Twenty-six

Write about recent dreams.  Do you dream often?  Anything odd lately stick out in your mind?

Lots of dreams about my wife lately.  I don’t normally dream about people. I’m not really sure where I am going with the whole thing. I typically don’t dream a lot. Lately, however, I’ve had some very vivid ones. Some featuring people I know. Others featuring famous people. I literally can’t even…

Last night’s featured a particularly loathsome politician, one Senator Elizabeth Warren. It was probably because I’d watched her excuse for an address at the Democratic National Convention. She spent a lot of time talking about the wonderful benefits that have been put into place to avoid another financial crisis……like this:

http://reason.com/reasontv/2015/08/21/operation-choke-point-the-governments-co

Thankfully, I can’t remember what this shining star of statism did to me, but it was enough to wake me up.

I bet the young person who was shouting, “we trusted you” to her probably was stoned enough at the end of the night that he slept like a baby.

What to write about tomorrow…?  Hmm.  Well, football training camps are a

Twenty-five

How does weather affect you? 

Nowadays, heat really does a number on me.  It’s something that started long before I was diagnosed, but is very pronounced these days.

So, what happens?

  1. My vision goes.  Anyone who’s talked to me would know that vision loss is my most serious symptom.  That did start long before I was diagnosed.  I can remember getting the weird streaks on the edges of my vision playing softball in college.
  2. Fatigue.  I tire incredibly easily.  I do push myself farther than I probably ought pretty often.  In some ways, I’m still very hungry, professionally, and am excited to be doing work closer to my skillset.
  3. My midsection starts spasming.  If there’s a muscle between my ribcage and my knees, it’ll randomly contract or relax.  That leads me to the next
  4. My diaphragm stops working.  I have trouble breathing. Serious trouble breathing.  Not only is hot, humid air difficult to inhale in the first place, it’s even tougher when you have trouble taking a deep breath of comfortable air.

On the flip side, perhaps due to other nerve problems, cold doesn’t bother me nearly as much as it did when i was younger.  I hated the cold, and tolerated the heat.  These days, it’s exactly the opposite.

http://www.nationalmssociety.org/Living-Well-With-MS/Health-Wellness/Heat-Temperature-Sensitivity

Tonight, after Indian food, I’m sure I’ll sleep very deeply.  This is okay, and brings me to tomorrow’s prompt….

Write about recent dreams.  Do you dream often?  Anything odd lately stick out in your mind?

Twenty-three

Who will you vote for in November, and why?

Unless the polls in the week before the Election say Virginia is within five points, I’m going to vote for Gary Johnson.

Do I have some reservations about him? Absolutely. But he and Weld are a lot closer to where I am.

If Virginia is within the MOE, I’ll hold my nose and vote against Hillary.

Tomorrow’s prompt: It’s supposed to be 100F here in Norfolk tomorrow — how does weather affect you? Tease? The heat bothers me a lot more than it did when I was younger. The cold really doesn’t bother me anymore, though.

Twenty-two

It’s Friday.  What are your weekend plans?

Relax.  It’s going to be incredibly hot here this weekend, so I plan to stay inside as much as I can.  When I get hot, my vision gets even worse than it normally is, my balance goes, and I have trouble breathing.

That doesn’t explain why I fell off the bus Tuesday afternoon.  Yes, I fell off the bus.  Umm, yeah, I don’t even know.  I’d gotten off a stop early the last time I went to this barber shop, and had to walk a pretty good ways down  the street.

Going to work on the bus, I noticed there was a stop pretty much right in front of the shopping center where the barber is.  Being Norfolk, there’s not much in the way of hills, but there is one from the street to the sidewalk.  I stepped off the bus onto the grass between the curb and the sidewalk, and down I went.

(And, yes, this is part of the thinking behind yesterday’s entry on pain…)

Thankfully, I did manage to stay on the grass between the street and the sidewalk, but I came down on my left shoulder hard.

The bus driver saw me fall, and got off the bus to see if I was okay.  He, and a passenger waiting for another bus, helped me drag myself into a shady spot where I sat until I’d done enough to make sure I pretty much had full range-of-motion.

