Mid January and it's cold...

Well...I have another infusion of chemo under my belt, thanks to Charmine, who came to give me a ride, even though it meant getting up at an Ungodly hour for her!   THANKS CHARMINE!!

While I was there I met with the RN supervisor and let her know I did NOT want to ever have to deal with the Chief Nincompoop RN that I had last time, Grace.  She said, "not a problem" and told me it would be noted right on the cover of my chart...I thought that meant she was going to write "No Grace" on my chart....no, she wrote "Doctor Only" on it!  That means I don't get to see any of my favorite Nurse Practitioners!   Oh well, they obviously don't know how to hold anyone accountable up there.  The supervisor wasn't surprised when I said Grace's name...obviously I'm not the first person to make that request.

Also while I was there I found out that my urine test came back positive for a UTI.  They got a prescription phoned in for me...this was a week after the test was done!  Also, this is the fourth time I have been through antibiotic treatment for a UTI since early November!  What the hell?

So, Friday night I'm sitting there and my cell phone rings.  GUESS WHO?   You guessed it....GRACE!  She asked me if I remembered who she was and I had to restrain myself from saying, "DUH!"  She was calling to tell me that I had a UTI.  I told her I knew that already and and that I have a prescription for it.  She practically shouted "WHO WROTE THAT?"   I told her who.  She said, "well I was just going through my labs and saw this."  I told her "I'm all set" and hung up on her. Hanging on up on her was kinder than I would be if I had stayed on the line, I was gearing up to blast her. 

So, she doesn't check her labs for a week.  I wonder how many people had serious things and had to wait that long for her?  Oh, and if she HAD called in a RX for me, she'd probably screw it up...she made two mistakes in the RX she called in for the "Magic Mouthwash," including the directions to "swallow and spit!"   It should be "Swish and spit"  The woman is incompetent.

Saturday I got good news....my Dad is being admitted to Westview on Tuesday.   It's been a long haul, but it's finally going to happen.  Maybe I shouldn't say that, Wini could always balk at the last minute, come up with some excuse.  He will be sharing a room with a man who is described as gregarious and desperate for someone to talk with.  That would be my Dad!  The staff at Westview are excited about him moving in, they know him so well from his care of my Nana when she was there, then Loretta when she was there and then all the talks and slide shows he used to put on for the patients and staff about the history of Putnam and other topics. 

I feel relieved to have him there.  I know he will be well-fed, kept clean, can ambulate safely and will benefit from being around groups of people, especially people who know and love him.  His ambulation has become more and more problematic and I have been worried about him getting around with only Wini's help.

A selfish reason for wanting him there is that I won't have to see Wini when I go see him.  That has kept me away from him since last April and it has worn on my heart.  I cannot be around her as she drives me crazy.  It is a flaw in me that I can't be more understanding and patient with her, but her procrastination behavior with everything I tried to do just pushed all my buttons.  I am a person of action, you give me a job to do and I want to get it done.  She would give me a job and then thwart me at every turn.  She always had an excuse for why it couldn't be done that day.  That's why it took me so long to clean out my father's bedroom and make it safe for him to move around. 

This week I hope to have my bloodwork come back as good for me to get my third week of chemo.  My old pal, Pam Childs has the driving duty this week.  I figured that I will really be wiped out this week and might actually need someone to carry me into the house.  Pam would be that person! 

Sandy installed grab bars on the door frame from the garage to the house.  The second stair has a high rise and it was getting harder and harder for me to get over it.  Now I grab onto the bars and use it to assist me into the house.   Yes, I am that weak. 

I can't believe how weak and tired I am.  I thought I was weak and tired the last time I was on Taxel, that was nothing compared to this.  I make myself get out of bed, come downstairs around 9 am, walk around getting something for breakfast--usually a protein shake. I have to sit down a couple of times during this process.  I try to walk around the living room, dining room and kitchen a couple of laps.  I stay downstairs in the recliner until around 11:30, then drag myself back up the stairs...and I mean drag.  I come back down around 1:30-2:00, stay up until around 3-3:30 then back up again until Sandy comes home.  Then I come down for a couple of hours and drag myself back up to bed. 

The day after treatment I feel really good, probably from the steroid they give me before I get the chemo.  Last Friday I told Jean I wanted to go to Lazizah.  She took me down there and I picked up my "to go" order, we said a quick hi to Iffat and Bassem and then back home.  That tired me out so that I felt physically ill on the ride home...but I was so happy I made that trip! 

NOTE:   if you have a weak stomach, don't read this next paragraph.  This is for the nurses out there who are reading this blog...I have a question.   They removed the G tube about 10 days ago.  I had some drainage and then the hole in my side where it was started healing up.   This weekend I de-hissed slightly and started leaking fluid from my side.  It has become obvious that this fluid is fecal matter.  How does that happen?   Sandy has researched and has asked her fellow nurses about this and they are all confused.  Anyone out there have any thoughts on this?  It's not a large amount of fluid, but it sure can stink.  It perfectly matches the liquid diarrhea that is coming out the other end.  Sandy suspects that they created a stoma in there that now has to heal up and in the meantime this is what is going to happen.  We asked the doctor to tell us exactly what they did and have yet to get a clear answer. 

Oh, and I will actually fart out my side hole too!  Strangest sensation. 

Now I have to go watch the Huskies play Duke.  Let's hope the outcome is better than that stinky Patriots game yesterday.  I am so happy for sports, which divert my attention from feeling sick for a few hours...it's even better when my favorite team wins.

Thank you President Obama for including gay people in the fight for civil rights.  First President to have the guts to do so, let alone acknowledge us!  I know Bill Clinton was supportive, but he didn't push enough and came up with that odious "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

Later!