New from Bruce Springsteen

This evening, after my husband finished exploring iTunes, I found this new song from Bruce Springsteen.  I will definitely be purchasing the album (Wrecking Ball) that contains this number, We Take Care of Our Own.



This piece is great, too.  Enjoy!



No compensation was received for any of the product recommendations in this post.

Davy Jones Remembered

This morning, before my day really got moving, tragedy struck in Florida.  Davy Jones, a member of The Monkees, a band that was all the rage during my childhood in the mid-1960's, passed away suddenly of a heart attack.  By late this afternoon, most of my female Facebook friends were reminiscing about how they had a crush on Mr. Jones when they were younger.  While I don't recall having a crush on the gentleman, or having a poster of him displayed over my bed, I do remember watching The Monkees television show and listening to their music on the radio.  I may even have owned one of their records.

My daugther, being in her twenties, had never heard of Davy Jones or The Monkees, so I decided to visit YouTube for some samples of their work.  It was fun watching her reaction to some of the lyrics and goofy videos that have been posted from the TV show.  "I'm a Believer" is a favorite of many people (me included), as is "The Last Train to Clarksville."  Katherine the Great is partial to this one, "Auntie Grizelda."



Frankly, I don't recall this song, so it was new to both of us.  Take a listen and remember Davy Jones, the heartthrob who was named top teen idol of all time by Yahoo Music in 2008.  To read a bit more about his life, visit this article at Legacy.com.

Weight Loss Accountability

Over the past two years or so, I have (halfheartedly) tried to drop a few pounds.  Sadly, all I seemed to manage was the proverbial five-pound waffle, those same five pounds that experts say are gained and lost repeatedly by most dieters. Read more.

Bye, Bye Feeding Tube!

Tuesday was a day for celebration on Gooseberry Lane.  Fermata, my twelve-year-old tuxedo cat who has been battling a serious gastrointestinal lymph node infection since mid-January, had his esophageal feeding tube removed.  Hurrah!!!  That device, my constant companion for almost a month, the cause of much lost sleep, necessary and helpful though it was, will NOT be missed.  Yes, Katherine the Great and I did incorporate the routine of the apparatus into our daily tasks, but returning to the "normal" flow of activity around here cannot happen soon enough.  Today was a step in that direction.  I went to handbell choir rehearsal for three hours and, in the afternoon, I was able to take my daughter to voice lessons.  The family also grabbed a bite to eat at our favorite barbeque spot...without leaving a cat sitter behind.  Oh, the freedom of independence is such a joy.  Having a healthy kitty is even better!

Related articles:
More on Fermata
Long Overdue Kitty Update
Kitty Health Update #3
Kitty Thyroid Update #2
Kitty Thyroid Update #1
Another Thyroid Patient

More on Fermata

A week has passed since my last kitty update, so I thought it time to bring you up to speed with Fermata's progress.  Last Sunday (2/19/2012), after a small hiccup in the appetite rebuilding effort and a consultation with the veterinarian, it was decided to leave the esophageal feeding tube in place for another week, just to be certain that Fermata could hold his own without it.  That situation seems to have materialized.  I am only using the tube in the morning and at eventide for medication administration.  Fermata does need an occasional appetite stimulant due to the fact that the anti-thyroid meds suppress his desire to indulge in the yummiest cat food I can find, but everyone can live with that for the short term.  Slightly more frustrating, kitty has made the command decision that, for the time being, he prefers Science Diet Adult Light dry food.  Leave it to Mr. Finicky to choose the food that has fewer calories, less fat, and more fiber when he needs more of the first and second, and probably an equal amount of the third.  Oh, well.  I think his choice of food can be overcome.  At present, I am not overly concerned about it.  I am just glad to see him coming for meals and demonstrating a consistent interest in eating.  Today, he practically sat on my luncheon plate to get at some pieces of chicken!

So, tomorrow the feeding tube will be removed and a fond farewell shall be said to it.  Hopefully, the stitches that replace it will not need the same amount of monitoring.  We could all use some sleep.

Related articles:
Long Overdue Kitty Update
Kitty Health Update #3
Kitty Thyroid Update #2
Kitty Thyroid Update #1
Another Thyroid Patient

Long Overdue Kitty Update

Fermata looking dignified

Looking back at the blog, I see that I have neglected to post updates about Fermata, my hyperthyroid tuxedo cat.  At present, his situation is improving.  However, I believe that maintaining an ideal weight for kitty that makes me feel secure may be an ongoing battle, but we shall see.  At any rate, so much more has happened than just weight loss from a speedy thyroid gland.  Allow me to explain.