Unfortunately, my left shoulder is where I carry my work bag, and it was too sore to let me comfortably do that.  So, bag to the right shoulder, and cane to the left hand, not in use.  I staggered across the parking lot to the barber, got my hair cut, and got a ride home.

Because I got the ride home, I didn’t run a couple of the other errands I’d planned on the way.  (Yes, I was looking for liquor and beer, which you can’t buy in the same store in the Commonwealth of Virginia….my wife hooked me up on the beer, but i still need to trek to the ABC store for the other stuff.)

The ride home cost me eight bucks, but it was worth not having to stagger back to where I’d just fallen, then get on a different bus headed downtown and home.

Yesterday, I went to see my PCP(s) over at EVMS.  There was a new PA there who saw me.  I swear the guy was as increduluous as many of the young residents I’ve seen about my travails over the six years I’ve been going there for treatment.

Yes, guy, my vision really is that bad!

Yes, i’ve lost that much weight since 2009!

No, there’s nothing glass will do to help;  it’s nerve and brain damage.

He examined my shoulder, and was worried I had a break, so he wanted to do an X-ray.  The attending physician came in, talked to me for a few minutes, established that i had full range-of-motion, and told me to come back next week if it was still bothering me.

It’s not as bad as it was the morning after, but it still hurts a lot about the time when the ibuprofen is wearing off.

Most people are very one-sided when it comes to handedness;  I’ve always been a bit odd.  I find myself doing a lot more things with my left side these days.  Not that I could even hope to play baseball, but I almost feel like actually throwing with my left hand would be natural to me these days.

Yes, that’d be weird.  Not that I could ever hope to actually see well enough to hit, or stand well enough to run and field, but….

I’m rambling.  It happens.  Part of this, though, is to get me back in the writing mode.  What tomorrow?  Hmm, I guess I’ll use one of the prompts I’d taken from my old diary, and revisit it.

Back to the prompt, again. What am I going to do this weekend?  Not much.  It’s too hot to do anything, and I really wish I could have some gin and sweet vermouth delivered.  (Yes, I know those don’t go together, but i have bourbon and plenty of dry vermouth.  I am one ingredient short for both martinis and Manhattans….)

Back to tomorrow’s prompt.

For a large number of folks, the change of the millennium was their first major memory.  Where were you, and what were you doing?

Twenty-one

That’s easy.  I will say that if you think you have the least bit of a dental problem DO NOT GET ON AN AIRPLANE.

I asked this thinking about something I’m going to have to endure soon.  I asked my PCP for a second opinion.  Unfortunately, he agreed with the specialist’s recommendation.  Imagine you’re watching a national news program;  you’ve probably seen ads for people who have to do this.

Reluctantly, I’ll go along.  I’m not getting into too many details, because it’s embarrassing.

So, instead, I’ll get back to the pain on the plane.

I was working in Florida (yes, I know…..).  While I was down there, one of my teeth really started bothering me.  It was a tooth that had been worked on years previously, and hadn’t given me any trouble.  If I’d been scheduled to be down there for more than a few days, I probably would have sought somebody locally.  Instead, this was supposed to be a quick three-day trip, and I’d be home in time to get things fixed.

In fact, we finished up our work a day ahead of schedule, so I rearranged my flights to get home sooner.

I’d purchased some Ambesol at one of the local drug stores to temporarily numb the pain until I got home.  Got on my rescheduled flight.  As soon as the cabin started pressurizing, oh ho indescribable pain.  Like tears coming down pain.

Dabbing Ambesol in the airplane bathroom didn’t help.

After we’d been in the air for about twenty minutes, it subsided to a minor ache.  We landed in Atlanta without issue, though some more pain as we descended.

Consequently, I took advantage of my Amex Platinum, and hit up the airline club in the airport while waiting for my connection.

I downed three gin Martinis, hoping I could just fall asleep on the flight back to Norfolk.

I was seated next to a pilot on ferry

Once again, as in the first le of the flight, as soon as the cabin started pressurizing, holy fuck pain.

