tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17890100407688417442024-03-14T03:44:34.934-07:00Pahz Lives with FibroPahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.comBlogger205125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-62059289526561894362016-12-12T20:42:00.000-08:002016-12-12T20:42:58.827-08:00The Sometimes Annual Snowfall Rant- SNOW REMOVAL<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Hey there! You guys know me. You know I have some medical issues... chronic pain (fibro and rheumatoid arthritis), I've got some foot issues too (tendinitis and plantar fasciitis), there's tendinitis in my shoulder, and I've had both knees replaced (one almost eight years ago, the other about seven months ago). I even had carpal tunnel surgery in both hands! </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/738/31368757702_6e0bc5fb2d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/738/31368757702_6e0bc5fb2d.jpg" width="218" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And I have weather-induced asthma. <br />I call this look "Stagecoach Robber Chic"</td></tr>
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<br />And if you know me like you do, you know that I have a huuuuge pet peeve. I really, <i>really</i> hate it when people don't clear the snow off their vehicles before driving them. Look, I understand if you're disabled. Heck, I'm very familiar with disabled people.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5706/30936909540_92b9e53e5f.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5706/30936909540_92b9e53e5f.jpg" width="235" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Well, <i>this </i>one anyway.</td></tr>
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Unless you're disabled and without someone to help or recently injured or surgeried up, I get it. Clearing the snow is just hard work. But if you're at all mobile- like me, I still walk with a slight limp. If you can walk and stand, odds are that you can clear the damn snow off your car. Here... look at my vehicle. That's a 2012 Chevrolet Colorado.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/389/30770118394_69edcf6443_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/389/30770118394_69edcf6443_z.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His name is Blueberry.</td></tr>
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<br />And, in just about ten or fifteen minutes, I made him look like this!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5615/30770112114_84301258b8_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5615/30770112114_84301258b8_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His name is still Blueberry.</td></tr>
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But wait! I can hear you say right now: "C'mon, Pahz, I don't have a fancy brush that can reach the top of my vehicle!" Sure, I get you- you live in an area that gets snow on a nearly annual basis. Multiple times a year. I get you, man. Those brushes are long and don't fit in your car very well. But I bet you own something else. Something magical. Something <i>amazing</i>!!<br />
<br />
How amazing? This thing is so amazing that you can use it for different things! It sweeps! It pushes dirt around! It doesn't quite get all of that spilled sugar up onto the dustpan! But I guarantee you that it'll get the snow off your vehicle!<br />
<br />
What is that item called?<br />
<br />
BEHOLD!! THE MIGHTY BROOM!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/600/30770118134_924e1f7fca_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/600/30770118134_924e1f7fca_z.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Oh, yeah. I guess I do have one of those," you say, dejectedly.</td></tr>
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I took this simple, humble tool. This common kitchen broom and I used it to take THIS:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/389/30770118394_69edcf6443_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/389/30770118394_69edcf6443_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">His name is STILL Blueberry.</td></tr>
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And turn it into THIS:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5615/30770112114_84301258b8_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5615/30770112114_84301258b8_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lightly dusted Blueberry.</td></tr>
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And just HOW did a gimpy, pain-filled, asthmatic, slightly bitchy short woman do this?<br />
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Well, it was easy, really. I went "outside" and I approached my truck with the broom in my hand and I started at the top of my truck and worked my way down. I know it might be a little scary at first, but trust me, you can do it. I did it. And there was over eight inches of snow on my truck. Even more than that on the parts where it was drifted. I used my hands and my arms to lift the broom and I walked around my vehicle.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/765/31464787862_ded580a1a3_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/765/31464787862_ded580a1a3_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I had feet when I started this.</td></tr>
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When I was done, I was a little dusted with snow, but I survived it because it <i>isn't a hard thing to do</i>!! You have no excuse. You don't need fancy tools or implements! You can take a simple household broom to achieve the dream. I have faith in you! YOU CAN DO IT!! Go! Go and get your broom! Take it outside! Use it to brush that snow off your car or truck or minivan or full-size van.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/600/30770118134_924e1f7fca_z.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/600/30770118134_924e1f7fca_z.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If I could fly with this, I wouldn't <br />need it to clear the snow off my truck.</td></tr>
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I don't want you to be alarmed, but you might get some of the snow ON you when you do this. So, dress appropriately for snow-work. Today, I was wearing jeans, shirt, scarf, jacket, my red Docs, and my awesome mittens.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/391/31495737801_70a1b7d851_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/391/31495737801_70a1b7d851_c.jpg" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Those mittens are available at the<br />Sheepskin Shop at the Bristol Renaissance Faire.<br />You thought I wouldn't mention it in a post about snow, did you?</td></tr>
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"I don't think this is a problem," I hear you say. That means that you're part of the problem! You drive around with thick layers of snow all over your vehicle and you don't care that you can cause problems with that snow. It can affect another driver's visibility. It can literally fly off in chunks, hitting other cars. Maybe you'll get lucky and that huge bit of snow on your roof that has melted slightly will come off in one big sheet and hit the ground. That's great! Till the sun goes down and that humble slab of snow-ice freezes and now you have a road hazard. All because you didn't have the same strength and agility as a mildly gimpy, chronic pain-addled, asthmatic, short and fat chick. Or her stroke-disabled husband. Yeah, he can clear his full-sized truck off using a broom and he does it one-handed. I hope you feel bad about that... because all these people should. And, it turns out, in some places, this is against the law. THE LAW. AGAINST IT.<br />
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All photos were taken today, on the drive to/from the grocery store. At stop signs and in the parking lot(s) where I stopped my vehicle to get the photos. I get road rage, I don't cause it... I mean, at least I don't try to cause it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/736/31465708502_2de7b5e42d_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="326" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/736/31465708502_2de7b5e42d_c.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">If you click the picture, it'll get bigger.<br />That's what she said!<br />This time, she did say that.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/152/30771062524_2c867c3abf_c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/152/30771062524_2c867c3abf_c.jpg" width="387" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Come on, people. Really? REALLY!?<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-41755074416380292852016-09-26T12:32:00.000-07:002016-09-26T12:34:08.831-07:00*Dusts off blog, walks into cobweb, becomes a ninja* <div class="" data-block="true" data-editor="32ffq" data-offset-key="eghm1-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; white-space: pre-wrap;">
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<span data-offset-key="eghm1-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">This is a <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/annaborges/if-you-wanna-be-my-love-you-gotta-get-with-my-pain" target="_blank">perfect post about chronic pain</a>. I haven't been updating here since before my knee surgery because everyone who follows my blog is also on my Facebook and I didn't see the point in updating the blog with the same thing. My updates there were usually short and faire-related. (I know, you're as shocked as I am, I can tell). Plus, after two days of faire and three to four days of photo processing/uploading/etc, I was exhausted, both mentally and physically. And on two weeks, I didn't get any days off between because of "real life" and the whole "being a functioning adult" thing took time out of the photo processing time. I also didn't upload any faire photos to my Flickr, but I've finally started doing it and the progress thus far <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157674142430306/" target="_blank">can be seen here</a>. (I hope to finish up by this weekend). But I digress... let me try an update. </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="eghm1-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">As most of you know, my knee recovery was a freakin' dream compared to the first one (which, for the record, was seven and a half years ago). Last time- I was in bed, on my back, with a catheter, a nerve block in my leg (with a button that gave me a dose straight into the surgical leg), and an IV. On the fourth day, I stood up and physical therapy began. My surgeon also said I'd benefit from in-house physical therapy and had me stay another ten days in the PT rehab wing (which was literally down the hall). I even had an IV dose of morphine one of those first four nights because I couldn't sleep through the pain. After my release from the hospital, I spent two weeks at my parents' fully handicapped-accessible house and I had outpatient physical therapy three times a week. And at five weeks, I had a manipulation under anesthesia (MUA- which is when they knock your ass out and bend your knee to break up adhesions, which are like scar tissue). THIS time, however... </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="eghm1-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">I was on my feet within four hours of surgery. There was no catheter. No nerve block. I did have an IV, which they removed once I was on my feet, but they left the IV- uh, what is it? An adapter? They left the IV adapter in for whatever medial reasons they have for that (you know, in case there's an emergency and whatnot). On the fourth day, they sent me home. Oh, I didn't come <i>home</i> though, I still live in a house with one bathroom and that bathroom is upstairs. Since my parents are now frolicking on a farm with other parents their age, chasing rabbits and catching Frisbees in their mouths- wait, I may be mis-remembering what happens after people die... anyway, I stayed with my eldest child. We called it "The Dungeon" and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BFrVu6fl_9Q/" target="_blank">this is the view</a>. </span><br />
<span data-offset-key="eghm1-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">That's horrifying! Along with a 47-inch TV, AppleTV, Netflix, a small kitchen, a private bathroom with a walk-in shower, and a plush set of furniture that was the right amount of plush with firmness so I could get up and sit down on my own. There are also two bedrooms, a game-room area (with a pool table that I did not use), and the area with that above view was all open, no clutter and no rugs- just flat flooring. It was fantastic. Also, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BFxDp1rF_3D/" target="_blank">this was my daytime nurse</a>. He was very polite.
I had seven and a half weeks to recover enough to make it to Bristol and if you're reading this, odds are that you know I made it (<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157670762530826/" target="_blank">here's the link</a> to my "19 Days of Faire" and it is all of my Bristol 365s together). I set a new goal to walk without my cane by closing weekend and I crushed that goal three weeks early. So, this total knee replacement was a complete opposite of the last one. I still have some discomfort and some swelling, but I'm already wearing jeans again (I couldn't wear jeans last time for MONTHS because they were too uncomfortable). I walk without a cane almost all of the time. (I still use one if I'm not sure how long/far I have to stand/walk). The problem with the pain now is that even though I KNOW that it isn't arthritis pain, my brain interprets the pain surrounding my knee as that kind of pain. The tissue surrounding my knee still aches and sometimes, it hurts severe enough to make me stop what I'm doing. </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="bt0pm-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">I keep forgetting that any pain I'm having from the surgery isn't "normal". "Normal" in the sense that everything I feel is exacerbated by my screwed up nerve endings that keep dialing things up to eleven. I feel like I've been complaining on Facebook more than usual about it, which in turn makes me feel bad because I don't like to endlessly whine about the pain. </span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="63bfl-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">The worst part of this is that the Disabled Guy doesn't think I'm in as much pain as I am. When I got out of bed last night, after three hours of staring at the ceiling, then the wall, then the other wall, the TV, then my phone, then covering my head with my pillow, turning music on, turning it off, covering and uncovering my feet... I asked if he remembered my first knee replacement, 7 1/2 years ago. He doesn't. He said it was "too long ago". I reminded him that the first TKR caused a year-long fibro episode that was so severe that even my doctor couldn't deny it anymore. I was diagnosed with fibro a year and three months after my first total knee replacement. </span><br />
<span data-offset-key="63bfl-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;">So, while this recovery has been leaps and bounds above and beyond anything I ever expected, I still have issues. I've only had a few flareups of fibro pain since the surgery (which was four months and ten days ago), but I'd really like the pain in the squishy human bits around my robot knee to stop. I can walk mostly normal (there's only a slight hitch in my giddy-up, but if I try to walk faster, I outright limp). I can wear real clothes again, just like a real human. I've got a faire this weekend (Stronghold Olde English Faire-<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157660056589340/" target="_blank"> photos here</a>) and one next weekend (A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157648832768775/" target="_blank">photos here</a>), so I'm going to have some awesome friend-therapy. Honestly, the best part of having my total knee replacement recovery during the Bristol season was how many people I love and adore who made sure I was okay and asked me how I was doing. It was an amazing feeling, to know that people who weren't created with my genes actually cared. (also- my kids were so awesome while I was recovering. Kat and Tyler letting me stay with them, Christine going out of her way to come visit, and Jason- who still lives at home- helped out on a day to day basis). </span></div>
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And, because I shared links to the others- here's the <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157648413741789/" target="_blank">Janesville Faire photos</a> (in May) and the <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157658145551933/" target="_blank">Teslacon photos</a> (which I have in November!). <br />
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Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-3654286053739543272016-04-28T16:39:00.000-07:002016-04-28T16:40:40.696-07:00What a stupid difference a stupid year makesFuck.<br />
<br />
Fuck!<br />
<br />
FUCK!<br />
<br />
FUUUUUCK!!!!<br />
<br />
I have to have another total knee replacement. My right knee has now decided to say "fuck you" to the world and give up.<br />
<br />
FUUUUCK!<br />
<br />
I was not expecting this today. I thought I'd get another shot or something. Anything. But no. Total goddamn replacement in my right knee. It has been a long time coming, that's for sure. I injured it the first time when I was 18 years old (in a snowball fight, no less). I subsequently injured it eight more times over twenty years- the most recent time being March 3, 2006. That was what led up to the left total knee replacement in 2009.<br />
<br />
So, last year... last year, I had knee pain and went to see my knee surgeon. And, I wrote a blog post about it- "<a href="http://pahzliveswithfibro.blogspot.com/2015/05/lifes-funny-sometimes-but-life-is-also.html" target="_blank"><b>Life is funny sometimes, but life is also a jerk sometimes</b></a>"- and I included helpful photos. After I got over my initial shock- because believe me, there was shock and MASSIVE self-control to not blurt out the word "FUCK" repeatedly- I said, "I don't know what to do... I have so much stuff- I have plans." and inside my head, I'm going over the ren faire dates- like Janesville Ren Faire on May 14 and 15. Bristol starts on July 9th this year. Then Stronghold and a week later, A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians. And let's not forget TeslaCon in November.<br />
<br />
FUCK!<br />
<br />
My right knee is MUCH worse than my left knee was when I had it replaced seven years ago. But, I had to ask, why doesn't the right one hurt as much as the left one did seven years ago?<br />
<br />
Turns out- Fibrofuckingmyalgia.<br />
<br />
Undiagnosed, untreated fibro caused my recovery to be a nightmare the first time. Every time I took two steps forward, I'd fall back one. It was a battle. A long, boring, painful battle. But I eventually got through it (especially after they started treating me for fibro).<br />
<br />
This time around, I'm on three different drugs to live with the fibro. I take Hydrocodone (Vicodin), Cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril, a muscle relaxer), and Duloxetine (Cymbalta). My body does not process pain properly anymore. Partially due to fibro, partially due to all the drugs I take for fibro. So, my body and brain weren't perceiving this pain as bad as it is, but if someone else had this knee, well, they'd be crying and swearing more than I was while I was driving home today.<br />
<br />
There are some differences between my first total knee replacement and now. One, both my parents are gone now and I really just want my mommy. Two, despite still being fat (yes, I'm fat; don't sugarcoat it for me, I'll just eat it), I am in way better shape than I was then. Back then, I'd spent three years as a sedentary human. I did as little as possible for activity. And while I'm not running marathons and lifting all the weights at the gym, I am doing more and of course- ren faire walking (that's the same as regular walking, but <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/21020125359/in/album-72157657105884842/" target="_blank"><b>you look fabulous doing it</b></a>). Part of that is that I've been using my left leg exclusively to go up and down the stairs. When I had my first knee replaced, my right leg was still weirdly injured and not as strong as it should have been. I had a lot of trouble with stairs. Third, I am way, way, <i>way</i> more motivated than I've ever been in my life. I have approximately seven weeks between surgery day and opening weekend of Bristol. And I am not going to miss faire. I <i>will not miss Bristol</i>. Ever. My parents always said they wouldn't die during my faire season and goddammit, if they could schedule their deaths during the winter just so I wouldn't have to miss faire or photo editing time, then I will be goddamned ready to go to Bristol when it happens. I don't care if I have to drag my ass around with my walker. I WILL NOT MISS BRISTOL!<br />
<br />
*<i>deep breath</i>*<br />
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What was my point? I don't even know if I had one. I have to get my goddamned knee replaced. I have to recover from that in seven weeks. It was such a shock because I was honestly not expecting him to say I'd need surgery. At the very least, not total knee replacement. In just over two weeks, my knees will be fully cyborg. I expect to be a full android by the time I'm 65. I wonder if I still have to go to the doctor then or if I just get my oil changed at Jiffy Lube.<br />
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Here are some photos of my X-rays. The dates are on them, from 2009 to today. You can see how quickly my knee deteriorated in the past year.<br />
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I was at the doctor to get checked out because I slipped on the ice and wanted to make sure I wasn't further damaged (he did an X-ray on my cyborg knee too). But this was my right knee then... it still had some cartilage in it.<br />
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May 5th, 2015... last year, when I got a cortisone shot in it. (I added that text last year, I added the May 5th part today. Don't judge me!).<br />
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And, here we have today...<br />
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Yeah. Quite a shock, isn't it? It looks like my leg bone is sliding off my shinbone.<br />
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Just a year... this definitely explains why I had so much trouble walking around at the faire, the other faire, that other faire too, Teslacon, and the <b><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/albums/72157667460356565" target="_blank">Midwest Horse Fair</a></b> two weeks ago.<br />
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Here's a zoom-in on all three X-rays.<br />
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-84583776839271014032016-03-15T19:01:00.002-07:002016-03-15T19:01:53.944-07:00Stuff about Open Carpal Tunnel Surgery and of course, the fibro...First, let's cover the surgery thing. I didn't- as I'd mentioned in that video- update anyone after the cast thing came off my hand. So, let's start there... sort of.<br />
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If you're on my Facebook, you know how it has been going, because I did not <a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153724889307559" target="_blank"><b>one</b></a> update, not <a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153726942492559" target="_blank"><b>two</b></a> updates, not <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153739604232559" target="_blank">three</a></b>, or <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153741154512559" target="_blank">four</a></b>, not even <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153750847927559" target="_blank">five</a> </b>(which was the start of the second surgery). I did <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153755430557559" target="_blank">six</a></b>, <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153758570362559" target="_blank">seven</a></b>, <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153768051307559" target="_blank">eight</a></b>, <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/posts/10153798641582559" target="_blank">nine</a> </b> updates on my Facebook. All my posts are public, so you should be able to see them.<br />
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My first surgery was amazing. Every single day felt like an improvement and within two weeks, I got most of the feeling back in my fingers. Just the very tips of my index and middle fingers are a bit tingly. But, I can feel things with them- including hot, cold, wet, or dry. My second surgery wasn't quite as fun. The pain after surgery was much, much worse. I spent a lot more time elevating and icing than I had to with the first. Even now, I sometimes have to wear a brace to do things- but the weird thing is that I don't have to wear any kind of brace to sleep with anymore. I've slept with braces on my hands for more than ten years. I was worried I wouldn't be able to fall asleep without them, but I adapted very quickly.<br />
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Here's a list of things I wish I knew ahead of my first surgery-<br />
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1- if you take a fistful of pills in the morning like I do, get yourself one of those days-of-the-week/month pill holders and set that shit up BEFORE you go in for surgery. I didn't. Didn't even cross my mind. I take some vitamins (prescribed) and some other blood pressure and edema-related pills every morning. And I take a small amount of pills at night (pain meds, muscle relaxers, fibro med).<br />
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2- Get bottles without a childproof cap. My pain meds were in the super-dynamic-engineering type of bottle. I had serious problems getting into my bottles. The spouse- you know him, The Disabled Guy- only has the use of one hand himself, so the two of us trying to wedge a childproof cap off a Vicodin bottle was pretty hilarious... not as hilarious as the two of us one-handed wonders trying to get my giant DDD-cup bra on in the morning. Boy, THAT was an experience in pain and hilarity.<br />
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3- Get frozen meals or pre-cook/freeze meals. Not everyone is as lucky as I am to have a disabled spouse who is always home. He handled cooking okay and we had takeout and frozen pizza a lot. (he doesn't like to cook very much).<br />
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4- Train all of your pets ahead of time to bring you shit. Not <i>actual</i> shit, that's gross. Like, food and drink. Ice packs. Pain medicine. That remote control you kept dropping behind the sofa because you thought setting it on the pillow next to your swollen hand was a good idea.<br />
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5- <b><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1527/24203115779_8c8d7e19bf_b.jpg" target="_blank">Chihuahuas make good nurses</a></b>. At least, in THEIR mind, they do.<br />
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Here is a link to a photo of my left hand <b><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1677/24504318482_16534f618c.jpg" target="_blank">with stitches visible</a>, </b>and the right one with <b><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1645/24928012845_faba6b977c.jpg" target="_blank">stitches and bruising</a></b>. Here's one of <b><a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1478/24941916124_914aa75a31.jpg" target="_blank">just the scars</a> </b>(at four weeks and six weeks). They're not so bad right now, they look more like a slight discoloration than surgical scars.<br />
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Now that's out of the way, let's move on to the fibro thing. I think my Generic-Cymbalta-for-fibro has stopped working. I've been dealing with almost-daily flareup pain for just over a month. I have my semi-annual followup appointment two days from this typing. It started just like last time- I couldn't tell if it was the weather or if I was having issues with the medicine. I even thought that it was related to my hand surgery because that second one sucked a lot more for pain/issues. But it isn't that either. I didn't try to get in at the VA earlier, because I already have this appointment scheduled, so I just let the days drag on till now.<br />
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That said, the other day, I picked up some potted flowers at that big orange box store because it'd been SO LONG since I held my beloved Nikon in my hands. And I got a few really nice macro shots of flowers. And now, I share those with you, because what better way to end a blog update full of Facebook links and Mom Jokes? Enjoy!<br />
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This is the first batch of photos I have taken since my open carpal tunnel release surgeries. I did do a few snowflake macros in February, but I still had the cast on my arm, so it wasn't much effort to hold the camera. This day, however, I learned just where the pain was internally.<br />
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Despite the pain in my hand (which I controlled a bit by wearing a soft Neoprene wrist brace), I loved being outside to take photos again. In the weeks leading up to my surgeries (which were January 22nd and February 5th), I didn't have much chance to do a lot of photos (drab weather, lack of indoor flowers).
