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7/3/2009 Back issues (not the paperback variety)So I've been having some lower back pain off and on for a few years--most certainly related to poor sleep posture combined with bad exercise and biking. It finally spiked in the last two months and I needed to do something about it because it was affecting my ability to do things like sit or lay down or stand up or sleep :( Anyhow, when biking to work started to feel like something that was going to leave me in pain for the rest of the day, I finally started seeing a chiropractor. It's only been three weeks and I feel about 90% of normal again! We've even moved onto some other problem areas because the low back feels so much better.
I also moved to Plymouth from S. Minneapolis (but I've been biking mostly from New Hope this summer) since I stopped riding and started seeing the chiro, so a bike commute will be almost 40mi/day. Except for some shorter rides with Molly around town, next Tuesday is my first day back in the saddle for a real commute. I'm going to try to work up to it over the weekend with some trail riding, but if everything goes smoothly I'm looking forward to a hell of a great summer of biking. On Tongues and Tongue Lashings[I wrote this last month and then took a few weeks to decide if I should post it. There is no way to write something like this without being a huge asshole and validating the claimant on some level. I guess I'm a huge asshole...] So my soon-to-be-ex is out of the country and her mother is watching the house and the cat. I stopped by to visit with the cat and pick up some mail that was delivered there, and my soon-to-be-ex mother-in-law Maggie let me in on some interesting theories that she said she and her son Max have developed about the emotional abuse I'm supposed to have perpetrated against her daughter--which has apparently interfered with their relationships with her for some time. Maggie said that she and Max have been working on these theories for a few years. Although she was ready, momma bear-like, to personally attack me and heap scorn upon me while I was conveniently located within shouting distance, she and Max have apparently been too busy or too unconcerned to ever talk to Molly or me about it while the alleged theorizing was actually relevant to the alleged abuse. Presumably they had better things to do. Incidentally, this is the same excuse Molly offered on the numerous occasions when I asked her why she never called her mom or her brother and why we spent more time with my mom and nieces when they live 250 miles away than with her mom and brother who live in the same city as us. In fact, Maggie used to call me--several times a month sometimes--because Molly literally would not answer her phone or return voicemails when her mom called her. I would relay these messages to Molly and remind her repeatedly to call her mom, but enough messenger shooting occurred (from both ends) that I grew to dislike this task. Every time her relationship with her family was questioned, Molly would become very upset and act like it was just too big to ever deal with. I guess everything is fine now though, because now that I'm out of the picture they are one healthy, coordinated family front! Except, apparently, for substantive personal matters, such as the imminent arrival of a grandchild. You see, immediately after I greeted Maggie when we met this weekend, I inquired as to the due date of Max's baby (the aforementioned imminent grandchild). Maggie looked at me--rather stunned--for about second before announcing that, although she had guessed they were pregnant, that Max had decided for some reason not to share this information with her. The irony was completely lost on Maggie, who proceeded to administer the aforementioned tongue lashing of my recent life, detailing just how much I screwed up, failed, abused, and emotionally scarred her daughter. The implication (based on her many examples) was that all of the responsibility for her failed relationship with her daughter was on me. I wonder how she explains her failed relationship with Max and her daughter-in-law? The cognitive dissonance and resistance to introspection required to realize that I'm not the common denominator in these two scenarios is at once hilarious and sad. She also gave me a weird trip about how smart I am and how good at everything I am, and how she thought I never liked her family very much because they're too dumb or something. This is ridiculous of course; Molly is brilliant and amazingly talented and the whole family are (in my estimation) particularly gifted artists. I, OTOH, am artistically retarded. I don't even consider myself to be particularly smart, but I do try to be self-aware and introspective. When someone tells me something about me that contradicts my own self image, I try to take time to weigh my respect for that person with the tone and spirit in which the observation was offered. If I think there might be even a shred of truth and/or sincerity in what they said, I think hard and honestly about whether there is something I need to learn or change. What I learned [that] weekend when I went to pick up my mail is that it's really easy to blame all of your problems on someone you feel has rejected you, especially if dealing with your own problems is something you try hard to avoid. 5/28/2009 Apocalypse HaikusI was reading about North Korea today and was inspired to write a haiku:
And as I was reading through a requirements document I listened to the NPR 24hr program stream and heard two people talking about accidental nuclear war. I brainstormed with a coworker for a while to come up with some themes about nuclear devastation. He asked me why and I said I wanted some material for Haikus. When he got done laughing at me, we came up with the following list:
So here they are, not necessarily in that order ;)
