Chapter 29

Hello,

I took a nice long nap.  It was only for 4 hours.  I did wake up in time to spend some time with Jerry.  He’s been having a rough time. He always feels so bad, but lately it’s been really rough.  He tries to help me, and he does a great job.  He’s taken over paying the bills, balancing the checkbook and several other things that I’m afraid my health may kill us both.

The cats and dogs around here are taking over.  Mom has 3 cats.  Sassy is 20 years old.  She has sure trained mama.  Tee-hee.  That cat stays in her room and the other 2 have run of the house.  The calico cat has chosen Jerry as her man, and he has really spoiled her.  This is Ms Callie, and Jerry gives her a little milk every morning.  We’re all working to get Gabby more socialized.  He really loves mama, but they didn’t have a lot of playtime with us while they were kittens.   I didn’t know about Jerry being a bi-petual, that's where a person loves both dogs and cats.  He let me believe that he was strictly a dog person and after all these years, I find out.  Shame on you Jerry.

I’m starting to be bored by rambling.  Can only guess how bored you are. Hope you all have a good night!

CYA

Arlynda

Chapter 28

Good Morning,

Well, I’m back to sleeping 10-12 hours, being awake for 4-5 hours, then down for another 10-12.  Talk about sleeping your life away!!

Had an MRI, and all sorts of blood work.  I must have studied real hard for all those tests because I passed.  The MRI showed no cancer, but I have a lot of fluid in my abdomen.  Went to the hospital, and they pumped 6 liters off.  It is so hard to function when the fluid is up to your lungs.  I’ve never been pregnant, but that’s what they compare it to.  All those blood tests gave me a meld score of 6-7.  5-6 is compared to a normal, healthy person. 

Leslie (my younger sister) keeps wanting to get together and do all the prepping for our funerals and wills.  I just don’t want to.  She’s mad at me for being the first born.  When daddy died 21 years ago, our step-mother, Lula Mae, did give me several things handed down from the family.  There’s a ring that had belonged to my Grandma Chastain with a pretty good size purple stone.  It was too small for my fat little fingers.  So I just put it away.  Then a couple years ago, mama gave me Grandma Babbitt’s wedding band, and over the years, grandma had gotten a 2nd wedding ring.  Leslie noticed the ring on my finger with my wedding rings.  Needless to say, she got her feelings hurt.  Now I’m afraid we’re gonna have more hurt feelings.  Mama has 2 mother’s rings.  The one my dad got for her only had stones put in for mama and us girls.  The other one mama got for herself, and it has atones for us girls and the grandchildren.    I’m gonna see about getting both rings adjusted so I can wear both the mother’s ring from Daddy and Grandma Chastain’s purple ring.  Leslie won’t get her mother’s ring until mama takes it off.  I hope she doesn’t get her feelings hurt, but I know my sister and her tender heart that doesn’t take much to upset her. 

I better get off here while I still have a little energy.  Got to wash the dishes.  We’re having so much trouble getting a home health aide.  Hadn’t seen any aides for at least 4 weeks until the one they sent yesterday.  After trying to work with three different agencies, who act like they could not care less about truly providing good care, my expectations are not high when it comes to meeting a new aide, but when the new one yesterday said something that cut to the core, I told him to get his backpack and leave less than 5 minutes after he got here (at the wrong time, I might add).  Jerry’s mouth fell open and stayed that way.  You see, Jerry gets angry when the home health agencies have jerked us around, and I am always telling him to be nice.  When the guy left, Jerry looked at me and asked, “Who told me to be nice, that the aides didn’t know what all is going with management?”  Yep, that’s me, Mrs. B.  Best not mess with her, she’s a tough cookie—haha!!!

