0731 i dream of jenn

I had another ADP dream last night. This time, I was handling a client issue with the assistance of a tech named Jennifer. Jenn started as a CSR during my 2nd year, but rose up as a tech during my 4 year exile in Pay eXpert. I remember that she always had a nice smile and pretty eyes. But then I woke up.

I tried to go to speech therapy today, but was told by Amanda, my therapst, that I needed clearance by Dr Hryniewicki before I could continue, due to the hospitalization. So I returned home to make the call.

I also received an email update from Liz. She made it home on Friday and has been readjusting back into "life at home". The overall mission to Uganda was a success, although there was some unfinished business with the orphanage and some of the kids, so Sherry Roberts, the mission lead, stayed behind to tie up the loose ends. I'll continue to pray for Sherry and for the continued success of the orphanage.

0729 ... a few steps backwards ... cha cha cha ....

What a waste of the past five days! It all started when I went in for speech therapy on Wednesday (07/25) morning. During the exercises, my speech therapist was tracking my oxygen utilization and several times it dipped down low ... at one time it dropped to 82%. This caused quite a stir that I quickly found myself in the ER, and there they ran some more tests, including an x-ray and an ultrasonic scan of my chest. The ER doc wasn't sure of the results so they checked me into a room for the night. The other floors were booked solid so I was put into "overflow" on the third floor, in the Cardiology ward.

I hoped that my primary care doc, Dr Hrywienicki, would be able to clear me, but he wasn't available so I met with Dr Bitter from the same medical group. He told Dr H would be by on Friday, and let me know that due to the mysterious circumstances surrounding my oxygen deprivation, that I should expect to be in the hospital for awhile.

On Friday, I had an OPMS swallow study done in Radiology, then an EEG. Dr Dyes, a neurologist, came by later to say that the EEG was clear but they were no closer to finding out the cause of my low oxygen and the coughing spasms that I seem to be having. I was moved Friday afternoon to a proper room on the fifth floor, since the docs were concerned that the nurses on the third floor were only trained for cardiac cases.

I went through more poking and prodding until today, when they decided to let me go home ... with a few new rules. For now, I need to be attached to oxygen 24/7 (see pics). I will also be seeing an ENT, a neurologist, and a pulmonary/sleep consultant as it is possible that I may have apnea. I agreed to these tough terms and will be able to sleep in my own bed tonight.

0724 Uganda update

I received an email from Liz today, outlining the work that they've done in Uganda, and that their time there is swiftly coming to an end. The residence for the orphanage has been secured and they've added the proper touches to make it more comfy for kids. They expect to have the new residents settled in before they leave. Her email is quite detailed, with the names of the children, along with some of the adults that provided assistance. I'll have to remember to inquire about the three Stephens.

But her sense of humor is very much intact as she closes the message with a Happy Birthday wish to Sunny, along with a request for someone to remind Sunny to check her email. We all know that Sunny logs in about once a month. :D

0722 koinonia

I went to church on Sunday morning, even though the sermon was the same from the night before. The main difference is to see people I would otherwise miss if I only attended Saturdays, and my Koinonia meeting that follows 2nd service.

We met in the Dugout and it was just myself, Sheri, Wendi and Stephanie. Sam came to 2nd service but couldn't stay for the lifegroup meeting. Liz is on her way back from Uganda, and Eric & Jennifer are getting ready to leave on Friday for Uganda.

Sheri distributed an article by Chip Ingram answering the question: "What is God's will for my life?" that brought together a list of bible verses she distributed two weeks earlier. Chip brought up seven principles for us to use as a guide to develop a personal lifestyle of decision-making that honors God. Wendi had some life application on this as she is adjusting to a new workplace environment. Sheri also handed out our new study guide for the Book of Genesis, which won't begin until mid-August, after everyone is back. We ended up before 3pm.

0722 rude awakening

I fell out of bed last night. I had just finished using a urinal bottle when I lost my balance and slid butt-first to the floor. I must have made some noise during my slide as my father was standing above me a minute later, asking if I needed help. I didn't want him to lift me as my weight would be a burden on his small frame. He replied for me not to worry about it, as I would be doing most of the work.

He lifted my upper abdomen onto the bed, then had me pull the rest of my abdomen up on the bed. He asked if I had a firm grip, and I replied that I did, by sliding my hand over the other edge of the mattress. Suddenly, he picked up my feet and pivoted my butt and legs onto the bed. I used the momentum to flip onto my back and pulled myself back to the center. It was then that we noticed the blood.

