Notes from the Northern Compound...

Things are relatively stable in Acoustic Neuroma aftermath. (Ssshh - don't want to temp the fates...)

Yesterday the VN came by to draw blood - and what should have been a simple procedure ended up taking over an hour. It culminated with something getting stuck in the IV line; when that was finally unstuck, she screwed the IV on so tight that I couldn't get it to budge. So, a rather long a stressful morning, but all ended well.

You may recall that the dishwasher exploded a few days before I went back to the hospital - well, today, the fridge sprung a leak! It is as if the black cloud has now encomassed our appliances. Anyway, enough being enough, I got on the phone and now have someone coming out tomorrow to fix both appliance. Ka-ching, Ka-ching ... but what the hell.

Willie's dad is being sprung from the sub-acute center this weekend (adding yet more stress to the mix), so Willie is busy trying to get all of the arrangements made. The rehab folks are working hard to get Phil very comfortable walking again, either with cane or walker. Not sure yet what he will come home with, but hopefully both. Anyway, it promises to be an exciting weekend .... sigh.

Meanwhile, I contacted a leading rehab facilityin NJ and scheduled an appointment for a facial therapy session next Thursday. It's about a half hour away, so will be a test of my driving ability. However, I need to get out and test things a bit - and as long as I stay on surface roads, I will be able to pull over and put drops in my eyes.

I will also schedule an appt with an opthamologist to monitor my eye. Since it doesn't produce any tears yet, keeping it lubricated is a big deal - can't run the risk of damaging my cornea! Can you imagine being both deaf AND blind on the right side!! Eeek!

On a happy note, I am getting a nice stubble behind my ear where they shaved for the surgery! It itches like crazy, but when the hair grows out you won't even be able to see the scar - wahoo! Dr. Roland did a very nice job with that. He's the man! His residents refer to his shaving prowess as "the Roland technique." :)

All else quiet on the norther front. I think Mom and Dad are going to saddle up and pull out on Friday - I know they are anxious to get out to Oregon and get settled into the condo for the summer. Not to mention, they've got all their own doctors appointments to schedule. They are busy looking at maps and weather forecasts, trying to plot a course across the northern states that will avoid tornadoes and such.

More later...