Dr. Carolyn Male - hospitalized 5/30/13

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by carolyn137

If the urine is OK, should know by Monday, then I already have an appoinment next Wed, and if no more X-rays or cat scans, then I'll get a surgery date next Wed.s is oft said, I'll just play it by ear.

I'm now in the process of trying to find someone who will drive me over to Glens Falls for that appt. It has to be someone who is skilled at backing up over the bridge, without driving into Buttermilk Falls Creek, as I am, and that eliminates a couple of folks who simply cannot back up correctly.

And no, I'm not allowed to drive my own car right now, but I want someone to use my car.

Carolyn

Carolyn, If I lived close to you I would do that for you, but as it is I am just a smidgen too far to do it. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers though and hope you find a close someone to do this for you...or call that nice deputy that was there this past week and have him take you... that would be so nice and neighborly of him. He is a public servant, you know...

[livinonfaith]

Well, I believe there is an old phrase often said to be a Chinese curse that goes something like, "May you live in interesting times."

It does seem that your current times are a bit too interesting!

So I'll do my best to counteract the "curse" by wishing for a little less "interesting" goings on, and a lot more good health and cooperation from neighbors and nature in your life.

Seriously, I do hope that your get good results from your tests and you can get this surgery out of the way and behind you.

[remy]

I had no idea you were still having problems and more surgery on the horizon. I'm also sorry to hear the Ballerina shrub got smashed, but at least the bear ran away.
I sure hope all goes smoothly for you.
Remy

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by remy

I had no idea you were still having problems and more surgery on the horizon. I'm also sorry to hear the Ballerina shrub got smashed, but at least the bear ran away.
I sure hope all goes smoothly for you.
Remy

Ah, so you know Ballerina, and better it than the Zepherine Drouhine next to it, and both do well in the partial shady area where they are.

Yes, the bear ran away, but it was spying the bird feeders and no doubt ran home to mommy who it will get to come and help. That cub actually tried to climb up the side of my home, which is cedar, to get to the bird feeders, but slid back down/

Remy, more surgery since the stent put in was only temporary to bypass the stone in the right ureter until the infection was cleared, and the initial infection was cleared, the one with Klebsiella pneumoniae,but then the MERSA and other complications appeared.

So he ultimately has to go back in and remove that stent, remove the major stone in the right ureter, and also a few little ones in the left ureter,put in two more stents and then after that it's back to his office to remove those two stents after a couple of weeks.

Triple Sigh. This will be the FIFTH time for k stone surgery/

Carolyn

[loulac]

I am sorry to hear your health problems don’t belong to the past yet, but what is needed now is just routine for surgeons. Just insist on being operated on in a germ-free place, you’ve already given your full share. I’m puzzled to see so many mix-ups among the different services. French doctors say the most unpleasant patients are other doctors, teachers come second. As you belong to both categories I suppose it makes the staff nervous and they make constant blunders. Don’t hesitate to react, some bursts of adrenalin can do a lot of good. Remember you are for us the great priestess of Tomatoland and we look forward to a longer list of posts, I think you’ve written more than 15000 !
A French tomatofan

[tam91]

Backing the car over the bridge... hmmm.... maybe I shouldn't volunteer Well I would, but alas too far away. I hope you get it all figured out soon.

[bower]

5th time for K stone surgery... ouch!

I had a small kidney stone many years ago which I'll never forget, and can only imagine the pain of larger ones is even worse. At that time I read that oxalates in the diet can cause kidney stones, and ever since then I have kept certain foods from being a regular part of my diet, although I still eat them from time to time. Spinach and rhubarb, beet greens and chard are the culprits, and sorrels, which we used to nibble on as children, are even worse. I know, they are not the only cause of stones but I avoid em anyway, and might as well since I'm not crazy for the taste.

There are websites that give long lists of foods "high" in oxalates, but when you look at the actual values, the short list of foods with the 'pucker' factor in their taste are 6 or 7 times higher in oxalates than the rest. (and forget about it, nuts chocolate and other goodies will never be on my avoid list!)

One good thing, the kidney-stone-diet people say you should eat lots of tomatoes!

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by bower

5th time for K stone surgery... ouch!

I had a small kidney stone many years ago which I'll never forget, and can only imagine the pain of larger ones is even worse. At that time I read that oxalates in the diet can cause kidney stones, and ever since then I have kept certain foods from being a regular part of my diet, although I still eat them from time to time. Spinach and rhubarb, beet greens and chard are the culprits, and sorrels, which we used to nibble on as children, are even worse. I know, they are not the only cause of stones but I avoid em anyway, and might as well since I'm not crazy for the taste.

There are websites that give long lists of foods "high" in oxalates, but when you look at the actual values, the short list of foods with the 'pucker' factor in their taste are 6 or 7 times higher in oxalates than the rest. (and forget about it, nuts chocolate and other goodies will never be on my avoid list!)

