Reflections by AquaLady

Big B-Day has arrived & I'm officially 52 yrs. old today. Matt thought I was 56 or something. I guess that's encouraging to know that I'm NOT THAT OLD just yet, or is it a case of, "Do I really LOOK older than I actually am?" Ah, if we could only turn back the hands of time, do a few tummy tucks & wash away all those priceless wrinkles of widsom. So be it, fifty something!

Its so nice to be remembered, especially by those special folks who mean the most. I know I shouldn't want stuff but hey, its my birthday. Can't I just want a little something extra this one day of the year? And my wishes were granted...BIG TIME!

Jim hand-delivered a piece of pizza from the soccer concession stand & then put a candle in the middle & lit it right there at the soccer game. He also bought me some G.Hawk treats, a Sue Grafton mystery, the entire 1st season of Lost on DVD & my favorite...cheesecake! Mike scored a goal at the game tonight against Millersburg. Way to go!!! Matt bought me a bottle of Sloe Gin & some soda to go with it, for my Friday night cocktail before hitting the sack around 8 PM. Mark send me an arrangment of rose-scented candles in a pink basket. And of course we had a Disney themed cake...with enough candles to light up New York City. I almost thought we were going to melt Cinderella & her coach.

Thank you ALL for such a wonderful birthday!!! You're the best...!!!

I guess its only natural that I should be in this fuzzy state...confused, maybe even slightly worried, although I'm trying to remain calm. Tomorrow I'm scheduled for an endoscopy to find out what this 'soft mass of tissue' in my throat really is. I guess I can't help but wonder... But I got lucky. Someone else cancelled their appointment & I got in early, otherwise, I would have had to wait until mid-Oct to get tested.

I attended my first online distance learning class at work today. I got a little stressed out at the beginning because I couldn't get logged on. I called the ISR help desk for assistance. A student came upstairs to the office but after talking to her, I decided to just call the Palinet 800# for tehcnical support. I think it had to do with my web browser being set to Mozilla instead of Internet Explorer. The tech person talked me through the setup & then I was fine. The audio portion was handled by telephone. This was such a kewl experience. There were 9 other people enrolled in the class from a variety of libraries both academic & public. I wished I would have had this into class before I worked in the cataloging dept at su. Things would have make a whole lot more sense. Sometimes its just seems like I always end up by plunging into a project first & then get the instructional part later. Today's was the 1st of 3 parts. Parts 2 & 3 are on Wed & Fri of this week.

"Anything worthwhile demands sacrifice", Fr. Ted's closing remarks during this week's homily. I guess that's pretty much self-explanatory & it can apply to just about anything in life - work, relationships, sports, exercise, faith, whatever...

Sometimes the tricky part is figuring out what really does matter to us the most & making sure that we don't get our priorities mixed up. I also think that there are alot more things today that cry for our attention & so we really have to carefully access what's important to us. What Fr. Ted was probably referring to had more to do with our fatih. Just going to Church once a week is really not enough. For our faith to grow & develop, we need to work at it more. It requires some sacrifice on our parts, a little extra flavoring, if you will. Or as Emeril would say, "we need to kick it up a notch!"

I came across an article recently comparing life to white-water rafting. That got me to thinking...especially since this whole throat-thing happened.

"The four rules of white-water rafting are:

1. "Rest during the calm spots"

2. "When a rock looms, lean into it"

3. "Never, ever stop paddling"

4. "Let everything else but your life jacket go"

We're all faced with trials & difficulties in our lives at some point or another & rather than fight against it, maybe its just as well to just go with the flow & see how things turn out. Never give up hope... & keep looking UP!

I really don't think we should have played this game. Four games in one week seemed just a bit much, if you ask me, but I guess that's how it goes.

Anyway, inspite of it all, we tied a team that was ranked 2nd in the state in double overtime & left with a good feeling of what what accomplished (I hope...)

Its just another example of what our team is made up...boys who don't give up, no matter what.

