12/23/2010
Sorry I haven't updated my 'blog lately.
Went to the Dr. earlier this month, everything is going fine. My levels are all good. I promise not to post my charts any more. ;)
I'll get a PET scan in a couple months and then my maintenance treatments will start in May.
Our oldest turned 24 yesterday! Our youngest will be 19 next month! Although I'm getting old, life is good.
Thanks for supporting me in 2010, let's all have a great 2011.
Hope you all have a safe and happy holiday with your friends and family.
Steve
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
12-08-2010
12-08-2010
Thoughts on a winter morning
Shout out to my brother in law Bill, who's having open heart surgery tomorrow.
Shout out to my buddy, our IT guy, Joe, who had surgery yesterday.
Shout out to my mom, who's dealing with COPD issues, etc.
I was thinking about those things when I woke up this morning, and the 9 degree temperature outside. Made it kind of hard to get out of bed.
Onward and upward, and where's my coffee?
Thoughts on a winter morning
Shout out to my brother in law Bill, who's having open heart surgery tomorrow.
Shout out to my buddy, our IT guy, Joe, who had surgery yesterday.
Shout out to my mom, who's dealing with COPD issues, etc.
I was thinking about those things when I woke up this morning, and the 9 degree temperature outside. Made it kind of hard to get out of bed.
Onward and upward, and where's my coffee?
Sunday, December 5, 2010
12-05-2010
12-05-2010
We got our first snow of the season beginning Friday night and ending Saturday afternoon. Like Julie said, the first snow is kind of exciting, then after that it just sucks.
Back yard shot:
Tessa and I jumped in the Cherokee and went four wheelin' yesterday. But we got out too late; most of the roads were already plowed. We still managed to enjoy ourselves.
So, we got that goin' for us.
**
Not much going on with me. I have a doctor's appt Thursday so we'll see what will happen between now and May when I start my maintenance.
**
My last posting I didn't really discuss my thoughts on Thanksgiving. That was an oversight on my part. I really DID reflect on my good fortune and thankfulness.
My buddy Chuck called me the day before and we had a nice long talk about exactly that. Chuck is coming up on 2 years as a successful organ transplant patient and so I guess we both feel like we're in the death cheater's club. It was a good feeling to share another Thanksgiving with family and friends, no doubt.
**
Lee Harvey, you are a madman. ... I want to party with you, cowboy.
Are you old enough to remember the Kennedy Assassination? I am just barely old enough myself. One of the coolest museum visits I remember was in 1999 when I visited my brothers in Dallas: The Sixth Floor Museum was absolutely fascinating to me. Link here:
http://www.jfk.org/
They practically had to drag me out of there. And then when the actual death limo drove by on the street out front... well, it was almost too much for a "Kennedy Assassination Slut" like myself to bear. My one regret is that I didn't take the death limo tour.
That's morbid, isn't it?
If you are interested in the subject, here's a DON'T MISS: The Discovery Channel's The Kennedy Detail. It's a two hour special based on the book of the same name.
This was the best documentary on the subject that I've seen. The setup is like this: A group of men is given an impossible task. After they (predictably) fail, they spend the rest of their lives (47 years and counting) agonizing over their failure.
I've watched a lot of documentaries on the subject. What sets this apart is that the actual Secret Service men on duty that day are featured. I've never seen them interviewed previously. One of them, Gerald Blaine, wrote the book this is based on and it obviously got the unofficial blessing of all the guys wearing dark glasses on that cold November day so long ago.
To watch these old, old men go back in time 47 years and retell the story of their obvious adoration of Jack, Jackie, their son and daughter and the anguish over the assassination is absolutely riveting. Not to be missed.
And wow, what a different time it was, 1963. To the casual observer, JFK was a beloved president, but scratch the surface and you'll find that there were a lot of people who did NOT love him. And probably many who wanted him dead. In that respect, he was no different than any other president, past, present, or future.
But in the end, a lone, nutball gunman, a total misfit, changed the course of history. As one of the secret service men put it, paraphrasing here: 'He (Oswald) was a loser. No one could stand him for more than 5 minutes. He was such a loser that after he successfully executed his plan, he got himself shot and killed before he could bask in (his twisted perception of) the glory'.
I think that's what chaps the Secret Service's proverbial ass. Had the Russians pulled it off, or the Cubans, or the Teamsters, at least there would have been some credible (yet diabolical) organization behind it. But for this dirtball scumbag loser to have pulled it off is just more than they can stomach. And that's probably why, for the better part of the last 47 years, tons of people have tried to find a tie between Oswald and someone, just so they could feel like there was some great conspiracy behind the whole thing, and thus, give Lee Harvey some significance, some weight. But at this point, I think most people have given up and the lone gunman theory has become the lone gunman FACT.