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25678041372/in/dateposted/" title="Begonias"><img alt="Begonias" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1713/25678041372_1c0fe1232f.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25678041262/in/dateposted/" title="Begonias"><img alt="Begonias" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1675/25678041262_e23bd1d7f5.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25172393803/in/dateposted/" title="Cyclamen"><img alt="Cyclamen" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1630/25172393803_bf932d15f0.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25168523594/in/dateposted/" title="Yellow Daisy"><img alt="Yellow Daisy" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1717/25168523594_31529b3402.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25703926961/in/dateposted/" title="Yellow Daisy"><img alt="Yellow Daisy" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1704/25703926961_179fbec599.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25799024945/in/dateposted/" title="Tiny purple flowers"><img alt="Tiny purple flowers" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1604/25799024945_9e14dd3e0a.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25498331090/in/dateposted/" title="Tiny purple flowers"><img alt="Tiny purple flowers" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1602/25498331090_d21a8f27e2.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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This is the fingertip of my pinky finger. For size reference.
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25411550350/in/dateposted/" title="Day 27 of Year 7- Ohhh, yeah!"><img alt="Day 27 of Year 7- Ohhh, yeah!" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1615/25411550350_0fcf19c98d.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25678038812/in/dateposted/" title="Tiny purple flowers"><img alt="Tiny purple flowers" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1607/25678038812_59965de522.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25703926161/in/dateposted/" title="Hot pink. Maybe purple."><img alt="Hot pink. Maybe purple." height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1682/25703926161_1d728c3732.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25498335110/in/dateposted/" title="Hot pink. Maybe purple."><img alt="Hot pink. Maybe purple." height="500" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1703/25498335110_ac54ccdb1c.jpg" width="331" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25172390953/in/dateposted/" title="Begonias"><img alt="Begonias" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1677/25172390953_17d8516ce4.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25172387303/in/dateposted/" title="Begonias"><img alt="Begonias" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1645/25172387303_46d5ea9353.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25703924691/in/dateposted/" title="Cyclamen"><img alt="Cyclamen" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1619/25703924691_64ac6553d9.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25498334340/in/dateposted/" title="Yellow Daisy"><img alt="Yellow Daisy" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1590/25498334340_fa57b77ecd.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25498333670/in/dateposted/" title="Purple? Pink? Could be either!"><img alt="Purple? Pink? Could be either!" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1691/25498333670_e9f16166c4.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25799022485/in/dateposted/" title="In the sun"><img alt="In the sun" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1583/25799022485_ef0b6d60f1.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25703923281/in/dateposted/" title="Yellow Daisy in the sun"><img alt="Yellow Daisy in the sun" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1634/25703923281_e81126398c.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/25678036182/in/dateposted/" title="Yellow Daisy in the sun"><img alt="Yellow Daisy in the sun" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1604/25678036182_de904d0bd2.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-60350127937572619712016-01-23T17:24:00.002-08:002016-01-23T17:45:17.056-08:00ZOMBIE ARM!! I mean, the open Carpal Tunnel Release SurgeryI did a video since I'm only able to type one-handed and I think faster than I can type with one hand. In the video, I mentioned some photos and I'm sharing them here.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NhKUQiCedDM" width="480"></iframe>
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On the way to the hospital... not nervous at all!<br />
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1533/24543922926_9a1bfbe51f.jpg" />
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At the hospital... still totally not nervous at all...
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1504/24461791012_0ca55269d3.jpg" />
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Snazzy jewelry!
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1480/24570102125_72ba2d1d52.jpg" />
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Sexy hospital gown!!
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1628/24570101825_bddf0d2245.jpg" />
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The doctor laughed when I took this photo.
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1672/24461790402_09ea73fca6.jpg" />
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Super-sexy hat!!
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1693/23941933694_7a62ba654f.jpg" />
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ZOMBIE ARM!!
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<img src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1591/23943290043_ae08339fd2.jpg" />
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="6" style="background: #fff; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.5) , 0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: 99.375%;">
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BA3InErl_7Z/" style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">Ice and elevate, Chihuahua is optional. #surgery #carpaltunnel #chihuahua #dogsofinstagram #dog</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2016-01-23T00:29:43+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jan 22, 2016 at 4:29pm PST</time></div>
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<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="6" style="background: #fff; border-radius: 3px; border: 0; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.5) , 0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0 , 0 , 0 , 0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 658px; padding: 0; width: 99.375%;">
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<a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BA5Q6IDF_8C/" style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_blank">Ice, elevate, two chis- for extra healing power. #surgery #dogsofinstagram #dog #carpaltunnel #chihuahua</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2016-01-23T20:20:42+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jan 23, 2016 at 12:20pm PST</time></div>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-33861640380304193612016-01-07T19:23:00.000-08:002016-01-07T19:23:49.631-08:00Well... this is a blog post. As my last post mentioned, I had to get a test done- EMG. WELL... turns out, that's one of the MANY things that the VA hospital will not see me for- and for good reason, really. I'm not a veteran. I'm the spouse of a 100% service-connected disabled veteran. While I can get almost everything I need done at the VA, there are a few specialties that they won't cover because they're high demand for actual veterans. And that's fine. What's not fine is that the list of things they will and will not cover changes often. I never know what's going to come up as not covered. BUT- the VA doctors can give me a consultation letter to see a non-VA doctor and the CHAMPVA insurance will pay for it like any other health insurance (meaning we have a cost-share and deductible).<br />
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So, that call I was waiting to make that I mentioned before? That was the Patient Administrative Services calling to tell me they weren't going to let me see a rheumatologist because they couldn't allow me to be a "new patient". Except I'm not a "new patient". I saw the rheumatology clinic for my fibro diagnosis and initial treatment. Then they kicked me back to my GP for the maintenance care. If I had been to the rheumatology within the last two years, I'd be allowed back... but their policy to kick me back to the GP... you see the circle-jerk in that whole thing? Yeah.<br />
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Anyway, after I got off the phone with them, I called the GP clinic and told them that I'd need a consultation letter. When I got the letter, I called the local place I go to when I need to- and it turns out, you don't even SEE a rheumatologist for this in the real world! I had to go to an ortho. The good thing is, the ortho I had to see is in the same office as my knee doctor. So, from that visit, I was scheduled for the EMG on January 14th. Then this morning, I got a call saying they had a cancellation for this afternoon.<br />
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One piece of advice- do NOT Google "Does an EMG for carpal tunnel hurt?" because you will find the scary stories from people who were either exaggerating or complete and total wimps. The test wasn't painful, really, just uncomfortable. And kind of weird. There are needles involved but the needle thing didn't even hurt. The weird cattle prod thingy- that was worse than the needles.<br />
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Basically, they put these sensors on your hands in different places and then use that weird cattle prod thingy to send a jolt through various nerves from different places in your arm/wrist. After that, there is a session with a needle in specific places to test muscle activity and such. You get to hear your muscles. I didn't even know my muscles made noise. And let me tell you, mine were noisy bastards!<br />
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Because I'm me, I took some photos. But because I'm not an asshole, I won't show you the photos without warning. They'll be in links. Click them if you want to, but I will tell you what they are before you click it.<br />
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<a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1589/23874036249_0a5e71c399_b.jpg" target="_blank"><b>This is the machine used in the EMG</b></a>.<br />
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<a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1612/23874036679_32bba960cb_b.jpg" target="_blank"><b>This is my hand with some of the senor doodads on it</b></a> (they move those around at different points of the test).<br />
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<a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1575/24133805042_52ae4573dd_b.jpg" target="_blank"><b>This is the needle being held up by the doctor</b></a> so I could take a photo. It is a really thin needle and I barely felt the needle at all.<br />
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<a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1471/24215768386_1203f325ff_b.jpg" target="_blank"><b>This is that same needle in my forearm</b></a>. The doctor took this photo with my phone for me. There is no blood or anything, just the super-thin needle in my arm.<br />
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<a href="https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1625/23874035969_8b45059512_b.jpg" target="_blank"><b>This is the bruise I got in my biceps on my left arm</b></a>. I don't think I have any other bruises and it doesn't even hurt.<br />
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Now see? That wasn't so bad! And if you need one of these, don't worry! You can't even see them putting the needle into your muscle and I could barely feel it.<br />
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As for the results of this test- I have severe nerve damage in both hands. I am definitely going to have surgery for it because I really don't have much of a choice at this point. And because my nerve damage is so severe, I will probably always have numbness in some of my fingers. The surgery will help, but it can't fix what's so far gone.<br />
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NOW... a little discussion about the fibro thing. Because of the holiday or because I miscounted- I was without my fibro medication for three straight days. I took my last pill on Sunday night. On Monday, when it didn't come in the mail, I decided to give it one more day, because of the holiday. On Tuesday, when it didn't come, I called the VA. It turns out it was mailed out on Monday afternoon. I got it today. However, I couldn't take it till I got home from all the running around I had to do today. So, I did the EMG, I drove home to pick up the Disabled Guy to drive him to Rockford. Oh, yeah- last Thursday (New Year's Eve), he was driving down a road and a woman pulled out in front of him. He was going about 45 MPH and had no stop signs or lights. She was turning left onto the road from a stop sign. How she didn't see the full-size pickup truck with running lights is beyond me. He's fine, but <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/23467924513/in/dateposted/" target="_blank"><b>his truck</b></a> has been officially totaled.<br />
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So for the last week, I've been dealing with insurance companies, chauffeuring the Disabled Guy around, juggling my doctor appointments with his anti-coagulation appointment, AND dealing with life without fibro medicine. Let me tell you- I'd forgotten how much this disease sucks without that medicine. And stress suuuuuucks even harder. So, today, I had to drive a half hour to one town to be zapped and prodded and stabbed, then drive the half hour home, get the Disabled Guy, drive forty minutes to where his truck had been towed to get his big-ass toolbox that was mounted in the bed of his truck, then drive him the forty minutes home, and THEN go to the grocery store. Then... I had to cook dinner.<br />
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But I digress... or do I? I'm not sure what I'm doing. I'm on my full amount of nighttime medication right now. Let me sum it up a little...<br />
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Good news: I was moved up a whole week to get the EMG.<br />
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Bad news: I have severe and permanent nerve damage in my hands. (in case you forgot, I kind of use my hands for, well, everything. But most importantly, I use my hands for photography).<br />
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Goo- No, wait... bad news: I have to have surgery.<br />
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Good- No, wait, still bad news: the Disabled Guy's truck is totaled, we have to wait for the insurance company to settle things with the lien holder before we can get him a new vehicle.<br />
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Good news: (no, really!) it should only be a couple weeks before we get the check from the insurance company to get a new truck.<br />
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Bad news: I have to put up with the Disabled Guy not driving himself around for another few weeks. He can't drive my vehicle because it isn't big enough for him to tuck his disabled half out of the way so he can reach everything with his un-disabled half.<br />
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Good-Bad news: The recovery time from a carpal tunnel surgery can take up to three months. The reason that's good-bad is that I have plenty of time between now and May (the Janesville Ren Faire), but the bad part is that because of my fibro, recovery time may be longer.<br />
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To end on a better note, here are some macro photos I took of some flowers (I bought myself a bouquet of flowers from the grocery store and a couple days later, a friend dropped by and gave me a Yule basket of goodies and some flowers). Also, I took some really cool photos of the Disabled Guy's train set. If you'd like to see those- <b><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/albums/72157662593218989" target="_blank">here's a link</a></b>. Some were taken with my phone, some with my camera. (the camera shots are awesome!).<br />
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And now, on to the flower macros! I took the two flower vases outside while the sun was still out to get a handful of photos. The sunlight was filtered through some thin, white clouds.<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" data-footer="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/23954957105/in/dateposted/" title="Daisies"><img alt="Daisies" height="331" src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1569/23954957105_9457d2d118.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" data-footer="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/23328183843/in/dateposted/" title="Flowers in Winter"><img alt="Flowers in Winter" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5733/23328183843_b7e0339720.jpg" width="500" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-32320795439906946882015-12-07T19:26:00.001-08:002015-12-07T19:26:42.431-08:00Cough-cough-cough! *brushes dust off blog* I'd like to apologize for not updating this like I should. I mean, I kept thinking about it, then I'd think- "Nah, let's wait till after _____" and then after whatever happened, I'd think about updating... and then no, let's wait till... I was a week behind uploading my photos to Flickr, then eventually two weeks... and well, things got busy.<br />
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First off- the generic Cymbalta is still a big help. It isn't perfect, but the good outweighs the bad by a huge margin, so I'll take it!<br />
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There is no news to report about the left half of my left foot. It still acts stupid and refuses to have any kind of reasonable conversation with me about why it keeps acting like a dumbass.<br />
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The bad news is that my human knee- the right one, which, incidentally is the wrong one- hurts now. I carried a cane with me at my last two faires (Stronghold-<i> <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157657749231844" target="_blank">photos here</a></i>; and A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians-<br />
<i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157658145322183" target="_blank">photos here</a> </i>and all the Bristol photos are<i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157654793829384/" target="_blank"> here</a></i>) and used it a little. And since my last blog post, I actually had my son go to faire with me. I was shocked! And he enjoyed himself! He went to Bristol three or four times with me and even came to GRR with me.<br />
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On Week 7 of Bristol, both my son and older daughter came to faire. She's been there before, but hadn't been for a few years. So my son got to have more fun because he didn't have to hang out with gimpy ol' me and Kat showed him around and they saw a lot of good shows.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a data-flickr-embed="true" data-footer="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/20965732239/in/album-72157655874554513/" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="My kids at the Joust"><img alt="My kids at the Joust" height="331" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/721/20965732239_81618fb548.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Left to right- Kat, Jason, Christine<br />
Christine is a stage manager at Bristol.</td></tr>
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Jason's first time at Bristol was Week 2- and he learned that it is both awesome and a curse when your mom and sister are on the inside of the faire. This is Cameron from Barely Balanced. I've known them for a few years now. On this day, I made sure to introduce Jason to Jimmy ("Large"), and Margret ("Small"), but didn't get a chance to talk to Cameron ("Medium") till right before the show- like less than a minute before he went on stage. And he took right off with it and made Jason come up and help him. All the photos are<i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/albums/72157655899039988" target="_blank"> here</a></i>... </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cameron said: "Where's your mom?" and pointed at me.<br />
Then he exclaimed: "Profile photo!" </td></tr>
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Okay, I've gotten away from my point. That happens when you ask me about the faire. What do you mean you didn't ask? Of course you did! I clearly remember you saying: "Hey, Patty, we haven't heard from you since August... how was faire?" Don't deny it. If you didn't ask, then why did I go off on that tangent with photos? Yeah, obviously your fault! So, back to the topic...<br />
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In all of my updates and doctor visits, I never complained about my hands. I've had problems with carpal tunnel syndrome (I don't even think they call it that anymore) for more than 20 years. I started off wearing a wrist brace on my right hand- but not all the time. Just when I needed it. Then it became an every-night thing. Then my left hand joined the mutiny and for over ten years, I've slept almost every night with two wrist braces. In 2007, the VA hospital gave me new braces because the ones I had were the slightly bent kind and nowadays, (or thenadays, I guess) the braces are flat. I actually have trouble falling asleep if I'm not wearing my wrist braces. </div>
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Several months ago, the numb-tingling in my hands got worse. And worse. A few weeks ago (or a little longer, I don't recall exact dates here), the thumb, index, and middle fingers on my left hand went numb and haven't come back at all. My right hand comes and goes in varying intensity, but the left hand... gone. I called the VA to schedule an appointment, because the doctor always said to do that- if anything changed. The scheduling department transferred me to the "nurse help desk". They took a list of my symptoms and then said they'd call back. They did and made me an appointment for the very next day. I nearly died of shock at that because damn, that's fast! </div>
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Well, it turns out that I'm looking at surgery to fix this. Today, I missed a call from the VA and have to call back in the morning (I didn't see the message when I got home around 3-ish. I saw it at 4:05 PM and they close at 4). The doctor had to refer me to the Rheumatology clinic for steroid shots to help with my hands. They're also referring me to the neurology clinic for a "nerve conduction test". When she asked if I'd had one before, I said I wasn't sure. She replied: "You'd remember, there are needles and they poke you in your arm..." nope, never had one. Sounds fun though! </div>
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So, hopefully all that will fix what's going on inside my hands. Because not having feeling in my fingers and hands sucks, but not as much as what happens when I use them too much. Like, you know, doing my hair, putting on makeup, brushing my teeth, doing dishes, cooking dinner, and something I obviously never do- typing. What happens then is that my thumb, index, and middle fingers on both hands go completely numb, a thousand tiny hairy-legged spiders start burrowing around under the skin, and sharp, stabbing pain shoots around my hand and down to my wrist. (as I type now, the numbness, itching, and pain are quite mild. But I'm also two hours past all my pain drugs, so bleeeeeehhhhhhh...) </div>
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And now, let's switch back to some photos. What photos? Well, Teslacon, of course. I ended up using my cane for that entire weekend. I was resentful about that, but in all honesty, it did help. Plus, my friends made sure I got to sit down a lot. Because they're cool. First of all, all the photos are <i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/albums/72157661887085445" target="_blank">here</a></i>. Secondly, they made space for me again, so I was able to take cast photos. </div>
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And, here are some of those photos! For anyone wondering- we did this against a black curtain that was already in the room. I used my flash with a remote trigger, on a light stand with a large umbrella to diffuse the light. I took <i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/23231311819/in/album-72157661887085445/" target="_blank">this photo</a></i> from across the room. But now- on to a bunch of the cast photos!</div>
