Various Other Visits

So, where else was I able to pop in and take some pics while we were there?

Mt. Soledad
























The La Jolla Cove:























Sunny Jim Cave:

Racine & Laramie

I told you that I'd get back to the cigar shop. Racine & Laramie is just an excellent place, run by fine, fine folks. It was my port in the storm, my home away from home. I only got to spend a very few hours there, but made some good friends that I hope to visit again. David Mogilner, Vice President and son of the owner, went above and beyond in making me feel welcome. Harry Harris was hospitality personified. Here they are with the box of "Black Barts" that I bought. That's David on the left and Harry on the right.



















Here's some pics of the place.










































If you ever get down to San Diego, and you like cigars, look these guys up. Tell 'em Kam sent you.

Immaculate Conception Church

I visited the Immaculate Conception Church in Old Town.

Cabrillo National Monument

I went down to the Cabrillo National Monument to take some pictures of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse.



































The view is incredible.


















I drove through the Ft. Rosecrans National Cemetery.

The Tall Ships

We went down to the Maritime Museum and saw the tall ships. I got to stand at the wheel of the ship they used in "Master and Commander", the HMS Suprise. The ships real name is the HMS Rose. We also saw the Star of India, the Californian, the Berkeley and the Medea.

What Fun

So, what FUN stuff did we get to do while we were in San Diego? Consider that the first week was mostly tests and Judith wasn't admitted to the hospital until the 2nd. She couldn't do much, but we did manage to squeeze in a few fun things. I'll enter them as individual posts.

The Hotel Del Coronado (the "Del"):
















We went to Champagne Brunch at the Del on Sunday. You have to do this if you ever get a chance. It's slightly more fancy than my usual Sunday fare. Check it out HERE.

Final Update

This is the Final Update. It may not, however, be the Final Entry, because I intend to review the passed month and post some random thoughts and remembrances.

Judith is recovering well. She wasn't able to take the Vicodin but her dialysis doc gave her some Tylenol 3 and it's working. She's been getting quite a bit of rest and today we will start walking more. It has all gone about as well as it could have.

I'm 39 today, and having Judith home is the best present ever.

Free At Last

We're home - I mean Home. More later.

Lucky Friday the 13th

We're getting ready to turn the car in and head for the airport. More updates and info about the passed week when we're back in Texas.

Monday Countdown to Liftoff

The docs say that the chest tubes will come out today, tomorrow will be the last of the heparin, and we will be looking at discharge on Wednesday or Thursday. The flight is already booked for Friday.

Judith is tired and in some pain from the continuing cough, but she is down to just 2 liters of O2 and is looking better all the time.

Sunday Update

Judith just took a walk around the block. She is supposed to walk at least 3 times a day, but more if she can. The first walk washed her out, but she looks good. She is getting some color back, and that's saying something. She is usually pale as a ghost.

She had to do a breathing treatment that puffs air into your mouth. You have to breathe against it. The tech turned it on and it puffed at her before she was ready. She jumped and looked startled. It was funny and I laughed. This is the look I get when I've been bad...

Sunday Reflections

I finally have a moment to go back and record some of my thoughts from the day of the surgery. Thornton hospital is a very nice, but very small hospital. At least it is in comparison to some of the other monster hospital complexes that we've visited. Also, it doesn't have a chapel. It doesn't even have a "peace room". I was speaking with another of "Those Who Wait" in the surgery waiting area, and I made that comment. "It is odd to me that there is no chapel here." I don't always visit them when they are available. Sometimes they are too empty and sometimes I am too full, but I like to know that they are there regardless. It was on my mind while I was waiting through Judith's surgery.

The surgery waiting area is on the second floor. The second and third floors are open to the first floor atrium. There is a grand piano on the first floor with an auto play device. It sits there and plays muzak most of the time. Occasionally, however, there is a volunteer that comes in and plays the piano for a while. The sound really fills up the space and is usually some poppy, upbeat thing, sometimes wandering into the New Age arena. Generally uplifting, that's the ticket. This is what was being played as I waited for Judith to come out of surgery.

After about 9 and a half hours, I saw the surgeon and his nurse practitioner come out and rush by to another area. The nurse saw me and briskly said, "we'll be back with you shortly." Nothing in his manner should have spooked me, but of course it did. I had been OK up to that point, but I began to unravel a bit. Then I realized what the volunteer had begun to play.

She played three hymns in a row. Three totally out of place hymns. Out of place, because in that particular environment, every attempt is made to be "spiritual" but not religious. She played "He Walks With Me (In the Garden)", "Morning Has Broken", and "Amazing Grace". I was stunned by it, and, by being stunned, was able to pull myself together a little. I looked up at the vaulted ceiling above the atrium and realized that I had been wrong about the hospital not having a chapel. It WAS one.

So I waited. The volunteer went back to the KLITE standards - Elton John and Chicago - you know what I mean.

