Six weeks later.....
I went in for another follow up yesterday. I had an ultrasound on my bladder and kidneys.
The hospital, like the airport, always surprises me. It doesn't matter when you go, it's always busy. People coming and going, looking for signs, looking for a coffee and trying to get to where they need to be on time. I was early (thanks to some nice door to door service - more on that later) so I sat in the lobby for a few minutes with a coffee. I love people watching.
I took a photo in between the break of people. You wonder what the story is behind every face. Are they waiting for treatments? Good news? Bad News? I am always struck by the supporters of the "patient". They have it harder than most realize. Always running around, getting the coffee, pulling out the chair, helping with the sweater, pushing the wheelchair - it is tiring. They are the unsung heroes behind every illness. The busy worker bees behind the queen bee.
As I sat there, the chairs beside me, filled up and emptied in quick succession. I had an elderly woman ask me if the chair beside me was taken. I invited her to sit and she wheeled her walker around and began the long process of sitting. Getting old isn't for sissies or as an old family friend would tell my Dad "it's a bugger!". She finally sat with a final plop and let out a huge sigh. I can't help but sympathize. It reminded me of my Dad - little things like sitting down become a production in fortitude and strength. I said to her "you made it!". She said "yes, it gets harder all the time".
It was getting on the time that I had to go upstairs so I took my coffee and left. Up to radiology, where I am fast becoming a familiar face. I am learning my way around the twisted halls and various places. She was going to write "my number" on a paper but I believe in saving paper and this number is as familiar to me as my name. If you are unfamiliar with this "number" - you are given a number from day one and for every procedure, you are called in by the same number (to protect your privacy). It doesn't always work because they can call a number and no one moves. They call it again and again and finally have to call out a name. Someone always stands up confused and bashfully hobbles over to the door "oops, forgot my number!" (even though it's clenched tightly in their fist).
So my number was called quickly. (Thankfully as I needed a full bladder for this test.) I see women everywhere nodding their head. I don't know what kind of training an ultrasound tech needs but I'm sure there is a class in Magic Eye puzzles. I remember seeing those in the Saturday comics and hardly ever seeing anything. She said, while looking at the bladder "Now, there's a thing of beauty". Well, whether you think I am ugly or not, at least I have a "pretty bladder". 😜 Next, they checked out the kidneys. The right side was rather painful but I guess I am still healing. The pictures on the screen were fuzzy and looked like I had a fire burning in my belly. I have acid reflux and maybe this is why. 😁 I guess they know exactly what they are seeing, like we would be looking at ordinary photographs. It was pretty quick and I was out and off to see Dr. Luke next.
After getting a little lost in the trip, I found the place where I needed to be. I am the type who gets hopelessly lost but pretends I am in control and know exactly where I am going. Walk with purpose and stride fast even if you are going straight for barred units. The pirate skull and no admittance sign turned me around. I knew the general area and finally found it.
I sat in the waiting area which was full. I listened to number after number, name after name as more people came and went. I guess I was scheduled for the final appointment of the day because it was a few hours before I heard that magical number. It was silly to call it as I was the only one left in the room, like being the last one chosen for the gym class teams. Times like this make me thankful for a cell phone. After I had exhausted all the FB posts and emails, I turned to FreeCell. That's my go to boredom fighter.
Dr. Luke was very pleased with the results of the ultrasound. No swelling of the kidney anymore. My Achilles Heel is the scar tissue. I have 5 small cuts that have healed but each one has a band below the skin that causes me discomfort and pain when pushed. This is the scar of the operation. Made me think of life. We have all had bad times which have helped us grow and mature but they leave scars to remind us of the hard moments. Wounds will always leave scars. I am a bit of a scar picker (I like to scratch the scabs - not smart, I know). I think it was Rose Kennedy who said “It has been said, 'time heals all wounds.' I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone.” These physical scars will remind me of a time of hope when God allowed my cancer to be discovered on time and was healed. It will remind me of the caring, sharing and prayers of friends and family when I was given a punch so hard that it knocked the wind out of me and my immediate family. I think I'm going to like these scars.
