Bra For The Course
It has just been one hell of a couple of weeks in my life!
Ever had one of those days when from the moment you open your eyes, long before the first foot hits the floor, you know something just ain't right? And then slowly, painfully, the day progresses on and there is one crisis right after-a-freakin-nother. Do you know those kinds of days? I think you do. Well, welcome to my life for the last 2 wks., every single damn day of it.
Now by nature, I take things like this pretty much in stride-I have to, this is the only kind of life I've ever known. Naturally some of it I bring upon myself, but when you get to know me real well, you will realize that there honestly isn't a dull moment. I inherited this life and there's nothing I can do to change it. Or is there?
It's now 12:30 p.m. exactly in a small town in East Tennessee where a frazzled 40-something sits with eyes wide shut. She thought today had the possibility of being better until she realized that the underwire in her bra had broken and that was the cause of the unbearable pain she'd been ignoring all morning!
Betrayed
Recently I've made it pretty well known that I've been watching The View more often than I had in years. When the show debuted I was a young(er) stay at home Mom who didn't really want to watch The Price Is Right and opted to watch Barbara, Meredith, Joy, Star and Debbie 'dish' about various subjects while my babies napped. Luckily I developed a life of my own and didn't watch much of any morning television. When Rosie joined the cast I began to watch on my day off. I am not an advocate of everything Rosie says, but I do believe in her right to have her own opinion. Is she loud? Yep. Is she sometimes a bit overbearing? Sure is. Does she really beat a few too many dead horses to death at times. Definitely. None of that makes me hate her.
I read a book about her life some years back, now I don't remember if it was autobiographical or not, but the story touched me. I felt sorry for her. I was proud she'd become rich and famous, but that feeling of pity never left my heart.
No doubt you have probably heard about her abrupt exit from The View, God knows the whole Rosie/Elizabeth debacle has been played and replayed to death since Wednesday. I have to be honest and say I like Elizabeth too. I watched her on Survivor and felt like she did a great job mingling with some of the really 'big' females of the news and entertainment industry. I mean she was on a reality show for crying out loud.
I watched the shouting match live as it happened with my daughter. As tempers flared I told my daughter, "Rosie's about to cry, or she looks like it. She's not pissed off, she's hurt." It wasn't just the tears forming in Rosie's eyes, it was that look of betrayal of a friend. I'm not sure you can really understand or recognize that look unless you've felt it. I tried to explain it to my husband to no avail. He's not buying it for a second, to him Rosie O'Donnell is a loud-mouthed, president-hating, not fit to live in America, lesbian. It saddens me how many others feel the same way.
I started by saying I didn't agree with everything she says, and I don't. But I know what it feels like to be betrayed by a friend. Elizabeth Hasselbeck had ample opportunity to explain what she knew to be Rosie's meaning behind her 'terroist' statement. I've heard her defend Rosie for the same thing before. The two were friends with very different view points. But aren't they supposed to be?
The Reason
I started blogging in October, 2004. To date I've never 'really' blogged anywhere but tBLOG. There are several reasons for this, (a). One day in 2004 I googled the word "blog"- not really sure what peaked my iterest about blogging, but none the less I did a search and I believe tBLOG was the 3rd or 4th hit down the list (back then I didn't really trust the first listing). (b). It's pretty easy to use. While I wish my blog 'looked' better than it does, I just don't have the time to learn all the technical computer stuff. I know just enough to make me dangerous, and (c). The people here. I remember asking one of my first blogging buddies how long they'd blogged, I was shocked to hear they'd been doing it for years, "where have I been" I thought. I asked them where the best place to blog was, and they told me all blogging sites were good, but the 'community' at tBLOG was very special. And it is.
Things here have been even more insane than they usually are. Still no baby, but I've spent days on end at the hosptial and Doctor with her. She's got this terrible pain in her right calf, she can't even stand to rub the skin. It's very weird. The main concern has been a blood clot, but at 1 a.m. this morning we got the final guarantee there wasn't one present-she had a doppler study done by an actual vascular surgeon. I was afraid the other tech's might have missed it-and I think the other Doctor thought that too. We're home, she's 37 1/2 wks. preggers right now, so we're sittin' on "go"!
My Father in Law is at home and slowly recovering. Thanks to all of you who have remembered him and my family. The man is back home as well. I think he's ok, but I'll admit I'm not very sure, I've barely seen him for an hour since he got home, well unless you count the few sleep hours we've gotten! While I'd like to be able to say I have plans to do some 'catching up' with him this weekend, I fear it's not going to happen. Too much drama going on there now, no elaboration just believe me. Perhaps I'll blog about it.
The real 'reason' for this post was to give you a quick update on things and tell each of you how nice it is to know that my 'other' family is worrying about me if I'm not around. Thank you all, I can't possibly express my appreciation. You mean a lot to me.
Do You Ever...
