Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: billybob
Date: 15 Feb 17 - 07:20 AM

morning,

fingers and everything crossed please as Billy is seeing his leuchemia consultant this morning for his 4 monthly blood tests and check up.

We had bad news last week about our ten year old granddaughter. Most of you know that she has a bad hearing loss and wears hearing aids. She has never had a diagnosis until now. She had an MRI last June and ( after 7 months??) had an appointment Friday last with the top Consultant. They say she has EVA and there is no treatment unfortunately. The really bad news is that she must never have a bang to the head as this may cause immediate complete hearing loss. So no gymnastics, horse riding, contact sports. But for 10 years she has done all the cartwheels and sports etc as no one knew of the risks. If mummy had known when she was first born I am sure she would have been wrapped up in cotton wool so it was probably a case of ignorance is bliss! So now we have to try to keep her safe without making her feel different or making a fuss."Be carefull" will be very difficult not to say!

Off to put the coffee on,
love to all, extra to those worried or unwell.

While I have been typing this Billy phoned the tests were all clear, no sign of anything bad. He is still on the trial from Leeds University and has been clear for 3 years!! Next appointment in 4 months. Whoop de doop, might open some fizz when he gets home, glasses at the ready for the Rainbow crew.

much love
Wendy xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: gnu
Date: 15 Feb 17 - 11:28 AM

Glad to hear about the tests, Wendy. Too bad about the young lady. I hope she "is careful" but doesn't lose out on anything.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Pete from seven stars link
Date: 15 Feb 17 - 12:41 PM

Seems like the 'ignorance is bliss ' has been a blessing for the previous years Wendy . Let's hope having to be more cautious now won't be too upsetting for her . Great to hear continuing clearance for billy though.                                                                                 Yesterday was a nice sunny day , and it was also the first day since tommy came home from hospital that we got him out , and he was pleased to be pushed around the village in his chair . He had also stood for a bit unaided .   Things looking up here !                   Blessings all.         Pete

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 15 Feb 17 - 09:18 PM

Pete, hooray for Tommy!
Wendy, hooray for Billybob's and hix test results! I'm sorry about your granddaughter's diagnosis, though. That's sounds like it will be tough to deal with.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 15 Feb 17 - 09:58 PM

Awakened this morning with muscles on the inside of my left elbow hurting like that-unpleasant-place-sinners-go and it did so all day. Saw the baby doc this evening at the clinic and I'm wearing a sling for the next couple of days. Basically, they have no idea what the problem is. However, it hurts to turn my left hand palm-side up or to touch it in places. I'm supposed to be in Oslo on the 15th! AAARGH!

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 16 Feb 17 - 07:23 PM

C'mon, Rap! If it hurts, don't do it!
I hope you're soon out of pain.
Oslo--nice, but not with a sore arm.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 19 Feb 17 - 09:40 PM

Most likely I've torn the bicep loose at the elbow -- a distal bicep tear, just like the one I did to right arm some years ago. Because fixing this will involve surgery I've stopped taking aspirin and ibuprofen for pain and am using acetaminophen with mild codeine. I will see the hand/arm doctor Tuesday (Monday's a holiday) and I will get an MRI. I still hope to cruise the sunny shores of Norway from the 15th of March through the first week of April. Relaxing on the deck of the M/S Trollfjord, dancing under the stars until dawn...actually it's an educational trip to investigate the Aurora Borealis. I do hope I can go!

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 20 Feb 17 - 06:26 PM

Oh, my! I certainly hope you can go, and without pain or restricted movement. That was supposed to be my next trip, with the same line of ships but on a less luxurious one. I was hoping to do it in 2018, but just learned that my son's family is going to Disney World this fall and I may join them there. If I do, it will take some time for my budget to recover.
If you do this trip, I hope you'll share a lot of your adventures and photos where I can see them.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 21 Feb 17 - 04:43 AM

Rap, you & your wife have done your bit for the medical industry over the past few years, fingers crossed for you - again!

sandra

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Pete from seven stars link
Date: 21 Feb 17 - 04:30 PM

That looks very nice rapparee

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 21 Feb 17 - 07:03 PM

Surgery Thursday morning to reattach the left bicep at the elbow. The doc didn't even need an MRI -- he could tell by looking and feeling. It's about an hour procedure and no overnight hospital stay. The doc feels that I'll be able to visit Norway if I'm a good boy and really, really careful. Being on a ship means staying in one place for a couple of weeks, so it shouldn't be too bad once I get aboard.