CYA,

Arlynda  

Chapter 27

Hello,

I’ve felt so terrible for so long, that even Jerry has been waiting on me hand and feet (ok, maybe just the hands).  I’ve already went through a couple of rounds of MRIs, blood work and all that junk, and now I have the appointments to get the results.  Dr. Paulk looked at the MRI long enough to find out that I’ve got mild to moderate ascites--fancy work for fluid.  I had been so proud that I had lost some weight and a week later I had gained close to 30 lbs.  I knew it was fluid starting again.  Not sure if there is anything to stop it.  The 2 diuretics have been working so well.  If they increase one drug, it causes my kidneys to complain, and if they increase the other one, my potassium goes sky high, which can cause a heart attack.  Just to put icing on the cake, my primary doctor, whom I’ve seen for about 10 years, is leaving and going back to St Louis.  So now I’ll have to find another doctor.  I’m hoping there’s a doctor in this office.  There are several there.  As long as I don’t have to drive to  Tin-buc-to  I’ll be happy.

Sorry to be complaining so much.  Been gone so long I’ve about forgotten how to type. 

CYA,

Arlynda

Chapter 26

Good Morning,

I’ve been away so long, I was afraid my computer wouldn’t let me type anything. 

One thing that absolutely scares a wife is to find out your husband has had a heart attack.  Yes, Jerry’s was mild, but it is still a HEART ATTACK !!!!

I’m just glad he’s back at home.  We’ve got Dr. Paulk to accept him as a patient.  Dr. Paulk has been taking care of me for years, and out of all the doctors I’ve been to in the last 3-4 years, I believe he’s a good doctor. I can’t say anymore or Jerry will think I mean all this, and he’ll hold it over my head for years to come.  Tee-hee.

I started my rounds with Dr. Ng, Dr. Lyons, Dr. Paulk, and the St. Louis doctors.  I had been thinking that as long as my abdomen wasn’t storing so much fluid on me that I was doing better.  I was told that when I started holding fluids to the point of having to have drained every couple of days that they would do a procedure to insert a metal tube into my liver and that would make it easier for my body to get rid of the fluid.  I would be able to stop going to the hospital for the draining.  My last appointment with Dr. Ng, he said I wasn’t a candidate for that.  Apparently, I’m starting to show signs of dementia. With this the procedure, it will put me in a deadly coma.  I guess I can cross that off my bucket list. Tee-hee.  He had told me to stop driving, so I stayed at home a week with so signs of any problems.  Mom hadn’t been to Wal-Mart in that week.  Had to take her or the pain will be unbearable.

Starting to work on Christmas stuff.  I don’t want to wait ‘til the last minute like last year.  I was up all night wrapping, talk about taking Joy out of Christmas—that did it!

Jerry has an eye appointment to see how he’s doing and hoping he’ll set Jerry up for cataract surgery, I may be mistaken but with the new lenses they put in me made my vision 20/20 and my prescription hasn’t changed since I had the surgery.  I still wear glasses, but it is a bifocal pair and I just need the bottom lens to be a prescription so I can read.  I hope they do the same for Jerry.    I can hear you all, “Jerry this and Jerry that,” makes you think I like him.

You all have a good week and don’t forget to:

CYA,

Arlynda

Chapter 25

Good Evening,

Yes, it isn’t morning this time.  I had taken a nap yesterday, and there’s no rhyme or reason to it.  My little nap turned into about a 12 hour sleep.  Poor Jerry woke me up, and I have no idea how many times he’d tried.   For the most part, Jerry would rather chew off his arm as to take on that task.  I guess I can be a bit testy when my sleep is interrupted.  That’s what I’ve been told.  So, I’ve been up over 12 hours, and as tired as I am, I’m not sleepy.  So, if I follow the last couple of weeks of this sleep pattern, I’ll only get a couple of hours a night for 3-4 days, then on the fourth or fifth night I’ll crash and be out of it for another 12-18 hours. 

It just seemed to me that this week had really dragged on and on.  Then all of a sudden it was Thursday.  Today is Friday, and the weekend is here.  Temperatures have been in the upper 90s, and the lows have been in the 80s.    Oh, how I hate the summertime.  Missouri has the high temps and high humidity.  So, it’s muggy, or as was said from the great classic movie “Throw Mama from the train, “sultry.”

