Nov 23
This was from one of those things on Facebook that many people like to post on their timeline. I clicked on it and the site analyzed my most used words over some period of time. I hate having these sites share on my timeline (I’m funny that way!) so I’m posting it here.
The words are pretty accurate and they mention words that fit all 4 of my jobs – but you’ll find very little about me there.
Interesting.
Nov 22
Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated in Canada and the United States as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. It is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Several other places around the world observe similar celebrations. Thanksgiving has its historical roots in religious and cultural traditions and has long been celebrated in a secular manner as well.
Nov 12
Last Thursday, I had occasion to be very thankful for helpers, one of whom extricated my finger from the door of my car and others who supplied band-aids and Tylenol.
I’ll probably write more about this later on my medical blog but it’s hard to type with a broken finger 🙁
Nov 11
I’m not sure how Veterans Day turned into a holiday and a day to sell stuff, but then, most every holiday has turned into a day for stores to run “sales”. Possibly, the original intent was to give our veterans a break but it has sure morphed away from that.
Veterans Day is supposed to be a day to thank those who have served.
From the Constitution:
Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and
Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations;…
But I digress. This year, today is also Remembrance Day in the UK – including Scotland where my grandfather was a soldier in the Black Watch.
I never met my grandfather. He had died in Peshawar, India, fighting for the Black Watch during World War l. Peshawar was on the northern frontier of British India, near the Khyber Pass.
In 1947, Peshawar became part of the newly independent state of Pakistan after politicians approved the merger into the state that had just been carved from British India.
We have a trunk of his belongings, though, and it’s very interesting to recreate his life.
My dad was born in Scotland in 1913.
In 1914, my grandfather was involved in this:
On the outbreak of war there were seven Black Watch battalions – for in addition to the Regular 1st and 2nd Battalions and 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion there were a further four Territorial ones which had become part of the Regiment in 1908. They were the 4th Dundee [Mary O’Note: I’m pretty sure this was his, since that’s where my dad was born], 5th Angus, 6th Perthshire and the 7th Battalion from Fife. The 1st Battalion was in action at the very start of the war taking part in the Retreat from Mons before turning on the Germans at the River Marne and the subsequent advance to the Aisne. Trench warfare then set in and the 2nd Battalion arrived from India, both battalions taking part in the Battle of Givenchy. Meanwhile the Territorial battalions had been mobilised at the start of the war but only the 5th was in action in 1914.
I guess this is why I love the Pipes and Drums of the Black Watch so much.
Thanks, Grandpa!
The Edinburgh Tattoo had been on my bucket list for a long time since my grandfather was in the Black Watch and I just love to hear bagpipes. Even my cellphone ringtone is Scotland, the Brave.
My mom says that my Grandfather’s name is inscribed as a war hero in Edinburgh Castle, where the Tattoo is held. You know, I’ll find that!
Thanks so much Tom and Frank and everyone who served the US and Europe.
Nov 11
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice that ended fighting on land, sea and air in World War I between the Allies and their opponent, Germany. Previous armistices had eliminated Bulgaria, the Ottoman Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire from the war.
Also known as the Armistice of Compiègne from the place where it was signed, it came into force at 11 a.m. Paris time on 11 November 1918 (“the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month”) and marked a victory for the Allies and a complete defeat for Germany, although not formally a surrender.
Nov 09
I know I missed a couple posts but today’s is most important, so I’ll go back and get the others…later
Today I am so thankful that I had my best friend, my “sister” for so many years. We shared so much together, good times, bad times, birthdays, secrets, hackers, PITAs.
A couple of years ago I happened to find that restaurant again – Cafe Un Deux Trois and it was so special to me.
We got to our location faster than expected and walked around the block. I was stunned when we saw Cafe Un Deux Trois!
Cafe Un Deux Trois has a special memory for me. November 2, 2003, Michael decided to run the New York Marathon. We went to NY to see him run. (He finished in 4:21:57. The average for males that year was 4:28:56).
