So emergency room adventure #1 involved one-on-one care for almost 5 straight hours -- breathing treatment, wound irrigation, nerve blocks, stitches, etc.
Cost? ~$400
My insurance does NOT cover this hospital with full coverage.
So emergency room adventure #2 - I went to the 'other' local hospital since my insurance covers it. Approximate stay of 1 hour, including a finger stick (which I could have done myself) and an IV of unicyn, scripts for take home antibiotics.
Cost? > $1200
Sigh. How can the cost differences be so great? (It's rhetorical, please don't answer).
For a good number of years, I've attributed my excruciating headaches to problems in my neck.
My theory was based on the fact that the only thing that seemed to relieve the pain was a chiropractic adjustment. Now, please don't comment on how you believe they are all crackpots ;) I found one who used to be in a technical, software type job who almost strictly sees RSI type patients. She's amazing. The headache would have some instantaneous relief and would dissipate completely in a day. She doesn't crack every bone in your body - in fact, she usually only adjusts 2-3 vertebrae on me.
Then I started seeing a rheumatologist (because of arthritis) who sent me to a neurologist. The rheumy didn't think the headaches were migraines but wanted a neuro opinion. Well the neuro guy did. I don't have auras, they don't throb. I realllllllllly thought it was all in my neck.
But alas, he sent me home with some migraine meds to try.
I am happy to report that the drugs work in relieving both the headache and my neck pain.
Thus, I am now confused. The neck always hurts before the headache. But fixing the headache fixes the neck.
How do these migraine drugs work? Why does chiropractic work? Leave comments! You know me, I have to know WHY and HOW, guess that's why I am an engineer at heart :)
Either way, I'm happy to have multiple treatment options.... :)
I'll start with Friday to avoid the impending for a moment.
When do people stop acting like they are in high school? The arrogance of some of my coworkers simply astounds me. No one is free from their hateful comments -- even if you beg for them to not say anything - say because someone is your FRIEND. Grow up people. I try so hard not to participate in these conversations but they are everywhere, and even I fall victim to joining in!!! Lord help us. Thankfully not all pixarians are afflicted with this need to tear others apart. That was friday. If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm in a bad mood.
Onto to saturday... I spent a good deal of time crawling in the dirt under my house running cables. Then I called a friend to see if he wanted to join me for a party. No answer. In the two minutes in between that and his return call, I got the news. A friend had passed away.
It's weird. Earlier in the week, I had stupidly thought he was out of the woods. His family asked for no visitors. And now, he's gone. I had a good long cry before finally falling asleep numbly.
In reality, I think his passing was actually maybe the way he would have wanted it. I don't think he thought he was going to die when he went into the hospital; I don't think any of us did. He was made unconscious with medication, so I can only assume he died in his sleep. Perhaps that was better than waiting, agonizingly for death that the cancer would eventually bring. He instead died of pneumonia.
I wish I was there.
But would he have wanted that? Or would he have wanted us to remember him in life? I don't think he would have wanted all of us to see him suffering.
So he passed on a day with a glorious sunset and I can only pray that I'll see him again someday, and that all of his unfinished business had been finished.
But I think I will never stop asking WHY. God I loved him.
Back at work, working... on a... HAIR bug! I think this one might be in the shader. I mean Renderman's curve code is rock solid after my seven-week bug-imposed analysis two years ago, right? Hehe.... I'll have the answer tomorrow.
Went home to meet Tate. Very very cute. Like a portable hot water bottle. Of course we have the luxury of giving him back to Mom and going to sleep at night, so I'm sure my wonderful impression of him is somewhat biased.
I also experienced my first deep fried turkey... excellent! ONE HOUR for a 20 lb bird! The only downsides are a lack of drippings for gravy and no ability to stuff the bird, but I am willing to make the trade considering my gravy usually sucks and I hate stuffing ;)
Julian came to visit after Christmas, and I put the poor boy to work. We ardously cleaned, put away xmas decorations and painted my bedroom. Guess it's a good test at domesticity for the future. The bedroom color is just beige - but it covered up the patched holes from electrical work :) It also gives a little more contrast with the trim. This house is insanely, painfully, white. Escrow white. i.e. The color everyone paints their house to sell it!
Unfortunately, I wanted a deep deep tan. I even did a test patch before commiting to the color, and alas, it was way different than the previous color. But, just not enough...
So step two will be painting a darker shade of the same color on one wall as an accent wall. Live and learn - everyone warned me about how it looks darker when it covers all four walls, and I listened a little too well. The job actually looks really good though - professional if I do say so myself ;)
I'm also finally ready to start thinking about my bathroom. I am leaning towards a white beadboard style, with diagonal laid matte tile on the floor. Previously I was considering maintaining the look of the current bathroom, albeit in a non-pepto-bismol pink way, just in terms of the style of the tile. I am now leaning more towards an updated view, but we shall see. I borrowed some magazines for inspiration, and plan to mock it up in Maya. One of the perks at doing what I do ;) is being able to do that! I figure with a few artfully arranged texture maps, I can swap in and out different paint and tile colors and patterns galore. I love my job.
It was strange to be back in Alpharetta/home -- everything was soooooo different.... I got lost in my hometown! Twice! And my cell phone was dead and my high school friend didn't know where we were either! Alas, times have changed and Atlanta, in its neverending urban sprawl, has covered Alpharetta. Georgia Tech now has a rec center to make you drool, as well as walkable restaurants and places to eat. I'm jealous. Such is life ;) The grass is always greener on the other coast!