The Musings of the Science Nerd

Red Sox 2012 Edition…(4/15)

tufdaawg — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 22:47:11 +0000

So here we are 1 week+ into the 2012 campaign and the Red Sox are 4-5. (Better than last year when they were 2-7 at this point.) Of the first three series (against the Tigers, Blue Jays and Rays), they are 1-2-0. (The series against the Rays isn’t technically over with a game to be played tomorrow on Patriot’s Day, but they have won the 1st 3 games, so they have won the series, even if they lose the game tomorrow.) And the last three games have been impressive in their offensive outpouring. I still think they won’t make the playoffs but they will do better than last year’s 90 wins.

In other news, my Crohn’s still sucks and hurts, but my pain from the surgery is getting less and less every day, but it is still there and does hurt very much on occasion. My GE wants to get me off Prednisone, but my body is addicted to it and it is really hard to go below 20mg daily.

Ready or not, going back to work Monday…(1/19)

tufdaawg — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 04:21:30 +0000

so, I think i am ready for work now. It has been 5 weeks and the pain is mostly gone from my side (more on that in a minute), and I am down to one nap a day. And I am down to 1 vicodin a day as well. I need to get off the pills; I was/am addicted I think, and since dr. a. won’t give me anymore after this refill runs out, i am going to have to wean myself off the drugs.

I went back to Huntington today (mostly to get money back in my coffers since Amazon is drying up) and boy was that a bad idea. I worked from 4:30-7 pm, and by 6 pm, i was in horrible pain. I wish i could have gone home, but the student i was tutoring really needed the help, so i stayed to help her but ran out of huntington to get home as fast as possible. (And i took a vicodin to help me out. how sad.)

well, I am looking forward to work at patterson monday (i actually am), and can’t wait to see all my dumbass students. I will, of course, show them my scar and have to explain to every class what happened and was it going on for the rest of the year.

Ready to go back to work…(1/9)

tufdaawg — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:31:48 +0000

well, here we are at 3 1/2 weeks after the surgery and i am ready for work. well, not really; i still tire too easily and probably won’t be able to stand up in front of the room for very long before i have to sit down and rest. i am down to just one nap a day and 1 or 2 vicodin a day (and today i haven’t taken any – but will probably take one soon). my side still feels like it is being pulled and stretched, but it isn’t as bad as it used to be. i am walking every day (doing 3 or 4 laps around my court and walking over to the neighboring court – about 20 – 25 minutes walking time). well, next week will be the week i go back and we will see how i do at work.

I hate the fucking pain…(12/28)

tufdaawg — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 03:24:11 +0000

gawd the pain is awful. i have been told that kidney surgery is one of the more painful surgeries, and they weren’t kidding. i am at two weeks into my recovery and it feels like I will never get better. i am glad for the vicodin but still….I would like for the pain to go away so i can go about my daily life. right now my life is sleeping and moaning. i try to do things but the pain doesn’t allow me to think very clearly or for long periods of time.
well, in good news, the red sox traded for andrew bailey as our closer. he should be less heartache-inducing than papelbon. #redsox

I’m a survivor (12/22)…

tufdaawg — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 04:27:21 +0000

so, i had my post-op appointment with my urologist today. Everything is good to go! my tumor was easy to get to and they got it all out. I am in horrible pain, however, but 1000mg of Vicodin takes care of that! He said that the RCC that I had only has a 5% recurrence rate, and that if it does come back it comes back sooner rather than later. That is why they are going to monitor me for 5 years and if no more incidences of cancer, I am done seeing my urologist. I made sure to say a prayer of thanks to my urologist and all of the nurses at Memorial Medical Clinic, Modesto, CA. They are the best. So, as a survivor, do i need to do the annual cancer run? and how does one train for a run?

Surgery Tomorrow…(12/15)

tufdaawg — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 12:47:06 +0000

well, tomorrow is the big day. I am scheduled for a 12 noon surgery to have a partial nephrectomy. I am trying to have a brave face, but am scared as fuck. i don’t want the surgery; i don’t want the cancer; i just want to live my life and go about my daily business and enjoy the 3 week break that i am supposed to have from school.

Biopsy Today (11/1)…

tufdaawg — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:35:30 +0000

Going in at 11:30 a.m. today to get my biopsy done. One hopes that it will be benign, but am OK with it being cancerous. they will just go in and cut out the part of my kidney that is bad. No problem, right?

Cancer…(10/8)

tufdaawg — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 00:28:03 +0000

So my results are back from the CT scan. My gastro. calls me (and emails me) the results: a lesion on my right kidney mostly likely indicating kidney cancer. 2.5cm homogeneous mass on my right kidney (as well as there being an 11mm mass, but that one isn’t as concerning). I have a meeting with a urologist Tuesday to try and figure out what is going on. I don’t think I have come to terms yet with the words and concept. At this stage, though, it is “as far as we know” it is cancer. They aren’t 100% positive, but there really shouldn’t be a mass on/in your kidney. I will have more details Tuesday, but I am still scared.

Update: Saw my urologist today. He showed me the CT scans and, boy, does that tumor really show up. It was pretty cool. So the course of action is to get a biopsy at the end of this month just to make sure it is malignant. (90% chance that it is; but I am hoping that I am the other 10% – benign.) Once we confirm it is malignant, we will then cut it out and I will be good to go.

Francona is gone, and Lackey is still a Red Sock (9/30)…

tufdaawg — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 03:51:06 +0000

why is Francona gone and Lackey still with the Red Sox (but a case could be made for Crawford as well)? Should be the other way around. And what happened with September? usually the Red Sox slide in August. As the saying goes, “there is always next year.” should have been this year.

CT Scan today (9/30)…

tufdaawg — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 03:47:45 +0000

Got to swallow that lovely Barium Sulphate solution today. My gastro. has no clue what is going on inside my insides so he got a CT scan done to try and figure it out. Fun. Maybe we can get some closure on my condition.