Man, am I MAD!!

It took a full hour past my appointment time (9:15 am) for the doctor to show up. I was pulling on my shoe to leave (10:30 am) when he finally opened the door and came into the exam room. Knowing what I know now, I wish that I had simply left and chalked this experience up to one I'd rather forget.

Last week, I went back to the ortho surgeon because the pain on the interior area of my knee is excruciating. I went through the whole fiery pain, swelling, heat/ice, elevated, stretching, pain killers routine and he assured me that it's the arthritis in my kneecap that's causing the problem. Thus, I made the appointment for an injection that immediately calms the swelling and dulls the pain. It made no impact on his consciousness when I said I don't have pain in my kneecap and put my fingers on the 4" of ouchie on the inside of my knee. I was assured that I'd notice the difference immediately after the injection -- and would be able to move on with my life. The definitive prescription was "wait and see" how I feel after the injection.

Today, I wanted him to define how long the "wait and see" process will take because for me, it's already been since last Thanksgiving. Yes, it hurt less for a few weeks after the torn meniscus was repaired (probably a result of the anesthesia and pain killers), but that pain on the interior area of my knee has increased in intensity significantly in the past couple of months. THAT is my concern, and THAT is what I've repeatedly expressed, to no avail. He simply does not listen!

When he finally came into my exam room, I asked the doctor if I could ask him a couple of questions, to which he replied, "sure, but let's talk while I give you the injection." Well, I explained, that's what I want to talk to you about: I'm not sure why I'm getting an injection for the arthritis in my kneecap when there is no pain and/or loss of function in my knee. Again pointing to the interior of my knee area, I said THIS is the only place that hurts, and it is not responding to the ice/heat, pain meds, etc. I also asked him to define the "wait and see" process, again telling him what I said last week: I was doing that for almost 8 weeks before calling to make an appointment. It isn't working. He used the magic doctor smile while he again told me to just "wait and see" because once he injected the cortisone, the pain would be gone. Okay; we'll see.

He didn't bother to give me the numbing shot, but went straight for the hurts like hell shot. Then, he directed me to sit up and start moving my knee, which I did. When he asked how it felt, I said, okay, so he told me to get off the table and walk on it. When my feet hit the floor, the stabbing pain in the interior of my right knee made it buckle. He smiled that sickly smug smile of his and changed direction so fast my head was swimming.

Believe it or not, he said, "I told you it isn't the arthritis: you've pulled a ligament or torn cartilege! The injection isn't going to touch ligament pain!" He added that the cortisone shot is diagnostic in that if the pain persists, we know it isn't the arthritis. He then launched into the description of the knee versus the ligaments and cartilege that hold the knee in place. He told me that my whole knee area is now numb, so if I'm still feeling the pain in that region, then it's definitely not arthritis, but either the ligaments or cartilege causing the problem -- as if that was his suspicious all along.

WHAT THE HELL? Was he making this up as he went along? Where the hell did all of this come from?

I'm sure my jaw dropped as I tried to process what he had just said. I remember asking him why he insisted on giving me the injection for the arthritis if he knew that was not causing the pain, but he reiterated the "diagnostic" use of the steroid, to which I replied that an MRI could also have determined that. I also told him that I've repeatedly asked him if anything else could have been causing this specific pain and he repeatedly has told me no -- it's the arthritis. I was confused by his sudden change of direction and at a loss to know what to do next because he just contradicted everything he's said to me during the past 3 appointments.

He was furious. He stalked out of his office and demanded that his office girl give him an "instructional prescription," and then began schooling me on the difference between a torn meniscus and a torn ligament/cartilege. He went on and on, then told me the only way to heal a ligament/cartilege is to continue with the heat/ice, elevating, pain pill routine and to go to PT 3 times a week. I asked him why he's waited this long to add this diagnosis to the mix: I could have been in PT for the last 4 months and been past this constant debilitating pain. He didn't answer me. He assured me that it takes time, but this kind of injury usually heals on its own, which it obviously is NOT going to do in my case -- and that's all I care about. The best part: the diagnosis on the PT prescription is for "tendonitis," which is yet another new element to the medical issues. He never mentioned tendons, so how the hell can I have tendonitis? And isn't there a huge difference between a torn ligament/cartilege and tendonitis? Yeah, that's what I thought, too. When I asked him again, in front of witnesses, why this is the first time I'm hearing that there is an issue involving the ligament (or cartilege) causing my pain, he informed the whole office that he's been doing this for 30 years--and wanted to know how long I've been doing knees.