From good-old Wikipedia:
The New York City Marathon (branded TCS New York City Marathon and formerly branded ING New York City Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon (42.195 km or 26.219 mi) that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is the largest marathon in the world, with 50,304 finishers in 2013. Along with the Boston Marathon and Chicago Marathon, it is among the pre-eminent long-distance annual running events in the United States and is one of the World Marathon Majors.
My best friend, Alice, and her brother (David) were living in Brooklyn and they decided to meet us in Manhattan on Saturday night. Michael and a friend went to a comedy show while Alice, David, Tom and I walked around Times Square, just talking. We turned down a side street and saw… Cafe Un Deux Trois. We decided to go in to eat.
I remember nothing about the meal. But, at the next table was Ben Gazzara, Gena Rowlands, Peter Bogdanovitch and 3-4 others I didn’t recognize. After about half an hour, Carol Kane came in, too. It turned out that Ben Gazzara was in a one man show across the street which had just opened: Nobody Don’t Like Yogi. All this made the meal very exciting.
For the last several years, every time we’ve been near Times Square, I’ve looked down the side streets for this restaurant and never saw it again until this day.
A very nice memory of Alice.
Another birthday is here and I’ve now passed you age-wise. 🙁 I had always taken such delight being able to say that I was the younger one. Not any more 🙁
Each year, the non-birthday-girl would be planning and plotting online, as well as real-life, surprises. We had hand-made wrapping paper and all sorts of exotic and non-exotic gifts. Right now, I’m wearing a cozy robe from a zillion years ago.
Way back in 1998, when I was learning web design, I posted a whole mini-site for that birthday. Unfortunately, HTML code no longer allows for the music to play, but I had carefully thought out tunes for each day. The page titles aren’t showing, either.
See that site here: http://www.oconnormusic.org/aliceBD/birthday.htm
The last page of that site was particularly important. I’d emailed all of Alice’s past guest speakers and other PS members and compiled this list of great wishes: http://www.oconnormusic.org/aliceBD/guests.htm
We’d be up at 12:01 am, posting wishes, decorating message boards and doing the final touches for websites.
In 2003, I’d apparently posted a picture of Flora Dora (again!) and Alice responded:
MaryO, what can I say other than that it was a wonderful and beautiful surprise to see my guest announcement area turned into a beautiful, sparkling birthday greeting — and Flora Dora, Power Surge’s mascot and RR — but especially your beautiful wishes.
I responded:
After all these years, it’s getting harder and harder to come up with new ideas for how to do an online surprise. There have been a variety of different things for different birthdays, but I have to keep you guessing I hope that you don’t mind that I’m holding the announcement area hostage for a little longer.
I’m sure that many of the newer people don’t know who Flora Dora is, but she’s an essential part of Power Surge so she have to be included somehow – kinda like inviting your maiden aunt to Thanksgiving 🙂 Of course, RR is welcome – anytime! I’m so glad that I could make an online surprise for you again this year – maybe I should start planning for NEXT year already.
I hope we share many more birthdays together as the close friends we’ve become over the years.
On a more serious side, you’re very welcome for the “beautiful wishes”. Sometimes, words fail me and I don’t do things justice, but you and Power Surge have changed my life in so many ways that go beyond “simple” menopause issues. When I first came to Power Surge on AOL, I was a confirmed lurker, reading only, never posting.
The first chat I tried to hide out until you asked me a question, encouraging me to talk. This was all so scary for me, communicating with others – online or off. I can say with confidence, that I’m no longer a lurker on the boards and in the chats like I was, and that was all your doing. Thanks so much for that!
Now I just have to work on my real life lurkership! The knowlege I got here in Power Surge, even when I was lurking, helped me so much with my menopause, my symptoms, my everyday life. Like most everyone else, I learned about the way to help my meno symptoms and I’m so thankful of that, that I could be feeling better.
