Latest News for the Month of
Oct 2006
Hi Ya'll. I apologize for the late update as I am back in Bristol and haven't had time to get online to update this site till now. With Ally still back in Florida teaching everyday and living in the Bus I took Tessa ( our family dog ) and headed North to Bristol to finish off some work on our rental house before the winter hit. It was a long but uneventful drive up here and one I had to do without our bus. You never fully appreciate how convenient and fun travel is in a coach till you hit the road without it. This trip up here in the car was miserable. While I made better time I also found myself back to having to use rest area bathrooms and hotel rooms which to me is just disgusting. I really pity the poor ladies out there as us men have it a bit easier using public restrooms. :)
I made my turn off on I-40 and onto I-81 to start my last stretch of freeway to Bristol and was met with the morning fog burning off the tops of the mountains. What a gorgeous site it was and it was a view I had been longing to see since being in Florida. I don't know what else to say except that I love the mountains and all its colors this time of year. It's amazing that I spent 40 years in Michigan but after being here for 6 years I feel so at home in the Appalachian Mountains. I guess one would have to spend time here to fully understand it's beauty and way of life. Ya'll come on down and experience it someday.......
I was able to hire a friend of Matt & Natalia's to work with me on a few of the house projects. Allan is currently out of work and with a new baby needed the money so he has been working with me for a week or two. He's a great kid and a hard worker as well as a God send. It was hard to admit but I finally did, " I just cannot do this work by myself anymore". The strength needed and the stamina just isn't there anymore so its better for me to hire a side kick to work with me and do all the hard labor.
On the family front, everyone is doing good. Ally, The kid's and Miss Ella are all healthy and happy but my Mom is starting to get worse again. She seems to be tired allot more and I contribute that to the leukemia as well as her mind is getting worse. She fell getting out of bed the other morning and Dave and Bev had to go over to her apartment to help her get up. Things are just not going well for her and we may have to begin considering an adult foster/group home for her where they can keep a closer eye on her as well as dispense her med's properly. It is stressful and very sad to watch your Mom go through this and its very hard on her as well as she knows her mind is failing more now. It's going to be a very tough decision but one that sooner or later will have to be made.
In as far as myself and my current medical state, I seem to be doing well. Ally performed a phlebotomy on me just before I left and was able to get straight into the vein without a problem. The phleb went good and she was able to " drain " a full pint of blood off me. I hadn't had a blood test to find out where my blood volume was at but I knew it was way to high as I was having miserable and blinding cluster headaches several times a day. It's normally a good sign along with other indicators such as a slow down in my brain function and heart arrhythmias and my vision was horrible as well. I am due for a blood test and since I am here in Bristol will go to Dr. Brockmyre's office and see Jennifer, my favorite vampire. I do need to check my clotting factor and also see where my cell lines are at. Besides being tired, I feel pretty decent at the moment and am not going to complain.
On a personal note I did want to share with everyone a very special surprise I had waiting for me when I got back to Bristol. I found a card amongst my mail and opened it and was shocked to see that it was a " support card " from several of my high school buddies from Lansing Catholic Central. One of my school, buddies Rob Campion ( we go all the way back to our junior high days as friends ) picked up a card and took it to an annual golf outing that was being held to celebrate Homecoming week. He took it around to several of our buddies and had them sign it. I was in tears when I read their notes of support and well wishes. When I read the names ( Pat Russel, Tom Nakfoor, Matt Bentz, Bill Bettis, Jim Papparella and Mark Mooney ) my high school days flashed back to me and I remembered all the hell raising and fun we had as a group. I think the card was so special from the standpoint that Rob took the time to pick up the card and these guys wrote out special notes to me. It was a huge pick me up and one I will never forget. The guys and gals of Lansing Catholic Central class of 1976 was always special and this gesture just proved that. To all of you.........THANK YOU for making my day so special. I also wanted to congratulate these guys as they were honored this year at a special ceremony at Homecoming for winning the 1975 State Hockey Championship.
