Tuesday, June 3, 2008
New License Plates
Yay! I got the license plates for my new car today! Not bad, they arrived in just 2 weeks. I was wondering what my number would be (silly, but this is my 1st new car so I was all giddy about it). I knew we were in the "P"s, so I was definitely hoping it wouldn't be something like "PRV" or "PUS"...thankfully, it turned out to be neither.
Ghetto Dinner & Ketchup
Brian unexpectedly had to work last night so I just couldn't get motivated to cook a decent dinner. So, what did I end up eating? I found a 1/2 empty bag of tater tots (leftover from sometime last year, I believe) and had a craving for creamed corn. So, yep, dinner consisted of a tray of tater tots, ketchup, and a can of creamed corn.
On another note, ketchup is my absolute most favorite condiment. I joke to Brian that I could probably cut out a lot of calories if he just let me eat ketchup right out of the bottle--forget the french fries. They are merely a vehicle for me to eat ketchup. Disgusting, huh? What can I say. :) Oh, and for economic reasons, I only buy Del Monte, but I also like Hunt's. I refuse to buy Heinz for political reasons. :P
On another note, ketchup is my absolute most favorite condiment. I joke to Brian that I could probably cut out a lot of calories if he just let me eat ketchup right out of the bottle--forget the french fries. They are merely a vehicle for me to eat ketchup. Disgusting, huh? What can I say. :) Oh, and for economic reasons, I only buy Del Monte, but I also like Hunt's. I refuse to buy Heinz for political reasons. :P
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
In Memory of Grandma Nakanishi
We just got back from the hospital a little while ago. Brian's Grandma, Chieko (Furubayashi) Nakanishi passed away at 7PM tonight. Although this is a sad time, the mood at the hospital was quite light-hearted. I think we all knew Grandma was in pain and it was just her time. She was 94 years old! She's in a much better place and looked so peaceful. Here are some photos of her from our wedding, which I'm so thankful she was able to attend.
Oh yeah, and I changed the color of the blog background this afternoon. While dark blue is my favorite color, it was a bit too melancholy and was totally bringing me down today. So, it's a little brighter now. :)
Oh yeah, and I changed the color of the blog background this afternoon. While dark blue is my favorite color, it was a bit too melancholy and was totally bringing me down today. So, it's a little brighter now. :)
My New Favorite Blog
Here's my new fave blog that I plan to check daily: "Dispatches from the Island"
It's by Jorge Garcia a.k.a. Hurley "Hugo" Reyes from LOST. It's cool to read about his life with some insight into island life, in particular.
I wish I had random, yet cool, things to blog about everyday. My life is, seemingly, mundane. Either that, or...I can't believe I'm going to say this...I need to get me a nifty little point-and-shoot to make picture-taking & photo processing much quicker. I think I see some random interesting things from time-to-time, but I don't have the Rebel with me or the situation wouldn't warrant me bringing it out.
It's by Jorge Garcia a.k.a. Hurley "Hugo" Reyes from LOST. It's cool to read about his life with some insight into island life, in particular.
I wish I had random, yet cool, things to blog about everyday. My life is, seemingly, mundane. Either that, or...I can't believe I'm going to say this...I need to get me a nifty little point-and-shoot to make picture-taking & photo processing much quicker. I think I see some random interesting things from time-to-time, but I don't have the Rebel with me or the situation wouldn't warrant me bringing it out.
Monday, May 26, 2008
Happy Anniversary, Keith & Dior!!!
My very great friends, Dior and Keith, celebrated their 2nd wedding anniversary on Sunday, May 25th! I'm so happy for both of you!!!! I'm so sorry, but I meant to send you two a card and a little something from Brian and me, but with all that was going on last week, I never got around to it. I hope the day was a great celebration of your life and love together. :)
Updates Galore
It's been a crazy few weeks and I apologize for allowing communication with many of you to lapse.
Benny had it pretty rough for about 5 weeks. He had corrective surgery on every toe on his 2 front toes to fix a botched declaw procedure he had 8 years ago. Just as he was recovering from that, I noticed a tiny little bump on his neck, which soon grew and became purple. After the vet removed it (requiring him to undergo anesthesia 2 times in 2 weeks), she sent it for a biopsy. It was malignant, but we caught it early enough such that it probably didn't metastasize. The prognosis is good. We spent about $850 on that kitty in just a few weeks. Oh well.