So, it looks like  I won’t be leaving the house often as long as it’s hot.  This will be enough to cause World War 3 here.  Mama has got to be Wal-Mart's biggest fan.  We have to go to that store at least once a week, and if Mama had her way, we’d be there 4-5 times a week.  Mama grew up very poor, as did most families from the ‘30s.  Even after she married my Dad, things still weren’t good.  Daddy made good money and he drank it up.  Mama had an Avon route that barely paid the bills and put food on the table.  She’s always worked hard, physically and mentally.  So. if there’s anything she wants, I encourage her to get it, which has now given us the beginning of a mini-hoarder episode.  Most of my things are still in the garage packed in cardboard boxes.  I guess since I haven’t seen my things in all those years, I should be able to get rid of it, but there are so many pretty things I haven’t had a place to show them off.  Of course, when Jerry reads this you all may want to call 9-1-1.  I’m sure he’ll do 1 of 2 things—he’ll either hold his breath ‘til he passes out or #2, laugh ‘til he’s rolling around the yard like a goof ball.  {Editor’s Note: I actually started feeling real sorry for myself, but my wife doesn’t need to know that.  So, let’s keep it between us—okay?}

I need to get with it before I lose any motivation to get rid of stuff.  Can’t wait to the see joy on this happy little face.  {Didn’t happen.}

CYA,

Arlynda

Chapter 24

Good Morning,

The sun is up already, and I’m fairly sure it’s going to be hot and humid.  Oh well, just another summer in Missouri.  It usually stays hot through September.  At least most of the schools are air conditioned so the kids aren’t suffering.  In 1980, (I was barely legal) when my first husband and I got married, it held the record for the highest temperature on that date since records started being kept.  The shoe factory (where I worked later on) had ambulances all over the place taking people to the hospital for heat exhaustion, while the factory manager sat in his air conditioned office.  These employees stood over machines that heated up all around you.  Mine did, though I know other machines got much hotter than mine.

Well, the doctor appointments have started again.  Last Friday, I saw my endocrinologist, and this Friday, I see my primary care doctor.  In August, I see the G.I. and the dermatologist.  Last but not least,  we get to go back to St. Louis in September or October.  Yippee!!  Well, if you can’t beat them, join them. 

I’m absolutely exhausted after watching Ann’s little Gibbs run the house over.  It’s a good thing there weren’t any cats around or they'd wish they were in a rocking chair factory, just for the rest!!!  Tee hee.

CYA

Arlynda 

Chapter 23

Good Morning,

It’s 2:30 a.m. here.  We made the great drive to St. Louis, again.  We left here about 3:30 a.m., and it was another safe trip.  We arrived in plenty of time.  Talk about an efficient department.  Springfield could take a lesson.  They got me in, the MRI made me start to glow green (of course not, but having a MRI every 6 months or so makes you wonder) and I was done.  Made it to my doctor’s appointment.  He was supposed to go over the results with me, but the radiologist hadn’t read it yet.  My coordinator called a day or 2 later with the results.  Everything looked good.  My meld score was 8, which is wonderful.  It dawned on me just how good I am doing.  Two and a half years ago, Dr.Halsey told me I had 2-5 years to live.  I’m still ahead of the game.  Leslie, (my sister) reminded me that there are some procedures I will have to undergo to help stave off the transplant or death.  I’m not going to candy-coat this, there is a lot of pain and invasive procedures I’ll have to undergo.  However, I need to stay positive. 

I have to stay strong.  Mom and Jerry need me.  Of course, my puppies need me.  They love me and stay right at my side protecting me whenever someone comes anywhere close to me.  It really is funny to watch, but I am fairly confident they would snap at them.

Next appointment in St. Louis is in October (something to look forward to).  Leslie got the results from her liver biopsy.  She has been waiting for 3 weeks!!!  It was driving me totally insane.  From her blood tests, they were sure it wasn’t cirrhosis like mine.  It was a type of liver disease that is treated and possibly even curable.  Now it turns out that it is the same as mine.  Pretty good, my sister and I never really drank.  Daddy drank enough for all of us.  Anyway, Leslie and I can schedule our appointments together.  Isn’t that a great way for sisters to “paint the town red.”  Best quit for now.

CYA

Arlynda