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Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-46924268162380104102015-08-11T17:55:00.000-07:002015-08-11T17:55:01.278-07:00Faire Day! Flare Day. So, we're just past the fifth weekend of Bristol's season. We have nine weekends total, nineteen days (because Labor Day Monday is our closing day). And, not much has changed since my previous post about the<b> <a href="http://pahzliveswithfibro.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-tale-of-left-half-of-my-left-foot.html" target="_blank">left half of my left foot</a></b>. I've been plodding along and the worst part of it is that the humidity has been kicking my butt. I've been trying to get to other shows, but I always seem to need to sit down more. And I lose the motivation to slog up that hill to stand up and take photos when I'm already so wonderfully sitting down somewhere else. But, I have four more weekends to motivate my fat ass up that hill.<br />
<br />
"What about the title?" I can hear you asking. Well, Sunday morning, I woke up having a flareup. The weird part of it is that I didn't realize I was having a flareup till I was halfway there. I mean, I <i>knew</i> I was in pain, but I didn't realize it was flareup pain right away.<br />
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I spent all of Sunday, limp-dragging my left foot around behind me. Sit down, stand up, limp-drag-walk-limp-drag-walk. Okay, so maybe "drag" is a bit of an exaggeration. But I was definitely limping and I was walking much slower than usual. The only thing I can think that caused the flareup was the intense humidity. I wasn't itchy or anything, but goddamn was there pain. All over muscle pain that seemed to radiate from my joints. And from my bones in general. Even parts that didn't have joints. Like my collarbones. And my shins. Well, just- you know- <i>all over pain</i>.<br />
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I did survive the Faire Day Flare Day, of course. I mean, I wouldn't be here typing this if I hadn't. Monday (which is yesterday as I type this), around 2 in the afternoon, the pain in my left foot became so intense I had to take off my shoes. The whole bottom of my foot felt like it was swollen and bruised. It felt that way to the touch too, but it didn't look swollen (or have any actual bruising). I tried icing it, but it only worked for those moments when the ice was actually touching my foot. It was a lot better today- I lasted till 4 PM before I had to take my shoes off. (in both instances, by "shoes", I mean "Dr Martens boots"). I felt a lot better on Monday, compared to Sunday. And today, aside from the lingering aches from my "hot spots" (today's are my left hip and my right shoulder), I feel like my usual level of aliveness since the Generic Cymbalta started working. So far, so good.<br />
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Even in flareup pain, being a faire is a whole lot better than sitting at home. I've said it many times- I could sit at home and be miserable and in pain, or I can go to faire and be NOT-miserable, but still in pain. The choice between wallowing in my stupid disease or hanging out with beautiful people doing awesome things... c'mon. Faire is a remedy for fibro. Trust me, I've tested that theory.<br />
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Since it is only Tuesday, I haven't finished my Week 5 photos from the weekend. But, here's the <b><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/collections/72157654793829384/" target="_blank">Flickr link to the 2015 Bristol photos</a></b>. Check back, because I add the photos on Fridays. I will, however, leave you with a bunch of my <b><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157657105884842" target="_blank">365s from Bristol</a></b>.<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19462636820/in/album-72157657105884842/" title="Day 149 of Year 6- This guy!"><img alt="Day 149 of Year 6- This guy!" height="500" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/292/19462636820_e78677e565.jpg" width="331" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19816914385/in/album-72157657105884842/" title="Day 155 of Year 6- So many squires!"><img alt="Day 155 of Year 6- So many squires!" height="500" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/256/19816914385_ec49815b97.jpg" width="331" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/20004741182/in/album-72157657105884842/" title="Day 162 of Year 6- Day of WRONG!"><img alt="Day 162 of Year 6- Day of WRONG!" height="500" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/517/20004741182_99ddec890d.jpg" width="331" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/20215542905/in/album-72157657105884842/" title="Day 169 of Year 6- Bill!"><img alt="Day 169 of Year 6- Bill!" height="500" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/352/20215542905_57d3240950.jpg" width="331" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/20251403831/in/album-72157657105884842/" title="Day 170 of Year 6- Five years and One day!"><img alt="Day 170 of Year 6- Five years and One day!" height="500" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/381/20251403831_193faa8572.jpg" width="375" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-20797058324503490542015-07-16T17:31:00.000-07:002015-07-16T17:34:32.411-07:00The Tale of the Left Half of My Left FootLast weekend was Opening Weekend of the Bristol Renaissance Faire!<br />
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[wait for audience roar]<br />
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I KNOW! And it was just as awesome as I knew it would be, despite certain people not being there when they totally usually ARE there.<br />
(yeah,<b><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14821508774/in/album-72157647509014440/" target="_blank"> I'm looking at you, Loki</a> </b>or, I guess I'm NOT looking at you right now. Dammit, Loki!)<br />
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The weather was hot and humid, so my asthma was SO NOT HAPPY, but that's why I carry an albuterol inhaler in my pouch. I'm not going to die of asthma for the sake of authenticity. Besides, have you see what I wear? I'm definitely NOT authentic. Well, that and the fact I whip out a DSLR at any given second.<br />
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Speaking of that DSLR, I chose to wear my cross-body strap on Saturday. I thought that by wearing the camera instead of basket-ing it, I'd take more photos. Well, I didn't. All it did was make BOTH my shoulders tired. See, I usually carry my basket on my right arm and I carry my mug in my left. If I get completely fatigued, I'll carry my basket in my left hand for a while. But mostly, it'll be on my right arm (crooked into my elbow). Well, by having the cross-body strap on, all I did was create drag on my other shoulder, so by mid-afternoon, my shoulders were just killing me. I went back to the basket-ing for Sunday.<br />
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Surprisingly, I didn't have any extra pain. My body wasn't in agony (I was a little itchy from the humidity, but no extra pain). And on Sunday, I even forgot to take my Vicodin before the final joust. (Just in case you don't remember or didn't know of this blog, <a href="http://pahzliveswithfibro.blogspot.com/2012/08/i-had-total-meltdown-in-public.html" target="_blank"><b>this is what happened 3 years ago</b></a> when I forgot to take my Vicodin before the final joust). I remembered about ten minutes after the joust ended, so I took it then (because I STILL had to walk up that damn hill). The only pain I was suffering from was in my left foot. That stupid, stupid left foot. Not even the whole left foot, just the left half of the left foot.<br />
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I finally figured out a way to describe the pain in the Left Half of My Left Foot. You know when you're sitting down and your foot falls asleep? And then you get up to stand and your leg crumples under you and suddenly your foot is on fire with a thousand white-hot sewing pins and knitting needles burning through your very bones? THAT. That's the feeling I have in the Left Half of My Left Foot almost all of the time. Right now, I'm seated at my desk with my foot resting on top of my man-sandals, so The Top Part of the Left Half of My Left Foot isn't so bad. But the second I slip into my man-sandals, that white-hot agony will be there.<br />
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The Monday and Tuesday that followed were normal days, except for the Left Half of My Left Foot. I wasn't in any extra pain like I've been for years after a faire day. Even my human knee didn't hurt. (my shoulders were a bit achy, but that's because of the camera/basket thing I talked about above). In fact, I wasn't in any real Not-Foot-Related pain till Wednesday, but that pain was the tendinitis in my shoulder letting me know that rain was a-comin'. Yes, "a-comin'" because that's how you say it when you have a body part alert you to its arrival.<br />
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So, I'm going to mark this up as another success for that Generic Cymbalta for fibro. So far, so good. I'm not going to be excited or overly complimentary. This is good. That's all I'm sayin'. <br />
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And now, let's talk about <strike>photography</strike> OPENING WEEKEND!! And there just so happens to be photos. As usual, ~<b><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157655521472700" target="_blank">here is the link</a></b>~ to the entire album of Opening Weekend photos. And below are a whole bunch of them. Just take a look at whichever you want- the link or scroll down. How can I NOT love the faire? These people are awesome.<br />
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OH!! SIDE NOTE- I <strike>nagged</strike> <i>convinced </i>my son to come along to Bristol finally! He's going to come with me on Sunday!<br />
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Now, on to the photos!!<br />
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Sir Mauldron, Baron of Blackburn! (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/Mauldron" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a>)<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19547449689/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/482/19547449689_c29d4b400e_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Sir Maxmillian, the Jousting Earl of Braden! (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/SirMaxmilliantheJouster" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a>)<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19113147443/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/311/19113147443_e89a833b60_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Duchess Anastasia of Warwick! (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/DuchessAnastasiaofWarwick" target="blank">FACEBOOK</a>)
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19561805618/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Duchess Anastasia of Warwick"><img alt="Duchess Anastasia of Warwick" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/378/19561805618_911595197d_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Sir Edgeron of Aquataine! (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/SirEdgeron" target="blank">FACEBOOK</a>)
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19128940193/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Sir Edgeron of Aquataine"><img alt="Sir Edgeron of Aquataine" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/310/19128940193_159d76200e_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Don Vincenzo di Scicilia! (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/donvincenzodisicilia" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a>)
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19111488894/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/436/19111488894_0d5450f6f2_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Squire Archer!<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19113147123/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Squire Archer"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/502/19113147123_66762abd56_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Squire Freya!
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19726855102/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/374/19726855102_227ea22623_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19707857246/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/445/19707857246_01db0a495b_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19546037630/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/541/19546037630_eaf3b428f4_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Awwww, yeah... I missed this!
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19111489854/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Tournament Joust"><img alt="Tournament Joust" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/342/19111489854_4e9a8d1bcc_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Squire Savvy and Squire Murley!<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19113221553/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Joust to the Death"><img alt="Joust to the Death" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/261/19113221553_508dcdc006_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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Dandelion fairy!<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19545838248/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Dandelion has a new friend"><img alt="Dandelion has a new friend" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/421/19545838248_58862fea06_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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By the Sword!
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19547267299/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="By the Sword"><img alt="By the Sword" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/291/19547267299_2c92c9dc75_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19726672202/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="By the Sword"><img alt="By the Sword" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/258/19726672202_093023a9d4_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19707674776/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="By the Sword"><img alt="By the Sword" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/348/19707674776_52affe6a20_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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The Royal Falconer (<a href="http://www.facebook.com/FlightoftheRaptor" target="_blank">Flight of the Raptor</a>)<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19561606300/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Royal Falconer"><img alt="Royal Falconer" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/468/19561606300_d12a49f36b_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19127063304/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Royal Falconer"><img alt="Royal Falconer" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/424/19127063304_2779b469b7_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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On Sunday, Mauldron's horse had a bad hoof, so instead of "on with the show" and causing further harm, he opted not to ride in the joust. Instead, he sat in the stands with the audience, walked around to other areas, talked to kids, and was otherwise genuinely hilarious. This is my favorite shot from that whole thing.<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19127277984/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="My favorite shot of the whole weekend"><img alt="My favorite shot of the whole weekend" height="424" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/472/19127277984_511956e737_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
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This is Alexx, Sir Maxx's new horse. The Lady of Chivalry is riding him at Bristol while he continues his joust-horse training.<br />
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<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19742777332/in/album-72157655521472700/" title="Joust to the Death- Sunday"><img alt="Joust to the Death- Sunday" height="640" src="https://farm1.staticflickr.com/385/19742777332_3e69e6f53f_z.jpg" width="424" /></a><script async="" charset="utf-8" src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js"></script>
Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-70380579497586726562015-07-03T00:44:00.000-07:002015-07-03T00:44:58.805-07:00Some kind of update... (and the pun was intentional)Hi there. I know it has been over a month since I updated. Not much has really been going on around here. I never did call my knee surgeon about my stupid knee. It started to feel better and now it only seems to bother me if I spend too much time standing or walking. The good thing about the faire is that I can absolutely go at my own pace and sit down a lot. (faire starts next weekend, by the way. July 11th is opening day).<br />
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I had a six-month followup at the VA hospital today. My blood tests look good and while a couple things are a little elevated, that'll change as soon as I get my ass moving next weekend. The Disabled Guy came home from his yearly Trip of Stupidity in May, then left again three weeks later. He got back on Monday (four days ago). On Tuesday, we had an extremely heated discussion (if by "heated discussion" means "all-out shouting match") about our central AC (<i>heated</i> discussion... AC... yeah). It seems that he's cold. I told him I can't have the house over 72° because the summer humidity sets off my asthma (which is mild) and exacerbates my fibro issues. And not even the pain issues, that's being pretty well controlled at the moment by the Generic Cymbalta. I'm talking about the under-the-skin itching, swelling, and general lack of sleep... that sort of stuff.<br />
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He kept yelling at me about how cold he was and I said that he could just put on a hoodie or something. He yelled again about how he was cold and I said- surprisingly not yelling- "You honestly cannot be mad at me for having a <i>medical condition</i>!" I had to repeat that a few times and added a few terse: "Fibromyalgia is a legitimate medical issue. So is asthma!" I get the feeling one of his less-than-reputable relatives (not naming names, but my kids would know who without me even saying) told him that fibro was fake.<br />
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Trust me- it isn't. And not just basing that on my own experiences, I say that because it is damn near impossible to get the VA to diagnose <i>anything</i> that is considered an "invisible illness" or even just a chronic illness (like, say, arthritis). So the fact that the goddamned VA hospital went through all that it has to actually diagnose me with it, well... that's a fucking legit thing. (I also found out today that my doctor had to jump through hoops, promise her firstborn, and sacrifice a small animal to get me on that Generic Cymbalta. Apparently, the VA is a dick to fibro patients *<i>ding</i>* (that's a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/CinemaSins" target="_blank">CinemaSins</a> joke)<br />
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Anyway, the I told the doctor about the conversation- minus the actual asshole behavior, because nobody really wants to hear about The Disabled Guy not being funny- and she said: "When it comes down to 'being cold' versus 'possible death', you win. When it comes down to 'being cold' versus 'severe physical discomfort', you still win." and we joked about it. Then she added: "Even though we're using a joking tone, even mild asthma isn't funny. Make sure he knows that."<br />
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I told him. He wasn't very responsive because he was watching old war movies and then eventually he was catching up on "Game of Thrones" episodes. (when he comes back from his visits to his family, he's cranky and extremely well... asshole-ish. There's a lot of extremes in living with a stroke person. Especially since his stroke is of the old-school variety. A few minutes after our blowup, he was back to normal and talking about me having two feet). I don't know if anything I said to him sank in through all the talk of dragons, random soft-core sex scenes, and whatever the hell else goes on in that show.<br />
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But, I did learn something good at my doctor appointment- the reason for my ridiculous amount of fatigue is that my thyroid has yet again gone a little wonky. So my Synthroid dosage is going to be tweaked a little. That's good news because it means that it can be fixed and it ISN'T the fibro! And that means that the Generic Cymbalta still seems to be working.<br />
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I am very awake right now- at 227 AM as I type this- because when I went to bed at 10 PM, my legs and lower back/abdomen area decided those millions of hairy-legged spiders wanted to set themselves on fire and crawl out through my skin. I'm pretty sure that was caused by the fact I had a fasting lab today (which meant no caffeine, no food, and no Vicodin in the daytime) and I had to speed-walk through the VA hospital. For some reason, I have to go in, walk halfway down one wing of the hospital to the lab, then trek all the way to the other end of a different wing to pick up a piece of red card stock with my name on it, and then go all the way back to where the lab was to the clinic where I see my doctor. Today, I said: "It'd be nice if you'd move this office, I dunno, a little closer to the clinics." They agreed, but of course, that's not going to happen.<br />
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I'd like to talk about photography, but all I got is the same old stuff. Macro flowers, raindrops on leaves. I've been adding text to photos from last season at Bristol and doing my "countdown" by uploading two to four photos at a time. If you'd like to see it, <b><a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/media_set?set=a.10153258137437559.1073742012.690817558&type=3" target="_blank">here's the link</a> </b>to the Facebook album. And since I don't have much else going on at the moment, here's some photos of bubbles I took last week. The pink-tinted blob in the bubble is a reflection (refraction?) of the extremely bright pink shirt I was wearing.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19150515982" title="Day 132 of Year 6- I'm the neon pink blob... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 132 of Year 6- I'm the neon pink blob..." height="331" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/430/19150515982_7851fe889c.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19065029290" title="Bubble photos- by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bubble photos-" height="331" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/445/19065029290_9cc0d558ee.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18630160544" title="Bubble photos- by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bubble photos-" height="331" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/326/18630160544_aaec08c894.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19065029828" title="Bubble photos- by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bubble photos-" height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3956/19065029828_5f15ee31c4.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/19065028870" title="Bubble photos- by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bubble photos-" height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3724/19065028870_d36e8f329e.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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This is my 365 self-portrait from day 121 of Year 6. I'm blowing bubbles while being back-lit by my flash. It took a lot of attempts and a lot of dripping bubble solution on my shirt to get this shot.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18632549930" title="Day 121 of Year 6- Bubbles! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 121 of Year 6- Bubbles!" height="331" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/312/18632549930_3e13c37e6f.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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And, for funsies, here's my 365 self-portrait from day 125 of Year 6. People were sharing the article about how<a href="http://nerdist.com/zookeepers-are-recreating-chris-pratts-moves-in-jurassic-world/" target="_blank"><b> zookeepers and such were "Pratting" with their animals</b></a>. So, I did the same with mine.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18910750286" title="Day 125 of Year 6- Pratting... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 125 of Year 6- Pratting..." height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3748/18910750286_964db1ab85.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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And I did take some macro water drops, so here are a few...
