Michael Jordans brother deploys to Iraq

Military.com

Since I did mention Michael Jordan in a previous post I think it is only fitting that I mention his brother. You all know that I am prior military (infantry NCO in the Army) and that I support all our men and women in uniform. I generally do not like to put one on a pedestal higher then the rest as they are all my heroes, but when someone has the opportunity to not deploy to a combat zone does so to ensure that the men he has spent all that time training make it home safe. Well that says a lot to me about this person.

The rank of Command Sergeant Major is the highest enlisted pay grade in the Army and very few people have what it takes to make it to be a CSM. Their is one person in the same pay grade as the CSM's who "outranks" the CSM and that is the Sergeant Major of the Army, but there is only one SMA at a time.

Blog Maverick - www.blogmaverick.com ++

Blog Maverick - www.blogmaverick.com ++

Something off the beaten path.

This is the blog for Mark Cuban the owner of the Dallas Mavericks. While I am not a huge sports fan and do not tend to watch games on TV (they are MUCH better live), Mr. Cuban is a very interesting man. He is a self made man with a net worth that ranks him in the top 400 in the United States. That is what makes him more interesting to me then people like Michael Jordan or Barry Bonds. Now don't get me wrong, the talent those men posses in their pinky finger is more then most of us will ever have. But when someone like Mark Cuban takes an idea and turns it into a billion dollar business, well that to me is better then being able to leap 48" in the air or hit a 500' homerun.

Good news...

Well my wife talked to my doc's nurse practitioner today about my situation nd she agreed to talk to me about changing my meds. I have an appointment tomorrow at 11:20 and my wife is going to come with me.

My wife's appointment was for herself today but she said she said she is tired of the way the prescribe my meds. They give me something for a few months but then cut me off citing their fear of addiction, which I can somewhat agree with but when it comes to chronic pain it is moot IMHO. I am also concerned as they always give me something with tylenol in it and it has been shown that prolonged use leads to liver damage and new reports are showing that it also leads to kidney problems.

I have found that lower doses of MS-Contin/Oxycontin are very effective and do not have the tylenol in them. There is also the fentanyl/duragesic patch as well as the fentanyl lollipops in case the patch is not enough.

Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to get off these meds and on to meds that really do more for me and my family. If I can get something that will cut down on the pain a bit more then I think I would be even more functional then I am now. My wife is also going to go to the appointment with me to make sure we discuss everything as I am sure to forget something.

Failed back surgery syndrome...

Here is a site that discusses some of the reasons for what is known as failed back surgery syndrome. It is a rather long article so I will not cut and paste all of it here.

Some types of back surgery are far more predictable in terms of alleviating a patient’s symptoms than others. For instance,

A discectomy (or microdiscectomy) for a lumbar disc herniation that is causing leg pain is a very predictable operation. However, a discectomy for a lumbar disc herniation that is causing lower back pain is far less likely to be successful.

A spine fusion for spinal instability (e.g. spondylolisthesis) is a relatively predictable operation. However, a spine fusion for multi-level lumbar degenerative disc disease is far less likely to be successful in reducing a patient’s pain.

Therefore, the best way to avoid a spine surgery that leads to an unsuccessful result is to stick to operations that have a high degree of success and to make sure that an anatomic lesion that is amenable to surgical correction is identified preoperatively.

The above applies to me as I did have multi-level DDD and have now been diagnosed with further degeneration at the L3/L4.

Transfer lesion to another level after a spine fusion
A patient may experience recurrent pain many years after a spine fusion surgery. This can happen because the level above a segment that has been successfully fused can breakdown and become a pain generator.

This degeneration is most likely to happen after a two-level fusion (e.g. a fusion for L4-L5 and L5-S1 levels) and in a young patient (in the 30-50 year old age range).

It is much less likely to happen if only the L5-S1 level is fused, as this segment typically does not have much motion and fusing this level does not change the mechanics in the spine all that much.

Most of the motion in the spine is at the L4-L5 level, and to a lesser extent at L3-L4. When the L4-L5 level is included in the spine fusion it transfers a lot of stress to L3-L4. This does not present as much of a problem for elderly patients, since they tend to not be as active nor do they have the fusion for as many years.

My fusion was done at the L5/S1 and as I said before the last MRI did indeed show further degeneration at the L3/L4. This makes me seriously wonder if the arachnoiditis is causing all the pain I am having. While I am sure that it is part of the problem this makes me think that the DDD and arachnoiditis are acting in concert. It's a conspiracy damnit!!! I am also at the front end of the age range they mention, being that I am 34.

The article also discusses metal hardware failure before the fusion is completed but I know that at my 3 month post op x-rays my neurosurgeon was very impressed with the rate of fusion. He mentioned that it was much quicker then he expected considering they used donor bone and not my own. So I have some dead guys bone grafts and I don't even know his name. I can tell where the hardware is located though. My lower back in the area it is installed is always a bit swollen and it also limits my range of motion. I have had it prevent me from moving in a certain way. When that happens it feels like you stepped off the curb or the last stair the wrong way. You know that pain that shoots up your back when that happens? That is what it feels like, only it does not go away as quickly.

I am confident that the surgery I had was successful in respect to stabilizing the L5/S1 but looking back I would say that I was not well informed as to post op issues. My neuro and I did discuss that the surgery might not work at all, it might cause more pain then before or it would be a success but I do not recall us discussing that using hardware in one location might lead to new or further degeneration at other levels. I guess hindsight is indeed 20/20 because as I think about it, it makes sense. Should the need arise for another surgery I would like to think that I am now more informed then I was last time.

I do like that they end the article with the fact that the surgery itself is not enough to relieve the symptoms and that it should be followed up with a good physical therapy program. I was lucky and had some great folks working on my physical therapy with me.

ARACHNOIDITIS & SPONDYLOLISIS

ARACHNOIDITIS

This is the first site that I have come across that specifically mentions the clinical significance of spondylolisis in arachnoiditis patients. I mention this as just another factor/possible cause of my arachnoiditis. I was indeed diagnosed with spondylolisis prior to my surgery but never thought it might play such a role in developing arachnoiditis. Seems the more I dig in to this condition the more possible sources I find. Boggles the mind.

ARACHNOIDITIS

What Is Arachnoiditis
It is an inflammatory process involving the arachnoid lining of the thecal sac and the Cauda Equina nerve roots, producing severe, incapacitating pain and neurological disability.


Is this a new disease?
As a disease, it has been known for over 90 years under various names. (Meningitis serosa circumscripta spinalis, adhesive spinal arachnoiditis, chronic spinal meningitis, meningitis serosa spinalis, spinal meningitides and radiculo-myelopathy, chronic adhesive arachnoiditis)
It can affect various places in the body, such as in the head, at the junction between the head and neck and all over the spine (cranial, servico-medullary, thoracic, lumbosacral).

With the passage of time, changes have been found in a number of clinical features found in earlier types.

Does everyone agree about the causes and treatments of Arachnoiditis?
What arachnoiditis actually means clinically, its relation to myelography, the role of surgery and of steroids in its genesis and in its treatment, are a matter of great controversy.
Prof. Hoffman (1983), has stated that the conventional spectrum of arachnoiditis is probably only the 'tip of the iceberg'.

Prof. Jayson (1990), stated that many patients with lumbar spondylosis may have degrees of arachnoiditis and peridural fibrosis that are of clinical significance yet unrecognized by conventional examination.

The frequency, prevalence and prognosis of Contrast media induced arachnoiditis are only now becoming known, and its magnitude is greater than previously thought.

Dr. Burton (1994), has suggested that worldwide, a figure close to a million cases over the past 50 years is possible.

Research in the United States on myelography related arachnoiditis, led to disclosures that resulted in a dramatic introduction of legislation in the 1994 U.S. Congress to monitor all myelography. (H.R.2079)

Arachnoiditis and the Patient
Arachnoiditis sufferers have often been considered to have functional disorders; disappointed by this lack of recognition from the medical profession, they have formed self-help groups around the world.
They have shown that arachnoiditis is a major world-wide public health problem. It leads to chronic disability, long term drug/alcohol dependence and suicidal tendencies. The average life span is shortened by 12 years., (Guyer,1989), and there is no known cure.

