05-18-17 @ 9:01 am
- Good morning :) We've been up for a while ... we woke up about 3 1/2 hours ago, and we'd have to fight hard to figure it out - what we've been doing ... hmm, or just go check out our resources. Let's see:
- Evernote
- Phone
- Myfitnesspal
- Calculator
- Google Chrome
- Mychart
- This was the first 45 minutes ... and then we met with Rich before breakfast ... we got up from the comfy chair about time to feed Dakota and take medicine at 7 am. When we met with Rich, we went over going to the Y and other scheduling things, and then Rich helped us understand the 15 minute trip to the Y and what roads we'll take. We both know that I have the computer GPS thingy on the car, but getting us to KNOW the trip that's harder even though we've lived here 4 years and the Y's just in the next small town over. Yeeks.
- We also looked at some mobile homes in Sandwich that were for sale - and figured, we had to get better pictures for our home.
- We then checked our bank account and were reminded that we had cut-up our credit cards - there were only two - at the last Dave Ramsey Course on Tuesday. I saved our Carecredit card that has about $4800 that can be used on medical or dental, OR even veterinary. It's not a regular card though like Visa or Mastercard. AND, we left our "credit card" that is our debit card. Ramsey doesn't have anything against them. We haven't told Rich about it ... I don't think he won't mind me not using the cards, but he's been into a thing where he wants to be the head of my decisions. Especially, money or medical. We are doing a little rebelling. I figured we didn't ask Rich to open those accounts, we don't have to ask him to close them. I will take a ding on my Credit rating, but since that is built on me having to use debt, I'm not so thrilled about that anymore. We're going to try taking it down - though we haven't joined the band wagon on selling our car to lose that debt by getting a used car. No don't see that as happening. But, yes, we can cut-up a couple credit cards. They were worth about $2900 in debt. Instead this week, we used our tax return and opened a savings account with $1000 that will be our emergency account - which is something we'd used those credit cards for, but they are right ... basically, how does it make sense if your in debt, doubling down by using a credit card. So after we changed over Dakota's "good health" insurance plan to our debit card, we called both Chase accounts and canceled them without too much fuss. One has a zero balance, and the other has a balance of $320.43. Rich will pay that right away ... we had gotten a return from the other "bad health" insurance to cover that difference. Check is already in the bank. That was the majority of that credit cost. Sooo, we're all good and feeling financially healthy. Rich also put in a couple hundred dollars in my debit card and we reviewed the costs. Feeling pretty good financially.
- About the time we fixed the accounts - we had breakfast with Rich. He's still making the omelets for both of us, but is now trying a new pan which was distracting to him - it got his eggs a little too dark. He's adjusting to it cooking faster. Usually, he puts around with other stuff.
- After, we got a call from Maury. He has a procedure this morning where they have to put him out and its the first time so he's a little nervous. He also very kindly remembered we had had a lot of stuff coming up so he asked how we were and even asked questions. I felt very special that he would think of our well-being. We had a good report ... things seem to be checking out ... just have to get past the big one which is waiting on the report from Monday's D&C. We want to hear, we don't have cancer. After that - hysterectomy? No problem IF that's the direction it goes. Same with Spine ... if they have to burn a few nerves so we don't feel pain - hey no problem. You never know what's happening after they put you out, and the last few incidents have really been painless. I'm good now too for eyes, feet and and chest (cancer). The worst of all that is that I will still need to wear glasses, and we were fitted for a new pair of diabetic shoes, we'll pick up in a week. As to the sleep study - there was no surprise in finding we have sleep apnea, and we learned yesterday there was a process yet. First the doctor is expected to finish looking at the results by tomorrow, and then those results go to our doctor, and then he calls the health care place that supplies the machine, and then they check that our insurance covers it, and then in one to two weeks HOPEFULLY, we'll be using the C-pap machine and getting a terrific night sleep. YAY! That is actually the happy story ending. We still don't know if they will just ship with directions, or if someone will come out to the house like the olden days, but, we're learning to be more patient. Today, we have to get a tetanus shot, but then the only thing coming up is the three June events. On the first is the colonoscopy, then on the 21rst we'll meet with the spine doctor and on the 26th we'll meet with the D&C doctor. We could always hear something in-between, but am not expecting much - maybe the pathology results of the D&C/Polyp Surgery.
