lwood

In Old Norse (Modern Icelandic, etc.), how would one cobble together a by-name for Odin on a train? In the spirit of "Vegtam" (Way-Tame), I was thinking one could do tolerably well with "Iron Horse Rider".

Thoughts?

-- Lorrie

Cut the post-workshop book research part of the LA trip off a day early to come home and take care of countgeiger.

dpaxson lost her voice nearly completely, so much so that I wound up giving a third to a half of the workshop. So, I actually really did need to be there.

I also actually really did need to be here. When that outweighed the other...we cut it short and flew up the road, from San Diego to Oakland with as few stops as possible, soup to nuts in ten hours.

Wifely Lorrie is wifely.

Tired Lorrie is tired.

-- Lorrie . o O (zzz)

The Official Prognosis is that he'll be out of the hospital on FRIDAY, to be picked up by cruz531 (also known as Mr. pentaclemoon). The color of his entire leg is improving, swelling is somewhat reduced, although the area of swelling hasn't receded much. Temperature is still elevated, of course, and for those of you playing the Wheel of Chemistry home game, he's on a vancomycin IV and soon to be on Vicodin for the pain that still happens whenever he gets up.

After a lot of soul-searching and heart-tearing, and considerable discussions with dpaxson and countgeiger, I...will be going to Los Angeles. It's not what anyone would prefer, but cruz531 has medical training and time--frankly, training that I don't. countgeiger will be in better hands for all practical purposes, although obviously I win in the cuddle department.

But it's also so that dpaxson also needs me. I can't be in two places at once, but I can trust my community to take care of the piece of my heart that I must leave behind.

And so I do.

In the meantime, he's still at Kaiser Oakland, room 624. There's a free shuttle from MacArthur BART every twenty minutes that will deposit you at the east hospital entrance, and pretty cheap parking garages on Howe (hospital east entrance) and the new one on Broadway (hospital main entrance). Follow signs to the Tower Elevators, take them to 6, turn left when you get out of the elevator, through that door, then right, then the second left for room 624. He's in the bed furthest from the door.

Especially, he'd appreciate company tomorrow while I'm out of town.

My love and thanks to you all.

-- Lorrie

I spent the day with him today at Kaiser--from when visiting hours started through to when dpaxson had to pick me up for trance class.

It seems to be a simple cellulitus: not MRSA, not necrotizing fasciitis, no debriding required, no clots on ultrasound. By the end of the day, he didn't have his appetite back, but his temperature was approaching normal (from a high of 103!) and he was considerably more alert than he had been.

I doubt they'll be willing to release him Wednesday, but Thursday is not unlikely, although I gather from listening between the lines of the several doctors that the swelling may not have wholly subsided, and his mobility may yet be impaired, when this happens.

Mind you, I happen to have an unemployed, medically trained, gentleman to throw at him for in-home bullying care while dpaxson and I are off in the Great Southern Wilderness. HA! This is good--I would not feel comfortable leaving unless there were something highly available and in place.

No mistake, though: as long as he's in hospital, my place is at his side, every moment I can manage (and I can manage quite a few). I have to say, though, Kaiser's been quite on the ball, with responsive and pleasant staff every time we've interacted with them.

Tonight's section of the trance class had, as their exercise, a working on countgeiger that incorporated as many of the class's techniques as possible. *grin*

And now, adieux, my friends, that I may sleep!

-- Lorrie

While Monday made an initial strong showing with the promise of lunch with purplevenus and dpaxson, those hopes were dashed when, after parking in a convenient space with a broken meter, lwood noticed that her car, the Trusty Taurus, was copiously leaking a nurglish green fluid that was not in fact Mountain Dew, but rather engine coolant.

Erring on the side of reasonable blood sugar, a fine lunch proceeded to be had by all, but the day was placed On Notice and a written reprimand was issued. An immediate upturn in effort was displayed by Monday, as time spend waiting for the tow truck could be pleasantly spent at a nearby bead store and, while public transit was made a sad necessity, the fact that this happened near a busy transit hub revealed that Monday's position in this week might yet be salvageable.

However, Monday had to be put on written notice a second time around 1830 PM, when countgeiger had to be admitted to the hospital, netik got hit by a car while himself operating a bicycle, and one of purplevenus's charges was, in an unrelated incident, admitted to an entirely different hospital.

The decision to terminate came some time before the action could be carried out. As a result, Monday's strong, if futile, efforts to retain its position in this week are duly and gratefully noted: lwood, dpaxson, et al wrapped up the day by bottling approximately 20% of one batch of mead. This mead shows promise in its field, and with the right guidance, should prove a credit to its kind.

Monday was reluctantly terminated from its position shortly before midnight PDT.

