Howdy Ho

This has been quite a remarkable week for several members of the family. Our Andrew has had a soreness in his lower leg that was bothering him a lot. After a doctor visit and an ultrasound he was sent directly to the ER at Sutter General in Sacramento. The diagnosis is a deep vein thrombosis, a blood clot in his leg. This is quite unusual as he does not sit for long periods of time, but there it is anyway. He is on blood thinners at home after spending one night in the hospital. He is supposed to rest but it is driving him crazy. They are allowing him to work next week. We were in Sac twice this week helping him and Linsey around the house. Just for additional fun their air conditioning went south last week during a Sac hot spell. The luck (or lack of) is incredible.

For me I did have an appointment with my new cardio. My dear wife had to mention I thrash around in my sleep (I disagree but what the heck, I am asleep). The doc immediately ordered a sleep study which could lead to having to wear one of those fighter pilot masks. I pouted and generally acted poorly for a while. They left it to me to decide so I am thinking hard.

So that about handles it for now. We will be attnding the Christian Family BBQ this coming weekend which should be fun.

Bob/Irv

Festival of Fire

I cannot let this pass without attempting to describe the event we attended last night. Along with the Frates' and Henrys we had a nice dinner in Lafayette then vanned over to a large parking lot in the Port of Oakland for the Crucible Fire Arts Festival. This consisted of ingenious and imaginative metal sculptures that each used intense flames as part of the presentation. There were noises and heat all around and it was fascinating. We finally dragged ourselves away long after our bedtimes but thoroughly blown totally away.



I was able to do cardiac rehab in the morning. dialysis in the afternoon and the Festival at night without any problems.

A Nice Quiet Week

After all the adventures lately it was neat to have a normal week. Dialysis of course and a trip Thursday to UCSF for a follow-up appointment. Everything looked OK at the exam but of course this can change at any moment. At least I am still listed 1B on the list even though I am not on a device nor residing in the hospital.

Thanks to everyone for the calls, emails and attention to this blog. It means the world to both of us.

Robert J.

Back to Reality

Grilling chicken on the barbie, watching last night's NASCAR race, driving our S2000 with the top down.....a few normal things that are so welcome after the last couple of weeks. I am grateful to all of my family and friends who helped me through this last adventure. Tomorrow it is back to dialysis and later in the week a couple of doctor appointments. Thankfully back to some form of reality.

Home at last!

Happy to report that I was able to leave the hospital this evening at 6:30 with my husband at my side. He was even allowed to walk out to the parking garage with me, which is a first. So we are now ready to resume our normal, hopefully boring lives back in Livermore starting right now!

Livermore bound?

According to RJ this afternoon, the plan is to let me bring him home on Friday 7/3 after his dialysis treatment. Could mean a very long day waiting for the actual paperwork to be complete, but he will be thrilled to be able to sleep at home for the first time in 11 nights.
(Kitty Lucy and I will be very happy to have him back also.) The amazing RJ bounces back yet again - Hooray!

Transplant Expo

We are fortunate to have had a chance to share Bob's story on a much larger scale recently, thanks to a serendipitous (?) opportunity stemming from our new extended family: daughter Leslie's new sister-in-law worked for a company that does publicity and promotions for a drug company that manufactures a major drug used to prevent rejection of transplanted organs. She knew the company was working in partnership with Donate Life America, to create a museum-quality exhibit celebrating transplantation and the heroics that make it possible, and so asked if we were willing to participate. Of course we were glad to help with publicity for this very important cause. A photographer came to our home in April for our "photo shoot", and the resulting pictures, complete with several quotes from Bob, were first displayed at the 2009 Transplant Expo for health care professionals in Boston the end of May 2009. The main goal of this exhibit is to raise awareness of transplantation and to inspire and motivate visitors to sign up to become organ donors. The first area of the exhibit will feature stories of life on the waiting list. The purpose of the exhibit was to introduce visitors to the need for action by helping them connect with people who are, or have been, through the uncertainty surrounding the transplant waiting list.

Cherie / Cheryl

Evening update:

After I left this evening Irving got moved out of ICU into a standard room, which is progress. He is unhappy about having a roommate now, but glad to be moving in the direction of less care and maybe home in a few days. He very much enjoyed a visit from 3 dear friends before the move, so all in all it has been a very positive day.

July 1

Irv had a good night's sleep and has had no problems since being completely off oxygen and nitroglycerin for the first time since last Thursday. Now he has to track down today's attending doc to get permission to walk around and see how that goes. He is certain he will be fine, and hopes to get to move out of ICU to a regular room.