From Huskies To Husbands

Saturday, finally!  This week has just seemed so long for some reason.  Today was really low key.  I made brunch for DH and I.  We had hash brown potatoes with peppers and onions, turkey smoked sausage and eggs.  It all turned out really good too!

I keep spiking fevers which are just zapping me of all my energy and making me feel even worse if that is possible.  I am tired of it and keep taking the prescription strength ibuprophen and hoping for the best.  I plan on calling the new doctor that I sent my report to on Monday morning.  I hope that she will have had time to review it and to have decided on a plan of action.

DH brought home the CT scan report today from the hospital.  I needed it picked up so that I could fax it off to my GI specialist down in Denver and to the new doctor that I am trying to get in with over in Saratoga.  I looked it over and I am appalled at what I read.

• The report states that there should be further evaluation with ultrasound for the mass on my kidney.
• The report states that there are findings consistent with sacroiliitis and that follow up with the patient should be done about this issue.
• The report states that there is a focal sclerosis along the inferior right SI joint.  (sclerosis = bony formation, SI joint = hip joint)

What the heck?  OK, I am not a doctor but I can read obviously… So why when the radiologists report clearly states that there should be follow up with the patient and with an ultrasound for further study did the doctors office tell me that it isn’t a big deal and to basically stop bothering them??

Just over the phone my GI specialist without having the report and based on the information I had via the nurses at the other doctors office said that I needed an ultrasound on the kidney…

Waiting for the doctor over in Saratoga to get back in the office from vacation and take a look at things.  I think that she will order the ultrasound ASAP and probably some blood work too.  I just hope that she can get on this sooner rather than later because I am tired of waiting and being put off.  My first doctor visit about this issue was on February 3, the second doctor visit was on February 6, and the CT scan was done on February 6.  Then the doctor dropped the ball even though I was calling and asking for help!!

Some information about sacroiliitis and why I believe that the radiologist could be correct on this diagnosis.  (Information found at the Mayo Clinic Website)

•  Sacroiliitis is an inflammation of one or both of the sacroiliac joints, which connect your lower spine and pelvis. With sacroiliitis, even the slightest movements of your spine can be extremely uncomfortable or even painful for you.
• Sacroiliitis symptoms may include:

• Pain and stiffness in your lower back, thighs or buttocks

• Pain that worsens with walking because the motion of your hips strains your sacroiliac joints

• Inflammation in one or both of your eyes (uveitis or iritis)

• Psoriasis, an inflammatory skin condition

• Pain radiating down your leg

• Limping

• Decreased range of motion

• A fever that appears quickly

• Complications:
  Delayed treatment of sacroiliitis — either because of an incorrect diagnosis or because you’ve put off going to your doctor — can cause serious harm to your sacroiliac joints.

  Sacroiliitis may be part of a larger inflammatory arthritis condition known as ankylosing spondylitis. Complications of this condition can be very serious, including difficulty breathing, spine deformities, lung infections and heart problems.

• Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that primarily causes pain and inflammation of the joints between the vertebrae of your spine and the joints between your spine and pelvis (sacroiliac joints). However, ankylosing spondylitis may also cause inflammation and pain in other parts of your body as well.
• Initial symptoms - Early signs and symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis may include:
• Chronic pain in your lower back and hips, especially in the morning and after periods of inactivity
• Stiffness in your lower back or hip area

• As your condition progresses - Your condition may change over time, with symptoms getting worse, improving or completely stopping at any point. Over time the pain and stiffness, which usually begin gradually, may progress up your spine and to other joints. You may experience inflammation and pain in these other parts of your body:

• Where your tendons and ligaments attach to bones
• Joints between your ribs and spine
• Joints in your hips, shoulders, knees and feet
• Your eyes

• Symptoms of advanced stages - In advanced stages, the following signs and symptoms may develop:

• Restricted expansion of your chest
• Chronic stooping
• Stiff, inflexible spine
• Fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Eye inflammation (uveitis)
• Bowel inflammation

Great sounding, huh?  I really wish that doctors could get there act together…

I whipped this up today.  I was hungry for a creamy yummy dip for veggies and chips!  LOL

Dairy Free Roasted Red Pepper and Sun Dried Tomato Dip

• 6 oz dairy free cream cheese
• 2 1/2 jarred roasted red peppers
• 5 sun dried tomato halves packed in olive oil
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp salt

Using a food processor or magic bullet type processor combine all ingredients until smooth.

Place in refrigerator for at least 1 hour to set up and for flavors to develope.

Delicious on fresh veggies, tortilla chips, pretzels and  more!

I haven’t picked up any “new” work yet, but I have been hired on for another round with both of my two previous projects.  Hopefully I don’t run out of ideas since I will be writing on the same topics again this round of articles!!