Arachnoiditis thus, remains a therapeutic challenge for the medical profession

Factors which have been found to lead to Arachnoiditis.
Myelography related

Oil-based contrast media.
Increased volume of contrast injected
Hyperosmolarity of aqueous contrast
Difficulty in performance of myelography.
Non-removal of Oily media
Oil/Hyperosmolar myelography prior to surgery.
Repeat Oil or Aqueous Hyperosmolar myelography.
Blood in CSF at time of Iophendylate myelography.
Interval: Laminectomy Epidural injections
Short time between myelography
Surgery Related
Presence of spinal stenosis
Difficult discectomy
Dural/arachnoid tears
Intradural surgery
Fibrillay cotton residues from patties/swabs.

Freaking headaches...

I woke up about 4am with a headache but it was not a raging one so after I used the bathroom I went back to bed in hopes that it would be gone. You guessed it, no such luck. I am actually betting on a trip to the ER today as I have already taken the daily maximum of Relpax and cannot take any more hydrocodone until 2pm. With all that this sucker is still hanging in there.

My wife has a doctors appointment this morning (we have the same doc) and she is going to ask about getting something else for these suckers. I was thinking of sending a letter to the doc asking for something along the lines of Toradol and Compazine as they work wonders in the ER. If I had them around I am guessing these trips to the ER would be less frequent.

It snowed again last night but we have not reached the depth they were expecting. Funny thing is the other day they called for 1-3" and we got 9+. This time they called for 3-6" and we got about 1/2-1" so far. It started last night before I went to bed and this morning when I took my son to school it was starting back up. This was that crappy snow too. It is not wet snow but it has been mixed with some ice as the car windows were all frozen. I had to clean them off and now I am thinking it may not have been the smartest thing to do. My back is burning a bit more then usual from the over exertion. It might be time to buy something to put over the windshield so that when it snows all I have to do is pull it off and have a clean window. I guess a trashbag cut along the seams and tucked in to the doors would work.

The cold weather also seems to be affecting my joints more this year. My back and hips just ache constantly when the temps drop down below 32F/0C. It is not the burning/warm pain that I get in the lower back. It is more like two bones rubbing together where they meet. I guess this is what happens when you develop arthritis. It is not bad, just annoying at times.

I did get some work done yesterday and again this morning. I plan on doing a little more once my wife gets home from the doc. It is doing some research on companies and what technologies they are running in their IT/IS departments. My father is the founder and President of a recruiting firm that specializes in IT/IS folks. When he gets busy I give him a hand doing the research. It helps keep me occupied as well as mentally alert. Some of the technology is so specialized that finding the companies can be a pain in the butt, but at the same time the challenge is fun. It is kind of your mind against theirs as many companies do not give this information out easily. It reminds me of when I worked for the bonding company (Yes, I was a bounty hunter). Tracking people down who do not want to go back to jail is akin to hunting an elusive deer. They will do everything to avoid being caught, but if you are sharp they will not stay ahead of you for long. I did the work at the bonding company as a "second" job while I was working full time for an international gaming corporation dealing craps and poker.

Treatment of arachnoiditis

You can click on the title above to go to the actual page.

Treatment of Arachnoiditis:


The Response of Modern Medicine
Arachnoiditis is one of many conditions typically diagnosed, using MRI or CAT scans, in someone who has undergone back surgery. While back surgery invariably leads to scar tissue, it does little to relieve the severe back pain experienced with arachnoiditis. The result is that eventually the scar tissue will be identified on the scans, and surgery will be repeated. The problem with this approach is that while the scar tissue was not there before the surgery, the back and leg pain were. The surgery does nothing to repair the sacroiliac ligament and, thus, does not alleviate the chronic pain that people with this condition experience.

Another standard practice of modern medicine is epidural steroid injections. However, in the long run, these treatments do more damage than good. Cortisone shots have been shown to produce short-term pain benefit, but result in long-term loss of function and even more chronic pain by actually inhibiting the healing process of soft tissues and accelerating cartilage degeneration. Plus, long-term use of these drugs can lead to other sources of chronic pain, allergies and leaky gut syndrome. Spinal cord stimulator implantation is another traditional practice of modern medicine, but with limited results.

The Natural Medicine Approach to Arachnoiditis
A better approach is to stimulate ligament repair with Prolotherapy. Prolotherapy treatments to the weakened structures such as the sacroiliac ligaments causing the pain of arachnoiditis will cure the condition and alleviate the pain. Once the weakened structure in the back becomes strong, the pain stops. Prolotherapy is the safest and most effective natural medicine treatment for repairing tendon, ligament and cartilage damage. In simple terms, Prolotherapy stimulates the body to repair painful areas. It does so by inducing a mild inflammatory reaction in the weakened ligaments and cartilage. Since the body heals by inflammation, Prolotherapy stimulates healing.

Prolotherapy offers the most curative results in treating chronic pain. It effectively eliminates pain because it attacks the source: the fibro-osseous junction, an area rich in sensory nerves. Whatfully treated with Prolotherapy, including:
Osteoarthritis
Tendonitis
Migraines
Sports Injuries
Loose Joints (Hypermobility)
Fibromyalgia
RSD Pain
Temporomandibular Joint Syndrome (TMJ)
Sciatica
Herniated Discs
Degenerated Discs
Degenerated Joints
Chondromalacia Patellae
Osgood-Schlatter Disease
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Ligament Sprains
Plantar Fasciitis
...and Back, Hip, Neck, Shoulder, Knee, Elbow, Foot, Ankle, Hand, Wrist, Finger and Toe Pain

I am not sure I would agree with prolotherapy but I am by no means an expert. I just think that causing more inflammation to the area might produce adverse results. Kind of like all the people who swear by the chiropractor or acupuncture. While they may work for someone else I am not about to let them start twisting and cracking me while I have hardware installed or jabbing hundreds of tiny needles into nerve points.

Caring Medical - Symptoms - Arachnoiditis

I found this site on Arachnoiditis (you can click the title to go to the page) and thought I would post it. While I have defined and described AA many times it never hurts to put it back up for those who may be new to my blog.

CONDITION: Arachnoiditis

DESCRIPTION:
Technically, arachnoiditis is a chronic inflammation of the arachnoid layer of the meninges (the layers of tissue covering the spinal cord and the brain). When scar tissue is deposited over these layers, as often occurs after back surgery, it clumps together and compresses nerve roots, cutting off blood flow. This leads to damaged and malfunctioning nerves. The scar tissue also restricts cerebrospinal fluid flow in the subarachnoid space; thus nerve roots cannot get nutrients. Proper diagnosis is often difficult because signs of inflammation, such as redness or fever, are absent. Pain associated with arachnoiditis typically does not respond to pain medication or muscle relaxants.

How does arachnoiditis develop?
A number of circumstances can cause arachnoiditis, including:
• Spinal surgery (especially multiple operations)
• Multiple punctures to the lumbar
• A serious car accident
• Certain dyes known as myelographic dyes
• Intraspinal injections, such as steroid injections
• Meningitis
• Amphotericin B (an antifungal) and methotrexate (an antimetabolite)
• Spinal stenosis
• Chemonucleolysis with chymopapain
• Degenerative disc disease / chronic disc prolapse
• Subarachnoid hemorrhage
• An epidural blood patch

It is difficult to estimate exactly how each factor contributes to the development of arachnoiditis. However, the presence of more than one of the above factors may increase the risk.

What are the symptoms of arachnoiditis?
Arachnoiditis can create extensive scarring of the meninges, which can lead to a debilitating, constant burning pain usually mixed with sharp, stabbing pains. It occurs mainly in the limbs and lower back, but can spread up the spine and through the arms. Neurological problems often accompany arachnoiditis, leading to muscle jerks, spasms and muscle weakness, which in turn leads to bladder, bowel and sexual dysfunction, a swelling of the limbs, and cold extremities from poor circulation, as well as fatigue, malaise, depression, stress, loss of memory, muddled thinking, osteoporosis, weight gain and poor sleeping habits. Medication may create additional symptoms. Numbness in different parts of the body may also be experienced, and the body may be very sensitive to touch. Tight or heavy clothing may be extremely uncomfortable, a condition referred to as allodynia.

