Sunday, April 15, 2012

A LITTLE GREEN HAPPY FACE GUIDES ME IN & OUT OF THE CT SCANNER THIS MORNING

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ROSE BREASTED GROSBEAK

To say we awoke to anything but a dull dismal rainy day would be an understatement. Heavy cloud cover was only a couple hundred feet off the deck as I Jeeped my way east for Stratford Ontario. Tops of tall microwave antennae's were lost in the clouds.

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HOW NICE TO HAVE A SPIFFY CLEAN JEEP TO DRIVE TODAY:))

It’s a pleasant hour’s drive from Bayfield to Stratford if one knows the quiet & paved back roads. Having spent most of my life in this area, I know all those back roads. Despite the moderate & steady rain I enjoyed rolling through the South-western rural farm lands. Always nice to see old familiar places & touch base with old familiar memories.
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I was 50 minutes reaching the outskirts of Stratford & I was plenty early for my 11 a.m. CT Scan. I always make it a point to be early for wherever it is I am going. In this case I was early enough to stop at Sobey’s Grocery Store near the Hospital & pick up a few groceries. It was my first time in a grocery store since returning from Arizona & as usual I was dismayed at the price of things on the shelves.
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Another couple of blocks had me at the Hospital & having lived in Stratford for 20 years between 75 & 95 I knew where to park & avoid the heavy parking fees at the Hospital itself. A short 4 minute walk in a bit of drizzle had me at the main entrance in no time. I had skipped breakfast this morning so was anticipating a nice egg salad sandwich near the Hospitals main lobby. Whoooops, forgot it was Sunday…..snack bar closed!!

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SCORE ONE FOR THE SQUIRRELS TODAY
Checked the directory board to see where the ‘Imaging Center’ was located & off I went on the main floor to the new section of the Hospital. Instantly recognized it as the area where I had met my Uncle Harry last year when he had been brought in from Mitchell by van for a CT Scan himself. Only difference this time, I was the only person in the whole department. Not a single person around anywhere, no people waiting, no staff, nobody. The whole Hospital seemed all but deserted. Now, how nice is that for a quiet little fellow like myself.

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NOW, THIS IS HOW I LIKE TO SEE A WAITING ROOM…..EMPTY
As previously stated, I was very much on the early side so enjoyed looking at all the modern architecture & design of the new ‘Imaging’ waiting room with it’s 40 foot ceiling. Choked down a boring, but mandatory bottle of water & waited. At 10:45 a staff member walked in & registered me. She then took me to another room & made me take my clothes off.
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MY HEALTH CARD SITS ATOP A VACANT DESK AWAITING SOMEONE TO PAY SOME ATTENTION TO IT

In a cubicle of course, & put on a blue backwards hospital gown over my shorts & socks. Well, over my shorts anyway. Socks were just too far away to put anything over. Another few minutes in a nearby waiting room & a second lady appeared in sweatshirt & blue jeans. She took me into another room & told me to lie on my back on a narrow bed affair with my arms & hands backwards over my head, or else.
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I right away recognized the big vertical doughnut CT Scanner from my previous trip into one 4 months ago in Tucson, Arizona. Well, I remember parts of that trip that is. They had me on intravenous Morphine at the time so my experience of traveling on a gurney to & from the big round doughnut machine is a little sketchy. The thing I remember most about my CT Scan in Tucson was the number of cell phone calls coming into the Scanner’s operator. Think I remember 7 or 8 calls he had to handle while processing me in the big round tube.
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Today’s procedure, with nothing more than a tasteless boring bottle of water in my system, remains much more vivid. First thing I noticed when looking up as I was automatically slid into the scanner was the little green profile of a ‘Happy Face.’ How nice I thought, the designers of the machine had incorporated some soothing humor into the large foreboding look & workings of their machine.
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YEP, STILL LOTS OF SUMMER STUFF TO GET OUT OF THE SHED YET

The machine was all awhirl with sounds I’m sure I’ve heard before on the deck of the Starship Enterprise. “Take it up to warp speed Scotty”. “Aye Aye Captain”. The theme from Star Trek was interrupted by a loud recorded voice saying, “Take a deep breath”!! The little green Happy Face switched to an amber little puffy face holding it’s breath. Cute:)) The bed under me moved back taking me out of the scanner. The big voice boomed, “Breath.” Thank you:)) I was then moved back into the scanner & the same procedure repeated about 4 or 5 times. And, that was it. Total time spent in the big doughnut….maybe 5 minutes, if that. Before rolling off the bed I winked a silent goodbye to my new found little green Happy Face friend & his puffy faced buddy, Amber boy.
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The lady scanner operator told me my kidney stone is definitely on the left side. She also told me to go get dressed & hit the road. Well, not exactly but she did wish me well with my Doctor’s appointment this coming Wednesday. Minutes later I exited the sleeping Sunday hospital, saddled up my Jeep & headed for home. None the worse for wear I may add. However, I know this is about to change & that change will soon be ramped up a bit beginning Wednesday when the Urologist has the CT Scan results in his hands. And, he has me quivering & shaking on the other side of his big desk:((
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DSC_0004I KNEW WE DIDN’T HAVE A LOT OF SNOW THIS WINTER WHEN OUR OLD WOODEN RAIN BARREL ENDED UP ONLY TWO THIRDS FULL OF WATER >>>
Again, nice drive back to Bayfield enjoying the scenery & listening to tunes of the 40’s on my Sirius Satellite radio. Rain had stopped & the skies had brightened. I miss seeing my mountains all around but the rural scenery here in south-western Ontario is pretty in it’s own right. Even on a rainy day kind of…………….:))
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And welcome to our latest Blog Follower INGER who I am assuming was a Swedish native at one time but now lives somewhere in the mountains of California. Welcome to our blog Inger & hope you can hang in long enough until we are in travel mode again:))
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Oh, & to clear up a sharp eyed reader’s concern that I was driving my Motorcycle with an expired tag. First bike photo was taken yesterday after I had started it. Second rear view file photo from April 2011 was added later last night. Soooooo, just to set the record straight, I took a third photo this afternoon to prove that “yes” I do have the appropriate up to date tag on my bike for 2012:))