AND! Pat has a biopsy on her right breast tomorrow. Something about the architecture therein. She won't do anything until after Norway, though.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 21 Feb 17 - 08:28 PM

I'm glad your arm can get a quick fix. I hope you have calm seas and don't need to reach out suddenly to steady yourself.
I also hope Pat gets an "All Clear" for her biopsy results.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Donuel
Date: 21 Feb 17 - 11:41 PM

Rap if you see a pale beer in Norway called Giraffe get it. It has a long neck with spotted foil. You will find it amazing and you won't need pain killers or the ability to stand. It will be imported since it is brewed in Denmark.

Keb, If you are going to make summaries with people's permission you should know what the facts are which are far more encouraging than your words portrayed. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK1165/

I met the 80 year old next door neighbor of my son who lives off campus. They both share an interest in history. After chatting I noticed we had a similar knowledge base, psyche and curiosity. I asked if he was an aviation engineer and he surprisingly said yes. The last plane he helped engineer was the 767. I believe he is a national treasure if we had that designation in our society as they do in japan. We share the same first name among other things like a fascination with pre history. My son's vitality and drive is infectious and refreshing. I hope they continue to look after each other with support and comfort.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Pete from seven stars link
Date: 22 Feb 17 - 04:35 PM

Donuel, clicked on your link about myotonia and certainly recognised a lot of tommy in there. Could not work out your comments though , or whether they related to tommy or someone else. Or to how it related to keborux , though he did comment on tommy and our care of him. But thanks for the link ( where it was not too tech for me !).

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: keberoxu
Date: 23 Feb 17 - 12:57 PM

I should probably stop posting on this thread.
However I sincerely send good wishes even as a lurker to the thread.
And I hope Rapparee is on that cruise ship off of Norway soon, even if he has the use of only one arm.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Mysha
Date: 25 Feb 17 - 07:10 PM

Hm, Hurtigruten! That brings back memories. I never went myself, but my mother went, and she liked it very much. She brought back shiploads of photographs, and it was the topic of one of the presentations (?) that she would do around the province, and sometimes abroad. Happy memories. (-:

It also inspired some word smithing of mine at one time. It made it to the WWW to my surprise; it may still be around. Oh dear, another one I should probably list on myshas.net, I guess. When will the list ever be complete?

Bye,
                                                                Mysha

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Donuel
Date: 26 Feb 17 - 10:01 AM

I am not the person to draw a line between privacy and summarizing someone else's issues without a PM to ask permission.
For one thing privacy no longer exists and I become more old fashioned with every passing year.

I brought this up in what I thought was a tactful way but was instead cryptic. Without Keb I would have been in the dark so his post is a good thing. I was also worried. What if someone posted a prognosis regarding a child who was not told of a dire reckoning and read the post ?

I over think most things so if there is no problem there is no foul,
which means Keb should post to his heart's content.

btw Dean and us got into the top tier of support in the country for his condition of wanting to hide.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Pete from seven stars link
Date: 26 Feb 17 - 05:40 PM

No problems keberoxu or donuel . We are well aware of the gravity and danger of tommys condition. And I am sure you both meant best. .       Tommy still doing quite well despite the deterioration , though we are having infection problems with the catheter.       Blessings all.    Pete

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 26 Feb 17 - 08:27 PM

Donuel, good news that Dean will get that level of support.
Pete, dang those catheters and their infections! I hope they clear up soon.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Janie
Date: 28 Feb 17 - 11:44 PM

I don't check in to Mudcat as often I used to so can fall very behind here. My brain also ain't what it used to be so after reading through the posts here and the many cares, concerns, and also good news, when playing catch up, by the time I post I can no longer recall each and every concern by name of person even though I just read. My apologies for my lack of brain cells.

Still sailing and a hand on deck, even if I'm simply up in the sails and don't make eye contact when I shuffle down onto the deck, grab a cupppa then scurry off to my hammock.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 01 Mar 17 - 09:20 PM

So this is what Janie's doing.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 01 Mar 17 - 09:31 PM

Janie, aloft or below, it's good to have you aboard.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 02 Mar 17 - 08:42 PM

Next Tuesday afternoon many things will be known.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 02 Mar 17 - 11:08 PM

Rap, good things only, I hope!

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 03 Mar 17 - 08:49 PM

I see the doc to get the splint off and clearance for the Norway trip -- and we meet with the surgeon about Pat's infiltrating ductal carcinoma...surgery AFTER Norway!