Conventional medical treatments may help relieve the symptoms of arachnoiditis, but they do not address the root of the problem. By strengthening structural weaknesses in the body, as natural medicine treatments like Prolotherapy do, pain associated with arachnoiditis may be alleviated permanently.

Discover why we believe that natural medicine treatments are the best way to treat arachnoiditis.

Botulism from botox?

Newsday.com - AP Regional

Gee, who would have thought that you could botulism from botox? I am sometimes bewildered at the lengths people will go to be vain. I understand that in some cases their is a medical need for some types of cosmetic surgery but to just have it done?

Supreme Court to hear marijuana issues...

Both sides of the marijuana debate are watching the Supreme Court very carefully, as it hears arguments Monday on its use as medicine.

On one side is a California woman named Angel Raich, who took up the drug to ease the pain of a brain tumor and other ailments. Raich has the support of her doctor and a California medical marijuana law.

The question is whether that's enough to protect Raich from the federal government, which makes no exceptions for the seriously ill in its war on drugs.

The Justice Department argues marijuana is a dangerous drug. And Republican Congressman Mark Souder of Indiana said if you can't control marijuana, you can't control drugs and if you can't control drugs, you can't control crime.

Justices will consider whether the federal law that bans marijuana possession can be enforced in ten states. Those states allow people to use marijuana if their doctors agree.

WASHINGTON -- The marijuana she smokes every two waking hours makes life bearable for Angel Raich. It eases the pain from an inoperable brain tumor, scoliosis and other disabilities. It's the only thing her doctors will prescribe, because she has severe allergies that cause violent reactions to traditional medicine.

In Oakland, Calif., where Raich lives, that's no problem. A 1996 state law permits patients to grow and smoke marijuana on doctors' recommendations.

But today, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a case that is likely to settle a conflict between that California law and a 1970 federal ban on illegal drugs.

The Justice Department says federal authority is supreme in this matter, and the Drug Enforcement Administration already has raided one California patient's house and destroyed her cannabis plants. If the court favors the government's view, more raids would follow in the 11 states that have legalized medical marijuana -- Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington.

Antidrug groups support the federal government, saying approving medical marijuana could boost support for the recreational use of drugs.

Raich and her supporters say medical marijuana is a matter for the states to decide, and for doctors to decide for their patients.

"Without cannabis, my life would be a death sentence," Raich, 39, says on a Web site about her struggle. "Cannabis was responsible for getting me out of my wheelchair and restoring mobility on the whole right side of my body."

The case is one of the most watched on the Supreme Court's docket this term, one that involves the justices in a high-profile social issue and tests court conservatives' commitment to a line of decisions that restrain federal intrusion into state matters.

It began in California in 2002, when DEA officers raided the Oroville home of Diane Monson, who was growing marijuana to ease back pain. The raid -- and several others -- was tied to a crackdown on medical marijuana inspired in part by the war on terrorism.

Monson, 47, joined Raich in suing to prevent the government from enforcing federal drug laws against those who use marijuana for medical purposes.

A federal district court sided with the government, but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco said it was a state issue in which the federal government shouldn't have authority.

The court said the intrastate, noncommercial cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes wasn't the same as growing it to sell for recreational use.

The Justice Department then appealed to the Supreme Court.

A decision is expected by July.

I have never advocated the use of illegal drugs but I have for a long time advocated the legalization of marijuana. Not because I want to use it but because it has proven effective in many cases to relieve pain that no other drugs are able to. While some might argue it is a gateway drug I would disagree and say that alcohol is more likely filling that role. In fact I see marijuana as less dangerous then alcohol when it comes to intoxication. While both slow motor skills I would have to say that having been in the alcohol industry for years I know more people who got in trouble with alcohol then marijuana. There is a reason they call alcohol "liquid courage" yet I have never heard of a similar term applied to marijuana.

My biggest beef with this agrees with the 9th circuit that it is a states right issue and the federal government has no place sticking their nose into. OF course the 9th circuit is the most overturned circuit in the country. The 9th circuit is also the most liberal one in the judicial system. There is also additional revenue that can be generated through the legalization for medicinal purposes. Of course the biggest hurdle to overcome is not the court giving a nod, it is convincing doctors that it is a legitimate drug when used in the treatment of chronic pain.

Cold weather and damned alarms...

Well after all the snow the other day they are calling for 3" tonight and then again tomorrow. Most of the snow from the other day melted quickly as we hit the high 40's for 2 days in a row.

With the snow has come the cold air and we are dropping in to the 20's at night and barley making it into the mid 30's during the day. Needless to say my back feels like a piece of 1/2" plywood, stiff as a board. Sitting or lying down is not at all comfortable and I seem to be changing positions more often then I normally do. I figure if I stay up until I am so tired it does not matter, I might get to sleep better. Warped theory, but I have seen stranger stuff happen.

I did spend most of the day online and reading. Found some new sites and another blog which have been added to the links. I would like to find some more and link them all together. The more information we get out the better we will all be. Pain for today was moderate, as I said above the colder it gets the worse I seem. I took the max doses of my meds and tried to take it as easy as possible.

Tomorrow is going to be a long day as my wife will be driving out to pick up our son from his trip which leaves me with the baby (and no car!) for about 10 hours or so. He did rack out earlier then normal tonight which is a good thing. If I get him up at 7 I can have him down for his nap by noon. That would leave me only about 6 "real" hours with him which is about normal. If it goes close to the plan then I should even be able to get through the day without having much trouble. Now if I could only get the boy to eat anything other then yogurt, chocolate teddy grahams and pop-tarts I would be set. The last 4 days all he has wanted is junk, although I did get some fish sticks in for dinner last night.

Got the crap scared out of me last night as well. We have an alarm system on the house with motion sensors and door/window sensors. If one of them is tripped it emits a loud shrill piercing noise. When we go to bed I turn on the 1st floor motion detectors. Well, in the middle of the night I heard what seemed to be the alarm going off. I reached down to grab my mag light, which was not where I left it (kids!) so I was looking for something else to take with me as my guns were locked up and the keys were downstairs (dumbass!). About this time my wife wakes up and sees me rooting through stuff and asks "what are you doing?" I asked if she did not hear the alarm going off when she tells me that it is not the house alarm it is the damned attic turbines spinning in the wind. D'oh!!!

Seems that they are a bit rusty and indeed they do sound like the house alarm. I guess I should call the alarm company and ask them if they have any different tones.

:: s l e e p l e s s ::

:: s l e e p l e s s ::

I found another blogger who is dealing with arachnoiditis.

My head is pounding...

I woke this morning about 5:45 with the start of one of the monster headaches. This time I was prepared however and took Relpax and went back to bed for another 2 hours. However when I got up again the headache was still there. The directions say you can take a second one 2 hours after the first but I took my other meds for my back first as it was bothering me as well. That seems to have done the trick as I am now somewhat comfortable.

Since the diagnoses with the arach. the headaches seem to have gotten worse but after kicking it around with some other arach. patients some good ideas on why came out. One idea was that since the arach. is causing scaring in the spinal canal it is displacing cerebral spinal fluid which is causing increased pressure on the brain and the headaches. Another thought was syringomyelia which is possible since I did have 5 stellate ganglion blocks the C-6 as well as the epidural steroid injections. I will talk with my PCP and see if we can't get an MRI and diagnose this instead of guessing. Another thought was Arnold chiari malformation. While I have had many x-rays and CT scans of the area the reading I have done says that it is impossible to diagnose through x-ray and very difficult through CT scan. The best method other then surgery for diagnoses is MR with contrast. While I do not care for the MR if that is the only way to find out then I guess I am willing to do it.

If you would like to read more on Arnold chiari malformation check out Gil's blog here.

I wish more people with these conditions would start to blog. While there are some great sites and info on these conditions they all seem to be from the medical side of the house and give nothing on day to day expectations for those living with them. The blogs are a great tool to get the word out to those diagnosed. I know before I started blogging I was lost with all the info that I found and very little of it told me how it was day to day.

A very nice "vacation"...

