Um....OK....

So, um, how are we supposed to do this:

America Serves

"When you choose to serve -- whether it's your nation, your community or simply your neighborhood -- you are connected to that fundamental American ideal that we want life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness not just for ourselves, but for all Americans. That's why it's called the American dream."
The Obama Administration will call on Americans to serve in order to meet the nation’s challenges. President-Elect Obama will expand national service programs like AmeriCorps and Peace Corps and will create a new Classroom Corps to help teachers in underserved schools, as well as a new Health Corps, Clean Energy Corps, and Veterans Corps. Obama will call on citizens of all ages to serve America, by developing a plan to require 50 hours of community service in middle school and high school and 100 hours of community service in college every year. Obama will encourage retiring Americans to serve by improving programs available for individuals over age 55, while at the same time promoting youth programs such as Youth Build and Head Start.

Let's revisit my high school/college days for a minute, huh?

1998: TB diagnosis, so I basically spent an entire semester trying to stay awake in class. There would have been NO 25 hours of community service.

2001: The ICU episode--again, no community service. I had these things called "Classes" to make up and finish. You know, for my degree. Which is the whole freakin' POINT of college. Not community service.

Now I have a compromised immune system. Where would The One suggest I help out? Not nursing homes. Not free clinics. Not places like libraries, etc. during any fall-winter seasons. In fact, almost NO WHERE during fall/winter seasons.

This is my problem with liberals, and even some conservatives--they do something that SOUNDS good, but then when you look at it, you go, "huh?" How are people supposed to do this if they have other issues? Where's a kid going to get a part-time job if s/he wants one?

Another good example of this is mandatory gym. I was HORRIBLE at gym. Really, really horrible. I couldn't run a full mile, and I certainly couldn't do it in any decent time. But people are always pushing gym. I was so GLAD when it was over.

OK rant for today done.

Planning ahead

OK no dancing teapots for me:

So up ahead--
1) The Fantastiks later this month. There are only two female roles, and I might be a bit old (She's supposed to be a teenager) but you get $50 for trying out! And priority audition for "As You Like It", which I love.

2) Parade, which I've already talked about a bit. As with J&H I really love this show, know all the music, and deeply enjoy it. It alo has a large cast, so that's good.

Poetry Thursday VI

"Nothing Gold Can Stay"--Robert Frost

Nature's first hue is gold,

Her hardest hue to hold.

Her early leaf's a flower;

But only so an hour. 

The leaf subsides to leaf. 

So Eden sank to grief,

So dawn goes down to day,

Nothing gold can stay. 

Normal annoyances

OK, so, since we're being on with life and everything:

I am still waiting for the B&B cast list. It should be up tomorrow at the website.
Now we were also supposed to be called if we made it, which would lead to certain people, um, knowing their parts. But can we keep it under wraps (as in, not put it on a website or make it really public?)? No need depressing those that DIDN'T make it until they need to be.

OK rant over.

And since I'm thinking that I won't be cast, I am going to focus on Parade with the Gallery Players. So onwards we go.

It begins anew

And so it's over.
I have things to do at the house, Christmas music to practice, memos to read.
But the next four years will see much prayer, and I will be a member of the Loyal Opposition.
We shall see.....

And now...

I go to bed.
I pray that things will not be as bad as I am anticipating.
The Lord does, indeed, work in mysterious ways. At least, that's what I'm seeing right now.

Fuzzy math continued!

Now it's tied

Votes Percent

Barack Obama
1,309,665
47%
John McCain
1,201,441
47%

Fuzzy math?

From the Dispatch:


Barack Obama
980,909
49%
John McCain
818,716
45%

Um....that's three points, people! And the gap has closed steadily over the last hour.
So how can we call this????
I'm confused.

Fuzzy math?

From the Dispatch:


Barack Obama
980,909
49%
John McCain
818,716
45%

Um....that's three points, people! And the gap has closed steadily over the last hour.
So how can we call this????
I'm confused.

Returns

I've been in politics for 8 years now, and this marks my third Presidential campaign (Bush 2000, Bush '04, McCain '08).
I have never been this freakin' nervous.
Everything that's been called is pretty much what I expected.
Michael Barone (on FOX) is a walking political almanac. He is THE MAN. I listen to him above all things.

I'm still here!

Yes, all, I am till with you!

