Earlier this week, my grandmother had a stroke and was rushed to the hospital. The stroke was the largest stroke she has had to date. At the time, she was entirely paralyzed and could not speak. Fortunately, she is able to speak coherently and move around. Oddly enough, her mental faculties seem to be slightly improved compared to how she was before the stroke. Fortunately, she lives in a wonderful assisted living facility and can get help for any problems she might have because of the stroke. She actually went home this evening and seems to be in good spirits. I am just glad that she is all right.

I am having some knee problems that I have ignored for far too long. It appears that I may have a meniscus injury. Not surprisingly, it is most likely from doing cardio kickboxing. I had stopped for a while and had started swimming instead but the pain has not receded. I definitely noticed it when Brian and I went to Akaka Falls this past weekend. I knew when I felt pain on such a short and ridiculously easy hike that I could no longer pretend like nothing was wrong especially since I have not been able to straighten my right leg for a long time. I will be going to the doctor soon to see what can be done.

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I don’t really use recipes.  I am one of those people that says I use a recipe until someone asks for the recipe and then I realize that I did not in fact follow the recipe at all but instead made up something entirely different.  It makes me wonder why I continue to think that I actually follow recipes.

At any rate…  I was looking online for some new recipes to inspire me.  Specifically, I was looking for recipes that have blackbeans in them.  I always seem to be rather shocked at the horrific things people put in their mouths.  I saw way too many recipes that included Cheese Whiz (is that even a food?) and many many processed cheese products, random canned foods, and a myriad of unhealthy items with unforseeable quantities of unnatural colors and additives.  Why do people eat that crap?  Do they really believe it is healthy?  Or am I delusional for thinking people want to be healthy?  In a world of McDonalds and fast food am I weird for eating a healthy vegetarian diet?

In other news, my doctor is presenting *me* or more specifically my case at a medical conference to get other opinions on what is wrong with me.  I have been referred to an endocrinologist for further study.  I will have to fly to Oahu to see one in Honolulu which is fine…

In other news, I am going to the mainland in May - it should be a fun little trip.  Brian wants to head to Alaska during the summer…

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A myriad of things are going on right now and all of them are fun and exciting!  Some interesting things are occuring business-wise and I could not be more excited.

We spent Valentine’s Day watching two really bad and gruesome X-Files episodes while eating Chinese takeout - it was interesting.  The episodes were these two:  the weird man with mother issues who kills people and takes hair and nails from them and the other episode was some satanic cult that sacrifices the kids living in the town.  We could not even finish watching the second episode, it was just too stupid and absurd.
Today, I am going to find a dresser and a new sewing table.  I also have a doctor’s appointment to find out what is going on with my body…

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Things are really hectic and busy right now. I am working on a number of projects and everyone wants their project done *right now* and the one project that I REALLY want to get out of the way is at a stand-still because of the customer. Bleh. I really want to ditch that project and wash my hands of it all.

I have a doctor’s appointment this afternoon to get the results of my ultrasound and bloodwork to see what is wrong with my ovaries and/or uterus and to see if my hormone levels are normalizing or doing something strange. I also will begin my month of fasting to see if that will help my hormone regulation. It should be interesting…

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Whatever the black freckle was it was not cancer. Thank goodness.

I do not have PCOS. However, I do have very low estrogen levels. I may be going through menopause, have some kind of ovarian faliure, or I might have a non-cancerous brain tumor. I am just waiting to hear from my doctor on what the next step is…

Brian is having a great deal of fun with The Wild Divine and he is using it each night now - it seems to be helping him a great deal…

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I just had a black freckle (for lack of a better term) removed from my arm this week. I have stitches and I cannot sweat or workout this week until next Wednesday. The chunk of my body is being sent to the lab and I will know next week if I need to go in for more treatment (whatever that may be).

We bought a program for Brian to use, The Wild Divine, so he can become enlightened and lower his blood pressure at the same time.

