Category Archives: health

Jan5

Socks has a Vidalia onion!

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A double-Socks (a pair of Socks?) post today!

This one is short, and as sweet as the onion in question is supposed to be. I hate the things, so I can’t comment on that – she just said a ‘sweet onion’ because they are larger than most. I chose Vidalia as I know how very much my onion-loving family appreciated them when they were in season. I know they are large, and not as smelly as most onions, and are apparently really really nice raw, if you like raw onions. Vidalias are grown exclusively in the state of Georgia, USA, and in only seven counties there. They have protected status there, and if the US had laws like Europe does, they would enjoy the same protected geographical status as Champagne, Gorgonzola or Parma ham. The Georgians have every right to be proud of their onion!

Even if I dislike them intensely, I feel a bit of loyalty to the bulb and would rather that Button was a Vidalia than any other allium. Button is already 5.1 inches and 5.9 ounces (13 cm & 167 gm) at seventeen weeks. I think at this point, I’m a little – ok, more than a little – amazed at how fast a whole human can be grown. We are remarkable creatures to be able to make whole new people inside of us! I’d rather reproduce by mitosis myself, but still, it is rather amazing.

And even more amazing that my best friend chose to do this, and is loving every minute so far.

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Jan5

Socks has an avocado!

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Right, so…I’m a bit behind. Today is Oirish Tirsday and I haven’t written an update from last Thursday yet! I also have to go to work in a bit and don’t have a lot of time to write.

So, instead of including the huge intro I have been including, just check out last week’s Socks update and it has all the links to previous posts, otay?

Actually there isn’t much to update about: everything is fine and normal and growing like crazy. We both wonder in what universe there are avocados bigger than navel oranges, but who are we to argue with pregnancy books?

I did try to find ‘Button’ in different languages last week. Bouton (French) is the nicest version, but I also like Tecla (Portugese) and Tasto (Italian). At least according to Babelfish, anyhow. I was probably a bit drunk and was trying to translate the word zipper instead.

Bear has also gotten into the spirit of names. He’s been randomly throwing out ideas here and there. Socks can’t really focus on a name until she knows the gender of Button, though – and I agree. I can’t name a pet until I meet it, how can you name a baby when you don’t even know boy or girl? Of course billions of people have done so, but hey, she has the technology and she intends to use it.

Button is moving around a bit more now. No ‘big’ movements, but Socks can tell there’s something different going on inside her. She said someone told her the early movements would feel like popcorn popping. She thought that was sort of strange…but now agrees that is the best analogy.

At this point Button can also hear Socks’ voice, pretty cool, eh? Even cooler is that from here on, babies hear and remember their mother’s accent, and actually even cry in that accent when born. I heard about this on television, and the best article about it I found (quickly) on the net is this one. I find this pretty amazing, myself.

Time to get ready for work, yuck… But I have one last Bear story. Apparently he has such a phobia of ‘outie’ belly-buttons that if Socks’ navel pops out when she is further along, she might have to hide it with a Band-Aid.

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AAAAA! The horror! Run away, run away! 😀

Dec17

Neko back to normal…almost…

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It appears Neeks is about back to normal. She’s sure hungry. Tonight she gets her kibble again, but I think we’ll hold off on any treats for a bit. Even though the vet said her one carrot a day habit was a really good choice as a treat. I’m just nervous about giving her anything other than straight dog kibble. Mostly because she hasn’t pooped since her case of the runs on Tuesday. I know she was wrung dry, and then had a 24 hour fast, but three days of rice and fish should have produced something by now, shouldn’t it? Especially when three scoops of kibble and one carrot turns into at least two massive piles per day. If my knee hadn’t decided to act up, I would have taken her on a long walk today to try and shake a poo out of her.
Oh, the pill dosage is correct: they didn’t have a dosage large enough for her (she weighs 34kilos/75lbs, which is small for an Akita) so he gave us two different sizes of Flagyl.
She still seems a little sleepy, but she has asked to play a few times.

On a happy note, she had a ‘letter to Santa’ published over on Rumpydog’s blog. I did my best to give her a really obvious Irish accent – she is from Galway, after all. Although ‘schnow’ is more of a Mayo pronunciation of snow… Oh! And we did get a little dusting of the white schtuff yesterday! Not enough to take her out on the bog to play, though – the turf isn’t frozen and that stuff is black. Not the best look on a white-legged dog!