Happy Thursday everyone!! 4/28/2009 I saw a woman die last nightMolly and I were talking about dinner last night after I got home from the grocery store when we heard a blood-curdling scream for help from a woman in the hallway, followed by swiftly running footsteps away from the area. I opened the door and saw a woman collapsed in the doorway of her apartment about 20 feet away. I ran to her to ask if she was alright. She was breathing in slow gasps and was totally unresponsive to my voice. She looked older, like in her late 50s, early 60s. I had never met her and didn't know her name. Now, I can guess how to take a pulse, and I've seen CPR done on television, but I had no idea what I was doing. Luckily within a few seconds, the other neighbors starting opening their doors and the boyfriend of the woman who had originally screamed for help came running toward the scene. The across-the-hall neighbor seemed completely frozen. I asked if he had a phone and if he could call 911. He thought for a second, and then disappeared. I asked the boyfriend if he knew CPR. He said yes and began looking for a pulse. He said it was irregular and started calling her name and rubbing her back. His girlfriend reappeared. She was on the phone with the police, and they asked her to describe if and how she was breathing. We told her that it was in gasping breaths every 30 seconds or so, and that she was otherwise unresponsive. By the time we timed another breath, we heard the sirens and people started running for the doors to make sure they could get into the building. The EMT felt for a pulse and called her name a couple of times and then said "Full arrest" into his radio. Within a minute a couple of different teams arrived (the FD and PD are on the same block as Molly's building). They began working on her immediately with a chest compression machine and a mobile defibrillator. The defib eventually shocked her once, but there was nothing they could do to restore a normal pulse. They worked on her for what felt like 20 minutes before finally calling time of death. I'm leaving a lot out, but it's pretty clinical stuff and I don't have a lot of personal perspective to offer. The neighbors said she's been in and out of the hospital lately, and that she was taking a lot of different medications. The police stuck around for a while to talk to the woman who found her and the apartment building people in order to get some contact information for her son. What a night. 12/13/2008 Lots of changes in my lifeSo in the last month, my wife and I separated, I moved into a new place in Minneapolis, got a new car, and started a new job. I've gone into detail about the separation elsewhere, so I'm not going to go on about it here. My new place is a little efficiency near the U of M campus, I got a 2009 Toyota Yaris, and I'm working for a company that makes...MEDICAL SOFTWARE! Yeah, that last part was probably a huge surprise to anyone who knows me--talk about a stretch for my career! OK, so it's not actually a stretch.
I love the car and the new place so far, so onto the job front: This year I had an on/off contract with a local company to write software for construction projects. In October, they gutted their construction department and made it clear that there wouldn't be any work for me until the economy improved. Since my marriage was already on the skids, I wanted to get a full time job anyway, and that definitely gave me the push I needed. I hit CraigsList and immediately saw a listing for the job I'm working at now. I figured I was a lock right away, but it took a really long time to not only get things rolling, but to progress through the process. In the intervening 7 or 8 weeks, I went on a few other interviews and pestered all my friends to hook me into their networks (thanks to everyone who helped, btw!!) and I generally worried as jobless claims went through the roof week after week on the news. Once I got my foot in the door at the place I'm at now, things progressed very quickly and I was working there within two weeks of my first phone screen.
I'm not going to talk a lot about the job yet, except to say that I'll be writing WPF applications that are used by lab techs in hospitals. WPF is new to me, but they hired me based solely on my ability to digest cheese and juggle geese. When I'm not properly processing lactose or tending the department poultry, I will be learning a complicated service architecture from a very talented group of developers, and hopefully learning how lay out some wicked looking WPF views. 8/16/2008 Obento and other stuffI went to Obento-ya with my Japanese class Friday after school. It won 2008 City Pages Best Japanese Restaurant, so we were all pretty excited to see what it was like. We ordered ahead and there were enough of us to fill their outdoor seating on the back deck (which is very cozy and has a great garden). The food was soooooooo good. I ordered the tempura combo bento, which came with rice, salad, a small scoop of their unique mashed potatoes, some pickles, and some exceptional tempura vegetables. Some of us are going back after our last day of class next Friday, too. I CAN'T WAIT!
I took Molly to see the orthopedist on Wednesday, which was great. The doctor ordered a contrast MRI so they can get their eyes on the current nature and extent of her injury, and then we'll talk about surgical options. The doctor only mentioned endoscopy, which is less invasive than anything we've been offered in the past (admittedly it's been ~10 years since Molly talked to a surgeon about the problem). I'm excited to get Molly on the road to recovery!
My bike woke up with a flat tire this morning. That was just weird, because I road home on it just fine with no noticeable pressure issues. Molly dropped me at school and I looked at it when I got home. I removed the front wheel and carefully investigated the tube and the tire, but could not fine a leak or any (new) puncture or damage to the tire. I put it back on and re-inflated it and it's fine. Whateva, guess my bike just wanted a day off. When I hung it up in the garage I noticed that I've neglected cleaning the dérailleurs since I started putting 400 miles a month on it. I scraped a considerable amount of goo from the front and rear assemblies, then used the last of my lube on the chain.
Because of the flat, I rode the bus home from Obento today, which is something I haven't done in a long time. The ticketing machinery (and fare cost) is considerably different than last time I rode, if that gives any indication to how long it's been. 8/12/2008 Molly dislocated her shoulder againLast night while Molly was getting ready to use the rowing machine she lost her balance sitting on the sliding chair on the machine while putting on a sock. She fell off the machine and into the basement wall, smacking her bad shoulder hard enough to dislocated it in the process. She's had a rotator cuff injury since she was 16 and has occasionally needed the assistance of the local emergency room to pop it back in place. This time it was really bad. She was in extreme pain and could barely move. I spent about 10 minutes trying to follow her instructions to manipulate it back into place, but it was going nowhere fast and causing extreme pain. She wanted to be left alone for a bit to see if it would pop back into place like it has in the past, but all that happened was she fell over in pain and laid on the floor for 10 more minutes before I got her into the car and over to the emergency room at HealthEast a couple blocks away.