Almost an hour later they came back out. Judith was fine and all was well.

The volunteer played one more song and then left. True story. What was the song?

"Blessed Assurance"

Saturday is a Waiting Day

I went out for a bit to run some errands and stopped at La Jolla Cove to take some pictures. This is what the day looked like. Five minutes later it was raining like the Flood. Later in the day, I drove through a hail storm. And people say the weather changes in Texas! 

Judith is tired and sore. Lots of coughing today, but it's part of the healing process.

Late Friday

Judith is in her own room in the IMU. She is tired but doing well. She's right on the overall timeline and it's beginning to look like we could be heading home around Valentine's day.

Friday's Progress

Judith is doing really well. She still has the occasional coughing, but that is required for her lungs to heal. They are talking about getting her to a regular room this evening. She is on dialysis now and they want to see how she does first. She was able to have a Dr. Pepper and half a turkey sandwich earlier, and she was also able to talk on the phone a bit.

San Diego Observations

San Diegans are some walking/bicycling fiends. There are at least as many cars here as are in Dallas (probably more) but that many more folks seem to be hoofing/pedalling it. Its not like we're talking about an easy walk/ride. Most of the "getting around" here would challenge Lance Armstrong. There's plenty of easy X and Y travel, but the frequent Z would kill me. At least I think it would, but even though there are plenty of the the super fit Californians everywhere, there are just as many folks walking and biking that look like me. And for those of you who don't know, I ain't small.

Thursday in the Later PM

So I get back after they kick me out of the ICU for shift change and Judith is in a chair! She had several spoons of her dinner and looked more awake that she has so far.

Thursday in the PM

This has been a long day. Judith is more awake and aware than ever, but that comes with a cost. She has quite a bit of pain. The good news is that she is on the pain pump and they are giving her Vicodin. The bad news is that she needs to cough up a great deal of gunk. Coughing is good, but coughing is very bad.

She hasn't eaten more than a spoonful or two of broth and Italian ice. They just kicked me out for shift change, but they were about to bring her some more broth and she thought that she could have some. She doesn't speak much above a whisper yet.

She's finally down to just two IVs. I don't even know how many lines she had in when I first saw her. She's still getting about a dozen meds.

Thursday in the AM

I was delayed in getting to the hospital today because a nice young lady welcomed me to San Diego by running into me. That's not quite right. She didn't run into me. What she did was try to pass me on the inside as I was making a right turn out of a parking lot. On the upside, I bought all the insurance when I rented the car. I am in a Toyota Highlander and she was in a Audi A6. I was scuffed but she lost most of her front left bumper and headlight. Fun. Just what I needed. I think I'm gonna be sick...

Wednesday

Got some sleep and was at the hospital by 8am. Judith was still out and had tubes everywhere. They were slowly turning down the respirator to see how well she was breathing on her own as she came out from under the sedation. She did well but was coughing quite a bit and was in a great deal of pain. It's hard to explain what it is to watch someone you love go through something like that. I think it's worse because, due to the tube in her throat, all the pain was in silence. I won't go into detail, but if yesterday was the longest day of my life, today, up until they took the tube out, was the hardest.

After that ordeal, Judith has done very well. She is not coughing much and was able to take some fluids tonight. There's a great deal of pain, but they stay on top of the pain meds. She has some extremely rough days ahead, but she seems to be right on track, and maybe a little ahead right now.

We want to thank everyone that has been pulling for her. Your thoughts, energies and prayers have helped a great deal. There is still so far to go. We love you all.

Tuesday

A quick note because I have been up 36 hours or so and am about to crash. Judith's surgery went well. She is in ICU and VERY asleep right now. She will sleep until tomorrow morning at the very least. Everything beyond that is up in the air. The picture shows what they took out of her lung and arteries. The "tree" on the left came out of the lung. The other stuff came out of her pulmonary artieries. The year on the picture date is wrong of course.

The Thursday / Friday Update

On Thursday, Judith doctors had a look at her heart to determine if there are things going on that we haven't previously thought about. They didn't find anything further. Her arteries looked free of obstructions. So, good news, but it means that there is something going on that we don't have a finger on yet.

It's Friday and she is in for her Greenfield Clot Filter. It goes in the vena cava via a catheter and collects clots before they reach the heart and lungs. Here's a picture of it.

Random Rant

This morning we are observing the medical professional it its natural environment by sitting quietly in a hospital atrium. The herds of wild doctors gather at the coffee oasis, murmuring "doctor, doctor, doctor" to one another. They are quite striking in their white ceremonial garments that serve to differentiate them from the more common occupants of the area. Occasionally a single doctor will cut itself from the herd and, on first impression, seem to go mad, standing alone and talking loudly into empty space. But we soon realize that the individual is communicating via an electronic device. Nowadays many people are actually born with this type of device embedded in their heads. If they also present a predilection for bad handwriting, we know that they will become doctors. Most, however, simply become generally annoying people in grocery stores and air ports, alternately arguing with the air and shouting at children that are running amok and terrorizing innocent bystanders. Regardless of the particular type of mad shouter, we should resist the urge to club these individuals as the local constabulary tends to frown on this particular brand of community service.