- We have caught up with the Enhance program director from the YMCA - and that seems good too. We start on the 31rst, so in about 2 weeks. Gives us time to umm shave? YEEKS! I guess it will be pretty close than to being summer - hmm, just checked ... I guess I'm early ... summer doesn't officiall begin until Tuesday June 20th and then it ends Friday, September 22, 2017. No problems. Still has to get done. I have by now paid for the course (Rich paid for my Mother's Day gift). We also know a few new things like - there is no problem with Dakota coming - though the person at the desk didn't know about the swimming. We're not up to swimming yet anyway - would like to lose more weigh. We're not worried about swimming yet, and thinking it might be too much for the both of us. Michelle our contact person told us a little more about the testing and we'll probably be tested after the first class gets over. We'll go in before to do some paperwork. But the assessment only includes a bicept curl, a standing/sitting test and a walking test, and then we'll be tested again in 16 weeks when the next session starts. We also know now that the instructors - 2 of them are Laura and Jodie. Hopefully, the papers will be at the front desk to fill out and we'll probably bring in our medical papers to keep on file if the'yll take them. If I'm going to have a heart attack there, I want people to know. Of course then too, we are keeping an updated sheet in our purse.
- 10:16 am - back again! Rich had to help me with the printer. We made some changes on the Medical/Medicine Report. We printed out just one copy for our purse and we'll catch-up the fridge one later. We're waiting for Dr. M t return next week to update the heart part from UIC records he can access. Now we're all good with that. I'll have to read up to see where we verged - think we're still taking care of things as they come up, but we've lost track of what had been happening on the rescuetime program. Let's go back to there
- I thought we'd mention a little problem with our weight over the last few days. It was enough for us to make a notation. On Tuesday, we gained one pound, and then yesterday, the scale recorded that we gained FOUR pounds. That about scare the bejeebers out of us, so we had to start figuring what was going wrong ... we were at 267 and now we're 7 pounds heavier at 274. It was just really impossible. The first problem is that we had to stop taking some of the laxative type things - I know - really personal stuff here, but we had to stop that so we could make it through the sleep study and the other procedures where we were going to be put out. Then over the last two days when the weight became really problematic, we figured out while doing the food diary that we'd eaten something with almost 2000 mg of sodium for four ounces of meat ... AND we had that 3 times in total over two days. That seems to be really screwing us up. Rich had gotten something called, Marketside Buttery Garlic Flavor Rotisserie Chicken from Walmart. LORDY - never having that again, nor will we finish off the stuff in the fridge. One day maybe, but then 4 pounds with the second day? Oh Lord!. The meat was also a culprit in the the average fat OVER - not even the stuff we're allowed, but the overage of fat over the last two days has averaged 60 grams. This is REALLY terrible eating and I guess the numbers are telling the tale. I don't think I would have realized this, but we'd worked so hard at going over the numbers in our charts. The salt was 2 1/2 times over and the fat was 2 times over the recommended balance. Sooo, listen and learn I guess, right?
- A couple other short things of notice. We are drinking consciously more water - have taken out diet coke over the last two days, and I believe were day three without Tylenol three with codeine. It's bothered us a lot to be on an opiate, one because they are so addictive, but the other thing is that we've been having trouble sleeping during the afternoon or when driving, which is in part the sleep apnea, but the other part is the codeine. SOOO we're cleaning up both those things, so we can drive ourselves to Dr. Marvin's again without Rich's assistance. I appreciated his help a lot, but he's got too much to do with his business, fishing and his mother. He's also had to drive a lot for our medical things because it's been hard to do on our own and we really want him to know what is going on so that we can talk over the issues. BUT, we have to be nice and give him a break.
- Isn't this kinda cool - we feel in the groove of the kinds of writing that we used to do. Just we're more organized now. VERY ready - to get going on a regular basis. Just have to balance everything out. Need to remember Gym starts two weeks!
- Hmm, House speaker Ryan is speaking. He's trying to refocus everyone back on normal government issues. Everyone is going crazy this last week with all of Trumps problems. You haven't seen how much we've been tuned into politics throughout the election and the last 100 days or so with Trump, but it just keeps getting more and more impossible. There is a lot of drama. He just hinted it was media's fault - not Trump or trying to get to the truth. What seemed to be the tipping point is that Trump didn't like the way the FBI investigation was going, so the fired the director of the FBI - Comey, and then Comey turned around and accused trump of trying to get him to stop the investigation on his old National Security - Flynn. When Trump fired Comey, then the deputy attorney general decided to put a special counsel on the investigation of the FBI people. The special prosecutor is Robert Mueller and he seems to be loved by everyone. YAY. Ryan is being pathetic ... like scolding people for not ignoring Trumps problems. They are saying in the news now there are at least 18 different conversations with the Russians and some other sneaky stuff going on. I think now with the just department looking more directly on the Russians and can include calling in Trump - he's going to get caught in his lies and he's not only going to be impeached, he's going to be put in prison. That's my thought because he's really gone overboard with Russia - and its just a matter of figuring out the details.