Hi Gang:
Just wanted to post a quick update on the latest and greatest. Everything is going well and Allan and I have got a ton of work done this last week. I did have to take a couple days off to rest but other then that I am feeling decent. My latest blood tests showed an elevated hemoglobin level, white cell count and the platelet's were up, but they were all expected to be high.
I was able to get into the Doctors office today and see the gang there. Ally likes to call them " my girlfriends ". I believe they missed my harassment and teasing as I was warmly welcomed back to Bristol by them all. It's always fun to go in an see them all and stir them up. :) Miss Amanda, ( Dr. Brockmyre's nurse ) was nice enough to give me my flu injection. So I am all set to go for the winter. I have had my pneumonia vaccine and my flu vaccine.
It gets a bit lonely up here living on your own. I have been cooking my own meals an watching alot of TV shows in the evening and the rest has done me good. I always seem to need that afternoon snooze and quiet time at night to recharge my batteries. I think I strive more on the quiet time then anything else. It provides me with the time to rest my brain and just relax with no noise around me. I have also been listening to alot of music lately and that is always a great pacifier. :)
I believe I will be up here for a couple more weeks before heading back down to Florida. Hopefully Allan and I can finish off the two projects we need to get done before I leave. Before I forget, if you haven't been cruising around this web site lately, I finally got most of the pages and photos from the old web site transferred over.
Seen any Goblins lately ? Yes it is Halloween and time for all the little ghosts and gobblins to roam the countryside. Unfortunately I will probably be on the road the night of Halloween heading back to Florida. It couldn't have been better timing as the weather is just now starting to turn colder here in Bristol. I can see why so many head to warmer climates during the winter months. Once you spend a winter in warmer climates, it get's hard to handle the snow and cold weather.
The work is finally done on the house. I completed what I wanted to for the winter and will return in June and finish off the rest. Allan was a huge help to me and we had alot of fun working together. I am sure he now thinks I am crazy, but we did laugh alot and have a good time and I hopefully taught him some things about carpentry. I will have to post some pictures of the work we did. I do not know about other people, but myself, I love to see before and after pictures.
It's been a rough week health wise. I have battled bronchitis all week and thinking that maybe it was a viral infection I didn't take any antibiotics. I think that now it's all bacterial so I started on my Z-Pack. What a great invention in antibiotics. Can you remember taking pills 4 times a day for 10 days or more to battle a cold or sinus infection ? It was a pain trying to remember when to take each pill and many times I missed a dose or two during the day time. With the Z-Pack ( Zithromax ) you simply take one pill a day for 5 days and thats it. The problem I have is my immune system is so trashed from this disease I sometimes have a hard time fighting off these bugs. That requires antibiotic intervention which in turn will create a resistance to them if used over time so I have to be very careful with my usage.
Besides the lung bug kicking my butt my red cell volume ( hemaglobin level ) is creeping back up again. The headaches are starting all over again so by the time I get back to Florida and get settled it will be time to have Allycat ( Miss Ingrid ) perform another phlebotomy on me. For anyone who has been keeping track, this next phlebotomy will make the count stand at 105. So that is 105 times I have had a horse needle stuck in my arm and a pint of blood drained off me. I will let someone else do the math and figure how many gallons to date that equals ? Can you imagine the condition of that vein ? It must be completely trashed and the girls at the hospital always make the comment that its getting harder to access because of the scar tissue. When your battling a disease such as this, you cannot focus on the bad stuff you go through or the downturns. You need to find the positive elements and focus on them. So here are the positive points. I haven't had a stroke in almost a year. My brain seems to be working at peak level ( or as high as my brain can work ), and I am feeling decent. So you can see, things are not always bad. Its the same with life my friends. When things happen that bring you down, do yourself a favor and look to the positive side of things. If you look long enough you will find them and they always make you feel better.
I just wanted to post one last update before November rolls around. I truly hope this finds every one of you in good spirits and good health. I will write more later once I am back in Florida and settled. Until then, be safe, be happy and by all means enjoy life. That is what we are down here for and we will NOT get a second chance. make the best of it. :)
Chris