- Defend my dissertation proposal - Set for May 5th (Cinco de Mayo!)
- Lose 10-15 pounds - Yeah, not so much . . .
- Get Scuro down to 14 pounds - Same here. She is a steady 15.5
- No more surgeries - So far so good!
- Finish the master bathroom (for Mike - yes, I can make goals for him too) - Mostly done!
- Increase tithing to $300/month (not including Christmas tithing) - Up to $250/mo
- Finish Chapter 4 of my dissertation - Done!
- Submit something to a conference or journal that gets accepted (fuzzy goal) - Done (1 paper to CHI workshop, 2 to AMCIS, and 1 to CTS Doctoral Consortium!)
- Spend more time with and make closer friends - So far so good!
- Start trying to get pregnant (later in the year. Might negate 2nd goal.) - Off BC, but not officially trying yet
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
2011 Goals Update
Thursday, January 06, 2011
2011 Goals
- Defend my dissertation proposal
- Lose 10-15 pounds
- Get Scuro down to 14 pounds
- No more surgeries
- Finish the master bathroom (for Mike - yes, I can make goals for him too)
- Increase tithing to $300/month (not including Christmas tithing)
- Finish Chapter 4 of my dissertation
- Submit something to a conference or journal that gets accepted (fuzzy goal)
- Spend more time with and make closer friends
- Start trying to get pregnant (later in the year. Might negate 2nd goal.)
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Pam's Back
Not back as in "back in business," but just a general update on my back. I underwent surgery for a L5-S1 back herniation on 8/3/2010 (yes, 5 days before our 2 year anniversary). It was a tough decision to make, but after a year, the second MRI looked the same as the first. I even consulted my chiropractor who believes that surgery is never the answer, and he said I should go for it.
They said that the surgery should take about 45 minutes, but mine took about 2 1/2 hours. Thank God, I have no recollection of any of it, but it did leave Mike starving and nervous in the waiting room. The doctor told us that it was an extremely large herniation that looked pretty old - as in the scar tissue had healed around the herniation where it punctured the membrane. In addition, the herniated disc had fused itself to my nerve so he had to separate the two. He told us that I am at a higher risk for reherniation since since the herniation was so large - meaning the hole in the membrane was bigger than normal. He advised me to take it easy so that scar tissue could form over the membrane.
So, I have been in bed watching TV for most of the time since surgery. Don't ask me how many Law and Order SVU or Royal Pains or House or NCIS marathons I have watched. I have also been heavily medicated with hydrocodone, muscle relaxers, and anti-inflammatories. Trips out have consisted of searching for back accessories - such as a rolling backpack for my laptop, L-shaped back pillows, comfortable shoes, and I have even broken down against my fear of needles to go to my friend Tom for acupunture.
I can't really say how well I am healing yet. The first day, my leg was really tight (my calf felt like a constant Charlie Horse). The second day I had crazy muscle spasms (which Tom's acupunture and suggestion to drink Pedialite seemed to remedy). The third day my whole back around my incision felt like a big bruise . . . that reminded me of poor Ra when I had to get his tail amputated . . . he had a huge bruise on his little stub. The fourth day through now, I don't quite remember all the details, but the bag of symptoms include nausea, blurry vision, leg pain, hives (don't ask me how that one fits in), and foot numbness. Overall, I can't complain EXCEPT I seem to have lost some muscle strength in my right calf that gives me a definitive limp and nearly prevents me from walking down stairs. It is like - pretend you are doing "toe-up" exercises to strengthen your calves. Well, I can't even get my right foot off the ground no matter how hard I could try. Left foot, no problems.
So, I was a little depressed today second guessing my decision to go through surgery. I am just frustrated with not knowing the right answers or finding or even knowing who and how they can help. Maybe I am a little vain, but walking with a limp and the thought of my right leg atrophying seems worse then constant pain in my hips and consistent sciatica. At first out of surgery, I had a positive outlook. From what he found in there, there was no way that disc was going to heal on its own over time. However, I am praying that the muscle weakness will go away as my nerve heals, but I am scared that it might not.
Part of me is kicking myself for not addressing the problem sooner. I probably herniated the disc in 2005 when I was moving to Charlotte. That is when my back first started going out. It became chronic pain after I was hospitalized with colitis in 2009. At that time, I tried physical therapy, steriod epidurals, anti-inflamatories, etc. I just got tired of all the doctors and nothing helping. Besides, Mike was seeing twice as many doctors as he was only recently diagnosed with CVID a few months ago. His condition was more serious than mine, so at $20 a pop (minimum for co-pay and not even to mention all the lab tests), I took a hiatus from seeing doctors. I don't regret that.
I swear that our health insurance company would be better off taking the risk of hiring a hit man than paying our medical bills. They have been trying any way they can to deny having to pay for Mike's treatments that cost $6,000 a month. Luckily, Mike fixed the problem when they dropped him. Now they want him to switch to a different distributor. Hopefully, that won't cause more problems.