There was blood on my left knee. I must have landed on it during my not-so-graceful slide. He asked me what I needed. I replied that we should have a large bandage, some wet and dry paper towels and some merthiolate. He disappeared into the porch and returned with only a small band-aid. He looked at both the wound and the band-aid, said something under his breath, and went back to the porch. He came back a minute later with a large bandage. He again asked what we needed. I told him again to bring back wet and dry paper towels to cleanse the wound, and merthiolate to treat it.

He returned with only a wet paper towel and proceeded to dab away the blood that was starting to dry. He told to not put on the bandage unntil he dried the wound. I also reminded him about the merthiolate. By this time, other people would have been frustrated, like my mother and my sister. I found the situation humorous and those wonderful good endorphins were rushing through my body to help alleviate the pain in my knee. I looked up to see my father drying the wound with a paper towel. There was no merthiolate in sight.

He asked me what else we needed, but then answered to himself about the merthiolate and returned to the porch. I closed my eyes as I laughed silently to myself, but then opened my eyes just in time to see him standing over me with an open bottle of merthiolate and the applicator just above the wound. YEEOOWW!! I managed to clench my teeth without biting my tongue. My father ignored my bulgimg eyeballs and hair standing on end, and continued to apply the medication. He then covered the wound with a bandage, cleaned up the area, turned out the lights and told me to go back to sleep. I'm sure that he won't remember any of this if asked about it.

0721 finger lickin' good

Saturday started off cool, so I was able to get in a couple of morning walks assisted by my father. The afternoon was taken up with rest and some clean-up prior to my evening out.

My parents dropped me off at SBCC in time for the Saturday eve service. After the service, I was picked up by my friend, John, for dinner with some friends. This was the first time I did not join my Revelation study group, but I had let them know in advance about my planned absence.

We met up with the rest of the group at Johnny Reb's in Long Beach. There was Linda, Walt, Cheryl, Shonn, Steve, Akiko (John's wife), Taren, and Neil, who came all the way from Ventura to join us. Steve is a pastor at his own church and he will be going on a mission trip to Thailand by the end of July. John asked Steve if he thought he might get a real Thai massage but somehow missed Steve's comment that it would not be appropriate, as he kept describing one in detail.

Everyone over-ordered, including me. I ordered a full rack of beef ribs, with hush puppies, BBQ beans and sweet potato fries. There were five HUGE ribs on the rack and I only made it through two of them. The meat was rich and tender and virtually falling off the bone, although John had difficulty cleaning his rib bones. Needless to say, everyone asked for to-go boxes. I made sure to include the rib bones for Jett to gnaw on.

I was so full that I passed on dessert. John decided to go for the "Best Ever Southern Pecan Pie" with vanilla ice cream (see pic), and I think that Walt had the "Kimber's Fried Apple Pie" with ice cream. I also think that Akiko had the peach cobbler and Taren had the key lime pie, but they were on the far end of the table, so I cannot be certain.

Conversation changed to the next dining out event for this group, which calls itself "Eater's Ink", as all participants are expected to complete their own reviews and ratings. My rating can be found on YELP . At the end, they were talking about "best value" eats. We'll see what they come up with.

John and Akiko dropped me off at home around 10pm.

0720 what a week

My PT continued this week with working through obstacles such as curbs and grass, while using the walker. We also practiced going up and down all of the ramps, too. Yes, it was a fun week in PT.

In OT, we worked on strategies for bathing. Specifically, scrubbing my back. There are a couple of options available to me, but of course my OT wants me to use the one that includes the use of my right hand. I still cannot make a fist and holding something between two fingers is a challenge, but that's the road I have to take to regain strength in my right hand.

I received a couple of emails from Michelle and Liz (see pics), regarding the mission trip to Uganda. It sounds like they each had personal challenges, which they overcame in order to perform the tasks that were needed to be done. We should be seeing them back home in another week. I continue to pray for their safe return and for success in meeting the goals of their trip.

0714 a little less crusty

Saturday started off slow with some exercise in the morning and afternoon. Around 4:45pm, Kelly and Netty came by to pick me up, and we went to SBCC for the Saturday eve service. Pastor Gary was in an impromptu kendo match. I'm not sure exactly what he ws trying to communicate, but the message was a continuation of his "Seize The Day" series. He ended the service with an update from our team in Uganda, at which time I realized that it has been a week that Liz has been gone. He also mentioned that Eric and Jennifer were going on a sepsrate medical mission to Uganda in mid-July, something that I've known about, since both of them are members of Koinonia.

