It's another one of those days when I have no clue what to write for Thursday Thirteen. So let's see what pops out, shall we?
1. The sun shines through storm clouds. I love that light when it looks like the end of a rainbow is in my front yard, only I cannot see it. It's a light of foreboding, for you know the storm is coming.
2. I'm at that age where I buy sympathy cards in bulk. I bought a box of "made in USA" sympathy cards recently because so many folks I know are going on to their next journey.
3. The pollen in Virginia has been heavy again this year. The trees are oozing it as their leaves come out. But isn't Spring simply delightful? I watch a slow-release of green coming forth every morning as I look out the window. Green looks so much better than brown.
4. Speaking of Virginia, we're the state with the most presidents, having offered up eight. There's a fellow named Jim Webb, who served as a Virginia senator (D), who plans to seek the office this year. He is so unknown I don't think he stands much of a chance, but I have learned never to be sure of anything when it comes to politics. He has the "right" credentials - he's white and male - so you just never know.
5. My physical therapist's daughter is graduating from college this weekend. Last night I dreamed about my own graduation, only it didn't go so well. My mother was in my dream, and she was ill, and the college staff manhandled her for some reason. I and several other students went to the office of the college president to complain. It was around midnight and the college president (a man, I do not know who), was having something akin to a KKK rally. Then I had to get my hair cut and I went to a midnight barber who charged me $500 for his work. My father said he would pay for it, but then did not; he actually wrote out a check and then tore it out of my hands, laughing. The next morning I went to my graduation but I had to get in the back of the line. It was a strange dream. I think a lot of the political stuff going on in the US found its way in there.
6. The streak of sunshine is gone now, and the sky looks threatening and gloomy. I grew up never worrying about tornadoes, but in recent years we've had a few in the area. But shhh. There is no such thing as climate change, you know. Despite the scientific evidence for it.
7. One of my dear friends is traveling around the U.S. even as I write this. She's sent me photos almost every day of the places she's visiting. Yesterday I received a bunch from Yosemite.
8. I do not watch much TV, but occasionally I latch on to a series. Right now I am enjoying Game of Thrones. However, it is terribly violent, bloody, and misogynistic. It is not the kind of thing I normally watch, but like millions of others, I want to know who ends up alive in the end.
9. My reading of late has declined. I need new glasses - again - and despite my efforts to fall in love with reading on a Kindle, I have not been successful. I like some things about it, such as the ability to enlarge the type, but I don't like looking at a screen after 8 p.m., and that is generally when I do most of my reading. It is a conundrum.
10. I was in a tornado once in Bristol, TN when I was there for a band competition. It would have been in 1977 or 1978, when I was in high school. We were at a diner eating, and we all moved away from the glass windows. We didn't know there was a tornado. After the storm cleared, we could see the evidence - a clear path of destruction that tore a path down a hillside and ripped an outdoor movie theater screen in half.
11. My office looks like a giant came in with a pile of papers, cried out "wheeee" and gave everything in his arms a big toss. I have stacks of stuff everywhere. Magazines and old interview notes, books, note cards, calendars - what a mess.
12. The photos in my office: my husband in uniform, my nephew making a play as a quarterback, Gandalf the White, a log cabin, a mysterious woodland realm, a scenic spring shot on my wall calendar, and a signed pictures of Bonnie Raitt and Charle Sheen (long before he went nuts and when he was good looking).
13. I'd like to teach the world to sing, but I don't think most of the world is interested in singing any more. All they want is money.
Thursday
Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list
here if you want
to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a
while and this is my 393rd time to do a list of 13 on a
Thursday.
Thursday, April 30, 2015
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
Whatever I Have to Say
Lately, I've been pondering the state of the United States and the world, and mostly keeping my mouth shut and the fingers off the keyboard. There's just so much out there - it would take the rest of my life simply to address all that goes on in a single day.
Whatever I have to say isn't going to make a difference anyway. I suspect most of the readers of my blog already feel like I do about things. If you don't and you still read me, thank you for having an open mind. It's a rare quality these days. (And yes, I read the blogs of those who don't think like me. Sometimes not regularly, but I do read them.)
Looking out at the macrocosm, I see a world where Mother Nature is striking back. Call it climate change, call it weather, call it whatever you want, I personally think Gaia is about ready to spit us all out and call it a millennium or two. Earthquakes (be sure that the organization you give to for the devastation in Nepal is a legitimate one, as it is hard to tell on the Internet), volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, drought, floods - you name it, ol' Earth is tossing it out. Even now I have a headache from a front moving in. Can't keep that barometer at an even pressure for nothing anymore.
Drawing that macrocosm in closer, nationally we have riots and looting, old white men trying to turn the calendar back to 1949, and young people of all colors hoping to figure out what the heck is going on - unless they've already given up. I don't pretend to understand any of it, but it seems to me that whatever we've been doing for the last 20 years - maybe the last 200 years - hasn't worked very well. Is it time to take a look at where we are as a society? But we can't even agree on right and wrong, so however would we make such dramatic and important decisions?
Whatever I have to say about the local microcosm, I hope someone listens. I must report that yesterday I watched the people who lead my county do their "work" and then I wanted to put my hands over my eyes and weep. Things are not good in the locality, my friends. Stop watching TV and pay attention. Start worrying about your neighbor - your next door neighbor - and less about yourself. Do the things in the media matter? If not, turn off the TV. Do good, not bad. Worry less about money and more about people. It's people first, money second. It is not the other way around.
Must we really hate our neighbors? Must we be so greedy that the thought of paying taxes makes us angry? Do you not feel like you should have to pay a little something to live here? Talk about entitlement. You live in the United States and you feel entitled to be here and pay absolutely nothing? Who gave you that idea, anyway? Pay your taxes. Give unto Caesar that which he claims is his, and make do with what is left. I do believe that's in the Bible somewhere, though I'm sure someone would argue my interpretation.
I'm not sure why we're so into killing one another. I don't know when the U.S. turned into a police state, but it is. Sure, we have our "freedoms" and "civil liberties" but they're not much good if someone else has the right to shoot you dead and then claim it's okay because his right to "stand his ground" trumps your right to walk down the sidewalk. Nobody has the right to shoot anybody else. Not the police, not the military, not you - nobody. Dead is dead and you can't bring somebody back. It is morally reprehensible under any circumstance.
Stephen Hawking, thought to be the smartest dude alive, said recently that he did not think humanity would be around in another 1,000 years. I'm not sure we'll be around in 100 years, at the rate we're going.
It is very depressing.
Whatever I have to say isn't going to make a difference anyway. I suspect most of the readers of my blog already feel like I do about things. If you don't and you still read me, thank you for having an open mind. It's a rare quality these days. (And yes, I read the blogs of those who don't think like me. Sometimes not regularly, but I do read them.)
Looking out at the macrocosm, I see a world where Mother Nature is striking back. Call it climate change, call it weather, call it whatever you want, I personally think Gaia is about ready to spit us all out and call it a millennium or two. Earthquakes (be sure that the organization you give to for the devastation in Nepal is a legitimate one, as it is hard to tell on the Internet), volcanoes, hurricanes, tornadoes, drought, floods - you name it, ol' Earth is tossing it out. Even now I have a headache from a front moving in. Can't keep that barometer at an even pressure for nothing anymore.