So far, CVID is the best diagnosis we have gotten for Mike. It feels like progress that he at least has a treatment now even if it is insanely expensive. We have seen moderate results. He hasn't been getting sick as often from bacterial infections like sinus infections, etc. His myoclonic jerks have gone away along with the headaches. Thanks God. However, his lymph-nodes have been hurting him which is cause for concern because of the correlation between CVID and certain types of Cancer. He went to talk to a surgeon this week, and they are talking about doing surgery to biopsy one of his lymph-nodes. We are back and forth, "oh, maybe it is nothing," but ultimately, I think he needs to get the test done because if it is a type of Cancer early detection is very important.
Mike is stressed by work, but he can't really leave because he can't afford to lose health insurance with all this stuff going on. He has been doing a great job at work this quarter pushing deals through. He got a decent commission check, and I am proud of him. His project right now is re-doing the master bathroom. At first, it was because of a potential mold problem. Then we realized that the mold problem wasn't as bad as first anticipated (after spending $400 on air quality testing). Now, I think it is just his pet project. He has already teared out the closet walls and has kept things remarkably tidy. Yet construction has been halted with everything going on recently. It's okay, I couldn't fit most of the clothes in the closet anyway. :-)
This is going to be a busy semester for me. I am slated to defend my proposal this semester. One Godsend is that I have changed topics from the evil Geoviz to looking at how people set interpersonal boundaries within their online social networks. My advisors have looked out for me as far as funding goes, and I am also very thankful for that. I will be teaching two sections of web application development at UNCC this fall. I will have about 60 students total. I have been working on developing the curriculum and the class schedule this week. However, I have to be careful because sitting up is the worst possible thing for my back recovery right now. I have been looking at zero gravity recliners and kneeling chairs at Relax the Back, but man are they expensive! We bought a laptop pillow desk thingy which is what I am using to type this blog from bed as we speak. I have affectionately named my new bed pillow "Ellie." (aka the L-shaped pillow)
On a more positive note, we had a great trip to Alaska which was kind of our anniversary present to ourselves. At first, I was bummed because the cruise-line kind of sucked and it was foggy. But things cleared up, we saw whales, went mushing, and things looked up from there. We also joined a small group at our church and have met some new friends. Overall, I can't complain because Mike and I have many friends here in Charlotte and scattered all over the place. We aren't the most social people in the world, but we do cherish our friendships. The Fergusons next door are a really nice older couple to check in on us pretty regularly. Larry brought over some chicken casserole and peach cobbler. He also left a pair of waders by the front door which in some people's lives would seem strange. Of course, we have an explanation. We helped him go to a Buddhist monastery to get lotuses and plant them in the pond. Well, after two months, we all realized that lotuses were pretty invasive so Mike had to pull them back up and replant them in big garbage cans. Duck raising (sometimes chasing via kayak) and pond maintenance, just another normal day. :-)
Scuro, Ru, and Carrera are doing well. We have mice and ants living in the garage so Scuro's food is on the dining room table. Shoot, we never even eat at the dining room table. She is the fancy, spoiled kitty, but well-deserved. She just turned 12 years old this month. Alas, they discontinued her favorite bobble. We tried a few different replacement bobbles, but she has been impervious (is that the right word?) to our attempts.
Okay, I have started doing a William Faulkner stream of consciousness here so maybe my meds are kicking in. See what happens when I am stuck at home and made to rest? I haven't blogged in ages. Eh, blogs are out and micro-blogging is in. No wonder we are all ADD these days. I will drink my Pedialax (Pedialite + Miralax, Mmmm mmm), and probably watch some tv, listen to a relaxing hypnosis CD (but not whilst driving), get mashed by the Scuro, and drift to sleep. Good night. Sweet dreams.
They said that the surgery should take about 45 minutes, but mine took about 2 1/2 hours. Thank God, I have no recollection of any of it, but it did leave Mike starving and nervous in the waiting room. The doctor told us that it was an extremely large herniation that looked pretty old - as in the scar tissue had healed around the herniation where it punctured the membrane. In addition, the herniated disc had fused itself to my nerve so he had to separate the two. He told us that I am at a higher risk for reherniation since since the herniation was so large - meaning the hole in the membrane was bigger than normal. He advised me to take it easy so that scar tissue could form over the membrane.
So, I have been in bed watching TV for most of the time since surgery. Don't ask me how many Law and Order SVU or Royal Pains or House or NCIS marathons I have watched. I have also been heavily medicated with hydrocodone, muscle relaxers, and anti-inflammatories. Trips out have consisted of searching for back accessories - such as a rolling backpack for my laptop, L-shaped back pillows, comfortable shoes, and I have even broken down against my fear of needles to go to my friend Tom for acupunture.
I can't really say how well I am healing yet. The first day, my leg was really tight (my calf felt like a constant Charlie Horse). The second day I had crazy muscle spasms (which Tom's acupunture and suggestion to drink Pedialite seemed to remedy). The third day my whole back around my incision felt like a big bruise . . . that reminded me of poor Ra when I had to get his tail amputated . . . he had a huge bruise on his little stub. The fourth day through now, I don't quite remember all the details, but the bag of symptoms include nausea, blurry vision, leg pain, hives (don't ask me how that one fits in), and foot numbness. Overall, I can't complain EXCEPT I seem to have lost some muscle strength in my right calf that gives me a definitive limp and nearly prevents me from walking down stairs. It is like - pretend you are doing "toe-up" exercises to strengthen your calves. Well, I can't even get my right foot off the ground no matter how hard I could try. Left foot, no problems.
