation, the penny does not buy much of anything. The metal value and cost of minting pennies exceed their face value. Many nations have stopped minting equivalent value coins and efforts are being made to end the routine use of pennies in several countries including the United States.
The U.S. minted 8 billion pennies in 2014, spending almost $132 million for currency worth less than $50 million, according to Citizens to Retire the Penny, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to educating the public on why the U.S. should ditch the penny.
1793 – The first pennies in the United States were made of copper.
National Lucky Penny Day is observed each year on May 23rd.
I don’t know why geese fascinate me but they have for years. I love how the father stands watch over the family-to-be and when they’re crossing the street – mom in front, babies, then dad.
Lately, I’ve been seeing goose families everywhere.
When I went to an appointment last week, I noticed a goose family had set up a home on the verge across from Harris Teeter.
Several years ago, I took this picture of a goose waiting outside the emergency room. I’d taken my mom to an appointment and saw him there. I dropped her off and circled back. The goose was still there. Was he waiting for a friend or what?
Naturally, I have been fascinated by the story coming out of Cincinnati this week: “Clever Mother Goose Calls Cincinnati Police To Help Trapped Baby Bird”
Cincinnati police responded to an unusual distress call on Monday… from a mother goose.
The bird was pecking on the door of a police cruiser in an apparent bid for some attention.
“It kept pecking and pecking and normally they don’t come near us,” Sergeant James Givens told WKRC. “Then it walked away and then it stopped and looked back so I followed it and it led me right over to [a gosling] that was tangled up in all that string.”
The baby bird was caught in string from a balloon.
Givens and specialist Cecilia Charron called the SPCA for backup, but when no one was available they decided to help the gosling themselves.
With Givens recording and mother goose honking, Charron freed the baby bird from the balloon.
The baby animal promptly ran off to join the rest of the family
I know a lot of people think geese are a nuisance crossing the street, pooping all over but I think that they’re cute and I love that they mate for live.
A few weeks before that surgery, I had returned to Johns Hopkins to be retested for Growth Hormone. There’s a whole lot of info on my past experiences with HGH in my bio at https://cushingsbios.com/2013/04/29/maryo-pituitary-bio/ This excerpt is from that blog post:
Wow, what a nightmare my argenine retest started! I went back for that Thursday, April 27, 2006. Although the test was shorter, I got back to my hotel and just slept and slept. I was so glad that I hadn’t decided to go home after the test.
Friday I felt fine and drove back home, no problem. I picked up my husband for a biopsy and took him to an outpatient surgical center. While I was there waiting for the biopsy to be completed, I started noticing blood in my urine and major abdominal cramps. I left messages for several of my doctors on what I should do. I finally decided to see my PCP after I got my husband home.
When Tom was done with his testing, his doctor took one look at me and asked if I wanted an ambulance. I said no, that I thought I could make it to the emergency room ok – Tom couldn’t drive because of the anaesthetic they had given him. I barely made it to the ER and left the car with Tom to park. Tom’s doctor followed us to the ER and became my new doctor.
They took me in pretty fast since I was in so much pain, and had the blood in my urine. They thought it was a kidney stone. After a CT scan, my new doctor said that, yes, I had a kidney stone but it wasn’t the worst of my problems, that I had kidney cancer. Wow, what a surprise that was! I was admitted to that hospital, had more CT scans, MRIs, bone scans, they looked everywhere.
My open radical nephrectomy was May 9, 2006 in another hospital from the one where the initial diagnosis was made. My surgeon felt that he needed a specialist from that hospital because he believed preop that my tumor had invaded into the vena cava because of its appearance on the various scans. Luckily, that was not the case.
My entire left kidney and the encapsulated cancer (10 pounds worth!) were removed, along with my left adrenal gland and some lymph nodes. Although the cancer (renal cell carcinoma AKA RCC) was very close to hemorrhaging, the surgeon believes he got it all. He said I was so lucky. If the surgery had been delayed any longer, the outcome would have been much different. I will be repeating the CT scans every 3 months, just to be sure that there is no cancer hiding anywhere. As it turns out, I can never say I’m cured, just NED (no evidence of disease). This thing can recur at any time, anywhere in my body.
I credit the argenine re-test with somehow aggravating my kidneys and revealing this cancer. Before the test, I had no clue that there was any problem. The argenine test showed that my IGF is still low but due to the kidney cancer I cannot take my growth hormone for another 5 years – so the test was useless anyway, except to hasten this newest diagnosis.
So, how am I “celebrating” my cancer anniversary? Yes, I’m retesting to see if I can go back on growth hormone, the drug that either helped my cancer to grow or helped diagnose it.
If you see it, you probably know what it is because you installed a browser extension called something like “X-Clacks-Overhead” in memory of Terry Pratchett. If you click on it, it says “GNU Terry Pratchett”
What in the world?