Drawing that macrocosm in closer, nationally we have riots and looting, old white men trying to turn the calendar back to 1949, and young people of all colors hoping to figure out what the heck is going on - unless they've already given up. I don't pretend to understand any of it, but it seems to me that whatever we've been doing for the last 20 years - maybe the last 200 years - hasn't worked very well. Is it time to take a look at where we are as a society? But we can't even agree on right and wrong, so however would we make such dramatic and important decisions?
Whatever I have to say about the local microcosm, I hope someone listens. I must report that yesterday I watched the people who lead my county do their "work" and then I wanted to put my hands over my eyes and weep. Things are not good in the locality, my friends. Stop watching TV and pay attention. Start worrying about your neighbor - your next door neighbor - and less about yourself. Do the things in the media matter? If not, turn off the TV. Do good, not bad. Worry less about money and more about people. It's people first, money second. It is not the other way around.
Must we really hate our neighbors? Must we be so greedy that the thought of paying taxes makes us angry? Do you not feel like you should have to pay a little something to live here? Talk about entitlement. You live in the United States and you feel entitled to be here and pay absolutely nothing? Who gave you that idea, anyway? Pay your taxes. Give unto Caesar that which he claims is his, and make do with what is left. I do believe that's in the Bible somewhere, though I'm sure someone would argue my interpretation.
I'm not sure why we're so into killing one another. I don't know when the U.S. turned into a police state, but it is. Sure, we have our "freedoms" and "civil liberties" but they're not much good if someone else has the right to shoot you dead and then claim it's okay because his right to "stand his ground" trumps your right to walk down the sidewalk. Nobody has the right to shoot anybody else. Not the police, not the military, not you - nobody. Dead is dead and you can't bring somebody back. It is morally reprehensible under any circumstance.
Stephen Hawking, thought to be the smartest dude alive, said recently that he did not think humanity would be around in another 1,000 years. I'm not sure we'll be around in 100 years, at the rate we're going.
It is very depressing.
Tuesday, April 28, 2015
Monday, April 27, 2015
The Hawk Takes Flight
Occasionally there isn't a camera around when you need one. I spied this hawk out the front door, but my camera was in the other room on the charger. The closest thing to me was my video recorder, which also needed charging. However, I did manage to snap these photos with it before the battery died.
Sunday, April 26, 2015
Sunday Stealing: 25
From Sunday Stealing
Funky Twenty-Five Meme
1. Most unflattering hairstyle you ever had? What made it so unflattering?
A. I had big puffy permed hair from about 1988 - 1992 or so. Looking at old photos now (and no, I will not post one), I looked like a brown cotton ball.
2. Favorite movie(s) that were made in the 90's?
A. I'll go with Forrest Gump.
3. Do you rent movies? If so, from where?
A. I get HBO and Showtime from a satellite provider. Is that renting?
4. Do you like cookies better when they're just out of the oven or after they've cooled?
A. I like them both ways. Why don't you fix me a batch of chocolate chip?
5. Do you still talk to the person who gave you your first kiss?
A. No.
6. Did you go to pre-school? If so, what was the name of it?
A. I went to kindergarten.
7. How do you take your coffee?
A. I don't drink coffee.
8. Do you like fuzzy things?
A. I don't even know what that means. But I think not.
9. Favorite kind of chocolate?
A. Any kind except German. Milk chocolate and dark chocolate are probably my favorites.
10. Are you more optimistic or pessimistic?
A. Most people would say I am pessimistic.
11. What about peopleofwalmart.com? Do you think the site is mean, funny, or both?
A. I think it is mean.
12. Do you like fat sandwiches? If so, what does your favorite one have on it?
A. What is a fat sandwich? Is that one you pile too much stuff on?
13. One restaurant you'd never been to but would like to go to?
A. I have no idea. How about a ritzy place in Paris.
14. Last time you got a haircut? Do you need one?
A. I had a haircut about 10 days ago, so I'm good.
15. What's your favorite pattern for clothing (stripes, plaid, etc.)?
A. I prefer solid colors.
16. What's your age backwards?
A. Oh no, you're not catching me with that one.
17. When you see typos in a survey, do you correct them?
A. I correct things in these memes, so I suppose I do.
18. When was your last vacation? Did you go someplace special?
A. My last vacation was in 2012 - I'm a little overdue. We went to Myrtle Beach, SC.
19. What's your favorite kind of pancakes?
A. I like my pancakes with blueberries cooked inside of them, not piled on top.
20. Do you like movies with computer graphics, like Avatar?
A. They're okay.
21. Do you know how to sew?
A. I can get a button on and hem a pair of pants, but that's about it.
22. Are you good at wrapping gifts?
A. Not really. I actually kind of consider it a waste of time.
23. Do you like flavored yogurt?
A. It depends on the brand and the flavor.
24. How old will you be in December of 2015?
A. Old enough to know better and too young to die, I hope.
25. What's the age difference between you and your siblings?
A. I have a brother who is three years younger than I.
Funky Twenty-Five Meme
1. Most unflattering hairstyle you ever had? What made it so unflattering?
A. I had big puffy permed hair from about 1988 - 1992 or so. Looking at old photos now (and no, I will not post one), I looked like a brown cotton ball.
2. Favorite movie(s) that were made in the 90's?
A. I'll go with Forrest Gump.
3. Do you rent movies? If so, from where?
A. I get HBO and Showtime from a satellite provider. Is that renting?
4. Do you like cookies better when they're just out of the oven or after they've cooled?
A. I like them both ways. Why don't you fix me a batch of chocolate chip?
5. Do you still talk to the person who gave you your first kiss?
A. No.
6. Did you go to pre-school? If so, what was the name of it?
A. I went to kindergarten.
7. How do you take your coffee?
A. I don't drink coffee.
8. Do you like fuzzy things?
A. I don't even know what that means. But I think not.
9. Favorite kind of chocolate?
A. Any kind except German. Milk chocolate and dark chocolate are probably my favorites.
10. Are you more optimistic or pessimistic?
A. Most people would say I am pessimistic.
11. What about peopleofwalmart.com? Do you think the site is mean, funny, or both?
A. I think it is mean.
12. Do you like fat sandwiches? If so, what does your favorite one have on it?
A. What is a fat sandwich? Is that one you pile too much stuff on?
13. One restaurant you'd never been to but would like to go to?
A. I have no idea. How about a ritzy place in Paris.
14. Last time you got a haircut? Do you need one?
A. I had a haircut about 10 days ago, so I'm good.
15. What's your favorite pattern for clothing (stripes, plaid, etc.)?
A. I prefer solid colors.
16. What's your age backwards?
A. Oh no, you're not catching me with that one.
17. When you see typos in a survey, do you correct them?
A. I correct things in these memes, so I suppose I do.
18. When was your last vacation? Did you go someplace special?
A. My last vacation was in 2012 - I'm a little overdue. We went to Myrtle Beach, SC.
19. What's your favorite kind of pancakes?
A. I like my pancakes with blueberries cooked inside of them, not piled on top.
20. Do you like movies with computer graphics, like Avatar?
A. They're okay.
21. Do you know how to sew?
A. I can get a button on and hem a pair of pants, but that's about it.
22. Are you good at wrapping gifts?
A. Not really. I actually kind of consider it a waste of time.
23. Do you like flavored yogurt?
A. It depends on the brand and the flavor.
24. How old will you be in December of 2015?
A. Old enough to know better and too young to die, I hope.
25. What's the age difference between you and your siblings?
A. I have a brother who is three years younger than I.
Saturday, April 25, 2015
Saturday 9: Hawaii Five-O
Saturday 9: Hawaii Five-O (1969)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) This is the theme from the TV show that originally ran from 1968 to 1980 and is on now again with a new cast. Were you/are you a fan?