So, I was a little depressed today second guessing my decision to go through surgery. I am just frustrated with not knowing the right answers or finding or even knowing who and how they can help. Maybe I am a little vain, but walking with a limp and the thought of my right leg atrophying seems worse then constant pain in my hips and consistent sciatica. At first out of surgery, I had a positive outlook. From what he found in there, there was no way that disc was going to heal on its own over time. However, I am praying that the muscle weakness will go away as my nerve heals, but I am scared that it might not.
Part of me is kicking myself for not addressing the problem sooner. I probably herniated the disc in 2005 when I was moving to Charlotte. That is when my back first started going out. It became chronic pain after I was hospitalized with colitis in 2009. At that time, I tried physical therapy, steriod epidurals, anti-inflamatories, etc. I just got tired of all the doctors and nothing helping. Besides, Mike was seeing twice as many doctors as he was only recently diagnosed with CVID a few months ago. His condition was more serious than mine, so at $20 a pop (minimum for co-pay and not even to mention all the lab tests), I took a hiatus from seeing doctors. I don't regret that.
I swear that our health insurance company would be better off taking the risk of hiring a hit man than paying our medical bills. They have been trying any way they can to deny having to pay for Mike's treatments that cost $6,000 a month. Luckily, Mike fixed the problem when they dropped him. Now they want him to switch to a different distributor. Hopefully, that won't cause more problems.
So far, CVID is the best diagnosis we have gotten for Mike. It feels like progress that he at least has a treatment now even if it is insanely expensive. We have seen moderate results. He hasn't been getting sick as often from bacterial infections like sinus infections, etc. His myoclonic jerks have gone away along with the headaches. Thanks God. However, his lymph-nodes have been hurting him which is cause for concern because of the correlation between CVID and certain types of Cancer. He went to talk to a surgeon this week, and they are talking about doing surgery to biopsy one of his lymph-nodes. We are back and forth, "oh, maybe it is nothing," but ultimately, I think he needs to get the test done because if it is a type of Cancer early detection is very important.
Mike is stressed by work, but he can't really leave because he can't afford to lose health insurance with all this stuff going on. He has been doing a great job at work this quarter pushing deals through. He got a decent commission check, and I am proud of him. His project right now is re-doing the master bathroom. At first, it was because of a potential mold problem. Then we realized that the mold problem wasn't as bad as first anticipated (after spending $400 on air quality testing). Now, I think it is just his pet project. He has already teared out the closet walls and has kept things remarkably tidy. Yet construction has been halted with everything going on recently. It's okay, I couldn't fit most of the clothes in the closet anyway. :-)
This is going to be a busy semester for me. I am slated to defend my proposal this semester. One Godsend is that I have changed topics from the evil Geoviz to looking at how people set interpersonal boundaries within their online social networks. My advisors have looked out for me as far as funding goes, and I am also very thankful for that. I will be teaching two sections of web application development at UNCC this fall. I will have about 60 students total. I have been working on developing the curriculum and the class schedule this week. However, I have to be careful because sitting up is the worst possible thing for my back recovery right now. I have been looking at zero gravity recliners and kneeling chairs at Relax the Back, but man are they expensive! We bought a laptop pillow desk thingy which is what I am using to type this blog from bed as we speak. I have affectionately named my new bed pillow "Ellie." (aka the L-shaped pillow)
On a more positive note, we had a great trip to Alaska which was kind of our anniversary present to ourselves. At first, I was bummed because the cruise-line kind of sucked and it was foggy. But things cleared up, we saw whales, went mushing, and things looked up from there. We also joined a small group at our church and have met some new friends. Overall, I can't complain because Mike and I have many friends here in Charlotte and scattered all over the place. We aren't the most social people in the world, but we do cherish our friendships. The Fergusons next door are a really nice older couple to check in on us pretty regularly. Larry brought over some chicken casserole and peach cobbler. He also left a pair of waders by the front door which in some people's lives would seem strange. Of course, we have an explanation. We helped him go to a Buddhist monastery to get lotuses and plant them in the pond. Well, after two months, we all realized that lotuses were pretty invasive so Mike had to pull them back up and replant them in big garbage cans. Duck raising (sometimes chasing via kayak) and pond maintenance, just another normal day. :-)
Scuro, Ru, and Carrera are doing well. We have mice and ants living in the garage so Scuro's food is on the dining room table. Shoot, we never even eat at the dining room table. She is the fancy, spoiled kitty, but well-deserved. She just turned 12 years old this month. Alas, they discontinued her favorite bobble. We tried a few different replacement bobbles, but she has been impervious (is that the right word?) to our attempts.
Okay, I have started doing a William Faulkner stream of consciousness here so maybe my meds are kicking in. See what happens when I am stuck at home and made to rest? I haven't blogged in ages. Eh, blogs are out and micro-blogging is in. No wonder we are all ADD these days. I will drink my Pedialax (Pedialite + Miralax, Mmmm mmm), and probably watch some tv, listen to a relaxing hypnosis CD (but not whilst driving), get mashed by the Scuro, and drift to sleep. Good night. Sweet dreams.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Lent 21 Days before Easter
Okay, we just watched the Fast Forward for Lent (Mike laughed at me when I thought it was spelled Lint) from our church Meck. We are trying to decide what we will give up for 21 days to glory God. So, here is what we are coming up with:
1) No television except music channels (not MTV). Mike thinks it was a sign that our Logitech Harmony remote was dropped and broken by our cleaning people. The one caveat Mike wanted to add was if there was some kind of emergency happening we could watch the news. One other stipulation I will add is no TV streaming from the Internet either. That includes YouTube.