When my husband was very sick, close to death, my first December in PS, I wouldn’t post, but I would come home from the hospital and read everything that other people were posting. It seemed so great to me, and it was such a comfort to me to know that everyone was out there. I recognized people’s names and enjoyed “listening” to the banter and chatter, and that gave me something other than the hospital and my own worries to think about. No matter what the time of day was, I could always read and see that things were ok with the world, and know that we were going to survive this. What a wonderful community Power Surge is!
Things have come along way since then. My husband made it, thanks to a skilled surgeon and a LOT of prayer. And I gradually changed, too. I’m obviously not afraid to post anymore, or go to chats, and I really have you to thank for that. Over the years there have been many changes, the boards have moved, been started again from scratch, updated, all kinds of things, as have the chats, but one thing remains clear and unchanged – and that Power Surge isn’t just another “website”. It is a true community for women in midlife, something we can gain daily strength from. (sorry about the preposition!)
And it’s all because of you, Dearest Alice Stamm. Thank you so much, and I hope it was a wonderful birthday – you deserve the very best!
Hugs and thanks from the bottom of my heart! Mary
From the message boards in 2004:
From 2005:
We have decided to let you accept the responsibilities of a 6 year old again.
If you want to sail sticks across a fresh mud puddle and make ripples with rocks, that’s great.
If you want to think M&Ms are better than money, because you can eat them, they are calorie-free (today only!).
If you want to lie under a big Oak tree next summer and run a lemonade stand with your friends (and fellow Surgettes) on a hot summers day, we’ll give you a voucher.
That summer-time voucher is also good for walking on the beach and thinking of the sand between your toes and the prettiest seashell you can find. Or you can spend the afternoon climbing trees and riding your bike.
We are returning you to a time when life was simple. When all you knew were colors, addition tables and simple nursery rhymes. But that didn’t bother you, because you didn’t know what you didn’t know and you didn’t care. When all you knew was to be happy because you didn’t know all the things that should make you worried and upset.
You’re going to go to school and have snack time, recess, gym and field trips.
You’ll be so happy, nothing will make you upset.
We’re going to let you think that the world is fair. That everyone in it is honest and good…that anything is possible.
For today, you’re going to be oblivious to the complexity of life and be overly excited by little things once again, returned to the days when reading was fun.
No worries about time, bills, websites that crash, guest chats where the guest can’t get in, excess email, time….No more worry about computer crashes, mountains of paperwork, depressing news, aches, pains, doctor visits or illness.
We’re going to help you believe in the power of smiles, hugs, a kind word, truth, justice, peace, health, dreams, the imagination, mankind and making angels in the snow.
You’re going to be 6 again, for today (and probably some of us will want to join you!). From all of us…
QUOTE (Dearest @ Nov 10 2005, 09:23 AM)
Thank you all for your warm and wonderful birthday wishes.
A very special thank you to my friend, MaryO, for the beautiful greeting, for including Power Surge’s mascot, Flora Dora at the top of the screen — and especially for allowing me to be six again even if only for a day 🙂
And I said:
You know, you can always apply for an extension of the day being 6. Click here to apply.
Glad you had a great birthday and much-needed vacation. If you want to extend either of those, please let me know and I’ll see if I can locate an extension for either of those.
Happy Post-Birthday!
In 2006, Alice said:
Thank you ALL for your wonderful birthday wishes and beautiful sentiments about how much Power Surge means to and has done for you. That makes all the years of work that’s gone into this “community” worthwhile (with, perhaps, the exception of dealing with HACKERSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!) 🙂
I don’t know some of you very well. Others I know well and have established lovely friendships with. You know who you are. Thank you, too, for your beautiful flowers, birthday cards, online greetings, etc.