In a "duh" moment, I just realized why there are flashlights hanging everywhere in this hospital. Earthquakes.

I suppose it is human nature to assume that wherever you live is backward. My example: I was sure that Southern California would be absolutely cutting edge when it came to technology. It ain't. Yes, I said "ain't". This particular hospital, while it is truly world class in its specialties, has NO wifi. None. Nada. Zero. Zilch. The Bannister Family House is the same way. NO connectivity. In a related aggravation, the Bannister House has a policy of no food of any kind in the rooms. Nothing but water. At first it seems trivial, but it turns out that this is a HUGE pain. Don't get me wrong. The Bannister House is great in many, many ways. It's a financial lifesaver, and I am very grateful that we are able to stay there. Back to the subject of So Cal being cutting edge. Either everyone here has mobile broadband, or they just naturally want to gather at the "Starbucks" type of establishment. That's probably it. Not me. I find it hard to type with Cold Play assaulting me. So, I park out front. Ha! What civilized piracy.

I have noticed that in Dallas you will find the attitudes of medical professionals to be very detached. The ones we have had dealings with are quite good but they tend not to talk very much. They certainly do not volunteer information of any kind and will be happy to sit and stare at you while all the questions that you had flee from your mind and your eyes slowly begin to cross. It's as if they are highly evolved, intelligent lizards that haven't quite decided if you are consumable or not. Most of the receptionists in these sorts of offices seem to exist on this plane only partially, and make every effort not to dip further into this reality by communicating with you in any way. We simply wander around following vague directions and hoping for the best.
San Diego, or at least Thornton Hospital, is very different. Everyone is engaged and very pleasant. However... You do tend to run into the Hollow Sympathetic Statement (HSS). You know, the “Oh, I wish I could do something for you”, with the same tonal quality and passion as “I think I lost my pen”. It is very much the exception and not the rule, but I haven't decided which I prefer, the being totally ignored or the HSS.

New News is Good News - I Think

We were at Thornton Hospital at 8 this morning for a heart cath and some other stuff. The big news is that we are a go for surgery, but it will be Tuesday the 3rd instead of Monday. They bumped everything forward a day in order to do some more cardiac tests. They feel that Judith is more ill than she should be based on the lung issues alone. They suspect that there are clogged arteries that need to be delt with as well. These new tests will explore that theory. If they find more heart issues they may end up doing a bypass at the same time as the lung surgery. The point is to do everything that needs to be done while they're in there. So, as always, we'll know more tomorrow!

This change in schedule will free up the weekend for a little break from the hospital. Judith can't do much, but we may go ride the train around at the zoo or drive up the coast again.

While Judith was in dialysis this evening, I went to Racine & Laramie, the original San Diego Cigar Shoppe and smoked my first San Diego cigar. More on that later.

Tuesday Was Almost a Free Day

We were at Thornton Hospital at about 9:45 this morning for an EKG/Echo. A quick bite to eat in the cafeteria and then to the consultation with the managing doctor. No surprises. Tomorrow is the big day. Go or no go. Everything depends on what they see in during the catheterizing.

In the afternoon we took a little driving trip up 101. We stopped at Torrey Pines and then drove north. I will look into putting up a gallery that everyone can look at soon, but for now here are a few pictures.

P.S. - Judith takes her oxygen off for pictures. I told her I wouldn't tell anyone...

Judith at the Bannister House

A Day at the Hospital

Dialisys first today at UCSD Medical Center at Hillcrest. It is right up the mountain from our hotel. Then some good news. We got into the Bannister House. Click here to learn more. Bannister Family House provides a home away from home for families of patients undergoing long-term care at UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest and Thornton Hospital in La Jolla. It's only $40 a night and is as nice or nicer than the hotel we're in for much less that half the price.

At 3pm we went to Thornton Hospital to have some labs and xrays. The ventilation/perfusion scan showed that Judith's right lung is getting no bloodflow, so we're at the right place at the right time (I hope).

Sunny San Diego

Arrival in San Diego

Well, we got here without too much trouble. Judith did well on the flight, although we timed the O2 about to the minute - the batteries on her oxidizer ran out as we got to the hotel. We are staying on hotel circle just off of Hwy 8, and everything is close. We have to be at the dialysis clinic at 7:30am and then more appointments later in the day.

The Culprit

Today we found out the core issue behind Judith's thrombosis. She has a lupus anticoagulant. Click HERE for more info. This is NOT the lupus autoimune disease, and after the PTE proceedure that we are about to have done in San Diego, the issue will be treated with blood thinners like coumadin.

Our Christmas Photo