Flu Hits Home: I'm Down

Thoroughly cleaning the house after 86 year old Milly had the stomach flu was to no avail. Tuesday night at midnight it struck me with vengeance and throwing up every 90 minutes became the norm for this totally sick blogger. If you get the flu you must be aware of the following things:

Day 1: Tuesday morning pre-dawn -- You will eventually stop vomiting. After the sixth episode into large Zip-Lock bags, (throw up, lock and toss) ginger ale was sipped through a straw so as to stop dry heaves and bile heaves. Be sure to have plenty of zip-lock bags and ginger ale on hand. I went through approximately 24. After the first onset of another ailment further south, two Imodium AD capsules were chewed and swallowed immediately after the most recent vomiting episode, allowing the Imodium to do it's thing before the next zip-lock bag incident. This worked and held the secondary problem at bay until 8:00 a.m.

Laying on one's side makes throwing up into a bag much easier; place a large bath towel on the bed and be careful. Gallon sized zip-locks can handle a lot of horrible things. Don't settle for a non-name brand here. You will continue to vomit for as long as 17 hours, as I did, but it will stop with slow sips of ginger ale. Severe body pain kicks in but afraid to take aspirin -- won't stay down.

Day 2: Wednesday -- sleep day; apparently vomiting burns quite a few calories as I lost 8.5 pounds and was exhausted. Spent all day sleeping and sipping ginger ale and lemon-lime Gatorade. Ate four saltines.

Day 3: Thursday -- much improved but extremely weak and fatigued. Shower felt good; ate two eggs and dark toast with a water chaser. Stomach pains come and go, reminding me of labor. Drank peppermint tea to calm things down -- it usually works. Must get four stitches out of my eye today -- the last thing I want to do. No, the last I want to do is eat anything other then soda crackers. Had four today.

So there you have it. The flu is alive and well in Chicagoland. You will probably get it and it will last, make you miserable and then abandon you. You will survive. The rule of thumb for vomiting is go to the ER if you vomit longer then 12 hours but here's the rub: I was too sick to go to the ER. What a pickle that presented.

25 Day Old Annie - American Quarter Horse Filly

Watching Annie grow has become a past time for many. Twenty-five day old Annie, an American Quarter Horse filly, continues to get bigger as she enters her fourth week of life, as seen in the new short video. Though Annie is only seen eating, walking and watching the photographer, the short clip shows her well shaped head and long eyelashes. The newborn foal blanket continues to display more and more of Annie's rump as she packs on the pounds and inches. She is a lot taller then last week and weighs more -- the grain and hay Annie eats must be working wonders for her. Maybe the bathroom scale needs to find a home in the barn.
Photo attribution: somewhatfortyplus

Story Updates - Week of March 9, 2008

Many things happen in one's life and sharing them has made a few of the somewhat awful things rather humorous. Here are updates from the most recent "news" just in case you were wondering.

Annie update -- the almost month old filly has not yet ventured out of her safe stall to see the big world, though last night she came very close. Stopping just at the entrance to the stall, Annie looked out into the barn to see what was out there worth investigating. Her mother, Lucy, walked around the barn, trying to coax her baby out, but to no avail. Maybe today Annie will feel comfortable enough to take that big step in her young life and venture into the barn.

Runaway colt update -- after helping coax Sammy back home after he left in search of a better life, the two neighbors received their tower of treats from Harry and David, not on the same day, although they were ordered together. Harry and David made good by sending the family of neighbors to the west a second tower of treats as an apology for delaying the first tower of treats. Well done, Harry and David. Neither Sammy nor Curly have left home nor bit anyone since last reported, which is very good news.

Eye update -- after removing all thirteen stitches from my two left eye surgical sites on Tuesday of last week, the upper incision opened on Thursday of last week, bled way too much, and then received four new stitches to hold it together. Interestingly the stitches caused no pain, and they will again be removed on Tuesday afternoon, hopefully for the last time.

Flu update -- eighty-six year old Milly recovered well from her awful vomiting, etc. episode of the flu that caused me to don latex gloves and a face mask to enter the sick room. The entire room has been wiped down with Clorox wipes (twice just to be extra safe) and the bed linens have been laundered. Milly lost 8 pounds during this flu episode and is still limiting her food intake to scrambled eggs, toast and broth. She returns to Minneapolis next Saturday after five months in Chicagoland. So now you know.

Photo attribution: somewhatfortyplus

Flu Finds A Home

When 86 year old Milly started vomiting at 3 in the morning something was wrong. That "something" continued violently for ten more hours. The much talked about flu had hit home and I was the designated cleaner. Reports of the flu gone wild have been in the news almost every night and according to the Center for Disease Control, (which apparently needs a new name) influenza type flu (vomiting etc.) is widespread as the worst of the worst, but until it strikes your abode it isn't as bad as it sounds. Let this me your warning: it is worse then it sounds.