A. I think it was on a channel we could not get. When I was growing up, out here in the rural Appalachians, we could only get two channels, and that was if we pulled out a cousin's tooth and had him hold the tin foil over his head while he stood with one toe on a piece of metal. (Just kidding. I am being mean and perpetuating a false stereotype.). I think Hawaii Five-O came on one of those channels that we could not receive. As for the new show, I never even bothered to watch it.
2) On both shows, Five-O is an elite police task force led by Det. Lt. Steve McGarrett. Who is your favorite TV cop?
A. Christine Cagney of Cagney & Lacey. She was tough and feminine at the same time. She was incredibly human, too.
3) On both shows, the part of Danny "Danno" Williams was played by a second generation performer. (James MacArthur was the son of Broadway legend Helen Hayes; Scott Caan is the son of movie actor James Caan.) If you followed one of your parents into their chosen profession, what would you be doing?
A. Well, if I'd followed my father, I'd be a business person working in an industry that sells seal gaskets and rubber hoses to major industries. If I'd followed my mother, I'd have been a secretary, which means I would probably have been laid off or the job changed into something else long ago, since many industries don't use secretaries anymore (There are 3.9 million secretarial/administrative assistant jobs listed in US Census in 2012. Yes, I looked it up.). But I am a free spirit and while I did work as a secretary for a time, I ended up as a writer. All hail the written word!
4) Both shows are filmed in Hawaii, the boyhood home of President Obama. Have any of our 44 Presidents hailed from your state?
A. I live in Virginia, the Mother of Presidents. We have had eight U.S. presidents hail from our state, the most of any state in the nation. Those presidents are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson.
5) Kona coffee is made from beans cultivated on the Big Island of Hawaii. Are you a big coffee drinker?
A. I don't drink coffee at all. I think I've had maybe seven cups of coffee in my entire life. The last cup of coffee I had was on June 19, 2013. It gave me a gallbladder attack and sent me to the hospital. I had surgery on June 28, 2013 and haven't been right since. In fact, I'm now in constant pain and I walk with a limp, all from a cup of coffee. So it is not my drink of choice.
6) This week's song was written by the late Morton Stevens. In addition to composing for TV shows, he was the musical director for a group of entertainers known in the 60s as "The Rat Pack." Can you name any "Rat Pack" members?
A. Frank Sinatra?
7) This week's featured band, The Ventures, began when Don Wilson purchased a used car from Bob Bogle. During negotiations, they discovered a shared passion for playing guitar. Did you buy your current ride new or used? Did the negotiations go smoothly?
A. My current ride was purchased new. Negotiations went well, though I was worn out and had to leave most of that to my husband as I was in the middle of a medical crisis at the time. My old car, which we traded in, decided to develop a problem that would have cost more to fix than the vehicle was worth. I had planned to drive her another year or two, but oh well. Best laid plans and all that.
8) The year this song was popular, 1969, is when Donald and Doris Fisher opened a San Francisco clothing store called The Gap. Today there are more than 3,200 Gap locations. Do you shop at The Gap or gap.com?
A. I do not. I doubt The Gap even carries clothes in my size.
9) Random question: What's on your Saturday to-do list?
A. Reading Saturday 9 entries by other bloggers, writing up Sunday Stealing, fixing dinner, changing the bed linens and washing them, and working on tax records for 2015, having finally finished 2014.
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) This is the theme from the TV show that originally ran from 1968 to 1980 and is on now again with a new cast. Were you/are you a fan?
A. I think it was on a channel we could not get. When I was growing up, out here in the rural Appalachians, we could only get two channels, and that was if we pulled out a cousin's tooth and had him hold the tin foil over his head while he stood with one toe on a piece of metal. (Just kidding. I am being mean and perpetuating a false stereotype.). I think Hawaii Five-O came on one of those channels that we could not receive. As for the new show, I never even bothered to watch it.
2) On both shows, Five-O is an elite police task force led by Det. Lt. Steve McGarrett. Who is your favorite TV cop?
A. Christine Cagney of Cagney & Lacey. She was tough and feminine at the same time. She was incredibly human, too.
3) On both shows, the part of Danny "Danno" Williams was played by a second generation performer. (James MacArthur was the son of Broadway legend Helen Hayes; Scott Caan is the son of movie actor James Caan.) If you followed one of your parents into their chosen profession, what would you be doing?
A. Well, if I'd followed my father, I'd be a business person working in an industry that sells seal gaskets and rubber hoses to major industries. If I'd followed my mother, I'd have been a secretary, which means I would probably have been laid off or the job changed into something else long ago, since many industries don't use secretaries anymore (There are 3.9 million secretarial/administrative assistant jobs listed in US Census in 2012. Yes, I looked it up.). But I am a free spirit and while I did work as a secretary for a time, I ended up as a writer. All hail the written word!
4) Both shows are filmed in Hawaii, the boyhood home of President Obama. Have any of our 44 Presidents hailed from your state?
A. I live in Virginia, the Mother of Presidents. We have had eight U.S. presidents hail from our state, the most of any state in the nation. Those presidents are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Woodrow Wilson.
5) Kona coffee is made from beans cultivated on the Big Island of Hawaii. Are you a big coffee drinker?
A. I don't drink coffee at all. I think I've had maybe seven cups of coffee in my entire life. The last cup of coffee I had was on June 19, 2013. It gave me a gallbladder attack and sent me to the hospital. I had surgery on June 28, 2013 and haven't been right since. In fact, I'm now in constant pain and I walk with a limp, all from a cup of coffee. So it is not my drink of choice.
6) This week's song was written by the late Morton Stevens. In addition to composing for TV shows, he was the musical director for a group of entertainers known in the 60s as "The Rat Pack." Can you name any "Rat Pack" members?
A. Frank Sinatra?
7) This week's featured band, The Ventures, began when Don Wilson purchased a used car from Bob Bogle. During negotiations, they discovered a shared passion for playing guitar. Did you buy your current ride new or used? Did the negotiations go smoothly?
A. My current ride was purchased new. Negotiations went well, though I was worn out and had to leave most of that to my husband as I was in the middle of a medical crisis at the time. My old car, which we traded in, decided to develop a problem that would have cost more to fix than the vehicle was worth. I had planned to drive her another year or two, but oh well. Best laid plans and all that.
8) The year this song was popular, 1969, is when Donald and Doris Fisher opened a San Francisco clothing store called The Gap. Today there are more than 3,200 Gap locations. Do you shop at The Gap or gap.com?
A. I do not. I doubt The Gap even carries clothes in my size.
9) Random question: What's on your Saturday to-do list?
A. Reading Saturday 9 entries by other bloggers, writing up Sunday Stealing, fixing dinner, changing the bed linens and washing them, and working on tax records for 2015, having finally finished 2014.