Well Thanksgiving went off without any problems and was enjoyable. My in-laws are great people and I enjoy spending time with them but my wife's step-mother's mother is someone that I do not care for and apparently the feeling is mutual. She said she would not be at dinner this year because my wife and I would be there, more specifically me though.

Now this is a story that goes back about 4 years and a previous Thanksgiving. We were all sitting around watching a football game and my then 7 year old was in the room with all of us. I do not remember the specific play that went down but she (step-mother in law) suddenly went on a rant about how "Negroes" (not the word she used) ruined the game and how they were worthless blah blah blah... I had all I could do to not rip her head off but I bit my tongue and excused myself. I did not want to be the guy who forever ruined Thanksgiving. After a cooling off I returned to the room only to have her pick up where she left off. This time I did not hold back and told her what I thought of her bigoted self and even though she is entitled to her opinions she should refrain from using that language and hatred in front of my children. This continued through the years with her making snide comments every chance she gets culminating this year with her refusing the invitation and citing me as the primary reason. Without her there it was a most enjoyable few days with the in-laws.

My step-mother in law is a recent cancer survivor and has just recently completed chemo therapy. She looked great and was as spunky as she has ever been. Amazing how some people rebound from their sicknesses. She even quit smoking cold turkey because of this and has been smoke free since July, so kudos to her for wanting this to work for her. Since she lost her hair during the process, she had some really nice wigs which of course I forgot were wigs so I ended up chewing on my foot right as we walked in the door. I commented on how good her hair looked that short and as the words finished leaving my lips I remember she was wearing a wig. D'OH!!!

Pain management over the few days was decent. The long road trip was a pain and trying to get comfortable in the car seat was difficult but was not as bad as I thought it would be. I took the max dose of my pain meds before getting in the car so I am sure that helped mitigate the pain factor and once we were at their house my father in law gave up his recliner for me to use during our stay. I think without that it might have been a more difficult stay as the only other place to sit was a chair that did not recline (and slid around a lot because it was on a hardwood floor), the couch which is one of those designed to be seen and not used or the hardwood floor. I tried my best to not hog the chair and sat on the floor for a bit as I did not want to seem like a jackass, but sitting on the floor was a mistake and soon after I did sit down everyone was yelling at me to get in the chair. I was not saying anything and am sure that my facial expressions were not those of pain, but they still yelled.

Anyway, it was a good few days out of here and an enjoyable time with the in-laws. While they live within a few hours of us we do not get there as often as we would like. Our schedules are very different and time off together is difficult. My father in law owns his own express delivery service (the trucks are those dodge sprinters) that runs nationwide so there is no telling when he might have to be on the road for a few days. He loves what he is doing and oddly he started this business to have something to do since he is retired. He and my father are a lot alike, my father also started his own business (IT Recruiter) to have something to do during his retirement. They don't do it because they need the money but rather so they are not bored to death.

One thing I did miss while being gone was my daily link to the internet. While they do have internet there it was not wireless and was set up in the basement which would have seemed rude if I went downstairs and spent the amount of time I usually spend online that I normally do (about 10 hours a day). I do have an extra wireless modem and some PCI cards for the laptops so I am sending them to my father in law since I have no use for them. Since we will see them again in a few weeks for the holidays I will set it up for him and show him how to set the WEP up as well. It would also allow us to have longer stays with them as I can bring my work with me (I work with my father) and continue to do what I need during the day while my wife goes shopping with her step-mother.

Hopefully all of you had a great Thanksgiving and spent it with those who you love and care about.

On the road again...

Well, we are going to jump in the car here in a bit and road trip 3 hours east to my in laws house and then come back this way tomorrow. I have already taken the max dose of all the meds I can and picked out a selection of movies and a game for the trip (on the laptop). I grabbed Battlefield 1942 and have yet to really sit down and play it.

I will obviously have the laptop with me but I am not sure if my father in law has wireless internet. If he does not I will most likely not be back online until late tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving.

The ER is our friend

Well another day another ER visit. The day started fine but by about 2 in the afternoon a migraine was coming on. I was out of meds for them but got the doc to call in a prescription for me. Sadly the pharmacy took their sweet time and before it was filled I was on the bathroom floor disoriented and vomiting. My wife dragged me back to the ER where the pumped with an IV and some toradol, compazine and benadryl. The headache was gone very quickly and the staff once again was super. I feel bad though when I go with such "minor" symptoms. I feel like I may be keeping a bed from someone who really needs it. Luckily they were not busy and my nurse was very cool. When they know me on a first name basis without checking in though I will start to worry.

I was so tired when I got home that I went to bed early and missed Law & Order. I slept from about 7pm until 8am. Funny thing is my wife is on the road this morning taking our oldest to Colorado for his vacation and she called to make sure I was ok. She then started telling me the roads were fine out west of us and I could not figure why she was telling me this. That was until I opened the patio blinds and found that we had about 9 inches of snow last night. Very nice, being a transplanted New Englander I miss the snow. While we get some snow here in my area it is usually less then 20" a season. When we get half that in one night this early in the season...

I will get some pictures and post them later on.

The burning in my back was not bad today but the cold front is moving in and I am stiff from the lower back through the hips. The numbness in my leg is normal today, that constant nagging reminder that something is wrong and there is nothing you can do other try to not over do it. I spent the morning doing some work on the laptop and then went to get a haircut. The drive over sucked! The lumbar support even when it is all the way deflated bugs the crap out of me. It presses right into the area where my surgery was and is no longer flexible. Glad the trip is only a few miles there and back.

Relaxing tonight. Just got the baby down to sleep after trying to wrestle him down. When he does not want to sleep it can be a major pain in the butt and by the end of the day I am not generally up to the task of chasing a 2 year old around the house. He is a great kid, but when he is wired look out!!!

I did find a space to start a free forum, but I would still prefer it to be in a different format and on my own server space. I sent out some emails to people I know with the same medical concerns and will find some more tomorrow. Hopefully over the next few months we can build it into something. I do belong to email groups, but trying to read through all the emails from 5 different groups can be a pain, especially on the days they are all busy. It can easily be 125+ emails in an afternoon between. Something in a forum setting would at least let people pick and choose the topics that pertain to them. We'll see.

Tossing and turning..

Not feeling to bad this morning, but that is after popping some pain meds. However, even with the pain meds over the last few days it has still been painful. Hopefully this means the flare up is nearing the end!!!

I did sleep horribly last night. It felt like I was up every 20 minutes tossing and turning. Top it all off I ran out of water and there was no bottled water in the house. Most people would say grab some from the tap but the tap water in this town is awful. Even with the PUR filter or the Brita the water still has a funny metallic taste to it. Anyway, enough about water because if I let it go to long I will end up installing a reverse osmosis filter. The wife has told me no however...

I ended up crawling out of bed a little bit after 6am after lying there for about 45 minutes trying to get back to sleep. I even tried to lay on my stomach which hurts like hell if I stay like that to long. Nothing worked so I came down and made some coffee and watched the news for a bit.

I did buy my own domain and some hosting space so over the next few days I plan on finding some Blog software and then move all this to that space and then working on some family related stuff as well. When I decide on what and how I will post the link here.

DVD and Game rentals?

Since I do not get out as much as I would like to and even though I have 200+ T.V. stations, every now and then there is not much on or I want to see a specific movie or play a game on the PS2. Going to places like blockbuster or Hollywood Video is expensive. A movie can be $3.50+ and games are usually even more then that and you only get them for a few days. Buying dvd's or games can get expensive and with the games once you finish them they sit on the shelf and collect dust. For games I have found sites like Gamefly and Gamemine.

I have subscribed to netflix and another DVD service for my movies and have thought about using one for the games too. However I don't want to pay $20 for dvd service and then another $20 for games so I did some searching and found a few services that rent both for one price. I found a few that seem to be decent but have not found much information or customer feedback on either. The first on is GamezNFlix and they seem to have the best deal. While I doubt that I would need 8 rentals at a time it is the cheapest plan if you pre-pay the year for $222. With that many movies/games at once though you could have several of each and never have to worry about the mailing lapse that occurs with a 2 or 3 rental limit. The other site is Players Choice but for even just 3 out it is $25 a month and to top that off their website leaves something to be desired. It looks like it was done by my 11 year old son. Something about a cheesy website really turns me off.