By the time we were airborne, I was sweating profusely.  The captain next to me asked what was going on.  I told him.  He flagged down the flight attendant and asked for something.

She didn’t have anything.

So much for sleeping.

And my buzz is totally gone.

I was supposed to see my then-girlfriend (now wife) that weekend.  Instead, I was going to the urgent care clinic for Vicodin and antibiotics.

Root canal on Sunday.

Sometimes having a dentist who does his religious stuff on Saturdays is a good thing.

None of the things that I’ve had as I’ve battled MS have come close to matching that pain.  None.

Here’s where I need to figure out what to gab about tomorrow;.  It’s Friday.  What are your weekend plans?

Twenty-nine

What are you most proud of this year?

This is a tough one, because I’m really not proud of where I am in a lot of areas of my life. A lot of it has been happenstance, but I pride myself in my ability to adapt to the circumstances.

For this year, though, I guess it’d be dealing with my disease. I was in a tough situation early in the year, then found that my doctors didn’t accept my new insurance.

My company’s insurance, which has zero local coverage, I’d declined, so I ended up buying a plan from the Federal Exchange. Incredibly expensive; so much for affordable care. My primary care docs at EVMS, especially Drs. Grant and Newman, have been so helpful in finding new specialists.

So, I got a new neurologist. She worked with me to find the best disease modifying drug for me. That ended up being Tysabri. But getting to the point where I could take As a monthly infusion, with periodic blood tests, Tysabri required me getting better with venous puncture.

So, I’ve done that. I’ve also worked faithfully, despite an incredibly bad work situation.

I could dig and find something else, perhaps, but I really don’t think anything would come close. Nothing’s had a bigger effect on my life. I feel better than I have in I don’t know how long.

I wish I’d done a few things differently which would allow me to enjoy this newfound “health” more, but…

Twenty-eight

Thanksgiving leftovers. How much? What did you do with them?

I wrote this while watching a TV food show, obviously.

Honestly, I don’t think there’s anything you can do with leftover turkey that’s good. Sandwiches, reheated as it is, etc., but….

Ham has a lot of potential, turkey notsomuch.

I think all we’ve got left now is some of my SIL’s pumpkin pie, which, again, doesn’t need any modification. Or even heating.

I apologize for the lackluster prompt. It happens. There’s two prompts left, so maybe I’ll do better, grow up to be a division manager, drive a Dodge Stratus.

Twenty-seven

What places hold particular allure for you; where might you like to live?

Writing in the middle of the night, because I fell asleep during the Packers-Bears game, and am now wide awake.

(And also still uncomfortable from overeating today….)

This prompt is kind of related to yesterday’s; I think Detroit has a lot of potential. I think the same of many of the “rustbelt” cities – Baltimore, Cleveland, Kansas City, St. Louis, Boston, Philadelphia, Twin Cities, Milwaukee, Buffalo, some of the NYC boroughs outside Manhattan. (Aside: I still, and probably never will, understand why Cleveland and Milwaukee don’t have NHL teams. Not that I have the least bit of interest in hockey, but it seems like those would be two places that are natural hockey towns.)

Yes, that includes Brooklyn, even though I can’t grow a hipster beard or manbun. Hell, I’d even consider something in northern Jersey if the right job presented itself.

Almost universally, these places are known as being cold. When I was younger, that’d have bothered me more. I really don’t notice it as much anymore, though. I notice cold a lot less than I notice heat. Yes, this is directly-related to the MS, but…. My mother is very concerned about me being under-dressed in cold weather, still.

Still, hypothermia seems less likely than passing out because I can’t breathe in the heat. I’m also very much intrigued by cities that are good for living without a car. That I can’t drive anymore has a lot to do with that.

So, notables….

I find Southwest DC interesting for some reason. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest,_Washington,_D.C.

There’s also gentrification going on in Southeast. I’d still probably not want to live in Anacostia, but you never know.

I do like Arlington and Alexandria, Virginia. If I manage to score a DC gig before my wife finishes school, that’s probably where I’d look to live until she can come join me.

I mentioned NYC. Maybe I’ve got an idealized vision, but I know at least I could get around without a car.