You have to be f-king kidding me: are we 5 years old and seeing whose pee-pee is bigger? He's supposed to be the ortho surgeon, so ... be the surgeon. He blew this from the git-go, and being an arrogant ass is not going to change that. The more he ranted and raved, the quieter I got. He tossed the prescription for knowledge at me, then shoved a referral for physical therapy at his PA, told him to fill it in and he'd sign it, then stalked off to his next appointment, tossing over his shoulder the comment that he'll see me again in a month.

"Nope," I replied, "that isn't going to happen. I've already called another surgeon for a consultation and have no further need of your services."

I cannot believe anything this doctor says to me, so I'm done talking. Yes, I now have an unnecessary injection of steroids in my system, but because I have arthritis pretty much from head to toe, I'll feel better for a couple of weeks: no harm, no foul. Meanwhile, I'm going to see another ortho surgeon, one who not only specializes in knees, but has invented the state-of-the art knee replacement currently in vogue. I want to keep the knees I have, not replace them, so my goal is get an informed opinion from another surgeon, one who authorizes an updated MRI and bases our conversation on that evidence, not on a guess based on 30 years of doing knees. Back to square one in some respects, but the ortho did fix the torn meniscus.

UPDATING It has been 2 hours since the injection, and the pain on the inside of my right knee is just as strong as it ever was: the injection had absolutely no effect at all!! Way to go, doc.

Whose Fault Is It?

I check the website for latest earthquakes in the USA, which shows quake activity within the hour (red), within the day (yellow), and/or within the week (blue). As I've been watching, there is never a day that goes by that there is no activity on the fault that runs from the Gulf of Mexico straight up the Coachella Valley -- along the base of the mountains. The earthquake map looks like perf paper that says "tear apart here."

We all know that this area once was under water, either as a huge lake or as part of the sea. We all know that we are ribboned with fault zones, some of which are visible and featured as part of the jeep tour packages through the fault zones. We all know that "we" are expecting another BIG ONE in SoCal as it's been 150 years since the last BIG ONE, which discounts the 7.4 that rocked the high desert area between Big Bear and 29 Palms in the early 1990s.

What no one knows is exactly where/exactly when, and there is no way for that to be predicted. However, based on watching the proliferation of red, yellow and blue boxes along this fault line, I'm going to guess that it will be a whole lot sooner than it's going to be later.

To check it out for yourself, go to http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsus/Maps/US10/27.37.-120.-110.php

BLACK AND WHITE, NOT BLACK OR WHITE

If I understand the news reporting today, it's okay to hold a rally on the anniversary of the I Have a Dream speech if your skin is black, but if your skin is white, you are a racist and your motives are suspect. Sharpton said today, "They may have the Mall, but we have the message," which is a direct contradiction to MLK's life's work. King wanted all of us to hold hands, black and white, and walk into the future together. He believed that we could look past the color of anyone's skin and relate to the content of the character of each person.

The Rev Al Sharpton must not have received the memo.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr advocated that ALL of God's children, black and white, would live together, work together, play together, and pray together. King dreamed of the day that ALL people would be judged not on the color of their skin, but on the content of their character. Today, Sharpton affirmed that is not his goal: he wants everyone to be assured that Glen Beck's audience was white and, therefore, suspect in their motives for gathering on the 47th anniversary of the I Have a Dream speech, in a place that is "sacred" to African Americans, the Lincoln Memorial. Glen Beck was simply holding a motivational speech for white folks, and he picked the wrong day, the wrong place, and the wrong message.

I am offended that Al Sharpton cannot live Dr. King's message and chose not to join Glen Beck at the Lincoln Memorial to demonstrate that the Dream is, indeed, alive in America. What a wonderful opportunity for peoples of all races to meet on the Mall and share the civil rights message, but again the black leadership chose to separate black from white with a separate event designed to highlight the color of one's skin. In the process, Sharpton once again brought attention to the content of his character, again forgetting that being black does not make the man because a "real" man does not need to count on the color of his skin for recognition, honor, or delivering a message.

Sharpton is so busy talking his talk that he forgets to walk King's walk.

It offends me that newscasters feel compelled to point out that Glen Beck's audience was primarily white -- but don't also note that Al Sharpton's audience was predominantly black. Sharpton also shared his belief that "white folks" don't know civil rights because they aren't black. Really? Perhaps Mr. Sharpton should read about the settling of America and the concept of the "melting pot" that resulted from opening the doors to all races, all creeds, all religions, including, unfortunately, slaves from Africa and other countries. We don't heal past wounds by poring salt in present situations: focus on the Dream for the future, not the nightmare of the long-distant past.

