My phone’s calendar alarm sounded again this morning, this time to remind me that today is the 2 year anniversary of the creation of my ileostomy. Again, I set event alarms like this to remind me of what I’ve gone through, how far I’ve come, and that, like storm clouds, my body and mind are ever-changing.
My phone’s calendar alarm sounded this morning, reminding me that today is the 5th year anniversary of the insertion of my PICC, a peripherally inserted central catheter, or PIC line. Continue reading
Unable to work since January 2006, I’ve discovered fully what it means not to work when you truly can’t, when unemployment isn’t a choice, but an unchosen constraint that brings on devastating consequences independent of tremendous economic loss. Continue reading
Today, I resurrected and doctored my Turner mountain bike, which has been hibernating since its last trek in the biking mecca of Sedona, AZ, November 10, 2008. How do I recall the exact day? Can’t forget — the following morning I was stabbed in the left flank while sleeping. I startled awake in excruciating pain, forcing my contracting eyelids open to see the perpetrator. I urgently scanned the room while reaching for my flank to feel the bloody knife (or red-hot poker). I felt nothing, saw nothing, then realized I was having my first kidney stone attack! My eyes rolled back in my head in utter disbelief as another sharply expanding wave of pain and nausea took over. The clock displayed 4 a.m., so Danusia was beyond my door, down the hall, asleep. So, for the next 45 minutes, in a cold sweat, I closed my eyes and focused on breathing deeply through the repeating waves of attacks. After an eon and hundreds of shallow gasps, I heard Danusia moving around. I speed dialed her, and next thing, found myself in the Sedona Urgent Care ER.