Tuesday, May 20
Just as things were beginning to calm down, Brian's grandma ended up in the hospital this past Tuesday with a bedsore, blood clot, and infection, which will likely spread to the rest of her body, causing her to become septic. She's too old and frail for surgery and other treatments. The doctors have given her 1 week. Yes, to live....
Update: We saw Grandma on Tuesay, at which time the doctor told our family that she had 1 day to 1 week to live. She was still holding on strong when we saw her this past Saturday. Today (Monday) we got a call from my sister-in-law, saying the doctor told the family she would pass today. We rushed over to the hospital and stayed for about 3 hours. She was still holding on when we left at 6PM. She will likely pass tomorrow. The infection has become worse, spreading to her kidneys. She isn't on life support or anything...she had a steady morphine drip for the pain. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayers....
Wednesday & Thursday, May 21 &22
Long story short, I ended up buying a 2008 VW Rabbit on Wednesday. Little bro works for a VW dealership and got me all the hook-ups. My trusty, rusty (literally) ol' 2001 Corolla was at that point--run it into the ground or trade it in while it's still worth something decent. It all happened so fast...not my usual M.O. of reasearching, analyzing, thinking it over, etc. But, I think we made the right decision and I haven't had "Buyer's Remorse" yet.
Friday, May 23
Friay, all was going well until about 2PM. My mom called me from work and asked me to pick her up. She was suddenly hit with severe dizziness and nausea. She has high blood pressure so I was thinking heart attack or stroke. Steven and I got her to the ER. Turns out it's vertigo and they're not sure what the onset was. She just needs to rest and has some anti-nausea and vertigo meds.
Saturday, May 24
We had to go back to the VW dealership for a couple more signatures and for them to do a little reprogramming for my VW. The DRL (daytime running lights) weren't working. After we were done a VW, we had to go to Waialua High & Intermideiate School to help my father-in-law out with some computer stuff for this classroom. As Brian helped out Dad, I shot some photos around the campus. I'll post a few later on. We took the Rabbit out there and I must say that it handled the drive quite nicely. I'm also pleased to report that I did all the driving on Saturday. I can't believe I made it to and from Waialua in one piece. :P Of course, Brian was with me to make sure I was safe. :)
Sunday, May 25
We bummed around on Sunday. We were super tired, probably from all the excitement from the week. We caught up on all of our DVR'd Conan O'Brien shows.
Benny had it pretty rough for about 5 weeks. He had corrective surgery on every toe on his 2 front toes to fix a botched declaw procedure he had 8 years ago. Just as he was recovering from that, I noticed a tiny little bump on his neck, which soon grew and became purple. After the vet removed it (requiring him to undergo anesthesia 2 times in 2 weeks), she sent it for a biopsy. It was malignant, but we caught it early enough such that it probably didn't metastasize. The prognosis is good. We spent about $850 on that kitty in just a few weeks. Oh well.
Tuesday, May 20
Just as things were beginning to calm down, Brian's grandma ended up in the hospital this past Tuesday with a bedsore, blood clot, and infection, which will likely spread to the rest of her body, causing her to become septic. She's too old and frail for surgery and other treatments. The doctors have given her 1 week. Yes, to live....
Update: We saw Grandma on Tuesay, at which time the doctor told our family that she had 1 day to 1 week to live. She was still holding on strong when we saw her this past Saturday. Today (Monday) we got a call from my sister-in-law, saying the doctor told the family she would pass today. We rushed over to the hospital and stayed for about 3 hours. She was still holding on when we left at 6PM. She will likely pass tomorrow. The infection has become worse, spreading to her kidneys. She isn't on life support or anything...she had a steady morphine drip for the pain. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayers....