- Ok, that's my political take on things. Going WAY back now to our cheat sheet. Well before that ... we're going to try ... no let's make that HAVE tried something different in our diet. We've been worrying over iron - the nurse Amie isn't worried, but we are. We're getting about 44% through our multi-vitamin, but now we've bumped or game. We thought we'd have some oatmeal for morning break, but we were late enough today that we decided and may keep that oatmeal be our lunch. We didn't have good lunch plans. We had a double dose - which is what brought it up to the lunch numbers. It's like 54 grams - minus 4 grams for the fiber, but it's then just over a "regular" gram count on the carbs. The other thing we've been worrying about is protein - because between iron and protein, we're figuring that's where some of our energy (see naps conversation) is falling short.
- 11:26 am - oh man ... people hit from a speeding car at time square in NY ... don't have a victim count yet. It's just starting to come in the news. It might have happened a half hour ago. John King's show is on CNN - we've had the news on the back ground. 2-3 minutes and they cleared the area. Hundreds of people involved - probably thousands. Ok, so far 13 patients injured not sure on fatality and they're not sure of the driver. I have to cut this out for a while ... I tend to get sucked into these stories. I hate that people have been hurt - and we're thinking already that it was terrorist - just in the middle of a nice sunny day when everyone was out for lunch. Shoot one person dead - and the car is sitting on its side along pole.
- We're just looking over rescuetime notes ... seems like the same kind of stuff has been happening - so we get to skip that - think we may just be finished. We still have to go back to email for the second time this morning. We had a hard time catching up last night - it been a few days, and then we got through it, and now there are 10 emails. *sigh* Looks like our Evernote Inbox is stacking up too - there are 18 notes there. This is the sort of process we go through to process our Evernote notes. The structures set in place like emails give us information and if any is important (read it) then it goes to the Evernote inbox, and from there it is grouped together and sent to the month's set of notes, and then numbered. And then the links go to the Table of contents, and oh yes forgot have to collect notes from Capture too, but then after table of contents the links go grouped by day to the Master notes (calendar), then they get grouped with stats and put in our monthly overview, and then - if LUCKY we record things in our Latitude report. It IS a process. Going to look at it now for a second - the process. There sure seems like a lot of steps ... thinking which one's might not be necessary, AND what is the end goal from input to output? We'll get back to the email in a minute.
- 12:20 pm we're back. It took a little jiggleting around, but we got things where we wanted them. We reviewed each step, and then we focused on the Latitude outline. When we asked ourselves the value of having "one," we decided to add the word "insight" to the title, because all we know now is that it gives us insight in pulling together all the things that we thing about and process. A good amount is getting recorded. Less on the personal discussions we have with people, but beside Rich and Dr. Marvin, we don't really talk to many people. Less with Linda now and more with the medical staffs, but that will straighten itself out in time as well. I think for expediency here ... we're going to list the topics, we've been working on so far with the outline for the first half of April 2017. I don't know if we did this before, but we seem to be about here now, so let's have it :)
- 1. Ann's Evernote - "Summary Reports" & "Workarounds"
- 2. Health Prioritizing
- 3. Relationships
- 4. Financial
- 5. Home Improvement
- 6. Multiplicity and et al
- 7. Writing/Blogging
- 8. Adult Education: E-learning, Technology & Social Media
- 9. News & Opinion - Political
- 10. General News
- Wow! This is the latest update and I believe we'd written this maybe two or more weeks ago ... hard to tell. AHA! A Cheat! The last time we modified it it was April 30th, 2017 so that was 2-3 weeks ago. I guess someone's been absent. This happens a lot with Multiplicity. I guess this is a big reason why we're back here again with the blogging. I know other things aren't getting done, but we are working SOOO hard to be understanding ourselves and the things that are going around. Like out of repetition ...
- ... we know that we had surgery on Monday, but then our memory goes to the part we collected one picture of us in the hospital bed, and other than that there hasn't been much revisiting of that incident.
- We did push ourselves today to think ahead - what is the next step ... that's where we added the thought - what are we supposed to do next. And we were able to recall that the next meeting with that doctor is June 26th, but it was supposed to take a week or so for the pathology results, and it it was problematic, they would contact us. I'm thinking now that with the efficiencies of Advocate - that if the results were complete, they would send me a note through mychart to say what the results were, and then it would be up to us to wait so we could talk it over with the doctor. More than not we're thinking it won't be cancerous, but we'll talk about the possibility of a hysterectomy at that 26th appointment. I'm getting better at waiting for things and the slow speed of medical procedures, like I'm trying to wait patiently thinking I might not get a c-pap machine until the beginning of June.
