Hi VP's...I'm wonderfully glad to report that our beloved Brenda is doing well...but I'll do the medical update in a bit. I've been anxious to share a little tidbit of info with you, so that first.
You'd think that after 23 years of living together and probably close to 30 years that I've known Brenda, that there wouldn't be any new significant revelations that you didn't know about your partner. WRONG!!! I want you to think: "COTTON BALLS!!!" That's right...that small, white, fluffy, soft, fibrous little cotton ball...Brenda is TERRIFIED of them!!! After 30 years, I have just now learned that Brenda can't stand those little things...hates them...can't stand to touch them...can't pull them apart...in fact she would rather walk on hot coals then pull one apart. I just found this out when the ENT wanted her to put a greased one up her nose (with medication, silly!!! Don't get the wrong idea now!!) He wanted to give her nasal passage a rest and add some moisture up there. It's so dry out here....remember? She came to me with this absolutely pathetic look on her face and asked me to pull the little harmless cotton ball apart for her because she just couldn't touch it. I said..."What???!!! Are you kidding?" NEWS FLASH!!! SHE WASN'T!!! I still can't get over this...what on earth happened to her when she was young that she is now terrified of a dang cotton ball??? This is a woman who has chased bank robbers down dark alleys...and she can't...refuses...absolutely will not even think about...pulling a cotton ball apart!
OK...so there ya have it!! I think it would be fabulous if you put your thinking caps on and create a story about Brenda and cotton balls...visuals to enhance the script would be even better. Hey Marshall Vic...got any ideas on how Brenda can overcome this phobia? Michele, I'm sure you have something hysterical to say about this...maybe some advice you can offer our Brendita? Come on VP's you just can't let this one go!!
So now on to the medical news...really...she is doing fine. She has tolerated the first round of chemo VERY well. I think the biggest side effect we have seen so far is the fatigue. She gets tired very easily but, being the trooper that she is, she still goes to our personal trainer Monday, Wednesday, Friday and he's helping her work on those weak shoulders, getting some strength back just to do normal things, and getting the range of motion back in her neck.
We did go back to the ENT to have her hearing checked because of that fluid buildup in her ear. YEP! The fluid really reduced her hearing in her right ear so Dr. Kelsch (the ENT) put a tube in there to drain the fluid. Now remember that I am just learning the medical stuff and had no idea what putting a tube in your ear entailed. I was envisioning the tube being something like a big, long plastic thing that got rammed down your ear!! I had to watch! So he put drops in to deaden the eardrum, then he took this instrument to puncture his was through to the eustachian tube...OK I was expecting the long tube to get pulled out...NO! WRONG! It's this little itty-bitty thing that just keeps the top part of your eustacian tube open sop the fluid can drain out. It worked like a champ! She hears better and the fluid has been drained Her ear is so much better. She has antibiotic drops to put in and she can't get her ear wet at all but that dang fluid is gone.
Believe it or not, we DON'T have a doctors appointment for her all this week. I'm going to have a hearing test on Thursday because we've gotten to the point (prior to the ear tube thing...) that Bren and I were watching the subtitles on some movies...now that's bad!! Getting old is not for wimps!!! Ha!
So folks, that's a wrap for tonight...let's hear what ya think about the cotton balls...we love hearing from you.
Go "AVATAR" for winning the Golden Globe Award for best movie drama. If you haven't seen that movie yet...go...and see it in IMAX 3D...WOW!!!
Hugs to you all...
Dee, Brenda, Abbie & Tanner
First of all I just can't believe that Brenda has gone through all these months of medical treatment without encountering a cottonball... HA who knew?
ReplyDeleteSecondly, who can top that picture of "cottonball Carolyn" you shared with us??? That is just too funny I can see Brenda having nightmares about that one chasing her around all over town...
Anyway great news about everyone doing so well... you can always get those wireless headphones to listen to the TV... thats what I do when Evelyn is sleeping or loudly talking to her family on the phone... hey it works!
Love & Blessings to all as always
I will tread lightly here as i come with a few issues of my own. I will offer that the "fear" has a name - Bambakophobia. Although I do not suffer from this particular phobia, that cotton man in the photo may cause a nightmare. If that does not get you, the sheep roadkill photo is certainly creepy.
ReplyDeleteBrenda, Brenda, Brenda - who knew?? Badass cop, well armed (literally and figuratively), clearly in control at all times, excellent shape; all descriptors that one would not associate with being "taken down" by a cotton ball. You are kicking cancer's patoot for goodness sake. A cotton ball??
I need a bit more information here to clearly articulate a response. Is the dislike the feel, the sound, the texture?? Is it all of the above? One of the above? Or Dee just making up a story?
Boy, you think you know somebody! After everything thats gone on in the past year it's hard to believe a little cotton ball can cause such distress! That ought to keep your therapist in business for a few more years. Marshall Vic would probably say to pour some moonshine on it and suck on it awhile. Actually, I haven't heard from my cousin the Marshall lately. I wonder what he's up to?
ReplyDeleteVicky
okay, this is a texture thing for me. I can't stand to squeeze a cotton ball and tearing it apart is like nails on a chalkboard for me. I merely use scissors. When Dee pulls them apart for me I have to turn away like I do when i get a million shots. It literally creeps me out. How about those acrylic blankets on your dry feet. Ick, Yuk, okay I gave up another one. I can't stand the feel of this stuff. Thank god I am a lesbian because I would have to use those dreadful cotton balls to clean off polish and make-up. NOT!! We had some funny laughs over it and Michele you crack me up about treading on thin ice. I remember Karen having to go first in the room on our trips first so she can determine if there are any bugs in the room! And you are going to the Amazon and Africa where bugs are so big that they have to be on a leash?! We all have our idiosyncrasies that's for sure. That's what makes us unique and for Michele, hysterical.
ReplyDeletelove,
chemo sabe returns
Hey, hey, hey bugs are a real threat!. In the worst case scenario they can kill and in the best scenario they are called pests. I didn't name them, I'm just saying. While I am on the subject my friend, your idiosyncrasy is called a Cotton ball. Anyone ever hear of someone expiring from a cotton ball? I think not. Heck that's why they call them cotton balls and not cannon balls.
ReplyDeleteCotton nightmares, "return of chemo-sabe" and cotton sheep road kill, eerily reminiscent of scary movies that air at 3AM.
Okay, another idiosyncrasy sharing moment- I cannot stand to touch a peach. I absolutely detest the feel of the fuzz. Males my skin crawl. Follow that with kiwi's (not New Zealanders - the fruit) and strawberries!!
Wow, this blog is really becoming therapeutic. I feel better already :)
One Question - typical cotton balls are not so big - why the tearing or cutting? Are them there cotton balls bigger in Arizona or did you buy them in Texas where everything is bigger?
Stay well my friend