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18220333144" title="Raindrops on roses by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Raindrops on roses" height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3819/18220333144_7883e914e6.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18222280653" title="Bleeding heart leaf/leaves by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bleeding heart leaf/leaves" height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3762/18222280653_6bb255a3d9.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18222280883" title="Bleeding heart leaf/leaves by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bleeding heart leaf/leaves" height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5557/18222280883_7827686dc9.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18655223590" title="Bleeding heart leaf/leaves by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Bleeding heart leaf/leaves" height="331" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5521/18655223590_ae9f733a89.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-11128175510628941812015-05-28T16:07:00.001-07:002015-05-28T16:11:27.201-07:00Well... insert frustrated swear words and sobbing here- I have to call my knee doctor tomorrow. More on that later. I know you've been waiting to hear about how the Janesville Ren Faire went, so I'm going to do that first, because I was happy there... it was a nice place to be...<br />
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The cortisone shot I got in my knee twenty-three days ago (which was about a week or so before the Janesville Faire) worked fantastically through the faire. My knees did not hurt. My only hurt was from my feet and all the standing and walking I had to do. My only hurt on Sunday was from my feet and a little of my lower back because my back was all whiny about having to stand and walk all day.<br />
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~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157653434393186" target="_blank"><b>Link to the Album of Janesville Faire Photos</b></a>~<br />
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The first day, the heat was somewhat oppressive. It was humid as fuck out, too. I wore my blue "over-archer" bodice with one of the new blue skirts I sewed the previous week. (one skirt is mine, the other is Christine's). The over-archer style of bodice/corset has a collar on it (making it more Victorian than Elizabethan) and it meets in the back sort of in a halter-style (there's a row of grommets, laced like a tiny corset), so the collar bit just LAYS on your neck. Or, my neck. I had four layers of upholstery-weight fabric laying on my neck in the mid-80s temperature and one-billion intensity humidity. That pretty much guaranteed that I won't be wearing it to Bristol this summer.<br />
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But, here's a photo of me in the blue medallion over-archer.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16894110886" title="Day 39 of Year 6: My, what a windy day! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 39 of Year 6: My, what a windy day!" height="500" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7286/16894110886_99d170543d.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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And the back view of both my over-archers (blue medallion and "Captain Blood"- with the matching tie-on peplum).
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16300075693" title="Back of Over-archers by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Back of Over-archers" height="378" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7601/16300075693_c03cfb6d67.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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Now, they're gorgeous and I love-love-love the fabric and how the corset/bodice accentuates my curves (because, daaaaammmn, I have a great hip-to-waist-to-bust ratio, even as a fat girl). But with all that humidity, it was uuuugh. And, because it was supposed to rain on Sunday (spoiler, it didn't even rain!) I wore my burgundy courtier. (here's a photo of me with Jeff, the super-awesome dude I know from the historical reenactor group called <a href="http://www.facebook.com/GSMBristol" target="_blank">GSM-Bristol</a>. They "host" the Janesville Faire).<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17772980466" title="Day 93 of Year 6- Jeff! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 93 of Year 6- Jeff!" height="500" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5323/17772980466_bb4d7b4e7d.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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So, the faire itself was great. Sunday's weather was absolutely gorgeous and it was windy as hell, so the humidity wasn't an issue (I'd have worn my other over-archer had I known it would be that nice). My feet were the usual amount of tired and sore for a faire weekend. But, my fibro wasn't. I told many people that the "new" medicine "seemed to be working" because every time I rave about how good I feel, the medicine stops working. So, at the moment, generic Cymbalta for fibro seems to be holding its own.<br />
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On Sunday evening, when I got home from the faire, I had to carry in all my stuff. At the end of a faire day, I take off my bodice and my overskirt, so I end up having to carry my camera basket, my corset/bodice, my overskirt, and my utility belt (I call it that, it's the leather belt with pouches we all almost wear to faire, so we don't have to hand-carry every-fucking-thing). As I went up the steps, I felt my human knee twinge. It was like it was trying to twist itself.<br />
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Fuck.<br />
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I've spent the last week-ish gimping around, using my goddamn cane sporadically and generally being pissed off about the whole thing.<br />
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Saturday, a group of my son's friends asked if I'd take photos of them on their motorcycles, so I did. I was on my feet for almost two hours- my knee was so not happy about it at all. But, the photos were awesome and I even made a couple of the guys do my 365 with me. I haven't uploaded those photos to my Flickr yet, but here's a ~<a href="https://www.facebook.com/psexypsychic/media_set?set=a.10153209455417559.1073742011.690817558&type=3" target="_blank"><b>link to the Facebook album</b></a>~<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17402623543" title="Day 99 of Year 6- ...and the boys by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 99 of Year 6- ...and the boys" height="500" src="https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7708/17402623543_aab6543a48.jpg" width="331" /></a><br />
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And then there's today. The "Get to that later" part I mentioned in the first part above. At around 4 PM, I was walking upstairs to go to the loo (our bathroom is upstairs, and it's the only bathroom in the house and there's nowhere we could add a second one downstairs), and since the Twinge-Knee Incident of May 17th, I've been going up the stairs using only my cyborg knee. I got to the landing and shifted my weight to the human knee to put my cyborg leg on the step and BAM! Sheer, agonizing, blazing-white-hot pain shot through my knee like I'd slipped on the ice and wrenched the shit out of it. I started swearing and sobbing instantly. I shrieked to the Disabled Guy to get me my cane. I couldn't move. I couldn't do anything but sob and gasp in pain. And swear. I swore a lot.<br />
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After sobbing off most of my mascara (waterproof my ass) and actually getting to the loo, I managed to gimp my way downstairs where I starting icing my knee. A bottle of frozen-solid water behind my knee and a smooshy, bendy blue ice pack over the top and sides of my knee. I've also since taken a bunch of pain meds (because it was close enough to my usual time). There's still pain, but at least I can breathe now. Unfortunately, I'm too fat to know if my knee is swollen or not. I assume it is, it feels like it is.<br />
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So, tomorrow morning, I have to call and make another appointment. Clearly the cortisone didn't work.<br />
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Now... about those photos...<br />
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Here's a few favorites, with my absolute favorite first.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18133325271" title="My favorite shot from the weekend- by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="My favorite shot from the weekend-" height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7702/18133325271_98c9fc305a.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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The rest are in no particular order of favor.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18133327871" title="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire" height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7706/18133327871_03654a6252.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17511689453" title="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire" height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7754/17511689453_43853ec3d0.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17509795274" title="Trying to talk about hats and Vinz is just... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Trying to talk about hats and Vinz is just..." height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7673/17509795274_2d5fc0df85.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18128891712" title="Odorferious Thunderbottom and Loxen Bagel by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Odorferious Thunderbottom and Loxen Bagel" height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7727/18128891712_705628c5f3.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18128098782" title="The Sea Captains and their Adventures by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="The Sea Captains and their Adventures" height="331" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8897/18128098782_432fd4bebe.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18131576385" title="The Sea Captains and their Adventures by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="The Sea Captains and their Adventures" height="500" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8889/18131576385_9746261ca5.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17509001634" title="The Sea Captains and their Adventures by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="The Sea Captains and their Adventures" height="500" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8820/17509001634_954b7dbff9.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17944527830" title="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire" height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7787/17944527830_a108cfeef3.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17944528780" title="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire" height="500" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8855/17944528780_0f6c2375ba.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/18133328871" title="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire" height="331" src="https://c4.staticflickr.com/8/7664/18133328871_4cb4a6911f.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17511688363" title="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol, day 2 of the Janesville Faire" height="331" src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8760/17511688363_cc3cde3dd5.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-51612168824756449882015-05-08T18:10:00.000-07:002015-05-09T04:35:39.505-07:00These are things that happened today... I had a long day. It got to the point where I could no longer wait... the lawn <i>had</i> to be mowed. It was 18 inches high in some areas. The chis would disappear for several seconds and then emerge on the other side, slightly confused and a little scared. <a href="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7611/16335561134_ec7e52971b.jpg" target="_blank">Jasper</a> would <a href="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8044/8135314012_27437cb89d.jpg" target="_blank">bound</a> through it like a tiny,<br />
<a href="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8760/17085847460_f94867cfc6.jpg" target="_blank">derpy gazelle</a>. So, I did it. I decided to mow the lawn. And these are some things that happened today.<br />
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My hair is long enough now that it can go into an actual all-up full-on ponytail.<br />
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I used the 110 SPF sunscreen that I got for this year's faire season.<br />
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Surprisingly, the lawnmower actually fired up. After six months of sitting in the shed, it turned over on a single pull.<br />
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The grass was so thick that the lawnmower stalled. A lot. I lost count at around twenty times. I couldn't go too slow, it would choke to death. I couldn't go too fast, because it would choke while not cutting anything.<br />
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When it stalled the second or third time, I couldn't get it to start again. I was sweating profusely. The sunscreen that boasted itself as "sweat-proof" and "won't run into your eyes" was sweating off my face and burning my eyes right out of their sockets. I took off my sunglasses and actually walked from the middle of my backyard into my house with my eyes closed. I knew exactly where the steps were, where the loose boards in the deck were, and the door inside. That's when I decided to take a break.<br />
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I went back outside, wearing the <a href="http://thedisabledguy.blogspot.com/2014/08/all-my-words.html" target="_blank">O'Hare Towing baseball cap</a> that I stole from the Disabled Guy (to help control the sweat pouring into my eyes, bring all the sunscreen with it).<br />
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I did a few more slow passes in the deep grass and out of the corner of my eye, I saw movement on the deck. But it wasn't anything like birds or a squirrel. It was the goddamn flock of dogs! Somehow, <a href="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8159/7304989202_bb60aaeceb.jpg" target="_blank">smartypants Gypsy</a> got the door open and all the dogs came out onto the deck to see what I was doing. I got them back inside (there was very little shade out there on the deck, I don't like to do that to them).<br />
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I managed to mow the lawn, despite the intermittent stalling.<br />
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I discovered with the inside of a golf ball looks like. Oh, and I found almost a dozen golf balls in the tall grass. I only saw the inside of one of the golf balls.<br />
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I was actually able to turn off my photographer's brain after the first ten or fifteen minutes. Every time I saw something, I thought: "I should get my camera before I mow this..." But, dammit, the lawn needed mowing and art would have to wait.<br />
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After another stalling, I took another break and drank two 16.9 ounce bottles of water.<br />
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In less than ten minutes, three different people showed me that I was in their email (they posted screen caps on my Facebook). Earlier this week, I was informed via email that I won the "Action Photo of the Week" for <a href="http://www.thinkgeek.com/" target="_blank">ThinkGeek</a>! I won a $100 gift code for their site and they used my Steampunk Wonder Woman T-shirt photo in their email newsletter.<br />
(<a href="http://goo.gl/2We0IT" target="_blank">scroll to the bottom</a>!). Having been outside most of the day, I hadn't checked my email associated with that newsletter and didn't know it was out yet.<br />
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My lower back was getting a bit achy after the first hour, but I was expecting that, really.<br />
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While mowing the front yard, passing drivers stared at me like I was some crazy person. As if a fat chick wearing a neon yellow baseball cap and tattered jeans and mowing a lawn was a weird thing.<br />
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I was finally at the end of the mowing. There was about a six foot by... oh, four-ish feet rectangle of grass in the very back part of the yard. And the goddamned lawnmower stalled again! AGAIN! And after four pulls on the start cord, I said: "Fuck this noise... I'm done! That's it!" I put the lawnmower away, locked up the shed, trudged inside, and drank two more bottles of water.<br />
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The baseball cap was almost entirely soaked with sweat. The very outer edge of the brim was still dry.<br />
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I got an <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17411038936/in/dateposted-public/" target="_blank">awesome gift</a> in the mail from an awesome lady named Tricia.<br />
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I sat here in my chair for almost an hour and a half without doing anything. Well, I drank more water and caught up on Facebook and so on.<br />
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I took the dogs out and fed them. Then I took a shower (finally) after 5 PM.<br />
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When I pulled my ponytail out, I found a stick in my hair. And some pine needles (there are pine trees in our yard).<br />
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When I got undressed for my shower, I found grass clippings, a few pine needles, and dandelion fuzz in my bra.<br />
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After my shower, I discovered some new tan lines on my shoulders. "Sweat-proof" my ass.<br />
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I ate my dinner, took that photo of me wearing that awesome bracelet, and as I sat down to start typing, one of my favorite movies came on cable. (it's called <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1836944/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">The Baytown Outlaws</a></i> and it's stupid action with a mix of humor. I love it). And now, at the end of this typing and link-pasting, my muscles are only mildly achy. Like you'd expect for spending hours mowing the prairie in the backyard. My feet are sore too, because I wore my old, worn-out boots to mow.<br />
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But, you know what <i>didn't happen</i> today?<br />
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My knee didn't hurt. Not at all. Still doesn't.<br />
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That's what I call a good day.Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-8073151798348662282015-05-05T15:49:00.001-07:002015-05-05T15:50:25.254-07:00"Life's funny sometimes"... but Life is also a jerk sometimesSo, 'sup? Been over a month now. Any news?<br />
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*<i>waits</i>*<br />
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*<i>waits more</i>*<br />
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Oh, wait, that's right. This is my stupid blog and I'm supposed to be sharing news.<br />
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I wanted to write some stuff a week or two ago, but I was putting it off because I had a problem. My problem was this- my human knee started to hurt. At first, I couldn't tell if it was a "fibro hurt" or if something more was going on. So, I did what I do best- I tried not to think about it. Guess what? If you guessed "nothing happened", you're right. The pain in my knee varied in intensity. Some days were just a mild ache. Some days were so blindingly painful that I cried from it. Driving became a horrible chore. Pressing down on the gas pedal wasn't so bad, but holding down the brake pedal because so painful I'd white-knuckle grip the steering wheel and contort my face into some pretty epic expressions in an effort to not scream: "OW!MOTHERFUCKINGSONOFABITCHCOCKSUCKER!" (because swearing helps ease pain).<br />
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Last week, my daughter asked me to come to her college (a 90 minute drive, made mostly with cruise control and a few cooperative stoplights) to take production photos of the play she's stage managing. So I did. And it was fun (and the play was cool). But, I was up and down and standing and walking for several hours. I didn't really feel the full impact of all that till the next day. The next day when every single moment was agony and I cried and I was in so much pain I couldn't even sit here to process the RAW files. And if you know me, you know that I never let a photo sit without processing. It ended up taking me almost four days to do what should have taken two days. Because of this goddamn human knee. It was that day that I called and made an appointment with my knee doctor. I didn't bother to go through the VA first. If I had, I'd still be waiting for that appointment.<br />
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I hate using a cane. It pisses me off. I used a cane for three years and a huge chunk of that time was spent with two canes (I named them "George and Gracie"). So, because I was doing this more often than I wanted, I made that appointment.<br />
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My worst fear was that I'd have to get another knee replacement. I had my left knee replaced in 2009 and while it was the best thing that ever happened to me (because it opened up my life and I got to go "out" and do "stuff" and have "fun" like "all the normal people do"), I don't ever want to go through that again. I've given birth to three babies. Without drugs. Two of them in Army hospitals (the middle one was at a civilian hospital because the Army is a dick to families). Three babies, no drugs, and one of them was 11 pounds even and 22 1/2 inches tall. And the knee replacement pain was worse. Much worse.<br />