When I last left you, Fermata had been admitted to the emergency pet hospital in Rhode Island and was undergoing a battery of tests, most of which came back either normal or confirming what had already been determined (i.e., hyperthyroidism and no heart disease).  The worst of these results was, of course, the abdominal ultrasound that showed signs of hepatitis and enlarged lymph nodes in the gastrointestinal tract, as well as an "odd" texture to the liver.  Fearing that lymphoma was the culprit, the veterinarians performed some needle aspirations.  Thankfully, the results of those tests came back negative for lymphoma but positive for suppurative lymphadenitis, a bacterial infection of the lymph nodes in the GI tract.  Being on antibiotics for this infection, but still not eating wonderfully in the hospital, Fermata came home in the hope that, once away from the hustle and bustle, noise and smell of the cat ward, his appetite would return and he would be on his way back to being a ten-pound cat.  No such luck.

Arriving home on Thursday, January 25, 2012, my daughter and I worked diligently to encourage Fermata to eat more, but battling nausea from his medications, he just didn't feel like consuming anything.  Afraid that a further drop in his weight could cause additional complications, I returned kitty to the pet hospital for installation of an esophageal feeding tube.  Fermata has eaten with the assistance of this device since Saturday, January 28, 2012, the last night I think I slept more than two hours together.  I am hoping that the tube can be removed soon, as he has been eating the correct amount of food on his own to sustain ten pounds of body weight.  Frankly, I think I was actually starving Fermata before, unknowingly feeding him less dry food and not enough wet food in a misguided effort to switch from the latter to the former.  Silly kitty mommy.

One other development:  while in the hospital, Fermata started taking the tablet form of methimazole, rather than the cream version that I initially preferred.  Apparently, more uniform dosing can be achieved with the tablets and since he is tolerating them well, Fermata will be pilled twice a day from now on, unless my husband and I decide to have kitty undergo radioactive iodine therapy, which would remove any need for thyroid medication.  That decision is in the future, though.  The current priority is to return Fermata to his previous eating habits and to maintain a healthy weight in the ten to eleven pound range.

Related articles:
Kitty Health Update #3
Kitty Thyroid Update #2
Kitty Thyroid Update #1
Another Thyroid Patient

Kitty Health Update #3

Sorry to be so tardy in providing this update on my cat, Fermata.  Life got a bit more complicated after all the tests that were done early in the week.

On Monday, the emergency vet had a specialist perform a cardiac ultrasound to check the odd heart rhythm that was heard when Fermata was admitted to the emergency pet hospital on Sunday morning.  Concerned that kitty might be experiencing heart failure, the vet wanted to rule that out before restarting any steroids for fever reduction.  Thankfully, no signs of heart failure were seen.  Fermata does have a mildly thickened heart, a condition that often occurs in hyperthyroid patients but not cause for current alarm.  With such a good result, prednisone was begun to help with fever and inflammation.

An abdominal ultrasound showed less positive results:  evidence of hepatitis and significant lymph node inflammation with a lot of bacteria.  Ruling out lymphoma, Fermata was diagnosed with a massive opportunistic infection, the result of either a gastrointestinal bug or that same bug combined with a severe reaction to his recent rabies vaccination.  Treatment with antibiotics began immediately, which finally brought down his fever (thank the Lord!).  Now, the concern is getting Fermata to eat, poor appetite being a side effect of his many current medications.  That is our job at the moment since kitty arrived home yesterday afternoon.  If we are unsuccessful, Fermata will go back to the hospital for installation of a temporary feeding tube just to get him over this appetite hump.  Being quite thin, he doesn't have much reserve, so we need to be careful that his weigh doesn't drop too low.

One decision has been made with certainty:  being an indoor cat that has had two serious vaccine reactions over his lifetime, Fermata will never be vaccinated again!

Related articles:
Kitty Thyroid Update #2
Kitty Thyroid Update #1
Another Thyroid Patient

Kitty Thyroid Update #2

Well, life got more interesting around here last night.  At 1:15 AM, after cleaning snow from the Subaru, my daughter and I loaded up Fermata and drove forty-five minutes into Rhode Island to the emergency vet.  Kitty was experiencing a fever plus labored breathing and I was really afraid that he was either becoming dehydrated or, possibly, entering a condition known as thyroid storm, where the thyroid sort of "goes crazy," flooding the body with thyroid hormone, and ramping up respiration, heart rate, everything.  Thankfully, based on bloodwork from the early morning hours, it doesn't look like that is the problem.  That said, the vet is still trying to determine the cause of the continued fever.  Possibilities:  vaccine reaction, a viral infection, or something really serious.  A bloodwork comparison, a feline leukemia test, and a cardiac/abdominal ultrasound should tell us more.  That all happens tomorrow. My family and I are praying for a positive outcome.