Consider this, in order to enter the room and keep from gagging a folded scarf was placed over my nose and tied in the back, then a face mask was placed over that. Latex gloves went on next, and with an armful of garbage bags, along with Oust and Lysol Disinfectant spray I was ready to go in. Keeping the area clean is important, and as queen of clean, my job was cut out for me. Spray, wipe, respray, wipe again until the entire bathroom was thoroughly disinfected and looked as good as new. All hanging towels were in the laundry, as were the rugs and other soft items that could hold germs. Paper towels are the only towels available in this bathroom.

To spare you the awful details, assume that in order to survive the flu you must have the following items on hand, you can connect the dots: face masks, latex gloves to clean disgusting areas, many garbage bags, large Zip-Lock bags in which to throw up, seal shut and hand to the designated cleaner to drop into the garbage outside of the home. Lysol Spray, Oust Spray to remove germs and odors, as many candles and matches as are available in hopes of removing awful odors. Several rolls of paper towels, with one roll in the bathroom at a time, Imodium AD heavy strength formula, Tylenol, cans of Ginger Ale to attempt to soothe the stomach, bendable straws and a hope this will soon pass.

According to the internist who has recorded a message sent to all who call in with the flu, "the stomach flu is severe and lasts for 12 to 24 hours. If the vomiting continues after 12 hours go to the emergency room." Milly only vomited ten hours. "The diarrhea is severe and you need to take Imodium according to the package directions." Done -- two Imodium by mouth at 3:00 p.m. "If the patient shows no improvement, take them to the emergency room." After sleeping for almost two and one-half hours, Milly feels better but has horrible body ache -- hopefully she is on the mend and hopefully this bug won't be passed on.......

Horse Tag

Like children everywhere, playing outside in the snow is good for the soul. As part of their daily antics, Curly and Sammy enjoy playing "catch" with a rubber food dish on a sunny but cold Chicagoland day. When not being tossed in the air, both colts vie for the extra point in a toothy tug of war.
Photo attribution: somewhatfortyplus

Plastic Surgery for Eye Cysts

Seven days, seven hours at the plastic surgeon, seventeen stitches, countless ice packs and various shades of red and yellow--- that's how I spent my week. Life is full of surprises and when four cysts were removed from the outer corner of the left eye where the eyelids join, as well as the upper eyelid, surprise is only one of several emotions. Caused by inflammation, rubbing, and other unknown things, cysts can appear in any part of the body and often can be treated without surgery, but not in this case. The treatment for a cyst depends upon the cause of the cyst, along with its location. Cysts that are very large and result in symptoms due to their size may be surgically removed. Sometimes the fluid contained within a cyst can be drained, or aspirated, by inserting a needle into the cyst cavity, resulting in collapse of the cyst, but not in this case.

Injection to deaden area. Slice open. Hear cutting sounds as cysts are removed. More cutting sounds. Smell burning tissue as cauterizing takes place. Feel pulling as stitches are tied, again and again and again. Feel pressure as new area is opened. Hear cutting sound; smell burning tissue. Slight pull. Done with cyst removal. Breathe.

Since eye tissue is fragile and thin, significant swelling and bruising can and will occur. The first surgical procedure was Friday, the photo was taken on Sunday. Stitches were removed after four days, on Tuesday, and healing was progressing well. On day six, today, the upper area opened and bled significantly, resulting in four additional stitches. At the suggestion of the surgeon, no anesthetic was injected to numb the area. It hardly hurt and not worth the injection, which really hurt.

Stitches will again be removed on Tuesday at 2:00. The area will again resemble the photo. Bruising will result. Ice packs will be used non stop. Sunglasses will be donned. Stitches will come out after five days this time, not four. So how did you spend the past week?
Photo attribution: somewhatfortyplus

Annie Video -- 17 Day Old Filly

Baby horse lovers have enjoyed watching Annie grow during the past seventeen days as everything is new and fresh to her. This short 57 second video clip shows how Annie has started growing taller and longer as her back end emerges from her once over sized newborn Weatherbeeta Foal Blanket. Annie shares grain with her mother, actually swallowing it, and shows interest in being a movie star, a dream shared by many girls longing for stardom. Annie's beautiful refined head and long eyelashes are the makings for Annie's future stardom in years to come.

Chicagoland temperatures will rise to the low 50's today so if all goes as planned, this will be Annie's first day out of her safe stall and into the big world, always with her mom by her side calling the shots. To ensure Annie's safety, the other horses will be secured so as to not bother her or cause Lucy distress on this big day. All of Annie's antics will be captured in video to share with you, dear readers, who have commented how much you enjoy watching Annie grow. Here's another one for you.
Video attribution: Law School Boy