2) Pray before every meal. This is something I have always wanted to do but have been really bad at especially in public because it feels kind of embarrassing. So, since it is hard, it needs to be added to our list.
3) Table salt. Mike couldn't give up salt "as an ingredient" since he HAS to follow every recipe to the tee. So we compromised on giving up any additional added salt.
Okay, so that sounds like a start!
1) No television except music channels (not MTV). Mike thinks it was a sign that our Logitech Harmony remote was dropped and broken by our cleaning people. The one caveat Mike wanted to add was if there was some kind of emergency happening we could watch the news. One other stipulation I will add is no TV streaming from the Internet either. That includes YouTube.
2) Pray before every meal. This is something I have always wanted to do but have been really bad at especially in public because it feels kind of embarrassing. So, since it is hard, it needs to be added to our list.
3) Table salt. Mike couldn't give up salt "as an ingredient" since he HAS to follow every recipe to the tee. So we compromised on giving up any additional added salt.
Okay, so that sounds like a start!
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
It's me again!
Yeah, yeah, I know I haven't blogged in a while. We have been busy! We had Christmas with Mike's Mom and Michele then headed down to Florida to see Mom, Watson, Lisa, Steve, and the kids. In January, we went to San Fransisco for a week as Mike had a business meeting/training he had to attend. We were also able to spend time with his Dad, Julie, and most of my relatives. Our New Year's Resolution is to take a vacation this year just us - we love our families, but we need some Pam and Mike time too!
Mike's job is going fairly well. They reorged last year and stressed us all out, then they reorged again this year and stressed us out some more. On the health front, we may have found out one of Mike's biggest reasons for getting sick all the time. He has low immunoglobulins which reduces his ability to fight infections. His doctor has sent out a whole bunch of tests, but thinks it is probably CVID (Common variable immunodeficiency). Not quite sure what that is all about, but evidentally it is pretty serious, and he may have to get a really expensive treatment something to do with blood or plasma replacement. At this point, we are still waiting for all the tests to come back.
I am a little over booked this semester, but the upside is that I am feeling much healthier to be able to be productive. If you've kept up, last July I was hospitalized with Ulcerative colitis and a herniated disc. My colon has been doing just fine, and my disc is doing better. My back still isn't where I want it to be, but it isn't constant agony which is a plus. So this semester, I am trying to determine my proposal topic, doing geovisual analysis to hopefully get a paper written on the gabs of data we have collected, creating a application assurance website as a research/teaching assistantship for our department chair, teaching a web authoring and scripting class at ITT-Tech, serving on the HOA Board, attempting to get more plugged-in at church, working on other "stuff," and generally trying to get back in the swing of things.
And about pets. I am still missing Ra very much and cry pretty much every time I think of him. Ru and Carrera just had their annual vet appointments and everything came back clean. Yay, no worms! Scuro is doing well even though she is approaching twelve. We switched her from Iams to Wellness Core which is on of the premium, protein rich, no grains cat foods that are supposed to be the best for cats as they are carnivores not omnivores. Oh and Twerp! He - I guess I should say she now - is the duck about town. Charlene informed me last week that Twerp has a nest of eggs. So that might mean more snapping turtle catching for us this spring.
Seems like my family is doing well. Mike's mom recently lost over 30 pounds. Mom quit smoking, and Watson is trying. Kim is getting her second book published. All the nieces and nephews are healthy and as much trouble as ever. Michele is engaged and plans to get married this year.
No babies here yet. I know we originally said we were maybe going to start "trying" this year, but we have decided that I need to get my PhD done, and we need to work on some of the pending health issues. Besides, I haven't finished reading "What to Expect Before You are Expecting."
Fun news. Mike decided me wanted a Kindle for his birthday. He got it today and is already going download happy. It's cute really. I finally got a laptop that fits me. It took three tries, so I named it Charm. He is a Sony Vaio.
Okay, and that is my update until next time. Love you guys!
Mike's job is going fairly well. They reorged last year and stressed us all out, then they reorged again this year and stressed us out some more. On the health front, we may have found out one of Mike's biggest reasons for getting sick all the time. He has low immunoglobulins which reduces his ability to fight infections. His doctor has sent out a whole bunch of tests, but thinks it is probably CVID (Common variable immunodeficiency). Not quite sure what that is all about, but evidentally it is pretty serious, and he may have to get a really expensive treatment something to do with blood or plasma replacement. At this point, we are still waiting for all the tests to come back.
I am a little over booked this semester, but the upside is that I am feeling much healthier to be able to be productive. If you've kept up, last July I was hospitalized with Ulcerative colitis and a herniated disc. My colon has been doing just fine, and my disc is doing better. My back still isn't where I want it to be, but it isn't constant agony which is a plus. So this semester, I am trying to determine my proposal topic, doing geovisual analysis to hopefully get a paper written on the gabs of data we have collected, creating a application assurance website as a research/teaching assistantship for our department chair, teaching a web authoring and scripting class at ITT-Tech, serving on the HOA Board, attempting to get more plugged-in at church, working on other "stuff," and generally trying to get back in the swing of things.