Related articles:
Another Thyroid Patient
Kitty Thyroid Update #1

Our First "Real" Snowfall

Today, after many months with absolutely no white stuff, we finally got our first "real" snowfall.  Last October, we got a small amount of snow, but it melted pretty quickly.  Since then, we have been enjoying ridiculously warm temperatures, in come cases near or past 50°F, and that pattern is set to continue.  The forecast for this coming Tuesday calls for a high of around 48°F.  Thank goodness our local outdoor skating rink is made of Teflon, so we won't have to cancel our homeschool group outing for the week.

Anyway, here is a photo of my front yard looking toward my east neighbor.  I fully expect the lawn to be mostly green again by next Wednesday.

Kitty Thyroid Update #1

On Monday, my oldest cat, Fermata, a long haired tuxedo mixed breed, had a well check where he was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and where he received his rabies vaccine.  Since he also had fleas, on Tuesday I gave him some Advantage.  What a mistake!  Since, over the years, Fermata has demonstrated an occasional tendency toward adverse vaccine reactions, I should have known better than to give him medication so soon after receiving a vaccination.  By Thursday afternoon, my poor kitty had a fever of 105°F (a normal cat temperature is about 102°F) and started showing signs of diarrhea and lethargy, his usual signs of vaccine reaction.  On Friday morning, Fermata refused all food and water, so it was off to the vet for fluids.  I didn't want to chance a hydration crisis over the weekend, a weekend when we were expecting a snowstorm (which arrived as scheduled).

While at the veterinarian, I received the much-anticipated thyroid bloodwork number:  5.8.  Not bad considering the last time I had bloodwork done on Fermata, the level was near the same.  That means that, for now, he is pretty stable, except for the vaccine reaction, of course.  His medication has been ordered and will start as soon as he is back to normal.

Related articles:
Another Thyroid Patient

Another Thyroid Patient

Sometime in late 2009/early 2010, my veterinarian and I decided to help my oldest cat, Fermata, slim down a bit.  At the time, he was weighing in at around 14-15 pounds, which really wasn't very healthy for him.  By late 2010, my handsome cat was at 13 pounds (not bad), but his hindquarters were showing some signs of being too thin for the rest of his build.  Not wanting to miss a potential health problem, I agreed to a thyroid panel to rule out hyperthyroidism.  The results were high normal but with no thyroid enlargement, so a "watch" status was enacted.  Today, after a well vet check, watching became treating.  Fermata is officially hyperthyroid.  Diagnostics have begun to determine the current status of his thyroid and to determine his starting dose of methimazole, an antithyroid drug.  I have decided on this course of action, at least for the time being, until my husband and I can discuss the other options more thoroughly (i.e., surgery or radioactive iodine treatment).

While I am not thrilled at the prospect of caring for a feline thyroid patient, the amusing part of this scenario is that my husband is also a thyroid patient.  He was diagnosed with medullary thyroid cancer in 1993 and underwent a thyroidectomy in early February 1994.  He has been on Synthroid ever since, a drug to replace the thyroid hormone that his body no longer produces.  Fermata has the opposite problem:  his body produces too much thyroid hormone.  In fact, the veterinarian explained to me today that King Richard would need to make sure that he steers clear of the cat's ears (the cream medication application site) for a few hours after dosing so that the antithyroid meds that the cat will be taking do not interfere with the thyroid replacement meds that he takes.

This could be interesting!

Journey to Bethlehem

My daughter, Katherine the Great, gave me the best gift this Christmas:  a recording of the 2009 Concordia College Choir Christmas Concert, titled "Journey to Bethlehem."

--- Read more at A Struggling Believer.

A Community Loss

This morning, just before lunch, my daughter gave me some sad news:  the Somers Congregational Church in Somers, CT burned to the ground last night.  This center of worship and community events in northern Connecticut was built in 1842 and had played host to three Shoreline Ringers handbell concerts in as many years, the most recent just one month ago.  Always a welcoming host to the local bell choir, our hearts go out to the congregation at this time of great loss.  Please pray for them, and for their community, as they begin the rebuilding process.

WFSB Channel 3 News article
Eyewitness YouTube video (some profanity)

If you are interested in reading more about the history of the church, click here.