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How much worse? Well, allegedly, women "forget" the pain of labor to go through it again. My kids have 2 1/2 years and 1 1/2 years between them, so I guess in my case, that's true. I had my knee replaced SIX YEARS ago and I STILL remember how much it sucked in the three weeks that followed. Pain and agony and so much work to just get normal enough to get out of the hospital. I stayed for two weeks for in-hospital physical therapy and then I spent two weeks at my parents' fully-handicap-accessible house before coming to my own house. Well, I don't have that luxury anymore (since my parents passed away).<br />
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So, I did not want another goddamn knee replacement. I've gone through scenarios in my head on scheduling it after faire season because I'd have six months between Teslacon and Janesville Faire. I only needed five months the last time (I had my knee replacement five months before my first trip to Bristol). But... instead, this is what has happened.<br />
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I took two photos of my X-rays. One from pre-replacement in 2009 and one from today.<br />
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You'll notice that they're leaning (I did them backwards, they're leaning in, not out). That's partly because I'm so overweight that my thighs are pushing them and partly because I hyper-extend my knees, well, all my joints. Christine hates it when I hyper-extend my fingers, it grosses her out. Jason likes it because he can do it to his elbows and he used to do MMA (mixed-martial arts fighting) and his opponents couldn't make him tap-out with an arm bar. I'm not sure how my oldest- Kat- feels about hyper-extended joints.<br />
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So, let's zoom in on these bad boys and I'll show you some things.<br />
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Here's the right knee. The yellow arrows are pointing to two bone spurs that have started to grow. The blue arrows are pointing to the bright white line, which indicates that the bones are rubbing and starting to wear down. The purple arrows show the gap between the bones, which means I still have a little bit of cartilage in there.<br />
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This is my left knee, from 2009, about a month before my knee replacement. The difference here is that the gap is much smaller. The blue arrows are pointing to the white line (which was all around the entire bone, not just those bits on the edges). The yellow arrows are pointing to the bone spurs that were growing, including a third one on the edge (I could feel that one. I remember <i>that</i> quite vividly). Those bone spurs were worn down, and one of them may have been broken off. The green arrow is pointing to a folding-over-like edge. Like an ice cream cone is just melting a little, the edge of the ice cream is just holding on. That was all around the bone as well. I have a plastic model of my knee joint around here somewhere and it has all the flat spots and overhang of bone. I didn't point out the gap. As you can see, there's a lot less gap there.<br />
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So, it is obvious to me (and the doctor, because he explained it to me) that my right knee is in no way as bad of shape as the left one was. Probably because I saw him within a month of the pain starting. When it happened to the last one, I had to wait for almost two years before I was given the consultation letter to see the surgeon away from the VA. (I can see this doctor now, because my knee replacement was done by him, so everything that happens to my knees now falls under his umbrella of care- that umbrella thing is my own analogy, not the insurance's).<br />
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Instead of terrifying me with another total knee replacement, we're doing the cortisone shots. I have "significant arthritis", but not enough for a total knee replacement. He said if it works out, I'll be fine for up to six months. So, what's happen next is a photo of a two-inch long needle. And the one after it is a photo of him pressing the syringe into my knee. I didn't feel it at all. He just jammed it in and there was no pain, no anything. I felt a little tingle when he hit the plunger bit down, but other than that, nothing. And, I know if I end up not feeling any relief in the next week or so, to come in again and we'll do something else (I assume the next step up would be "rooster injections", which are so named because they're made out of rooster waddles. Yes, your "what the fuck?" reaction is entirely appropriate).<br />
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So, here's the warning, if you don't like needles or what it looks like when a needle is inserted into the knee to the point you can't see the needle anymore, don't scroll down.<br />
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This is the end of the blog for you, as far as your needle hate is concerned.<br />
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I'm not going to add any photography stuff to this post because it's already laden with photos. So if you stop now, you won't miss anything but needle stuff.<br />
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<span style="background-color: yellow;">Last warning. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: orange; color: yellow; font-size: large;">One more warning. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">FINAL WARNING!!</span> </span><br />
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Okay, you were warned. Here are the two photos-<br />
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And this one- I might use this as my 365 for the day.<br />
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-23707231702479957052015-04-01T17:52:00.000-07:002015-04-01T17:53:10.106-07:00I see what you did there, Fibro... I've been doing that thing I do where I plan on updating the blog, but then I don't because I forget or I procrastinate till... I forget.<br />
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I had a bit of a flare up on a perfectly wonderful, sunny, gorgeous day. It was 65° Fahrenheit and just lovely. But it was a weak-ass flareup. It was mostly fatigue with a bit of pain. The morning dose of Vicodin took the edge off the pain. The fatigue stuck around and got worse as the day wore on, like a normal bout of flareup fatigue.<br />
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And I didn't really know why, so I checked the weather forecast. Well, let me show you a photographic representation. I've been doing the 365 self-portrait project since 2010. I've recently started my sixth year. I'm in a group on Flickr that calls itself: "<a href="https://www.flickr.com/groups/hereios" target="_blank"><b>We're Here</b></a>". We pick a theme for a day and then we "invade" a group with our photos of that theme. The theme for that day- Sunday, March 22nd, was "Lazy Photography" and the description was: <i>"The great photographers venture out into the world, fearless and tireless. They search for opportunities, and even create opportunities. god bless 'em. But this group is for when you'd rather park yourself on the couch or on the porch and wait for an opportunity to come to you. and if it doesn't come...<b>just take a picture of your foot</b>." </i><br />
<i><br /></i>I'm a literal smartass, so that is exactly what I did- I took a photo of my foot on the swing on my back porch (which is a <a href="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5310/5885722401_54edce5966_z.jpg" target="_blank"><b>massive</b></a> wooden <b><a href="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5116/5892397791_6143137a6d_z.jpg" target="_blank">deck</a>,</b> actually).<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16689003017" title="Day 37 of Year 6: Lazy by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 37 of Year 6: Lazy" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8746/16689003017_cee847629a.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
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And, this photo is less than 24 hours later-<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16720474169" title="Day 38 of Year 6: What a difference a day makes! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 38 of Year 6: What a difference a day makes!" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8747/16720474169_49af628c4f.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
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Is it any wonder I was having a flareup?!<br />
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Yesterday, I was having one of those low-grade flareup feelings. I felt like crap, but I could at least sit down and stand up when I needed to... And I had to go to the store. I managed to live through it, the fatigue kept trying to pull me down to the floor, but I managed to get home.<br />
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A few hours later, my son came home from whatever it is he does when he's not home and not at work. He had two of his friends with him and the girl he's dating- I'm not sure if we're calling her his girlfriend yet or not, but you know... Anyway- the kids- and by "kids", I mean "adults in their early 20s" wanted me to take some photos for them. My son rides a sport bike. You and I probably know them better as "crotch rockets", but they don't like it when you call them that. So, of course I said I'd do it and we left the house to do some photos on a newly constructed dead-end street in an industrial area (no traffic). The girl didn't want to be in any of the photos so she and I sort of hung out while the guys did their drive-bys so I could do panning shots and so on. During the course of our conversations, I told her this about my fibro- "I could either sit at home and feel like shit, or I can come out here, take some cool photos of you guys and still feel like shit. So, I'm here." (and I said that's how I survive the faire on flareup days. I can sit at home and feel bad or I can at least be somewhere fun with great people). I spent a couple hours on my feet, walking around this dead end street (it was a weird dead end, the long street gave way to a 90° turn and that part ended about a half mile up. But there were no buildings around it, just an open field on one side, a highway at the end, and a pheasant farm on the other side).<br />
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Then there's today. Today, at 4 AM, my body decided to wake me up. Wake me up out of a dead sleep. Because why the fuck not? I stayed in bed till 430, trying to trick myself into falling back to sleep, but it didn't work. Fibrofuckingmyalgia will not listen to reason. And when I tried to move, my body was quite sure that was a bad idea. It took me ten minutes to get out of bed and get downstairs. After I did my morning stuff (breakfast, reading news, catching up on Facebook, trash day, dogs out), I went back to bed to try and take a nap. It was a crappy, less-restful 90 minutes of semi-consciousness. And today is the first of the month, so I had bill-paying errands to do. I struggled for everything today. Showering, getting dressed, going outside, trying to get into the vehicle (mid-size pickup truck), standing at the bank, walking. Breathing. Blergh.<br />
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I took my usual morning dose of Vicodin. I did all those things and at 2 PM, I took two more Vicodin. And about 45 minutes later, I felt the edge slide off the pain. I was still in pain, but at least I didn't have to struggle to get up out of my chair. And here's why-<br />
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Tomorrow's got rain (a 90-goddamn-percent chance of rain), then we just drop all the warmth and go back to cold temps. For a freakin' day. The earlier weather (that I didn't screen cap) was predicting snow on Friday, so I suppose I should be glad that we're just getting rain tomorrow and cold on Friday.<br />
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So, the Generic Cymbalta isn't an all-out miracle, but damn, there are a lot more good days than bad now. I'm going to accept that. Because a little flareup that goes away after a couple of hours is doable. And today's shitty flareup? Well, it sucks, but it also has a clear reason (the weather) and I feel like there's an end to it. Compared to last Spring when I had a "flareup" that lasted for months- I'll take it. But I see what you did there, Fibrofuckingmyalgia... April 1st- haha, sucks to be you, human! BOOM. Flareup on April Fool's Day.<br />
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And because I know you're wondering, here are a few shots from yesterday with the guys.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17003885511" title="Jason by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Jason" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7609/17003885511_9233a51ce9.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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This one is called "Girls on Instagram be like..."
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16797373937" title=""Girls on Instagram be like..." by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt=""Girls on Instagram be like..."" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7588/16797373937_e1dae02b51.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16817034518" title="The serious pose by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="The serious pose" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7591/16817034518_99e9f15a4e.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17004777065" title="Reese by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Reese" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8726/17004777065_bd75b6df0c.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16818574389" title="Andrew by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Andrew" height="500" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7609/16818574389_bbcb9a4dc5.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/17003885341" title="Reese's headlights look like eyes by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Reese's headlights look like eyes" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8730/17003885341_aa760a2a5f.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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This is yesterday's 365. I had Andrew (kid in red) hold the camera because he was the tallest. My son is in the black helmet behind me with the girl he's been seeing, and Reese is behind them. And I am woefully underdressed for this party.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16968833816" title="Day 46 of Year 6: I was completely underdressed for this party by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 46 of Year 6: I was completely underdressed for this party" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7598/16968833816_fca8d06584.jpg" width="500" /></a>
Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-31323676372860423692015-03-15T20:32:00.000-07:002015-03-15T20:33:16.331-07:00The Return of the Flipper FootI have a triple threat when it comes to my left foot. My left foot is on the leg that I had my knee replaced (strike one). My left foot is on the body that has fibrofuckingmyalgia (strike two). My left foot has absolutely no talent and will never be an inspirational story that will win an Oscar when it gets adapted to the big screen (strike three).<br />
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Seriously though, I've had edema issues since late 2004. It has been blamed on everything from early menopause to a shrug followed by a mumbled "I dunno". What is the most likely thing is the fibro. Sure, the fluctuating hormones that are par for the course in early menopause probably don't help, but hey, fibro is the big thing.<br />
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With the new fibro medicine (the generic Cymbalta), my swelling has gone almost completely away. My feet and lower legs will sometimes get puffy, but they get puffy in that way that says: "the human we're attached to is morbidly obese, so I get a little puffy" way. Well, last night, the flipper foot returned. Actually, it made some weak attempts to return, but last night the flipper foot reappeared. I'm going to share the photo as a link, just in case swollen flipper feet gross you out. You see, I'm wearing a too-big pair of Nike slip-on sandals as slippers. My son gave them to me. I wear a size 8 in men's sizes and my son's feet are size 13. He got these for free or something, I dunno. All I know is that they're thick-soled and have memory foam on them. So, this photo will show the flipper foot with a dent in it, where the sandals press into it. It was funny to me but a little gross for someone who isn't attached to the flipper itself.<br />
~~<a href="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7626/16828394752_88a46db290_z.jpg" target="_blank">link to the dented flipper foot</a>~~ SEE WHAT I MEAN!?<br />
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Anyway, I have no idea what caused ol' Flipperty to come back last night. I just checked- Flipperty is back tonight too, but not as intense as he was last night.<br />
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I had a flareup on Saturday that lasted less than a day. And by a "day", I mean I woke up feeling like hell and by lunchtime, I felt okay again. So, let's just keep that up and I'll deal with Flipperty.<br />
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Now to take it down a notch. Or sideways. I'm not sure where I'm going with this because I'm not sure where this whole thing is right now... but whatever...<br />
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When I talk about how good I feel with the new fibro drug, there's still pain. There will always be pain. But the pain is more tolerable. I can function like a normal person instead of just pretending everything is fine. And it pisses me off a little bit that no matter what I do, there will always be SOME kind of pain. I mean, fucking hell, I'm sitting here right now, 1016 PM as I type this sentence. I'm three hours past my drugs for the night. I shouldn't be feeling <i>anything</i>, much less be able to type without looking at my hands and hit the control+i keys to make my text go italics. And I've still got pain. I'd say the pain is at about a two or three on that stupid pain scale.<br />
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Anyway, I am going to end this with a few photos of sparrows that I took the other day. Because Pahz Lives with this Bullshit, Talks about that Bullshit, and Never Shuts up about this Other Thing that <i>Isn't </i>Bullshit and don't you ever call it that! (whew, I don't know where THAT came from- but dammit, don't call the faire "bullshit" because I love that place).<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16166702754" title="Sparrow in the tree by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Sparrow in the tree" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8608/16166702754_875ed252ee.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16787887371" title="Fluffeh Birdeh by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Fluffeh Birdeh" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7589/16787887371_0e4a5849c9.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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All birds are majestic eagles on the inside.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16787887271" title="Inside, all birds are majestic eagles by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Inside, all birds are majestic eagles" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8683/16787887271_5b3f594264.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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Also, I have asthma (a very mild form of it, and yet, it can still kill me), so when it gets cold in the single or negative digits, I have to cover my mouth and nose when I go outside so it doesn't trigger an asthma attack. And I say it looks like I'm going to rob a stagecoach.<br />
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This is Day 11 of my 6th year doing the 365 Self-Portrait Project on Flickr- (yes, those are tiny snowflakes in my hair and yes, that is my real eye color). I called this: "The Great Northern Stagecoach Robber" because I think I'm clever. So, one bonus of the weather changing is that I don't need to cover my face to take the dogs out.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16451769160" title="Day 11 of year 6: The Great Northern Stagecoach Robber by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Day 11 of year 6: The Great Northern Stagecoach Robber" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8582/16451769160_a767d99bed.jpg" width="375" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-13991896506098616322015-03-09T18:58:00.000-07:002015-03-09T18:58:52.195-07:00What a refreshing change of pace!Wisconsin weather was doing the usual thing it does this time of year and it triggered a bit of a flareup. What's the thing it does this time of year? That would be shooting up 30° (Fahrenheit) in a 36 hour period, erratic humidity, and then dropping to below-freezing at night. But, the flareup was more of the "drag me to the floor" exhaustion than pain. There <i>was</i> pain, but not as much as a "normal" (haha!) flareup.<br />
<br />
"But wait," you say, "You said something was refreshing... well, what was it? WHAT WAS SO GOL'DURNED REFRESHING?!"<br />
<br />
Calm down, Shouty Pants. The refreshing bit was arthritis. Yeah. My right hand was sore and a bit achy. ACHY. I had arthritis pain in my hand! Just your normal, run-of-the-mill arthritis pain in my knuckles! My fingers were a bit stiff too. STIFFNESS and PAIN <i>NOT ASSOCIATED</i> with fibro! I was so happy, I almost cried. But instead, I had ice cream.<br />
<br />
I'm always amazed when something feels normal. I spend a lot of days weighing my energy levels against the pain/lack-of-pain and how much I need to do. But this last little flareup, I sat down in the living room, on the sofa, covered in Chis (say that out loud!) and found myself rubbing the knuckles on my right hand and my brain didn't automatically go "FUCKIN' FIBRO!" My brain said: "What the hell, man? Arthritis? Why the hell- OH MY GOD! THIS IS ARTHRITIS!"<br />
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I tell ya, man, it's the little things.<br />
<br />