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Thursday Thirteen
Today I thought I'd make a list of 13 things that I'll probably never see again in my lifetime. Most of them have become archaic, relics of a time that technology has voided.
1. An 8-track tape (and player). These were the big boys of music back in the day. A fellow with an 8-track tape player and big ol' speakers in his car was the bomb.
2. Cassettes and cassette players. I used to sit around with my cassette player and a radio and record Kasey Kasem's American Top 40 once a month or so.
3. Dictaphones. I worked as a legal secretary for about 12 years, and used these all the time. The boss would talk into a recorder and the secretary would take the tape and transcribe it. Secretaries are also something you don't see much of any more, either. I have been out of the field for over 20 years; I'm not sure how they do things now.
4. A print encyclopedia. My grandparents bought a set of World Book Encyclopedias when I was very small, but I remember the absolute thrill my grandmother had because she owned an entire set of these books of knowledge. When I visited her, I would sit and read through the books.
5. A man on the moon. Unless a corporation pays for a visit to the moon, I doubt I see another "one step for man." And to be honest, I don't want corporations going to the moon, because if they are there, it is to exploit the moon's resources, whatever they may be. Who knows what kind of havoc that could eventually cause on poor ol' Mother Earth.
6. Pay phones and phone booths. There used to be a phone at every convenience store, inside the high school, and outside most stores. Those are gone. I wonder where Superman changes into his cute little tights these days?
7. Party lines. When I was young, we had what was known as a "party line." This meant that if you picked the phone up you could hear other people talking and carrying on conversations. You couldn't make a call until they were finished. It was not polite to listen in, and the only time you were to interrupt was in an emergency. I confess that we had two women, whose names I do not now recall, who talked on the phone a lot. And I did listen in. I was seven. Sometimes they'd realize I was there, most times not. Sometimes they'd even talk to me, too, but I had to be careful that my mother did not find out.
8. Rotary phones. Our phones used to be rotary phones, which means they had a dial that you'd turn and then it would make this satisfying clicking sound as it rounded back to its beginning. We had a rotary phone here in my own home until about 10 years ago, when the thing finally gave up the ghost. It would work when the power was out while the cordless do not. So we always keep some kind of analog phone hooked up, though they have become difficult to find. Hopefully the two we have now will last us.
9. Film cameras. I started out with a film camera, one my parents gave me when I was about 10. When I began writing for the newspaper, I bought a Nikon FG-20 film camera. It took great pictures regardless of light and loved it. Then everything switched to digital, and that was the end of that.
10. Directory assistance. I don't even know what would happen if I dialed "0" on my phone today. Is there still an operator on the other end? Anybody know?
11. VHS recorders. At one time I had a pile of VHS tapes. I taped my favorite shows from the TV, usually forgetting to mark them. Now we use DVDs, which will soon be outdated and useless, I suppose.
12. Records and record players. I used to buy LPs and 45s, and still have most of my LPs here in a box. I still prefer an LP to CD. As a musician, when I tried to learn a song, it was great to be able to pick up the needle and drop it back onto the LP exactly where I wanted it. It's difficult to do that with a CD - it takes a lot more time and effort to find that exact spot where the song changes key.
13. Big fat computer monitors. Most of those things are gone and will never be back. I imagine folks still use them somewhere, but most people use a flat screen these days, if they're using a screen at all. I think at some point even a desktop computer will be one of those things we look back on as a dinosaur.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 392nd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.
1. An 8-track tape (and player). These were the big boys of music back in the day. A fellow with an 8-track tape player and big ol' speakers in his car was the bomb.
2. Cassettes and cassette players. I used to sit around with my cassette player and a radio and record Kasey Kasem's American Top 40 once a month or so.
3. Dictaphones. I worked as a legal secretary for about 12 years, and used these all the time. The boss would talk into a recorder and the secretary would take the tape and transcribe it. Secretaries are also something you don't see much of any more, either. I have been out of the field for over 20 years; I'm not sure how they do things now.
4. A print encyclopedia. My grandparents bought a set of World Book Encyclopedias when I was very small, but I remember the absolute thrill my grandmother had because she owned an entire set of these books of knowledge. When I visited her, I would sit and read through the books.
5. A man on the moon. Unless a corporation pays for a visit to the moon, I doubt I see another "one step for man." And to be honest, I don't want corporations going to the moon, because if they are there, it is to exploit the moon's resources, whatever they may be. Who knows what kind of havoc that could eventually cause on poor ol' Mother Earth.
6. Pay phones and phone booths. There used to be a phone at every convenience store, inside the high school, and outside most stores. Those are gone. I wonder where Superman changes into his cute little tights these days?
7. Party lines. When I was young, we had what was known as a "party line." This meant that if you picked the phone up you could hear other people talking and carrying on conversations. You couldn't make a call until they were finished. It was not polite to listen in, and the only time you were to interrupt was in an emergency. I confess that we had two women, whose names I do not now recall, who talked on the phone a lot. And I did listen in. I was seven. Sometimes they'd realize I was there, most times not. Sometimes they'd even talk to me, too, but I had to be careful that my mother did not find out.
8. Rotary phones. Our phones used to be rotary phones, which means they had a dial that you'd turn and then it would make this satisfying clicking sound as it rounded back to its beginning. We had a rotary phone here in my own home until about 10 years ago, when the thing finally gave up the ghost. It would work when the power was out while the cordless do not. So we always keep some kind of analog phone hooked up, though they have become difficult to find. Hopefully the two we have now will last us.
9. Film cameras. I started out with a film camera, one my parents gave me when I was about 10. When I began writing for the newspaper, I bought a Nikon FG-20 film camera. It took great pictures regardless of light and loved it. Then everything switched to digital, and that was the end of that.
10. Directory assistance. I don't even know what would happen if I dialed "0" on my phone today. Is there still an operator on the other end? Anybody know?
11. VHS recorders. At one time I had a pile of VHS tapes. I taped my favorite shows from the TV, usually forgetting to mark them. Now we use DVDs, which will soon be outdated and useless, I suppose.
12. Records and record players. I used to buy LPs and 45s, and still have most of my LPs here in a box. I still prefer an LP to CD. As a musician, when I tried to learn a song, it was great to be able to pick up the needle and drop it back onto the LP exactly where I wanted it. It's difficult to do that with a CD - it takes a lot more time and effort to find that exact spot where the song changes key.
13. Big fat computer monitors. Most of those things are gone and will never be back. I imagine folks still use them somewhere, but most people use a flat screen these days, if they're using a screen at all. I think at some point even a desktop computer will be one of those things we look back on as a dinosaur.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 392nd time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
What's the Story?
When I was young, I wondered how people could abandon homes. Now that I am older and have a better understanding of life, I know how it happens.
The old folks die, the young people have moved on. They haven't the money or the inclination to keep the place up. Being a landlord is not a fun job, nor is it financially rewarding. Better to board the place up, or just pay the taxes and be done with it.
But they are sad, abandoned houses. They look like they have a story to tell.
Maybe this one was the home of a big family once. It was filled with laughter and joy, pain and sorrow. It's walls are filled with the ghosts of another time.
Some man and his sons farmed the lands around this home, and his wife canned tomatoes and taught the girls how to sew. She tended the yard and grew flowers, trimmed back those boxwoods, and generally made life tidy and neat. She cooked dinner every evening and breakfast each morning.