After service ended, the three of us drove down to Ports O'Call in San Pedro, to the Crusty Crab (no relation to the Krusty Krab, for all of you Sponge-Bob fans) and the Restaurant Hoppers gang. We met up with Eric, Jennifer, Brian, Kevin, Chris, Sunny, Helen, Christine, and a whole bunch of others who were friends of friends. Eric, Brian and Kevin sat together and each ordered the King Crab legs, but they had their own individual method for shelling and consuming their crustaceans. Check out the pic of Kevin with his own style.

Brian had the bright idea of playing the telephone game around the table. He started a story, just to see how much it changed by the time it went all the way around. The only problem in the process was Eric, who was SECOND in line. He thought that Brian's story was too long, so he shortened it, dropping half of the details in the process. By the time it was recited by the fourth person in line, the story was no longer recognizable. Eric was very sincere and thought that his "edit" made more sense. LOL

There was a wide assortment of seafood across the whole table so it would be safe to say that our group sampled the menu quite successfully. The evening (and eating) ended around 9:30pm. I made it home about 10:10pm.

Thanks to Kelly and Netty for a very memorable evening. My getting out for an evening also gave my parents the opportunity to get away for some time to themselves. This time, they went to Tsukuba in Gardena, with my Aunt Emy. They had a nice night, too.

0709 a lttle better now ...

Sunday was a quiet day. I did some study work in the morning, and some therapy in the afternoon.

Monday was busier. Two hours of therapy in the morning went well, although I need to get more walking done at home. And maybe around, too. We'll see. I had a follow-up with Doc H today. He reviewed the work done by the urgent care center. We talked about my recovery progress, and he recommended some neurologists for me to see. Lots more stuff to take care of, too.

070707 day of completion

070707 is a good set of numbers for Christians. It represents the completion of everything. Seven is an important number and having three '07s' in the date is a good thing.

I was hoping to speak with Liz (see pic) before she left on her mission trip to Uganda today, but the oppotunity did not arise. She is going with seven others from SBCC including Michelle, Anjie and Lynn; I am not familar with the other four. I wish them all a safe trip and I will be praying for them each day that they are gone.

I attended the evening service and then my study group met to go over the rest of Revelation . John was not able to attend, so it was just Mike, Carol, Steve, Lillian, Kiyomi and myself. We covered a lot.

0706 busy day

The day started off slowly. That should've been the warning. Both my mother and my caregiver compared notes for the week, and determined that I needed to see my primary doc regarding my coughs and choking. Doc Hryniewicki was booked solid for the day, so they took me to an urgent care facility "just in case" around 11am. That meant having to go over my medical history and stroke recovery one more time ... I should have insisted on staying home. After some blood tests, x-rays and an EKG, I then went next door for a catscan. When all was done, they couldn't figure out what was wrong but gave me some antibiotics "just in case". I finally made it home around 7:30pm. What a waste of a day.

0704 HB2U America!!

It's kinda crazy but I almost forgot that it was Independence Day. With all of the other holidays being pushed into 3-day weekends, it was easy to overlook this one. A middle-of-the-week holiday. Go figure. Plus, it's so hot that I'd rather just find a cool spot inside and just stay there. Good thing it's just another Slump Day for me. So much for plans.

Sister Judi brought the family over for a swim and BBQ. It was fun, especially after she suggested chicken fights in the pool. You know, when little people get on the shoulders of big people, then try to topple each other over. Little did she realize that she would be carrying one of her own kids ... Katherine [age 9] weighs in around 70 lbs, according to Mike. I shoulda videotaped it ... you know, for posterity (and future blackmail). Oh well.

0703 HB2U Netty!

My friend, Netty, has a profile on MySpace that says her birthday is today. Her profile page doesn't even have a photo, so I've included one here. I left a comment but it's my guess that she doesn't have many people wandering through her profile, so I'll make the same comment here ... Happy Birthday to You, Netty!

And guys ... Netty is currently single and looking ... you can probably make contact through her MySpace page. If not, let me know and I'll pass her a message. The two ladies sitting to Netty's right are Joy and Kelly ... and both are single also .... just letting you know.

By the way, the photo was taken last year at Mariner's Church in Irvine, at an all-day Cloud-Townsend (read:relationships) seminar.