Starting again this week with Sunday, because the last blog date of publication was Saturday.\u00a0 This taize\u2019 service had two more musicians join.\u00a0 We had a piano, two violins, a viola, a flute, and a recorder.<\/p>\n
[from John:\u00a0 I have to look things up, thus, learning a recorder is a type of medieval flute revived in the 20th century, partly in the pursuit of historically informed performance of early music, but also because of its suitability as a simple instrument for teaching . . .\u00a0\u00a0 The name comes from at least as far back as the mid-1300s when one meaning of the word \u201crecord\u201d meant to practice a piece of music<\/em>.]<\/p>\n Next week we are going to add even more music to the service.\u00a0 It went for \u00bd hour and we went downstairs for homemade lasagna, like you have never had.\u00a0 It was made by a gentleman in their church, and had these unusual ingredients, but it was awesome:\u00a0 pumpkin, walnuts, pine nuts, cheese and whole wheat lasagna noodles.\u00a0 There were at least two different types of really good cookies, and my favorite was peanut butter with peanuts.\u00a0 Also there were chocolate chip ones.<\/p>\n Monday brought a trip to my family physician\u2014just a 6-week check-up from the last visit.\u00a0 It was a nice visit with no call for a follow-up in a month.\u00a0 He listened to my heart and didn\u2019t even hear a murmur.\u00a0 My blood pressure and heart rate were right on, and I\u2019m up on my weight to 150 (with clothes on).\u00a0 All my lab work is good for red blood count, % iron, and other things.\u00a0 He was so happy to see me back to good health.\u00a0 Now I need to stay that way.<\/p>\n The mail brought my MedicAlert bracelet today.\u00a0 I\u2019m happy with it too.\u00a0 It is a sports band with musical notes around it.\u00a0\u00a0 I\u2019m in a database with all my medical information.\u00a0\u00a0 There is a 1-800 number on it to call in an emergency.\u00a0 They had not listed my \u201callergy\u201d to Heparin, so I called them and they will add it and make me a new bracelet. [remember<\/em> HIT?]<\/p>\n I also went to my exercise class in town today, and by the grocery store on the way home.\u00a0 So, while I was away, John worked on the barn, opening up a side of it for the horses to be able to have a place under shelter if they desire.\u00a0 The deer (mamma and two small ones) hung around all day.\u00a0 In the morning they were in the orchard, and in the afternoon they were in the pasture with the horses. (cont.\u00a0 Sat<\/em>.)<\/p>\n Also got a phone call this afternoon to fill a slot at Yakima Memorial hospital for a TEE.\u00a0 I passed on this one because I already have two major things happening this Wed., and one of them was scheduled by the same organization, the Yakima Heart Center.\u00a0 They should realize there is only so much time in one day, and a patient should not have to do two procedures in two different cities, in the same 7 hours (not to mention the travel time to Yakima).<\/p>\n I cannot drive myself and have to have a driver, so that means John has to be available all that time too.<\/p>\n Another frustration.\u00a0 I received a bill from a lab in Sandy, UT but with the headquarters in Michigan.\u00a0 This was from my last stay in ICU at Yakima in August.\u00a0 It appears that Medicare paid part of a bill I had never seen, and they sent me the remainder I owed, with a nasty note that it was overdue and being the second notice.\u00a0 I NEVER received the first, and they obviously have not billed my secondary provider of insurance, Group Health.\u00a0 (John says \u201cGet used to it.\u201d<\/em>) Tomorrow morning I will notify them to do so.<\/p>\n Finally–Tuesday morning came and I made several phone calls, not the least of which was about the bill mentioned previously.\u00a0 I had a very nice person on the other end of the line, which was a pleasant surprise.\u00a0 She checked my records and said she needed to contact Medicare again to pay more of the bill, and once she heard from them, she would bill Group Health for the remainder.\u00a0 Meanwhile, she is removing the warnings so I will not get nasty notes about not paying my bills, automatically sent by their computer in the \u201csnail\u201d mail, USPS regular delivery.\u00a0 She asked if I would like to switch to on-line payment, but I told her, while I was capable of such, I didn\u2019t wish to because I wanted a paper trail of my bills and what was paid by whom.\u00a0 (needed for tax purposes)<\/p>\n The other major accomplishment of the day was getting the Biotronix device checker set up next to where I sleep.\u00a0 It has to be connected to a phone line of the old fashioned variety and also to a power source.