And thank you, my dear friend, MaryO, for starting this topic and for being the sister I never had 🙂 I’m so glad I impulsively decided to give myself a birthday present last month and called saying, “C’mon, let’s go to see Streisand!!” That was the highlight of my/our year. To be sitting so close to her, and SO close to and watching people mingle like: Bill and Hillary Clinton, Lauren Bacall, James Brolin, Katie Couric, Stephen Sondheim, Rosie O’Donnell, Sting, Hugh Jackman, Steven Spielberg, Regis and Joy Philbin, Sara Jessica Parker — and many, many others.
It was like the first time we met a few years ago and stopped into a restaurant [Cafe Un Deux Trois] only to find a few minutes later that Gena Rowlands, Ben Gazzara, Peter Bogdonovich, Carol Kane and others, whose names elude me at the moment, came in and sat at the table next to us. Knowing me, I had to go over and talk to them, especially Gena Rowlands, who’s still beautiful and elegant and was so gracious.
The past few years, starting with my emergency surgery and all the ensuing complications, my mom’s fall down the stairs and subsequent need for constant care, my dad passing away only four months later and my own ongoing and confusing health issues — too much stress.
The past few months have been better — we’ve both been through a LOT this year especially!
Special thanks to those of you who’ve generously given donations (some of you even more than once) to the site to help defray some of the expenses of running it.
I’m grateful to be alive and very proud of Power Surge and all the women (and men) it’s helped over the years plus all the wonderful women who participate in it 🙂
Alice
And I responded:
To be sitting so close to her…
You mean me…or Barbra? LOLIt was so amazing how that trip worked out. It was the most spontaneous thing I had ever done.
My son was home from grad school for “fall break” formerly known as Columbus Day weekend. He was flying back on Wednesday, through JFK.
After Alice got the tickets for Barbra on Monday (amazing in itself), I was able to get on Michael’s flight to JFK – only one trip to the airport! The flight number was the same as Alice’s street address. Do I hear Twilight Zone music?
What a great birthday gift you got for yourself – thank you so much for sharing it with me 🙂
Happy post-birthday!
From 2007
The top header on the boards:
Followed by
And Alice said…
Firstly, {{{{{MaryO}}}}, my old and dear friend, thank you for starting this topic and for the beautifully creative graphic and sentiments you made for my birthday. I don’t have to tell you what your friendship has meant to me all these years (you already know). Hugs!
Thank you all for your good wishes. Someone wrote to me, “I hope you had a peaceful birthday.” That’s exactly what it was . . . peaceful.
Thank you also for your kind words about Power Surge. It’s been a labor of love for 14 years . . . about to start its 15th year Feb. 3rd, 2008. I have a pretty good idea how many women’s lives have been impacted by this “community.” In all these years, including the start-up years on America Online, I’ve probably posted in the area of 100,000 messages on the numerous PS message boards. I can’t post as much as I used to any longer for many reasons, but I’m always working in the background to maintain this site that’s become a tremendous source of information and haven of support for all the visitors who come to it every day.
What started out as a blank page in an HTML editor has grown to exactly what I’d planned. I’m very proud of every facet of Power Surge including this message board.
Finally, thank you to all those who have made donations to Power Surge. I have thanked each and every one of you individually. Your donations have been helpful in defraying some of the ever-increasing costs involved with running Power Surge.
Again, thank you.
Best,
Dearest
Then, 2008
And that’s enough for this year. I have to save some out 🙂
~~~
I still can’t believe that you won’t be reading this later, calling me when UPS / amazon / FEDex arrives with gifts so we can open them “together”.
We’ve said it once, we’ve said it dozens of times. Even when we’re apart we’re
Nov 07
From last year…
Today, I give thanks and shed a more than a few tears for a wonderful friend, co-worker, choir buddy, special person to everyone he met.
I’m so thankful I got to sing in the choir honoring Tim – and I’m very thankful that this Celebration of Life was live-streamed on Facebook so I can watch and listen again.
At the cemetery, another of our fine tenors led us in singing Amazing Grace. When we got to the verse “When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun…” the sun came out in full force – an amazing God Moment, welcoming Tim home.