Why is Glen Beck an issue for Al Sharpton? Beck's goal is unity for all people, under God: he didn't say if you're black, you cannot attend his rally. As a matter of fact, it was an open invitation to ALL people who could travel to Washington, DC, to join the movement to reunite this country as ONE nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for ALL. Sharpton's goal seems to be to ratchet up the differences, maintaining a black or white attitude for his life, rather than moving into the 21st Century and dedicating himself and his resources to making King's Dream a reality that binds people, rather than a wedge that divides them.

The Personification of the Dumb Blonde

I must strike people as the quintessential dumb blonde! Why else would professional people treat me as if I cannot construct a single coherent thought, much less use my words to explain the exact nature of the state of my right knee? Yes, I just returned from a visit to the ortho surgeon who repaired my torn meniscus almost exactly 4 months ago, and I am totally at a loss to explain our "conversation."

When he asked, with a somewhat concerned look on his face, how I am doing following my knee surgery, I replied that is what brought me to his office this fine morning: my knee is currently an exact replay of my knee prior to my surgery 4 months ago. He jumped up as if he had been scalded and told me he'd be right back: first, he explained, he had to go "get the pictures." I informed him that when I had my follow-up visit a week after the surgery, Frank told us both that there were no photos: they were lost.

Surprise. Frank produced 2 copies of the surgery photos. Confidently, the doctor sat next to me, went through the photo array, and then assured me that the surgery went well, so that is probably not what is at issue today.

Really. I took out my 3x5 card and went through the list of symptoms, all of which are identical to what brought me to him in the first place, including excruciating pain, intense, burning heat, and loss of use. I put my fingers on the 2 spots that seem to be the focus of the problem, the exact same 2 spots that led to the diagnosis of a torn meniscus the last time I visited the good doctor for a surgery consult. Believe it or not, I actually asked if I could have -- somehow, without knowing it -- torn what's left of the meniscus, and he laughed and assured me that's not likely. Silly me.

This time, the doctor went for the arthritis in my kneecap, assuring me that it's probably the arthritis causing the symptoms. Oh, I asked, why do you think that? My kneecap has absolutely no pain, but that strip about 4-5" long on the interior of my leg is really painful, same as it was 4 months ago. The reason it's the arthritis is ... because I have arthritis in my kneecap. When I again added that I have NO pain in my kneecap, he assured me that going in the therapy pool at the Arthritis Institute will help the entire knee area feel better. Working out in water, it seems, does wonders for arthritis, but I'm still back on I seriously doubt it's arthritis because I have that in many other regions of my body and I KNOW arthritis, and this is NOT arthritis.

My stupefaction must have shown through as he asked if I had any other concerns. Yes, I told him, I do. I have excrucating pain on the interior of my knee area, my kneecap does not hurt, and I'm again spending more time on the couch than is ideal for my weight issues. Ah ha, he reacted: that's why I need to work out in the therapy pool!

When I tried again, explaining that I'm using a knee brace, alternating vicodin and Aleve, elevating my knee, alternating ice/heat -- and it's getting worse, rather than better, he concluded our interview with the advice to keep doing what I've been doing, but avoid stairs and start working out in water (although I'm not sure how that advice addresses the inability to walk my dogs). When I again told him that all of those interventions are NOT WORKING, he allowed as how we could do a cortisone injection, which will help with the pain and the swelling in the knee area, but it's only a temporary fix.

I did; I did try to make sense out of this by asking how MASKING the pain is going to help the situation, especially if there is something really wrong with my knee, but he said to "see my girls up front and they'll set you up with an appointment for the injection next week." Then, we're going to wait and see if it gets better or if we need another MRI. I asked if we could consider another MRI before we settle on the arthritis, but he assured me that it's the arthritis, so we're going to work with that for now because he doesn't want to over-react and seem "knife happy."

I made the appointment and I'll have to decide do I get the cortisone injection, which I know will help alleviate the pain, and then wait -- or go back to shopping for another ortho surgeon, one who may consider an MRI to rule out a specific injury before treating a generic "maybe" diagnosis.

UPDATE I have spent the whole day trying to come up with a polite way to tell the doctor I think he's full of dog ca-ca, but the words I'm coming up with are not polite. My worst nightmare is spending another 5 months of ongoing, intense pain, going from one doctor to another before someone steps up to the plate, orders the MRI, and then bases a medical opinion on the evidence, rather than a hunch. Lots of luck with that, huh?

You Don't Wear High Heels to Coachella!

My phone rang at 6 am today, a time that indicates "oh-oh" more often than not. This morning, however, it was a friend calling to ask me to join her for b'fast. She knows that I walk the dogs at 6 am, then return home, eat b'fast, take a shower, and get on with my day. More often than not, she calls as I'm eating b'fast, so this morning, she decided to beat me to it (which meant that I walked the dogs at 7:30 am, almost too late in the morning during this hot-hot spell) and called at what is often known as "zero dark thirty."