So, the saga of my day:
I got up at 5:15. A.M. After ot falling asleep until after midnight (OK, part of that was watching Steelers/Redskins on TV, but still!).
I got to my polling place, with my coffee thermos, at 6:00. There were about 50 people in line. By the time I went into vote, (polls in OH open at 6:30), there were probably about 120-150. The sunrise was beautiful, and so were the stars! So I spent most of my time finding costallations. It wasn't a cold morning, which was good.
Once we got in, I waited for about 25 minutes before I cast my ballot. I have to say, there is a huge thrill in selecting your Presidential candidate. That's why I don't vote absentee--I just get a thrill out of it. And I love seeing everyone all lined up, voting peacefully.
I got out of there around 7:03 and listened to Journey's "Don't Stop Believing" all the way to the Resort. Traffic, thankfully, was pretty light and I was in infusion at 7:30 a.m.
Blood draw was OK, then it was off to CXR. The movie on in the waiting room was Enchanted, so that was good. I also had Wuthering Heights to read (that's a very good fall/winter book). IN the waiting room there were two kids with Down Snydrome, and of course I couldn't help but think of Trig.
As usual, the CXR was quick. I do these in a coma at this point. It was maybe 8:15 by now. I headed up to the clinic, where we did NiOx and PFTs and all that good stuff.
These were not as great as normal. All of them (except for maybe one test) were down, by about 5 points or so. So, in Todd-speak, not "Good" but "OK." He thinks it might be a virus, bu we really won't know until the cultures (nasal wash and sputum) come back. Julie says we should have prelim results tomorrow.
If it is a virus, a bronch might not do us much good. I am supposed to call tomorrow 1) if my symptoms are worse, but, in any case, 2) I an to call and get prelim lab results.
So I went home (well, to my parents') and slept the rest of the day, until we had dinner. Now I am at home, with my brother's laptop and the TV on Fox (of course!). Ohio is not expected to be called until the wee hours.
Work tomorrow will be a zoo--we will have the people for the 128th General Assembly (to be sworn in at the beginning of January), and possibly a president. Regardless, the clips will be Monstrous.
Probably more updates as we go along but my health, right now, is holding.

Thoughts, rants, etc.

A hodge-podge of things, before I go to visit Todd tomorrow: 

• We are turning to football for political prognostication. It's true. If the Giants will 5 games before election day, the incumbent party holds the presidency. If, however, the Steelers win tonight, then the prognostication is that The One Shall Be Election. 

I might actually be rooting against the 'Burg. 

• In more relevant news for our purposes: tomorrow's Resort Visit. In order to vote, I'm going to get up at the godforsaken hour of 5:15. Yeah. That'll be fun. Polls in Ohio open at 6:30 a.m. I have to be at CH an hour later. We'll see what happens. Because, you know, if I don't vote, then it's a sure thing that I'll get bronched. No question. 

So, I head to the Resort for blood draw, then CXR, then up to clinic for PFTs, NiOx readings, the whole 9 yards. And then I wait and see what The Powers That Be Decide.

This is where transplant stuff is really different from CF stuff. With CF stuff, I could usually look at my numbers and go, "OK, here's what we're doing!" I was rarely wrong. 

Transplant stuff, not so much. First, there are about ten billion numbers (I'm exaggerating, but not by much.). Some of them I see, some of them I don't see. Sometimes the numbers are "OK", but I get bronched anyway. Sometimes I think the numbers are bad, and nothing happens. I have no real "inner guide" on this one. 

There are some things that are real bellweathers--if my blood work is way off, or if my PFTs drop dramatically (like more than 5 points). PFTs have always been sort of inexplicable. You can come in and feel great and blow like crap, and vice versa. Or if the CXR looks like Poland in January (that is, really, really white) then there are issues. I'm not a productive cougher--meaning I don't bring up mucus samples for them to test. So if we want a sample, we usually have to bronch to get it. 

Puls Ox numbers (the amount of oxygen in your blood) can also be a factor, although I was at 95% (the lowest end of 'normal') before transplant, so this number is sort of eh for me as an indicator. 

So with all this numerical insanity, plus trying to vote before all of it tomorrow, it's going to be a long day. And a long night.

And for you political junkies, the rap in Ohio is that we're not going to be called until the wee hours. So brace yourselves. 

• 
  

Me and Dr. A

I will be giving Dr. A's office a call tomorrow AM, because lovely symptoms are happening!

Yay!

(although normally I get sick during a budget year, and we're not quite there yet. For instance...

