Personal Note & Music Tuesday: O Holy Night by Katie Melua

I’m alive.  Being home for the holidays you would think I would have more time to blog, but alas no.  The older my son gets, the more time from me he demands and both being home the last week he really insists we do things together.  I did get him a construction project  for us to do together for Christmas.  It’s Mindware’s STEM Newton'sLaws Engineering Kit.    

It’s pretty neat, and on our first project, a dragster car, either we did something wrong or there’s a mistake in the procedures.  Well, I’ll figure it out.  I am an engineer with 31 years of experience.  I would be forever embarrassed if I couldn’t figure it out.  I guess this could be the engineering version of “Are You Smarter than an Eight Year Old.” 

The other thing that’s taking my time is my mother.  Last note I included here she was still in the Rehab/Nursing home.  She was discharged on the day before Christmas Eve.  Her hip is doing great!  She was outstanding in physical therapy and other than Tylenol she has not needed any more pain medicine.  Two minor issues came up.  A urinary flow issue and a stomach reflux issue.  Both issues were there to begin with, but undergoing the operation may have exacerbated them.  She just needs to follow up with some specialists.  Physical therapist is coming to the house a few times a week, but he doesn’t think she’s going to need much more.

What I’ve missed is to wish all my readers a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  I hope it was all special for you and blessed.  I'm not sure if I’ve never posted “O Holy Night” before.  It has become my favorite Christmas carol.  I could listen to it all day long.  And I came across this singer I had never heard of before, Katie Melua. From what I understand she’s somewhat well known.  It’s me that’s pop culture ignorant.  Melua is a British young lady but an immigrant from the country Georgia.  She went back to her country to make this album, In Winter, and on it there are a couple of beautiful songs in her native Georgian language.  Backing her on “O Holy Night” and on other songs is a choir from her native land, Gori Women's Choir.  I hop you enjoy it.

Photo Essay: 59th Street Pier (And Update on Mom)

First the update on mom.  She was transferred to the Rehab Facility across the street from the hospital on Tuesday afternoon.  Wednesday she had her first full day of rehab exercises, and now they pretty much exercise them morning and afternoon.  Eight years ago when she fractured the other hip and had it replaced the rehab stay was a month and the exercise was once a day. 

It’s not clear to me whether she was extra sore or just routine sore, and I’m not sure if they gave her extra pain killers or just the prescribed dosage but she was given Oxycodone.  Her medical list says she’s supposed to get 5 mg and from what I gathered they gave her 10 mg.  On Thursday—my birthday of all days—I got a call at work from the rehab facility that she was disoriented and non-responsive and that they had to send her to the emergency room. I spent a good part of my day into the evening at the hospital. As it turned out, she either had a bad reaction to medicine or they accidentally over dosed her. When I got to the hospital her blood pressure was down to nil and she was incoherent. To make a long story short, they stabilized her by the end of the night, she was sleeping soundly, and all her vitals were normal. They even sent her back to the rehab facility, and on Friday, the next day, she was great, perfectly normal. I was astounded actually. I didn't know how I would find her this morning. She didn't even have a hangover, and she did her rehab exercises.  Doctor has given the instruction she is to never get oxycodone.  She will have to tough it out with only Tylenol. 

Here’s the photo essay.  My mother is staying at Lutheran Medical Center, which is in Brooklyn, NY, one avenue from the NY Harbor and three additional blocks from the 59^th street pier.  While taking a walk around, I discovered it.  I had heard of it, but never went to it.  It has a great view of the harbor.  Apparently there’s a fast ferry that stops there for commuters.  So yesterday I took my camera and clicked off a few shots.

As you approach the pier.

There was an interesting looking tug boat docked there.

The pier was surprisingly long.  It had to be a good quarter mile.

As you walk to the end, you can see the harbor.  That’s New Jersey on the left and Manhattan from the center to the right.  Somehow the camera zoomed out makes it look farther than it really is.

Here’s a really good shot of Manhattan looking at it from the south.  This is ore how it looks with the naked eye.

And here’s a zoomed in view of the southern Manhattan skyline.  The tall building is the new Liberty Tower that replaced the Twin Towers.

And finally the best picture of all when I really zoomed in was the Statue of Liberty.

Unfortunately from my angle I got that lousy New Jersey building in the background.

Personal Note: Update on My Mother’s Hip Replacement

I owe you all an update.  Friday she had her hip replacement.  Surgeon said “it went beautifully.”  So I take it the surgical part has gone well. 

Later than evening when the anesthesia wore off, she was in severe pain.  She was in agony actually.  They gave her oxycodone, but it didn’t seem to make a difference.  Not only that, the contraption that they put over the bed for hobbling patients (see image) to lift themselves fell apart when she pulled on it and one of the support bars came off and hit her on the leg that had just been operated.  Ultimately they had to give her morphine.

Over the weekend she improved.  They had her up and even had her walk with a walker for some twenty feet.  She was to get discharged today, Monday, but they held back.  Her blood pressure has been very low, and I just figured out why for the nurses.  She takes a blood pressure medication to raise her blood pressure, Midodrine.  She has the opposite of blood pressure issues than most people.  It’s too low from orthostatic hypo tension.  The medication lifts her pressure, but when I read the details it says that a patient should not take it if they are bedridden.  It’s plays havoc on her blood pressure.  So hopefully they will either change the dosage because she is bedridden or get her on her feet more. 

So that’s where we are.  She’s doing well, but delayed from going over to rehab.  Thank you for your prayers and well wishes.  It's most appreciated.

Personal Note: My Mother’s Hip Replacement Surgery

Just a personal note.  I’ve mentioned my mother a few times on my blog.  On Friday my mother will be going for hip replacement surgery.  This is her second hip to be replaced.  Eight years ago she fractured her left hip in a fall, and while they tried to screw it together (in the x-ray you could see a screw hold bone together like a screw holds together wood) but it didn’t hold and ultimately she had to have it replaced.  This time age and arthritis have her left her right hip bone on bone in the socket, so that she is now hobbling in pain.  It started just a few months ago  and day by day you can see the reduction in mobility and increase in pain.  When the orthopedist saw the x-ray he was shocked that she was even walking at all.  It will be the same orthopedic surgeon on Friday that did her left hip.  The x-rays also showed that her left hip replacement was still in excellent shape.  We were very happy with this orthopedist.  My only concern is that now she is 83 years old.  That’s advanced for such a major operation, at least in my mind.  But the doctors, including her cardiologist, find her age not to be an issue, and she has passed the pre-op testing with flying colors.  Her blood test didn’t have a single category outside of normal.  Her cholesterol was 156.  She’s in great shape for her age, but I am still worried.  Say a small prayer for her.