...just get tired of dealing with, people? Specific people, difficult people, deceitful people, fake people, overly demanding people, self-centered people, do I need to go on?
Seems I'm running head-on into one of the above mentioned people at every turn lately. It's now becoming physically painful to smile and nod. I fear I'm going to blow! This all bothers me as I consider myself to be a 'people person'. I think I might just need a vacation, perhaps I should plan to stowaway with Rosie and Mr. Nick? heh.
I can't possibly thank all of you enough for your prayers and well wishes concerning my Father in law and family, but please know we all genuinely appreciate it. The latest news is not really good, as of 9 am EST today he was in Atrial Fiburlation (yep, same condition I deal with), which isn't really uncommon after a heart attack. The bothersome thing is they started him on the demon medication Amiodarone last night to try to convert him back to a normal sinus rhythm. Amiodarone is what nearly killed me last Summer. I've spoke to my husband several times this a.m. trying to 'coach' him as to what to say/ask the Doctor. I so whish I was there, my husband is not very assertive in this type of situation and he needs to be a very pro-active advocate for his Dad right now. At any rate let's just continue to pray for a speedy recovery and hopefully no continued therapy using this evil, evil drug.
My daughter and her hubby are at the Doctor's office as I type. I had to be in the office today so they are going it alone, which is fine, they are adults and need to do this sort of stuff. My daughter just always expects me to answer any question they may have regarding this heart disease. Her blood pressure was up a little yesterday but she still wasn't feeling great. I'll be sure to post how she's doing.
Hmmmm I don't think I have any more medical updates, and I think I've done enough "bitching" for now!
So how are things going for you? I'm trying to make it to your blog but it's a slow process. I'll be around as soon as I can, until then, I hope you're having a wonderful Friday.
A Request
At 4:19 a.m. this morning we got the dreaded "middle of the night" phone call. My husband's father had suffered a massive heart attack. He was alive but was being air-lifted from Durango, Colorado to Albuquerque, New Mexico for emergency by-pass surgery. I come to you today asking that you remember my Father-in-law and his wife as well as my husband, his two brothers and their families. The morning has been a blur as we've been trying to book flights and make other arrangements. My husband will be leaving for New Mexico before sunrise tomorrow, and not looking forward to his journey. Thankfully he will leave knowing his Father survived surgery well and has a more postitive prognosis than originally thought. But since my husband lives each day with an anxiety disorder he's a little more than 'nervous' about the trip, one of his worst episodes to date was during a flight. Unfortunately he is forced to travel alone because I can't leave my daughter (her blood pressure is very low and we're facing possible hospitalization tomorrow) and his son is having final exams during his last week of school.
I ask that if you pray, to God, or to any other Higher Power that you'd remember my family in this difficult time. Please know what a comfort it is to be able to come to this very close-knit community in a time like this.
Thank you all.
Feeling A Little Cheated
I've been researching this heart disease a lot lately. Not so much the disease itself but rather the a-fib that I suffer with because of the disease. I discovered there's a new surgical procedure that is being preformed at UT that can cure A-Fib.
Before I confronted my Dr. I thought I'd check out my favorite online HCM resource http://www.4hcm.org/WCMS/index.php" title="http://www.4hcm.org/WCMS/index.php" target="_blank"http://www.4hcm.org/WCMS/inde... After a few visits to the message boards there I decided I'd give Lisa Salsberg the President of HCMA a call. She was so gracious and helpful but a little dismal. I personally think she has more knowledge about this disease than most Dr's in the country. Her family history is fascinating and sad. I was glad to finally talk to her, sort of.
She didn't give me bad news but she didn't give me encouraging news. I know I might be jumping the gun here, she says she needs some of my medical records and most recent echo report to study and from there we'll plan a course of action. The bottom line (as I understand it) is I am sicker than I realized. Not immediate danger, but definitely need to see an HCM specialist.
I guess I'm just a little angry. Angry at my Doctors, but then again, as Lisa said, they've followed a good regimen of treatment but they're not specialized in this disease. I just kind of feel like they would just let me go on this course until I died, and she agreed with me.
During our conversation she mentioned that I should probably go to The Mayo Clinic, but that we'd wait until she had all my info and was able to discuss my case with a specific specialist. I'm very happy to know about Lisa and the HCMA and very fortunate to have this group on my side now.
Idol Chat
I grew up in a singing household. My Daddy has sung in the church choir for as long as I can remember. My Mother never did but she could sing. And when I say ‘sing’ I mean she could carry a tune. Until I met my first husband I thought everyone could sing, I just figured that some did it better that others. My ex proved me wrong and proceeded to sire two children that were almost as tone deaf as he was. I had high hopes that one of them would love to sing as much as I did, but they don’t. I think my son could sing, maybe.
