THE THRILL OF VICTORY, THE AGONY OF DA FEET
After all that excitement about and anticipation of our little Las Vegas fling, it all came a'cropper once again. For some still unknown reason, an infection attacked my already-vulnerable big toe. It started last weekend, and by late Monday I could barely walk. It was throbbing with pain and somewhat red. I called Dr. Schwartz, my long-time podiatrist at Muir. He was in surgery that day and he recommended I call my primary care physician.
I happened to be participating in a test of a new blood glucose meter at Muir Concord on Tuesday, and my primary, Dr. Cahill walked in. She had not started her day yet, but when I asked her if she had any time, she arranged for me to come to the office and she would see me before her appointments started. Awesome, she is definitely a doc who is genuinely interested in her patients. She said it was infected, prescribed an antibiotic, and set up a visit with Dr. Schwartz. She thought it might be necessary to remove the toenail. Include Dr. Cahill with all the other truly incredible doctors who have cared for me for the last many years.
Before taking Cheryl to meet her travel group for their airport trip, I saw Dr. Schwartz. The toe hurt less and was less red than the previous day, and he did not think removal was warranted. That would have been a rather major annoyance which would keep me out of action for three days or so. He looked over his glasses at me, hesitated, and said he was strongly against me going to Sin City. What? Not again! I had told him about the car stuff since he is a major enthusiast of collector cars. He has personally restored several, and has owned two very desirable Ferraris in the past (a 250 GT Lusso and a 365 GTB4 Daytona, for those familiar). With that, he left it to me but was concerned that if something happened, it would not be good to be in an ER where they probably were not too familiar with transplantation or podiatry. Memories of Long Beach 2009 came flooding in. I knew I was dead meat.
In addition to Lost Wages and a visit with old friends Larry and Linda Flashberg, I also missed a fun Guy's Deal on Wednesday. I was to join Frates and Henry for lunch in Sacramento with Miller and Johnson, followed by a tour of a tractor and farm implement museum in Woodland. By all accounts it was fascinating, and I am sorry to have missed it. Some other time, yet again.
So this became a sudden test of my ability to take care of myself for a short but significant period of time. Cheryl was of course concerned about medications, driving, and low blood sugar events. So was I, but I knew I could do this. And yes, in fact I have. No problems, no issues, no fuss, no bother and only one meal eaten out the whole time, accompanied by The Younger Chaws as well as Taryn and Andy Bliss. I also must thank Kitty Lucy for outstanding companionship, no bites, no scratches and even an adorable snuggle or two. Cheryl returned Saturday evening and everything is back to some version of normal once again. And oh yeah, my toe is good too.
ROCKIN' OUT ON THE BAGPIPES
One positive outcome of the above was the opportunity to attend the monthly UCSF Heart/Lung Transplant Support Group meeting. A speaker was secured for this month, double-lung recipient Isa Stenzel Byrnes. For those new to this blog, or too forgetful to recall, Isa and her twin sister Ana were victims of cystic fibrosis since infancy. Nasty, nasty disease, requiring literally hours everyday of difficult treatment. They survived to receive lung transplants and have written a biography, The Power of Two, describing their amazing lives. A feature-length documentary of the story will be out in 2011. We have known both ladies from our TRIO group since we started going about seven years ago.
Besides sharing invaluable thoughts and strategies surrounding transplants, Isa brought her bagpipes to the meeting. Playing this instrument is a testimony to the remarkable achievements of both sisters. It takes some kinda lungs to keep that bag inflated, to be sure. And it is LOUD, which I really enjoyed. Everyone in the room was grinning while Isa played. She is part of the Stewart Tartan Pipes and Drums, and we are tentatively planning to see the troupe perform their Christmas concert in Saratoga in a coupla weeks. There are a LOT of members, all in authentic (and expensive!) Royal Stewart Tartan regalia. I cannot imagine how overwhelming a gaggle of bagpipes (a gag o' bags, get it?) with drums might be, but I would love to find out! I, like many Transplant Trib readers, was exposed to some fairly high-volume music in my life (not to mention very noisy racing cars), and my philosophy is "Turn It Up, Please". This may be due to a deterioration of my hearing (Huh? I couldn't hear you, Dear) but it was worth it, don'tcha think?
And so with a clean, unharmed residence, clean dishes, clean clothes and well-stocked pantry My Sweetie was pleased with the results of this experiment. Hey, remember I am the Domestic God(dess), and damn proud of it. It is now headlong into prep for Thanksgiving in Capitola with the fam. Look for the Special Giving Thanks Holiday Collector's Edition of this publication, coming to your computer and/or noozstand soon.
But wait, there's more! Tonight will there will be a Blue Moon, sponsored by your very own Transplant Trib! Any readers who know what a Blue Moon is will score a free lifetime subscription. So go for it! And so, blue in the face, I remain...
Bob/Irv
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