And now the place that housed them is nothing more than a symbol that they existed at all.
Interesting, isn't it, that humans can build things which outlast them not just by years but by centuries. I don't know how old this house is - I've never been good at judging architectural styles - but it still stands and the humans are gone. Maybe they simply up and moved, but they are gone, nevertheless.
Monday, April 20, 2015
Behind the Mirror
We have one of those medicine cabinets in the bathroom that sits above the sink. It acts as a mirror and when you open either side, there's your stuff.
The left side as you face the medicine cabinet houses my husband's items. The right side holds my things.
We are apparently obsessed with our teeth, not stinking, shaving, and having headaches, for the medicine cabinet is full of toothpaste, floss, shaving cream and razors, deodorant, and acetaminophen.
On my side, you'll also find some tea tree oil, sweet oil, and hand lotion.
I'm not sure what that says, other than we clean our teeth and I occasionally dabble in alternative medicinal treatments.
When I first started writing stories for publication, and even later in continuing education classes the newspaper infrequently offered, we were always told that when we interviewed, we should (a) do it in the subject's home, and (b) excuse yourself at some point and ask to use the restroom.
Once in the restroom, we were to examine the medicine cabinet and see what was inside. We were also instructed to look around the house as discreetly as possible, noting pictures, candles, collections, books, animals, dirt - anything that might flesh out a story and give a little life to the subject about whom we were writing.
I don't recall ever once looking in anyone's medicine cabinet - not my style, really - but I know there are reporters who do. It's a good thing to remember if you're ever interviewed for a story and the reporter asks to use the restroom.
Most likely, they're looking at the things you think are hidden behind that mirror.
The left side as you face the medicine cabinet houses my husband's items. The right side holds my things.
We are apparently obsessed with our teeth, not stinking, shaving, and having headaches, for the medicine cabinet is full of toothpaste, floss, shaving cream and razors, deodorant, and acetaminophen.
On my side, you'll also find some tea tree oil, sweet oil, and hand lotion.
I'm not sure what that says, other than we clean our teeth and I occasionally dabble in alternative medicinal treatments.
When I first started writing stories for publication, and even later in continuing education classes the newspaper infrequently offered, we were always told that when we interviewed, we should (a) do it in the subject's home, and (b) excuse yourself at some point and ask to use the restroom.
Once in the restroom, we were to examine the medicine cabinet and see what was inside. We were also instructed to look around the house as discreetly as possible, noting pictures, candles, collections, books, animals, dirt - anything that might flesh out a story and give a little life to the subject about whom we were writing.
I don't recall ever once looking in anyone's medicine cabinet - not my style, really - but I know there are reporters who do. It's a good thing to remember if you're ever interviewed for a story and the reporter asks to use the restroom.
Most likely, they're looking at the things you think are hidden behind that mirror.
Sunday, April 19, 2015
Sunday Stealing: Books!
From Sunday Stealing
Book Preference Meme
1. Science fiction, fantasy or horror?
A. Fantasy
2. Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback?
A. Paperback, usually.
3. Amazon or brick and mortar?
A. I use both.
4. Barnes & Noble or Borders?
A. Well, Borders is out of business so that pretty much leaves Barnes & Noble.
5. Bookmark or dog-ear?
A. Bookmark, usually, though I have been known to place a very tiny little dog-ear on a page. Not often, though.
6. Asimov’s Science Fiction or Fantasy & Science Fiction?
A. Isn't this like the first question? Fantasy.
7. Alphabetize by author, alphabetize by title, or random?
A. Mostly random with a little bit by subject matter thrown in.
8. Keep, throw away or sell?
A. Keep or donate to the library.
9. Keep dust jacket or toss it?
A. Keep dust jacket.
10. Read with dust jacket or remove it?
A. Obviously, if I keep the dust jacket, I read with it on the book.
11. Short story or novel?
A. Novels.
12. Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
A. I stop reading when my husband says it is time to go to bed. Or at chapter breaks. Or when I fall asleep reading. Or when I've finished the book.
13. “It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time?”
A. Both.
14. Buy or borrow?
A. I buy print books but borrow audio books from the library.
15. Buying choice: book reviews, recommendation or browse?
A. Generally browsing, but I use all three methods.
16. Collection (short stories by the same author) or anthology (short stories by different authors)?
A. I'm not really a big fan of either.
17. Tidy ending or cliffhanger?
A. A tidy ending is preferable.
18. Morning reading, afternoon reading or nighttime reading?
A. I generally read novels at night, but I read all day long.
19. Standalone or series?
A. Either.
20. Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
A. The Steerswoman, by Rosemary Kirstein
21. Favorite genre series?
A. Fantasy and mystery.
22. Currently Reading?
A. Factory Man, by Beth Macy. It's a nonfiction book. I'm listening to King and Maxwell, by David Baldacci.
Book Preference Meme
1. Science fiction, fantasy or horror?
A. Fantasy
2. Hardback or trade paperback or mass market paperback?
A. Paperback, usually.
3. Amazon or brick and mortar?
A. I use both.
4. Barnes & Noble or Borders?
A. Well, Borders is out of business so that pretty much leaves Barnes & Noble.
5. Bookmark or dog-ear?
A. Bookmark, usually, though I have been known to place a very tiny little dog-ear on a page. Not often, though.
6. Asimov’s Science Fiction or Fantasy & Science Fiction?
A. Isn't this like the first question? Fantasy.
7. Alphabetize by author, alphabetize by title, or random?
A. Mostly random with a little bit by subject matter thrown in.
8. Keep, throw away or sell?
A. Keep or donate to the library.
9. Keep dust jacket or toss it?
A. Keep dust jacket.
10. Read with dust jacket or remove it?
A. Obviously, if I keep the dust jacket, I read with it on the book.
11. Short story or novel?
A. Novels.
12. Stop reading when tired or at chapter breaks?
A. I stop reading when my husband says it is time to go to bed. Or at chapter breaks. Or when I fall asleep reading. Or when I've finished the book.
13. “It was a dark and stormy night” or “Once upon a time?”
A. Both.
14. Buy or borrow?
A. I buy print books but borrow audio books from the library.
15. Buying choice: book reviews, recommendation or browse?
A. Generally browsing, but I use all three methods.
16. Collection (short stories by the same author) or anthology (short stories by different authors)?
A. I'm not really a big fan of either.
17. Tidy ending or cliffhanger?
A. A tidy ending is preferable.
18. Morning reading, afternoon reading or nighttime reading?
A. I generally read novels at night, but I read all day long.
19. Standalone or series?
A. Either.
20. Favorite book of which nobody else has heard?
A. The Steerswoman, by Rosemary Kirstein
21. Favorite genre series?
A. Fantasy and mystery.
22. Currently Reading?
A. Factory Man, by Beth Macy. It's a nonfiction book. I'm listening to King and Maxwell, by David Baldacci.
Saturday, April 18, 2015
Saturday 9: Neon Lights
Saturday 9: Neon Lights (2013)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) Think of a neon sign you pass by often. What does it say?
A. "Open." But then we have this big neon star on Mill Mountain in Roanoke.
A picture of it all lit up is at this link.
2) In the video for this song, Demi Lovato spends a great deal of time in the water. When is the last time you swam?
A. Probably 2012, when we went to the beach.
3) The song encourages us to "look up at the sky." OK, we will. How does the sky look where you are today?