One good thing, the kidney-stone-diet people say you should eat lots of tomatoes!

Ah yes, I know all about high oxalate foods and all the stones taken from me have been calcium oxalate, the most common, so the best way to hopefully prevent new stones is to keep the urine dilute so that Mr. Oxalate doesn't meet up with Miss Calcium.

And darn,I drink, drink drink and still get stones.

But technology has improved over the years. For the first stone I was lowered into a tank of water and all of me blasted, no stents, no nothing. And well I remember the nurse who was trying to insert a line into the top of my hand and the needle almost came 0ut through the palm. Talkabout pain?

I swore that if I ever met her in a dark alley my revenge would be satisfied. I didn't meet her.

Carolyn

[tjg911]

it's too bad, we are so close yet so far. i'm retired and i have a lot of free time, i would gladly drive you to appointments. i'm pretty good at backing up too!

why don't you just take down the bird feeders? i know it is nice to watch the birds but they can feed themselves and don't need help this time of the year. bears have an extremely acute sense of smell and they'll come from many miles to a feeder. i know of a few cases around here where bears have broken into houses going thru doors and windows for food so i'd be very careful about leaving doors open even low windows. a hungry bear is a determined bear.

tom

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by tjg911

it's too bad, we are so close yet so far. i'm retired and i have a lot of free time, i would gladly drive you to appointments. i'm pretty good at backing up too!

why don't you just take down the bird feeders? i know it is nice to watch the birds but they can feed themselves and don't need help this time of the year. bears have an extremely acute sense of smell and they'll come from many miles to a feeder. i know of a few cases around here where bears have broken into houses going thru doors and windows for food so i'd be very careful about leaving doors open even low windows. a hungry bear is a determined bear.

tom

Tom, when Freda was here early this AM she did take down all the bird feeders except for the hummingbird feeder.

And now the squirrels are ticked off b'c actually when I buy black Oil seed, theone feeder has seeds for finches, the squirrels get most of it anyway from the feeder on the deck railing and two of the feeders up high are mesh ones and the darn squirrels have thwarted allof our efforts to keep the top lids secured and just dive right in.

Actually the squirrels amuse me, especially when the grey and red squirrels go at it. Does it surprise anyone that the red ones usually win those tussles?

Carolyn

[bcday]

Carolyn, get one (or more) of those canned compressed air horns that boaters use. A blast from that, your bear cub would be tail over teakettle getting out of there. It can be heard for 1/2 mile or more.

Campers in bear country often carry cans of bear-strength pepper spray. Not sure if that's allowed where you are though.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by bcday

Carolyn, get one (or more) of those canned compressed air horns that boaters use. A blast from that, your bear cub would be tail over teakettle getting out of there. It can be heard for 1/2 mile or more.

Campers in bear country often carry cans of bear-strength pepper spray. Not sure if that's allowed where you are though.

It's true I live in the boonies, but if that horn sound goes for about 1/2mile I KNOW that some neighbors up and down the road would be here in a NYminute complaining.

I don't know if I've had a visitation so far today since I've been in the back room doing some other stuff, but I'm going out to the LV now and we shall see/

Carolyn

[bcday]

LOL -
The horn sounds off at about 110 - 115 dB or better. Some folks keep them for emergencies and some companies include women's safety as one of their selling points. You might WANT your neighbors to come running in a NY minute! It also occurred to me that if that state trooper hadn't happened to see you waving at him, you could have got his attention real quick with an air horn blast if he started to leave without talking to you.

[ubergoober]

Well here is to hoping that you get better VERY soon. I am so sorry you have had to endure so much lately!

[carolyn137]

Just a wee update.

This past Monday I got a call saying the urine was clear, so I called the urologst's off ice and said I would be there yesterday, my appt at noon.

I then called the person who was going to drive me and he said he couldn't b'c he forgot he had to take his elderly mother to the MD.

So I called back the urologists office, told them, and now no appt until August 13th.

Who knows when surgery might be now. The summer is fading rapidly and I still have dental and hip and cataract surgery followups, but it's looking like those will go by the boards as well, since I can't find enough folks to drive me places.

So I'll sit back and watch, the bear has not returned, get serious about some documentation I need to do for my primary MD, find out why my Fed tax rebate has never been deposited, stuff like that.

Angie brought my groceries yesterday and Rob stopped by with a basket of cherry tomatoes. He's the young lad I've been mentoring but has now joined the carpenters Union.

In the basket were Blush, Medovaya Kaplyaya and Pink and Purple Bumble Bees.

bcday,I'm still thinking about that horn, but as Freda said, the wild berries aren't ripe yet and when they are the bears prefer them to my black oil seed.

Carolyn