Due to Monday's erratic performance, Tuesday, which was promoted to the position based on Monday's strong recommendation, will have to undergo stringent review, especially in the areas of medical performance, postal performance, and bureaucratic detanglements of several and various sorts.

-- Lorrie

Diana and I have been invited to hold a trance workshop in Los Angeles, something we've been eager to do for some time. THEN, eager people down there just kept adding on book signings, so it's turned into rather an impressive junket.

Here's our current itinerary. Please feel free to pass it along to anyone you know who lives in Southern California and might be interested in attending anything listed here.

Thursday 15 October, 8:00-10:00 PM - LASFS @ Clubhouse

Diana has been asked to address the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society, the world's oldest continuously-meeting science fiction and fantasy club. They meet at their own clubhouse, which is 11513 Burbank Blvd, North Hollywood, CA 91601-2309. Doors open around 7:30, and the meeting should start somewhere between 8:15 and 8:30. There is no cover charge to attend this event. For more information, see the LASFS website.

Friday 16 October, 4:00-5:00 PM - Book signing @ Cauldron Kitty

The primary purpose for this trip is to hold a trance workshop, sponsored by the Cauldron Kitty bookstore, located at 2818 #1 Rowena Ave in Silverlake, a part of LA between Hollywood and Downtown. From four to five will be an open booksigning located at the bookstore proper. If you're interested in attending the workshop but haven't signed up yet, this would be the very last chance to do so!

Friday 16 October, 7:00-10:00 PM - Oracular Seidh

We will be performing oracular seidh to kick off the workshop weekend. I'm not sure when doors open, but they will close, promptly, at 7:30 PM so we can make best use of the time alloted. One may attend seidh without attending the workshop.

Seidh will be held near the USC campus, at a private home, so you'll have to call Cauldron Kitty for the exact address: (323) 644-0268. If you're not also attending the workshop, there will be a $5 cover charge for seidh to help defray expenses.

We will repair to some local eatery for dinner and debrief afterwards.

Saturday 17 October, 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Sunday 18 October, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM: Trance Workshop!

When last I spoke with event organizers, space was still available for the workshop proper. Participants are expected to have purchased, and read, Trance-Portation before attending the workshop, and are strongly encouraged to have attended the oracular seidh the night before. There will be meal breaks, but food is not included in your registration.

For more information, including whether there are any spaces left, call Cauldron Kitty at (323) 644-0268. The workshop will be held at a location rather near the USC campus; call the bookstore for more details.

Sunday 18 October, 5:00-7:00 PM, Book Signing @ Alexandria II, Pasadena

Once the workshop is over, we've been scheduled to do another book signing. This one will be at Alexandria II Metaphysical Bookstore, located at 170 S Lake Ave in Pasadena. For more information, see their website.

Monday 19 October, 7:00-9:00 PM, Lecture and Signing @ Borders, Brea

Our roadshow makes it into the OC on Monday, where we'll be making a stop at the Borders Books at 429 S Associated Rd in Brea. Their phone number is (714) 672-0120.

Tuesday 20 October, ???, Book Signing in San Diego

We may, or may not, have a signing scheduled for San Diego--if this settles out before we leave, we'll be sure to let you know!

[Poll #1466192]

So, the vet called...

Her liver and kidneys are fine, actually. Her thyroid, on the other paw, is at 21.5--that's twenty times the normal amount, and seven times what it had been when she was on one pill of Tapezol per day.

Vet recommendation is to add anti-nausea meds to her regimen, get her back on two Tapezol per day, and see where her blood levels are in two weeks.

Whew--doesn't stop her from being old, but as long as we can give her good quality of life, and as long as she's okay taking her medicine, I'm not inclined to euthanize.

Thanks to everyone for their support!

-- Lorrie

As some of you might remember from this pair of posts, as well as this pair and these pictures from countgeiger, I helped my cat George into the clearing at the end of the path fourteen months ago.

Not long after that, his littermate Wibble turned up hyperthyroid (this is often what it means when an old cat becomes a bag of bones: it's feline overclocking). Well, at least we knew the routine by now--and unlike her brother, she could take thyroid medicine twice a day without obvious adverse effects. We started treatment, figuring that at her age the nuclear option would cost more than relatively inexpensive pills, given the amount of time she likely had left.

The past couple days, while she's always had a delicate tummy, now she's throwing up more than usual (including the thyroid meds, of course), including a clear, slightly bilious vomitus under my desk this morning.

While she's been drinking more than usual, her eyes are sunken, a sign of dehydration.

The vet doesn't have any appointments today--while I could sit with her in a carrier in the vet's office on an emergency basis until someone had time...I don't think that's fair to Wibble, in a strange box in a strange place with no real access to water when she's drinking as much as she is.

There will be an appointment tomorrow instead.

We'll see what happens.

-- Lorrie