Mr. Peskie had a scheduling conflict, so I drove my car to the Ville and picked Mom up. But she can’t ride in my car, so I had to drive theirs. The good news is, his conflict worked itself out and he drove my car to the hospital.
His little Honda Fit parked, he’s resting in my car with his arm hanging out the window like a boss. 🙂
More blood work and an MRI today… along with scheduling another appointment on Thursday. I feel like we’re getting somewhere at least. She’s feeling better — still hurting — but no longer sick. And, I’m getting pretty darned familiar with our local hospital and about every expert therein.
My friends Amber and Johnny. 🙄
I’m missing all the good stuff regarding the Depp/Heard trial. I’ve been looking forward to cross examination of Amber for weeks! ARG! I know what I’ll be doing tonight, that’s for sure.
TIL (Today I Learned): When Abraham Lincoln took off his stovepipe hat to give his first Inaugural address, he awkwardly looked around for a place to put it. The losing Presidential Candidate, Democrat Stephen A. Douglas, stepped forward, said “Permit me,” and took the hat to hold on his knee during the address. (Can you imagine THAT happening in today’s times?)
All the plans I had yesterday to get those 25 miles of boxwoods trimmed got nixed rather early. The good news is that Perry came with his A-game and did most of them for me while I made another visit to the doctor with Mom. More on that, but first…
Let’s talk about hair. Some have it. Some don’t.
And sometimes, those who have hair can’t keep it from blowing in their face. 😏
This photo was taken BEFORE I made a doctor/hospital run. My poor Mamma can’t catch a break. If she’s not having issues with her foot, it’s her wrist. Swollen, red and extremely painful, her physician got her in within a few hours after my call.
Not sure what was causing the problem, he gave her antibiotics and sent her for x-rays and blood work. But before that, he “tattooed” her wrist and told us that if the redness or swelling got past those marks we should go to the ER immediately.
I took the obligatory doctor/hospital selfie. It’s obvious she feels awful. 😔
No broken bones.
The blood culture test results won’t be back for 48-hours and she’s started antibiotics. I checked on her around 11:00 PM and am typing this after returning home at around 2:00 AM. I’m pretty sure she’ll be feeling good enough by early next week that she can finish trimming those darned shrubs for me while I catch up on sleep. 😉
On a happier note.
I sent the following image to Mom via text a couple days ago. She responded, “How true.”
TIL (Today I Learned): Mud Dauber Wasps reproduce by building tubular nests out of mud, then going out and gathering spiders by paralyzing them then sealing them inside the nest with an egg. The offspring will then consume the paralyzed spiders when it hatches.
Carotid artery ultrasound appointment for my Momma this morning at the local hospital has me needing a nap and it’s not yet 10:00 AM. I’m not ashamed to admit I’m not a morning person. I’m a full-fledged, card-carrying night owl.
As we were waiting to check-in, I heard a familiar voice talking on a phone. The person was hidden around a corner but I immediately knew who it was. NaLona had her Momma at the hospital too — getting an ultrasound of her kidneys. Of course, we included her in our obligatory selfie. Mom looks better than either one of us.
Mom simply MUST stay healthy and appointment free next week because she and Mr. Pesky have doggie detail while I’m gone. We had to board Ben’s dog and cat and that expense wasn’t horrible. But big dogs are on a whole different level — $100 bucks a night for my two if they stay in the same area together. When they started talking about “‘condo” and “penthouse” I knew the price would be scary.
Mr. Pesky is ALWAYS early. My Mom has always been one to be late. Put the two personality types together when there’s an appointment involved and it’s pure comedy.
I made an appointment for Mom at her doctor for 11:40 AM ET. Mr. Pesky got the time confused and thought it was at 10:40 AM. He made certain they were EARLY for an appointment he thought was ONE HOUR earlier.
I got a text at 10:27 to let me know they were almost at the hospital. That was my queue to leave home. Not even dressed yet and on the phone with a client, I couldn’t respond. By the time I got free and called them, Mom had already been inside her doctor’s office and was told her appointment was scheduled for over an hour later. I didn’t ask, but I’d be willing to bet Mom was forced to go inside without me — peppered with expletives about my tardiness. 🙂
I got there on time — even about 10-minutes before her appointment. We went inside, got her signed-in, sat down and smiled for our obligatory selfie:
Then, we patiently waited about 50-minutes before being called back to a room. They were running about 40-minutes behind. At about that time, I got a text from Mr. Peskie letting me know that he forgot his sleeping bag. I laughed out loud. Finally in a room, we waited some more…
The next text from Mr. Pesky was to let me know he needed to mow and that his lawnmower doesn’t have headlights. I laughed out loud again. Then, we waited even longer…
Right before the doctor came into the examination room, the text from Mr. Pesky asked if I thought the doc had decided to take lunch. (Please note that he’s been taking care of a restless dog in the car this entire time.)
I got home about 1:15 PM ET and could throw a rock from my front door and likely hit the hospital. Her next doctor’s appointment is 11/23. I’ll betcha Mr. Pesky is laying out what clothes to wear right now. 😉
My aunt Shirley went for an ambulance ride to the local ER a few nights ago with a BP of 295/190 — and she was coughing blood. She was transported to an Indy hospital right away. And that’s when things start getting a tad whacked. I’m no doctor (nor did I stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night), but common sense alone applied to this scenario and I’m still left scratching my head.
The doctor informed the family that the CT scan showed a spot on my favorite aunt’s lung in the upper left area… and one more place but I can’t remember where that was. A pulmonary specialist performed a biopsy the following day. The family was waiting for news directly after the procedure and was told Shirley most likely has lung cancer. Mr. Handsome Pulmonary surgeon dude explained that a blood clot was suctioned away and a mass was uncovered. He promised that Shirley would not be told about the “tumors” (his words, not mine) until her daughter, Jerilyn could be with her.
Jerilyn’s flight arrives before noon the following morning. She sits down across from her Mom who proceeds to tell her that the doctor spoke with her earlier that morning and the news he delivered was bad. She explained that the doctor told her she has lung cancer. Shirley said that surgery, chemotherapy and radiation were discussed, and she had decided that although she would let them “cut on her,” she would not undergo chemo or radiation.
Another cousin, Sherry, and I arrived a short time later. Nurses explained that tests had already begun to determine Shirley’s lung capacity should the lung be removed — based upon her ability to withstand the operation knowing she has 16 stints in place because of previous heart issues. Two hours later, the pulmonary specialist who delivered the bad news to Shirley (without waiting for her daughter to be present) was back. He took Shirley by the hand and said, “The biopsies show no cancer.” WHAT???? Of course, we were elated!
And then, we 3 cousins sat in stunned silence as he continued to explain that he was releasing her from his care, another biopsy would be performed in 6 weeks, and she would be on strong antibiotics in the meantime. All Shirley heard was that she’s cancer free. She wanted a photo of the happy moment…
Not until later did we really evaluate and question what had just happened. I understand that you might want to prepare a patient for the possibility of a poor diagnosis — but to begin tests for the removal of a lung for crying out loud? Why not put her on an IV of antibiotics before releasing her with that “strong dose?” What about that spot up high they couldn’t reach with the biopsy procedure? For some reason, I have a bad feeling — and it’s gnawing at me. I hope all this willy nilly jumping around doesn’t bounce back in the other direction. And, I have a little less faith in the healthcare system. Crazy, yah?