I guess I will have to try them all out with their trial period and see who does the best job, although with 8 out at a time I am leaning towards GamesNFlix.

I spent most of yesterday sleeping in the recliner because of the pain from the flare up and woke up long enough to move upstairs and go back to sleep. I wasn't in the mood to do much else and even just walking upstairs was enough to make my back hurt even more.

Spent this morning with the boys watching some tv but the back is still not up to speed so they did most of the playing. When my wife came downstairs I hung out for a bit and then moved upstairs when the baby took his nap. I tried to grab some Z's but was not tired so I watched Once Upon A Time In America. One of my favorite movies to watch when I have a few hours to kill!

I need to call the doc on Monday and see about getting the pain meds changed. I got some good advice on a few other meds that have no tylenol in them as tylenol is suspected of causing liver problems. While I do not exceed the daily suggested dose or drink in excess I still am not comfortable with something like this being a long term fix for the pain. Nothing like getting rid of the back pain only to need a liver transplant.

Holy crap, what was that...

Not sure what the hell just happened but I was in the kitchen with my son who was eating some yogurt and as soon as I bent down to wipe his face for him my back flared up just like when I was first diagnosed with Spondylolisthesis.

For those who do not understand what a flair up is, basically all the muscles in the area are compensating for the lose of skeletal stability. This causes them to overload and send them all in to a spasm which is painful. My pain level shot up to a 9 easily and even after the darvocet it is still at 8.

While I was lying on the floor my wife called my doctor. First she insisted that I go to the ER (which is about 8 houses from me) but the only thing they will do is run another CT scan or MRI and then tell me I had a flair up and give me some lortab. I can save time and money by calling the doc who can tell me the same thing without the 2 hour wait and $3K bill.

The docs nurse just called and said to send someone in to pick up a prescription for some stronger pain meds. He was also going to write a scrip for flexeril but I already have some muscle relaxers so I told her I did not need any of that yet. My guess is he is going to write it for 5/500 hydrocodone.

I also need to call the insurance company. They have been being a royal pain in the butt and are denying claims for me left and right. While the spondylolisthesis is pre-existing the arachnoiditis is not. It seems like they have red flagged me in their system and every claim the doc makes is denied and then I have to call and get it fixed. A few more claims to go and we should be good to go.

Rip Van Winkle...

I spent most of the day sleeping. The pain in my back has stayed up around 7 again today and even with the pain meds it did not seem to come down too much. I also have a stomach virus that is causing cramps which may be adding to the pain level. Whatever it is I decided sleeping would be better then slinking around the house and being cranky.

We have also been having some strange weather. We got into the mid 70's today and the low was still higher then or average high for this time of the year. It was cool enough to not need the A/C but it was also humid enough that I thought about kicking it on for a bit. The temp seems to be dropping this evening though in advance of the rain that is supposed to be moving through the area. Almost like if this was April and tornado season.

I took the boys out to grab some pedialyte for the baby as he seems to have had the stomach virus for a day or so. Not much to worry about though as his appetite seems to have returned this evening. He spent yesterday and some of today being very picky about eating, even refusing his favorite things like yogurt and applesauce. He finally ate a hamburger this evening so I held off on giving him any of the pedialyte just yet.

Behind every man...

Is a good women. I truly believe that and my wife is a great example. My story with Spondy and Arachnoiditis goes far deeper then the physical aspects. The last 2 years were tough years there is no doubt about that.

It all started in December 2002 when our son was born. She took maternity leave and our son was born a few days before Christmas. Since she is a petite woman (barely 5 feet) she was having trouble giving birth so we had to have an emergency c-section. It kept her off her feet a bit longer then she was expecting but the big bombshell was when she found out that she was downsized the week after returning from maternity leave. That was the same week we found that I needed to have the surgery for the spondylolisthesis.

She was now without a job and I was facing a surgery that would take me out of the work force for what we thought would be about 6 months. Since I was working for a small company I did not have any disability insurance, would not be covered by any kind of unemployment and we re still fighting the workers comp issue. We also found that I would need someone to care for me while I was getting better for at least the first several weeks. I could not walk up and down stairs or hold the baby and in fact my wife got my dad to come help her move a bed from upstairs to downstairs for me.

Anyway, she would now for at least another month or so have to take care of a newborn and my broken ass. I am sure that was a total blast for her, but I never heard her complain once. Good thing is that newborns tend to sleep a lot and I was so doped up for the pain that I was out most of the time as well.

Once I was able to move around a bit more she went to looking for a job. It was a tough hunt for her and she ended up having to take a position that paid a lot less then she had been making but the tradeoff was that she was working for a doctor who had his office less then 100 meters from our back door. The commute made it a decent midway position.

She finally decided to go back to work for the employer we both worked for when we met. While she started back in her old position it was not long before she was promoted to manager. It is a good company and they are worldwide which is nice. Even better is their worldwide HQ is less then 30 minutes from here so there is a lot of potential to move up.

Anyway, she has been great through the whole ordeal. Where we used to be a 2 income family living comfortably, we went to a 1 income family making less then half of what we used to. We had to get rid of our rental property and second car as well as make other sacrifices. We have pulled through fairly and things are getting better.

One nice thing has been that we were both home together for about 6 months with our newborn and we were able to spend a lot more time with or other son too. Since I am now home all the time I am enjoying being more a part of the boys everyday doings rather then the "traditional" dad most people have.

I spent most of the day in the recliner trying to not be in pain. For some reason today my back was burning, a good 7 on the pain scale and I had a monster headache that left me feeling like crap. I took a shower and shaved hoping that it would make me feel even a bit better but within an hour I was right back where I started.

My wife put the baby down for his nap about 1pm and went to pick up the oldest from school a bit later on. When she did that I went up to the room with the baby and took a nap. I figured he would sleep for about another 30 minutes or so but he did not get up until about 5pm. I slept like a rock the whole time, which was much needed since I have not been sleeping well. Seems whenever I lay down for longer then a few hours my leg starts to burn and then my foot goes numb.

Turn over the documents Koffi!

NEW YORK — Two U.S. senators investigating the U.N. Oil-for-Food program have told U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan in a letter that they were "troubled" by his decision to withhold documents or witness testimony from lawmakers.

Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota and Carl Levin of Michigan sent a letter to Annan Tuesday in which they blasted Annan for "affirmatively preventing" their congressional panel from getting requested information.

"They are not providing access to U.N. personnel, not providing access to U.N. internal audits," Coleman told FOX News.

Coleman and Levin — respectively, the chairman and ranking minority member of the Senate Governmental Affairs investigations subcommittee — want to know how Saddam Hussein was able to pocket an estimated $11 billion through payoffs and oil smuggling.

Click here to read the senators' letter as well as other related correspondence.

The lawmakers are asking Annan to hand over documents outlining why the consulting firm Lloyd's Register, a London-based company, was dropped in favor of a firm his son, Kojo Annan, once worked for. A Lloyd's official asked for U.N. permission to cooperate with the panel but was denied.

So what exactly is the U.N. trying to hide? They did not want the U.S. to invade Iraq not because they thought the war was immoral or unjust but rather they were afraid we would find what we did. That the U.N. spent 13 years passing sanctions on Iraq while they turned around and violated them and lined the pockets of Saddam and his henchmen.

Perhaps it was about the $21 billion dollars that they gave to Saddam in the oil for food program. You know, the program that was supposed to be providing food for the people of Iraq but in the end just ended up funding lavish palaces and cars for Saddam and his family. I can see why the U.N. would not want to hand over the documents. All the countries who stood in the way or voiced opposition to the U.S> invasion were those who were profiting from the oil for food scandal. They are a bunch of worthless fucks in my book.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s regime reaped over $21 billion from kickbacks and smuggling before and during the now-defunct U.N. oil-for-food program, twice as much as previous estimates, according to a U.S. Senate probe on Monday.


The monies flowed between 1991 and 2003 through oil surcharges, kickbacks on civilian goods and smuggling directly to willing governments, Senate investigators said at a hearing.