And when I looked out the window of the 6th floor, I was convinced that with a little training, I could have pulled it off. No kidding. But Kennedy's Secret Service detail in Dallas I believe consisted of 5 guys. Today it would probably be 100. And no open top cars.
Where in the hell was the damn Popemobile when we needed it?
Over the years, there have been 4 sitting presidents assassinated and numerous other thwarted attempts. They almost killed Reagan, did succeed in wounding him. FDR was nearly killed, a Chicago mayor with him took the fatal bullet instead (insert Chicago joke HERE). Experts believe that one of the 9/11 hijackers was stalking "W" days before 9/11. There were a couple of attempts on Ford (and a couple by Ford himself, although inadvertent:)). And on and on.
Clinton... well the only gun that got Slick Willie in trouble was the one he couldn't keep in his pants (Wee Willie?), but that's a different story.
I'll be here all week, try the veal.
Point being that it is impossible to protect an individual. Best you can do is the best you can do. And it just might not be enough, as was the case in 1963.
Anyway, if you are so inclined, give this a viewing.
**
Speaking of what could have been makes me think of my beloved but broken MagicWheel. And this morning on craigslist, I stumbled across this, under heading "Unique type of bike":
I'm not bitin', just so you know. He's asking $250.... but if he gets down under two bills... nah, just kidding.
This looks like it would ride like a dream, unlike the MagicWheel, but unfortunately, would do so with none of the "Kool". Most unfortunate.
**
Gender Re-Assignment, nearly (mine)
The JFK stuff reminded me, speaking of projectiles:
My mom had to get a personal home monitoring system. It's a bracelet or a pendant with a button on it which you push if you are alone at home and in distress. At that point the people at the monitoring center can talk to you and assess your condition, sending help if need be.
Yes, it's like the "I've fallen and can't get up" thing.
One requirement was that she hide a key somewhere so that if they dispatched police or ambulance personnel they could gain access. My mom wasn't too keen on that idea, so instead she bought a keyless entry. That way she can give the code to the service up front and not have to hide a key.
I installed the keyless entry and had a little difficulty removing the old lock cylinder from the door. There was an email exchange between some of the members of my family. When I realized I hadn't 'blogged this, I felt guilty (again, what is WRONG with me?), so here it is. I did the drawing in Excel, FYI:
yeah, so what happened was that I was taking the lock cylinder out of the deadbolt. it required quite a bit of force and when it finally let go, it shot out and zipped right under my... well, my... my most private of privates. it passed so close and at such a high rate of speed that you could hear the nylon of my sweat pants whistling. it was one of those maxwell smart "missed me by that much" kind of things. luckily, all it took away was my breath. See illustration.
**
And, in conclusion...
All my best to you and yours. I hope you're enjoying the holiday season.
I know I'm not;)
We got our first snow of the season beginning Friday night and ending Saturday afternoon. Like Julie said, the first snow is kind of exciting, then after that it just sucks.
Back yard shot:
Tessa and I jumped in the Cherokee and went four wheelin' yesterday. But we got out too late; most of the roads were already plowed. We still managed to enjoy ourselves.
So, we got that goin' for us.
**
Not much going on with me. I have a doctor's appt Thursday so we'll see what will happen between now and May when I start my maintenance.
**
My last posting I didn't really discuss my thoughts on Thanksgiving. That was an oversight on my part. I really DID reflect on my good fortune and thankfulness.
My buddy Chuck called me the day before and we had a nice long talk about exactly that. Chuck is coming up on 2 years as a successful organ transplant patient and so I guess we both feel like we're in the death cheater's club. It was a good feeling to share another Thanksgiving with family and friends, no doubt.
**
Lee Harvey, you are a madman. ... I want to party with you, cowboy.
Are you old enough to remember the Kennedy Assassination? I am just barely old enough myself. One of the coolest museum visits I remember was in 1999 when I visited my brothers in Dallas: The Sixth Floor Museum was absolutely fascinating to me. Link here:
http://www.jfk.org/
They practically had to drag me out of there. And then when the actual death limo drove by on the street out front... well, it was almost too much for a "Kennedy Assassination Slut" like myself to bear. My one regret is that I didn't take the death limo tour.
That's morbid, isn't it?
If you are interested in the subject, here's a DON'T MISS: The Discovery Channel's The Kennedy Detail. It's a two hour special based on the book of the same name.
