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Usually my three-month visit to the ALS Clinic up at UCSF is the prototypical model of predictability. Lotsa attaboys for stuff we Fehmeen excels in -- like organization and scheduling -- and a couple of we'll I'll do betters -- like trying new things and following through on past commitments I said I would try the last time.
While our visit this past Friday had its share of both praise and constructive criticism, there were several interactions, pronouncements, and earth-shaking events that could only be classified as out of the ordinary.
In order of occurrence they were:
1. Someway, somehow, over the course of the three months since I was last in clinic, I managed to gain 17 pounds. Are you kidding me?!? Seventeen pounds!?! Knowing that this was physically an impossibility based upon my diet of six Boosts down the tube daily as well as an aggregate total of fifteen quarter spoonfuls of cream of wheat and mashed potatoes, we deduced that an error was made well over a year ago when they weighed my old power chair -- without me in it -- and therefore every calculation of my weight made since that time was wrong. Being at 164 almost three years into my diagnosis is a whole lot better than 147, that's for sure.
2. I actually agreed to have breathing numbers tested in house instead of at Kaiser as per usual. Unfortunately, I immediately regretted my decision the moment we got started. It wasn't for a lack of not trying, I can assure you. We are booking a visit with my respiratory therapist Cyndi in Santa Clara as I blink/type and you read.
3. My neurologist informed us that starting February 1 the laughing and crying drug I took during their clinical trial two years ago officially becomes FDA approved. Yeah!!! That means no more out of pocket expense for us in the procurement of these little white capsules. Open up my tab, Mr Permanente. Make mine a double!
4. Five minutes into our visit with Dr Lomen-Hoerth, we all noticed that the room we were in was moving. She casually informed us that hospitals are the safest buildings to be in during an earthquake because they are designed to a higher standard than other structures. Her words were assuring especially as the room began to move again.
5. Finally, we heard on KNBR as we were heading home that the 49ers had just hired Jim Harbaugh as head coach. Nobody in the van was more excited about this news than Fehmeen who could not stop talking about how explosive their offense is going to be next year. In fact, she was so jazzed by this development that she even greenlighted my fantasy football fees for the Fall. Thanks babe!?!?