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ranger1
Date: 03 Mar 17 - 11:28 PM

Rap, have a good time in Norway. I lived there for three years when I was in my pre-teens. As you sail down the Oslo Fjord, wave at a little town called Drøbak for me, will you? You'll know it, they'll probably point it out, it's the narrowest part of the fjord and there's an island with a fortress called Oskarsborg in the middle. It's where a German ship called the Blucher was sunk just prior to the occupation in WW II, which slowed down the Germans just enough for the King and the Parliament to escape to the west coast and from there to the UK, many of them smuggled over on fishing boats. And if you get the time, check out Akershus Fortress and the Resistance Museum in Oslo. That was one of my favorite things to do when we'd get a day in Oslo.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 08 Mar 17 - 02:13 PM

Thank ya, Ranger1. That was on the List Of Things To Do In Oslo, as well as have lunch with Harald and Sonja at kongehuset. Haven't seen them in, like, forever!

Pat had lymphoscintigraphy today. As soon as the surgeon knows the results we'll know the results and be able to plan surgery and the followup. Norway is not optional.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 08 Mar 17 - 07:45 PM

very big word!
Lymphoscintigraphy (sentinel lymph node mapping) is an imaging technique used to identify the lymph drainage basin, determine the number of sentinel nodes, differentiate sentinel nodes from subsequent nodes, locate the sentinel node in an unexpected location, and mark the sentinel node over the skin for biopsy.

enjoy your trip

sandra

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 08 Mar 17 - 07:50 PM

Well, back when she had thyroid cancer at 17, the doctors at DC's Georgetown Medical Center took out her thyroid, parathyroid, and 71 lymph nodes. She says she was "peeled from neck to armpit." There might not be any nodes to discover! That was better than half a century ago and things have improved somewhat, I guess. Oh! The thyroid cancer is linked directly to the x-ray treatments (!) she got when she was 7 to treat...poison ivy.

This will be her fifth type of cancer.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 08 Mar 17 - 09:58 PM

Oh, my! That makes me want to avoid all medical treatments that haven't been used for at least 100 years!
Hugs to you both!

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Rapparee
Date: 09 Mar 17 - 09:30 AM

They found a sentinel node! This makes it easier to decide where we go from here!

Medicine, especially surgery, isn't pretty. It does seem to advance, though, and Pat would have been dead years ago if it weren't for those advances. So would I, for that matter.

There's a billboard here touting the skills of a doctor who is the "only surgeon" in the area who does shoulder replacement surgery as an outpatient procedure. Personally, if I have to have a shoulder replaced I want some time in the hospital afterwards!

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 09 Mar 17 - 11:43 AM

It sounds like the diagnosis could have been worse, but still . . . .
I would rather not have an outpatient shoulder replacement, either. Hospitals are no fun, but I've nobody at home to help out, and I'd want to be sure my shoulder was working before being sent away. I suppose even after an inpatient surgery I'd soon be sent somewhere for therapy. Of course, now it seems insurance companies, not doctors, decide what one "needs."

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: keberoxu
Date: 09 Mar 17 - 08:54 PM

Well, mister and missus Rapparee, it is what it is. Thank goodness you can go on your Norway cruise. As you have posted in the past, if you stay at home, the doctors will get you....

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Mysha
Date: 14 Mar 17 - 02:30 PM

Hi,

OK, I added those lyrics on my site.
(Not above the line as it's the wrong genre.)

Rapparee, if you read this message before you sail: This one will tell you where you're going: Lyrics.
Enjoy yourselves, the both of you.

Bye,
                                                                Mysha

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Janie
Date: 14 Mar 17 - 02:46 PM

Hoping all our folks in the Northeast USA and Canada are tucked in well and safely out of the storm.

Y'all check in when you can.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 14 Mar 17 - 05:20 PM

In RI, we had snow which changed to rain. I got the snow off my car while it was still snow, before it became wetter, heavy, and slushy. It is still raining. Temps are expected to drop to below freezing in a few hours, and there may be a few snow showers followed by wind. My home hasn't lost power, though others have.

A wind turbine has toppled. It powers the bathhouse at a small state beach and was erected about two years ago. The winds were too strong. I hope others in the state and those yet to be built are/will be sturdier.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 14 Mar 17 - 05:29 PM

I'll second that

sandra

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ranger1
Date: 14 Mar 17 - 05:46 PM

Hunkered down here on the coast of Maine. So far, so good, as long as I don't lose the power. I don't have to be anywhere for the next several days, and I have plenty of food in the house. All else fails, I can strap on my snowshoes and walk to the market, it's not that far away.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: gnu
Date: 15 Mar 17 - 11:36 AM

Our power and cable were out from 2 - 8:30 AM. A drunk hit a mainline pole with his truck. So the storm was only really bad for him. A mere inconvenience for most of the rest of us. Mum was freaked out, of course but she's getting back to normal now. Damn weather terrorists, scaring the elderly like they do... even naming winter storms now to get betters ratings.

