SueWorks

A Monster Something

It's got coughing and a congested chest so it must be a cold.  There is also slow nose runniness of late.  The cough though has the oddest sound.  The rumbling is deep in the lungs, I really feel it in the exact center which is every odd, 'cause the lungs are on the sides.  There is also a great deal of fatigue and headache.  I'm really loving the Nyquil gelcaps, only I need to remember not to take them during waking hours.

The Puffy Red Heart

Pkin actually bought me flowers for Valentine's Day, once.  There was a rose bush, red paper flowers, and a puffy, red plastic heart filled with mini Snicker bars.  The rose bush didn't make it, but everything else is alive and kicking.  Funny how it is so easy to keep inanimate objects alive.

The heart reminds me that Pkin loves me.  I wonder what he told the sales clerk (probably a younger female) when he bought the goodies.  It makes me smile.

Stuff You Need to Know

There are 12 basic handshakes according to Robert E. Brown.  You have to buy the book to find out the details and there are world wide implications. 

I have a good shake but lack a smooth intro which totally detracts from a good firm but not to firm grip.  It's library time for me.

Pushy Salespeople

In the past three days I've received two calls from an unsolicited vendor.  They are hosting a webinar in a topic that might be of interest.  They are just so darned pushy.  They have my name and phone number now.  If I sign up for the webinar then they would have my email and address.   The two calls were just so obnoxious.  Both callers had very heavy accents which made the calls very difficult to understand.  I'm wondering if I need to put my "global" marketplace hat on. 

How do you help someone help you understand them? 

First I need to listen with unbiased attention.  Second I need to research them a bit.  If it's an upstart company -- will they give us a deal just to get in the door?  Do they have the capability?  Third I need to ask around.  How did they get my info?

Moose's Adventure

Today was the big day.  The newest arrival in the Sue-Pkin household was undergoing pretty serious surgery.  We were all wrong, though, in thinking that he was going under the knife.  Apparently when you're a 12-year-old canine like Moose you get laser surgery and more than the forecasted amount was taken. 

Pkin dropped him off and picked him up, after all Moose is his dog, right!?!  Is there an inherent difference between how husbands approach situations and how their wives do?

I called Pkin later in the AM, asking after Moose:  What time was he expected to get out of surgery?  Would he be home tonight?  What did they say?  All pretty standard pre-op questions, I thought.  Well, not so much.  Pkin likes to play it by ear which I should be used to after all these years. 

Moose came home this afternoon.  He looks pretty good, he's eating a bit and drinking a lot.  He doesn't seem to have any pain in the tail region.  It's about five inches long now and all covered up in gauze and a bright red outer layer.  I can't decide if I like the bright red covering or not.  It looks like it's all bloody but then you can't really see the blood because the cover is bright red.  I have glanced surreptitiously at the carpet under said tail nub and it's looks OK.  Pkin has taken to calling him "Bob."  I like "Stubby" better.  Moose appears to be able to walk, lie down, and get up with the same level of ease (or lack of ease) as before.  Rosey seems a little more solicitous of him.  I'm encouraging Pkin to spend some quality time with her in the midst of all the Moose-focus, see another consideration that H-bands do not think about, or maybe only mine.

The same general conversation from the morning happened when I got home in the evening and asked about the prognosis:  When would be the biopsy results be in?  Did you make a follow up appointment?  Why did they take more than they expected?  Does he have any restrictions?  Again, no detailed responses.  Moose should be seen again in 5 or so days when his dressing will be changed.  No appointment has been made.

I do not want to bitch and moan too much more ... I want to know what is the inherent difference between Pkin and I.  Do I want too much info?  Does he want too little?  Alright, I do want some validation.  Pkin didn't make the initial appointment that got to the surgery appointment.  Daily for about a month, he would say things like, "Oww, that sore looks bad." or "We really should get that looked at."  If I hadn't done anything we could have had our vacation paid for already instead we have a stubby dog who has a good chance of having cancer.  What does it all mean? 

There are a few pet lovers who read, so please understand that I'm at a place where the dollar amount figures into the pet health care decision making process.  I suppose there is a dollar amount that would impact the human health care decision making process as well.  So in addition to the inherent difference between husbands and wives (not even going into men and women) I want to explore the difference between pet lovers and pet care providers. 

