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Friday, January 27, 2006

WTF

Today I went to the rhumetologist and approached the subject of me having babies. In a nutshell he told me I should not have them. Evidently, I am on all the "messing up growing babies drugs" and I would be off too much medicine while trying to get pregnant and my body would flare up bad. He wondered if I could handle the pain. My JAR has mostly just got worst over the past two years and the drugs I am on are not really working like Dr. Rutstein wanted. He seemed to be worried about the stress on my body and all the unknowns that go with JAR and pregnancy Even if the pregnancy was good after the baby was born I would flare up and not be able to take care of the baby. For him it seemed like too many risks. At different times in my life I asked this questions of him and it was a lot of wait and see; some hopeful answers but nothing definitive. When I asked him today and he realized I was serious the answer was no. So essentially I was falsely hoping all along. I guess there are always second opinions, but I think I know in my heart they will say the same thing.

On the upside there is adoption and that is probably what I will do, but still a little part of my soul died today.

Thursday, January 26, 2006

Good News and Bad News

Well, yesterday I went to the orthopedic doctor and he said that I am continuing to heal and that I can keep doing physical therapy and I will not have to do the surgery. That is the good news.

The bad news....I just found out today that they are going to eliminate the service learning position at UTSA and give all the job duties over to me. So, basically I do two jobs and don't get any extra pay. What is more disturbing is that UTSA would kill a program that was originally started by a student. Obviously, service is not one of UTSA's main priorities and I guess that just makes me sad.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Major Updates

Ok folks major updates ahead:

UTSA: Well, last week was the first week of school and it was super busy. I worked last Saturday doing this conference for students and the Sunday before MLK I did a workday with my VOICES students. So by the end of the week I was tired, but then it is kinda always like that the first week of school. It turns out that we are going to send students to New Orleans over spring break to help with hurricane relief efforts. I am excited about this trip and think it will be a humbling experience for the students that are going.

Nevil: The big news around here currently is Nevil Shed. He was one of the players on The Texas Western basketball team in 1966. They started black players which had never been done before and they won the championship title. The movie Glory Road is literally his life. Nevil even had some plot lines in the movie. Anyway, it was a good movie that the whole family could enjoy. Nevil is even on a Wheaties box and he is practically excited about that.

Physical Therapy: So the physical therapy continues. I actually look forward to the sessions which is weird. The folks there are nice and it seems to be helping a lot. I can drive now and bend my leg when I sit at my desk and have it not hurt. I can walk without crutches, but I have to remember to bend my leg when I walk. I also still wear the brace during the day. Tomorrow I go see the orthopedist, so we will see what he has to say on the progress. Dirk, the PT guy said he is a conservative doctor and does not usually do surgery unless he has to. So I might just have to do PT and never need the surgery. I am getting better but I also realize it is a slow constant process that will take some time.

Nephews: Sam and I went over to his brother's house to play the Dungeon and Dragons game they got for Christmas. We arrived about 6:00pm and stayed until 11:00pm! The next day we all went to Dave & Busters because Jonah got the highest score in his whole school on his TAKS test (the new TEAMS for those of my generation) Anyway, the nephews are cute and super excited about everything. Being a kid was cool.

Jeff: Jeff's dad sold the house in TN so now he can begin to look for a house here. Also, Jeff presented his work he has been doing for his Masters Saturday in CA to a committee and they seem to like it. Also, he presented some ideas to the paten board on Friday. Jeff and his professor are making a teaching model for surgeon students that simulates real skin, so the students can practice cutting in real skin vs. cadaver skin. Evidently the give, texture, etc. is all very different. Anyway, the model, method and idea can all be patented so Jeff and this professor get to publish the paper and might get dollars from the patent. Cool!

Saturday, January 07, 2006

My first Christmas tree as a Slocum


My internet at home works so I am just now blogging Christmas. It was a wonderful Christmas both at the Slocums and at the Smith & relatives. At the Slocums we opened gifts, ate and played D&D with the nephews. So cute! At the Smith's we opened, gifts, ate and then went over to grandma's to open more gifts and eat more. It completely rocked! Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year. Mostly I just love spending time with family. Above is Sam and me with our first Christmas tree.

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

Cats are smarter than people think


Today on NPR I heard this story. 911 got a call, but there was no response on the other line. When they arrived a guy had fallen out of his wheelchair and the cat was by the phone. The guy said he tried to teach the cat to dial 911 in an emergency, but was never sure if it had stuck. Well evidently it did. Cats save lives!