I waited for light, did my usual "storm stuff" at Mum's, cleared the snow from the garage door, had a bite, and headed back to Mum's to get the generator hooked up (big job). It's nineteen steps door-to-door. When I opened the door, the power was back on. >:-D

Must check the weather in Chicago... hope the Raps get away without delay.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ranger1
Date: 15 Mar 17 - 01:52 PM

No power loss here. I did lose Beau briefly in a snow drift. I thought it was funny, puppy not so much. I have half the porch cleared off, the plow guy has been here, and I still have no place I need to be, so I will take my time clearing a path to the car and clearing around the car. I will need to get out sometime today or early tomorrow morning. I am out of coffee.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Nigel Paterson
Date: 16 Mar 17 - 07:09 AM

Very belated good wishes to any Crew Members & all 'Catters affected by the inclement weather. It's not usually this bad in March is it? I can remember sitting in my Daughter's garden in March when she lived in Charlotte NC, wearing a short-sleeved polo (& jeans, natch!).
       Please keep us on your positive thoughts list. We're both going through a rough patch, physically & emotionally...nothing that can't be sorted........eventually, but 'getting there' is proving very tiring.
                              Much Love to All,
                                                          Nigel & Ann.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: gnu
Date: 16 Mar 17 - 11:39 AM

Will do, Nigel.

Update : "The Raps" checked in to Comfort Hotel Grand Central.
Just now · Oslo, Norway

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 16 Mar 17 - 08:31 PM

Thank you, gnu, for letting us know that Mr. & Mrs. Rap have begun their journey.

Nigel, here in Rhoe Island I remember snow as late as May, but that was a brief and surprising storm which melted away quickly.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ranger1
Date: 17 Mar 17 - 10:25 AM

Nigel, every couple of years we get a big snow storm around St. Patrick's Day. It surprises many people who think that winter is over and makes the rest of us who know better say naughty words that turn the air blue. The day of my birth, March 21st, 1969, there was snowstorm bad enough that my father was out plowing the roads for the town and my mother had to call and have dispatch radio him to come home and take her to the hospital. They got there about two hours before I made my appearance.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Nigel Paterson
Date: 19 Mar 17 - 01:03 PM

Ranger1, your post reminds me...I was a home birth in one of the coldest '40s winters on record. We lived at the top of a hill; not particularly steep, but cover it with snow & ice & 'steep' takes on a whole new meaning. My Mother was delivered by a Midwife whose only modes of transport were a bicycle & her brogues. Somehow, she made it through, delivered me & if my Mother's recollections are true, Nurse Fisher had at least one other delivery to make the same day. What an amazing woman!
                               With Love to All,
                                                          Nigel.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: Nigel Paterson
Date: 21 Mar 17 - 10:55 AM

High tide, time to move on.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: gnu
Date: 22 Mar 17 - 06:55 AM

Nigel... what?

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: billybob
Date: 22 Mar 17 - 10:48 AM

Afternoon, just catching up and enjoying a coffee. Sending love and thoughts to Nigel and Ann, hope you are both feeling better and not too stressed. This year you really must come down that dreadful A12 ( it was closed Monday AM with a multiple accident at Rivenhall and Billy and I were taking our Niece and 2 nephews back to Heathrow for a flight home to New York! We got them there with just an hour before take off!!) and come and spend a day at the new beach hut, it is on Hipkins beach at the Naze. We must arrange a date when the warm weather comes .
We spent a lovely two days showing off London to our American young, we walked 7 miles on Saturday, from Borough market to Westminster, river bus to the Tower and dinner in St Katherines at the Dickens Inn, then back along the embankment to the flat. London is so beautiful at night with Tower Bridge all lite up. Then on Sunday we were back home and I cooked roast lamb for 14 family. It all went far too quick but was such a lovely few days.

Sending love to all, lots of coffee cake left anyone care for a slice?
With love
Wendy xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ranger1
Date: 22 Mar 17 - 12:33 PM

Ooh! Cake! Can I have a candle on mine?

Much beloved landlady-who-is-almost-family (who lives next door) fell yesterday crossing a very busy road with neither sidewalks nor pedestrian crossings and hit her head and broke her wrist. Consultation with the orthopedic specialist tomorrow to see whether she will need surgery. Luckily, a passing motorist stopped to help. Good thoughts for Elizabeth would be greatly appreciated.

Subject: RE: Jane's Rainbow: for all needing support & comfort
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 22 Mar 17 - 08:12 PM

Good thoughts for Elizabeth from me, ranger1. I marveled at your birth story and at yours, too, Nigel.
Wendy, I'm glad you got your family to the airport on Monday. I think London and Heathrow must be buttoned up tight after today's horrible event.