Blog at http://drpeg2003.blogspot.com/
May 6, 2006
Today’s stream:
As of yesterday Gary is officially off the ventilator (on the trache collar ’round the clock)! When they wheeled it out of his room yesterday, we gave a cheer. Gary said that everyone had been telling him that being weaned from it would be a big step, and he had been feeling like he was never going to get off it, so I’m sure this is a big relief to him. I’m not sure why, but he also seems to have far less tubing coming from him – at last I can get at him better without fear of pulling something out. The nurse also told me that his sore is looking a lot better.
Gary claimed that the doc told him the cast would be replaced with a lighter one this weekend, but a nurse told me it would be another five days. So I hope Gary’s information is correct.
I haven’t been over there yet this morning. I probably shouldn’t get my hopes up that he’s been moved to the nursing unit already. A nurse told me that in the room he’ll be going into there is a pull-out bed that I could use to stay there 24 hours a day. I don’t think so, not if I’m to keep relatively sane ;-). Of course, being on our 25th year of marriage, Gary knows me well enough to know that to say that would not be a good idea is an understatement :-)
On a similar track, I was not able to give my bed warmer experiment a proper controlled environment. It was frat night here last night, by the sounds of things. I hope they all checked out today, as otherwise we’re going to have a remake of Friday the 13th or some such, with me in the role of Freddy Krieger. I tried stuffing all 50 pairs of earplugs that Jo had sent up into my ears, but it didn’t help ;-). (I also had 2 fans from home going, as white noise, but it couldn’t drown them out. I would think that with my name on this wing of the hotel, I should have some say as to who could occupy it.)
I am hopeful about the bed warmer tho, as I did find it nice to snuggle into in the early morning hours.
At the morning visit, the nurse told us that if all goes well, Gary should be able to talk and to start eating in a couple of weeks!
I just re-read an email from my brother, and I had the thought that I wonder if anyone else outside our family uses the expression “pain in the patutie” (actually, Joe, I always spelled it in my head as “patootie ;-)). We also had the endearment “patootie-bug” ( as in, “you little patootie-bug”). I tried looking these spelling variations up at dictionary.com. There is a patootie, meaning sweetheart, possibly derived from potato, and usually prefaced with “sweet.” Anyway, I just wondered if the expression “pain in the patutie” was something my mom made up. She sometimes invents her own words, not always intentionally ;-) I want to make a character in a story do this – malapropisms, etc. – but it is hard to do that kind of thing intentionally. I’ll just have to keep a list of such as they come up and plagiarize them ;-)
I have put up on the blog some of the pictures Mike O’Farrell took when he visited. I know I could figure out the html code to get them on the website too, but I am too lazy right now, so check the blog. They wouldn’t let Mike take pictures of the equipment back in ICU, I think he said.
At the afternoon visit, Gary composed a mother’s day card, and then the nurse came in and said it was TIME FOR GARY TO GO TO THE NURSING UNIT! They had me leave and are settling him in now. Then I will be able to go back and check out his new digs. We are so excited!
So he has a new address. Don’t worry about mail sent. It should make it to the right place eventually. We hope.
His new address (put his name at the top):
TBNU/North Pavillion 9th Floor
UAB Hospital
Room 9324
1802 6th Avenue South
Birmingham, Al 35249
Just got back from seeing him in his new surroundings. His room is more private, a nice soothing blue color, nature picture on the wall, much more homey-feeling. There is a couch in there too. What they really need in there is another bed in which I can stretch out beside him. ;-) It still isn’t visitor friendly (ergonomically speaking), IMHO.
We tried out the DVD player tonight but it doesn’t play loudly enough. I guess I’m going to have to get the more expensive one and hope that solves the problem.
May 6, 2006
Today’s stream:
As of yesterday Gary is officially off the ventilator (on the trache collar ’round the clock)! When they wheeled it out of his room yesterday, we gave a cheer. Gary said that everyone had been telling him that being weaned from it would be a big step, and he had been feeling like he was never going to get off it, so I’m sure this is a big relief to him. I’m not sure why, but he also seems to have far less tubing coming from him – at last I can get at him better without fear of pulling something out. The nurse also told me that his sore is looking a lot better.
Gary claimed that the doc told him the cast would be replaced with a lighter one this weekend, but a nurse told me it would be another five days. So I hope Gary’s information is correct.
I haven’t been over there yet this morning. I probably shouldn’t get my hopes up that he’s been moved to the nursing unit already. A nurse told me that in the room he’ll be going into there is a pull-out bed that I could use to stay there 24 hours a day. I don’t think so, not if I’m to keep relatively sane ;-). Of course, being on our 25th year of marriage, Gary knows me well enough to know that to say that would not be a good idea is an understatement :-)
On a similar track, I was not able to give my bed warmer experiment a proper controlled environment. It was frat night here last night, by the sounds of things. I hope they all checked out today, as otherwise we’re going to have a remake of Friday the 13th or some such, with me in the role of Freddy Krieger. I tried stuffing all 50 pairs of earplugs that Jo had sent up into my ears, but it didn’t help ;-). (I also had 2 fans from home going, as white noise, but it couldn’t drown them out. I would think that with my name on this wing of the hotel, I should have some say as to who could occupy it.)
I am hopeful about the bed warmer tho, as I did find it nice to snuggle into in the early morning hours.
At the morning visit, the nurse told us that if all goes well, Gary should be able to talk and to start eating in a couple of weeks!
I just re-read an email from my brother, and I had the thought that I wonder if anyone else outside our family uses the expression “pain in the patutie” (actually, Joe, I always spelled it in my head as “patootie ;-)). We also had the endearment “patootie-bug” ( as in, “you little patootie-bug”). I tried looking these spelling variations up at dictionary.com. There is a patootie, meaning sweetheart, possibly derived from potato, and usually prefaced with “sweet.” Anyway, I just wondered if the expression “pain in the patutie” was something my mom made up. She sometimes invents her own words, not always intentionally ;-) I want to make a character in a story do this – malapropisms, etc. – but it is hard to do that kind of thing intentionally. I’ll just have to keep a list of such as they come up and plagiarize them ;-)
I have put up on the blog some of the pictures Mike O’Farrell took when he visited. I know I could figure out the html code to get them on the website too, but I am too lazy right now, so check the blog. They wouldn’t let Mike take pictures of the equipment back in ICU, I think he said.
At the afternoon visit, Gary composed a mother’s day card, and then the nurse came in and said it was TIME FOR GARY TO GO TO THE NURSING UNIT! They had me leave and are settling him in now. Then I will be able to go back and check out his new digs. We are so excited!
So he has a new address. Don’t worry about mail sent. It should make it to the right place eventually. We hope.
His new address (put his name at the top):
TBNU/North Pavillion 9th Floor
UAB Hospital
Room 9324
1802 6th Avenue South
Birmingham, Al 35249
Just got back from seeing him in his new surroundings. His room is more private, a nice soothing blue color, nature picture on the wall, much more homey-feeling. There is a couch in there too. What they really need in there is another bed in which I can stretch out beside him. ;-) It still isn’t visitor friendly (ergonomically speaking), IMHO.
We tried out the DVD player tonight but it doesn’t play loudly enough. I guess I’m going to have to get the more expensive one and hope that solves the problem.
posted by Peg Daniels at 7:18 PM
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