The Week

Tomorrow it will be one week since I picked up my violin and, in case you were wondering, I’m still pretty bad at it. The deer in the backyard are like, “Let’s come back later when she’s done,” once I start playing and I already told you the cat leaves the room at the idea that I might play. I’m still working on open strings. I don’t know who Ole King Cole is, but I can play his song!

It’s been a hospital free week so far (knock on wood). Last week Bunny was in the hospital and it was scary and frustrating and a relief all at the same time. A relief, because now there is somewhat of a diagnosis and a treatment plan, where we only had one big giant mystery before, but scary because part of what we found out is that Bunny has a small hole in her heart. It’s called a PFO (which stands for something I can’t remember) and everyone is born with it. For the majority of people, it closes as they grow, but Bunny’s didn’t close all the way. It sounds alarming, but 30% of the population has this hole, and many have no symptoms and are not even aware they have it.

Bunny was admitted to the hospital with stroke-like symptoms. Cognitive and vision impairment, but no headache, which is the thing that’s been plaguing her the most lately. It turns out though, that the small hole in her heart is related to a certain kind of complicated migraine that causes cognitive and visual impairment. It’s a scary thing to have happen (like what if it happens when she’s driving????) but like I said, at least now we know what it is and we start treatment plans. She sees a neurologist again soon, the next step after the heart test and the CT scan and the MRI and the physical therapist and speech therapist and occupational therapist and two different neurologists and one really, really, bad doctor.

That doctor, she was something else. Sashaying into the room with no time to waste, telling my daughter she has a hole in her heart but there’s no treatment plan. She actually said the words, “We can’t fix everything” and shrugged, before getting frustrated with our questions and the fact that Bunny was REALLY upset about being told she had a hole in her heart, at which point she said, “I’m just going to go, I don’t do passive aggressive.”

I wanted to tell her that we were in no way being passive, we were straight up asking her what to do if it happens again, and so far she had responded with, “Maybe just take ibuprofen” and that gem about not being able to fix everything, but she was out the door in a flash. I can’t wait until I get the bill. I have a little something to say about that.
Bunny called the day after she was released and filed a complaint with the hospital. The hospital sent her a letter stating that they are sorry to hear about her complaint but the doctor doesn’t work for them, she works for a clinic so Bunny will need to contact them. In other words- WE DON’T CARE.

It should be noted that the other doctors and therapists and nurses were all fabulous and as helpful as they could be under the circumstances. Especially the neurologist who came BACK after the doctor had thoroughly upset both of us to talk with Bunny about what the next steps were and what she needed to do in the meantime. But that one doctor- UGH!

It was supposed to snow again today, but luckily it landed on Iowa instead (Sorry, Iowa) which is good because the snow is making us all want to stick our heads in the oven. Although, I was thinking about that whole “stick your head in an oven” thing earlier today and I can’t see how that would work. I mean, number one, do you take the oven door off? Because I don’t know about you guys but my oven door kind of prevents me from really getting in there, you know? Anyway, it didn’t snow so that’s a question for another day.

There is also something about the snow that makes me want to bake and cook comfort food. We’ve had chicken pot pie, and taco pie and hamburger rice hotdish (Otherwise known as “funeral hotdish” at the work potluck) and then I baked us a cake and some soft yeast rolls and some banana cupcakes. (And then I’m like, “Dammit! Why are my jeans tight?”) It’s like we need to fatten up for the winter all over again!

Speaking of fattening up, all the deer are getting wider and wider. Spring always means baby animals everywhere, but this time of the year its just chubby mama deer and then all the couples. The cranes and the geese and three kinds of ducks and the pheasants- they all come in pairs in the Spring. Once the babies are born I never see the female pheasants, never see the male ducks except with other males, and never see the geese again. Only the cranes raise their babies together.

There is one mama deer, still traveling with her baby from last Spring, widening every day, who walks with a very bad limp. Her front left shoulder is hurt, probably from a car hit. It makes me cringe and feel like sobbing every time I see her come into the yard- but she’s still eating, a very good sign because animals who are really sick don’t eat, and we are pulling for her to make a full recovery. She spent a fair amount of time during the snow storm last weekend just laying out in the yard. We kind of spoil her and her yearling fawn with food when we have the chance. It’s about the only thing we can do.

The deer are sick of corn. I mean, they still eat it ‘cause they are hungry but they will eat anything else also, which is not always true except for in the late Spring. J’s been putting out some fresh alfalfa, which they have been gobbling up, and I bought them a few pounds of apples. I put out some old bread the other day and it disappeared in no time flat. They search out the melted spots under the trees looking for something besides corn to eat. Anyway, everyone is sick of Winter.

Tomorrow is my Friday, because on actual Friday I have to go to a funeral. An Uncle of mine has died, and even though he was older than my grandpa, it’s hard for me to believe the father of my six cousins is gone. In February we went to a funeral for one of J’s Uncles, and when I hugged his cousin goodbye she said to me, “How are your parents?” and I have to admit, the question kind of shocked me. My mom was young when she had me, so my parents are in their sixties and pretty healthy. But ever since then I’ve been appreciating the fact that I still have parents a lot more, something that’s only reinforced by another funeral.

Wow, way to get all depressing Nic, huh? Anyway, the silver lining is that tomorrow is my Friday, which makes up for the fact that a lot of people had Monday off because of the snow, something you don’t get when you work from home like I do most of the time. Truthfully, I’d rather work every single “snow” day than go into the office every day so I really should stop whining.

Strike that last paragraph from the record.

That’s about it for the life and times of Nic this week. Hope you are all having a great week, and its not still Winter wherever you are.

Nic