\u00a0 John ran a telephone extension cord connector line up around the room for access.\u00a0 At 2:00 in the morning it automatically senses my ICD and reads the report therein, sends it across the land to a company computer for analysis, and sends that to my doctor\u2019s office in Yakima, WA.<\/p>\n If there is a decided change in anything that should not be, bells ring at Biotronix headquarters and around the world, they will notify my doctor, and I get a call suggesting I get by butt into his office, pronto.<\/p>\n I must be within 2 meters of the device for this to work.\u00a0 We did a connection test and the unit is functioning properly.\u00a0 If I\u2019m awake at 2:00 a.m. I will look at the lights on the unit to see if it is connecting and operating.\u00a0 I\u2019m not supposed to feel this transfer.\u00a0 I suppose if I awake near 2:00 and need to potty, I will have to wait till the thing is through transmitting, because I would be farther than 2 meters from the base station.\u00a0 Isn\u2019t technology amazing?\u00a0 What I am concerned about is when I travel, and have to take this unit along with me and all the wires to hook into a phone line.\u00a0 That might be a challenge.<\/p>\n Today we got our first snow.\u00a0 It probably left an inch or more on the ground but was followed by rain, so we have none on the ground.<\/p>\n This was the first day we didn\u2019t have any reason to go to town.\u00a0 Nice for a change, although I planned to cut John\u2019s hair and we never got around to it.\u00a0 (Please don\u2019t send me any round TUITs).<\/p>\n I did write a few more thank you cards\/letters, but that has also been a slow process.<\/p>\n The next paragraph talks about a Pulmonary Function Test, which is defined in the medical dictionary as:<\/p>\n PFT:<\/strong> Pulmonary function test, a test designed to measure how well the lungs are working. PFTs gauge how the lungs are doing their jobs — of expanding and contracting (when a person inhales and exhales) and of exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide efficiently between the air (or other gases) within the lungs and the blood.<\/p>\n For example, one PFT calls for the patient to breathe into a machine called a spirometer. It is a mechanical device that records the changes in lung size as air is inhaled and exhaled and the time it takes for the patient to do this task.<\/p>\n Wednesday I went to the hospital early (10:00 a.m.) for a Pulmonary Function Test, ordered by my cardiologist at the last appointment in Yakima.\u00a0\u00a0 Interesting that the entire test was transferred electronically to my doctors, at the end of the test.\u00a0 No waiting around for curriers and putting on a disk or print out to send.\u00a0 The technician explained as much as he could to me about my results, but mentioned that my cardiologist has to read all the parameters and evaluate in light of my whole medical picture of everything since last November, 2009.\u00a0 I was in the \u201clow\u201d range when compared to my reference group (age, sex, height, weight), but apparently improved when given an inhaled drug to relax the bronchial muscles that might have been stiffening my lungs.\u00a0 It was an added test at the end of the normal set of things to measure my breathing.\u00a0 On the report are those figures (mentioned below) and the numbers for Lung Volume, Diffusing Capacity and Resistance.\u00a0 It was an interesting test.\u00a0 I await the results.\u00a0 The reason for it was that I\u2019m taking a drug called Amiodarone to control my Atrial Fibrillations.\u00a0 It has lots of side effects, the worst of which is damage to the lungs.<\/p>\n Here are some of the several items they tested on me:<\/p>\n FVC \u2013 Forced Vital Capacity, which is the volume of air that can forcibly be blow out after taking a deep full breath, measured in liters.\u00a0 Mine was 71% when compared to a reference group.\u00a0 They\u2019d like it to be over 80%.<\/p>\n FEF \u2013 Forced Expiratory Flow, the flow or speed of air coming out of the lungs during the middle portion of a forced expiration.<\/p>\n TLC \u2013 Total Lung Capacity is the maximum volume of air present in the lungs.<\/p>\n There were many measurements and the last thing that happened was I was given 2.5 mg Albuterol\/NS for a brochiodilator.\u00a0 Almost all my parameters increased.\u00a0 It is a mist inhaled that relaxes the bronchial muscles around the lungs, mentioned above.<\/p>\n Exercise class was in the afternoon, and I\u2019m doing better each time.\u00a0 We had the 5th<\/sup> in the series of 6 Washington Geology lectures during the evening.\u00a0 The topic was Lava Flows and Floods in the PNW.