And about pets. I am still missing Ra very much and cry pretty much every time I think of him. Ru and Carrera just had their annual vet appointments and everything came back clean. Yay, no worms! Scuro is doing well even though she is approaching twelve. We switched her from Iams to Wellness Core which is on of the premium, protein rich, no grains cat foods that are supposed to be the best for cats as they are carnivores not omnivores. Oh and Twerp! He - I guess I should say she now - is the duck about town. Charlene informed me last week that Twerp has a nest of eggs. So that might mean more snapping turtle catching for us this spring.
Seems like my family is doing well. Mike's mom recently lost over 30 pounds. Mom quit smoking, and Watson is trying. Kim is getting her second book published. All the nieces and nephews are healthy and as much trouble as ever. Michele is engaged and plans to get married this year.
No babies here yet. I know we originally said we were maybe going to start "trying" this year, but we have decided that I need to get my PhD done, and we need to work on some of the pending health issues. Besides, I haven't finished reading "What to Expect Before You are Expecting."
Fun news. Mike decided me wanted a Kindle for his birthday. He got it today and is already going download happy. It's cute really. I finally got a laptop that fits me. It took three tries, so I named it Charm. He is a Sony Vaio.
Okay, and that is my update until next time. Love you guys!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Pamela
SIR PHILIP SIDNEY, Arcadia, 16th Century
PAMELA'S PRAYER‘0 all seeing Light, and eternal Life of all things, to whom nothing is either so great that it may resist, or so small that it is contemned; look upon my misery with thine eye of mercy, and let thine infinite power vouchsafe to limit out some proportion of deliverance unto me, as to thee shall seem most convenient. Let not injury, 0 Lord, triumph over me, and let my faults by thy hand be corrected, and make not mine enemy the minister of thy justice. But yet, 0 Lord, if, in thy wisdom, this be the aptest chastisement for my inexcusable folly; if this low bondage be fittest for my over high desires; and the pride of my not enough humble heart be thus to be broken, 0 Lord, I yield unto thy will, and joyfully embrace what sorrow thou wilt have me suffer. Only thus much let me crave of thee let my craving, 0 Lord, be accepted of thee, since even that proceeds from thee let me crave (even by the noblest title which in my great affliction I may give myself, that I am thy creature; and by thy goodness, which is thyself) that thou wilt suffer some beams of thy majesty to shine into my mind, that it may still depend confidently on thee. Let calamity be the exercise, but not the over-throw of my virtue: let their power prevail, but prevail not to destruction. Let my greatness be their prey; let my pain be the sweetness of their revenge; let them (if so seem good unto thee) vex me with more and more punishment. But, 0 Lord, let never their wickedness have such a hand, but that I may carry a pure mind in a pure body.'
Monday, December 07, 2009
Time
While time is elusive, we all seem to think that others can have more or less of it than we do. Untrue. Each and every one of us have the same exact amount of time in a day. The difference is where we choose to spend it. Dr. Herbert Simon called it "the scarcity of attention." There are a multitude of things that warrant our attention, and we choose, sometimes unconsciously and unwisely, how to allocated our attention. There is no such thing as "I don't have time." Simply, you just don't think that that particular activity is as important as the ones already consuming your time.
The problems start when we waste our time by giving it to activities where we are overworked and under appreciated. Or when we let pressure from others influence how we spend our time. Time is a finite resource that cannot be bought back. Like money, you cannot regain sunk costs, guarantee return on investment, and must analyze opportunity costs. Even though less tangible than dollars, the risk is much higher for mismanagement, but the reward is much greater when invested wisely.
On another note, never trivial someone else's time by saying they must have a lot of "free time." There is no such thing as free time. Time is one of the most important things we have, and just because someone doesn't have kids, works part-time, spends a lot of time playing video games, or whatever, their time is just as valuable as yours.
The problems start when we waste our time by giving it to activities where we are overworked and under appreciated. Or when we let pressure from others influence how we spend our time. Time is a finite resource that cannot be bought back. Like money, you cannot regain sunk costs, guarantee return on investment, and must analyze opportunity costs. Even though less tangible than dollars, the risk is much higher for mismanagement, but the reward is much greater when invested wisely.
On another note, never trivial someone else's time by saying they must have a lot of "free time." There is no such thing as free time. Time is one of the most important things we have, and just because someone doesn't have kids, works part-time, spends a lot of time playing video games, or whatever, their time is just as valuable as yours.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
What I am Most Thankful For . . .
My Husband . . .
"You owned my heart then and still today. Everyday you amaze me with your ability to plan for the future and you love for me and others. I am proud to be your husband and you should be proud to be such a wonderful wife.
I Love You!
Mike"
"You owned my heart then and still today. Everyday you amaze me with your ability to plan for the future and you love for me and others. I am proud to be your husband and you should be proud to be such a wonderful wife.
I Love You!
Mike"
All I Want for Christmas . . .
1) For the doctors to be able to help treat our chronic health problems successfully.
2) For Scuro, Ru, and Carerra to be happy and healthy.