I can't decide if our doctor really loves animals or loves making a buck.  He's very nice to the pets, calling them by their names, appearing to have real concern in his eyes.  And then I saw his kennel facilities.  Oh, my goodness.  It was like Auschwitz for doggies and kitties.  They were mixed in one room and it smelled horrible, and they were all scared.  How could someone who loves animals keep this place, and sell it to others? 

When I first had animals of my own (Thanks to Boo which is another rant in the making) I had a great vet, Dr. Shackleford.   I have a distinct picture of him eating yogurt overseeing one of Dotsy's first visits.  At that time Boo had named her "Dots and Spots and something else that I can't recall now."  It just cracked him up.  He mimicked standing on the porch calling "Dots and Spots" when it was time for her to come inside.  He seemed to really love animals.  In time the practice was sold to a corporation, the VCA whatever it is, and he died very young (I think the order was reversed.)  It's was just like the saying and Billy Joel song, Only the Good Die Young.  We moved and the cats ended up with the vet they have now.  Only now we have one less cat and I have two more dogs.  I have a sickly old kitty and a recovering sickee old dog and then there is Rosey.

Oh, did I tell you about the doctor appointment I had to make for Pkin?  For Pkin to go to a doctor for himself?

LGBT Leadership Institute

The comment is usually "only in LA." 

UCLA has developed a program specifically for leaders who are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender.  The materials describe this as the only program of its kind in the country.  The first program, as far as I can find out (without calling UCLA), was in 2004 as a week of interactivity with a very hefty cost associated.  I cannot find any information about the success of past programs, however it is defined.  I would love to know how you gauge success and why I can't find any data about the program. 

A Dark Cloud

A darkening of spirits has begun in the Sue and Pkin household.  Moose is going to have a tail-ectomy.  He has a nasty looking sore on the last third of his very large and long tail.  Pkin's Mom said it was a burr.  Moose's vet thinks it might be cancer.  On Wednesday Moose will be dropped off for the big operation.  We'll find out after the biopsy what it really is. 

The doctor is planning to take only the portion from the sore to the tip.  I wonder if he'll make a cosmetically pleasing cut.  I have a feeling this is just like my Grampa.  First it's a toe, then another one.  You know the story.  If I had even a cancer-LIKE tail I would prefer to remove the whole darned thing. 

I think we'll need to keep Rosey away for quite a few days while Moose recovers. 

As I mentioned previously, we are heading out of town in a month and the pookies have had a few challenges during recent vacations.  We'll all have to be strong.

A Breather

Sometimes you need to rest.  Try spa-lite, and the Indigo Escape.

Oh, the Countless Wasted Hours

I just read a disheartening article online, 20 Great Jobs that Don't Require a College Degree.  Bill Gates and Microsoft seem purely indulgent.  Of course if you build a rather interesting mousetrap that needs to be re-booted for no good reason you'll be a gazillionnaire.  It's just a given.

Do I really need a Ph.D.?  I have read that the median expected salary for the average liberal arts professor is $73,000.  Maybe I'm better off as an air traffic controller now that Reagan is dead.

Bigger Things

I really wanted to post on linen and why a sensible women who drives 30 minutes each way and plans to spend the vast majority of her day in her desk chair at work would wear not only a linen skirt but also a linen blouse but more important things are happening in the world. 

A leading civil rights advocate, Andrew Young made allegedly racist and prejudices comments.  He did make the comments, it's alleged whether they are racist and prejudiced according to him.  Apparently New York and Los Angeles have different standards than, say, Atlanta.  Well, I did see the beauty shop movie with Queen Latifah which was set in Atlanta, and, yes, there were things said and done that I don't think would have flown had the movie been set in LA.  I don't mean to demean civil rights efforts by comparing them to a Hollywood movie though movies and art do reflect the mores of the society which created the expression. 

Anyway, Mr. Young is unemployed and on the apology wagon.  From what I read he's really not on board 100%, maybe he and Mr. Bush need to have a pow wow briefing.