Wednesday & Thursday, May 21 &22
Long story short, I ended up buying a 2008 VW Rabbit on Wednesday. Little bro works for a VW dealership and got me all the hook-ups. My trusty, rusty (literally) ol' 2001 Corolla was at that point--run it into the ground or trade it in while it's still worth something decent. It all happened so fast...not my usual M.O. of reasearching, analyzing, thinking it over, etc. But, I think we made the right decision and I haven't had "Buyer's Remorse" yet.
Friday, May 23
Friay, all was going well until about 2PM. My mom called me from work and asked me to pick her up. She was suddenly hit with severe dizziness and nausea. She has high blood pressure so I was thinking heart attack or stroke. Steven and I got her to the ER. Turns out it's vertigo and they're not sure what the onset was. She just needs to rest and has some anti-nausea and vertigo meds.
Saturday, May 24
We had to go back to the VW dealership for a couple more signatures and for them to do a little reprogramming for my VW. The DRL (daytime running lights) weren't working. After we were done a VW, we had to go to Waialua High & Intermideiate School to help my father-in-law out with some computer stuff for this classroom. As Brian helped out Dad, I shot some photos around the campus. I'll post a few later on. We took the Rabbit out there and I must say that it handled the drive quite nicely. I'm also pleased to report that I did all the driving on Saturday. I can't believe I made it to and from Waialua in one piece. :P Of course, Brian was with me to make sure I was safe. :)
Sunday, May 25
We bummed around on Sunday. We were super tired, probably from all the excitement from the week. We caught up on all of our DVR'd Conan O'Brien shows.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Benny: Biopsy Results
The vet called yesterday afternoon. It was a blur, which is why I hate discussing important things over the phone. It always takes a while to process the info and I've already hung up by the time the real questions start to form.
Basically, she said the growth was a "skin cancer with low grade malignancy" and that the amount of skin they excised is "likely curative". She said Benny may develop more growths since he's white. She didn't sound too concerned and didn't offer any other next steps.
Benny has another appointment this Thursday (his 5th visit in 6 weeks) to have his sutures removed (he's got a bald patch on his neck with an incision about 1" long). I'm developing a list of questions for her:
- Can she tell if the cancer has spread to other parts of his body besides just the skin?
- Is there anything we can do to prevent the spread?
- Are there any signs to watch out for?
- Should we try to keep them out of the sun (they're indoors, but they love to sit on the window sill)?
- Would tinted windows help? We thought about tinting our windows when we bought our townhouse 2 years ago, but never did it due to cost and being lazy. :P We were quoted $870 to do a tint/security film for all of our windows 2 years ago. This may be the prime time to do it.
Anyway, just thought I'd give an update to all who may be wondering. It's definitely not the news I wanted to hear (i.e. "cancer" and "malignant"), but it could have been a lot worse. Benny and I thank you all for all of your thoughts and prayers.
Basically, she said the growth was a "skin cancer with low grade malignancy" and that the amount of skin they excised is "likely curative". She said Benny may develop more growths since he's white. She didn't sound too concerned and didn't offer any other next steps.
Benny has another appointment this Thursday (his 5th visit in 6 weeks) to have his sutures removed (he's got a bald patch on his neck with an incision about 1" long). I'm developing a list of questions for her:
- Can she tell if the cancer has spread to other parts of his body besides just the skin?
- Is there anything we can do to prevent the spread?
- Are there any signs to watch out for?
- Should we try to keep them out of the sun (they're indoors, but they love to sit on the window sill)?
- Would tinted windows help? We thought about tinting our windows when we bought our townhouse 2 years ago, but never did it due to cost and being lazy. :P We were quoted $870 to do a tint/security film for all of our windows 2 years ago. This may be the prime time to do it.
Anyway, just thought I'd give an update to all who may be wondering. It's definitely not the news I wanted to hear (i.e. "cancer" and "malignant"), but it could have been a lot worse. Benny and I thank you all for all of your thoughts and prayers.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Check out Dirty Thunder!!!
We went to another Dirty Thunder concert last night. It was awesome and we had a great time. They're playing Don Ho's @ Aloha Tower Marketplace next Saturday. Come out if you can. :)
Monday, May 5, 2008
Benny: Surgery Round 2
Benny ended up back in surgery today. :( Here's what happened....
