Late & Early Gift

My dear hubby sells big truck parts at a company that sells and services heavy equipment. Periodically, he has to take classes and exams. Last year he took three exams and passed all of them, so he got the choice of products in a catalog from the company that gives the exams. He was unselfish and chose something for me. I was in the hospital for the second time in three and a half months with major surgery again in November. He told me while I was in the hospital that he had got me a Christmas gift. A watch as mine died over a year ago and we could not get the back open to replace the battery, not even the jewelry department could open it. So, I just didn't wear a watch. It didn't bother me. He was so disappointed when it didn't come in time for Christmas. We didn't do Christmas in our house as I wasn't recovering as good as I should have. Thank goodness it is just the two of us.
Well, low and behold yesterday the watch arrived at his store. He was so delighted that he called me right away. I was pleased to here him so happy about something. It is now a late Christmas and Early Birthday gift.
His company has been downsizing again, so we have decided to just live one day at a time, just in case he is next to be let go. When that day comes. We will put our house up for sale and move back to Maine where most of our family lives.
Here are a few photos of the watch for everyone to see. It is huge on my wrist since loosing so much weight, but hey it works and given to me by my dear hubby.

Since I gave you the gory picture of what happened to me in the hospital for almost a month, I would tell you some of the lighter side and a bit amusing or sad after the fact.

When I first was admitted to the hospital I had a room to myself for a few days. Then they put a room mate in with me. This room mate had visitors all hours of the day and night. Phone calls as well on the hospital phone as well as her cell phone. Sadly she slept through most of the ringing(I didn't). I got no sleep at all. I was asked if I wanted to move to another room but declined as I didn't want to hurt the other persons feelings, and figured it could also happen in another room. I knew it needed to be done for my health, but didn't have the heart to do it. After a week of this, a young man from the hospital came and whispered into my ear that they were transferring me into a Private room. They gave me no option. They took me for yet another test and when they were about to put me into the room I had been in a nurse told them I wasn't in that room anymore, but in a Private one. They had transferred all my flowers, chap sticks and miscellaneous things.

As my condition deteriorated and finally they did exploratory surgery and found the big hole in my colon and removed 14 inches. When I was in ICU recovering, I woke and was very thirsty with my lips dry and cracking. I remember saying to the first person I sensed in the room one word DRINK, she said sorry, no I couldn't have one. I heard her run water and put this tiny sponge stick into my mouth to get the little water that was on it. She allowed me this 3-4 times. Each time I heard someone come into the room from then on I would say SIP and the procedure was repeated. That was all I was allowed. They were concerned that I would vomit and do damage. I am not sure how long I was in the ICU, but eventually a doctor came in and said I could have Ice Chips. I took to those like a starving woman. My sister came to see me there and found my ID band so tight from the massive amount of fluid that I was retaining. She cut it off and they had to replace it. That was done many times within the almost month I was there.

I was finally taken to my room. Another Private room no less. It turns out I was put into a Private room with a sign Quarantine(or something to that effect) for some mistaken reason. We asked a dr and checked into it, but said look at as a blessing I was in a Private room because of it. I had gone from 5th floor kidney floor to 4th floor surgery floor. When I asked my husband about my things he went to 5th to collect them and someone else was in the room and my flowers and items were at the nurses station. My husband took what he could find home, as they gave me everything new on the other floor when I asked where something was. The two things that didn't get put into my bags of belongs were the most important things to me. My husband had bought me a Chap Stick and my daughter had bought me an expensive herbal lip therapy and they were both missing. Imagine someone taking something like that and I had already used them. That really upset me.

Remember my mind was in a doped up state for about the first 3 weeks. I had a big obsession with the ChapStick(my dear neighbor replaced that) and Ice chips. I wouldn't let anyone touch them or put them out of my reach. I would threaten to cut their fingers off. At times I would put the Chap Stick into the pocket of my johnny for fear someone would take it or put it out of my reach. The Ice Chips were my fix because they wouldn't let me eat. The poor aids and nurses had a hard time getting my temperature because of it, they had to get my temperature under my arm. Everything that went into my stomach went out a tube into a container they were observing. I was asked at one point by a nurse not to eat any Ice Chips for a while so they could get a true calculation in the container.

I had one bad experience with a night aid as I awoke I asked her for some Ice Chips, because my were melted. She put her hands on her hips and said NO, I wasn't supposed to have anything at all. I knew she was wrong but she got very rude and told me my nurse told her that. I knew she was wrong about me not having anything, but in my state of mind it made me very mad at my nurse. I was so upset that I wouldn't even ring my nurse to ask her. But boy oh boy did I ever light into her when she came into my room. She had no clue what I was talking about. Said she would never do that. I discribed the aid to her and she knew who I was talking about. She hadn't heard it so could do nothing about it. I apologized to that nurse many times over. Now in hind sight, I am wondering if maybe it was my imagination that the aid was there when my husband said I was seeing people in my room that weren't there from all the drugs they had me on.

Everytime a dr or nurse came into the room and had to leave for something and said they would be right back, I would tell them I would be right there! I was the favorite patient, because I didn't call hardly at all and never complained. I knew they had to do what they had to do and told them so. I had one time when I desparately needed someone in the room and buzzed the nurses button. Whoever answers it for the nurses didn't tell them. I buzzed about three times and she told me they would get there when they got there as they were doing their rounds. That irritated me to have her make the decision instead of allowing the nurse or aid to decide, because I never buzzed unless it was important.

My primary dr came in and told me that she would have me home before I had been there a month. I got out 4 days shy a month.

Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Hitch hiker on our car hood going to town

Before leaving our yard I noticed something green on the hood of our car. It was some sort of bug and as always my camera mind kicked into high gear. I went back into the house and got my camera and took a couple of photos of this strange looking green bug. We preceeded to get into the car and leave for the errands we needed to do in town. It was amazing watching the bug cling to the hood of the car. It manuvered for the wind velosity. This little critter stayed on the hood of the car from 35 mph to 60 mph. It stayed on the hood until we got to a light in town many miles from home. It went toward the wheel well and then I think it couldn't hold its own with the wind. Here are the photos I took before we left and while we were driving.

Just to update everyone why I haven't been around. I got real sick and ended up in the hospital July 11 to Aug 7. Ended up having emergency surgery and having a colostmy bag and having 14 inch of colon taken out. Kidney biopsy, bone marrow test. Still they are not sure what happened. It is sooo good to be back home. I have home health care come in almost daily to check my vitals. They took so much blood in that time span. I had about 7 IV's they put in and 2 pick lines that they could draw blood without searching(probing) for a vein to get it from daily. They put the fluids to me the first 48 hours and my kidneys wouldn't let it go, so I had 40lbs too much they had to find a way to get rid of. My feet and legs could not support that much weight immediatly put on. I almost collapsed each time they tried to get me out of bed. From about 165 lbs to over 200 lbs. in 48 hours. It will be a slow recovery but know with God's help I will make it. Blessings to all, Bev