3) To find another couple in Charlotte who considers us their "best friends."
4) To have the respect of my colleagues, peers, friends, and family.
5) To positively impact the lives of others. And to know it.
6) To find more of a role for us in our church home.
7) To see my mother-in-law make more friends and enjoy fellowship with them.
8) For my mom and Watson to be healthy. For Mom to see Max as often as possible. And for her to be around to see our sons or daughters grow up.
9) For us to be prepared to be parents.
10) Encouragement and praise from mentors and superiors.
11) For Mike to have a job where he feels appreciated and has the respect to be able to make decisions that affect his career.
12) For more people to find jobs and the economy to turn up.
13) For there to be more compromise and less political divisions in our nation.
14) To be good friends with my sister-in-law.
15) For my Compassion Child Abigail to learn the skills she needs to help bring her family out of poverty.
16) For my family to heal from the abuse of the past and want to find the time to spend more time together.
17) To see our neighborhood become healthier and safer.
18) To find the perfect dissertation topic for me - where I can be successful.
19) To lose weight. About 30 pounds.
20) To find ways to appreciate Mike more and show him how much I love him.
21) For our friends to know to come to us if they need help. To have friends we can go to for help. Real help, not cup-of-sugar kind of help.
22) To get to know my father-in-law and his wife better.
23) For my relatives to know more about me and me more about them.
24) For people to give one another the benefit of the doubt and to build one another up instead of tearing one another down.
25) To have the strength to not become apathetic and bitter. The strength to always lead with love and compassion.
26) To set healthy boundaries for myself and my family so that they always come first.
27) To remember to pray for those who hold ill will toward me and to never seek revenge.
28) For Jesus to be undeniably real to me and my family.
29) To be more grateful, content, and joyful. To feel appreciated and loved.
30) For my priorities to represent God's will, not my own.
So if anyone can give me any of these things for Christmas, I would be eternally in your debt. :-)
2) For Scuro, Ru, and Carerra to be happy and healthy.
3) To find another couple in Charlotte who considers us their "best friends."
4) To have the respect of my colleagues, peers, friends, and family.
5) To positively impact the lives of others. And to know it.
6) To find more of a role for us in our church home.
7) To see my mother-in-law make more friends and enjoy fellowship with them.
8) For my mom and Watson to be healthy. For Mom to see Max as often as possible. And for her to be around to see our sons or daughters grow up.
9) For us to be prepared to be parents.
10) Encouragement and praise from mentors and superiors.
11) For Mike to have a job where he feels appreciated and has the respect to be able to make decisions that affect his career.
12) For more people to find jobs and the economy to turn up.
13) For there to be more compromise and less political divisions in our nation.
14) To be good friends with my sister-in-law.
15) For my Compassion Child Abigail to learn the skills she needs to help bring her family out of poverty.
16) For my family to heal from the abuse of the past and want to find the time to spend more time together.
17) To see our neighborhood become healthier and safer.
18) To find the perfect dissertation topic for me - where I can be successful.
19) To lose weight. About 30 pounds.
20) To find ways to appreciate Mike more and show him how much I love him.
21) For our friends to know to come to us if they need help. To have friends we can go to for help. Real help, not cup-of-sugar kind of help.
22) To get to know my father-in-law and his wife better.
23) For my relatives to know more about me and me more about them.
24) For people to give one another the benefit of the doubt and to build one another up instead of tearing one another down.
25) To have the strength to not become apathetic and bitter. The strength to always lead with love and compassion.
26) To set healthy boundaries for myself and my family so that they always come first.
27) To remember to pray for those who hold ill will toward me and to never seek revenge.
28) For Jesus to be undeniably real to me and my family.
29) To be more grateful, content, and joyful. To feel appreciated and loved.
30) For my priorities to represent God's will, not my own.
So if anyone can give me any of these things for Christmas, I would be eternally in your debt. :-)
Monday, November 23, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
God, please take care of Ra
Ra
April 1, 2000 - November 22, 2009
Ra was the best little orange cat in the world. He never did anything wrong or out of spite. He loved everyone unconditionally. His purr was like an old car starting on a cold morning. He was bright orange with handsome tribal markings. His fur was like memory foam; you could leave your hand print in it. He quit his tail a few years back to boast a silly little stub that better suit his personality. He snored loudly at night. He liked to sleep in the laundry basket in the closet so combined with the snoring, he fondly became known as our "closet monster." He also liked to sleep between Daddy's feet. He was our "little head," "Buddy Buddy," and as Pedro says, our "tailless wonder." He wasn't just a cat to us. He was and will always be part of our family. He had no cadence to his walk. He just went pad-padpad-padpadpad-padpad-pad in a kind of lopey fashion. His head was always too small for his little body. My "little head." He always wore a little heart for his tag which somehow he managed to use to get stuck to the carpet. I think the best thing about him is that when you looked at him, you could tell that he had already reached that level of blissfulness that you and I are always trying to find. Most of the time, it was like he just didn't have a care in the world. He was a lover, not a fighter. He would let his sister beat him up then he would go and bathe her head. He was always submissive and loving - taking no quarrel with anyone and on his back exposing his tummy in a second. I respected his persistence and resiliency. He never got mad at you and always came when welcomed back on your lap.