A. It's mostly cloudy. Well, it was last night when I answered these questions, but this morning at 7:50 a.m., the sky is a wonderful blue with a little haze.
4) Demi is a contributing editor for Seventeen magazine. When she was in junior high school, Crazy Sam eagerly awaited each new issue of Seventeen. When you were younger, what magazine(s) did you read regularly?
A. True Story. My mother brought it home with her from the grocery store. I also read (and still read), Reader's Digest.
5) Demi is an investor in the company that makes Texas Tea, a bottled beverage available at Whole Foods. Do you have any tea in your kitchen right now?
A. Yes.
6) Demi is currently on tour, performing halfway around the world in Australia and New Zealand. Have you ever had a job that required travel?
A. No.
7) Demi had a recurring role on the show Glee. That show's series finale aired last month. Is there a show that's no longer on that you miss?
A. Xena: Warrior Princess, Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, Star Trek: Voyager, and Cagney & Lacey.
8) Fast-growing fast food chain Chipotle reports that their top sellers include a burrito bowl with steak or chicken, salad with chili-corn salsa, and a soft taco. Which of these would you order?
A. None of the above. (I have never eaten at Chipotle.)
9) What beverage would you like to enjoy with your burrito bowl, taco or salad?
A. Water.
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) Think of a neon sign you pass by often. What does it say?
A. "Open." But then we have this big neon star on Mill Mountain in Roanoke.
A picture of it all lit up is at this link.
2) In the video for this song, Demi Lovato spends a great deal of time in the water. When is the last time you swam?
A. Probably 2012, when we went to the beach.
3) The song encourages us to "look up at the sky." OK, we will. How does the sky look where you are today?
A. It's mostly cloudy. Well, it was last night when I answered these questions, but this morning at 7:50 a.m., the sky is a wonderful blue with a little haze.
4) Demi is a contributing editor for Seventeen magazine. When she was in junior high school, Crazy Sam eagerly awaited each new issue of Seventeen. When you were younger, what magazine(s) did you read regularly?
A. True Story. My mother brought it home with her from the grocery store. I also read (and still read), Reader's Digest.
5) Demi is an investor in the company that makes Texas Tea, a bottled beverage available at Whole Foods. Do you have any tea in your kitchen right now?
A. Yes.
6) Demi is currently on tour, performing halfway around the world in Australia and New Zealand. Have you ever had a job that required travel?
A. No.
7) Demi had a recurring role on the show Glee. That show's series finale aired last month. Is there a show that's no longer on that you miss?
A. Xena: Warrior Princess, Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, Star Trek: Voyager, and Cagney & Lacey.
8) Fast-growing fast food chain Chipotle reports that their top sellers include a burrito bowl with steak or chicken, salad with chili-corn salsa, and a soft taco. Which of these would you order?
A. None of the above. (I have never eaten at Chipotle.)
9) What beverage would you like to enjoy with your burrito bowl, taco or salad?
A. Water.
Friday, April 17, 2015
The Son I Never Had
I'm not sure why this figment of my imagination has been on my mind in recent weeks. Perhaps the news has caused it, with all of these stories of women being persecuted over miscarriages or being denied medication they need because someone else thinks they have the right to stand in judgment of their situation.
I walked in those shoes, a very long time ago, when we spent six years trying to have a child. I know what it is like to be unhealthy and not whole, and to feel "less than" because you're not able to function like a woman. It's bad enough to be female - in some eyes, you're not even human - but to be unable to produce a child, that's akin to being about as close to nothing as one can be in the minds of many. I have felt it keenly over the years.
But in my mind, for many years, there has lived a little boy. Well, he's not so little, now. He's grown up in my head as the years have passed. Had all gone as planned - and things in my world don't go as planned - this little one would have been born on September 22, 1988. I would have loved that date, since it is also Bilbo and Frodo Baggins' birthdays.
We would have named you James Joseph Firebaugh - James after your father, and his father, and his father's father and on down the line many generations, and Joseph after my father's father. I would have called you J.J., something your father probably would not have liked but he would eventually accept.
Our whole lives would have been different with your coming. I'd have quit my job at the law office to stay home with you, and began my freelance career much earlier. I hope I would have continued working on my bachelors degree, if only to show you how important education is.
I'd have read you stories every night, from the first day I brought you home until you finally made me stop when you were seven. We would have had a collection of Little Golden Books, and I'd have made roaring noises when I read Where the Wild Things Are. You'd pretend to be frightened and giggle when I reached over to tickle you.
When you were two months old, I left you in care of your daddy so I could go chase down a story for the local newspaper. He promptly bundled you up and took you for a ride on the tractor. He thought I would not know, but he can't go anywhere without getting grease on something, and I'd have seen the spot on your blankie. You would have been daddy's boy, for sure. You'd follow him around the farm and by the age of four, you'd be able to tell me the difference between a New Holland and a John Deere tractor, or a Case and an International backhoe. You'd have loved your Erector set and Lincoln Logs, because building things was a joy for you.
You'd know a little about computers because your mom used one, but fortunately you'd be young before they became a big thing. By the time you were 12, though, in the year 2000, they'd be all the rage.
Your grandparents on both sides would have doted on you. Your Granddaddy Firebaugh would have had you working on the farm as soon as you could lift a hammer. Your other granddaddy would want to bring you into his company. Heir apparent, he'd call you.
Being your momma, though, I'd want you to go to school and find your own way. Paths are never simple, even yellow brick roads, and while someone would be there to catch you if you fell, for the most part, I would want you to follow those bricks to wherever your heart led.
Growing up, you'd have had cousins to play with. You'd be the eldest and their leader, but you would have played nice because I'd have taught you to do that. You'd also be a polite young man, because saying yes ma'am and no sir are the right things to do. You'd love the earth because your daddy does, and you'd love the world because your momma does.
We'd take you to Williamsburg where you'd be bored by the history but fascinated with the horses pulling carriages. You'd like the military museums at the Civil War battlefields, but you'd tire of them quickly.
When you turned 10, you told me to stop kissing you goodnight. So I waited every evening until you were asleep, and then slipped in and touched my lips to your forehead. You never knew how much I watched you.
At 12, you played football in middle school. Oh, your dad was so proud, watching you run. You would be a big boy, with your father's height, so you were a blocker. You'd make way for the touchdowns. But sports would not be your passion. Instead, you'd be a 4-H leader, and then an officer in the Future Farmers of America. Your calves would win awards for whatever calves win awards for.
Your classmates called you Joseph. After your high school graduation, you'd ask me to call you Joseph, too. And I would do that simply because you asked.
In 2000, your grandmother died, and J.J., you cried. She loved you and gave you many gifts, and your heart broke to think she was gone. Her loss would draw you closer to your remaining grandmother and grandfathers, as well as your great-grandmothers, until they too, were gone.
Because you had lots of relatives, you would learn a lot about love and much about loss. You'd understand people in the ways of an old soul, and I would love that about you.
I would have watched with pride as you graduated from Lord Botetourt High School, third in your class. By this time, you'd have been accepted into the college of your choice. You weren't going to be a farmer or businessman. You were going to be an architect, but you'd spend your summers helping your dad on the farm.