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Dec15

Neko update…

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Well, she’s back to acting like normal since she got the drugs, and last night she was pestering our guest from Dublin for his Guinness. No, she doesn’t get any – but it doesn’t stop the begging. She was on a 24 hour fast, then three days of rice with chicken or fish. She gobbled her dinner, of course. Mmm, people food. The stinky farts are something else, though – I’m not used to smelly animal farts! All my furry kids are normally quite polite about such things.

Vet says that he is no longer sure it is colitis. Her issues are in both the upper and lower intestines; colitis is just the lower and would mean the diarrhoea is uncontrollable. She couldn’t hold it, but sure tried to. Apparently I didn’t chase her out of the spare room nearly fast enough, and she pooped on iDJ’s slippers. I know, sounds like the tag line to a joke, doesn’t it?

She’s on Buscopan, Flagyl, and … Well, I don’t know what the third one is. The label says Flagyl again. That’s not good, glad I looked. Better ring the vet tomorrow! I should have looked sooner.

Dec13

Neko at the vet

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Dammit! The tummy upsets Neko has been fighting finally won, this evening. I was in the bathtub, getting all shiny clean for my KIBIS dinner tonight, and she came upstairs and lay outside the bathroom door. Then she whined twice and went back downstairs. Well, I rushed my ablutions as best I could but it was in vain.

A lovely smelly lake of poo was in my living room.

This is why I don’t have any carpet anywhere….

So much for being shiny clean. After cleaning up I feel as though my hair smells of diarrhoea. Ugh. About 20 mins later I let her out again, and she didn’t want to come back inside – despite the wind and sleet. When she did I wiped her butt and it was bloody. Fuck.

Rush call to the hubby: he gets off work at six and the vet stays open til 6:30, but we are a bit more than a half hour away. Rush call to the vet: they will stay open for him. I did think it was funny that they knew who I was just from my accent. I visit them too often, it seems…

So. I’m sure it is the colitis again, and they will set us up with drugs for a week or so. She’ll be fine for a few months, then this will start again. Poor pup, wish there was more I could do to stave off these attacks.

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Dec8

Danger! Danger!

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I’m going to do my part for the health and safety of the uncommon person today.

Ever seen one of those infomercials where they make people look reeeely stupid? Like the woman who is in tears over not being able to peel a boiled egg? That’s my hubby trying to use a can opener.

Admittedly, the one I had was an all-metal cheap piece of junk, but he was determined to prove how shitty it was every time he used it. He would use it left handed even though he isn’t a lefty. He’d fight and curse and end up with the lid partway off and soup everywhere. Then he’d twist the lid free, leaving a gnarled needle of tin for me to slash myself on when I washed it later.

We recycle; hence the washing. This is important later.

A few weeks ago, he finally managed to snap the metal in half. I’m sure he gave a cheer and did a little dance, because now he was allowed to buy a new one. One just for him! One he could use left handed, even though he isn’t a lefty!

He came home with a fancy-schmancy white plastic thing that barely looks like a can opener. I had to read the instructions before I could figure out how to use it. It fits over the top of the can, and cuts the lid off from the side, rather than cutting down from above. Okay. It’s annoying, but I’ll get used to it.

The lid is nice and smooth, too – no jagged edges. Nice, I like that. Especially since I am the one who has to wash the damn things for recycling.

But the can itself, however, is a razor-sharp circle of certain injury. I took one look and knew I wouldn’t be sticking my hand inside with a sponge: no way. Good thing I have a brush on a stick.

No worries, then, everyone is happy. Right? Wrong.

We dump all the clean and dry recycles in one big bin, then separate the glass out later on pick-up day. He forgot about the cans.

Oh no.

Oh, yes.

He bled for about ten hours, but since I insist on him bleeding for at least 12 hours before I will authorise a doctor visit, he had to suffer me pretending to be Nurse.

He lived, he’s fine. Until the next time.

My words of warning: don’t buy this thing unless you want to bleed for ten hours, use a brush on a stick, and read instructions.