And then you have people like my husband who can sing but don’t really want to. I’ve told him over and over I think that’s such a waste, especially since I know there are a lot of vocally challenged folks out there. He sees how good of a mood I’m in on Wednesday evenings when I come home from choir practice. I sing alto and absolutely love singing harmony. When I start to tell him about a new piece we’re learning I can see in his eyes he just don’t get it. And that’s ok, he does like playing guitar and we even joke about taking our ‘act’ on the road. Who knows!
If you saw this week’s American Idol you know Barry Gibb was the guest ‘coach’ and all the contestants sang Bee Gees songs. Most of them were pretty bad but it’s damn near impossible to make a Bee Gees song your own. A group that sings that much falsetto and 3 part harmony is impossible to duplicate. Kind of like someone trying to sing “Yellow Brick Road”, there’s just not anyone gonna do it like Elton does, huh?
Not sure why I started this post, oh ya, was going to tell all of you that this 42 year old grandmother is about to embark on an adventure she’s wanted to take for a very long time. I’m starting piano lessons in two weeks! I already play 3 musical instruments and read music. For some reason I figure once I learn how to read the bass clef I’m gonna be unstoppable. I also expect a very rude awakening!
Call Me Insensitive...
...but, I think it's a flippin riot that Paris Hilton is going to jail!
I am loving all the media frenzy. I think this is one case where a total media blitz is in order. Why? You ask? Simple. It's rare that even your average Joe Blow is made to be held accountable for his actions in our society, and I'm loving the fact that one of the richest heiresses in the world is being made to do so! Day after day there are people caught up in our judicial system getting by with murder, and non-payment of child support, and drug crimes, and any number of other offenses, geting off scott-free. Luckily there's a judge in Southern California with enough testicles to say, "Look, I don't care who your Daddy is, I don't care who your Grand-Daddy was, and I really don't give a rats ass about how much money you have. You broke the law. Not once, but twice. You've spit in the face of justice and now you're gonna pay." I love it.
Now if we could only get the same mentality in every single court room in this country maybe we'd see the crime rate decrease a little.
Now a question, you probably knew a little bit about the fact that Miss Hilton was appearing in court last week, granted I doubt many of us knew the specifics before the sentencing, but we knew the story. My question is, did you ever think that she'd actually be sentenced to 45 days in jail? I'll be totally honest and say I never thought it would happen.
That judge rocks!
Check, Please.
Today my daughter met for lunch at a local restaurant. The place is not upscale, but it’s not a dive either. I’d classify it as upper-middle class eating establishment, if there is such a thing. The décor is very tasteful, and relatively new. It’s along the lines of the bigger chain offerings such as Applebee’s or Chili’s. Nothing posh but not too bad. The place recently changed owners, a fact that gave us great hope the food would be much improved. In the end, the food was marginal but the service left us both a little nauseas. First of all as soon as we were seated the young waitress asked for our drink orders, “I’ll have sweet tea” my daughter says, “I’ll have un-sweet” I reply. Thirty seconds later the girl reappears, hands empty, asking if we’re ready to order, I’d yet to even completely open up my tri-fold menu. “Ummm, I think we’re going to need a few minutes” I tell her, very nicely. Fifteen minutes later we’re sitting there just like she left us, no drinks, no silver, no complimentary basket of bread. Finally she makes her way back to the table and says, “Would you all like some bread?” My daughter nods her head and the girl darts away only to return 30 seconds later to inform us ‘they’re washing us some glasses’ and our drinks will be right out. Hells bells put my iced tea in a to-go cup for all I care, it’s 86 degrees outside and I’m a little parched!
The service never got any better, in fact our young waitress completely forgot to bring us our salads. One minute you got a roll on the table, 20 minutes later my grilled chicken is sitting there. When I told her we’d never got our salads she looks at me, mouth agape, and says, “oh you never got your salads?” Um, hello! You’re our waitress, were you waiting for the ‘Lettuce Fairy’ to deliver them? She seemed genuinely perplexed. I was genuinely pissed. She assured us she’d let the manager know, and she did. “Vincent” soon made an appearance at our table and offered us a slice of red velvet cake to compensate for the error. I’m sure when he got a glimpse of my very pregnant daughter he thought he’d redeemed himself. Not so fast, Vince. We graciously declined and asked for our check. My daughter wondered why I’d not said anything about adjusting our bill, and I told her if he didn’t adjust it, there would be no tip. I tip well, especially well for a woman, and even though the service had sucked I was willing to throw in 15-20%. (I may have never been a waitress but some of my best friends in college were and I learned the right way and the wrong way to get good service at a local dive you might frequent often.)
When the check came Vincent had indeed adjusted the bill, knocking off a third of our individual totals. Good enough. Young girl who should find another vocation earned herself a 17% tip. This is not my first ‘bad service’ rodeo, and each time it happens I want to go back to that waiter/waitress and put my arm around them and say, “Look, darlin, this is just not your forte’. “ But I never do. I just can’t bring myself to kick a person when they’re down, no matter how bad they may need it!