The GNU Terry Pratchett plugin transmits an “X-Clacks-Overhead” header reading, “GNU Terry Pratchett” so that Terry’s name is whispered forevermore in the Internet’s “overhead”.
In Pratchett’s book “Going Postal”, workers who die in the line of duty have their names transmitted up and down the Discworld’s telegraph system as a tribute.
From Going Postal:
“We keep that name moving in the Overhead,” he said, and it seemed to Princess that the wind in the shutter arrays above her blew more forlornly, and the everlasting clicking of the shutters grew more urgent. “He’d never have wanted to go home. He was a real linesman. His name is in the code, in the wind in the rigging and the shutters. Haven’t you ever heard the saying: ‘A man’s not dead while his name is still spoken’?”
What does the GNU stand for?
In Going Postal, the G means that the message should be passed on, the N means “Not Logged”, and the U means that it should be turned around at the end of the line.
April is always Cushing’s Awareness Challenge month because Dr. Harvey Cushing was born on April 8th, 1869. How fitting that this challenge should begin on April Fool’s Day. So much of Cushing’s Syndrome/Disease makes us Cushies seem like we’re the April Fool. Maybe, just maybe, it’s the doctors who are the April Fools…
While American actress Amy Schumer is spreading the word about Cushing’s in general, I think that in some ways she is hurting things for everyone else. CBS News reports that “she says she now feels ‘reborn’ after her diagnosis, and while some forms of Cushing can be fatal, she has a type that ‘will just […]
Cushing's Disease is a rare condition caused by excessive production of cortisol, a hormone essential for various bodily functions. It is a specific form of Cushing's Syndrome, where the overproduction of cortisol is due to a tumor in the pituitary gland. The condition affects 10 to 15 people per million each year, predominantly women between […]
Adrenal Insufficiency United’s Lunch & Learn Events are one day mini-conferences located in different cities in the USA. We find great local speakers to lead sessions and give presentations about issues affecting those with adrenal insufficiency. These one day events will be packed full of opportunities giving attendees more chances to ask questions, share their […]
Adrenal insufficiency is a condition where the adrenal glands don't produce enough of certain hormones, primarily cortisol and sometimes aldosterone. This disorder can be categorized into primary (Addison's disease) and secondary forms.
Cushing’s syndrome is a rare disorder that occurs when the body is exposed to too much cortisol. Cortisol is produced by the body and is also used in corticosteroid drugs. Cushing's syndrome can occur either because cortisol is being overproduced by the body or from the use of drugs that contain cortisol (like prednisone)…
Cushing’s disease (CD) is characterized by hypercortisolism due to excessive adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) secretion from a pituitary adenoma. Though more common in adults, pediatric cases constitute approximately 5% of those seen in adults. Early diagnosis and treatment are critical due to the severe impacts on growth and development in children. Endoscopic transsphenoidal surgery (ETSS) is […]
Kidney Cancer Awareness is very important to me, because I learned I had it in 2006. I’m pretty sure I had it before 2006 but in that year I picked up my husband for a biopsy and took him to an outpatient surgical center. While I was there waiting for the biopsy to be completed, […]
It may not have been adrenal crisis, but it may have, as Renea, after her BLA, didn't need replacement. She hadn't taken hydro for some year(s), and yet her cortisol was always '0'. The doctors would just scratch their heads. Renea was 31.
It is April Fools Day! Some things are just slightly off at the John Marshall Library. Can you find at least five of them? Do you love reading humor, watching comedies, or sharing jokes?
Have you ever wanted to learn to ride a bicycle? Here is your chance! Fairfax County Department of Transportation and Oakton Library offer a children’s bike education class to teach the skills to incorporate bicycling into your daily routine–whether that’s for fitness, fun, or transportation.
Abracadabra! The Fun Awaits with Drew Blue Shoes at Frying Pan Farm Park! Experience a morning of magic and laughter with Drew Blue Shoes Kids become magicians–pull coins from ears, find bananas and make rubber chickens fly!
For potty-trained three year olds through ninth graders. Embark on an exciting journey with Road Trip VBS, based on Joshua 1:9 – "The LORD your God is with you wherever you go." Discover God's presence everywhere as we explore new places, make new friends, and experience God's goodness together. Join us in a fun-filled adventure […]
Enhance your mental fitness with “Train Your Brain” activities! Sudoku, crosswords, Color Me Happy, and word searches. Each activity is aimed at stimulating cognitive function and supporting memory improvement.
Visit us in our maker space and try out our sewing machine, Cricut, or one of our maker boxes. Bring a project to work on or make one of ours. Weekly until April 16
I originally got this book for my mom in October 2011, then I ended up reading it – twice. Then, I read nearly everything that Erik Larson wrote… I may need to read it again before April 2. LOL