Nov 06
It was a cold and rainy morning and my car wouldn’t start.
Today, I’m thankful for AAA and its mobile app.
Nov 05
Today I am hugely thankful that the last major issue we had here was prostate cancer this summer. I haven’t talked/written much about that because I want to be sure that the radiation and Lupron have done what they’re supposed to and this beast is gone.
Before that the last major issue was in 2013 when Tom had his heart attack. That event caused me to start a whole new blog to post about our experiences.
Adapted from https://maryomedical.com/2013/02/08/the-beginning/
January 27, 2013 was our 40th anniversary. DH called me and said he was leaving a conference in Washington, DC and we’d go out to brunch when he got home.
The next thing I had heard was that he was in the ER with a suspected heart attack. I rushed to the ER and found him in his cubicle. He’d had 3 nitroglycerine pills by then and figured he could go home.
Wrong! They had him stay overnight at the hospital. January 28th, they decided to send him by ambulance to Fairfax Hospital for a cardiac catheterization and possible stent.
At the end of that, the surgeon came into my waiting room and said that he needed triple bypass NOW. Three of the arteries were 100% blocked. They got me calmed down to see him in the OR.
He was trying to get odds of not doing this surgery and just leaving then. Finally, I said that he would do this surgery, we weren’t going to fool with this.
I really lost it when they asked me if we had any children and I said 1 son in NYC. They called him at work in New York and had him get there as soon as possible. I’m sure he could hear the fear in my voice.
They wheeled DH off for surgery and I waited again. Luckily, 2 church friends came and sat with me and our pastor arrived about 8:00PM. Our son arrived about 8:30PM after taking the Acela and a taxi directly to the hospital.
The surgery was over about 9:00PM but when we saw Tom, he was still under anesthesia. They kept him that way until the next morning since he was too confused when they woke him up.
Long story short (too late!) – he got out of the hospital on the 31st and I played nurse 24/7. He couldn’t drive/go anywhere for 6 weeks, and then there were 12 weeks of cardiac rehab.
One of the things that came out or cardiac rehab was becoming friendly with 2 other couples (although one of them has since split up). We go out to dinner every couple months…and none of the surgeons would be happy about our choices.
A slightly different take on the events, written 3 weeks later on the same blog.
* With apologies to Karen Carpenter!
I know I’m not supposed to “relive” events. I have done that too often with my Cushing’s and cancer adventures and I’m told that reliving causes nearly as much stress as the original event.
So, I plan to write down my memories here and try to let them go…
It all started on Sunday, January 27, 2013 – our 40th wedding anniversary. I picked up my mom and went to church so I could sing in the choir. DH went to a meeting of some sort on Benghazi.
After church, I stopped off in the church office for a goodie bag that the Staff Parish Committee had left.
Dropped my mom off at her house and went home. I put the goodie bag on the dining room table and logged onto the computer to do some work.
I got a couple text messages from DH:
I figured I’d take a nap until DH came home for that late brunch.
The next thing I hear was my phone ringing, a call from DH. He was in the ER at Fair Oaks with a heart attack. OMG!
I immediately leaped up and rushed out the door. I called one of my pastors and got to the ER in record time. When I arrived, he was in a bed, all hooked up to monitors, fluids and such. He was awake and feeling pretty well thanks to the nitroglycerine they had given him immediately after arrival.
When we had a chance to talk, it turned out that he had been in his conference and realized his chest was getting tight. He found the hotel’s store and bought aspirin – 3 for $11.00 which he thought was extravagant. He bought them and took them anyway – and probably saved his life.
On the way home, he was feeling pretty good so he stopped at the mall to buy an anniversary gift. The salesgirl in Zales didn’t know that ruby was the stone for the 40th anniversary and was kind of ribbing DH for waiting until the last minute to buy a gift. He walked out of there, felt more tightness and headed to the ER…where he called me.