To sum up, he said I should be ready to go back into the trenches of work by the end of the month but no lifting or straining of abdominal muscles. I can't be ripping out whatever is healing in there. I can also get back into workouts at the gym - not sure how I feel about that but it's time. He also said that "I am waterproof so I could swim if I wanted". I asked him if he would teach me how because I never learned how to swim. He had to laugh about that one. I have a renal gram coming up - the date has not been set but will be in December sometime and a CT scan in the new year. All preventive tests or exploratory to see that nothing is amiss. I expect to be a regular at University Hospital for some time.
I parked at Masonville Mall as I am too cheap to pay for more parking costs. I have a bus pass so I was going to take the bus to the hospital. My cuz, Digger just happened to be at the mall stop doing a change off and offered to drive me to the hospital as "it was on his way back to the garage". Going back to the mall was a challenge as the buses are on detour due to the bridge closing at Western. What a pain! I can see why passengers are frustrated as I didn't know where I should stand to catch the bus back. It is unclear in every way and I ended up walking to Richmond to catch a bus going north. I don't know how to fix this but this clearly the present practice does not work! For a hospital stop, where often passengers are not in top form, having to walk for 10 minutes is unacceptable.
So it's life as normal, work my way back up to speed. I will be back in work in time to face the snow and the Christmas shoppers (I picked a mall to mall route - yay me!). It will be good to get back into a routine although I will miss the lazy mornings. I have to concentrate, these last few weeks, on feeling good and lots of movement to get my body ready for life. I am thankful that God has given us a kidney to spare (I like living life on spares - half a thyroid, one kidney). I don't know if I have many more spare parts so I better be careful. Going forward, grateful for each day.
The hospital, like the airport, always surprises me. It doesn't matter when you go, it's always busy. People coming and going, looking for signs, looking for a coffee and trying to get to where they need to be on time. I was early (thanks to some nice door to door service - more on that later) so I sat in the lobby for a few minutes with a coffee. I love people watching.
 |
| Waiting in the lobby |
 |
| It wasn't quite this bad but it was pretty busy. |
I took a photo in between the break of people. You wonder what the story is behind every face. Are they waiting for treatments? Good news? Bad News? I am always struck by the supporters of the "patient". They have it harder than most realize. Always running around, getting the coffee, pulling out the chair, helping with the sweater, pushing the wheelchair - it is tiring. They are the unsung heroes behind every illness. The busy worker bees behind the queen bee.
As I sat there, the chairs beside me, filled up and emptied in quick succession. I had an elderly woman ask me if the chair beside me was taken. I invited her to sit and she wheeled her walker around and began the long process of sitting. Getting old isn't for sissies or as an old family friend would tell my Dad "it's a bugger!". She finally sat with a final plop and let out a huge sigh. I can't help but sympathize. It reminded me of my Dad - little things like sitting down become a production in fortitude and strength. I said to her "you made it!". She said "yes, it gets harder all the time".
It was getting on the time that I had to go upstairs so I took my coffee and left. Up to radiology, where I am fast becoming a familiar face. I am learning my way around the twisted halls and various places. She was going to write "my number" on a paper but I believe in saving paper and this number is as familiar to me as my name. If you are unfamiliar with this "number" - you are given a number from day one and for every procedure, you are called in by the same number (to protect your privacy). It doesn't always work because they can call a number and no one moves. They call it again and again and finally have to call out a name. Someone always stands up confused and bashfully hobbles over to the door "oops, forgot my number!" (even though it's clenched tightly in their fist).