"How was the world so blind to this massive amount of influence-peddling?" asked Republican Sen. Norm Coleman (news, bio, voting record), head of the investigations subcommittee.


Coleman made public more documents he said were evidence of bigger kickbacks and payments than what was previously known, including 2003 data previously not reviewed.


The new Senate figure is about double the amount estimated by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, which had pegged it at $10.1 billion. Charles Duelfer, the chief U.S. weapons inspector in Iraq (news - web sites), had estimated about the same amount based on Iraqi documents, with $2 billion through the U.N. program and $8 billion in smuggling by road or sea or in direct illegal agreements with governments.


The oil-for-food program began in December 1996 to alleviate the impact on ordinary Iraqis of sanctions, imposed when Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990. The U.N. Security Council allowed Iraq to sell oil and buy food, medicine and other goods and let Baghdad draw up its own contracts.


This left room for abuse in the $64 billion program, administered by the United Nations (news - web sites) and monitored by a U.N. Security Council panel, including the United States, according to investigators.


Oil smuggling alone netted Saddam's regime about $9.7 billion, with other funds flowing from switching substandard goods with top-grade ones, as well as exploiting food and medicine shipments to the Kurds in Iraq's north.


Panel investigators also echoed the findings by Duelfer, head of the CIA (news - web sites)-led Iraq Survey Group, that Saddam's regime gave lucrative contracts to buy Iraqi oil to high-ranking officials in Russia, France and other nations.


On the list of 270 individuals, businesses and political parties was the head of the U.N. oil-for-food program, Benon Sevan, who has vigorously denied the charges.


Other recipients include Russian ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky and his Russian Liberal Democrat Party. The Senate panel released a document signed by Zhirinovsky in January 1999 that invited a U.S. oil company to Moscow to negotiate to buy the oil voucher. The name of the U.S. company was withheld because of pending investigations, panel staff said.


In Russian press statements, Zhirinovsky has denied taking bribes from Saddam's regime, though he admitted meeting with the former Iraqi president during trips to Baghdad.


Senior Iraqi officials like former Iraqi deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz were also personally involved in oil talks, Senate panel investigators said.


In each case, Saddam's regime awarded a certificate that allowed the holder to sell the right to buy Iraqi oil at below-market prices.


The certificate holder would charge a per-barrel commission to transfer the rights to an oil buyer. Per-barrel fees were usually less than $1 per barrel but racked up big dollar amounts because allocations upward of 1 million barrels were routine.


The United Nations has refused to hand over documents to a U.S. congressional committee or allow Sevan to appear before a panel while its own investigation is under way, led by Paul Volcker, the former U.S. Federal Reserve (news - web sites) chairman.


U.N. spokesman Fred Eckhard said in New York that Secretary-General Kofi Annan (news - web sites) had telephoned Coleman and Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat, "to assure them we are not being obstructionist" following an angry letter last week from the two senators

Nothing much going on...

Well it is obvious that I did not do much of anything yesterday. My back and leg were killing me and I had migraine from hell so I took my meds and went to sleep for most of the day. I did not even get to play Battlefield 1942 like I was planning to.

Today was about the same. My back is killing me more then usual, a good 7 or 8. Did not help that I was lying on the floor and my son kicked my while he was horsing around. I spent most of the day lying in bed and playing Ratchet & Clank as every time I would try to sit down in the living room my youngest would use me as a jungle gym. I feel bad when I don't let him climb on me but when the pain gets like today it is unbearable to let him do so.

I am making dinner right now and then I am going to take a shower and go to bed.

New game to play...

Not much going on today. Feeling pretty good and not much pain right now, just some numbness in my foot. My back was a bit sore this morning but it was feeling good after some meds and a cup of coffee.

Took the boys out for dinner and then some shopping. I grabbed Battlefield 1942 and my son bought himself a DVD. I know the game is a year or two old but I wait for them to have a sequel out that way I am not paying $50 for a game that is worth $20. I also bought a USB joystick for the computer as I hate using the keypads.

Right now I am just sitting and listening to Stephen Lynch, who is funny as hell. If you have the chance to listen to some of his stuff I highly recommend it.

Well it was to cold to take the boys to the parade so we did not get to go. It got pretty cool and then right before we were going to head out the wind picked up and then temp dropped below 40. Not to cold but enough that without having flu shots for the baby I was not going to have him out for that long. We spent the day around the house and watched some movies.

Tonight they had a special on HBO called Last Letters Home. It was last letters from soldiers who were killed in Iraq. Very tastefully done but very somber. It was difficult to watch, especially when they got to the last letter from a husband who never got to see his son born.

During the first Gulf War I was stationed at Fort Irwin and was training the troops deploying to Kuwait. I had a good friend whose father was killed when his vehicle hit a landmine and another friend who was killed in action when his helicopter was shot down. I live back in that town and every now and then I see his mom & dad at Church or I see his wife in the grocery store. They had a memorial garden for him outside on of the parish churches, but when the church burned down it was decided that it would not be rebuilt and the garden was not moved.

I come from a family of veterans. In fact I was born on an Army base, as was my son. My father is retired from the Army and my brother and I both served on active duty and in the national guard/reserves. I hate that my back is the only thing that keeps me from being able to go back on active duty. Hell, I would settle for a national guard unit as they are deploying left and right. I have called the recruiters and gotten all the "no's" they can dish out, I even thought about not telling them about the surgery but the scar would be difficult to hide during the physical. I feel like I have let my brothers down by not being there with them. I know it has been ten years since I wore a uniform, but the fire still burns deep down inside.

Happy Veterans Day

A friend of mine posted this and I thought it deserved to be repeated.

To us, those who came before us, those who will come after us, and to those who never made it home.

Some veterans bear visible signs of their service: a missing limb, a jagged scar, a certain look in the eye.

Others may carry the evidence inside them: a pin holding a bone together, a piece of shrapnel in the leg - or perhaps another sort of inner steel: a spirit, the soul's ally, forged in the refinery of adversity.

Except in parades, however, the men and women who have kept America safe wear no badge or emblem.

You can't tell a vet just by looking.

What is a vet?

He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in
Saudi Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run out of fuel.

He is the barroom loudmouth, dumber than five wooden planks, whose overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel.

She - or he -- is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.

He is the POW who went away one person and came back another -- or didn't come back AT ALL.

He is the Quantico drill instructor who has never seen combat -- but has saved countless lives by turning slouchy, no-account rednecks and gang members into Marines, and teaching them to watch each other's backs.

He is the parade -- riding Legionnaire who pins on his ribbons and medals with a prosthetic hand.

He is the career quartermaster who watches the ribbons and medals pass him by.

He is the three anonymous heroes in The Tomb Of The Unknowns, whose presence at the Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the memory of all the anonymous heroes whose valor dies unrecognized with them on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.

He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket -- palsied now and aggravatingly slow -- who helped liberate a Nazi death camp and who wishes all day long that his wife were still alive to hold him when the nightmares come.

He is an ordinary and yet an extraordinary human being -- a person who offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to sacrifice theirs.

He is a soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the finest,greatest nation ever known.

So remember, each time you see someone who has served our country, just lean over and say Thank You. That's all most people need, and in most cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been awarded or were awarded.

Two little words that mean a lot, "THANK YOU."

Rollerskating...

My back and foot are killing me. My son had a school outing tonight where they all went rollerskating at the local rink. Since my wife had to work I took him. Normally not a big deal but that meant no meds from about 11am on since I had to be at the school to pick him up by 3pm and then at the rink by 6pm. I let him skate for about an hour and a half before I had to come home and rest. By the time I got some meds it was playing catch up so it might be midnight before I really feel any relief. My foot is at the worst it has been in some time. It feels like it is on fire and cold at the same time, never had that before.

I felt bad asking him to leave a half hour early but at the same time I am glad he got to be there for most of the time they had the rink. Most of the kids were there but I was shocked to see how many parents just dropped off their kids and disappeared for two hours. I did have someone ask me if I wanted to skate and I had to chuckle. I could only imagine trying to explain to my wife and doctor if I fell. With all the hardware they installed during the surgery I am sure it would not feel good if I broke or bent it.