2005: the transplant. :)

2007: Missed a lot of Jan-Feb-March due to Fun things)

For those interested:

--increased cough, with "productivity", which means stuff comes up (gross, I know)

--chest pain (right side)

--sinuses acting up like mad, with drainage (also gross, I know)

--sleeping like there's no tomorrow (not happy, but I want to blame the evil N drug)

So we'll see what The Powers That Be Have To Say.

Oh, and Theater Update: Cast list for B&B goes up on W. Fingers crossed....so we'll see!

The Other Blog

New stuff over at CPG. 

Yes, right now most of it is links from the wonderful, incomparable Fr. Z. 

But it's good stuff! And we should read it!

Mel update

Mel is back home. She can't eat *real* food for like a week, which totally freaked me out. If my docs said I couldn't eat for a week, I would be dans l'hopital. She can drink stuff, but that's about it. It would be IV fluids for me!

Anyway, apparently some pill she was taking for the cellulitis on her leg got caught in her esophagus and didn't dissolve, leading to a very, very irritated esophagus. 

(Mel tends to have very odd things happen to her.) So after the test today, and once she could eat "food" (which probably meant clears, such as jello and broth--the joy!) she was sent home (much to dad's relief because he HATES hospital weekends. Hates them. Not that anyone really likes them as it is.). I would imagine she'll be at home until she can actually eat. 

So another medical mystery solved.

In my world,  I am NOT HAPPY with the new triglyceride drug that Dr. A has put me on. It's some "N" drug (I forget what it's full name is, and I'm not going to go turn all the lights back on to check, LOL) that, apparently, is NOT doing it's job, because my triglycerides are only down a little bit. 

This drug is a drug that has "instructions", which I hate. That means you have to take it at a certain time, with a certain food, with a certain drink. OK  FINE.

But even if you do all that, you will still get what the med sheet calls "flushing" of the skin. 

You would think that means you just feel warm, right?

No. 

Warm I could handle. 

What this is feels like a full-body sunburn, complete with a very, very itchy rash. If my skin wasn't red before, it is now because I am scratching like mad.

The thing that REALLY annoys me? I took this drug three hours ago. 

Now it's Friday night, so it doesn't really matter too much if I get to bed late (I cannot, cannot sleep when this is happening). But during the work week? Yeah, sort of matters. And it had to be taken "before bed" so I'm sort of screwed. You have to drink milk with it--I drink tons, which really isn't great for me, because it clogs up everything and I just don't prefer it. And STILL this happens. If I had long nails I'd probably be bleeding. 

It also makes me super tired, which isn't good for anything else, because all I want to do when I go home is sleep. Not cool when I have ballet, parish council, choir, and, oh yeah--work. 

So I will call the powers that be on Monday. My next appointment isn't for three weeks, so I want to deal with this NOW. 

OK Medical Rant done. :) 

Very quickly

Mel has been admitted to Mount Carmel here in Columbus due to the cellulitis on her leg. She is very susceptible to odd things, and, to make it even more fun, she's allergic to just about every major class of drugs (stuff like basic penicillin). So that makes treating her for anything very tricky. 

Hopefully she won't be in there long. But blogging may be light. 

Prayers please!

Poetry Thursday V

That night when joy began--W.H. Auden

That night when joy began

Our narrowest veins to flush,

We wait for the flash 

Of morning's level gun. 

But morning let us pass,

And day by day relief

Outgrows his nervous laugh,

Grown credulous of peace,

As mile by mile is seen

No trespasser's reproach,

And love's best classes reach

No fields are best his own. 

PSA: Vaccines!

OK everyone, listen up:

Please, for the love of all mankind, especially us immuno-suppressed ones: 

GET A FLU SHOT. 

Please? For you, the flu might be a pain. But for someone with a suppressed immune system, it can be horrible. The flu kills kids and adults every year--normal kids and adults. 

I work in an office with 6 other people. If one of them gets sick, then all of us are exposed to it, but they can probably handle it better than I can. I don't want to miss weeks of work and have to stay in the Resort because someone didn't get a flu shot!

This applies to other vaccines, too (except for HPV, which isn't transferrable in any way other than---sex). Please, please, please get yourself and your kids vaccinated. I know this is a hot topic, but "herd immunity" is not something I am prepared to take lightly. Kids might be fine getting measles, mumps, chicken pox. It can wreak havoc on others (like chicken pox in adults). 

Plenty of people are immuno-compromised, and you probably don't know it. People who have had transplants, who are getting chemo, etc. are all in this category. We can try our best to avoid large crowds of people and reduce our chances of getting sick. But we do have to work and be out Amongst You the rest of the time. 