We took a trip down memory lane on our way to Mike's soccer game in Fleetwood yesterday. We visited Kutztown, our alma mater. Our first stop was at our ol' eating place in Kutztown, Mark's Sandwich Shop. The place pretty much looks the same. The first time we visited there was about 30 years ago. I was sick of college & wanted to quit but Jim talked me out of it. I probably didn't even like cheese steaks back then but the milkshakes are still out of this world. I had a cheeseburger & fries. So good...!!! Then we drove around the Kutztown campus, looking up at the window of my old dorm room in Old Main & then drove past Rothermel Hall 808, Jim's old dorm. Some things have changed, new buildings, signs & stuff but the old feelings & memories of being a kid back in college were as fresh as the day I set foot on Kutztown soil. I had some vague remembrances of walking from my first place of residence at 53 Baldy Street (the big old tree out front is no longer there...) to my 8 AM English class somewhere in Old Main. I can't remember much else but I guess I got through the class ok. The State Store is still in the little shopping center downtown but the Catholic Church is now Episcopal & there appears to be a new Catholic Church built at the end of town past the college towards Reading. On the way to the soccer game, we recalled other places we visited, the Gockenspiel (now something else...), the Country Club where we had our senior formal, & the Moselem Springs Inn & Restuarant (where we had a good meal even though I can't remember what it was...). Ah, yes, those were the days...

Diagnosis: Soft tissue mass projecting over esophagus at midthyroid level, essentially completely occupying the esophagus but appearing to emanate along the right margin of the lumen. The esophagus narrows completely at this level but appears in caliber from the midclavicular head level distally, though associated with areas of concentric thickening as below.

In other words...there's something stuck in my throat!

Way to go, Mike! He headed the ball toward the goal & scored the 1st point for the Mustangs. Midd-West beat Lewistown, 2-0.

Glad you made it to the game, Jim. There wasn't a vehicle at home for him to use. Mike took the truck, Matt was up at State College & I went right to the game after work. Its nice to know we have good neighbors who are ready & willing to lend a helping hand. Thanks Kevin!

After the game, Jim was a nice guy & brought home Subs from Subway for a late supper. I'm saving mine for tomorrow since I had my share of good ol' concession stand pizza.

Had another busy day at work, catching up on serials. My to-do piles of stuff are starting to go down a bit. Worked out at lunch doing REPS. I think I just might try the 3 lb. dumbells next week. I still can't do push-ups but I think my sense of balance is improving.

Thanks for checking the LOST newsgroups, Jim. I just love the way everything on that show interconnects. You could probably watch each episode severals times & find something new with each viewing.

I awoke a little after 5 AM this morning, finished 2 loads of laundry, drove Mike to school & got to work by 8 AM. And I actually didn't have to be there until 8:30 AM so you can say that I got a jump start on the day.

About work.... I'm just so glad I know what I know...about Excel & Access. Whenever I'm asked to sort something or enter some data, I just do it & things have a way of working out. But there's so much more that I don't know. That's a good thing, though, because it challenges me to keep learning stuff.

Today was picture day for the staff yearbook photo but I didn't get to go to that because I was invited to attend a live online meeting on a new electronic serials management software product. That also got me to thinking...about how I might possibly be able to build a database to manage our own electronic resources (in the event we don't purchase a ready-made product).

Afterwards, more Excel & Access stuff & then, before I knew it, it was time to leave for my Cat Scan appointment. I'm glad that I had a lot to do at work today. It made the day go by really fast which also helped to take my mind off the scan & what's to come...

Basically, a Cat Scan goes like this... You get an IV so they can inject some dye into your system. You lay down on a long thin bench which moves toward this donut-shaped machine. The radiologist asks you to hold your breath while she takes a picture before injecting the dye. Then she moves you back out, injects the dye (which gives you a warm sensation & makes you feel like you have to pee). Then you get moved back into the donut hole, have to hold your breath for 30 secs (a little longer than the last time) & you're done. Just like that...! I have this incredible craving for donuts right now while waiting for the test results to come back.

In the meantime...the new episode of Lost is on tonight. This oughta be exciting. Will they ever get off the island?