\u00a0 Next week is on the Geology of the Kittitas Valley, where we live.\u00a0 It is the last in this fall series of community lectures.<\/p>\n Thursday was play day at the Rehab center.\u00a0 We had a good turnout and enjoyed our time together.<\/p>\n Friday we got ready for the potluck and jam session in the evening.\u00a0 We both spent a fair amount of time on the computer in the morning, and I consulted with my cardiologist\u2019s nurse in Yakima and the device technician as well.\u00a0 Results:\u00a0 the device technician reported that the device is sending information well, in the middle of the night, to describe what my heart is doing.<\/p>\n The nurse reported that my Cardiologist, had reviewed all the parameters from Wednesday\u2019s PFT, and decided I was good to stay on Amiodarone and needed to have another PFT in 9 months.\u00a0 That\u2019s good news.<\/p>\n I cut John\u2019s hair before we ate lunch.\u00a0 It had been awhile–since a few days after my birthday in early September.<\/p>\n John put pork ribs (two large pieces\u2014Baby back ribs) in the oven at 1:00 p.m. and went out and worked in the yard till 4:30 when he came in to open the top and put on BBQ sauce.<\/p>\n My exercise class had been cancelled so I spent much of the afternoon working on music for the jam session, and burning copies of a CD of Jimmie Rodgers \u2013 24 blues songs, to give to the people in the music group.\u00a0 We had a great meal and then a fantastic time afterwards playing music.<\/p>\n Saturday we played at Briarwood Retirement Community.\u00a0 You have heard this before, but they always sing along and fix us a late lunch (or early dinner).\u00a0 This will be no exception, EXCEPT, I need to print out some words for some of our songs, at the request of the audience, so they can sing along.\u00a0 Gives me something else to keep me busy on the computer in the morning before going to play.\u00a0 I got it done, and they treated us to homemade potato soup with bacon that is more like clam chowder.\u00a0 They had a table full of crackers and cheese spreads, Fritos, and yummy cookies for dessert.\u00a0 They copied the words I took along and passed them out among the group.\u00a0 They were delighted and sang along really well, on such songs as Side by Side, Jambalaya, I\u2019ve Been Working on the Railroad, 5-foot\u20192, and Yes Sir, That\u2019s my Baby.<\/p>\n I will close and send to John to put out on the blog.<\/p>\n [from John: the CWU equestrian team hosted a riding show today and I went for a couple of hours as I was curious whether or not some of the young ladies could ride our horses \u2013 they get local horse owners to bring in horses so the out-of-town ones don\u2019t have to bring their own.\u00a0 I learned that, even when well trained, our horses won\u2019t be a good fit as they are gaited horses and the show expects the traditional movements of walk, trot, lope, and canter.\u00a0 Still, it was interesting.\u00a0 In the afternoon, while Nancy was doing music, I directed my problem horse, Jazz, into the round-pen and set about rasping his hoofs. When the hoofs get too long the back hoofs will hit the front ones (forging) and the front ones don\u2019t \u201cbreak over\u201d soon enough and his movement suffers.\u00a0 All went well except when four deer (incl. one small buck) came out of the brush and walked up to the pen to see what was going on.\u00a0 I wish they wouldn\u2019t do that when I\u2019ve got one leg of a thousand pound animal in my possession.\u00a0 I tried to chase them away with little success.\u00a0 Jazz and I got the job done despite the audience and they were still around when I turned him loose<\/em>.]<\/p>\n We wish you a nice next week, and hope you are staying healthy. Okay — that\u2019s about it for this week.<\/p>\n Nancy<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Starting again this week with Sunday, because the last blog date of publication was Saturday.\u00a0 This taize\u2019 service had two more musicians join.\u00a0 We had a piano, two violins, a viola, a flute, and a recorder. [from John:\u00a0 I have to look things up, thus, learning a recorder is a type of medieval flute revived … Continue reading “SATURDAY — events of a mundane sort”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-random-issues"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p72iNf-aM","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=668"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":670,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/668\/revisions\/670"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rocknponderosa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}