This was the best documentary on the subject that I've seen. The setup is like this: A group of men is given an impossible task. After they (predictably) fail, they spend the rest of their lives (47 years and counting) agonizing over their failure.
I've watched a lot of documentaries on the subject. What sets this apart is that the actual Secret Service men on duty that day are featured. I've never seen them interviewed previously. One of them, Gerald Blaine, wrote the book this is based on and it obviously got the unofficial blessing of all the guys wearing dark glasses on that cold November day so long ago.
To watch these old, old men go back in time 47 years and retell the story of their obvious adoration of Jack, Jackie, their son and daughter and the anguish over the assassination is absolutely riveting. Not to be missed.
And wow, what a different time it was, 1963. To the casual observer, JFK was a beloved president, but scratch the surface and you'll find that there were a lot of people who did NOT love him. And probably many who wanted him dead. In that respect, he was no different than any other president, past, present, or future.
But in the end, a lone, nutball gunman, a total misfit, changed the course of history. As one of the secret service men put it, paraphrasing here: 'He (Oswald) was a loser. No one could stand him for more than 5 minutes. He was such a loser that after he successfully executed his plan, he got himself shot and killed before he could bask in (his twisted perception of) the glory'.
I think that's what chaps the Secret Service's proverbial ass. Had the Russians pulled it off, or the Cubans, or the Teamsters, at least there would have been some credible (yet diabolical) organization behind it. But for this dirtball scumbag loser to have pulled it off is just more than they can stomach. And that's probably why, for the better part of the last 47 years, tons of people have tried to find a tie between Oswald and someone, just so they could feel like there was some great conspiracy behind the whole thing, and thus, give Lee Harvey some significance, some weight. But at this point, I think most people have given up and the lone gunman theory has become the lone gunman FACT.
And when I looked out the window of the 6th floor, I was convinced that with a little training, I could have pulled it off. No kidding. But Kennedy's Secret Service detail in Dallas I believe consisted of 5 guys. Today it would probably be 100. And no open top cars.
Where in the hell was the damn Popemobile when we needed it?
Over the years, there have been 4 sitting presidents assassinated and numerous other thwarted attempts. They almost killed Reagan, did succeed in wounding him. FDR was nearly killed, a Chicago mayor with him took the fatal bullet instead (insert Chicago joke HERE). Experts believe that one of the 9/11 hijackers was stalking "W" days before 9/11. There were a couple of attempts on Ford (and a couple by Ford himself, although inadvertent:)). And on and on.
Clinton... well the only gun that got Slick Willie in trouble was the one he couldn't keep in his pants (Wee Willie?), but that's a different story.
I'll be here all week, try the veal.
Point being that it is impossible to protect an individual. Best you can do is the best you can do. And it just might not be enough, as was the case in 1963.
Anyway, if you are so inclined, give this a viewing.
**
Speaking of what could have been makes me think of my beloved but broken MagicWheel. And this morning on craigslist, I stumbled across this, under heading "Unique type of bike":
I'm not bitin', just so you know. He's asking $250.... but if he gets down under two bills... nah, just kidding.
This looks like it would ride like a dream, unlike the MagicWheel, but unfortunately, would do so with none of the "Kool". Most unfortunate.
**
Gender Re-Assignment, nearly (mine)
The JFK stuff reminded me, speaking of projectiles:
My mom had to get a personal home monitoring system. It's a bracelet or a pendant with a button on it which you push if you are alone at home and in distress. At that point the people at the monitoring center can talk to you and assess your condition, sending help if need be.
Yes, it's like the "I've fallen and can't get up" thing.
One requirement was that she hide a key somewhere so that if they dispatched police or ambulance personnel they could gain access. My mom wasn't too keen on that idea, so instead she bought a keyless entry. That way she can give the code to the service up front and not have to hide a key.
I installed the keyless entry and had a little difficulty removing the old lock cylinder from the door. There was an email exchange between some of the members of my family. When I realized I hadn't 'blogged this, I felt guilty (again, what is WRONG with me?), so here it is. I did the drawing in Excel, FYI:
yeah, so what happened was that I was taking the lock cylinder out of the deadbolt. it required quite a bit of force and when it finally let go, it shot out and zipped right under my... well, my... my most private of privates. it passed so close and at such a high rate of speed that you could hear the nylon of my sweat pants whistling. it was one of those maxwell smart "missed me by that much" kind of things. luckily, all it took away was my breath. See illustration.
**And, in conclusion...
All my best to you and yours. I hope you're enjoying the holiday season.
I know I'm not;)
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