It was one of those mornings where the banter was back and forth, each of us exchanging stories and comments. She shared about a mutual acquaintance breaking up with his long-time girlfriend because, believe it or not, she wore high heels to Coachella. That hit me funny, but resonated deeply because I am one of those people who goes along to get along as much/often as I can, but one day, one little thing sets me off, and it's over. Just as the b-friend should have been communicating better on a daily basis, rather than letting the fact that his g-friend wearing high heels to an outdoor concert venue was his reason for ending the relationship, I need to continue to work on my daily communication with others, rather than fuming in silence and then exploding over ... basically nothing.

I have been using my "Loser's Laments" strategy for articulating more calmly, more clearly, and more accurately what the issue is and how it needs to be handled. So far, that's going better than just venting and walking away, which always meant that I had to come back to whatever sooner or later, so may as well deal with it now and be done. I'm keeping the focus on the issue, rather than on how I feel about the issue, and coming up with my solution plan before I bring up the issue. I'm not wearing shoes to Coachella to see if anyone notices and comments on them as I realize that the shoes are not the right footwear before I dig them out of the closet.

From this day forward, it's going to be "wearing high heels to Coachella" that explains why it's the grain of sand in my shoe that wears me out, not the many miles I have left to walk before I arrive at my destination.

Dem Old, Creaky Bones

Last Thanksgiving, I hurt my right knee; the end of April, after a long, painful journey to surgery, I had it "fixed." When I returned to the surgeon for the follow-up and asked what he had done, he didn't know: the surgery photos had mysteriously been lost. For the first month post-surgery, my knee was fine; however, for the past 3 months, it hurts as much as it did before I had the surgery.

A couple of weekends ago, when I was with family at USC for water polo, I had to navigate 3 flights of stairs. My knee locked into place and would not let me go up the stairs. I grabbed ahold of the railing and literally pulled myself up, one very painful step at a time. Going back down was no problem, but going up more than made up for that ease of movement. Since that time, my knee constantly feels as if it is on fire and throbs constantly. My right knee area is swollen all the time and often feels as if it is bleeding, perhaps a sensation from cutting through nerves, but disconcerting. When my knee cap locks into place, I stumble and have fallen several times, not a great cause-effect at my age.

Hm, seems as if I've been here before: these are all the symptoms I had before the April surgery!! What the heck could possibly be wrong? If the doctor fixed my torn meniscus, why is there constant pain (which Aleve can't touch), loss of use, and swelling? Again.

I'm going to make an appointment as I've tried all the home remedies I know, including stretching, exercise (I walk every morning), ice to reduce the swelling, and a knee brace. If the doctor "fixed" my knee, why do I have to use all these coping strategies just to make it through each day?! My problem is, of course, that I don't want to go back to the surgeon who obviously didn't do the job correctly the first time -- but won't be able to figure out what he did wrong because he has no evidence of what he did the first time!! It took me several tries to find a surgeon who had the time and the inclination to accept me as a patient the first time, so I doubt it's going to be any easier this time to get an appointment, a diagnosis, and a repair job.

Yep, I'm back where I was from Thanksgiving through the surgery the end of April. I'm limping, in constant pain, and pissed off as hell because I don't have any option except to have it fixed again, go through the recovery process, and pay for the privilege. Dammit.

Kaspersky: Please Don't Make My Decisions For Me!!

There was a message from Kaspersky in my hotmail account this morning: I am privileged to be provided with an opportunity to upload the 2011 version of the internet protection service I purchased several weeks ago. Yippee. Let's git 'er done. I wish I had thought that maybe, just maybe, I'm being used as the Beta tester for the upgrade and could wait a couple of months: I just went directly to "this is good."

The actual download went well, but now all of my "Favorites" won't pop up when I hit the icon in my favorites list. Instead,I get an "unapproved" message, but no explanation why my sites, such as the local on-line newspaper, my favorite blogs, and my worksite, are not on Kaspersky's "approved" list. Realize that the software corp didn't ask me what sites I use on a regular basis, so they don't know which ones I have approved. Reminds me of my recent experience with Chase Mortgage Services when the corp disapproved of my paying my house payment 3 months in advance and put a stop to that practice for me. There are some things in my life that are MY decision, so even if no one else in the whole wide world agrees with what I do, I get to do it!!

I'm not actually sure how to restore all my Favorites, but that's my next task. It's good that today I only teach one class (plus 2 office hours) and have the rest of the day to figure this out.

Updating

The defendant in the trial for which I was called as a juror was found guilty of the charges. His possible sentence is 100 years in prison. I am glad that no one bought the "consensual" sex when an intruder broke into a home, assaulted the female resident, and then raped her (again) when she offered herself so her son could escape the attack.

