TWO THUMBS UP FOR DOCTOR SKARO....THE 'HEAD HONCHO' HIMSELF

 OUR BRAINS WERE FEELING MUCH LIKE A JIGSAW PUZZLE BEFORE TALKING TO THE DOCTOR

Let me just say, we really, really, liked the Doctor we talked to today.  His name is Anton Skaro and in his own words, he is the 'Head Honcho'.  

 A COUPLE T-SHIRTS WE SAW IN A DISPLAY CASE ON THE FOURTH FLOOR MULTI-ORGAIN TRANSPLANT UNIT

Rained all night and most of the day but at least our temps reached 60F.  Dropped Pheebs off at Richard and Gayle's about 9:30.  It was 10:16 when Kelly and I climbed into the Subaru and headed for London's University Hospital.  It rained hard for half of the journey but by the time we reached London, we were driving through patches of sunshine.  A good omen.  We were within the hospital's confines by 12:30.  

 HEAVY RAIN AT TIMES ON OUR WAY TO LONDON

 WET WET WET

 I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING HERE BUT IT'S GOTTA BE MUDDY

Kelly's first appointment was with the dietician lady at the stroke of high noon.  A very nice lady as she went over Kelly's eating program.  She was pleased with what Kelly has been doing which showed up on the weight scale. Kelly was up nearly 2 pounds.  Our appointment with Dr. Skaro wasn't until 1:30 so after finishing up with the dietician lady we headed for the hospital's cafeteria on the 3rd floor.  Kelly had a big slice of pizza and I had a  6-inch Tuna Sub.  We split a ginger ale.  From the 3rd floor cafeteria, we took the elevator to the hospital's eighth floor where Dr. Skaro hangs out.  

 HEADING INTO UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL ALONG A COLORFUL WALK-WAY

 WAITING TO SEE THE DIETICIAN LADY

 A STOP AT THE CAFETERIA

We were not in the Doctor's outer waiting room long before being called into the inner waiting room where Dr. Skaro came in shortly after.  (and yes, I thought of his probable nicknames being Dr. Scario or Dr. Scarecrow).  He swept into the room with the presence of a traveling tornado.  We were immediately engulfed in a strong confident personality and we knew right off the bat this guy was a straight shooter.....and that was comforting.  No namby pamby sugar coating with this fella.  He exuded assurance in spades and that is what both Kelly and I needed.  And, if you do any research into this fella he has well earned that confidence.  He's a smart cookie with the most good brains and he knows it.  Now, I can't explain to you what he all said to us today, which was a lot, so I will try to break some of it down as best as I can.  He right away dispelled a number of misconceptions and misinterpretations Kelly and I were under.  For example, the age limit thing being 75 was totally wrong.  There is no age limit of being too young or too old.  It all depends on the individual.  He said the oldest liver patient transplant he has done was 84.  Although Kelly is officially on the transplant list there are still more tests ahead and Kelly still has more weight to gain.  Anti-body numbers are going to be crucial as are a few other things which any one of them could kick her off the list.  So, if comparing Kelly's liver transplant to a traffic light, Kelly is amber right now.  She doesn't have a green light to proceed to a transplant yet but she doesn't have a red light either that would bring everything to a transplant stop.  Kelly has to get her weight and strength up and the Doctor was very encouraging for Kelly to do that.  Also, further tests will be required of Kelly's anonymous liver donor to see how closely the donor and Kelly's test numbers match and that is going to be a biggy.  He explained all this to us but for me to explain it to you would be like trying to explain the workings of the Universe.  We are so grateful to the donor who has stepped forward and has already gone ahead with some early tests.  Much, much, more was talked about today with Doctor Skaro and maybe over the next few days and weeks, more things will come to mind about what he said.  So, here is the bottom line....both Kelly and I are greatly encouraged by this man's words and positive demeanor.  The future is still very unclear but we do feel we made significant progress today and that is worth a big 'Yahouie Louie':))))

 IN THE OUTER WAITING ROOM

 NICE VIEW OUT OF THE WAITING ROOM'S  WINDOW LOOKING SOUTHEAST TOWARDS DOWNTOWN LONDON WITH PART OF THE HOSPITAL COMPLEX VISIBLE ON THE RIGHT

 LOOKING EAST WITH ONE OF TWO PARKING GARAGES TOP LEFT AND DIRECTLY BELOW ME IS THE UNSEEN MAIN ENTRANCE TO THE HOSPITAL

WE ARE IN THE INNER WAITING ROOM WAITING FOR DOCTOR SKARO TO COME IN.....KELLY CHECKS HER NOTES AND QUESTIONS

We had a nice drive home going over the  Doctor's words, his encouragement, his straightforwardness, and his strong presence.  Both Kelly and I agreed if either one of us were undergoing a very serious surgery, this is the Doctor we would want doing that surgery.  A stop at Lucan's Tim Hortons for a couple coffees to go.  I felt so good about our day that I splurged and had a carrot muffin.  Dropped Kelly off at home then slipped over to Richard's and drove him to Goderich to pick up a rental car while his van is in the garage.  Back to Richards, I picked up the happy little Pheebs and we headed for home.  It was a good day with things going much better in London than we had feared:))   

 THIS LITTLE CHAP WITH THE BARE FEET WAS HAVING QUITE A BOUNCY RIDE ON MOM'S ARM ACROSS THE TIM HORTON PARKING LOT

Al's Music Box:)) He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother is a 1969 song released as a single by the Hollies.   In a 1918 publication by Ralph Waldo Trine titled The Higher Powers of Mind and Spirit, Trine relates the following anecdote: "Do you know that incident in connection with the little Scottish girl? She was trudging along, carrying as best she could a boy younger, but it seemed almost as big as she herself, when one remarked to her how heavy he must be for her to carry, when instantly came the reply: 'He's na heavy. He's mi brither.'"  The Hollies recorded the song in June 1969 at the EMI Studios (now Abbey Road Studios), with Allan Clarke on lead vocals. Elton John, who was working as a session musician at the time, played the piano on the song.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( The new employee stood before the paper shredder looking confused.  "Need some help?" a secretary asked.  "Yes," he replied. "How does this thing work?"  "Simple," she said, taking the fat report from his hand and feeding it into the shredder.

----------------------------------After the fall, Adam was walking with his sons Cain and Abel. As they were passing the locked gates of the Garden of Eden, one of the boys asked, “What’s this?”Adam replied, “Boys, that’s where your mother ate us out of house and home.”

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One night at the dinner table, the wife commented, 'When we were first married, you took the small piece of steak and gave me the larger. Now you take the large one and leave me the smaller.
Don't love me anymore?' 'Nonsense, darling,' replied the husband, 'you just cook better now.'

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