- We are really happy that that period of time is getting patched in with the Y exercise program - so we're trying to move our mind to June. Doesn't seem like there is much else going on in May. I don't know if this has been discussed before, and maybe like many others - we're going toward the calendar. We keep trying to summarize things down to a point where we can remember things. Like now we think June - colonoscopy, Dr. Augusthy and Dr. Gandhi. There that's simple ... a whole lot of thinking boiled down to a reasonable amount of process. So? For this week - 3 weeks (2 1/2) into May - what's left? Tetanus shot, Vet, Pewaukee Lake fishing for Rich, then next week - week 4 - Dr. Marvin returns and we see Dr. Khare about the partials, and then FPU (Financial Peace University), and then Thursday we get our new Diabetic shoes. Sunday Rich will be with his Granddaughter for her birthday. Then the following week - week 5/plus start of June... beside FPU and Dr. Marvin, we have the colonoscopy and we start Enhance Fitness - oh yeah Memorial Day and the end of the week Rich leaves for his BIG fishing trip - 8 days to Vermillion Bay Canada.
- And then, the next week - week 2 of June when Rich is gone, we will continue, Dr. Marvin, FPU and Enhance - Oh yes, all of this includes Amie our home nurse too - at least mid-way through July! I believe that the day Rich gets home from fishing - on Saturday the 10th, I have a quilting event, so we'll have to wait one more day to see him. I'm imagining he'd get back late anyway, and that by then I will be driving long distances, and we'll have to stay with Dakota in New Berlin. Thinking now, I remember Mark my BIL stating they were staying that night and they'd like me to stay as well, so that all should work out. The following week - Week 3 - looks about the same with those 3 events, but then AGAIN Rich goes fishing this time for the weekend to Sturgeon Bay - thinking that's Wisconsin. Then the NEXT week - Week 4 Rich is home and we have the 3 events AND the follow-up with Dr. Augusthy, and the following week - Week 5 is the follow-up with Dr. Gandhi. Pswhoo - So as a marker - Dr. Augusthy is just over a month away, so that makes Dr. Gandhi about 5-6 weeks away. GAD! It's a long time - things are spread out TERRIBLY!
- Everything seems of late to be worked through in-between all the medical events. With Dr. Augusthy and Dr. Gandhi not until the last 2 weeks in June, we have some bye time were everything should be nice and calm for the next splurge. Worrying a bit in that we think there will be medical procedures for both after - burning the spine nerves and a possible hysterectomy ... just gotta be processing that all slow. We'd want them close enough so that we could see Dr. Dorman just once for the history appointment that have to be within 30 days of both of them ... could mean - depending on the other doctor's schedule, we could wait until our regular 3 month diabetic appointment August 2nd to see Dr. Dorman - the other stuff should be calm down - oh yeah and the podiatry doctor the week after - still August. That would leave off July for doing nothing! Yay! That be nice. Right now all there is, is Dr. Marvin and the gym - FPU would be all over, and then there are the holidays - 4th of July and my birthday, maybe a visit to the vet with Dakota, Rich would go fishing 4 days to LaCrosse, WI, BUT be home for my birthday!
- Hmm, thinking we have the quilting group in August and then Rich goes to Spring Lake, MI the next weekend, and that is the end of that month. BUT, then September 1rst, he gets his first football game in Batavia. THEN we get Labor Day, so our gym program stops, but will again start up again, but if we were good, we'd be joining the YMCA at regular prices. I sure hope that we get into the exercise - I plan to be about 240 pounds by September ... OMG wouldn't that be something. I'm thinking all along that we're going to need to be exercising as we lose weight because we're going to have extra skin issues, and we're going to want to work with that as hard as possible ... that's the idea at least. I want to be moving by then - even if it includes the extra medical procedures in August or even July. That would be our new goal. We hadn't thought this far ahead yet, but that is what writing is all about. You just get insights all over, because you are going through thoughts that are progressive. Before I end this calendar stuff, we'd like to add to September that the weekend after Labor Day is the Sandwich County Fair, and CS and Mark are planning to come for four days, from what we understand. Those naturally, then would be the four days Rich is fishing again - this time at Tomahawk WI. He's then got two more football games in Crystal Lake and West Chicago, but that ends the month and a good part of the fall.