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GROANER’S CORNER:(( An old woman says to her friend: “You know, last night I was shivering all over from cold.”
Her friend: “Do you remember if your teeth chattered?”
The old woman: “I don’t think so. We haven’t slept together for ages.”
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- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- If one's thoughts are positive about the landscape, one's eyes will appreciate what they see...AL.
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

24 comments:

  1. Al

    Kathy and I sure hope you picked up you OHIP card from the counter or you'll be shivering when you can't find it for your doctor's appointment. Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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  2. Wow a CT scan on a Sunday and not in an ultra expensive emergency room. I'm envying your health care AGAIN. Great description of the process. Don't think Americans have a sense of humor, no green or amber men. Good luck on Wednesday.

    Sherry
    www.directionofourdreams.blogspot.com

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  3. Thanks for telling us about your experience. It will come in handy if I ever find a place that will accept my insurance. :(

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  4. Seems perfect to visit the hospital on a quiet Sunday. Glad this first part went well. The smiling face is fun.

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  5. Oh boy. Medical stuff. The bad part is waiting to see what they're going to do Wednesday. At least it's not too far off...fingers crossed.

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  6. You been lucky to get the scan done on a Sunday with hardly any wait times. We hope everything will work out for you.

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  7. Wow...can't believe a reader picked up on an expired tag on your motorcycle. I am going to have to be much more aware of the pictures I post in the future. :)

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  8. Hope things improve with that kidney stone soon. What a pain to have to go through that. (oooohhh, sorry about that!)

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  9. Whatever comes from this scan is just one more step to taking control of your own body...Be very aggressive about your own health care..and I have a feeling Kelly will help you with that..My good Karma is surrounding you with positive energy...Best of luck, my friend..But don't be afraid of them ol' kidney stones.

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  10. Fingers crossed here in Kansas......

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  11. glad to hear the scan was an easy process..all sounds very familiar to me..as I work in the Medical Imaging department!..not the one that gets to push all the buttons but a worker still the same!!..hope that the results are good!!

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  12. Good luck with your appointment on Wednesday. Be thinking of you.

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  13. Sounds like the CT scan was pretty easy stuff and you made the best out of it...and made a little friend in the process!! LOL
    We are sending you good, positive thoughts that the results will only be a positive step for your health.
    Glad you enjoyed your drive through the countryside!!

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  14. Was there a doubt as to which side the stone was on? Maybe they should have recorded which side of your body you were clutching in agony - that seems like a medically thing to do.

    So, will they put you in a nice hot tub and sonic boom that sucker outta there?

    Roxi

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  15. See, you make a CT Scan sound like
    an exciting adventure !!!
    Now that's a great blogger.
    We're betting that all of this
    will be a 'piece of cake' for you.
    Think positive...
    easy for us to say. lol

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  16. See, you even make a CT Scan an
    adventure....now that's a great
    blogger!!!
    We're betting this will all be a
    'piece of cake' for you....
    easy for us to say. lol

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  17. We almost met at the hospital yesterday, we arrived at 11 am and sat in Emerg. for 5 hours waiting to see a Doc. Glad your scan went well and quick for you.

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  18. Well Al, the easy part is over....Now from here on it might not be fun....But your a young tough ole boy,,,,You'll do fine....

    It was fun riding through that space ship with you.....:-)

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  19. Gee, Al, you can make a fun experience out of almost anything, can't you! Best of luck Wednesday. Maybe Mr. Spock can do a hands on procedure that will just zap that stone into outer space!

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  20. The big adventure of the ct scan now being over you can get back to watching the grosbeaks. I love those birds . They look like little parrots.

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  21. Sounds like a nice drive and not much worry. My garage looks like a after tornado pic compared to to your shed. The big ring has been good and bad for me. I do not like the ratchet movement, but Pain is the key. I have read people see ghosts around those machines, but I never have.
    I am glad you will be on your Honda again this year. I hope to ride my Suzuki again this summer also. Be safe.
    As a Kidney stone forever guy myself, I wish you the best.

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  22. Wishing you good news on Wednesday.

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  23. I spent the summer of 2008 lying on hard beds being fed thru donut holes. They don't hurt but the things they put in you before hand are the pain. Good luck with yours.

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  24. Al, after spending almost four weeks in the Intensive / Critical Care Unit of the best trauma hospital in Indiana, I am going to plead with you to watch out for crazy people and their cars. About 25% of the people in the unit were there due to a motorcycle accident and the car driver was at fault. I do hate ICU! But love the work they do.

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