Tomorrow is Veterans day so we will take the boys downtown and watch the parade. They have asked all veterans to march but I am not sure that my back and leg could handle the 4 miles they plan on going from staging to parade to end. We will stand by and support though. Being a near several large military installations our parade usually draws a good crowd and is a fun afternoon. Afterwards we will hit the bakery and coffee shop with the boys and let them get one of those huge cookies they like.

A relaxing day at home doing some work online and playing with my son. My wife worked late last night and had to be in early for the managers meeting so we let her get some sleep. My youngest is a riot when he gets going. He will be 2 in December and is just talking up a storm. Every time the phone rings he runs through the house yelling "PHONE!!!" We ended up having to move the phones up higher since he figured out how to turn them on and dial. He also likes to pretend that his play phone works so he walks around talking to my mother, "Nana" and jabbering away saying "yes, yes, yes..." Everytime I try to get him on video doing this though he drops the phone and heads for the camera. I must have a ton of closeups now of his forehead and hands.

My foot has been bothering me all day. It is totally numb and when I tried to take a short nap with the baby this afternoon it kept me awake. It feels like it is freezing cold but I know it isn't. You try to get it warm by wearing thick socks or putting the blankets over your feet but five minutes later you are kicking them off. My leg is not bothering me so much though and my back has been about a 5-6 for most of the day without the pain meds and I had the start of a headache this morning but I took the relpax and had no more trouble with it.

Looks like the kids are out of school on Thursday for Veterans day so I might take the boys downtown for the parade and then to the bakery for some cookies afterwards. We have a local baker who has some kick ass cookies. The boys love them and they also make some great coffee.

Lego's & Ginger Ale...

I got my meds this morning without any problems and the call I was half expecting from my doc never came so I can only surmise that they never called him or they did and he had no problem with it.

A day of moderate pain and numbness. Mostly the leg and foot in pain and a little stiffness in the lower back. I was doing ok until this afternoon when I slipped on a Lego of all things. I spent the next hour just lying on the floor because it sent a nice shooting pain up the leg and in to the back. Does not seem to have any lasting effects this evening, but that's what happens when you have a toddler.

Something new today, indigestion! Not sure why but it could have been something I ate. I spent the day sipping ginger ale and mylanta in hopes that it would calm down but at 21:30 this evening it is still feeling pretty crappy. Hopefully it is not the meds, since the prescription is generic they can use whatever form they have. Sometimes the fillers in the drugs can cause small problems like this.

Spent the day working on some documents in Word. I had created some templates that needed a few minor modifications which turned into a pain in the butt. I got them done by lunch time so now I can start working on the VBA macro to fill them in without having to open the template each time. It has been awhile since I have done anything in Visual Basic much less VBA but I have been playing with it over the last few weeks. Should be a fun project to kill some time.

Yahoo! News - U.S. Forces Storm Into Western Fallujah

Yahoo! News - U.S. Forces Storm Into Western Fallujah

I pray that my brothers and sisters have the courage to do their jobs and bring the fight to the enemy. I pray that they finish this fight and our casualties are minimal.

I have not talked a lot about my time in the military but I grew up an Army brat and spent 9 years between active duty (6 years) and the National Guard (3) as an Infantry NCO (Sergeant). I know what is involved with the fight these men and women will be going in to and pray that their NCO's have trained them and lead them well. I hate that I am sitting on the sidelines watching this instead of being on the frontlines with them. Regardless of my opinions on the war I have always felt a strong urge to be with the soldiers. Some of my fondest memories are of when I was in uniform and oddly they are at times when I was dog ass tired, funky dirty from 20 days without a real shower and another 10 days to go but I was with my buddies. Sadly my surgery and resulting fusion/hardware are permanent disqualifiers from service.

Groceries and Christmas shopping...

We got out a bit this evening. After all the hassle with the pharmacy we found out that they changed their hours and close 2 hours earlier then they used to, so I have to wait until tomorrow morning to get my stuff. Not to bad because I called it in before I ran all the way out.

We hit Sams Club to grab some things that we used since the last trip and while we were there I found the perfect MP3 player for our son. We have been looking for one that would fit his needs but was not $250. We settled on a Phillips 128MB for now which is more then enough for an 11 year old and it came with all the ear buds and an arm band holster so we felt we got a good deal for the $70. I thought we might download some songs for him and have them ready to go so when he opens it we can show him how to put them on it. We also thought this might be a good way to have a bit more control over what he is listening to. While he is a good kid, some of the music we have heard is not at all decent for someone his age.

Before we hit the stores I spent some time downloading the video I shot on Halloween and yesterday and did some editing. I set it to music and did some fading and stills, it came out nice in my opinion, I do need to spend some more time with the software and get some better songs. My youngest spends a lot of time tagging along with his brother (9 years difference) and it makes for some cute shots. My plan is to have it done for the holidays and give copies on DVD to each set of grandparents. The school Christmas pageant should be the last event I need and just in time to finish the project.

My back and leg felt good for most of the day with only a slight numbness in the foot and very little pain in the lower back. I felt good enough to walk through Sams club and even helped bring it all into the house. The numbness is returning this evening but I have noticed over the last week that is when it does seem to be worst. Not sure why but even on the days where I have not been to active it does the same thing. I am sure the doctor will call me tomorrow after the pharmacy calls him so I will ask then.

I hate the pharmacy!!!

When the doc wrote my prescription for the pain meds I told him I was taking on average about 2 a day, so he wrote it for 60 pills a month and the directions state take 1-2 a day. Well I finished this last fill about 7 days early, which means I averaged 3 a day instead of 2, on a dose that you can take upwards of 6 times a day. I called in the refill (it has 5) and the girl told me she could not fill it because the insurance company said it was to early and they would not pay for it, so I told the girl no big deal since it is only $26 without the co-pay and I needed it. She told me she could not fill it, then gave me a hard time telling me to get the doctor to call her (on a Sunday no less) and authorize it. I read her the riot act and told her what was going on. She had the balls to ask me where the meds went! I kindly explained what AA is all about and broke her down. She finally agreed to refill it but said she would be calling the doc tomorrow to let him know. I said "knock yourself out." While I appreciate her concern about the DEA when it comes to drugs there is no way they are going to get jammed up on something like this.

Man it was nice today...

All in all not a bad day. I had a tough time getting to sleep last night though because my leg and foot were vibrating. I know the last time I looked at the clock was about 0245 but I was back up by 0630 with the baby.

My foot has been numb straight through so my guess is all the steroids have worn off and it is either time to go that route again or deal with the numbness. Last time I did the steroid route it sucked. While I knew the possible side effects and did everything I could think of to limit them I still bloated up for a bit because of the water retention. They also seem to have worked better on the arachnoiditis then it did way back when I took them for the Spondylolisthesis so I might talk to the doc and see what he thinks. The back has been mild today though and that is always nice. When both the back and the leg are in concert it can suck and put me in the recliner for most of the day.

I spent most of the day with the boys. Friday nights are busy at the restaurant so my wife gets in late. She was coming in about the same time I was dozing off which is why I got up with the baby. I let her sleep late and when she finally woke up I took the oldest to the store to get a book and then to get groceries. Not a busy day but enough to get out of the house for a bit. It was even unseasonably warm today, well in to the 70's. Got some good video of the boys playing soccer in the yard before the batteries in the camera died.

not doing much this evening. Watched We Were Soldiers Once, And Young with my son. Naturally he has a thousand questions about it so I missed most of it answering them so I will have to rent it and watch it again. Now it is time to relax and listen to some tunes and surf the web.

Taking a break from the normal...

I decided to jump in the shower and then shave. Not sure why but well I still feel crappy I also feel much better. While I was in the shower the boys cleaned up the living room that they spent the last two days destroying.

When I was down after my surgery back in March 2003 my wife bought me Ratchet & Clank for the Playstation 2. It was an addicting game and when the second one, Ratchet & clank Going Commando came out last Christmas my son got it for me. While I rarely play the PS2 the Ratchet & Clank series has been fun to play and to lose yourself for a bit. Well the day before yesterday my wife was looking for something online and the add for the new game was out, Ratchet & Clank Up Your Arsenal. Turns out it was released the same day and she tracked down a store that had it and went and grabbed it for me. So tonight after I put the boys in bed I will sit up for a bit and play my new game.