I have been applying for other freelance jobs and hope to find some good fits and get awarded the projects for some things.  The freelance market is really competitive especially since more and more people are getting laid off from their full time jobs and looking for ways to help ends meet.

I guess I should get this post up and begin my research for my articles.  Have a wonderful day everyon!

One of the many things that took me some time to adjust to when I moved from Florida to Wyoming was the wind.  The wind here blows all the time it seems.  Not gentle Gulf breezes like I was used to and loved.  No, the wind here blows with abandon almost all the time.  I live with hurricane force winds now.  They don’t call them that here though they just state the sustained wind speeds and the wind gust speeds.  however, since I grew up in Florida I know what equates to hurricane force winds.  It is scary for me at times when the wind is really howling, I can’t help but think about the damage that these winds can cause.  In the almost 6 years that I have lived here the only real damage we have sustained was this New Years Day when the wind tore a section of our siding off of the house.  We weren’t home when it happened but the BIL and FIL noticed it and were able to get it back up, but it now will need to be replaced when we can afford it and the weather permits.

Moving anywhere new has it’s own special set of things one must adjust to.  However, I think that moving to Wyoming has more than most!  Wyoming has a different kind of beauty - wide open spaces - so I see why some people love it here so very much.  However, for me it will never be truely home.  I need water and trees and green.  I don’t necessarily need to move back to Florida to feel at home either.  Just somewhere with less winter, more summer, some spring and maybe a little fall would be nice too.  Somewhere with water to play in, less snow and below zero temperatures, and less than a 120 mile commute to the grocery store.   But, I love my husband and he loves it here in Wyoming so I guess my choice is made.

What is comfort food to you?  Is it chicken noodle soup, or macaroni and cheese?  Is it pot roast, or spaghetti with meat balls?  Is it Chinese food, or mashed potatoes? Is it a banana split sundae, or BBQ?  Is it something that your Mother or Father or Grandmother used to cook special for you?  What memories are attached to your comfort foods?  Do comfort foods help to lift your spirits when you are down or ill?

That is a lot of questions!  LOL  For me comfort food brings back memories of happy times.  Holidays spent together with friends and family.  Special occasions and celebrations as well as milestones in life.

Today we are having oven roasted turkey, dairy free mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, and for a veggie peas and corn mixed together.  For us at least this is a comfort food meal, one of many comfort food meals I might add!

Sadly a lot of my traditional comfort foods now make me ill and I am unable to eat them due to my dairy allergy/intolerance.  I miss my special creamy macaroni and cheese bake with cream of mushroom soup, poor mans peirogi, pizza, cheese cake, ice cream, and on and on the list could go.  Some things I make using dairy free alternatives for example lasagna turns out great this way, but many others just aren’t the same

I would love to hear what your comfort food is and why!

I graduated with my M.Ed. in Exercise Physiology from Auburn University a few years back.  OK, more than a few years back - 1997 to be precise.  While I was only there for one year completing my degree it made a life long impression on me.  Auburn University has a deep history of traditions.  I loved being there and learning about these traditions and participating in them whenever possible.

A few Auburn facts and figures.

• Auburn was chartered on February 1, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College.  Due to the Civil War Auburn was forced to close in 1862 and it reopened in 1866 following the end of the Civil War and has been open ever since.  In 1872 it became the state’s first public land-grant university under the Morrill Act and was renamed the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Alabama.  In 1892 Auburn became the first four-year coeducational school in the state of Alabama.  In 1899 the college was renamed the Alabama Polytechnic Institute (API).  In 1960 the name was officially changed to Auburn University.  In 1967 the Auburn University Montgomery satellite campus was established.  Auburn is one of the few American universities designated as a land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research center.
• Athletic teams are known as the Auburn Tigers.
• Aubie is the athletic mascot. Aubie has been selected as the #1 collegiate mascot in the entire nation in 1991, 1995, 1996, 1999, and 2003 by the Universal Cheerleaders Association.  Aubie was among the first three college mascots inducted to the Mascot Hall of Fame, inducted on August 15, 2006.

• War Eagle! is Auburn’s battle cry.
• Tiger is Auburn’s flying golden eagle mascot.  About 10 minutes before each home football game she circles the stadium and lands in the center of the field.

• The official Auburn fight song is titled “War Eagle”.
• Auburn’s own Jimmy “Red” Phillips made an impressive 11 All-America teams.
• John Heisman coached at Auburn from 1895 - 1899.  Auburn is the only school where John Heisman coached to have a Heisman Trophy winner.  Pat Sullivan and Bo Jackson are the two Auburn Heisman Trophy winners.
• Tiger Walk is held two hours before the start of each home game.  It is where Auburn players walk from Sewell Hall to the football stadium and thousands of fans line Donahue Drive to wish them well.
• Auburn’s football stadium Jordan-Hare Stadium holds 87,451 people.
• Toomer’s Corner is the heart of Auburn.  It is the center of town, where the Auburn University campus meets the City of Auburn.  After any football win, and significant victories in other sports, Auburn students and citizens alike join forces to “roll” the trees (and anything else that doesn’t move) at Toomer’s Corner with toilet tissue.