DH was feeling pretty well thanks to the nitroglycerin and aspirin plus whatever else they had in the IV and wanted to go home. The staff said no way – he had to stay overnight so he could be monitored.
The “automatic clock” on the wall said it was Monday. Other rooms said Sunday. Hmmm
A trainee EMT came in to ask some questions as part of his learning process. Every time DH mentioned the word “Benghazi”, his blood pressure spiked about 40 points or so. That term became verboten ever after.
My pastor stopped by and we had some nice chats and prayers.
Time passed, tests were done, doctors and nurses stopped by. Finally, DH was moved to his room upstairs.
About 9 or so I went home and found our dog huddled by the front door – I had left so quickly I hadn’t left her any lights on. I imagine she was quite worried.
I can’t even remember what I had to eat for dinner but I really wanted something chocolate. On a whim, I looked in that goodie bag and there was a double-sized brownie. I think I ate that in record time and it really hit the spot.
Monday morning (for real!), I checked the weather and found that school was starting late because of icy conditions. I put on boots and took the dog out. It seemed to be raining – if it’s raining, it must be warm, right? So I didn’t really pay attention (and I had other things on my mind!) and completely missed seeing the black ice.
Next thing I knew, I had fallen on one knee, my cell phone in my pocket bruised my other thigh and my left arm hurt where I’d reached out to catch myself. Luckily, I hadn’t let go of the dog’s leash.
I ended up sitting in a puddle of icy water for a long time, figuring out how to get up. I finally sort of crawled up the trash can that was sitting in the driveway.
The dog had an abbreviated walk, I changed my wet, cold clothes and headed to the hospital. I was showing DH my knee and one of the staff bandaged it up for me. I told him I hadn’t fallen at the hospital and wouldn’t sue but I guess he wanted to be sure.
(Today, Monday February 18, my knee still has a huge lump under the skin and hurts when I touch it, although I’m no longer limping, The bruise/pain from cell phone finally went away)
The hospital staff decided DH should go to another hospital which is world renowned for its work with heart cases to have a heart catheterization and possible stent. DH was ready to walk out to my car to drive him to Fairfax Hospital. He wasn’t thrilled when he was strapped to a gurney and out to an ambulance instead.
I headed over in my car. They’d changed the entrances to the hospital since the last time I was there and I couldn’t find the “Grey Entrance”. Finally, after wandering around for a long time, I found it.
I saw DH in the prep room where they got him ready for the heart catheterization – then they rolled him away after explaining all the things that could go wrong.
I went out to the waiting room, got some coffee and a sandwich and hunkered down with my iPad.
Eventually, my beeper went off and I was called back to the room where DH had been prepped. The surgeon was there this time. She said that 3 arteries were nearly 100% blocked and they needed to do emergency triple bypass. They also needed me to convince DH of this since he was figuring he could tough it out.
I started crying but she said I had to get myself together and convince him NOW. I had to put on scrubs and off I went to the OR. I got there, DH was on the table trying to figure out the odds if he didn’t do this surgery. All the medical staff said that he had a very low chance of survival without the operation. He still wasn’t sure. He wasn’t afraid to die. Tough Guy, Yadda Yadda.
One of the nurses asked me if we had any kids. I said only one, in NYC. She said I should call him and get him here ASAP. She even dialed the number. I talked to DS at work and he agreed to come right away. He was pretty scared, too. He later revealed that he had been crying on the train ride.
I went back to the OR, told DH that DS was coming and that he was going to do the surgery like it or not. I signed the paperwork and sent him to a very scary surgery.
It was about 4:30 by then and I needed to take the dog out again. They said I could go home – surgery wouldn’t be over until about 8:00PM or so. Got home, took the dog, made sure that there were lights on, and headed back to the hospital. Another pastor from my church called. He said he’d be by the waiting room later.
Two friends from the church office texted me to say they were coming over to sit with me in the waiting room. They got there about 6:30 and we decided food might be a good thing. We headed out, following a variety of directions and signs and walked for a l-o-n-g time.