- He's got two more games in October Wheaton North and Downer's Grove, and then ONE last fishing event - this time at Newton Lake in IL. AFTER THAT the schedule is cleared until Thanksgiving and Christmas. Lordy could I be one of those with a tree up 5-6 months early? Naw, don't want to get into holiday planning, but we sure have filled in a year. Just thing being up to December hehe 2017, is just about over. Question would be ... have we impeached Trump yet?
- Looking up now trying to let the steam escape, we were thinking so how far did we actually progress the Latitude Insight Outline? Did we finish that before we moved on over the calendar? Better use the washroom hehe - drinking a lot of water today ... we're not going to be 5 pounds over tomorrow! Looks like the day has 8 hours 7 minutes - we're at 82% productive ... Rescuetime likes us talking on Evernote - AND, it's only 1:30 pm :)
- 2 pm Back again ... we were feeling pretty good so we figured we would FINALLY - get int a shower. Pswhoo! About time. What's more ... Rich had to go after me, because we seemed both to be pajama workers today. I've never seen Rich go so long without being dressed. We did a little pushing, but I had "right" in my corner hehe. We got through our email and am looking next at our Inbox.
- YAY We're back 3:22 pm ... we've been in and out, but primarily we took care of the inbox and then clipped to the Table of contents, and then we put that on the Master page. I guess there really isn't a lot different between those two space, other than one is line by line and the other is within a calendar format. That's the one, we like to work with when doing the monthly overviews. Hmm, that reminds me, we haven't done that part yet. I think I'm 2-3 days behind. Hold on.
- Pshwoo ... not sure how long this time ... it's 8:07 pm. We might go out on the patio with Rich if he's caught up. I know he likes outside and it's cooler out there, then in the house - the air wasn't on today. Lots of stuff has gone past - a partial webinar, eating, a NCIS New orleans and we watched Rich pack and then make chili dinner. We figured out the numbers for the dinner, or 1//4 of a dinner, since that's how much we'll eat each serving. I like figuring that stuff out with myfitnesspal. This is the secret chili dinner ...
- 1 lb 93% hamburger
- 1 can Bush's chili beans - red beans in hot chili sauce
- 1 bottle Riverwalk salsa
- 3 tsp great value chili powder
- 1/2 tsp McCormick thyme
- Wallah - it is done. The serving size is 1/4 of this "meal" so
- 336 calories
- 9 g total fat
- 4 g saturated fat
- 70 mg cholesterol
- 1641 sodium
- 802 mg potassium
- 29 g carbs
- 9 g fiber
- 6 g sugar
- 29 g protein
- 11% Vitamin A
- 33% Vitamin C
- 7% Calcium
- 25% iron
- Pretty cool, hmm? Can you imagine how helpful that would be? GREAT for diet. That and the ounce scale make all the difference. It has a tare thing so that we can take off the weight of the dish - any size, so then anything else is the weight of the food. You can put in any quantity to suit your fancy and all the numbers are ready to go ... this is what it looks like for Rich's chili recipe above.
- don't know how anyone does a diet without this ... and then ... it saves it so we can use it at any time. Ahh, he through a loop in. I just showed him how the system worked like I just type in Rich's chili and then 1/4 serving and THIS appears on my menu - in the correct quantities.
- So the loop? Rich doesn't have enough plastic to divide the servings in plastic - SOOO ... he's going to use the scale to get a full meal weight, and then we can just use a percentage and use as much food as we want per scale when were ready to eat. That's a good idea too. Isn't this a really neat program? Ok ... just one more thing - you know how we get. This is the LAST sheet will show you.
This is just the neatest of things - this chart is one of the neat thing. There are a couple dozen reports - this one is for Net calories consumed for one week. The first part of the chart is it gives you a daily bar line WITH the calorie count inside the bar - easier to read, and then the orange line across the screen is the goal - our calorie count is at 1600 calories, so you can read over or under and shoot for goals more easily, and then the chart underneath is the foods highest in calories. Because we ate our omelet 6 times during the week (God bless Rich), we've totaled out for 1404 total calories of omelets for the week. It helps in so many ways of watching the numbers. Wow! Who would have known we ate FOUR Chobani Peach Yogurt! Good to know. Hmm, that's interesting - we've been marking down TWO coleslaws from Walmart - AND the numbers are really different the higher number is only 36 higher in the top number over the bottom, but the top number has 3 servings. Of course our serving size one each item could be different like .50 cup or .75 cup, but still better try and get one number.
Anyway that's about it for the night. Getting tired - almost 9 pm. Rich has been next to me winding line into his reel. That will help him get get in the water faster. Hehe - he just had me help. I had to hold the round thing with new string. We put a pencil in the hole and he reeled in what he needed. HEY ... it's time for yogurt! Where was my head?