I can get most places when I’m in Norfolk. When I’m at my mother’s, where I stay when I’m working, OTOH, I’m nearly a recluse. I can’t go anywhere. sigh Even when I’m home on the weekends, though, I don’t have a lot of energy to get around.

I think I might be settling down again, so I’m going to cut this off now.

I have to get up in a few hours to go get another flu shot. When I got the first one, it was the first day I got Tysabri. Something about immunosuppressants killing a vaccine’s effectiveness. Go figure.

Twenty-six

The team that traditionally has had Thanksgiving football is the Lions. Write about Detroit. Have you been there? Would you want to go back? Do you know anyone who is from there, originally? Would you want to live there, yourself?

This prompt was heavily-influenced by a recruiter I guess I ran off. He wanted me to work at one of the “Big Three.” (The one that didn’t go bankrupt.) I was worried about going without a long-term gig. I was also worried about being able to get to and from in “The D” not being able to drive a car.

Some of it is flavored by frequent TV; Red Eye on Fox News has a few somewhat-regular guests who are from Detroit.

I’ve only been to the airport, which was a hub for one of the merged/bankrupted/gone US airlines. I’ve never seen any of the inner parts of the city, though some of it looks pretty awesome. I have acquaintances who are big into urban exploration, and Detroit seems like it’d be an interesting place to do that.

Places like this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_Central_Station

Not that I’d be much for exploration, based on my limited mobility, but…. Maybe there’s a way that someone could explore some of those old places with a drone….

Back to the prompt, I’ve been going through my memory bank, and I can’t think of anyone who was from Detroit, or nearby. A few people from Michigan, but nobody from Detroit, specifically. That’s a bit surprising considering how big a city it once was.

Would I want to live there? I don’t know. I think there’s a lot of potential in the old real cities, but the people who brought endless miles of suburbia wouldn’t understand it. Everybody should have a 3,000 square foot McMansion, and buy groceries somewhere miles away. And pay not a dime of Federal income tax as a result.

(Yes, I am a bit bitter that because I didn’t choose to enter into a contract I couldn’t afford in 2006/7, I paid more in income tax in 2009 than I grossed in 2002…. Go south from Detroit, and you’ll see what a wasteland a country that doesn’t have tax breaks for renting a house from a bank has… Still, all this is why Hillary will be the conservative candidate in 2016, just as Obama was the conservative candidate in 2012. And now watch as the hipster progressives’ heads spin around and around)

Would I want to live in Detroit, specifically? I don’t know. Maybe. But one of the other recovering big cities might be better for me. Cleveland, Buffalo, Baltimore, even Philly…..

But it’s really not up to me. My wife’s career aspirations dictate. I know my days of going somewhere to work, then enduring a commute home (public transport or not) are over. Oh well.

Twenty-five

Thanksgiving is tomorrow in the US. Are you travelling? With whom will you eat? If you live somewhere where they celebrated last month, describe what you did. glares North If you live somewhere where they don’t celebrate, describe what you did on the most recent holdiay where friends/family/loved ones gather.

Not traveling, really. Going to my inlaws’ house, which is about twenty minutes away. So, it’ll be her parents, her sister, her sister’s husband, and her grandmother. Since my brother isn’t coming to the East Coast until Christmas, my mom is going to come join the festivities.

I think mom had originally planned to do the churchlady stuff, but most of that got cancelled after the preist died a few weeks ago. :-/

Since my FIL keeps hours liek he lives on Central European Time, I think we’re eating at like 1400 Eastern.

Menu is kind of traditional Thanksgivng fare. Turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean cassarole (which I found out that my MIL strains the mushrooms out of the cream of mushroom soup since she doesn’t like mushrooms….yeah, I don’t know, either). My mom is bringing a couple of pies for dessert.

As I mentioned, we’re basically not traveling. It’s been probably more than ten years since i went anywhere out-of-town, and I’m okay with that. I’m not much one for trips these days, anyway. Some previous trips were memorable. Others I’d just assume forget.

I don’t think there was a single Thanksgiving weekend I didn’t have to work when I was in radio. Part of the job. I do miss it sometimes, but not terribly often.