Regardless of what you've heard about me, I'm really not that crazy. There really is something stuck in my throat (sorta). I had a barium swallow study done a week ago & well, there seems to be something there that shouldn't be. What that thing is...well, who's to say, hence, I'm heading for the Susquehanna Valley Imaging Center tomorrow for a Cat Scan. Then we'll all have a better idea. In the meantime, I was told to eat soft foods & to chew well. Go figure...

Happy Birthday Matt!

God bless you, today & always!

Love ya!
AquaMOM

I went to exercise class today on my lunch break. REPS is a total body workout in 30 minutes guaranteed to challenge you! Be ready for lots of REPS with minimal breaks. All levels of strength welcomed as you will determine your ability on-site!

I probably won't be able to move tomorrow.

Ok...so I'm going to do it. I'm actually going to follow doctor's orders. He told me to try taking Zantac. So, I buzzed out the grocery store just a short bit ago & bought a 10 pack. At 2 tablets per day, in 5 days I should be able to tell if they're making a difference or not. Right...?

Well, anyway, what really cracked me up was the label instructions. It said, "Do not take you you have trouble swallowing". Ha! Isn't that what lead me to this in the first place...I mean, come on.

The other thing that doesn't quite make sense is...why am I taking a stomach acid reducer if the problem is in my throat??? I dunno.

As if having something stuck in your throat isn't bad enough...that darn cat did it again! Why oh why she insists on leaving me little 'piles' on the carpet, I'll never know.

As I was choking on the pill this morning, the cat sat idly by watching me gasp for air. I musta scared her cause the next thing I knew, she started hissing at me. If it hadn't been for the coughing spell, she would have been locked up in the bathroom by now - tough love for pooping on the carpet (with the litter box & yes, some food & water) but things went in a whole different direction. I decided to let her roam free for the day but shut the door to the family room & laid newspapers all around her usual dumping grounds.

I was all set to go out the door but alas, I couldn't find my keys. I checked my purse. No keys! Then I remembered having them in my pants pocket the night before. I headed upstairs but lo & behold, who was guarding the bedroom but none other than that ferocious feline, Muffin. I couldn't risk life & limb so I came up with a plan to lure her away from the doorway. I sat outside the bathroom with an idea to play a game of go fetch (one of her favorites)...throw a paper cup down the stairs & hope that she'll run after it. Plan failed, however, she was in her 'I'm thinking about running after it position' so I tried again with another paper cup. Yeah! She took off down the stairs like a bolt of lighting so now it was safe to enter my bedroom. ARGHHHhhhhh Still no keys!!!

Needed to think... so I took my purse out to the car & sure enough, there they were. ARGHHHHHHH but it is nice to know that we live in a safe neighborhood.

I still don't know what to do about kitty. Any suggestions...???

Something is stuck in my throat. I went to the doctor's today to try & figure out what the heck is going on.

A couple of weeks ago I choked on a piece of fruit. My co-worker, Mary Lou, was getting set to do the Heimlich Maneuver on me when I coughed it up & out. What a scary experience that was. I couldn't talk...couldn't even think what to do. Well, anyway, the room fell silent during this whole ordeal & rather than feel grateful that I was alive & well, I kinda felt embarrassed...for causing such a stir. How silly of me...

My throat never really did feel right all this time but I sorta overlooked it until this morning when I tried to swallow a calcium tablet. I broke the tablet in 2 pieces (thank goodness for that bit of insight) & then proceeded to swallow with a gulp of water. The pill got stuck & so I coughed it down somehow.

The doc decided that I should get a test done, a Swallowing Study at the local hospital. I just wanted him to give me a good smack on the back & knock the darn thing outa there. No such luck...

In the hustle & bustle of checking out, I left without signing the credit slip & received a call when I got home to come back to the office. ARGHHHHHHHHHHH

I'm thinking about doing a headstand later...using the force of gravity to dislodge this perturbing foreign body from my throat. Its drivin' me crazy... !!! Don't you think if it were just a piece of fruit, that it would have dissolved by now? The doc also said that there could possibly be some irritation there that might be causing the discomfort.

Why can't I just chew my food properly like everyone else...???? oh, & don't talk with your mouth full!!!!!!! ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH