Apropos of Nothing v.19

I'm not talking of the youth using blue but rather the older female with light blue hair. Where I came from they all had the same blue hair.

Sofer, you would be referring to the blue-haired older ladies using Mrs. Stewart's Bluing, a product used for whitening whites in the laundry. As hair grays and whitens, it tends to get yellowish and bluing can counter-act that. I suspect many old ladies just use a tad too much, hence the blue tint. Still on the market today - here's a link:

http://www.mrsstewart.com/

Ahh yes that is why. I have always wondered why. Now I know. Thank you BH.

My cousin just sent me a real cool hummingbird video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUEZkwJulBY&feature=player_embedded%22%3Ehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUEZkwJulBY&feature=player_embedded%3C/A

I saw this one not too long ago. Very interesting to see how man can accomplish our desires with the wild world.

Getting ready to go fishing! We're going back to the same lake where we had so much fun on Tracy's birthday. (Lake Offut) Got to bundle up- it's chilly out there!

We just got a stablizer kit for the canoe- it's pretty cool, two pontoons that attach to the sides. Should make it a lot more comfortable. (less rocking= less back strain for me)

Tracy is tying up some new flies to try- the fish we caught last time had been eating little bees/wasps. So Tracy is making flies that look like them. We'll see what happens! :)

Marvellous photo Steve, looks like magic apples - didn't sleeping beauty's wicked stepmother have one like that?

Yes....... hmmmm.... maybe I should stop injecting the apples with Vodka. I love Russian McIntosh. LOL

Pony, sorry it did not work out for me to come help you in your yard. We have been SOOOO busy trying to get some things finished up.

My neurologist referred me to another neurologist at Swedish Hosp, and they have both said I have Parkinson's Disease. That finally explains some things, like the extreme fatigue.

Hope you are improving every day.

Yikes Lynn, that is some kind of news. I think it is always good to know what you have on your plate though, the unknown is often more unsettling. I hope you have a good health care team to guide you through your journey. Sending all my good karma and joo-joo your way. Deb

Oh, Lynn - I'm sorry to hear that. But if it's true, there are tons of therapies out there right now, especially physical therapies that can combat many of the symptoms. I hope they can give you something for the fatigue. I'll be keeping you in my thoughts. Please keep us posted.

I have an appt this Friday with my main neurologist. The other doc wants to put me on a med that is over $300 per month, they don't know if insurance will cover it yet. What kind of pt? Is it something I can just do at home? I haven't researched PD yet, thinking that ignorance will make it go away. Yeah, right.

My niece is a music therapist and she was describing the types of therapy she does - therapies do take someone to observe you and determine a plan for treatment, so I'd definitely look for a professional. I would think that most insurance would cover that (a visit a month or something like that). Of course, light exercise, I think, to keep circulation good and muscles strong (especially our abs) is always a good thing for balance.

I was just reading that Ritalin is very helpful in treating Parkinson's fatigue. Is that what you're looking at? It sounds like it's an accepted medication. And, even if the insurance doesn't say outright initially that they'll cover it, they will often end up covering it if your doctor documents it well and writes to the Medical Director at the insurance company.

Lynn,
So sorry to hear your news. Wishing you all the best and do some research, it may help. You know yourself best. There must be a Dr. that specializes in that field.

Ouch- Lynn, I'm sorry to hear it. Is the medication they want to put you on called Mirapex? (Pramipexole) I take that for my restless leg syndrome, it's a Parkinson's drug that they discovered works for RLS too. It's crazy expensive.

I hope they can get you started on something to help you feel better.

Oh Lynn I'm so sorry to hear your diagnosis. My DH has that also. He takes Stalevo and responds to it very well. He also works out at the gym four days a week for about an hour and 1/2/. I would say he has had it for about 10 years. usnews.com has good articles on Parkinsons. Everyone who has it is different. You just have to keep at it until you find what's best for you.

And I always think laughter is a good first defense against just about anything. Ever notice how after a good belly laugh, someone inevitably says, 'Ohhh, that felt good.' I think it's the endorphins. I'm sure Joey will help you in that department.

Lynn I'm so sorry to hear of your diagnosis. I have been thinking about you and hope you are doing ok.

Sorry Lynn but as a chronic sufferer I enjoy the challenge that each day gives you. Learn everything you can and get in a group that helps you with ideas on assistance from people who have lived with it. My FIL had it for years and it hardly bothered him. Though he did tell jokes all the time and made us laugh.
I just heard a good one: "Before you criticise anyone you must always walk a mile in a persons shoes. That way when you do criticise them you are a mile away and they have no shoes. LOL

"Regarding the mosque near ground zero, I say let them build it. But across the street we should put a topless bar, called "You Mecca Me Hot". Next to that, a gay bar called "The Turban Cowboy" and next to that, a pork-rib restaurant called "Iraq o' Ribs" and a check cashing center called "Iran... out of money"


This message was edited Oct 20, 2010 9:25 PM

I loved a handicapped parking sign we saw in France last week: "Si tu prends ma place, prends mon handicap" - "If you take my parking space, take my handicap." It was just a regular official notice under the blue P and wheelchair symbol on a village street.

Thanks, everyone for the good thoughts. It is not going to stop me, there is too much to do and enjoy!

Yes, Pony, I have been taking Mirapex for about 3 months now. I had to stop it for 2 days before my Dr appt, and I thought I was going to go crazy. So it must be working. The new doc wants me to take something else, but I don't remember the name of it.

Sofer, do you have the same thing? Nothing seems to slow you down!

Springcolor, my sister in law, Linda, wants your phone number. You guys talked about getting together for lunch or something.

You Mecca Me Hot, love it!

Hugs, Lynn as you find what works the best for you.

I like that sign, GHG

Good ones Sofer.

Mirapex is awesome. I would be extremely unhappy if I couldn't have it anymore... approximately 25 years of not being able to sleep because of the humming in my legs was so miserable. I call it my Miracle Pill. I can't believe how expensive it is, though!

>> "Si tu prends ma place, prends mon handicap"

The New Jersey version was: "You can have my spot if I can have your legs."

I was always relaxed about until (in New Jersey) I had to walk the width of a big parking and then saw a car left with engine running and door open in a fire zone ... and the guy who came out looked like a Bowflexing weigth lifter in a jogging suit.

Also, one day at work, parked in the exact same spot I had parked in EVERY DAY, five days per week for 2-3 years, I forgot to put my placard on the dashboard. Ticket, huge fine, no leniency, and the Desk Sargent made a joke about "and we also have to throw you in a cell now, go through that door".

NJ humor. Gotta love it. Kinda funny, plus, yes, really, you DO have to love it, or they might break your legs.

Now, if I catch myself meanly looking for a placard on a car that took one of the very few handicapped spots at work, I remind myself that they must have simply forgotten to put their Morally Handicapped placard on the dashboard.

Corey

Corey, I like the morally handicapped thought, eases frustration. My husband refers to maniac drivers as interesting persons.

No Lynn I was referring to my diabetes. For 40 years I have had the opportunity to fight daily for health and understanding how diabetes affects my body. I have, being insulin dependent, looked at all of the horrors of the diabetic life with losing legs, eye sight, impotence, worms under my skin (neuropathy), organ failure...... I have chosen to do what I can day to day to benefit my disease and not feel guilt when I don't. I have to say the above effects are evident in my life and each day worsen. I have decided to laugh at the simple ones and the difficult deadly ones to accept. Chronic Illness is an opportunity to build character and respect with those around you who see you battle. I watch my Karen with her RA suffer and get up and take on the garden, house, or anything she would have done anyway. You are strong Lynn and you just need to learn to take care of yourself and not everyone around you now.