The man who walked into a real estate office in the middle of the day, hit one employee over the head and then shot another, was caught. I'm not sure how a 6'5" tall African-American man, weighing over 300 pounds, expected to hide in a small desert community, but he stayed local. When he was arrested, it came out that a couple of years ago he committed another violent crime, but was found not guilty. Someone must have fumbled that case or stumbled across a procedural error. Wonder if he'll get off this time?

A high-speed car chase through town ended with the car against a tree. The passenger was caught still in the vehicle, but the driver escaped. How does that happen? There are only so many places to run/hide when the police are right behind the vehicle during a chase, but the occupants of the car escape far more often than they are caught at the scene.

I am ready for the first week of the semester, which always determines how the rest of the 18 weeks will go. Mondays are going to be challenging, but the rest of the week is just a matter of taking it one day at a time. All my classes are filled and have wait lists, but by the end of the semester, especially after the last Pell Grant disbursement, at least a third of the students will have dropped. When the going gets tough, it's easier to bail and blame the teacher for being too hard than it is to dig deep and finish what you started.

Lastly, Ranger is doing great. He loves his new home and his new sister, Trixie. He's had his shots, has his own name tag, and knows that giving lots of love to the new family gets him lots of love (and treats) in return. We're all glad that we were able to find Ranger a good family and that he's happy. We still miss him, but in a good way.

Loser's Laments

We all have them, our coping strategies for when life hands us that proverbial bag of lemons and we have to figure out how to use them. I prefer either lemon bars or lemon meringue pie, but sometimes we don't have time to get fancy and have to get through whatever it is life has handed us. Because I am (very) verbal, I use my words and either talk it to death or write, write, write myself through it. Some people call the working-through-it process Loser's Laments, the negative side of another way to react and turn the lemons into something much better than just sour sucking.

A month ago, another situation developed wherein I made the best decision I could make at the time I had to make a decision based on the limited information I had to use in the decision-making process. It wasn't what I thought was necessarily the right thing to do, but just in case I had not communicated clearly, I decided that it was better to do the wrong thing and make the situation right than it was to do the right thing and make an already shakey situation worse. However, this week, while I was searching for a work-around for my decision implementation, I spoke with a colleague about the initial situation, the issue that developed, and my decision. She was visibly upset because, in her logical-sequential thought-processing, she realized that I did not follow the protocol, nor the process, for handling this situation.

As I said to her, "It's already done. I made the decision; I stand by the decision; I simply need to make it work this semester." For me, it was a no-brainer, but for her, it was a much bigger issue with many more tentacles than I imagined possible.

As I walked away from our conversation, my head throbbed with self-flagellation: once again, in the effort to handle a situation, I messed up by trying to solve it myself. I created a problem for others when all I wanted to do was solve a problem that involved me. The more I thought about it, the more frustrated, angry, and stressed out I became. I drove home determined to somehow make this work, and went to the 'fridge for something cold to drink while I tried to solve the problem.

There, on the 'fridge door, were the Loser's Laments:

Don't whine; win
Don't complain; convince
Don't suffer; solve

Okay, "don't suffer; solve." How could I solve this issue? Deal with it head-on at the highest level of responsibility for decision-making. "Don't whine; win." Provide the background, update the change of circumstance, and explain why I made the decision I made. "Don't complain; convince." I had evidence to support the chain of events, so felt confident that I could convince the person who is the final say in these kinds of things that, while what I did may not conform to strict policy, it was the right thing to do in this situation.

I wrote the email, hit the send button, and waited.

Hurrah: yes, my handling of this situation is fine, but in future situations of a similar nature, I may want to follow a different process to assure that nothing can come back on either the college or me after the fact. I still need to find a work-around to facilitate actually implementing the plan, but knowing that it is okay to do that, I feel much better about the whole situation.

Having a strategy helps me to remember the process until I no longer need to remind myself how to handle the lemons life sends my way. I've always relied on St. Francis's strength, courage, wisdom and serenity, but now I've added the Loser's Laments to show me how to shore up my strength, gather my courage, rely on my innate wisdom, and make it all the way to serenity!

thin BOX king

Why do we need "furlough Friday" shut-downs to save money? How about if we take 2 hours off each weekday, M-Th, and donate the time to Friday? All government agencies stay open 5 days a week; all employees continue to work; services are provided to the public in a timely manner; and life goes on. Anyone who truly believes that money is saved by shutting down one day a week doesn't understand the workplace.