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Yesterday was incredibly hectic. Between getting a call from work about me taking a random drug test and Brian going to the doctor a million other little things happened…

Brian went to the doctor to get a clearance that basically said he was fit to work. So, he made an appointment to go at 1:30 - they opened the office late and then did not call him back until after 2:30. I was supposed to pick him up at 3 PM and showed up but we was not outside waiting. I waited until almost 4PM but he did not come out. Later, I came back and Brian was outside at about 4:15 PM. He said he could not get his clearance because the doctor said his blood pressure was too high - about 160/80 and 150/80. Of course, he had just eaten a high protein sandwich that was 1000 calories so he is sure that contributed to his blood pressure spike -not to mention the stress that he undergoes when he goes to the doctor’s office… He was VERY annoyed. He says he was too informal with them and will require them to call him Doctor next time. He also has to have records of his EKG from Ohio sent to the doctor so she can look at it. She told Brian that his blood pressure has to be lower or she will put him on medication. The nurse also said Brian weighed 267 lbs and she did not blink when she wrote that weight down. The only way Brian could weigh that much is if he stuffed 100 lbs. of lead in his pockets. We bought a blood pressure cuff for him yesterday so we can take his blood pressure at home. His blood pressure is only a bit elevated but no doubt yesterday was stressful… He gets to go back to the doctor to deal with them in another 3-4 weeks after they have a chance to review his records from Ohio and then determine if he can be “fit for work.”

Oh, and he also decided he wants to get an MD so he can be Dr. Dr. Brian Uldall MD, PhD and most importantly so he can “cut people open and fill them full of drugs.” Great. Just what the world needs is for Brian to become a neurosurgeon - be afraid, be very afraid.

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You have gone from “Hey You” to “Dr. U” - Yay for you!

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I took my grandmother to the dentist again today for yet another teeth-whitening excursion. Her vanity overwhelms me. Nonetheless, I also had to clean out her dressers and closet. That was fun. I am scarred for life now. I found several thongs, revealing nightgowns, a belly shirt, and a completely see-thru lace shirt. I will not mention the other items that I found mostly because I cannot bring myself to say them and I am in denial. This only frightens me more after I found that love leash and handcuffs several years ago… Apparently, the words “granny panties” mean nothing to her. In addition, I met her new “gentleman friend” that lives next door. He has a car so this is a big selling point to her. I did jokingly ask her if I should start calling him grandpa and she said no because they were just friends. I do not ever want to know if they are “special friends”… I believe they attended “Poker Night” this evening at the retirement home. She gave up “Knitting Hour” to go with him to an alcohol and gambling centered event. Cleaning up the clutter in her apartment took me many hours and it was all very boring and tedious work that I do not care to engage in for a very long time.

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My grandmother had a stroke on Saturday and we spent all day at the hospital. She is home now and doing quite well. I am rather surprised that they allowed her to come home so quickly but I suppose that they could not really do much for her. This week should be extra fun with finals and other thrilling responsibilities…

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A funny side note…

My grandmother (the crazy one) attended the flower show with me today. She also just came back from a trip to San Luis Obispo, CA. She told me that she would bring me something back from San Luis Obispo. She brings me back a cookbook that pertains to Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara is over 100 miles away from San Luis Obispo… The fact that it is a cookbook on cooking seafood is even more humorous given that I am a vegetarian. She still thinks vegetarian means “person who eats meat” after all these years.

On a bad note and a more personal one, my other grandmother is dying of cancer. The cancer is spreading all over her body and right now, it is on her shoulder, lungs, and the lymph nodes in her chest. The doctor says that she has about six months to live. She is not even able to receive surgery or chemotherapy due to her current health. She can receive radiation but even that will only prolong her life for one year. She has opted not to receive treatment. She has lost a great deal of weight over the last few months. Of course, she only weighed about 98 pounds before this all started. She is down to 78 pounds and continues to lose about two pounds per week. If she continues at the rate of two pounds per week, I do not see how she could survive longer than another two months or less. This is a horrible time for my family.

Popularity: 7% [?]

A funny side note…

My grandmother (the crazy one) attended the flower show with me today. She also just came back from a trip to San Luis Obispo, CA. She told me that she would bring me something back from San Luis Obispo. She brings me back a cookbook that pertains to Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara is over 100 miles away from San Luis Obispo… The fact that it is a cookbook on cooking seafood is even more humorous given that I am a vegetarian. She still thinks vegetarian means “person who eats meat” after all these years.

On a bad note and a more personal one, my other grandmother is dying of cancer. The cancer is spreading all over her body and right now, it is on her shoulder, lungs, and the lymph nodes in her chest. The doctor says that she has about six months to live. She is not even able to receive surgery or chemotherapy due to her current health. She can receive radiation but even that will only prolong her life for one year. She has opted not to receive treatment. She has lost a great deal of weight over the last few months. Of course, she only weighed about 98 pounds before this all started. She is down to 78 pounds and continues to lose about two pounds per week. If she continues at the rate of two pounds per week, I do not see how she could survive longer than another two months or less. This is a horrible time for my family.

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