I had an appointment with Dr Tabakian in St Louis this morning, and when I was on my way home I got a call from my husband, asking me to swing by his office to talk to one of the guys that works there about spinal fusion surgery.  It's highly unusual for him to ask me to go by, so I was taken aback by his request, but I said I'd go there before I went home. So I went and we talked, and as I was leaving another cop walked in and started talking to Dave about how short manned they are at t...

As some of you may know, I recently was diagnosed with Mitral Valve Prolapse and was started on a beta-blockers in an attempt to slow and regulate my heart beat.  The first two days on the meds went well.  I was keeping an eye out for side effects and really didn't notice any.  The third morning I got up and was in more pain than usual.  Mornings aren't the best time for me pain-wise, I'm usually hobbling along the hallway like a 80 year old.  That morning t...

There was a protest in west London yesterday.  Muslims were out in force, protesting the publication of the cartoon they found so offensive. One man came dressed as a suicide bomber: He had stuffed the pockets of his vest to simulate them being filled with explosives.  He wasn't arrested, and rightly so.  People have a right to protest. As usual with a protest, people came carrying placards with slogans written on them: I think that one should remove some d...

Our daughter can't see. She needs to get an eye exam and glasses.  WE've been telling ehr this for weeks, and she's been saying for weeks that she can see fine and that she isn't going to wear glasses.  She's even run off to her room crying at the thought of having to wear "stupid dorky" glasses. Her arguments have ranged from "everyone will make fun of me" to "If you make me get them I just won't wear them".  Our counters have been "since when did you care what other people...

Sometimes in life, you have to do things to preserve your sanity.  Sometimes, you have to shut the door and walk away in order to not die inside. I had a door to shut back in the 90's.  I had to do something I wasn't proud of, something that I still carry some guilt about.  I had to walk away from this fight to maintain my self.  To not die.  I had to drag my broken heart and almost shattered mind away, because if i didn't....well, I don't think I'd be talkin...

I'm trying to be simple. No, not simple minded.  Simple.  As in living simply. I don't want to have clothes spilling out of my closet.  I don't want to have a shoe rack that's full.  I don't want to have gadgets for this and that and the other.  I don't want to have a tub full of cleaning products.  I don't want to have 'stuff', period. I want to have a few things that I like, that work well and that serve their purpose.  I want to get rid off the fluf...

Jake had to see the pediatrician this afternoon, for a refill of his ADD meds and a general checkup.  Since I got diagnosed with Mitral Valve Prolapse, I had some questions about whether Jake had it or not (I had read a study that said that there are certain physical symptoms associated with MVP and knew that Jake had at least one of them). This doctor is just fabulous.  We've taken to calling him the 'Rockin' Doc' because he does just that - he rocks.  He's friendly, he's funn...

The case that I helped work on over at the legal office comes to trial next week.  Actually, it's not really a trial.  There's a pre-trial agreement - the defendant pled guilty to all charges so it's just a matter of the judge reviewing the evidence and deciding what the sentence will be. I'm going to attend both days - I had thought that I might have to testify, but because there's a PTA (Pre Trial Agreement) I won't have to take the stand. After the sentence has been anno...

I live a pretty 'clean' life compared to some people. I don't drink alcohol often.  I'll have a little tipple once or twice a year, but I don't drink regularly, and I rarely drink to excess.  The last time I got tipsy was before Christmas - I was celebrating my husband coming home.  I paid for it the day afterwards - actually, that's the whole reason I don't drink.  I don't like the day after. I don't smoke or use tobacco.  Even when I have a drink I don't smoke.&n...

My husband has been removed from the deployment list for next month. His Operations Superintendent looked at his deployment and TDY history for the past year and a half: We got here after spending a year apart whilst he did a Remote Assignment.  We'd been here three months when we learned that he was on the next rotation to the desert.  Five months after we got here, he got sent away for 2 weeks to desert warfare refresher training.  He was back for roughly three weeks,...

Yep, my MVP.  Some of you are probably wondering what I got MVP for because I don't play any sports. I'm not talking about Most Valuable Player. I'm talking about a condition called Mitral Valve Prolapse.  Link It's what my cardiologist thinks I have. I saw him this morning, and before he listened to my heart we discussed the possibility of mitral valve prolapse.  It's somewhat common, and my symptoms all fit - the tachycardia, the occasional palpitations, the s...

My dad has been ill for years, but lately...I can see him getting frailer almost with each day that passes.  It all started with a hip replacement surgery when I was 15.  He had been in agony with arthritis for years, and he finally got a date for a replacement surgery after being on the NHS list for a couple of years.  He was self employed at the time (he's a trained stonemason; a dying craft these days) and he got his business affairs into order so he could take a couple of ...

Yesterday was our wedding anniversary.  Our 12th.  We don't get to go out on our own very regularly, and we haven't been to the movies without the kids for YEARS.  Actually, I think that the last movie we saw by  ourselves was 'The Island of Dr Moreau'.  That should give you an idea of just how long it's been since we went to the movies together sans children. So, we decided that for our anniversary we'd grab a meal and see a movie.  Neither of us is comfortable ...