How come all the "doctors" on TV shows have a lengthy list of possible diagnoses and none of them have attended medical school? When one fails, immediately the medical team goes to plan B, then C,D,E -- and through the alphabet if necessary. Don't real doctors have just a tiny niggling thought about what may be causing the problem? Say, 3-5 possibilities? Do we really need to get on the merry-go-round of maybes, tossing 'scrips and specialists at a problem until something sticks? Thank god for mayoclinic. com!

Ditto: prescriptions. Doctors write 'scripts for everything, whether it's an issue or not, what I've always called the "just in case" approach. My doctor told me I have to take a drug for the rest of my life because, as a diabetic, I risk possible future problems with my kidneys and liver. Ironically, it is a drug that is now being recalled as the complications from taking it are potentially lethal. Before automatically picking up the prescription pad, I'd ask myself "Is this drug necessary for the patient's health or am I prescribing it because the drug rep left a whole lot of samples for me to distribute to my patients?" I don't want to be the clinical trial the drug company should have conducted before handing out the samples for distribution through the insurance network of medical providers.

Imagine if, in my job, teaching college comp, I refused to help students who are not proficient in other English skills! Sorry: you have no idea how to use either a semi-colon or a colon, so you'll have to go to the advanced marks of punctuation specialist. After you complete treatment, please feel free to make a follow-up appointment to complete your comp class. Meanwhile, I'm prescribing 3 workbooks on punctuation, available at the local big box store, you can complete while you wait for punctuation therapy to be scheduled, and here's an additional prescription for something to help you relax and deal with your under-punctuation performance anxiety.

Why do sign-makers protesting illegal immigration crack-downs in Arizona address the issue of carrying documentation in perfect English? Do they not realize that the majority of illegal immigrants in the Southwest do not speak English, much less read it? Using the Spanish word for "papers," rather than "documentation," could be a giant step toward effective communication with the target demographic.

Why do city workers install stop signs in the middle of nowhere, but refuse to install them at dangerous intersections with a history of traffic accidents and fatalities? On our morning walk, the girls and I traverse the farthest street west in our little neighborhood. There, in the middle of the north-south road, is a stop sign. Yes, it's at an intersection, but the intersection is a T, so a person traveling west should stop to see whether there is traffic north-south. However, the stop sign is also for the north-south traveler -- perhaps as many as 50 a day, I'd guess.

However, on another east-west road, one that parallels the interstate, the only stop sign is for the north-south traveler intersecting the east-west road. The n-s traveler has a stop sign, but the e-w traveler does not on a road with a posted speed limit of 55 mph -- and the fatalities at this intersection are legendary, especially during the peak commute times. Removing the stop signs on my neighborhood street and installing them at the death corner would benefit both traffic situations.

Why does anyone think that it is okay for an employee to curse out an entire plane filled with travel-weary passengers before bailing out the emergency exit? I've been a hostage on a plane parked on the tarmac for 6 hours in the grueling summer sun at Dallas/Fort Worth, with no water, no food, a broken toilet, and no air conditioning -- and pleaded with the crew, as well as the pilot, whom I insisted come back to my seat and talk to me as I was not allowed to get out of my seat. He laughed at our plight, but did turn on the air conditioning. Had I stood up, marched to the front of the plane and demanded that the pilot do something, I would have been arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. My health and welfare, along with the rest of the passengers on that crammed-full flight, were definitely in jeopardy, but we had absolutely no recourse. This employee gets pissed off, goes off, and we're celebrating his "take this job and shove it" attitude?

Finally, what is it about people that allows them to clean their backyard and toss everything they don't want into the utility easement at the back of each property, effectively blocking access to the utilities. It's a moot point as the easement is blocked off by people who have extended their backyards the additional 8-10 feet, so utility workers/vehicles have no access to the pole at the back corner of my property, nor the telephone company box at the other end of it, much less a property owner (that would be me) who wants to clean up her small section of the easement filled with trash from neighbors who take the path of least resistance, rather than walk to the trash can. In my world, I'd fine the residents of the property adjoining the easement and make them clean it up. I'd also give the residents who have extended their property lines into the easement 30 days to dismantle the obstacles and open access the entire length of the block. But, I'd lose my job because, in this part of the country, the path of least resistance is the only way to go.

Oh, well.

Using Protection

Here's the biggest issue I have with computer customer service: they assume that I already know everything they know! If I knew what is wrong and how to fix it, would I need to call you? When you ask me questions in computer-speak and I respond that I have no idea what you just said, it is not helpful if you answer me in more computer-speak. I need simple, non-computer words to explain what you want me to do to fix the problem with your product.

This time, it's Kaspersky. The long story is that I've had 'persky protection through my work site, but the college went with another service. I like Kaspersky, so I went on-line to figure out how to continue the service, but pay for it myself. That specific question is NOT on the FAQ portion of the ginormous website, so I began the search for a phone number. Therein lies the Secret of Kaspersky: you don't provide a phone number and no one can contact Product Support Services directly, which means many fewer employees and/or off-sourcing the services to a foreign country.