Rick, one of our elected officials got busted recently for parking in a handicapped zone. It was very embarrassing because it got a lot of coverage!

I've never seen those signs in NJ, which is why I was so struck by the one in France! Sometimes a bit of humor can make the point a lot better than notices about fines. I don't know how effective they are, though.

>> I have decided to laugh at the simple ones and the difficult deadly ones to accept. Chronic Illness is an opportunity to build character

Soferdig, I knew you were a tough guy no matter what you say.

>> ... I have chosen to do what I can day to day to benefit my disease and not feel guilt when I don't.

I think that's a good strategy, but EACH person has to find the attitude that works best for them. Staying relaistic and not ignoring/denying is crucial.

Keeping up one's spirit or morale is probably most important of all. I find dark humor very helpful, but then i have twisted mind.

One theory I have is that handicaps are given to people who have "too much strength" to be sufficiently challenged by normal life. Like a very good golfer, they have to excell even beyond their own level just to "break even". In that theory, some people have capacities they would never have discovered if they had not been handed a "challenge".

Or maybe (like my own case) we are SO stubburn and Space Cadet that fate or whatever has to hit us repeatedly with a brick in the head to get us to pay attention and take care of ourselves.

I think that the Divine is very "generous" with "opportunities" that we might also call "challenges". As if the purpose or intent of existence is not solely "have fun and be comfortable" but perhaps also "to strive and grow".

Ulysses:
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield"

Hamlet:
"What is a man,
If his chief good and market of his time
Be but to sleep and feed? A beast, no more."[

That's just my theory. Your mileage may vary, and I don't claim to know the "right" name for the Divine or Fate or Purpose.

Corey


This message was edited Oct 22, 2010 11:09 AM

Neat Corey. I lilke that Hamlet line. I am the brick to the head repeatedly type.

As someone once said, "Like teabags, we don't know our own strength until we find ourselves in hot water."

Dear Lynn, I just read about your diagnosis with Parkinson's Disease and I am praying for you and your family as you find your way forward through all that entails, finding doctors and therapists who you trust and work well with you. As Sofer said, you are so accustomed to the caregiving role, being there for other people, and now it's time for you to let others return that love and care for you and to take care of yourself too. ((((BIG HUGS))))

Thanks, Holly. It could be worse, at least I don't have to worry about what not to eat! Speaking of what not to eat, today I discovered that Sally had gotten up during the night and fixed herself something to eat. Unfortunately, it was a bowl of salmon flavored dog treats that she had mistaken for cereal. YUK!!!

Oh, yuk indeed!

Well Hamlet and I are now on an equal plane of overcoming. My maiden voyage began in calm rain and just as I left Wrangell narrows for Sumner straights turned into 5 hours of thrilling beat into 20 knts seas with wave height 3-4 ft. The storm built the entire crossing and after tieing to the dock built to a roar all night. My Bitters did great! I can hardly move today from my back being crunched with the wave pounding. It was fun anyway.
But unlike Hamlet I shall only rest and eat today.

Poor Sally! Well maybe they are good. Do you buy the high end treats? Some of those have some good things in them. She is such a sweet lady.

Lynn, wishing you the best and your Sally too. I just was reading an article of the benefits of eating salmon. Perhaps Sally knows more than she is letting on. :)
http://www.pritikin.com/eperspective/0710/benefitsRiskSalmon.shtml

It's WET WET WET!!!

Lynn, thinking about you and hoping you are doing ok.

Lynn - all the best. But, ummmm, Sally mistook fishy dogtreats for cereal - this is a sleepy girl, with a stuffy nose! I'm wondering what her normal cereal smells like? Goodness! Sleep, much safer. Eat in morning when awake, after the second cup of caffiene. And do not offer to make breakfast for others. Goodness. No. Sheesh.

I often taste dog treats so I know what flavors they like to make food flavors to get the to start eating. Cat food is the worst to flat and too much protein.