He kissed you like a tootsie roll pop . . . lick one, lick two, chomp! He would do completely silly things like get stuck on top of the door, lay on top of the silly putty on the table, and roll on the counter after you just cleaned it with Windex. One time he slinked up to the vacuum cleaner, batted it, hissed, and ran. So silly and sweet. His constant grooming and licking habit led to the loss of his tail, but he didn't mind that one bit. It was his constant search for Ambrosia, and God, please now that you have him, let him find it. His favorite blanket was the green one. His favorite color has always been hot pink. He was fancy that way. He always let us know when the water bowl was emtpy and especially the food bowl. It was like he was the eternal kitten. Scuro has this cat-like mischievousness to her that Ra never had. He always just had . . . an innocence. He greeted new guests by waking them up in the middle of the night, flat dab laying on the middle of their chests. He was such a purr-head. He was nine years old, and we thought we would have more time with him.
God, if animals don't have souls it must be because they are already your angels. Take him home. Pet him. He likes his chin and tummy rubbed. He likes to sit on your lap when you are typing at the computer or on the toilet. He loves talking on conference calls and hates closed doors. Keep a closet ajar somewhere just so he can sneak in and lay among the blankets. He isn't the smartest cat in the world, but he is the sweetest. Yeah, sometimes he can be really stinky. It is like he is baking soda and soaks up the smells from the litter box. Let him know you are behind him, but don't sneak up on him because it makes him jump. What else? He likes sitting in his porn star pose and licking his belly so give him a wall to lean on on occasion. I think it was his way of making sure everyone laughs. He doesn't get over-cuddled and needs lots of attention. He needs hugs and kisses every day. All the other animals might bully him, so keep him protected. He has loved me more and better than most humans have. He and Scuro have been by my side longer and closer than any man or any human friend. He happily went though all the hell I've been through just so he could take care of me. Make sure he isn't alone. Amen, amen, amen.
We don't know what happened. He yelped, and Mike pulled him out from under the bed. His tongue was out and he was fading. Within minutes, he was just gone. We rushed to the emergency vet. When the vet brought him back out to us tonight, they had wrapped him in a towel, and it was his favorite color - pink.
I love you Ra. Mommy loves you. Daddy too. You are the best little orange cat in the world, and I would have done anything for you. I am sorry we weren't able to do more. I love you so much. Thank you for being you. Everyone loved Ra. Chris once offered me a million dollars to take Ra with him when he moved out. Not in a million years. Ra is truly irreplaceable! We all love you, Little Head.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Goals
-Exercise/lose weight
-Fellowship with other couples: Matt & Amy, Orson & Donna, Haya & Mahdi, Corey & Megan, Charlene & Nick, Larry & Susan, etc.
-Find/start small group at Meck
-Write a random thank you note
-Finalize December holiday plans
-Bake/make Christmas/holiday gifts for neighbors, colleagues, and friends
-Buy Christmas gifts for family
-Finished geovisualization data coding, come up with results, and write up paper(s)
-Decide dissertation topic
-Revise and resubmit WASA paper to The International Journal of Human Computer Studies
-Revise and submit Technology Overload Gender research to a journal (pick journal)
-Finalize January travel plans to San Fran
-Get signatures from board members to finalize non-profit bylaws
-Finalize 501(c)3 paperwork
-Write grant proposal
-Get some sleep
-Fellowship with other couples: Matt & Amy, Orson & Donna, Haya & Mahdi, Corey & Megan, Charlene & Nick, Larry & Susan, etc.
-Find/start small group at Meck
-Write a random thank you note
-Finalize December holiday plans
-Bake/make Christmas/holiday gifts for neighbors, colleagues, and friends
-Buy Christmas gifts for family
-Finished geovisualization data coding, come up with results, and write up paper(s)
-Decide dissertation topic
-Revise and resubmit WASA paper to The International Journal of Human Computer Studies
-Revise and submit Technology Overload Gender research to a journal (pick journal)
-Finalize January travel plans to San Fran
-Get signatures from board members to finalize non-profit bylaws
-Finalize 501(c)3 paperwork
-Write grant proposal
-Get some sleep
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Plog 9/17/09
Breakfast: toast and nutella
Lunch: macaroni & cheese with hot dog
Dinner: spaghetti, hamburger meat, and soy sauce
Snack: brownies, chips and queso, fruit
Water: 1 glass
Exercise: PT
Doctor: Spine specialist
Lunch: macaroni & cheese with hot dog
Dinner: spaghetti, hamburger meat, and soy sauce
Snack: brownies, chips and queso, fruit
Water: 1 glass
Exercise: PT
Doctor: Spine specialist
Monday, September 14, 2009
Plog 9/16/09
Breakfast: feta asparagus frittata
Lunch: raviolis
