So Much Going On

We got to TX Thursday night. Friday Gerry had his tests - of course, they neglected to tell him that he couldn't eat before the echo cardiogram. Luckily he only had 1/2 bagel and that had been a few hours before they got to him,so he only had to wait about 30 minutes for the test. After that and a blood test we went to Infusion Therapy where they showed us a video and had Gerry sign consent for the catheter insertion. After that we were exhausted and STARVING, as it was 2:30 PM and we had not eaten (I didn't have anything at all). We got some lunch, went to the room and stayed there the rest of the day/night. Saturday we went to Jason's Deli in Rice Village. We always like to eat there at least once during our stay. They have great soup and sandwiches. Then we went to the movies and saw American Gangster. It was terrific! Later that evening I went to dinner with my cousin Richard and his wife Penny. They live about an hour outside of Houston. Gerry was too tired so he stayed at the hotel, The Rotary House. We had a really nice time. Today was MOVING DAY. I was not able to secure rooms at the Rotary House for our entire stay, so from today (Sunday) through Wednesday we are staying at the Spring Hill Suites, about 2 miles from the Medical Center. We love staying at Spring Hill Suites but the Rotary House is so much more convenient as I can just walk across the street to the Med. Ctr/hospital. So on Wed I will move our things back! Once we were settled I took the shuttle to the Med Ctr to take the first of two (identical) classes on caring for the catheter. I have to flush it daily, change the dressing 2x week, and change the caps every two weeks. You are right, Alison...better me than Michael. After watching the 10 minute video showing the actual changing of the dressing, I knew that put in that situation, Michael would not do it (not that he wouldn't want to...he just gets squeemish). I will be fine, it's just the first time that will be difficult. It's time consuming, has to be done in a VERY sterile field too. I am SO glad that I will be off of work for several weeks. There is NO WAY that Gerry would have been able to go through any of this alone. So, tomorrow we head over to the Med Ctr for his 8 AM appointment to have the catheter inserted, 10 AM to see the Dr. and sometime after that - admission. The treatment will begin on Tuesday morning.

An aside: I talk to almost everyone. In the waiting room on Friday I met a lovely woman from Alabama named Sybil. She has leukemia, since June, and is here for stem cell transplant. I struck up a conversation with Sybil when I saw her knitting. She is a beginner. She was fascinated with my work - the same blue Crumpets dress that I was making several months ago using Lion's brand Cotton Ease (# 107). We met by coincidence today at the catheter class, and she even invited me in while her mother was being shown how to flush the catheter that Sybil already has in place. Then she drove me back to my hotel. She is supposed to be admitted to the hospital this week for a month's stay. They are just waiting for her sinus infection to clear up. If she is in while I am here I will definitely visit her...she wants me to show her how to knit cables.