By accident I fixed the first problem: I uninstalled the previous Kaspersky, then went back and tried the download again and, surprisingly, that worked. Hurrah for me! Today's issue, however, may not be as easy as the protection failed yesterday. I went to my private support drawer to figure out what the heck to do this time, but to no avail: I'm not sure what that area is or why I have it or what I'm supposed to do with it, but it does not seem to address this problem. I've spent over an hour trying to figure out what to do to fix this as I now have no internet security on my laptop and a warning of a threat.

I'm going to try the phone call and see if anyone can tell me, in simple English words, what I do next -- or would be willing to refund my $100 payment for Kaspersky. At this rate, it may not be worth what I'm paying in adjunct costs for a service that seems way above my pay grade.

AH-HA!! I decided to heck with it and went to the uninstall section of the computer -- and when I opened that function, I was given an option to REPAIR a program. Did it; it works; I'm good until the next stumble.

The Lone Ranger Rides Again!

Ranger is a great little dog, absolutely adorable, and the girls and I have taken him into our hearts. He does the cutest things, has learned how to play with Daisy, uses Mia as his Mt. Everest as he climbs all over her in endless exploration. But when I brought him home from the field 3 weeks ago, I knew I could not keep him and would have to find him a new home.

When A was here last week to fix the paver patio and construct the shade structure, he really took to Ranger, holding him, cuddling with him, and even directing Ranger to the Potty Place. B told me A wanted Ranger to go home with him, but A never told me that, so I found a place that would find Ranger a good home and planned to make the call tomorrow.


But A had shared a secret with Ranger, that he was going to take Ranger home with him: he just didn't tell me that. I guess A wanted time to be sure he wanted another puppy and to get the joint approval from his lady. Today, the call came, as I was driving on I-10, surrounded by 18-wheelers trying out for the Indy 500. I pulled over to the side and A told me that he does, indeed, want Ranger to come live with him. I cannot express the joy I felt at that moment, knowing that Ranger would be going to a good home, one filled with lots and lots of doggie love.

We spent the past hour outside, Ranger chasing Mia and Daisy all over the backyard, using his Potty Place, jumping up on the outdoor table B made for the backyard, and making a final trek through the planters, looking for lizards: Daisy taught him that. A and his lady arrived, and Ranger climbed into their arms, settled in for the ride to his new home.

It'll be quiet this evening and we'll look for Ranger all day tomorrow, but all 3 of us know that he's going to love his new Daddy and Mommy and we're happy that Ranger has a new family.

Paver Patio Redeaux

When I first designed the paver patio, I knew exactly how I wanted it to look finished, even the plantings around it and the shade structure above it. I knew there would be a table with chairs in the center and a chiminea somewhere, as well as a grilling area. My problem was that I didn't have the tools to do the job correctly, so I had to lift up the pavers and reset them a year after the first finish. This time around, I hired the guys to do the job right from the start and it looks great!

The red "grout" still needs to be swept into the spaces, and the pavers still need to settle, and I still need to decide on a final arrangement, but I love it! Can't wait for tomorrow morning so I can go outside and enjoy my breakfast in my new again area, rather than being confined to the table on the patio adjoining the house. Sitting out in the yard, I can watch the sun rise in the east each morning, a beautiful sight to behold. Not such a great view to the west, but that's okay, too.

For now, the big white blob in the photo is a temporary shade to cut the afternoon and early evening sun, but we're going to figure out something else for the permanent installation. I want the 3 sections of the paver patio to be seen as one bigger patio, so nixed the idea of anything that would divide the space and separate the traffic flow. We'll figure it out!

The dogs are totally wiped out as they had 2 workers, plus me, plus the 3 kids from next door to chase after. Daisy got out of the gate twice, and the next time, Mia made her escape. Sad to say, we didn't realize Mia was out until the girl next door brought her back home!! She just walked off the job. I was working on the computer for most of the day, so did not pay attention to which dog was where. Well, I did keep track of Ranger because I am so not enjoying the pooping on the carpet!!

I return to the classroom next week, teaching a full load as several teachers submitted their letters to take off this semester and I'm going to pick up one more class, giving me a full-time teacher's load. That's okay once in a while, but I would not like to carry 4 classes every semester! I'm slowly acclimating to this having nothing to do all day, but I also have to pay for the paver patio redeaux and a few other projects still awaiting their funding on the to-do list.