• The chimes in the Samford Hall bell tower play the “War Eagle” fight song each day at twelve noon.

• When Auburn first opened its doors classes were held in “Old Main”, the original Samford Hall, until the college was closed due to the Civil War, when most of the students and faculty left to enlist. The campus was used as a training ground for the Confederate Army, and “Old Main” served as a hospital for Confederate wounded.  This building burned down in 1887 and was rebuilt in 1888.

I think that my feelings about Auburn can best be summed up with this quote, “Unless you have experienced it, you will never know what it is; you will never understand it. Once you have experienced it, you will never be the same. A part of you will, forevermore, be an Auburn man or an Auburn woman.”

I hope that you enjoyed my little walk down memory lane…

Yesterday I went in to town with DH when he went to work.  I needed to get some grocery shopping done and really needed to get out of the house too.  As you know from my previous post, I didn’t get a lot of sleep on Thursday night and was very tired but it wasn’t anything that I couldn’t push through.

I spent some time at the computer lab on campus when we first got into town because really what else can one do at 6 am!  Then I went to Safeway to pick up some items that they had on sale that we use.  After that I went to Albertsons again to pick up some items that they had on sale that we use.  Next I went to the dollar store to see if they had gotten anything new in, specifically pickles as DH loves them and they are like 1/3 of the regular price there.  Catching the trend?  Yup, I bargain shop.  I try to save us money any way that I can especially on food.  My next stop was Wal-mart to finish up the shopping and to get dog food.  Well my hip and lower back started hurting so badly that I was limping along and almost in tears from the pain.  I got what we absolutely had to have and got out of there without really getting everything.  I just couldn’t do it.  Not being able to do something as simple as the grocery shopping without being limited by the pain is just unacceptable.

I called the doctors office to check on the status of things.  The nurse eventually called me back and said that they didn’t have the report yet.  Actually that they weren’t even sure if the previous scans had shown up yet.  But she strongly told me that the doctor didn’t think that this was anything major and that I needed to just be patient and that they would let me know when they knew something.  I tried to tell her about the pain just from attempting to do the grocery shopping and she pretty much blew me off.  I was furious when I got off the phone.  I was so angry that I was on the verge of tears.

I don’t know where to turn.  I don’t know what to do.  This was the one doctor in Laramie that I had some faith in.  The doctor that had diagnosed my PCOS and had always treated me with respect… There aren’t that many doctors in Laramie.  I actually don’t know of another doctor that I would even attempt to see as I have heard just too many horror stories.  There is one surgeon that I could call as I trust him, but what can he do for me in this situation.  I probably will call his office on Monday and see if he can’t grease the wheels so to speak.  The ER isn’t an option as the ER doctors are horrible from all of my previous experiences with them.  National Jewish isn’t really an option as they are respiratory specialists, but I might try to call my Allergy/Asthma specialist and GI specalist down there to see if they can help in any way.  Maybe they can recommend a doctor down in Denver that they think could help.  I just don’t know at this point.

I am frustrated.  I am angry.  I am in pain.  I don’t know where to turn.

I seem to have gotten my days and nights mixed up… I have been finally falling asleep at about 5 or 6 am and then waking up between noon and 3 pm.  Yeah, basically I am a mess!

Since today I needed to come into town with DH, that meant that I needed to go to sleep last night.  I took tylenol pm in hopes that it would knock me out… No such luck!!  I finally drifted off at about 2 am and had to get up at 4 am to get ready and leave with DH.  Needless to say I am dragging today and with the lack of rest the pain just seems so much worse.

I need to get out of this computer lab and go run errends and such, but I just don’t seem to have the energy!

I finished one of my freelance writing projects today.  I am really happy to be finished with this one.  Who knew that writing 20 articles on the same topic could be so difficult!  With finishing this project I am currently without a freelance project.  I have bids in on a few things and will be applying for more projects as they become available.  Considering that freelance work is my only source of income right now, not having anything to be working on currently does not feel good.  I feel like I am not contributing anything to the family income, and really I am not contributing much even when I am working right now.  It is so frustrating!!  However, I know that health wise the timing of my layoff from my previous job and the lack of freelance work is probably a blessing.  Still that does not make this situation any easier for me.

I feel overwhelmed with everything that is going on in my life right now and wish that I knew how to deal with things better than I currently am doing.