My knee was killing me. We got to the cafeteria and found out that it was closed. the 24-hour one was elsewhere. We finally found that, got some food and my cellphone rang. The surgeon would be coming out soon to talk to me.
We hustled back to the waiting room and the surgeon came out about 8:00 with good news. Successful surgery! DH wasn’t awake yet but we could see him about 9:00PM.
The pastor arrived about 8:30, then DS got there about 8:45. Finally, they said we could see DH although he still was asleep. My friends left, pastor and DS went in to see him in ICU, sleeping so peacefully with so many lines attached. The pastor prayed, then left. DS and I decided to stay to see DH awake.
About an hour later, the ICU tech said they were going to keep him asleep overnight so we went home.
Tuesday, January 29 – DS called the hospital fairly early and found that DH was still a bit agitated so they were keeping him under a bit. I took the dog out and we got ready to head back.
I got a call that he was waking up but agitated. He kept fighting with the nurses on the day of the week. He kept saying it was Monday, even though it was Tuesday. Surprise, surprise. The calendar on the wall hadn’t been changed. It still read Monday. No wonder that’s what he thought!
We stayed all day, though nurses, techs, doctor visits and such. He was in ICU so was monitored very well. DH was quite confused and repeated himself a lot. He wasn’t quite sure what had happened.
Wednesday, January 30. DH had been moved from ICU into a regular room and we had to follow visiting hours, even though we were family. We could visit at 11 and had to leave at 1, then back for 6-8. Actually, this worked out well since I was able to take my first nap since this whole ordeal began.
DH had called DS early in the morning and said he “needed” his cell phone to make some work calls. Luckily, DS talked him out of that, saying that he could say some wrong things, given his temporary memory issues. Thank goodness! I didn’t want him spending his days talking on the phone.
We got there about 10:45am and they still wouldn’t let us in due to “flu season”. I’m not sure how we could give him the flu in those 15 minutes before official visiting hours.
I glanced at the whiteboard on the wall where the nurses’ names, doctor’s name and such were written. Unfortunately, no one had changed this whiteboard since Monday, so that’s what it still said. <sigh>
We visited – DH got to eat a bit and had started having lines removed. He thought he might put his shorts on so went into the bathroom to do that. Unfortunately, he managed to pull the IV out of his hand and bled quite a bit. The nurse sent him back to bed and said no more of that!
A representative from the group Mended Hearts stopped by with information and a heart-shaped pillow. They have meetings the first Saturday of the month, so we might go to some of those.
The first pastor dropped by again and we made plans for Friday to pick up DH’s car which was still at the ER. No one else I know could get it – it’s a standard shift car.
Not much else – visiting, napping, improvements every day.
Finally, it’s not Monday! Nowhere, nohow. Just Thursday, January 31 after 4 days of Monday. Hooray!
DS had a headache so I went to the hospital alone. He was going to come for the nighttime visiting hours. As it happened, DH came home this day after lots of testing, last minute X-Ray, discharge notes, complaints about the night nurse…
We got home about 5:00PM. Yea!
Now the real work began – visiting nurses, medications, doctor visits, rehab.
Since it’s no longer Monday, this post is over 🙂
Whew! There was a lot more after the surgery – visiting nurses, cardiac rehab, so on and on.
I am hugely thankful for my pastors, friends, family, people who brought us dinners, all the doctors, nurses, surgeons, visiting nurses, rehab personal, Mended Hearts, ambulance folks, aspirin, nitroglycerin, insurance, Fair Oaks Hospital, Fairfax Hospital, everyone involved in any way with this escapade.
Nov 04
Our son Facetimes most every Sunday, just to chat.
I am thankful that he’s doing so well for himself, has a wonderful new wife, has a good job, good friends, is a fine musician and that he’s not afraid to say he loves his parents.
We love you, too!
Music Little Free Library