And then here it would be, now, and you'd be a 27-year-old man. You'd have just made partner in a start-up architectural firm in Richmond, where you would now live. Maybe this coming June you would have come to me with a lovely young woman on your arm, and said, "Mom, this is the love of my life."
I would have been so proud of you, J.J., had you actually been born. I'd have been the best mother I could have been. I would have made mistakes - all parents do - but I would have loved you.
I walked in those shoes, a very long time ago, when we spent six years trying to have a child. I know what it is like to be unhealthy and not whole, and to feel "less than" because you're not able to function like a woman. It's bad enough to be female - in some eyes, you're not even human - but to be unable to produce a child, that's akin to being about as close to nothing as one can be in the minds of many. I have felt it keenly over the years.
But in my mind, for many years, there has lived a little boy. Well, he's not so little, now. He's grown up in my head as the years have passed. Had all gone as planned - and things in my world don't go as planned - this little one would have been born on September 22, 1988. I would have loved that date, since it is also Bilbo and Frodo Baggins' birthdays.
We would have named you James Joseph Firebaugh - James after your father, and his father, and his father's father and on down the line many generations, and Joseph after my father's father. I would have called you J.J., something your father probably would not have liked but he would eventually accept.
Our whole lives would have been different with your coming. I'd have quit my job at the law office to stay home with you, and began my freelance career much earlier. I hope I would have continued working on my bachelors degree, if only to show you how important education is.
I'd have read you stories every night, from the first day I brought you home until you finally made me stop when you were seven. We would have had a collection of Little Golden Books, and I'd have made roaring noises when I read Where the Wild Things Are. You'd pretend to be frightened and giggle when I reached over to tickle you.
When you were two months old, I left you in care of your daddy so I could go chase down a story for the local newspaper. He promptly bundled you up and took you for a ride on the tractor. He thought I would not know, but he can't go anywhere without getting grease on something, and I'd have seen the spot on your blankie. You would have been daddy's boy, for sure. You'd follow him around the farm and by the age of four, you'd be able to tell me the difference between a New Holland and a John Deere tractor, or a Case and an International backhoe. You'd have loved your Erector set and Lincoln Logs, because building things was a joy for you.
You'd know a little about computers because your mom used one, but fortunately you'd be young before they became a big thing. By the time you were 12, though, in the year 2000, they'd be all the rage.
Your grandparents on both sides would have doted on you. Your Granddaddy Firebaugh would have had you working on the farm as soon as you could lift a hammer. Your other granddaddy would want to bring you into his company. Heir apparent, he'd call you.
Being your momma, though, I'd want you to go to school and find your own way. Paths are never simple, even yellow brick roads, and while someone would be there to catch you if you fell, for the most part, I would want you to follow those bricks to wherever your heart led.
Growing up, you'd have had cousins to play with. You'd be the eldest and their leader, but you would have played nice because I'd have taught you to do that. You'd also be a polite young man, because saying yes ma'am and no sir are the right things to do. You'd love the earth because your daddy does, and you'd love the world because your momma does.
We'd take you to Williamsburg where you'd be bored by the history but fascinated with the horses pulling carriages. You'd like the military museums at the Civil War battlefields, but you'd tire of them quickly.
When you turned 10, you told me to stop kissing you goodnight. So I waited every evening until you were asleep, and then slipped in and touched my lips to your forehead. You never knew how much I watched you.
At 12, you played football in middle school. Oh, your dad was so proud, watching you run. You would be a big boy, with your father's height, so you were a blocker. You'd make way for the touchdowns. But sports would not be your passion. Instead, you'd be a 4-H leader, and then an officer in the Future Farmers of America. Your calves would win awards for whatever calves win awards for.
Your classmates called you Joseph. After your high school graduation, you'd ask me to call you Joseph, too. And I would do that simply because you asked.
In 2000, your grandmother died, and J.J., you cried. She loved you and gave you many gifts, and your heart broke to think she was gone. Her loss would draw you closer to your remaining grandmother and grandfathers, as well as your great-grandmothers, until they too, were gone.
Because you had lots of relatives, you would learn a lot about love and much about loss. You'd understand people in the ways of an old soul, and I would love that about you.
I would have watched with pride as you graduated from Lord Botetourt High School, third in your class. By this time, you'd have been accepted into the college of your choice. You weren't going to be a farmer or businessman. You were going to be an architect, but you'd spend your summers helping your dad on the farm.
And then here it would be, now, and you'd be a 27-year-old man. You'd have just made partner in a start-up architectural firm in Richmond, where you would now live. Maybe this coming June you would have come to me with a lovely young woman on your arm, and said, "Mom, this is the love of my life."
I would have been so proud of you, J.J., had you actually been born. I'd have been the best mother I could have been. I would have made mistakes - all parents do - but I would have loved you.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Thursday Thirteen
A little information about adhesions, which is what doctors say has caused me to become disabled by pain.
1. Abdominal adhesions are bands of fibrous tissue (aka scar tissue) that can form between abdominal tissues and organs. Abdominal adhesions cause tissues and organs in the abdominal cavity to stick together.
2. Adhesions may be filmy or coarse, thick or thin. They may be small enough to join individual muscle cells, deep within a structure. Or they may grow so large that they stretch down the torso from neck to waist, bending a person forward so s/he literally cannot stand erect.
3. Abdominal surgery is the most frequent cause of abdominal adhesions. Of patients who undergo abdominal surgery, 93 percent develop abdominal adhesions.
4. Other causes of abdominal adhesions include inflammation of an organ such as cholecystitis or appendicitis, peritonitis, foreign objects left inside the abdomen at the time of surgery, bleeding into the peritoneal cavity, or inflammatory conditions such as pelvic inflammatory disease.
5. Good doctors take steps during surgery to try and minimize the formation of adhesions. Some of these may include: shortening surgical time, keeping the tissues moist, gentle handling of any tissues or organs, and using starch –free and latex-free gloves. Several surgical products have also been developed to try to help prevent adhesions from forming during surgery. Film-like sheets are sometimes used between organs or body surfaces after large, open surgical procedures.
6. In most cases, abdominal adhesions do not cause symptoms. When symptoms are present, chronic abdominal pain is the most common.
7. In areas where adhesions impose on pain-sensitive structures, they can cause constant or recurring pain. They may also pull into structures distant from the original tissue trauma, causing distant dysfunction or referred pain – pain experienced in a part of the body other than the source of pain. Adhesions are often the cause of the unexplained or complex pain patterns in many chronic pain patients.
8. At the sites of where abdominal adhesions occur, the intestine can twist on itself, and the twisting may obstruct the normal movement of its contents (particularly in the small intestine).
9. A complete intestinal obstruction is life threatening and requires immediate medical attention and often surgery.
10. Abdominal adhesions cannot be detected by tests or seen through imaging techniques such as x rays or ultrasound. However, abdominal x rays, a lower gastrointestinal (GI) series, and computerized tomography (CT) scans can diagnose intestinal obstructions.
11. In western medicine, surgery is the only way to treat abdominal adhesions that cause pain, intestinal obstruction, or fertility problems.
12. Surgery to treat pain from abdominal adhesions generally fails because the surgery causes more adhesions.
13. Physical therapy has helped some people who have adhesions, but it is a time consuming, painful, and costly process.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 391st time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.
1. Abdominal adhesions are bands of fibrous tissue (aka scar tissue) that can form between abdominal tissues and organs. Abdominal adhesions cause tissues and organs in the abdominal cavity to stick together.