Dinner: spaghetti, hamburger meat, and soy sauce
Snack: popcorn, vitamin milk, pineapple bread pudding, brownie bites
Water: 1 glass
Exercise: PT
Doctor: PT
Lunch: raviolis
Dinner: spaghetti, hamburger meat, and soy sauce
Snack: popcorn, vitamin milk, pineapple bread pudding, brownie bites
Water: 1 glass
Exercise: PT
Doctor: PT
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Plog 9/13/09
Breakfast: mini bagel with nutella
Lunch: Left over pizza
Dinner: Thai chicken satay with rice noodles
Snack: vanilla vitamin milk, pineapple bread pudding
Water: 2 glasses
Exercise: PT exercises, A little Wii Fit
Doctor: None
Lunch: Left over pizza
Dinner: Thai chicken satay with rice noodles
Snack: vanilla vitamin milk, pineapple bread pudding
Water: 2 glasses
Exercise: PT exercises, A little Wii Fit
Doctor: None
Plog 9/12/09
Breakfast: asparagus, feta frittata
Lunch: Sonny's BBQ
Dinner: Boboli white
Snack: vanilla vitamin milk
Water: 2 glasses
Exercise: PT exercises
Doctor: None
Lunch: Sonny's BBQ
Dinner: Boboli white
Snack: vanilla vitamin milk
Water: 2 glasses
Exercise: PT exercises
Doctor: None
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Plog 9/11/09
Breakfast: peanut butter and jelly sandwich
Lunch: pasta with soy sauce
Dinner: fried pork won tons
Snack: vanilla vitamin milk
Water: 2 glasses
Exercise: None
Doctor: None
Lunch: pasta with soy sauce
Dinner: fried pork won tons
Snack: vanilla vitamin milk
Water: 2 glasses
Exercise: None
Doctor: None
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Plog 9/10/09
Breakfast: deviled eggs
Lunch: raviolis
Dinner: 3 slices of pepperoni pizza
Snack: handful of peanuts, hood chocolate milk with vitamins, Pringles cup, more deviled eggs, toast and nutella
Water: 1 glass
Exercise: PT exercises
Doctor: None
Lunch: raviolis
Dinner: 3 slices of pepperoni pizza
Snack: handful of peanuts, hood chocolate milk with vitamins, Pringles cup, more deviled eggs, toast and nutella
Water: 1 glass
Exercise: PT exercises
Doctor: None
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Plog
9/8/09
Breakfast: 2 snack sized Jimmy Dean sausage and biscuits
Lunch: hot dog with bun, cinnamon apple sauce cup, Pringles cup
Dinner: spaghetti with hamburger and mushrooms, goat cheese, garlic, olive oil, and pan fried pita bread
Snack: handful of peanuts, strawberry shake
Water: 3 glasses
Exercise: None, didn't do PT because hip was hurting too much, slept on ice pack
Vitamins: Bought GNC Woman's powder multi-vitamin in vanilla. Tried it. It is okay.
Doctor: Went to Chiropractor
9/9/09
Breakfast: toast and nutella
Lunch: left over spaghetti
Dinner: Perogies and hotdogs w/o buns
Snack: Vitamin peach shake, Pringles cup, honey roasted peanuts, beef jerky
Water: skim milk. Need more water . . .
Exercise: PT exercises
Vitamins: cup of vita-powder with skim milk
Doctor: Physical therapy
Breakfast: 2 snack sized Jimmy Dean sausage and biscuits
Lunch: hot dog with bun, cinnamon apple sauce cup, Pringles cup
Dinner: spaghetti with hamburger and mushrooms, goat cheese, garlic, olive oil, and pan fried pita bread
Snack: handful of peanuts, strawberry shake
Water: 3 glasses
Exercise: None, didn't do PT because hip was hurting too much, slept on ice pack
Vitamins: Bought GNC Woman's powder multi-vitamin in vanilla. Tried it. It is okay.
Doctor: Went to Chiropractor
9/9/09
Breakfast: toast and nutella
Lunch: left over spaghetti
Dinner: Perogies and hotdogs w/o buns
Snack: Vitamin peach shake, Pringles cup, honey roasted peanuts, beef jerky
Water: skim milk. Need more water . . .
Exercise: PT exercises
Vitamins: cup of vita-powder with skim milk
Doctor: Physical therapy
Monday, September 07, 2009
Getting Down to Business
Okay, seriously, I need to work to get healthy. Some steps:
1) Keep a food/exercise journal - eat right and exercise.
2) Continue physical therapy.
3) Go to my 10 million follow up doctors' appointments (ugh.)
4) Find a liquid or gummy adult multi-vitamin my tummy can take on a daily basis.
5) Set an alarm on my phone to remember to take my middle-of-the-day pills. Get some kind of pill holder for my wallet.
6) Drink more water.
7) I need to figure out if my back problem is my L5-S1 lumbar or my SI joint (caused most likely by the ulcerative colitis). Based on my limited research, you treat them differently so it matters which one you have.
8) Pray! (I guess this one should actually go first...)
Food journal starts tomorrow. I ate like crap today.
1) Keep a food/exercise journal - eat right and exercise.
2) Continue physical therapy.
3) Go to my 10 million follow up doctors' appointments (ugh.)
4) Find a liquid or gummy adult multi-vitamin my tummy can take on a daily basis.
5) Set an alarm on my phone to remember to take my middle-of-the-day pills. Get some kind of pill holder for my wallet.
6) Drink more water.
7) I need to figure out if my back problem is my L5-S1 lumbar or my SI joint (caused most likely by the ulcerative colitis). Based on my limited research, you treat them differently so it matters which one you have.
8) Pray! (I guess this one should actually go first...)
Food journal starts tomorrow. I ate like crap today.
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