“I am much too pretty to have my head stuck in this position.”
Lip service
It started with a feeling of numbness between my nose and lip. After the numb area seemed to have enlarged, I looked into the mirror and found the right side of my upper lip had swollen.
I went back to my normal routine until a few hours later I noticed the swelling had taken over about 2/3 of my upper lip. I wasn’t sure what I should do so I called the “tele-nurse” at the Houston VA Hospital. She asked me a few questions such as if I was having difficulty breathing or my tongue was swollen. I told her those things hadn’t happened yet. She advised me to go immediately to an emergency room, asking how far the nearest one was. I told her actually one ER was about two or three blocks from my home, but if I wanted to be seen during this same century I would have to go to the one about a mile away. The nurse told me that was fine but that I needed someone to drive me in case I suddenly went into shock.
So I called a friend. Got her voice mail. I called my brother who lives in the same town. Got his voice mail. I said “screw it” and took my chances driving.
In relative or hospital time, I actually was seen fairly soon after arriving — maybe 45 minutes. An older man came in and was seen ahead of me because he was having difficulty breathing, his son said it was from emphysema and asbestiosis. But that was okay. I would wait and feel my lip grow even larger. I finally was given a steroid shot in the butt as well as two Benadryl to take by mouth.
Even though I don’t remember any of the medical professionals I saw talk about it to me, I suppose it was some sort of allergy. And I’m not really sure what it was that made me have such a reaction. But I guess in hindsight I did the right thing by going to the ER. I’ve seen people stung by ants and bees who in the blink of an eye went into anaphylactic shock, which can kill you.
Just another day in the exciting world of eight feet deep.
M-I-C (See you in court)
Oops! My bad
A U.S. House panel last week heard testimony that the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Food and Drug Administration are having a failure to communicate. That actually sounds nicer than saying a lack of communication put veterans undergoing surgery at risk for diseases such as HIV and hepatitis or even worse. According to the press release from the House Veterans Affairs Committee:
“The hearing addressed several issues that together had suggested problems with VA health care quality assurance. In February, surgeons at the James A. Haley VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Tampa, Fla., implanted an unsterilized cranial plate in a patient and nearly duplicated the mistake a week later. In April, VA discovered that it was improperly cleaning and sterilizing prostate biopsy devices, called transrectal ultrasound transducers, at the Togus VAMC in Maine. According to Dr. James Bagian, VA’s chief patient safety officer, unclear labeling and confusing instruction manuals contributed to the errors with the transducers and cranial implants.”
Believe me, or not, the last thing one would want is some unsterilized transrectal something in their prostate much less an unsterilized anything in one’s cranium.
The “Ya think?” quote from that session is courtesy of U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas:
“Clear and unambiguous labeling of the sterility of medical implants should be mandatory,” said Reyes. “This would seem to be a necessary and fundamental procedure. Yet when senior physicians reach different conclusions about whether a medical implant is or is not sterile, or about the process to sterilize that implant, we have a problem. Hospital staff should not have to read the tiny print on the bottom of page three of instructions after a patient is prepared for surgery.”
And when I say: “Ya think?” I mean it in a good way. Huh?
Veterans who had the prostate procedure were supposedly sent letters warning them of “a small risk of exposing patients to Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C and the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).” Out of the goodness of the hearts of the VA, patients who had the procedure can be tested for these diseases at no cost. Did you hear me? I said: “No cost.” Talk about a deal.
Welcome aboard — It's Looooove!
Look at the image in the upper right corner. Do you see that clump o’ aquamarine or blue or whatsit that obscures the the southern Texas and Louisiana border? You don’t? Well look again. Yes. That’s what I’m talking about. It is an image of the rain that has been hanging around here in Southeast Texas for hours and hours.
The rain has stopped here in Beaumont — for the time being at least. But it seemed as if it rained non-stop from midnight until about an hour ago. I can’t state that as fact. I just know that when I woke up a couple of times during the wee morning hours the rains were pouring. And the forecast doesn’t look good. No, I’m not talking about the official National Weather Service forecast. It isn’t so good either with an 80 percent chance of rain “coverage” as they say in these parts on TV. I refer to the squirrels’ forecast.
Yes the neighborhood squirrels must know something we don’t. And it’s freaking me out. There’s this one little squirrel out in the yard. It has a big, white clump of hair under its chin like a long beard. And that squirrel has built a little boat. The other squirrels and all sorts of other small animals are lining up two-by-two walking up the gang plank. I saw a couple of roaches, some ants, a couple of grackles, at least one Gopher dressed in white. It’s just a steady stream. Looks like Noah the Squirrel and his little friends are getting set to sail away on … The Animal Love Boat! Yes, my friends, The Love Boat, soon will be making another run. The Love Boat promises something for everyone. Set a course for adventure, Your mind on a new romance …
I think I need a padded cell.