So, the new medicine seems to be working (as long as I don't fuck with things!) and aside from the mind-numbing exhaustion, the flareups haven't been terrible. I'm also still having pain in my foot from the plantar fasciitis, but it comes and goes. I also still have neuropathy (painful numbness) in that foot, too... but dammit, let's stop with the negativity.<br />
<br />
I've got 67 days till the Janesville Renaissance Faire.<br />
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I've got 123 days till the start of the Bristol Renaissance Faire.<br />
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There are 207 days till the Stronghold Olde English Faire (and my birthday!).<br />
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And 214 days till A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians! (date subject to change)<br />
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AND about 255 days till Teslacon!<br />
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Whew... those are my standing events. I don't know what else I have going on, but those are the important things.<br />
<br />
And yes, I DO happen to have some photos to share. That's the name of the blog- "Pahz Lives with Fibro and Talks about Photography". (although, technically, I should call it "Pahz Lives with Fibro, Talks about Photography, and Never Shuts the Hell Up about Renaissance Faires.". However, the joke's on you! Teslacon is a steampunk event!!)<br />
<br />
So, on to some unrelated photos-<br />
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Gypsy-<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16530291110" title="Gypsy by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Gypsy" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8581/16530291110_12bdc0ff30.jpg" /></a>
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Luna-<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16530145208" title="Luna Sage by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Luna Sage" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8658/16530145208_8831bde761.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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Jasper-<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16770326885" title="Jasper in the trademark Chihuahua Superhero pose by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Jasper in the trademark Chihuahua Superhero pose" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8711/16770326885_6faae0be76.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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Bruno-<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16563060197" title="Handsome Bruno by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Handsome Bruno" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8566/16563060197_69cd3552ea.jpg" width="331" /></a><br />
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And a few shots of the sparrows who live around the house. And in various small openings in the house.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16582721288" title="Chickadee by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Chickadee" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8721/16582721288_25f2c7124c.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16770286125" title="Meet the Sparrows! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Meet the Sparrows!" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8631/16770286125_0473be7970.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16770285915" title="Meet the Sparrows! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Meet the Sparrows!" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7585/16770285915_8dedfd3502.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16582721188" title="Meet the Sparrows! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Meet the Sparrows!" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8747/16582721188_f7ec5fe00f.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16582895890" title="Meet the Sparrows! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Meet the Sparrows!" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8661/16582895890_d79940a714.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-7425281784927159002015-02-19T19:51:00.000-08:002015-02-19T19:51:22.747-08:00And then I had to go and try to change things...So, I found that wonderful sweet spot in the medicine cocktail I take for my fibro. I had a long stretch of feelin' good and doing stuff and baking things and photographing people and being a human and all that neat stuff you guys do all the time like you're Superman or something.<br />
<br />
And I thought to myself: "Self, the whole point to you finding a fibro treatment that works is so you can stop taking so much pain medicine."<br />
<br />
And like I dumbass, I replied: "You know, Self, you're right! Let's fuck some shit up like the dumbass we are, because I <i>hate feeling good enough to live life like a goddamn human</i>!!"<br />
<br />
So, I decided that since I was feeling so good, I could cut back on the amount of muscle relaxers I was taking.<br />
<br />
Just a reminder, here is what I have been taking for the fibro- the "sweet spot" I referred to in the first sentence- One 10 mg muscle relaxer between 530 and 6 AM, two 5/325 Hydrocodone tablets between 10 and 11 AM, three 5/325 Hydrocodone tablets between 6 and 630 PM, and two more muscle relaxers and the generic Cymbalta between 7 and 730 PM.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDy4dLMTIZob-ZZKwd1wcMkLsu1uZqUEDkmf9aBJXCkaG_75cEXa9fNoZ3sgNIMtMCQOwDkUg3WU3EPPGzfWFnMHF7j0evT6Ucad4nj9h8NsVCIRIwlThhQnVtPgnZTu-_sy1td9Os9jP/s1600/PILLS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDy4dLMTIZob-ZZKwd1wcMkLsu1uZqUEDkmf9aBJXCkaG_75cEXa9fNoZ3sgNIMtMCQOwDkUg3WU3EPPGzfWFnMHF7j0evT6Ucad4nj9h8NsVCIRIwlThhQnVtPgnZTu-_sy1td9Os9jP/s1600/PILLS.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is just the pain meds. This doesn't include all the "stay-alive" pills <br />
I take in the morning after my first muscle relaxer.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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My first step was to take only ONE muscle relaxer at night. I still fell asleep that night, I still slept, and I still woke up. Except I didn't sleep good. I woke up at least twice. But hey, it was one night and this is winter (our weather is unpredictable). So, I took only one muscle relaxer a second night. (this is along with everything else- I just cut back a single 10 mg tablet of muscle relaxer).<br />
<br />
I woke up the next day with my arms, shoulders, neck, and hands so sore and so stiff that I could barely move. I said "Fuck this shit" and took two muscle relaxers at night and damned if I didn't feel better the next morning. Not 100% better, but significantly better.<br />
<br />
So, what I can garner from my absolutely unscientific shot in the dark experiment is- Don't fuck with a good thing. If it ain't broke, stop fucking with the ain't-broke thing, you stupid, stupid human. It took me another two days before I felt better. And I still don't feel as good as I felt before I tried to fuck with things. My hands are still a bit sore and yesterday, my right elbow and wrist were so sore that I couldn't fully straighten or bend my arm. I walked around with one arm crooked slightly, like the worst C3P0 cosplay in the history of terrible cosplays. When I woke up this morning, my elbow didn't hurt at all.<br />
<br />
I'm not going to mess with any doses of my fibro cocktail until it stops working for me. And then I'll talk to my doctor first. Because I'm a stupid, stupid human.<br />
<br />
And to end on a much prettier and less-stupid note, I took a bunch of macro photos the other day. My son gave me a batch of tulips for Valentine's Day (and also some chocolate, because I have a good son). So, I took them over to the window, spritzed them with a water bottle, and snapped a few shots. The purple flowers are from a hyacinth I picked up at the grocery store a week or so before Valentine's Day. Click on any photo to go to the Flickr album...<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16359115927" title="Valentine's Day tulips by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Valentine's Day tulips" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8581/16359115927_486a23640a.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16545033015" title="Valentine's Day tulips by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Valentine's Day tulips" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8641/16545033015_257c557a0d.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16359116467" title="Valentine's Day tulips by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Valentine's Day tulips" height="500" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7308/16359116467_6bc11b0401.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15924813623" title="Valentine's Day tulips by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Valentine's Day tulips" height="500" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8599/15924813623_f7173feb8d.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16519004146" title="Valentine's Day tulips by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Valentine's Day tulips" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8624/16519004146_2ae4c180cd.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16543306341" title="Valentine's Day tulips by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Valentine's Day tulips" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8562/16543306341_dd275ae8b8.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15924813973" title="Hyacinth from the grocery store by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Hyacinth from the grocery store" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7343/15924813973_51756090ef.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16358723679" title="Hyacinth from the grocery store by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Hyacinth from the grocery store" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7329/16358723679_62d21f750b.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16519003396" title="Hyacinth from the grocery store by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Hyacinth from the grocery store" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7320/16519003396_eb7245fb2e.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16519003856" title="Hyacinth from the grocery store by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Hyacinth from the grocery store" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8580/16519003856_fe20589094.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15924813783" title="Hyacinth from the grocery store by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Hyacinth from the grocery store" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8624/15924813783_aef5c9b997.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-36249543208080597202015-02-05T11:41:00.001-08:002015-02-05T11:45:31.120-08:00Some good news and maybe some weird shi- news... First of all, the new medicine still seems to be working out. My bad days are becoming random and not predictable (as in- "not every day"). Any recent flareups have been related to the completely random weather we've been having (warm, then cold, then warm and snowy, then cold and clear, then and then and then...) So, we can call generic Cymbalta some kind of success.<br />
<br />
Now for the weird shit...<br />
<br />
For a long time now- and I'm not even sure how long because I haven't been keeping track- the palm of my right hand has been itching. Like severely itching. Not the skin- it isn't on the surface. It feels like something furry and angry and maybe a little bored is trying to wriggle out from under the skin. It's almost dead center in my palm. And nothing helps. Scratching just creates an irritation on my skin. Ice makes it settle a little, but mostly it just makes my hand cold (and then causes the Raynaud's to pop up). I've tried Old Wive's tails (rubbing it against wood- not <i>that </i>kind of wood, though I suspect if I did <i>that</i>, it'd distract me enough from the itching) and I've tried rubbing it against money (the Disabled Guy's family is overflowing with ridiculous superstitions).<br />
<br />
So, I finally did a Google search to see if it was maybe related to the medicine. It is not. But the funniest thing to me was on the list of possibilities that apply to me- the two choices: Cirrhosis or a nerve issue related to carpal tunnel and/or fibro. I laughed for far too long about that Grand Canyon-esque leap of extremes.<br />
<br />
Now, I'm not a doctor and I don't play one on TV, but I'm going to say right now that I'm not dying of liver failure and the itching is related to the nerve issue. (which makes sense, because it is almost always in my right palm and very rarely in my left- or even both at the same time. And my right hand has more carpal tunnel issues than my left because I'm right-handed). And, it's also one of those casual "mention it to your doctor at your next visit" things, unless it accompanies other shit that I don't have.<br />
<br />
AND this... the generic Cymbalta for fibro... it turns out, that it may cause a drop in the body's sodium levels. I noticed that I wasn't swelling up as much as I have been (<a href="http://pahzliveswithfibro.blogspot.com/2014/09/this-blog-post-is-brought-to-us-by.html" target="_blank">remember the flipper foot?</a>). My cheekbones returned a bit and my clothes were fitting better. I didn't think anything of all that, other than I was feeling better, so my edema wasn't as bothersome. A couple weeks ago, I started to get dizzy and just sort of gross-feeling. Not sick, just not right. I decided to look up the side effects of the new medicine, to make sure I was just having normal shit going on, because I've been on it a few months. And, it turns out that it can cause <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hyponatremia/basics/definition/con-20031445" target="_blank">Hyponatremia</a>. If you don't feel like clicking the link, basically, that's abnormally low sodium in the body. Because we <i>need</i> some sodium to live.<br />
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I've been on a sodium-watchful diet since I was in my mid-20s. (technically, since I was 16, because my dad had his first heart attack then and my mom switched the entire household to a heart-healthy diet). When I was 26, my doctor told me I had high blood pressure and to go on a low sodium diet to help it. I tried and it did help- but in my late 20s, I couldn't fake them out anymore. So, along came the BP medication and the sodium-watchful diet. I call it "sodium watchful" because we eat pizza and such occasionally and people who are on an actual low sodium diet wouldn't do that. But, I do watch my sodium intake. Plus, I take water pills for the edema (Hydrochlorothyazadide). <i>That</i> would explain why I feel better for four or five hours after lunch during my day. My cereal for breakfast has almost no sodium in it. But, my lunch does.<br />
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I went on a bit of a sodium binge late last week into the weekend. I giddily ate potato chips and beef jerky because SODIUM! I simultaneously felt better and crappy at the same time. Anyway, now I know what a shark feels like when it swims too far into a river and loses the salt balances in its body. At least in my case, I can have a snack bag of barbecue potato chips and feel better. A shark has to eat a few people and then get hunted down by humans.<br />
<br />
AND FINALLY... On Saturday last (as in, last Saturday, January 31st), I went to my first-ever <a href="http://www.reenactorfest.com/" target="_blank">Military History Fest</a>. <a href="https://flic.kr/p/oEf2C2" target="_blank">This guy</a> has been nagging me to go (okay, so he asked me twice over the course of two years). I was going to go last year, but it snowed through the night and I didn't think it was safe to drive that far into unfamiliar territory. Well, this year, it started snowing at the end of the day, as I turned onto my street on my way home. As for "unfamiliar territory", the drive was literally an hour of I-90 and maybe a half hour of a couple small towns to the west of I-90. What I'm saying is, I've gone a lot farther down I-90 into Chicago and back again in worse weather... so I probably could have gone last year.<br />
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The big deal about that is that the VA has started regulating my Hydrocodone refills and now I get just enough to get me through a month. I didn't have any extra to take during the day over the weekend. I did all day at Military History Fest without pain meds. And the only problem I had the entire time was the pain in my foot. (my left foot, which will not win me an Oscar). And, I had a blast seeing the folks from <a href="https://www.facebook.com/GSMBristol" target="_blank">GSM-Bristol</a> and the Guilde of St George because everyone was so relaxed and not totally in character like they have to be at Bristol. I was in boring, normal clothes, but next year, I'll wear my (historically-inaccurate) garb so I fit in a slight bit more. I mean, I rocked my blue jeans, Wonder Woman T-shirt, and <a href="https://flic.kr/p/q4S96K" target="_blank">my metallic Docs</a>, but I'd have felt less obvious in my garb.<br />
(<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/16229091137/" target="_blank">here's my 365 from that day</a>). I sat through two panels, one about brewing beer and beerlike products and another about sewing. I learned a few things, but most notably, modern beer is for wusses because old-time-y beer (or, "olde-time-y") had way, way more alcohol content.<br />
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So, things are looking good. And I'm very optimistic about this year's faire season. We have approximately 99 days till the Janesville Faire. We've got about 155 days till Bristol. Bring it on. BRING IT ON!!<br />
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Instead of flooding this post with photos- like I'd normally do- I will just share the link to the album because you sort of have to see ALL the photos. (this is just the photos of GSM, I haven't uploaded all the photos to Flickr yet).<br />
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~~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157650619360215/" target="_blank">GSM-Bristol in Shenanigans Through Time</a>~~<br />
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And, I did a short video... I think you'll enjoy it. (I even tried to close-caption it). This video shows just how awesome the folks from GSM-Bristol really are. And the other group in the video is called <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-20th-Century-Marine/361598323925197" target="_blank">20th Century Marines</a> (that's the link to their Facebook page).<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uf35EZllqnw" width="640"></iframe>Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-63963966589460814722015-01-20T22:25:00.001-08:002015-01-20T22:25:30.530-08:00I put the PRO in PROCRASTINATION and PROGRESS! Yup. We're up in the middle of the night again. And when I say "we", I mean me. And maybe you. I don't know your life, those hidden cameras stopped working ages ago. But mostly me, because I'm the one here right now. So let's get on with this.<br />
<br />
Why have I procrastinated? Well, I was going to update the new medicine progress a couple of weeks after last month's post. But then I thought: "Hey, dumbass, wait till after your followup appointment on January 15th. That'd make more sense than writing something <i>now</i>. Duh. You're so stupid." (my self isn't very nice to my self in these conversations. Don't worry though, my self talks about my self too, so that's just the relationship they seem to have with each other.)<br />
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So, I waited. Then I had my appointment. And then I waited another five days because WHY NOT!?<br />
<br />
Well, a couple weeks before my appointment, I seemed to find the sweet spot of the medication. I take the generic Cymbalta at night, with one 10 mg tablet of Cyclobenzaprine (muscle relaxer), and my nightly Hydrocodone (two to three tablets). In the morning, usually shortly before lunch (so, between 10 and 11 AM), I take two Hydrocodone. And then, for five to six straight hours, I feel good. (not including this utterly stupid condition in my foot).<br />
<br />
You see, normally, I'll cook dinner. That takes anywhere from a half hour to an hour, depending on what we're having. It also uses my hands (because I don't use instant potatoes, because gross) and I'm on my feet the whole time. So, by the time I sit down to eat, I'm exhausted and sore. Then the Disabled Guy cleans up the kitchen after dinner.<br />
<br />
I see the hilarious irony to ME not being able to clean up the kitchen, but the person I refer to as The <i>Disabled</i> Guy does. Yes, he's disabled, but his disability doesn't cause him physical pain. But back to the story...<br />
<br />
I noticed something good was happening when I cooked dinner and cleaned up after myself as I went along. And when it was over, I sat down to eat, slightly tired, but not kicked-in-the-face exhausted. And I did the dishes after dinner.<br />
<br />
A few days later, I baked cookies.<br />
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A few days after that, I baked the Disabled Guy's birthday cake and he didn't even realize it when he walked into the kitchen while it was in the oven, because I'd cleaned everything up and put it all away.<br />
<br />
Then, I went to a photography workshop in Chicago. (spoiler alert- it was awesome). You want the link to those photos? I know you do. Here's the link to ~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157648021128253/" target="_blank">Cupcakes and Instaprints</a>~<br />
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Then I baked cookies again. I went to the store. I did things. And as long as I kept up that cycle of medicine, I was able to do things in large blocks of time in the middle of the day. I seem to have found the exact balance of pain medicine for now. At my followup appointment, the doctor decided to keep everything the same (medication-wise) and when I feel confident enough to handle the task, I can try walking for exercise again (there's ice out there right now. As good as I feel, I don't want to slip on the ice and completely fuck up my cyborg knee).<br />