1-1/2 weeks ago, Benny went back to the vet for his declaw surgery follow-up visit. He was finally given the all clear and rejoined society on April 25th. He was so happy to be out of our bedroom. He was getting cabin fever and confining a cat in our tiny bedroom was beginning to take its toll on us, as well.
During his follow-up, I asked the vet to take a look at a tiny growth I noticed on his neck. She said it didn't look like anything to be concerned about, but to bring him back if it got bigger. Okay, so I should also mention that she poked it with a small needle while we were there, thinking it may have been a whitehead that she could take care of it on the spot. Well, after she poked it, nothing came out. She put some antibiotic ointment on it and we were on our merry way. I'm now wondering if we'd be here today if she had just left it alone....
Well, over the course of 1-1/2 weeks, I would say it doubled in size and this past Friday, I noticed it was purple and crusty. The vet couldn't see Benny again until today. Brian took Benny in this morning and the vet decided to keep Benny for the day and perform surgery to remove the growth. Poor Benny had to undergo anesthesia for the 2nd time in just over 2 weeks!
I feel terrible because Benny doesn't have a clue what's going on or why he keeps having to go under the knife. :( He also has a couple of toes that are still trying to heal. The vet thinks he's over-grooming them and not allowing them to fully heal. Luckily, she sent him home with antibiotics, which should help the rest of his toes and his latest incision heal.
Benny is back home now, but I'm nervously awaiting the biopsy results. In 72 hours, we should know whether the growth is benign or the "other" kind...I can't bring myself to even mention that "other" kind. :( The vet said she wouldn't normally be too concerned, but because Benny is an older cat (8 years old) and because he's white (to quote Super Knottie & veterinarian mrspresley, "white cats have a higher incidence of squamous cell carcinomas...") she really wants to be sure everything is normal.
Lol, you should have seen my reaction when I was told how much today's surgery cost. To sum it up, we've spent about $850 on Benny's surgeries in the past 2 weeks. Thank God for the economic stimulus act and for our tax refunds this year!
I'll keep you all posted on the biopsy results. It's gonna be a long 3 days....
1-1/2 weeks ago, Benny went back to the vet for his declaw surgery follow-up visit. He was finally given the all clear and rejoined society on April 25th. He was so happy to be out of our bedroom. He was getting cabin fever and confining a cat in our tiny bedroom was beginning to take its toll on us, as well.
During his follow-up, I asked the vet to take a look at a tiny growth I noticed on his neck. She said it didn't look like anything to be concerned about, but to bring him back if it got bigger. Okay, so I should also mention that she poked it with a small needle while we were there, thinking it may have been a whitehead that she could take care of it on the spot. Well, after she poked it, nothing came out. She put some antibiotic ointment on it and we were on our merry way. I'm now wondering if we'd be here today if she had just left it alone....
Well, over the course of 1-1/2 weeks, I would say it doubled in size and this past Friday, I noticed it was purple and crusty. The vet couldn't see Benny again until today. Brian took Benny in this morning and the vet decided to keep Benny for the day and perform surgery to remove the growth. Poor Benny had to undergo anesthesia for the 2nd time in just over 2 weeks!
I feel terrible because Benny doesn't have a clue what's going on or why he keeps having to go under the knife. :( He also has a couple of toes that are still trying to heal. The vet thinks he's over-grooming them and not allowing them to fully heal. Luckily, she sent him home with antibiotics, which should help the rest of his toes and his latest incision heal.
Benny is back home now, but I'm nervously awaiting the biopsy results. In 72 hours, we should know whether the growth is benign or the "other" kind...I can't bring myself to even mention that "other" kind. :( The vet said she wouldn't normally be too concerned, but because Benny is an older cat (8 years old) and because he's white (to quote Super Knottie & veterinarian mrspresley, "white cats have a higher incidence of squamous cell carcinomas...") she really wants to be sure everything is normal.
Lol, you should have seen my reaction when I was told how much today's surgery cost. To sum it up, we've spent about $850 on Benny's surgeries in the past 2 weeks. Thank God for the economic stimulus act and for our tax refunds this year!
I'll keep you all posted on the biopsy results. It's gonna be a long 3 days....
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