So my number was called quickly. (Thankfully as I needed a full bladder for this test.) I see women everywhere nodding their head. I don't know what kind of training an ultrasound tech needs but I'm sure there is a class in Magic Eye puzzles. I remember seeing those in the Saturday comics and hardly ever seeing anything. She said, while looking at the bladder "Now, there's a thing of beauty". Well, whether you think I am ugly or not, at least I have a "pretty bladder". 😜 Next, they checked out the kidneys. The right side was rather painful but I guess I am still healing. The pictures on the screen were fuzzy and looked like I had a fire burning in my belly. I have acid reflux and maybe this is why. 😁 I guess they know exactly what they are seeing, like we would be looking at ordinary photographs. It was pretty quick and I was out and off to see Dr. Luke next.
After getting a little lost in the trip, I found the place where I needed to be. I am the type who gets hopelessly lost but pretends I am in control and know exactly where I am going. Walk with purpose and stride fast even if you are going straight for barred units. The pirate skull and no admittance sign turned me around. I knew the general area and finally found it.
I sat in the waiting area which was full. I listened to number after number, name after name as more people came and went. I guess I was scheduled for the final appointment of the day because it was a few hours before I heard that magical number. It was silly to call it as I was the only one left in the room, like being the last one chosen for the gym class teams. Times like this make me thankful for a cell phone. After I had exhausted all the FB posts and emails, I turned to FreeCell. That's my go to boredom fighter.
Dr. Luke was very pleased with the results of the ultrasound. No swelling of the kidney anymore. My Achilles Heel is the scar tissue. I have 5 small cuts that have healed but each one has a band below the skin that causes me discomfort and pain when pushed. This is the scar of the operation. Made me think of life. We have all had bad times which have helped us grow and mature but they leave scars to remind us of the hard moments. Wounds will always leave scars. I am a bit of a scar picker (I like to scratch the scabs - not smart, I know). I think it was Rose Kennedy who said “It has been said, 'time heals all wounds.' I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone.” These physical scars will remind me of a time of hope when God allowed my cancer to be discovered on time and was healed. It will remind me of the caring, sharing and prayers of friends and family when I was given a punch so hard that it knocked the wind out of me and my immediate family. I think I'm going to like these scars.
To sum up, he said I should be ready to go back into the trenches of work by the end of the month but no lifting or straining of abdominal muscles. I can't be ripping out whatever is healing in there. I can also get back into workouts at the gym - not sure how I feel about that but it's time. He also said that "I am waterproof so I could swim if I wanted". I asked him if he would teach me how because I never learned how to swim. He had to laugh about that one. I have a renal gram coming up - the date has not been set but will be in December sometime and a CT scan in the new year. All preventive tests or exploratory to see that nothing is amiss. I expect to be a regular at University Hospital for some time.
I parked at Masonville Mall as I am too cheap to pay for more parking costs. I have a bus pass so I was going to take the bus to the hospital. My cuz, Digger just happened to be at the mall stop doing a change off and offered to drive me to the hospital as "it was on his way back to the garage". Going back to the mall was a challenge as the buses are on detour due to the bridge closing at Western. What a pain! I can see why passengers are frustrated as I didn't know where I should stand to catch the bus back. It is unclear in every way and I ended up walking to Richmond to catch a bus going north. I don't know how to fix this but this clearly the present practice does not work! For a hospital stop, where often passengers are not in top form, having to walk for 10 minutes is unacceptable.
So it's life as normal, work my way back up to speed. I will be back in work in time to face the snow and the Christmas shoppers (I picked a mall to mall route - yay me!). It will be good to get back into a routine although I will miss the lazy mornings. I have to concentrate, these last few weeks, on feeling good and lots of movement to get my body ready for life. I am thankful that God has given us a kidney to spare (I like living life on spares - half a thyroid, one kidney). I don't know if I have many more spare parts so I better be careful. Going forward, grateful for each day.
I'm not one to read. I'm better with pictures. But your writing is so engaging I read every word and sometimes twice. So happy to hear this news thru your talented writing skills. Hugs.
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