This is going to be a long weekend...

I feel like crap today. My back hurts and the pain is higher up then usual. I'm not sure why or for that matter if I even care. I am just uncomfortable as hell and nothing seems to be working on it today.

I spent this morning doing some work but since my wife had to go to work I am now in the TV room with the boys. The oldest has a 4 day weekend so he is steadily tearing the house apart and turning it into a giant tent. The baby is busy trying to tear it down as soon as he gets it up.

I guess I will spend the rest of the night hitting the blogs and checking out what is going on. I am sure after taking most of yesterday and today off from the net I have tone of stuff to catch up on.

Well it is all over...

Well I had a long post that seems to have gone somewhere into the nether world.

I must say that I am pleased the way the election turned out and that Kerry was smart enough to see that all the recounts in the world were not going to change the fact that he was not elected. I was up until 3am watching the returns and laughing as more and more states turned red. Even better were the liberal blogs like Steve Gilliard and Daily Kos as they first thought all was well but as the night wore on they realized that things were not going as well as they really thought.

Michael Moore is now a has been. His attempt at trying to paint the Republican party as the Third Reich re-incarnate failed. His attempts at propaganda were no better then that of the Nazi party themselves. He is nothing more then a liar who practices exactly that which he accuses the Republican of, and that is distorting the truth. He has also disgraced those who have died fighting in OIF/OEF by using their pictures in a manner that is reprehensible. I imagine that the only people who would even care to be associated with that piece of shit are going to be the far left liberals who just will never understand that the key to being a viable party is unity.

Now it is time the democrats realize that Clinton and his cronies need to be booted from the party or at least taken out of power if they plan to have any future success. I have never seen one party so spread cross a spectrum, almost like they were fighting amongst themselves over what the platform should be. They were a party without any real unity.

Pain over the last 2 days as been minimal and I am not sure if I am having a few good days or if the euphoria from the election is having some kind of effect on me. Either way it is a welcome few days of not having to pop pills every few hours and limp around the house. I even slept very well last night, one of the few nights in a long time that I do not remember getting up during the night. I was asleep by 10 and slept straight through to about 6:30.

Three blind mice..

It was actually 2 of them but more on them later.

I rolled into bed about 3am with the majority of the votes done. I did not expect to wake up and see a clear cut victory but I did expect to see the final states called, which did not happen.

I got up a mere 3.5 hours later but surprisingly feel very good. No numbness right now and minimal pain in the back. Maybe I should sit in a crappy chair for 7 hours more often. This is the first morning in quite a bit where I did not get up and start popping pills for the pain.

I did have a few presents waiting for me this morning. The other day we saw a mouse running through the laundry room. Being that this is a 100+ year old house on a fieldstone foundation and it is getting cold outside we get one or two over the year. I set out some traps, the humane ones with the swinging door, and woke this morning with 2 of them having mice in them. I took them all the way down the back down by the medical center (about 100 meters) and let them loose. If they make it back across the parking lot, across the street and up the hill then more power to them.

I am going to pay for this tomorrow

I have been sitting for most of the evening going back and forth between websites and TV channels. Looks like it is down to the wire and the remaining states are way to close to call even with 90% reporting.

My foot is completely numb and my back is burning all the way down to my hips. I am sure I will be sorry for this in the morning but I am to antsy to lay down and try to sleep. I need to see the magic number before I can sleep...

Well the polls are starting to close

Ours closed about an hour ago and the numbers are starting to come in. If Bush cn hold the lead in the states that have not been called as of right now 21:15 Central then he will have the win.

This is a nail biter this evening. I have 2 computers going with each having 3 browsers open checking up on all the sites so I can compare what is going on. We have some very close local elections with one of them flip flopping back and forth between the 2 candidates.

I am obviously hoping for four more years of Bush and right now it is shaping up to be that way but I am also cautious in saying it is a done deal. A lot of votes to be counted out there yet.

It will be interesting to see what that fat piece of shit Michael Moore has to say should Bush win. My guess is he will scream voter fraud or intimidation. He has about 1200 of his cult out at polling stations with video cameras to record what goes on. Of course he may have a deep underlying desire to see Bush win. After all if Kerry loses who would Moore have to make another "documentary" about?

More later on when the picture is a bit clearer.

Four more years???

Well only time will tell. I got into the polling station by 8:30 and they were in to the hundreds already. I was shocked to see more unopposed candidates then I was expecting. No worries though I have write in candidates ready to go for cases like this. While it is obvious the only candidate running will win, I feel better knowing that they did not have any help from me.

Living in the area I do I would expect my state to swing to the GOP like normal. I plan on taking a break this afternoon and will start watching the news and hitting the blogs at about 5pm EST. By then we should start to have somewhat of clear picture of what is going on. I also promised my son that we would watch it into the evening so we can continue to discuss what is going on. I am glad that he is taking such an interest at an early age.

Today is the day...

Well I woke with another monster headache. I had the doc fill a prescription for the samples of relpax he gave me last time so I have them on hand all the time now. They better be as good as I thought they were because they are freaking expensive. Even with my insurance co-pay they still cost me $35 for 6 of them. I expected the higher co-pay as the scrip was written to fill only with name brand (not sure if they have a generic yet) but I was thinking it would be for the normal 30. When they handed me the little bubble pack with 6 I was like, "uhmm, where's the rest?" Much to my chagrin the pharmacist said, "that is the rest." If they continue to work I guess I am fine with the cost but I hope this is not something I will need to be filling often.

I also got them to change the flexeril over to skelaxin. I have been on the flexeril for the better part of 2 years and it just was not working any longer. I was on double doses and nada. I have had skelaxin in the past and found it to be rather effective.

My foot and leg are not too bad this morning. A knot in the small of my back and the normal numbness in the leg, but none of that electric pulsing/burning of the last few days. When the burning is really bad, it is hard for me to tell if my feet are cold or hot. If I think they are cold and I put on heavy socks I start sweating and when I take the socks off they feel like they are ice cold. Since it is not to bad I will try to walk over to the polling place as it is only about 200 meters from my house. If I take the baby with me I can push him in the stroller for added support.

I remember the first time I voted. It was during my OSUT at Fort Benning. We all cast absentee ballots. It was also the only time during my 19 weeks there that I saw a TV set. One of the Drill Sergeants brought in his portable TV and let the platoon watch it for a few hours in the platoon bay. I remember it being very exciting as many of us were first time voters and were anxious to do our duty as well the TV was a welcome relief from the monotony of training. We did not get to watch to long, if I remember correctly it was about an hour or so of the returns coming in.

My oldest has been very involved in the process this time. He is only 11 but is quite interested in what is going on. We have explained the whole process to him as well have let him watch special reports and the debates so he can see how it all comes together. In his class they have also been following and have done a mock election which I believe they will compare tomorrow to the actual race.

Regardless of how the election turns out I will be glad that it is over. I am tired of the campaigns and mudslinging that has marred this election cycle. It has been from the local level all the way to the top and it is coming from all sides. While I expect some of it to occur, the amount that has been going on since the end of the conventions is to much.

It's almost over...

Well the oldest made out like a bandit last night. Even though it was cold and raining he stayed out there and came back with a good bowl full of candy.

I slept like crap last night and must have been up once an hour every hour to either adjust or go to the bathroom. When I finally got up for good at about 6am my back was burning, my foot was numb and my whole leg was in a giant spasm. While the pain was not to bad (about a 5)it did make for a crappy morning. No matter what I was unable to get comfortable and standing hurt just as much. The recliner was ok but when I tried to take a nap it was useless. Right now my back feels like complete crap and I am waiting for the doc to call back and see if he will switch the muscle relaxers from flexeril to something else. I have been on the flexeril so long that the max daily dose is no longer working.

There is nothing worth a damn on TV today and I am betting tomorrow will not be any better. While I am all for the issues being presented this election cycle has turned into nothing but mudslinging and lies from all fronts and at every level. What I find really funny is the liberals who preach tolerance for others seem to have the least amount of it for my views.

Maybe tomorrow I will just throw the tube on and blog for the day. I don't know.