All the Little Things

Yes, I was excused from jury service Tuesday afternoon (after spending 3 full days in the courtroom) and am much relieved. The defendent, accused of multiple breaking/entering/physical assault/rape charges is, according to the local news, using as his defense "consensual" sex. The news article says that one victim, whose 13-year-old son was in the house at the time, tried to flee to get help, but when the attacker rose and started after her boy, the woman told the attacker to do whatever he wanted, just leave her son alone, so he raped her again. That, my friends, according to the defense, makes the sexual attack "consensual" at 2 AM by an unknown assailant who literally broke through the sliding glass door to enter the woman's home.

My question: why is there even a trial?

Next, Ranger is doing well, mostly. If I keep the timer on and keep taking him out, he's using his special Potty Place as intended; if I forget, he prefers the living room carpet. I did buy the "pee pee pads" recommended by both websites and recent puppy people, but Ranger found a different use for it. He picked up one corner in his teeth and raced down the hallway, resembling a very small, 4-legged Super Dog! As far us messing up his cape for doing his business? Nah; it's a better play toy than potty training aide. All 3 dogs have bonded and get along well, but it's challenging to have 3 dogs, especially a 90-pound Rott mix, a 15-pound Jack Russell terrier, and a 2-pound whatever. I would love to find a good home for Ranger, but would miss him terribly, too, after bringing him back from the edge and holding him for 5 days while he regained his strength. Well, and the fact that we're now past the 3-week mark in bonding, too.

B & A are on-site redoing the paver patio and adding a wood shade structure! When I first did the job, I did my best, but my border boards warped and became trip 'n fall obstacles. If there's a way to trip over a piece of thread on the floor, I'll find it, so I took a header over one of the boards while taking Ranger out to his PP, landing, of course, on my "bad" knee. Enough said: time to fix the paver patio. I thought the guys would do this sometime in Sept, but they arrived, ready to work, yesterday, and the transformation is amazing. I am going to like the finished project more than I liked it the first time I did it, and adding the shade structure is going to make it more likely that I'll spend even more time outside.

Have had pestilence in the yard, something that took out several huge hedges literally overnight. I think I'm going to have to dig out the skeletons as they are a potential fire hazard. I'll replant when it cools off a bit.

The final final book edit is finished, so it's time for the book to be printed and distributed. I enjoyed doing the final edit with a former student, who has also been a co-worker, as well as an on-going friend. We work well together because I know the writing, while he knows the mechanics of the computer program. When it's in the marketplace, I'll provide a title and the author so y'all can check it out.

Today, I'm taking my neighbor to the grocery store while the guys are here working. She no longer has a car and the sporadic bus service makes going to the marketplace across the highway an hour drive each way for a 15-mile trip. Her groceries can't make it home in the heat, so I told her I'd drive her. Her dotter is going to watch Ranger this Sunday while I'm off water-poloing again, which is a fair exchange of services.

That's it for the ketchup! I go back to work in about 10 days and have to push to update the syllabi, find the course materials, and get my brain wrapped around teaching again. Ranger is happily chewing on an old toothbrush I gave him, rather than my toe, so all is good again in LizaLand.

Duty Calls -- Again

No one wants to get stuck with jury duty, but odds are that many are called, but few serve. However, waiting in the courtroom to see whether or not one serves is bad enough, but going back the next day for more of the same is intolerable.

Yep, sat there all afternoon. Twelve jurors were seated; the opposing lawyers did their song and dance; jurors were dismissed; more jurors were added, questioned, accepted, and rejected; and it was time for us all to go home and return tomorrow at 9 AM. It would have been a no-brainer to dismiss the woman whose father is in the midst of cancer surgery, right? Nope: she, too, gets to come back tomorrow because ... she's on the jury!!

What does it take to be excused? Only the judge knows the correct answer to that question because he also did not excuse the woman who could not understand the questions she was asked and replied in such a strongly-accented English that the court reporter had to ask her several times to repeat herself. But the woman whose father is having surgery as she sits there? Nah, she can stick it out. Maybe serving on the jury will take her mind off her father's imminent demise.

The woman sitting next to me in the courtroom kept saying "Bullshit" to everything the lawyers asked of the jury to ascertain their fitnes for this case: perhaps she was practicing in the event her name is called, but I'm not sure this judge will buy the "bullshit" excuse for not serving on the jury.

Ranger spent the time in his man-cave, napping and playing with the toys I zip into the crate with him. I also give him food and water, knowing full well that what goes in must also come out, but today he didn't poop, so that's better than last Friday. Mia and Daisy can come and go as they please, but the poor little guy can't be trusted with free reign of the house ... yet.

I'm still hoping my service won't be required this time because if I have to serve for the next 3 weeks, I'm going to demand that Lindsey goes back to jail and does at least as much time for her crime as I have to do for public service!!