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Dec6

Morning musings

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Well, I didn’t post yesterday. It might be my first day missed, or maybe my second: I seem to recall one Sunday I was too hung over to type. I feel a little lazy about it, but I’ve 145 posts and over 3,500 views and twice last week new records were set for most views in one day (thanks, YukonSocks and unknown person who read nearly every post). I also had my two-month blogging anniversary on Sunday, but I was busy… I guess it’s okay I that I took a day off.

I did nothing yesterday. It was me wearing two shirts, two pairs of socks, two blankets and two cats on the couch most of the day. We found new free TV channels so I gorged on CSI and SVU. Always loved napping to those shows in the US. I like them because I don’t have to care about the regular characters; I can dip in and out and not miss much.

Right now, I’m sitting in front of a roaring fire with Spot. He is annoying me to no end by trying to rub on the corner of my iPad. Gerroff! The sound of his little teeth clicking on the plastic cover drives me crazy.

I’ve another lazy day planned. iDJ broke the hinge on the oven door Saturday, so I need to try to fix that. I’m sure I’ll get sucked into cleaning it, too. Which means first I have to do dishes so my sink is free. Ugh, I’m so tired of doing dishes. Sigh. I also keep meaning to try this recycled-materials recipe for homemade firelighters. I’ll be using the butt-ends of old candles instead of new wax, though, and I’ve been collecting dryer lint and egg cartons for a while, too.

I also have to take a bath. That means turning on the electric water heater and cringing at the red numbers on my Wattson. (It want from 91 watts used per hour to 2,110!) But, I can’t take showers any more, not without suffering. I don’t know what is wrong with my skin, but I have to soak, scrub, soak, scrub to get the dead layer off. A shower just gets it wet and then I itch for an hour. It’s truly disgusting to see my bath water after – I almost need a shower to rinse off my bath. Wish I knew a dermatologist, but they are harder to see here than a back doctor. The internet hasn’t been helpful; as usual, I’m unusual.

Great. I went upstairs to start filling the bath. I got sidetracked watering plants. I came back to the fire to find it had just collapsed and a chunk had flown out and burned a pillow. Glad it didn’t burn Spot! He was only a hands-breadth away.

I have a KIBIS meeting tonight, yay! Last week was postponed due to a cold, then cancelled due to a back injury – and it wasn’t me either time! Unfortunately both happened to MrsMMC. Three of us had a long goofy conversation via FB’s messenger on Friday, though, wherein we decided we should dress up as the Pink Ladies from Grease and enter a float based on the song ‘Look at me I’m Sandra Dee’ in next year’s Paddy’s Day parade. Except we think we should wear red, because all four of our home countries use red in their flags. I said I’d think about it, if I can be Rizzo. They want to have a bowling night, too, so we could reuse the Red Ladies jackets for our bowling team. I don’t enjoy bowling, did it once when I was six and never wanted to do it again – despite the fact I’m good at it on the Wii. But the gals are such good craic, I might put up with it.

The ‘Grease’ idea came out of someone saying that the menfolk are jealous of our KIBIS meetings, and think we all gather around in sexy lingerie and have pillow fights. Uuugh, men. Yes, we’re all gorgeous gals, but really?!? A few weeks ago we spent a half an hour talking about stab wounds and how to recreate them in rising bread dough, autopsies, what weird and/or gross foods we eat in our home countries, and drinking. Soooo girly!

Nov21

I feel like I’ve been in a car wreck…

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Oh what a night. Saturday, that is. iDJ and I had to go out to meet a friend. He doesn’t live here all the time, so when he’s home we can’t tell him no. It’s a little hard because we shouldn’t be spending the money we don’t have in the pub. However, it’s such a huge part of Irish culture that not going is an insult.

Luckily, we spent a good few hours at our friend’s place before the pub. We also went back there after closing hours to continue the session. It was the same as the night I turned 40 – everybody dancing in the house, making a mess, having a great time and eating caviar. It was black caviar this time, which I found out I like a lot more than the red. His house is a great place for a house party: no close neighbours to complain, and last winter the house flooded so there’s no carpet to worry about, just concrete.

It was (again) a great mix of people, different ages and different lives. I tell ya, we 40+ ers can really par-tay. It’s almost as if the booze is a stimulant, and we go bonkers when the music starts.

It’s not just us old farts that get down n boogie, though. One of my friends is 24, and she and I were hamming it up in the kitchen. The way I remember it is that she jumped into my arms… I held up for about .0003 seconds, and then down I went. Knees first. On the concrete. Carrying my weight and hers (thank goodness she’s a little thing). She snapped forward and smashed my nose, then backward and smashed her head on the dishwasher.

I was more worried about her. I can be very protective… Once we confirmed that we were both okay, we carried on. I didn’t look at my knees, but my nose was bleeding out of both barrels. Pretty. I’m glad I bothered to put on mascara before we went out.

Having loads of liquid painkiller in me, I didn’t think much of it at the time. Probably didn’t even check to see if I had blood all over my face or not – I don’t think about my looks often. The walk home hurt a lot, though. My knees weren’t happy…

So yeah, I have a blue and red nose, and some gorgeously colourful knees. Especially the left one, it looks like a sunset and is rather swollen. I can’t go down the stairs unless I go backward, it hurts too much the normal way.

My back is fine, though. Lift with your knees, not your back…land on your knees, not your crooked tailbone.

Here’s the gore:

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Nov16

Crappy back, continued

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I can’t believe how early it is. I left the house at 12:45 and got back home at 3, but it feels like I was gone much longer! I got loads done.

First I picked up my weekly newspapers for the weekly job hunt/local news/laugh at the poor quality of the articles. Then I got petrol, then headed off to Castlebar for my hospital appointment regarding my back.

I actually didn’t have a long wait, surprisingly. They said I do probably have a disk issue, and sciatica, but they won’t know without an MRI. These are all things my chiropractor told me, no surprises. They also said they would set me up with ‘physio’ in the meantime, as the MRI appointment is going to take a while. So, I’m guessing the physio is physical therapy, and similar to what my chiropractor does for me. But I won’t have to pay for it. Whew. So, it’s nice to be on their radar finally, even if I haven’t learned anything new and still have no diagnosis or even a time frame. Welcome to the HSE.

Oh, here’s my x-rays. I took pics of them for my own perusal. I love being able to see inside myself. Never ending source of entertainment for me.

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It’s pretty obvious that the gap #1 is a lot narrower than the rest, like #2. Most likely that’s my bad disc. Yay.

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Nothing to see here, I just think it looks cool to see my innards. I have a tail, how cool is that?

Oh, after that I went and picked up dog food, had a chat with the pet shop ladies about my Brushes art and took pictures of the birds, fish and bunnies in order to have more animals to draw for my ‘portfolio.’

On the way home, I had a bit of a surprise. Tanks. Tanks and troop carriers on the side of the road! With soldiers, and guns. Cooooool. We’ve no idea what’s going on, but seeing the Irish Army camped out on the side of the road is a new one for me. I took pics on my phone, but I was really far away and the pics aren’t worth posting. And I don’t want to get in trouble. Those were big guns.

Nov16

The ‘Flu’ has struck…

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I’ve had the weird head pain since last Thursday. It’s not as painful as it was at first, but still feels strange. My nose isn’t bloody any more, at least.

So, of course, last night iDJ starts getting a sore throat and a headache. Cue the constant mentioning of how bad he feels. Yes, dear. This morning he woke me up to ask what he should do, because he still didn’t feel good. Um, okay… go to work, or go to the doctor, or go to the pharmacy and ask them if there’s some disease around the town. He chose option three, and added in not going to work. He now has a lozenge for his throat and some over the counter ‘4 Flu’ pills.

Because the cold remedy has the name ‘flu’ in the name, it means he has The Flu. Not a cold, not a sore throat and a headache: The Flu.

Sigh.

Every time he feels a little poorly, it’s The Flu. It drives me crazy. He’s not had influenza the whole time I’ve known him, officially. But he has The Flu every time he has a stuffy nose, of course. Bad enough to take off from work… while I have my back appointment with the hospital today, and have to pick up dog food.

Good thing I just have a week of strange pain and pressure in my head! If I had The Flu, the dog would starve and my spine would degenerate some more. Whew.

Okay that’s me done complaining. I’ve got things to do…