McDonalds Gone Retro

Recently, the McDonald's in my neighborhood began an exterior renovation that transformed it from the age-old angled roof style to the new square design.  Completed just a few weeks ago, a recent evening drive past the restaurant revealed that some interior redecorating had also occurred.  Curious, my daughter and I visited the establishment to check out the new look.  Having grown up in the 1960's and 1970's, all I can say is ...wow!  I felt like I had time traveled.  The new brown paneling looked like the stuff the Big Three automakers used to glue to the sides of vans;  the wallpaper reminded me of lava lamps;  and the color scheme was...well, bright.  The only missing ingredient was a Happy Meal doodle pad sporting art from the Yellow Submarine.

Query:  why does brown paneling look upscale in Starbucks and horribly dated in McDonald's?

For more information about the new look, check out the following news articles:
Mickey D's McMakeover
McDonald's Restaurant - Exterior Design & Implementation
Modern Restaurant Design:  McDonald's?  We're Luvin' It!
A McDonald's for Architecture Snobs
McDonald's Redesign:  A New Era for Fast-Food Restaurants

Note:  I have been in two other updated McDonald's in my local area.  Their new looks did not disturb me quite as much as the one in my neighborhood.  I think it may be the colors/materials chosen by my nearby franchisee.  I do like some of the interiors shown in the articles listed above.

Christmas Concert #1

This afternoon began the 2011-2012 Christmas concert season of Shoreline Ringers, the handbell choir that my daughter has played with for nearly six years.  It was a good start today.  The audience was average size (i.e., not too small, not too big, but just right), full of interesting questions, and much appreciative of the program selelctions:

Gaudete
Oh Come, Oh Come, Emmanuel
Noels Ringing, Tidings Bringing
The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came
Sing We Now of Christmas
God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
O Little Town of Bethlehem
Carol of the Bells
Roundelay
It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
Joy to the World

If you are out and about his holiday season and are in the mood for an hour of musical relaxation, consider attending one of these concerts:

December 10, 2011, 7:00 PM @ Somers Congregational Church, Somers, CT
December 17, 2011, 3:00 PM @ Niantic Community Church, Niantic, CT
January 8, 2012, 7:00 PM @ Central Baptist Church, Norwich, CT

Admission is free.  That said, the group does accept donations to cover travel costs, etc.  For a preview, here they are playing "Pat-a-Pan" from last season.

Finally Reading the Sourcebook

Yesterday, after eighteen years as the wife of a cancer survivor, I finally started reading The Thyroid Sourcebook by M. Sara Rosenthal, Ph.D.  The first edition of this book (now it its fifth edition) was published in 1993, the year King Richard was diagnosed with medullary carcinoma of the thyroid, a dangerous, often hereditary, type of cancer that does not respond to radioactive iodine or radiation therapy.  So why now?  Why read the premier book on thyroid treatment after all these years?  Well, for one, I wanted to make sure I had the latest information on follow-up care for my husband and, two, I wanted to offer the book to the family of a newly engaged young couple at church (the bride has been diagnosed with thyroid disease) and I couldn't do that in good conscience without first reading the volume.

Living with a thyroid patient is no picnic.  Every day means dealing with some manifestation of two issues:  the reality of a physiology with a compromised organ (or, in my husband's case, no organ) and the reality of a medication that has side effects.  Most days, I am uncertain which is going to show up, biochemically speaking, but whichever issue makes an appearance, I try to cope with grace.  Note the symptoms of each issue;  those in bold are the ones I have had to deal with over the years.

Hypothyroidism	Synthroid® Side Effects
Fatigue	Rapid or irregular heartbeat
Sluggishness	Chest pain, breathing issues
Increased sensitivity to cold	Muscle weakness
Pale, dry skin	Nervousness
Puffy face	Irritability
Hoarse voice	Sleeplessness
Elevated blood cholesterol level	Tremors
Unexplained weight gain	Change in appetite
Muscle aches, tenderness, stiffness	Weight loss
Pain, stiffness, joint swelling	Vomiting
Muscle weakness	Frequent bowel movements
Brittle fingernails & hair	Excessive sweating
Depression	Heat intolerance
Forgetfulness, slow thinking	Fever
	Impaired fertility
	Decreased bone density
	Other unusual medical events

Most, if not all, of these symptoms are relatively mild or nonexistent for my husband these days, either that or I have become so inured to them after eighteen years that they only seem mild to me now.  It wasn't always like that.  The first few months after surgery were a very different story, as our first endocrinologist tried to settle on an optimal Synthroid® dosage for King Richard.  She eventually had him taking 325 mcg of levothyroxine daily, an amount we later discovered was so high that, most of the time, my poor husband walked around in a state of profound hyperthyroidism as his doctor attempted to force his TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) level to register zero on a bloodwork run.  Such was the accepted therapy for medullary thyroid cancer at that time, thinking that suppression of TSH would prevent recurrence.  At least that is what we were told back in the early 1990's.  Thankfully, my husband and I eventually found our way to an excellent specialist who adjusted his Synthroid® dose down to a more normal level (~175 mcg), not in the stratosphere.