So please, get vaccinated. You don't want the flu, do you? 

The Simple Woman's Daybook

(with some editions from Elizabeth)

For TUESDAY, October 28, 2008 (yes, I'm late this week!)

Outside My Window...

The sky is a gunmetal gray, and the leaves are all gone, except for the bight scarlet ones on one tiny tree. 

I am thinking...

that it's a good day to read!

I am thankful for...

my friends

From the kitchen...

no idea. But I just got the new Barefoot Contessa cookbook, so maybe some ideas from there. 

To live the liturgy...

Magnificat, daily Bible reading.

I am wearing...

a light pink sweater (with some brown undertones, so it's really like a dusty pink), a brown and cream checked skirt from Ann Taylor, brown tights and brown boots. 

I am creating...

new stories, new music. 

I am going to breathe deeply ...

and take it slow. 

Bringing beauty to my home ...

vacuuming. It never ends. 

I am going...

to stay awake! This weather makes me so sleepy. 

I am reading...

Truth and Tolerance (B XVI); The Kreutzer Sonata and Other Stories (Tolstoy), Bleak House (Dickens, which is really good, even if it is like 700 pages long!)

I am hoping...

for a good week.

I am hearing...

NOTHING because the CI battery died--AGAIN 

Around the house...

Vacuuming. Yeah, again. 

One of my favorite things...

sleeping. :) 

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week:

Wednesday: choir

Thursday: lunch with dad

Saturday: Outdoor Stations of the Cross

Sunday: 8:30 Mass, but it's more like 9:30! (thank you, DST!)

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

This is from Andrea and Tom's wedding on the 18th--I am the fourth from the left. Sean is on the left and Troy is on my right (over my shoulder). 

And yes, The Bride is sitting on a blanket and not the dirty bench!

Dean

Dean Barnett, political writer for The Weekly Standard, radio personality, and CF-er, has died: 

Farewell to a Friend [From The Campaign Spot on NRO]
Damn. Damn, damn, damn.

I had been preparing for this news for a little while, since hearing the grim news about Dean Barnett's condition from Hugh Hewitt's producer Duane last week. But somehow I still thought Dean was going to surprise us all and pull through. He had done it before. Despite knowing the grim prognosis for the past week, I'm still stunned. He had written about his thick-as-chowdah Boston accent, but the first time I heard him when he was guest-hosting Hugh's show, I joked that I was going to need a translator. That could not have been that long ago... Dean was funny, and insightful, and witty, and even though we never crossed paths in person, it was easy to feel like you knew him. So much about him suggested he was one of those good guys the world needs more of.

He had made us laugh and made us think so many times since he started blogging back in 2004, that when he recently reentered the hospital, there was a palpable absence in the conversation about the campaign. I had already started to miss reading his take on the latest twists and turns of the campaign, and I don't think it's going to get any easier.

RIP, Dean. We are going to miss you something fierce.

UPDATE: I went back and checked. August. August, Dean was talking to me and other guests on the program as if nothing was wrong. Life can change so quickly, and so cruelly, sometimes. [emphasis mine]

Even more recently, at the end of September he and I exchanged e-mails laughing about something

It doesn't get any easier. 

If I hadn't survived my own ICU stint in October of '01, the last time most people would have seen me would have been at Capital's homecoming dance the night before. I was wearing a red velvet dress. My fiance and I were dancing, talking, laughing with my friends. A photographer took a picture of us on the dance floor (that one of my choir mates bought later, to give to me when I got back to school). In it, I'm pale, but I'm smiling radiantly. My fiance and I were in the middle of a dance. He's wearing a blue suit jacket and a blue and red striped tie. 

And for some people, that would've been the last time they saw me--in a red dress, dancing in the dining hall. I had just performed in our Homecoming concert two days ago. 

CF can go from good to bad to worst in a matter of days. It moves fast, and it moves without mercy. 

Dean had beaten the odds for so long--he was in his 40s when he died. 

One thing I know about having a terminal illness (because that's what CF is--even post-transplant) is that you "know" when things aren't going to turn out. At least, I always did. It can be so hard to fight the descent. And Dean tried many times. 

We need to find a cure for this. Now. It's not like cancer, where you can "survive" it. It's not a developmental disease, where you can have it and still live a long life. It will kill you. That's the very sobering fact. And too often, it will kill you too young. 

I know I am very, very fortunate. I want more people to be fortunate. I want CF to go the way of polio. I want kids to read about it in history books, not biology books. 

I want me and Tricia and Amber, and all the others, to live.