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The only thing that is still pissing me off is that goddamn left foot. There's not much we can do about it because I'm taking the vitamins associated with helping neuropathy and I've gained a little sensation back in the numbness. But I'm double-cursed with that stupid thing because not only do I have fibro, I've had my knee replaced on that side. And that can cause an issue with neuropathy.<br />
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Sure, I still have bad days- I mean, look at me, I'm here... middle of the night- but the good days are coming in longer stretches and lasting for longer stretches. I don't dread going to the store as much as I did before. Now it's more of the "Great, there are <i>people</i> in there" and less of the "Great, I have to <i>walk</i> in there" than it was before.<br />
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I can tell you exactly why I'm awake tonight. It snowed. After several days of our temps in the low 40s (that's in Fahrenheit) and with humidity well over the 50% mark, it started to snow this evening. And I was in bed with my hands throbbing from the pain and my legs were on fire. They still are. Not literally, of course. Just in that itchy-one-million-hairy-legged-spiders-trying-to-escape kind of way. On the plus side of this ridiculous insomnia, I'm washing one of my super-soft blankets. One of the cats decided it had been clean long enough and hoarked a hairball on it- which I saw BEFORE climbing into bed earlier- so it needed to be washed. And the lack of that blanket contributed to the itchy-on-fire leg thing. One blanket did nothing to ease any fibroinations (just made that up, right now. You're welcome!).<br />
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So, good things. Yay! Fewer bad things. Yay, again! Photography. Yay! Oh, and I get to see a bunch of my faire family in a week and a half. I'm going to an event called Military History Fest where a bunch of them are re-enacting military historical stuff. I mean, c'mon, it's right there in the name. So, Faire Family! YAY! MORE PHOTOS! YAY!!<br />
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And, now I leave you with some photos from my Instagram... because you deserve to DIE from the cuteness...<br />
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/yFYTbhF__W/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Gypsy. (She doesn't have a "full name", but we call her "Gypsy-doodle" & she answers to "Doodle", "Poodle", "Dood", "Poopy-Puppy", "Poopy" & the kids call her "Doodle-head" sometimes). But she's a dignified wittle poopy-puppy. #GSD #germanshepherd #dog #pet</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2015-01-20T17:25:18+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Jan 20, 2015 at 9:25am PST</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/xPXuSel_70/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">"I'm not looking at your, therefore, you cannot see me." ~Luna #chihuahua #dog #pet #sassy #somuchsass</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-12-30T18:01:14+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Dec 30, 2014 at 10:01am PST</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/xMsd12l_yJ/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Bruno and Jasper. All the dogs were in this shot before Instagram cropped it. #chihuahuas #dogs #pets</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-12-29T17:04:46+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Dec 29, 2014 at 9:04am PST</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/xPWvIkF_5Z/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Gregg the Girl Dog with the Boy Name. (We just call her Gregg). No big story, just adorableness. #chihuahua #dog #pet #sunshine</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-12-30T17:52:37+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Dec 30, 2014 at 9:52am PST</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/xPWSFwl_4n/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Houdini (aka: Beefy). She could have been living with a jouster and his family, living a fun life and traveling the country with horses and other dogs, but she wouldn't bond with anyone but him. She was scared of him in his armor, even if he was just wearing the greaves. So, after 2 months of trying to acclimate her, he sadly had to give her back. Now she lives the boring life with me and the Disabled Guy (and the rest of the dogs. #chihuahua #dog #pet #sunshine</a></div>
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A photo posted by Pahz (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-12-30T17:48:39+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Dec 30, 2014 at 9:48am PST</time></div>
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Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-88332680589898997752014-12-21T02:08:00.000-08:002014-12-21T02:08:06.661-08:00I think I finally figured out this fake insomnia thing!That's right, I'm typing this blog at approximately 4 AM on a Sunday morning because when I went to bed last night, I didn't go to sleep. Instead, I just existed in that bed, feeling the pain throb in the bottom of my foot in the area where I had two separate shots to take the pain away. I also felt my muscles vibrating with pain. And I had two pretty good days in a row (up till 1 AM, when I decided I had enough of just staring at the ceiling, the wall, the other wall, the ceiling again...). I was trying not to get too hopeful till there were some REAL results with this new medicine (the generic Cymbalta), so I wasn't going to say anything... but no... on Friday evening, I said out loud to the Disabled Guy: "You know, I felt pretty good today. And walking in the grocery store wasn't terrible."<br />
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Stupid, I know. I should have kept my flappin' face shut till I had some decent results to present.<br />
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Oh, by the way, we're on day 10 with no sunlight. Nothing but clouds. I know this because I took a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10152830686387559" target="_blank">photo of the sunshine and posted it on Facebook</a> because a friend mentioned the "day-moon is on fire" in his status. I'm sure all clouds and no sunlight is probably making <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yGJGTjV2WE&feature=youtu.be&t=46s" target="_blank">Pahz something-something</a>.<br />
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Anyway, back to the title!<br />
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I think I might have this figured out! Okay, so you know how when you go to shut down your computer, but it doesn't shut down? Instead, that one screen comes up and says: "Do not unplug your computer" because its loading updates? THAT is what I'm obviously doing! Because I'll be wide awake, completely unable to "shut down" and absolutely useless to anything else. In this mode, I can't drive anywhere, I can't focus to read a book, and I can barely watch TV. And then, without warning- BAM! I'm so tired I can barely make it to my room to fall face-down on the bed. JUST LIKE A COMPUTER!<br />
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I knew that <a href="https://flic.kr/p/7D73L1" target="_blank">becoming a cyborg</a> would be weird, but I didn't realize I'd have to do all these updates during my shut-down period. No wonder I keep rebooting in the middle of the day.Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-79224825787852502102014-12-17T10:48:00.001-08:002014-12-17T10:51:29.762-08:00Dreaming about Sunshine...We've had so many cloudy days that I've had dreams about sunshine. They're totally normal dreams, like I'll wake up (in the dream) and see sunlight shining through my bedroom window. In the dream, I sit up in bed and look out into my backyard through the blinds and see lush green grass and trees, with golden morning sunlight streaming through. Only to wake up and see nothing but clouds (or, darkness, depending on the time).<br />
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And, of course, with the clouds, we've had rain. So much humidity that even when it wasn't raining, the ground stayed wet. Fog nearly every night. I don't have to tell you how much pain I've been in- you can assume<br />
"a fuck-ton" of pain. And, with that pain, I've had the drag-me-to-the-floor exhaustion. Most nights, when I get in bed, it almost feels like my muscles are vibrating with pain.<br />
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AAAANNND... I'm on day seven of the generic of Cymbalta. The "mild" side effects I've had have been slight dizziness and a little nausea. Nothing I can't deal with, but having that on top of everything else has been a wonderful little trip through a suburb of Hell. I suspect actual Hell has lower humidity. "Actual Hell"... Hell Proper, really. Back to the generic of Cymbalta- it does seem to be helping me sleep better. I'm still taking one muscle relaxer at night (with my Vicodin, still) and one in the morning. The pharmacist told me to stop taking those as I needed and that the side effects would last about a week or two.<br />
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I'm just waiting for the "makes the pain go away" part. That's all I want.<br />
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The other day, I was reading an article or something about fibro (because, why not?) and it gave an excellent description of how fibro feels. I've likened it to being hit by a truck, thrown from a horse, post-workout pain, lactic acid overload, and so on. The article- and I can't find the damn link now- said it somewhat like this: "When someone is poked in the arm, they feel pressure. Their brain receives the signal that pressure has been applied to the area. A person with fibro feels pain." So, where a normal person feels acknowledgement of touching, a fibro sufferer feels like they're being stabbed with an ice pick.<br />
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The "ice pick" analogy is my own. Just don't poke me in the goddamn arm, okay? Or stab me with an ice pick. A hug is way nicer than both of those things.<br />
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As for the "talks about photography" part of this thing- about a week and a half ago, I got to do something cool...<br />
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~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157649594443106/" target="_blank">Thee Bluebeard Visits Santa</a>~ (and Santa is a <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14941012523" target="_blank">familiar face from Bristol</a>).<br />
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And later that week, I caught a couple photos of a cardinal. Normally, cardinals in my yard fly away and sit just out of zoom lens range for me. But I was in Racine and this cardinal apparently hadn't gotten the memo from the others to avoid me.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15953790701" title="Cardinal... I decided to move closer... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Cardinal... I decided to move closer..." height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8653/15953790701_ae920206fb.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15955750855" title="Closer still... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Closer still..." height="500" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7479/15955750855_a5140422ee.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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And because the holidays are being crammed down your throat, here are a few photos I've taken in the last couple years. Happy Whatever Holiday You Celebrate!<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/11400653665" title="Christmas in my back yard by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Christmas in my back yard" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5496/11400653665_ccf1b3e1dd.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/11400632866" title="Christmas in my back yard by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Christmas in my back yard" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3700/11400632866_c6665a7a68.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/11691524783" title="New Year's Eve Snowfall by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="New Year's Eve Snowfall" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3680/11691524783_aaba42afaf.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/12024577963" title="Snow, snow, everywhere snow by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Snow, snow, everywhere snow" height="331" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7300/12024577963_a7c334feb7.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15305987163" title="Christmas Stocking by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Christmas Stocking" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8579/15305987163_167aa67deb.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15899825556" title="Tiny tree by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Tiny tree" height="331" src="https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8660/15899825556_3e73d6d0e6.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-37566832089780751212014-12-05T20:17:00.001-08:002014-12-05T20:26:13.314-08:00Well, Hello there! Been a while, hasn't it?Hi there. Sorry I haven't updated for a while. I wish I could say it was because nothing but goodness and rainbows were all around, but hey, I was just being lazy and procrastinating the hell out of updating.<br />
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First of all, Teslacon 2014. It was, of course, amazing. I managed to snag a room in the big hotel (that's where the convention takes place) and that made things immensely easier. Christine and her boyfriend came along and at the last minute, a friend ended up crashing with us, so I was able to save money on the room (that's a thing with the Disabled Guy- he hates spending money unless it is being spent on things for his model trains). My Steampunk Wonder Woman outfit was a huge hit. Everyone loved it. I got so many compliments on that outfit that I just want to wear it all the time. Since everyone who reads this blog is either on my Facebook or Tumblr, you've all seen the Steampunk Wonder Woman outfit.<br />
~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15595062585" target="_blank">Here's the link if you haven't</a>~<br />
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I learned something at Teslacon. I can only stand on my feet for an hour before I really need to sit down. And I would need to sit down for a while, not a few minutes. By Saturday evening, my feet felt like they were being sliced open with a vegetable peeler and then stuffed back into leather shoes. That was the worst part for me- the pain. And the pain was mostly foot-related and not so noticeably fibro-related.<br />
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Oh, speaking of fibro-related... I arrived to the hotel on Thursday, because Teslacon officially starts on Friday morning. And the friend who ended up crashing in our room with us was there on Thursday as was another friend who only needed a bed for one night (she was staying at a hotel across the street but her husband wouldn't get to Teslacon till Friday afternoon. Heck, Christine and her boyfriend didn't arrive till Friday afternoon either). Anyway, we're all in the room. I'm laying in bed listening to my friends sleeping. Nice, quiet, soothing breathing sounds, like people do when they sleep. AND MY GODDAMN BODY DECIDES TO HAVE FAKE INSOMNIA! There I was, listening to all the sleeping, wide-fucking-awake till three in the morning! If I had been home, I'd have gotten up to come here and complain about it. I woke up at 6 AM, fully awake again. I did the entirety of Friday on three hours sleep. Dressed as Steampunk Wonder Woman.<br />
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~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157646964143563/" target="_blank">Here is the link to my Teslacon album</a>~<br />
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Despite the pain and very obvious tiredness, I loved it. And because I didn't have to foot the cost for the room entirely on my own, I was able to purchase my tickets for NEXT year at the hotel, so I saved a few bucks that way (you can get them online starting in January, but there's a charge related to the online transaction). I'm hoping to get a room in the big hotel again for next year. (it was nice to be an elevator ride away if I needed to fall flat on my face). My one regret was that I couldn't get to the closing ceremonies. I was in line, I was walking, but about halfway there, my body just said "NOPE" and I had to sit down.<br />
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Now, moving forward... the Vicodin and muscle relaxers aren't working all that great, but I do feel better overall while taking them as opposed to when I don't. (my muscles are less stiff than they would be if I weren't taking them). That<a href="http://pahzliveswithfibro.blogspot.com/2014/02/and-then-angels-started-singing.html" target="_blank"> thing in my foot that I needed those shots for</a>? Well, it kinda came back. It comes and goes. Some days, it doesn't hurt at all and some days it's so painful I want to chop my foot off and throw it to the sharks. That'd be quite a throw, since I live in the Midwest. I'm taking daytime Vicodin every day now. Oh, speaking of Vicodin... they changed the classification of it and now I have to call in a refill every month instead of just getting a year's worth of refills without having to talk to a human. I have to call, speak to a human, then wait for the pills to be sent to me. Every. Single. Month. I'm just waiting for the day they say I have to drive up to pick them up in person. It's only an hour away, but damn, way to make things a pain in the ass. I've had to start planning my days by how much Vicodin I can take and still function. I'm allowed six pills in a 24 hour period and I'm trying NOT to take that many. I've started timing my trips to the store with when I take the Vicodin and I've even considered using my cane again. And we all know how much I loathe using my cane. (I do, by the way, hate using my cane, just in case anyone forgot).<br />
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Earlier this week, I got a letter from my doctor. The VA Hospital's powers-that-be have "approved a 12-week trial run" for the generic version of Cymbalta for me. And so far, everything I've read about it seems to be good. And by that I mean- when it works for people, it works well. What I've been reading has been one or the other- it works well or it doesn't work at all. I haven't found much about "well, it makes me swell up for no reason without noticing for two months till I've loosened all the laces in my boots and can't lace up my corsets properly for faire"... or is that just me?<br />
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It's probably just me.<br />
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So, as soon as that Generic to Cymbalta arrives, I'll start taking it. And then we'll see... oh yes, we will see... (was that sinister? I was going for sinister).<br />
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I don't have any "events" coming up till January 31st. I'll be going to Military History Fest for the first time. My friend, Jeff<br />
(<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14872612765/" target="_blank">who is one of the most awesome people ever</a>), has been trying to get me there for the last two years. And why does he want me there so badly? Does he like me? Does he enjoy my company? Probably... but it's mostly because they need someone to take photos of their shenanigans.<br />
("They" being <a href="https://www.facebook.com/GSMBristol" target="_blank">GSM-Bristol</a>). Last year, I was planning on going, but a snowstorm kept me from going. This year, I say damn the torpedoes! I'm going, snow or not! There were a variety of slightly blurry mobile phone pics from last year, of the GSM boys acting all over the timeline of military history. And dammit, I want to document it with proper camera equipment. The weird part will be that I'll be in regular clothing. Most of those people haven't seen me in regular clothing. It'll be a shock for all of us, I'm sure.<br />
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Now is when I'd usually say: "Now my favorite photos from Teslacon!"... well, just go to the album (linked above and <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157646964143563/" target="_blank">again here</a>). My absolute favorite shots are from the Grand Ball on Saturday night and the cast photos that I got to do. They let me set up my light stand (with umbrella and flash) in the casts' green room for a couple of hours. It worked out great, because I had a place to sit and rest and a fairly decent background to work with. And I just sat and waited for cast members to come and go. You'll recognize some faces from Bristol. (mainly my sea captains and other various nobility).<br />
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So, instead of filling this post up with photos you can clearly see by going to the whole album, I'll share my 365 photos from that weekend...<br />
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Thursday- I actually purchased a copy of that poster and it is hanging in my kitchen now.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15567317040" title="266 of 365 part 5: Keep Calm and Drink Tea by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="266 of 365 part 5: Keep Calm and Drink Tea" height="640" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7472/15567317040_7388bedfd0_z.jpg" width="480" /></a>
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Friday- I'm just going to <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15750250381/in/set-72157640993142824/" target="_blank">link to it because it's a shot of my flipper foot </a>after an entire day mostly on my feet (dressed as Steampunk Wonder Woman). The reason the swelling looks so weird is just because of the way my boots squished it around.
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Saturday- we were getting ready for the Grand Ball. I wore my black blouse with my <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15481452092/" target="_blank">red and black Damsel in this Dress corset with a long red skirt and matching bustle</a>. But this is a mobile phone shot of my face after I did my makeup. I texted it to the Disabled Guy with: "TELL ME I'M PRETTY!!" His reply was: "Pretty."
