The Gall Bladder Report #2

It's been almost 3 weeks since the operation and it's true: time heals all wounds. The steri-strips are off and the little slits are fading away. Only have one area of some discomfort (the place where the laparoscopic camera goes in has internal stitches), but that's getting better.

I got the all-clear from the surgeon this week: back to normal but watch the heavy lifting for a while. Fine by me. (Those books have been in the garage for 5 years; a few more weeks won't make too much difference.....)

I asked about nutritional concerns since the gall bladder aids in digestion, especially of fatty foods. Doc said I might experience 'faster than normal' elimination after eating something with too much fat, but that doesn't hold true for everyone. I usually watch the fat intake anyway......

It seems that many people are having those pesky gall bladders removed--ask several people you know and chances are they've had a family member or friend who has gone through the GB removal process....testimony to our less-than-stellar diets...

Eat well, but thoughtfully.

The Gall Bladder Report

<>It’s laparoscopic, they said. Only 3 small incisions, they said. After 2 or 3 days you’re feeling fine, they said. You can go back to work in a week, they said. In whose universe are they living?????

Not mine.

Ok, I tried to find out the name of the electro-cautery machine used on me. No one seemed to know or care to know. Even though there can be problems with stray electrical pulses that can burn internal organs.

I tried to rid my body of fats and cholesterol before the surgery. I did have gall stones and had to have the endoscopic procedure to crush them first. That could explain the bruises….

I have 4 small incisions, I think. It’s hard to tell with the steri-strips that take the place of stitches…. Some are quite yucky-looking. The steri-strips come off in about 10 days and then you are healed.

This is the 5^th day after surgery and the first day that I feel like myself. I’m still sore in the upper abdomen when I walk around and bending and lifting is somewhat problematical. I’m not supposed to lift more than 20 lbs. for several weeks. But there are no restrictions on diet or driving, as long as I’m not on pain medication.

The medication that has helped the most is a muscle relaxant, as I have been plagued with severe muscle spasms in the middle of the night and in the day. Also, Motrin is helpful.

For info on the WebMd site about gall bladders, you can follow this link:

http://www.webmd.com/hw/digestive_problems/zw1012.asp

Have to profusely thank DH for being the best nurse one could ask for. xoxoxoxo.

Thanks for all the gifts, calls, cards, e-cards, too! I really appreciate it!

Pia-you shouldn’t have! But Thanks!!!!!

Chiasmus!

Chiasmus

Do you know what this is? If you did, you could impress your friends and colleagues with your knowledge of little known grammatical terms.

Chiasmus is a sentence where major parts of parallel phrases are inverted to make an interesting and powerful statement.

You already are familiar with chiasmus, even if you have never heard the term.

Probably the most famous chiastic sentence is from John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Speech:

“Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”

By rearranging the “your country can do” and “you can do” phrases, you have a powerful and memorable sentence.

Dr. Mardy Grothe is the foremost collector of chiastic phrases, and the most ardent cheerleader for spreading the words of famous people in history who are known for chiastic, oxymoronic, and other interesting turns of phrase.

Check it out (scratch the surface) at www.chiasmus.com.

You can receive weekly emails from him that detail interesting people and their famous quotes.

He has published several books and has websites to learn more!

Try making your own! It’s fun!

Mah Jongg box with trays 

5 Trays with Mah Jongg pieces 

My Latest Obsession

I've received my Mah Jongg set from a very nice Ebay seller in Indiana. It is a vintage set from China, made for export in the 20's or 30's. The pictures come from the Ebay website-thank you to the seller!
It is a small box with 5 drawers. It contains over 140 bone and bamboo tiles, plus teeny dice and counting sticks and betting discs. Now I'm ready to learn to play Mah Jongg! Unfortunately, the box didn't come with directions!!! I've added a link to a great website: the Mah Jong Museum, which has lots of good info about the history of the game, sets and directions!
I know the game is a cross between dominos and gin rummy, and there are as many variations as there are groups that play it. Will keep you posted on my progress!

Book Title Correction

The correct title for Gabriel Garcia Marquez's masterpiece, is, of course, "One Hundred Years of Solitude."

Cliff at Beachy Head, England 

What I'm Reading

I seem to have finished more books than usual this month.

I like to read one book at a time, but I often seem to have two books going at once.

The first book I read this month was Cliffs of Despair:A Journey to The Edge by Tom Hunt. I saw a review of it and thought it would be interesting because it talks about a place I’ve visited. It’s about the cliffs in southern England called Beachy Head that are one of the top places in the world for suicides. When I went there I didn’t know this. I just wanted to see the white cliffs, and when I looked on a map, I knew we could go to Beachy Head. Now that I think about it, our driver guide probably thought we wanted to see it because of its reputation…She didn’t want to linger there, but we were fascinated and could have rambled over the grounds for longer than we did.

I’ll try to add one of my photos of Beachy Head (very similar to the one on the cover of the book).
At any rate, the history of the place and the author’s attempts to understand why people commit suicide is interesting. I’m sort of glad I didn’t know all this when I went there.

The next book I finished was The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion. Interestingly enough, Rory Gilmore was reading this book in an episode of “Gilmore Girls”, which I thought a strange choice. I’ve never read any of Ms. Didion’s work before, and I enjoyed her direct style. This is a very personal account of what it’s like to lose a family member suddenly, and how hard it is to go on alone.

For my book clubs we had an oldie and a new book.

The Last Tuesday Book Club (LTBC) will discuss Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert-I’d never read this book, and I’m glad we put it on our list. I will be interested to hear the opinions of the book club members on this book. I don’t think I would have gotten through it in high school, however.

Memories of My Melancholy Whores by Gabriel Garcia Marquez-This is my first Garcia Marquez book, although I started One Thousand Years of Solitude at some point. It is only 120 pages long, but it isn’t a fast read. Perhaps it’s the translation, or just the way the story goes from present to past and back again. Some of the similes and metaphors are amazing. I’m not sure if this is a very good book, although it seems that it is an interesting portrait of an old man trying to keep living. I’m not sure he ever deflowered the virgin he wanted on his 90^th birthday. Perhaps the book club discussion will enlighten me. Anyway, you could have a good time comparing this book to Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead for old men looking back on their lives.

On tap for next month are: A Million Little Pieces by James Frey (LTBC selection).

Wild Swans by Jung Chan (to feed my China obsession)

Lost in a Good Book by Jason Fforde (sequel to The Eyre Affair)-A Thursday Next novel. Michiko Kakutani called Thursday Next a cross between Bridget Jones, Nancy Drew and Dirty Harry. That’s about right. Actually, I’ve already started this one. Twice.

Why Blog?

My first/most recent post was a little snippy. I didn't save earlier posts so they won't be reposted here. So herewith a new post.

Why blog? This is a very good question. Perhaps people want to comment. I'm not sure why I want to do this, but I do. I guess my friend's blog is cool and when I see her interesting posts and great photos, want to do it, too. I know my kids have blogs, so I guess this helps me move a little further into 21st century technology. I don't know what will come out of this, so it's an interesting experiment. I wonder what others get from their blogs.

I will post more info about the great mah jong set I purchased on ebay, but my payment took a while to go through and I haven't gotten word about shipment.

Beginning Again

I deleted the first incarnation of Molly's Road Show and am giving this a second chance. No help from Blogger about the fact that I could not view my blog after the first post. I hope the Google people have been working on their servers and whatever, because I am rapidly becoming disenchanted. Nothing worse than extending the promise of cool technology and then not being able to use it....
Will check back and see if this blog is viewable.