So why do I want this young couple to be armed with the information in this book?  Quite simply:  divorce.  Over the years, King Richard and I have encountered a number of couples that have dealt with some kind of thyroid disease, be it thyroid cancer, Graves disease, or hypothyroidism.  To date, of the couples we know in our locale that have had to deal with thyroid cancer, ours is the only marriage still intact.  I do not say that to brag, nor do I say it lightly.  As I said before, living with a thyroid patient is no picnic.  Ending up with a thyroid patient after several years of marriage is one thing.  Taking on a thyroid patient as a "young couple in love" and having little or no knowledge of what you are getting into could be disastrous;  at the very least, it could lead to years of emotional damage.

So...I will offer the book to them when I am finished with it.  Hopefully, they will find it helpful and will graciously listen to an elder who has walked the path before them.  If not, then I will continue to make myself available to them for advice and counsel should they ever have the need or the desire to ask for it.

Critters in the Garden

A lovely little garter snake
Photo by Plush Duck

...and a lovely little wooly
Photo by King Richard

This afternoon, my husband mowed the lawn (possibly for the last time this fall) and tuned up the lawnmower in preparation for winter storage.  When he was leaving the backyard (with the mower running) to work in the front yard, he found this little guy.  Fortunately, he saw him before he ran him over.  Unfortunately, he brought him in the house to share him with the rest of us.  I am not a fan of wildlife in the house.  Well, of course, I yelped and "asked" him to take the little critter outside.  My daughter, on the other hand, was thrilled and immediately followed her dad outside to investigate.  We don't get many snakes of any size in our yard, so no opportunity to experience nature should be squandered when it slithers past.  They had a great time.  I took the picture and went back in the house.  A little later in the day, the wooly guy showed up.  I love my yard! 

A Pleasurable Solo

Photo by King Richard

On Sunday afternoon, my family and I attended a wonderful organ recital given as part of the Music at Central Series at Central Baptist Church in Norwich, CT.  The organist was my daughter's instructor, Nathan Bayreuther, who currently serves as Director of Music down the shoreline at the First Congregational Church of Madison, CT.  The program was well rounded, featuring pleasantly playful pieces alongside those that were musingly meditative.  The highlight of the 90-minute performance was a four-hand encore of Stars and Stripes Forever, executed by Mr. Bayreuther and his long-time acquaintance, Mr. David Warfield, the Music Director at Central Baptist.  The recital was followed by a small reception with the usual delicious goodies that the congregation is known for.  If you ever have the opportunity to attend one of the Music at Central offerings, I encourage you to do so.  This year, the season features a barbershop quartet, the Shoreline Ringer Handbell Ensemble, Celticity, and Mr. Charles Callahan, another organist.  See you there!

Recital Program
Festival Toccata by Percy Fletcher
Organ Concerto in G Minor by Handel
Meditation by Leo Sowerby
Music by Theodore Dubois
Toccata by Joseph Callaerts

A Float!

Photo by King Richard

The other day, King Richard changed the brake fluid in the clutch control system of his Toyota Tundra.  When he first opened the reservoir tank, the fluid was black, really black.  So black, in fact, that the float visible in this photo was invisible.  That's right, invisible.  This is how the reservoir tank looks now, and how it is supposed to look.  If you haven't checked your brake fluid in a while, it might be wise to do so before the snow flies.

Car Parts in My Sink

Coil springs, clean & shiny
Photo by Plush Duck

About two weeks ago, my beloved husband laundered his greasy garage towels in my washer, necessitating some experimentation with scum-removal techniques.  After a few tries, and some help from Koalagirl, I managed to get the goo off the agitator and the wall of the washer tub.  Today, King Richard decided to wash the coil springs from his Toyota Tundra in my kitchen sink.  The purpose of this activity:  to clean the grease from them so they could be painted.  That's right.  My hubby-mechanic is painting truck parts in an effort to stave off rust.  This time, the procedure is part and parcel of a shock absorber replacement job.  The procedural paint subjects:  the previously mentioned coil springs and some bushing washers.  I really don't mind that he is so excruciatingly meticulous.  He often performs such preventative maintenance on our vehicles.  It saves us a ton of money in car repairs.  I am just not a big fan of the smell.