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15753679902" title="268 of 365 part 5: TELL ME I'M PRETTY! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="268 of 365 part 5: TELL ME I'M PRETTY!" height="640" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5602/15753679902_d964b19c39_z.jpg" width="480" /></a>
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And on Sunday. Me with Thee Bluebeard! (he was our roommate at the hotel). I had him hold the camera and I fired it with my remote trigger. And being Thee Bluebeard, he was an excellent sport about it. And yes, I decided at the last minute to dress up as my Steampunk Wonder Woman on Sunday. How could I not? That hat is fabulous! (by the way, those buttons on my bodice are for the "<a href="https://www.facebook.com/lionsofteslacon" target="_blank">L.I.O.N.S. of Teslacon</a>", "<a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Baton-Faction/223119887857953" target="_blank">The Baton Faction</a>", <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheeBluebeard" target="_blank">Thee Bluebeard</a>, and the weird-shaped medal is one of my old shooting medals. It says: "Small-bore Sharpshooter" and I thought it was a hilarious pun because of the photography thing).<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15132182694" title="269 of 365 part 5: Thee Bluebeard! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="269 of 365 part 5: Thee Bluebeard!" height="640" src="https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7466/15132182694_3ffe991767_z.jpg" width="424" /></a>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-43808945162579479542014-10-28T12:23:00.000-07:002014-10-28T12:24:28.251-07:00And now we're going back...Back to the muscle relaxers and hydrocodone cocktail.<br />
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I didn't call the doctor after my last blog post. I waited a week. Just in case... I wanted to give the new dose time. Well, I called yesterday. She called me back today. And for now, we're going back to the Flexeril (cyclobenzaprine) and Vicodin (hydrocodone) that I've been taking.<br />
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Now, if we recall, I was on Gabapentin for a while and it made me swell. Then we went back to the muscle relaxers and those worked till last Spring when they stopped working. Speaking of swelling... after the swelling from the Venlafaxine went away, I went down a jeans size. So, hopefully, these will work for me while we wait on the request for Cymbalta. (I just saw my friend roll his eyes again- and I'll see it in person when I see him next week)<br />
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I'm all for it, if it will get me through Teslacon. That's in a week and two days. And goddammit, I want to have fun. (who am I kidding? I'm going to have fun even if I'm in pain because TESLACON!).<br />
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I've had a couple more late nights since that last blog post (last night was one of them) and my pain has been off the charts on a few days. (more than a few, most. Most days I feel like hammered shit). Today, most of the pain is focused in my hands and wrists. And one shoulder, because fuck being able to use my arms. (I still have to finish up some costume stuff for Christine and Casey for Teslacon). In fact, typing is killing my right hand/wrist right now.<br />
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So, to wrap up this short update... here are some photos from my Instagram. Yeah, I have one of those too.<br />
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/uolEdol_6y/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">My sofa companion for season 2 of "House of Cards". #chihuahua #dog #pet</a></div>
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A photo posted by Patty (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-10-26T23:24:42+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 10, 2014 at 4:24pm PDT</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/uorkXAF_3A/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Moved to the bigger sofa, got a bigger companion... well, this one and two more Chihuahuas as well. #dog #germanshepherd #GSD #pet</a></div>
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A photo posted by Patty (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-10-27T00:21:29+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 10, 2014 at 5:21pm PDT</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/uV8Dtal_6n/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Luna... this is what happens when your human is a photographer. A typical "stare while human eats" turns into a dramatic photo shoot. And then INSTAGRAMMED! #chihuahua #dog #pet #shadows</a></div>
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A photo posted by Patty (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-10-19T17:40:00+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 10, 2014 at 10:40am PDT</time></div>
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<a href="https://instagram.com/p/uRB48Bl__6/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" target="_top">Busted. He caught me. #chihuahua #dog #pet</a></div>
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A photo posted by Patty (@pahz_on_instagram) on <time datetime="2014-10-17T19:54:45+00:00" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px;">Oct 10, 2014 at 12:54pm PDT</time></div>
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<br />Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-74924786484295878672014-10-20T22:13:00.001-07:002014-10-20T22:13:38.899-07:00Here we are... middle of the night again... So, I'm taking 20 mgs of this Amitriptyline crap. Yes, it's crap. It isn't helping. It does nothing for the pain and it absolutely does nothing for the sleep. I am wide-the-fuck-awake right now. I haven't slept good in weeks. As I increased the dose of this medicine, I had to decrease the dose of muscle relaxers because I'm apparently not supposed to take them together. So, I'm on this useless-as-Tic-Tacs shit medication and NOT on the muscle relaxers. Granted, the muscle relaxers weren't doing a great job anymore (judging by my posts in the early Spring through the start of Summer), but when I took them, THEY RELAXED MY MUSCLES. Not always perfectly, but now that I'm not on them, I can feel every goddamned twinge in my muscles. Every ache. Every pull. Every single muscular movement that could turn into a motherfucking Charlie Horse.<br />
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You ever have a Charlie Horse? You know that sudden, stabbing, searing, agonizing, pull-the-muscle-from-the-bone-like-a-tender-turkey-slow-roasted-in-Aunt-Sandy's-oven pain... Now imagine having one of those in your goddamn arm. Or back. Or even your abdominal muscles. How about a slow pulling pain? Like if you took a rubber band and pulled it slowly, slowly, slowly till it was at the limit of its flexibility... now pretend that rubber band is your goddamn muscle. Yeah. Sucks, don't it?<br />
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This is my third middle-of-the-night episode in about two weeks' time. And these are getting less fun as they go along. I suppose the good thing I can say is that I'm not swollen anymore. I mean, when I do swell, it's the "normal" amount. Meaning that I do still have the same "unexplained" edema I've always had, but I no longer have that all-over body swelling that always left me with flippers instead of feet. At the end of the day, my feet look normal.<br />
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Let me tell you something rather ridiculous... I was actually sick with something that had NOTHING to do with fibro! The weekend of October 11th and 12th was A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians, my last ren faire for the season. (I still have Teslacon, but that's not a ren faire). On Saturday, before we left, I became rather unwell. I spent approximately forty minutes in and out of the bathroom, never straying too far from a receptacle, lest my body purge the contents of the last six months.<br />
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But, I soldiered on, because, goddammit, I'd rather be miserable at the faire than be miserable at home. Around 1 PM, it became obvious that what I had was a case of food poisoning and I had to leave the faire. I haven't left a faire early since 2009, when I left the Janesville Faire after my shift at the new age shop ended (I did tarot card readings at a new age shop's tent there). That was less than two months after my knee replacement surgery. So, now I've left GRR to go home. I took a wee bit of a nap (about an hour and a half, broken into twenty minute increments, because why the fuck not?) and while I was awake and laying in bed trying not to die, I felt relieved. I was relieved to feel something in my body that was NOT fibro. Food poisoning pain is a totally different kind of pain than that of fibro. Around 7 PM that day, I felt a wave of relief. I could feel the effects of the food poisoning wearing off. I ate soup!<br />
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Long story short- I made it through all day Sunday at the faire, but mostly because I didn't eat anything and I drank water and Sprite.<br />
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That leaves us up to date on the goings on in my life. Fibro still fucking sucks. Food poisoning doesn't give a damn if you have fibro or any kind of obligation. This medication doesn't work for shit and I feel terrible all the goddamn time now. And yes,<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157648821045462/" target="_blank"> there are photos of A Gathering of Rogues and Ruffians</a>... because even when I'm sick as hell, I will do the job I'm expected to do.<br />
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So, I'm going to call the doctor tomorrow, tell her how terrible life is, beg for a change, and get through the next two weeks and go to Teslacon because TESLACON! While I'm doing that, enjoy this selection of photos from the 2014 Gathering of Rogues and Ruffians.<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14940430984" title="Fire-breathing! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Fire-breathing!" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3938/14940430984_ca635e53c0.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15374565449" title="Thee Bluebeard by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Thee Bluebeard" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3948/15374565449_7823142a67.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375544380" title="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3927/15375544380_b201fd725c.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15537481466" title="Andrew! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Andrew!" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5597/15537481466_b3406da13d.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375546290" title="Eric! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Eric!" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5601/15375546290_90356da5e2.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15561189885" title="Signpost... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Signpost..." height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3935/15561189885_38a951c4e1.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14941012523" title="Odorferious Thunderbottom! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Odorferious Thunderbottom!" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3943/14941012523_377f02cd58.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375546080" title="St Martin's Academy and GSM-Bristol put on a weapons demonstration by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="St Martin's Academy and GSM-Bristol put on a weapons demonstration" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3938/15375546080_1aba266a49.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375053398" title="Music and belly dancing by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Music and belly dancing" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3931/15375053398_678d995303.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15537481366" title="St Martin's Academy and GSM-Bristol put on a weapons demonstration by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="St Martin's Academy and GSM-Bristol put on a weapons demonstration" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3947/15537481366_52d5fb93cf.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15537482866" title="St Martin's Academy and GSM-Bristol put on a weapons demonstration by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="St Martin's Academy and GSM-Bristol put on a weapons demonstration" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5614/15537482866_93387b4242.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375175307" title="To the Point! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="To the Point!" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3946/15375175307_b5bdec3f20.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15561189275" title="To the Point! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="To the Point!" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3949/15561189275_408b044b20.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375545490" title="To the Point! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="To the Point!" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5610/15375545490_8b05c42049.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15562021242" title="To the Point! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="To the Point!" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5610/15562021242_03d0ca7ef6.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15561189035" title="Miles and Frobisher gawk at O'Malley by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Miles and Frobisher gawk at O'Malley" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3946/15561189035_995ebc5a6e.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15375543940" title="Anne-Drew and Hawkyns go for a ride by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Anne-Drew and Hawkyns go for a ride" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5609/15375543940_685485b23b.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14940429824" title="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3945/14940429824_72504672d1.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15561188855" title="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3952/15561188855_43119e2cec.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15537481106" title="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5609/15537481106_2993cc7cf1.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15558511131" title="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3952/15558511131_19328739b8.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/14940429734" title="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians- Sunday" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5608/14940429734_46b38b9214.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15374564749" title="Thee Bluebeard and Captain Hawkyns... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Thee Bluebeard and Captain Hawkyns..." height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5605/15374564749_50ce9d1c20.jpg" width="331" /></a>
Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1789010040768841744.post-11359413864860648682014-10-10T14:40:00.002-07:002014-10-10T14:40:52.721-07:00Without these things, I would probably have gone off the deep end... **Spoiler Alert**<br />
When I got done adding the photos to the end of this blog post, my mood was so much better than when I started typing it. So, I got that going for me right now.<br />
**End Spoiler**<br />
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My doctor called me on Tuesday. I was considering calling them, adding up in my head how long I'd been on this new medicine (Amatriptyline) and wondering "How long can I go through this before we say THIS drug isn't working?" when she actually called me. It startled me because the VA switchboard number doesn't have an assigned ringtone and the noise is that of an old-timey rotary dial phone's ring. Startled me so much that I almost fell out of my chair. (that's only a <i>slight</i> exaggeration).<br />
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She asked how things were going, how I felt, if I had any side effects... I told her that I was thinking about calling to ask: "How long do I have to be on this to decide if it isn't working" and what my very mild side effects were. She said we were going to up the dosage from a single tablet to a tablet-and-a-half. (10 mgs to 15 mgs). She also said that when I start the 15, I should cut down on my muscle relaxers. So, I only took one on the first night I took a pill-and-a-half. On the second day, I didn't take one in the morning (my usual dose is one in the morning, two at night). The next day, I could barely move. I had a severe case of "Batman neck" and I had it not just in my neck, but in my shoulders, elbows, wrists and my ankles. Like I said, I could barely move.<br />
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That night, I went back to the two muscle relaxers and the next morning, I took another... I'm not going to up the dose of the Amatriptyline till I get the proper prescription in the mail (also because I don't want to run out suddenly by using up MORE of what I have).<br />
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So, I've been miserable anyway, but last week and this week have been astoundingly terrible. I had a ren faire this weekend- Stronghold- and it was VERY chilly. It was fantastic, but damn cold. (I actually spent money on an actual cloak- on sale, helluva good deal). Hey, I actually have a photo of me wearing it...<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFO8PAfMdtvTUYKLFhH2wvqOjVHRHy4exjJXsmaSNIEeLAxZ3oo1UYCEdMp2gRagXlU3p0UygDQXx9Ha2HgEgDW01zwhg6wu9cgZRgsw6bOXJET557SH7G3UdaoeGH0YD2HSCjxyeJOuAd/s1600/__chadBritt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFO8PAfMdtvTUYKLFhH2wvqOjVHRHy4exjJXsmaSNIEeLAxZ3oo1UYCEdMp2gRagXlU3p0UygDQXx9Ha2HgEgDW01zwhg6wu9cgZRgsw6bOXJET557SH7G3UdaoeGH0YD2HSCjxyeJOuAd/s1600/__chadBritt.jpg" height="400" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">~Taken by Chad Britt~</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Chad took that shot from inside the castle. I had just finished up a little shoot with the guys from Cutlass Cooking (they had so few photos of themselves that weren't on stage). I want to mention here- on Sunday, I completely forgot to grab the SD card I need for my camera. Partly from lack of sleep, partly from the flareup, partly from the pain meds, but totally my own fault. I was contemplating driving to the nearest town and buying a new one when I spotted someone from Bristol. His name is Stephen and he loaned me a 64 GB memory card so I would be able to remain useful at Stronghold. (and it is now in my belt pouch so I don't forget to give it back to him this weekend!).<br />
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Anyway, where was I? Oh, that's right, bitching about this stupid disease and lack of treatment that works at all. I spent all day Sunday (which is when that photo was taken) with a full-blown flareup. One of the other photographers made a comment as to why I'd go out in the cold air if I felt so bad. I said: "I could feel like shit at home and do nothing or I could come here and feel like shit with people I love and enjoy being around... so yeah, it wasn't a hard choice."<br />
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Without the faire and those friends to look forward to, this would be unbearable. This week, the fibro flareup triggered a flareup of the tendinitis in my shoulder. I had sharp, stabbing pain radiating from my upper back (slightly to the right of my spine), down to my shoulder where it turned into a burning pain, down to my elbow and wrist, where it mimicked the pain of having sprained said joints. Because of that pain- ALL THE PAIN- I was sleeping like an actual baby. A colicky baby with the power of speech. I woke up approximately four-hundred-thirty-seven times an hour (that's an estimate). I tried to take a nap each day (in the morning, because being upright and conscious <i>suuuuuu-uuuuuuu-uuuuuucked</i> so very much) and on Wednesday, when I hadn't taken any muscle relaxers, I dozed on and off for this nap thing... and I woke up crying. I remember dreaming about floating on a cloud-like bed, telling my friends, Ansel and Tabitha, that I almost felt comfortable and thanking them for letting me stay in their basement (for the record, they live in an apartment and while I saw Tabitha on Saturday, I haven't seen Ansel since Bristol). In the dream, Tabitha handed me something and when I reached for it, the pain shot through my shoulder and upper back. I woke up crying and with the faint sounds of Tabitha's Bristol character telling me not to do that again.<br />
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Pain does weird shit to your brain.<br />
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So, without having the faire to look forward to, the subsequent photo-editing that followed, muscle relaxers, Vicodin, and my friends, I don't know what I would have done the last few weeks. It just all runs together for me. I don't even remember the last time I felt really <i>good</i>. I do have vague memories of the blog posts where I was hopeful that the Effexor was working and that I'd felt "okay".<br />
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You know, I'm not even asking to be pain-free. I don't even expect to ever be pain-free again, not 100%, anyway. I just want to be able to do the stuff I enjoy doing and seeing the people I enjoy seeing. Looking back on how my life has evolved with the faire, I'm so glad this stupid disease didn't start causing me problems before Faire Life. Before this, I had nothing. I had the kids and the disabled spouse. We didn't do anything, we didn't go anywhere. I knew a few people- other parents at the kids' school(s), but we didn't do things together. And the few times I DID do something with another parent (and our kids, like a deranged Brady Bunch), it was because that parent needed an extra adult in the situation (like renting canoes and taking a day trip down the Wisconsin River and going to museums in Milwaukee). That was actually the beginning of the issues- I remember coming back from a museum trip in Milwaukee and my foot had swelled up inside my shoe. I wrote a review for the IMAX movie we saw and mentioned in the review how I was sitting at my desk with my foot in a bucket of ice water.<br />
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And now? Now I have three small faires, the one big faire, and the number one Steampunk convention on my list of "things to do". Plus, I've been to Chicago more times in a year than I ever had been in my entire life.<br />
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Anyway... I have a faire tomorrow- <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AGatheringofRoguesandRuffians" target="_blank">A Gathering of Rogues & Ruffians</a> in New Glarus. And, in a few weeks, I have <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OfficialTeslacon" target="_blank">Teslacon</a>. I have "official photographer" status for GRR, but not at Teslacon. I'm unofficially the photographer there...<br />
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The renaissance faire.<br />
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The people who are in my life because of the ren faire.<br />
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Pain medication.<br />
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Photography.<br />
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These are things I can't live without.<br />
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And maybe you can see why I enjoy being with these people...<br />
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And now... some photos!<br />
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~<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/sets/72157648172306317/" target="_blank">Link to the whole album</a>~<br />
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Some of the guys from the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/gsmbristol" target="blank">Guild of St. Michael</a>.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304839178" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="GSM-Bristol by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="GSM-Bristol" height="500" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2946/15304839178_dbe497e27f.jpg" width="331" /></a></div>
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Then they had some fun.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491138142" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title=""Over the edge!" - an officer giving orders by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt=""Over the edge!" - an officer giving orders" height="331" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2950/15491138142_0f47cfb809.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491490695" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title=""Not the face! I'm not supposed to get sword in my eye!" by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt=""Not the face! I'm not supposed to get sword in my eye!"" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3932/15491490695_c182bf3aef.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15468366676" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Michael fights with vigor! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Michael fights with vigor!" height="331" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2949/15468366676_6fe979566e.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304580779" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="In the nook... by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="In the nook..." height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5600/15304580779_960b3c719b.jpg" width="331" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304921637" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Queen's Court by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Queen's Court" height="331" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2947/15304921637_45cfd56f24.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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One of the kids' shows did a treasure hunt and we're pretty sure that's what this "Y" is about... but Sir Francis Drake ponders... Why?
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15468366496" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Guilde of St George- Queen's Court by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Guilde of St George- Queen's Court" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3931/15468366496_4f61d4916c.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304580419" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Guilde of St George- Queen's Court by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Guilde of St George- Queen's Court" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3933/15304580419_9184babf9b.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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I got to follow the Queen's Court around for a couple hours and we ended up on the roof of the castle (the roof of the archway, actually, not the WHOLE roof).<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15468367366" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Guilde of St George- Queen's Court by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Guilde of St George- Queen's Court" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3948/15468367366_a758525ae4.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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Carlo Tuzzio and Caesar
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<a href="https://flickr/photos/psexypsychic/15304921527" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Carlo Tuzzio and Caesar by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Carlo Tuzzio and Caesar" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5600/15304921527_b60f337bc3.jpg" width="500" /></a></div>
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Tabitha! As a patron!<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491489605" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Captain Grace O'Malley! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Captain Grace O'Malley!" height="500" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2950/15491489605_77645946b0.jpg" width="331" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304837808" title="Stronghold Olde English Faire- Saturday by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Stronghold Olde English Faire- Saturday" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3945/15304837808_a1b0c174c4.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491489395" title="Demonstration for the Queen by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Demonstration for the Queen" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3948/15491489395_55e38267e6.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15468500396" title="Chris and Katie by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Chris and Katie" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3939/15468500396_64ffed21b1.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15305056477" title="Jeff! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Jeff!" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5613/15305056477_3f9ff126a8.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304924630" title="John telling stories for Cutlass Cooking by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="John telling stories for Cutlass Cooking" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5612/15304924630_ebcc597913.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491270482" title="Cutlass Cooking by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Cutlass Cooking" height="500" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2950/15491270482_c3421a1fac.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15305056207" title="Cutlass Cooking by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Cutlass Cooking" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3949/15305056207_6f8544c8b7.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15304924520" title="Oar Envy! by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Oar Envy!" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3955/15304924520_01ac4caea1.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15305128927" title="John and David by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="John and David" height="331" src="https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2945/15305128927_334793f9f7.jpg" width="500" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491268942" title="Watching the demonstration by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="(117)" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5610/15491268942_691f65acaf.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491269402" title="Sir Francis Drake by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Sir Francis Drake" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5604/15491269402_21e616eecc.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15488473961" title="Horse and Falcon demonstration for the Queen by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Horse and Falcon demonstration for the Queen" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3928/15488473961_242702b168.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15468498286" title="Horse and Falcon demonstration for the Queen by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Horse and Falcon demonstration for the Queen" height="331" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5613/15468498286_5f82c4a713.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15305055487" title=""I quite like this. I should get one for every gown." by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt=""I quite like this. I should get one for every gown."" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5607/15305055487_3115f5cc91.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15491269532" title="Craig Hendee and Alvin by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Craig Hendee and Alvin" height="500" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3941/15491269532_b7a07c01c5.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15305055237" title="Loxen Bagel and Odorferious Thunderbottom by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Loxen Bagel and Odorferious Thunderbottom" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3927/15305055237_ffb943e777.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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This is a photo of JUST the nobility and their "staff"... this doesn't include the GSM (military) or any of the stage acts.
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15468498236" title="Guilde of St George 2014 by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Guilde of St George 2014" height="331" src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3945/15468498236_7855288509.jpg" width="500" /></a>
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The last photo I took on Sunday- my 365... Day 234 of year 5. (that's my daughter with the red skirt and blue and brown shawls and her boyfriend next to her, wearing my cloak).<br />
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15268028767" title="234 of 365 part 5: The end of Stronghold Olde English Faire by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="234 of 365 part 5: The end of Stronghold Olde English Faire" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5599/15268028767_53d1e0306d.jpg" width="331" /></a>
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And for fun- my Steampunk Wonder Woman outfit that all started with a hat...
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<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/psexypsychic/15430493542" title="Alternate day 232 of year 5 by Patty, on Flickr"><img alt="Alternate day 232 of year 5" height="500" src="https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5599/15430493542_776f21a24e.jpg" width="331" /></a>Pahzhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12877861050356247528noreply@blogger.com0