2. Adhesions may be filmy or coarse, thick or thin. They may be small enough to join individual muscle cells, deep within a structure. Or they may grow so large that they stretch down the torso from neck to waist, bending a person forward so s/he literally cannot stand erect.
3. Abdominal surgery is the most frequent cause of abdominal adhesions. Of patients who undergo abdominal surgery, 93 percent develop abdominal adhesions.
4. Other causes of abdominal adhesions include inflammation of an organ such as cholecystitis or appendicitis, peritonitis, foreign objects left inside the abdomen at the time of surgery, bleeding into the peritoneal cavity, or inflammatory conditions such as pelvic inflammatory disease.
5. Good doctors take steps during surgery to try and minimize the formation of adhesions. Some of these may include: shortening surgical time, keeping the tissues moist, gentle handling of any tissues or organs, and using starch –free and latex-free gloves. Several surgical products have also been developed to try to help prevent adhesions from forming during surgery. Film-like sheets are sometimes used between organs or body surfaces after large, open surgical procedures.
6. In most cases, abdominal adhesions do not cause symptoms. When symptoms are present, chronic abdominal pain is the most common.
7. In areas where adhesions impose on pain-sensitive structures, they can cause constant or recurring pain. They may also pull into structures distant from the original tissue trauma, causing distant dysfunction or referred pain – pain experienced in a part of the body other than the source of pain. Adhesions are often the cause of the unexplained or complex pain patterns in many chronic pain patients.
8. At the sites of where abdominal adhesions occur, the intestine can twist on itself, and the twisting may obstruct the normal movement of its contents (particularly in the small intestine).
9. A complete intestinal obstruction is life threatening and requires immediate medical attention and often surgery.
10. Abdominal adhesions cannot be detected by tests or seen through imaging techniques such as x rays or ultrasound. However, abdominal x rays, a lower gastrointestinal (GI) series, and computerized tomography (CT) scans can diagnose intestinal obstructions.
11. In western medicine, surgery is the only way to treat abdominal adhesions that cause pain, intestinal obstruction, or fertility problems.
12. Surgery to treat pain from abdominal adhesions generally fails because the surgery causes more adhesions.
13. Physical therapy has helped some people who have adhesions, but it is a time consuming, painful, and costly process.
Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while and this is my 391st time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Monday, April 13, 2015
Sunday, April 12, 2015
Sunday Stealing: Sizzle
From Sunday Stealing
The Sizzle Says Meme
1. If money were no object, what would you be doing with your life?
A. I'd be going to doctors in a major city to try to get well, I suppose. And if that was successful, I wouldn't mind traveling and seeing some of the world.
2. Money is just that - an object, so why aren’t you doing it?
A. Because I don't have it.
3. What’s better: horses or cows?
A. We raise beef cattle on a farm, so cows, of course.
4. What do you think the secret to happiness is?
A. Wanting what you have and loving yourself for who you are.
5. When was the last time you had a dream that you either remember well or did not want to awake from? Can you share a bit?
A. I tend to have nightmares or night terrors. According to my journal, this was the last dream that I wrote about:
I dreamed my mother was screaming at me because I wasn't working, that I needed to find a job, that everyone was a better person than I could ever be because I wasn't working, and there was a big huge black snake writhing across the kitchen floor, and I was screaming for someone to help me, and I ended up opening a window but it was a big long drop to the ground. All I could see was darkness and I couldn't even see the bottom of the hole I was falling into.
I woke in a cold sweat, breathing heavily.
6. When you were a little kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A. At various times I wanted to be an archeologist, a geologist, and the person who discovered what was behind the Bermuda Triangle. I also wanted to be an astronomer so I could study aliens. Mostly, though, I wanted to be a writer.
7. Complete this statement: Love is . . . higher than a mountain, love is thicker than water. Wait a second, I think that's an Andy Gibbs song. Oops. Something more original? Love is the epitome of humanity, and the savior of morality. How's that?
8. Can you tell a good story?
A. I am a writer, so I hope so. I think I write stories better than I speak them orally, however.
9. Can you remember your last daydream? What was it about?
A. Since the new season of Game of Thrones comes out tonight (April 12), I have been spending some time in Westeros, imaging various outcomes to remaining characters.
10. If you were to thank someone today, who would you thank?
A. I would thank my husband for putting up with me, my physical therapist for sending me a funny but caring email reminding me of what I am supposed to be doing this weekend, my friend Brenda for having lunch with me, and my friend Teresa for coming by to see me Friday.
11. If you could be anyone's mojo, whose would you want to be, and why? (For those you do not know what mojo is, it's personal magnetism; charm.)
A. I can't imagine why I would want someone else's mojo. However, I think Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, and Stevie Nicks are all charming. Maybe I could have something that wraps up the three of them?
Join in the fun with Sunday Stealing at the link above. It's a hoot.
The Sizzle Says Meme
1. If money were no object, what would you be doing with your life?
A. I'd be going to doctors in a major city to try to get well, I suppose. And if that was successful, I wouldn't mind traveling and seeing some of the world.
2. Money is just that - an object, so why aren’t you doing it?
A. Because I don't have it.
3. What’s better: horses or cows?
A. We raise beef cattle on a farm, so cows, of course.
4. What do you think the secret to happiness is?
A. Wanting what you have and loving yourself for who you are.
5. When was the last time you had a dream that you either remember well or did not want to awake from? Can you share a bit?
A. I tend to have nightmares or night terrors. According to my journal, this was the last dream that I wrote about:
I dreamed my mother was screaming at me because I wasn't working, that I needed to find a job, that everyone was a better person than I could ever be because I wasn't working, and there was a big huge black snake writhing across the kitchen floor, and I was screaming for someone to help me, and I ended up opening a window but it was a big long drop to the ground. All I could see was darkness and I couldn't even see the bottom of the hole I was falling into.
I woke in a cold sweat, breathing heavily.
6. When you were a little kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A. At various times I wanted to be an archeologist, a geologist, and the person who discovered what was behind the Bermuda Triangle. I also wanted to be an astronomer so I could study aliens. Mostly, though, I wanted to be a writer.
7. Complete this statement: Love is . . . higher than a mountain, love is thicker than water. Wait a second, I think that's an Andy Gibbs song. Oops. Something more original? Love is the epitome of humanity, and the savior of morality. How's that?
8. Can you tell a good story?
A. I am a writer, so I hope so. I think I write stories better than I speak them orally, however.
9. Can you remember your last daydream? What was it about?
A. Since the new season of Game of Thrones comes out tonight (April 12), I have been spending some time in Westeros, imaging various outcomes to remaining characters.
10. If you were to thank someone today, who would you thank?
A. I would thank my husband for putting up with me, my physical therapist for sending me a funny but caring email reminding me of what I am supposed to be doing this weekend, my friend Brenda for having lunch with me, and my friend Teresa for coming by to see me Friday.
11. If you could be anyone's mojo, whose would you want to be, and why? (For those you do not know what mojo is, it's personal magnetism; charm.)
A. I can't imagine why I would want someone else's mojo. However, I think Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres, and Stevie Nicks are all charming. Maybe I could have something that wraps up the three of them?
Join in the fun with Sunday Stealing at the link above. It's a hoot.
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