I’ll try to put up a picture or two before I head off to work. Here you go:
Lloyd, if you have the inclination, you should really write a little about this picture.
Update 2
He’s up and about, and doing well. He had to lie still for six hours after the catheter was removed so he wouldn’t mess up the clotting of that wound. We had some visitors during that time: Beth stopped by on her way back from Missouri and brought some ‘Dishes of Happiness’ – some yummy candy for Lloyd an pop for me (Thanks, Beth!) Then the Kollipara crew dropped by with more goodies! Ian and Brighton drew some wonderful pictures, Stephannie made up a box of candy, pop and games to keep Lloyd occupied, and Samith provided Lloyd’s lifeline – a wireless internet connection for the laptop so Lloyd can check his baseball scores! (The hospital computer we’ve been using blocks that site.) Thanks to them, the six hours passed quickly. (Although, Lloyd can tell you his ‘peeing lying down into a bottle’ story later.)
This evening he showered, put some clothes back on, and we videotaped his geometry lesson for the 7th graders. He used the whiteboard in one of the conference rooms, and it went quite well! I hope they like it.
We’re heading for bed. Tomorrow I’ll go back to Seward to teach in the morning, then back here. We’ll keep you ‘posted’!
Heart Cath
IMPORTANT: Read the post below this first.
We named this post ‘Heart Cath’ because ‘Shaved Groin’ might have put you off. So, it’s a little more serious now. The doctor came in and said he’d like to rule out myaparacarditis (spelling?), where the actual muscle is affected, not just the sac. That involves doing a heart catheter. (spelling?)
Zoinks!
So, we watched a little nine-minute video about the procedure. I said that wouldn’t be necessary, since I watch lots and lots of medical shows, but they insisted. It was very informative, but they put some nut-job in charge of the soundtrack. It had sad, slightly creepy ‘beginning of the horror movie where the innocent family is moving their belongings into the doomed house’, haunted-music-box music. It washard not to laugh.
The nurse informed us of the risks, and they were ready right away! Lloyd had to strip down to his gown and socks, and they took him to the cath lab. He said it was very interesting, but he’s resting now and I’ll let him describe it later.
After about an hour the doctor came out and said that he does have a little myaparacarditis, but it shouldn’t be a problem. His chances of getting better are quite good. They’re going to get him on some medicine and keep him here for a few days to watch him.
That’s all for now. I appreciate you leaving comments rather than calling – our cell phone batteries are pretty low.
More updates later!
Desperate for material.
As we’ve joked the past couple of days, “We’ll do anything for a good post!” No pictures today, but many more to follow!
Where to start? First of all, Lloyd’s ok. (Sounds ominous, eh?) Let’s begin with what we’ve told countless nurses, aides, physicians’ assistants and a doctor.
As you know, Lloyd’s been sick with a cold for a couple of weeks, and he had a fever last… Tuesday? Anyway, Thursday night he had some mild chest pain around midnight, but it went away by 2:00. (He didn’t wake me up.) Friday morning his chest started to hurt as he was driving in to school. He didn’t have his cell phone, so he was trying to figure out the safest way to drive off the road should something happen. At school, he wondered if it might be gas, so some co-workers offered some Tums and soda. It went away by 9:00, so that was that (He told me about it after school.)
Friday night I awoke at 2:15 to Lloyd sitting by the bed and saying, “Lauren, you need to come downstairs and sit with me.” (Now THAT’S a shot of adrenline.) We sat in the dining room while he drank some pop – I offered baking soda water, since I’ve watched lots and lots of medical shows. Finally he put his head on the table, and we decided to go to the emergency room. “Better safe than sorry” and all that.
We went, and they were very kind and helpful. Lloyd got hooked up for an EKG, had an i.v. port put in, had oxygen pumped into his nose, had a chest x-ray, and got some blood drawn. (Lloyd did not pass out! Usually he’s kind of a woozy guy with that.) We kept thinking, “It’s probably just gas.” Well, they said that some heart enzyemes were pretty high, so they were going to send us to Lincoln. We thought we’d just drive ourselves in, but the P.A. shook her head and said, “No. You’re really sick. I’m surprised you don’t feel a lot worse.” They said it was probably pericarditis, and inflamation of the sac around his heart, probably caused by his cold virus. Lloyd had to take an ambulance. By they way, it arrived around 5 a.m., and by this time he was feeling fine. These episodes just last about two hours.
I went home to get the car that had enough gas to get to Lincoln, Lloyd’s toothbrush and some extra clothes, and – of course – the camera. (Don’t think we’re morbid, but we’ve joked that if anything super-serious should happen to one of us, the other one has to make a post about it.) Unfortunately we can’t load pictures yet, but perhaps this evening or tomorrow we can.)
Lloyd rode in, I followed, we arrived at St. Elizabeth around 6 a.m.- a very nice facility! He had all the same tests over again, minus the x-ray, and waited to hear from the doctor. We had to wait quite a long time, because it was Saturday and there was only one cardioloist on duty. He was probably helping people who were in big trouble, so it wasn’t too hard to be patient. We sat around, had people come in and do the same tests, and around 4 p.m. we met with the doctor briefly A bit later, Lloyd had his first dose of actual medicine – the experimental wonder drug….. Motrin! We joked with the nurse that we weren’t sure about Lloyd taking such strong medication. Whatever.
We were pretty tired all day and tried to nap, but people kept wanting to take Lloyd’s blood away. Annette and her family were coming into Lincoln and we asked if she could bring Lloyd’s keys and his papers to grade. I got his laptop from school and we had a pretty nice setup When Lloyd took a shower he had to pull 23 sticky tabs off his chest, and 2 from his ankles. He ate the hospital food without complaint, and we went to sleep around 10:30.
An hour later I woke up to him calling the nurse because the pain was back, but not as severe. It took a while for them to come in. Anyway, someone came to draw some blood and the nurse said they needed to run ‘a complete set of tests – he hasn’t had the three blah blah blah test since he’s been here!’. Then they gave him morphine – just like on M.A.S.H.!
We actually got some sleep after that, though they stole his blood again in the night. It’s been fascinating watching his heart rate and blood pressure change throughout the day and night. So, a nutshell, he’s just fine 93% of the time, and a mess 7%. We’re hoping to leave today, but we’ll have to talk with the doctor today. We’ll keep you “posted”!
A sweet side note – they play a snippet of a lullaby over the intercom whenever a baby is born, and seven babies have been born while we’ve been here!
So, Brad, I guess this trumps Amsterdam, huh?
Prototypin’
(Sorry for missing Friday. I went to bed early so I could go to work and cook. Lloyd said he would post something but he wound up grading papers instead. That’s good for him, but bad for you, ’cause he’s got a really funny one. Get on his case to post it!)
Next Saturday I’m going to a conference in Columbus to try and convert more people to the power of ukes. We’ll be using barirones, which are more guitar-like. I have three on hand here, and one of our ukulele night guys is going to loan me three. It’s possible for two people to share a ukulele, but it gets kind of boring for the person who has to wait their turn. So, this time – I have prototypes for them! These are 21-inch-long pieces of 1×3 with pieces of bamboo skewers glued on for ‘frets’. I need to get some heavier fishing line for strings. They won’t be in tune at all, but at least it’ll be something to practice on.
Walkin’
If Lloyd hadn’t been sick yesterday, this would have been our post. I was driving home from work and saw two lovely ladies out and about! They were obviously trying to hide their identities, but I saw through their disguises.  They were …..
The Dandilion Thief! (and her accomplice - Mommy!) We’ve seen the Thief’s work before at her Grandma & Grandpa’s. Kids these days. Honestly.