A few things

In this article from WaPo about the waterfall art installations in New York City someone says they've never seen a waterfall but these aren't what they imagined. It's weird for me to think someone doesn't know what they look like. They're in a million movies and tiny ones are in gardens and I've been lucky enough to hike to and swim in or near some. I guess that's just me having a privilege I take for granted. So today I am grateful that I've been able to hang out with waterfalls and not realize what a big deal they are.

PICC line came out today. Blah blah blah, too many troubles so out it came. I'm a bit nervous because the nurse didn't see the special tip that needs to come out but then she thought maybe she just wasn't used to the power PICC so hopefully the while thing came out and some little piece isn't floating around my heart...

Finally this article about the soil on Mars is very cool. When do we start terraforming? I also like how science and literature naturally go together and the two trenches on Mars are called Snow White and Wonderland. Nice.

Just a few words

I've been stupidly busy lately, mostly with some sort of brewing infection in my PICC line or perhaps the stitches that hold it in place or maybe just the skin around that is annoyed by the dressings that keep the whole thing sterile. Yesterday I had to run into the office for a quick consult to decide if I needed blood cultures - thankfully I didn't, which is good. My desire for a case of sepsis is nonexistent. But these visits take time and money that I can ill afford.

I'm also proofing the MID, which is huge and comes in spurts that need a quick turn around. End result, I've been working a lot during what is usually my free time (weekends) trying to make up for missed time and to make sure my schedule is clear when the MID chapters come through.

Here's a contest that would pay off your mortgage. The guidelines are very strict, for instance we live in a 950 square foot condo that is currently going for about 210 grand so we wouldn't qualify. That's partly where we live, one of the more expensive areas. But anyway, take a peek and see if you can enter. It would nice to have no mortgage, wouldn't you say?

http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/hancock/contest/

I guess that's it. Back to fighting my fever. My poor kids, one minute I'm freezing then I'm burning up. Luckily I've got a nice fan so it's not like they're alternately boiling and icing up but still, somewhat annoying I'm sure.

Borg rejects

I'm wondering what happens when the Borg tries to assimilate someone and their equipment won't install. What do they do?

I'm wondering because I went to the hospital this morning to get my PICC line and was there for five hours of torture (in enough pain to cry, cried enough to fill my ears with tears and I usually have a pretty high threshold for pain) while two different departments tried three times to put the PICC line in.

Apparently the basila (is that right? like a basilisk or the basilica but different...) vein in my left arm is occluded. Occluded with what? It's not the place of the PICC installers to say. Another blood clot? Maybe. Who knows.

Finally staggered out of the interventional radiology department to go home and promptly fell into some sort of spill, twisting my ankle and banging the hell out of my wrists, knee and new PICC line. The area around it is still bleeding, like seven hours later. So that was fun.

Tomorrow I start the infusion at the hematologist's office. That will be fun also. I'd forgotten what a horrible pain these things are, starting with no swimming or baths and moving through being allergic to the dressings. Oh well, I'll only have to keep it in for seven to fifteen weeks...

More credit union news

I'm behind on posting interesting CU news, via Credit Union Journal Daily Briefing.

A credit union in Massachusetts donated forty grand to a state college.

Another CU in Greensboro, North Carolina raised forty-seven thousand dollars which was donated to the family of a toddler with leukemia. The three-year-old had no health insurance.

Someone robbed Fibre Federal Credit Union and also pepper sprayed everyone, customers and employees alike. What the hell? You can kill an asthmatic with pepper spray.

Someone robbed Navy Federal six times, nabbing around one hundred grand. These robberies are local to us, taking place in Maryland and Virginia.

El Paso Employees FCU gave out about twenty grand in scholarships. I'm always really happy to see these sorts of programs.

Ohio is limiting the interest on payroll loans to 28 percent. I've seen other legislation that is calling for 36 percent. It's terrifying that these are suggested reductions. Only the poorest or most desperate people take these loans out. I've been appalled to see auto title loan commercials showing up on television lately.

And in my own personal health news, I went to see my hematologist today and I ran out of iron again. I'm going to start iron infusion again next week and will have another PICC line installed sometime before then. I'm not thrilled but I'm hoping to feel better afterwards, which will make it all worthwhile. Started back up on warfarin today. So frustrating.

Some surprising news

I went to see my hematologist today, expecting we'd have our usual sparring match and I'd come away with a mammogram order, since it's that time of the year.

Instead I found out my iron is dangerously low - it's been low for the last five years actually, since I had a huge retroperitoneal bleed and an enormous deep vein thrombosis and was in the hospital for 21 days, 8 in ICU. It's been particularly low for at least the last year - I saw Dr. Spivak up at Hopkins on 8/29/2006 and he was concerned enough to put me on RX iron supplements. Unfortunately the one he wanted me to take is made anymore so Dr. Deluca gave me something else called Repliva but that made me so sick I couldn't keep taking it.

In March we talked about IV iron, 400 mls, but the doctor decided my veins can't handle it so I've been trying to eat a lot of red meat and other foods high in iron since then. Well my iron dropped enough that now I need about 650 mls and there's no discussion of whether I want it or not, I'm getting it.

But I can't just have it. I have to have a PICC line inserted (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PICC_line) which means some outpatient surgery first then we have to do a test dose of iron because many people are allergic and I'm an allergic person and have anaphylactic shock in the past (thankfully in my pediatrician's office so was given lots of epinephrine and bundled off in an ambulance, but not before I passed out thinking this was it, I was dead.)

I might be getting some steroids along with the iron as a protective measure. We'll see. And it looks like I'll be getting about 100 mls a day, which I think takes about 2 hours. And they want to do it right away so I'm a bit anxious (read terrified) and trying to think of practical things like they can do the surgery when I'm on the warfarin and will I be sedated and do I need a ride to the hospital and if so who can take me?

Meanwhile Cam starts 10th grade tomorrow and Cullen starts UMBC on Wedneday and I'm meant to drive him on Tuesdays and Thursdays and it's all a little overwhelming...