After x-rays, Dr. Jackson spent a couple of minutes manipulating the shoulder while Molly generally screamed in agonized pain before she administered morphine to dull the pain and relax her. That had an immediate affect--Molly stopped shaking and seemed to calm down quite a bit. (It should be noted that at no time during our previous visits to emergency rooms for this injury has a doctor administered anything for pain.) Morphine required an IV--which was also a first for Molly--and generated considerable medical waste in the process, but Molly was extremely grateful. Dr. Jackson spent a few more minutes trying to manipulate the shoulder, but that seemed to bring the pain right back in a huge way. She decided on conscious sedation, but her attending came in with a very doubtful look on his face and decided he'd give it a go, too. After a few more minutes of intense pain and screaming, they all agreed that sedation was best.
They gave her some white goo through her IV, which knocked her right out. They warned me that Molly would still resist and cry out in pain while they relocated her should, but that she wouldn't remember anything. Two med students stabilized Molly's scapula and upper body while Dr. Jackson relocated the shoulder. The attending and another doctor looked on while this occurred, so it was a very full room. It still took about a minute, but Molly had an immediate personality change--sedated as she was--so it was pretty easy to see it was back in place. They strapped her into a shoulder immobilizer, which is like a really wicked sling that uses velcro straps to lock your arm tightly into one position (Molly says it's way better than a sling, even if it is a PITA to get on and off). X-rays showed the shoulder was definitely back in place, so they removed her IV and sent us home. Hanging out in a full ER until 2AM is definitely not fun, so we were really happy to get out of there.
Molly is seeing an ortho specialist tomorrow, and surgery is definitely up for consideration. Five hours in the ER and extreme pain almost the entire time was really hard on Molly, so hopefully she'll finally get this injury take care of properly this time. The HealthEast doctors and nurses were all super friendly and really cool about everything--even though the ER was crazy busy while we were there. I'm off to fill Molly's prescription for pain meds. Thanks Dr. Jackson! 8/10/2008 Busy, busy, busyHaven't updated the blog in a while. Been crazy busy with school and other stuff.
I was riding home from Concordia the other night when my rear fender came loose and was immediately gobbled up by my rear wheel, bringing me to a screeching halt in the middle of a busy intersection and ejecting one my saddle bags into the street. A stranger in an SUV attempted to scoop my bag from the street about five seconds after it fell off. He seemed angry that I actually wanted it back. Some people. I realized for the first time that my fenders require the only tool I don't keep in my bike bag: a screwdriver. Since I lacked the ability to remove and discard the fender, I had to wait for Molly to give me a ride.
My ability to manage my time appropriately is at an all-time low. Molly and I seem more content procrastinating together in the evening than doing anything serious. TAKE THAT, REAL LIFE! After being too casual with my 2nd semester of summer Japanese, I've buckled down again. New class started up at Concordia this week too. Too soon to tell if I like it or not. Trying to finish two books tonight, then I have lots of Concordia and JPN homework. 7/15/2008 モリーはこんしゅうの金曜日にアメリカへかえるます！Molly returns to America this Friday!! YAY! It's been two long months without my snuggle bunny, and I'm awfully lonesome. I bought extra songs for Rock Band and all her favorite foods so we don't have to leave the house this weekend :)
金曜日に日本語のファインテストがありますから、こんしゅうのまい日べんきょうしなくちゃいけません。Lit. Because the final test for Japanese is Friday, I must study every night this week. Lot of homework, too. And I put all my Concordia stuff off till the last minute (sorry Judy), natch. Anyhow, にぎやかなしゅうです、よ。
Jesse 7/10/2008 Holy crap that was some expensive gasI filled up the car for the first time in two months this week, and it was $46 for 11.7 gallons. Wow. To make matters worse, I've been going to sleep too late and getting up too late to ride my bike this week, so I'm a double sucker for using a lot of gas and paying for U of M parking. 6/29/2008 Week of 06-23-2008 updateWednesday was the first day of my new class @ Concordia. The new teacher is pretty nice. The other students are recommitted because nobody is auditing this time (two of them were auditing the first class), so overall it should be a better experience. I helped my mother-in-law buy an HDTV this week. We went to Best Buy so she could get a feel for what size to get, considering the different aspect ratio. She settled on 26", so I poked around a bit on teh internets and found a decent Westinghouse with inputs that are easy to access. Hopefully she'll be able to get good reception with a basic amplified indoor antenna. I had two lesson tests and a kanji test in Japanese this week, and I did well on both. There's another lesson test and kanji test tomorrow, so I broke out my JLPT 4/3 kanji flash cards to study. I ended pulling out all of the kanji cards for my textbook and ordering them by lesson so I'll be able to add them to my "study deck" as the class progress through the book. I'm missing a couple because they're in the much larger (and more expensive) flash card sets for the harder JLPT level 2 and level 1 exams. My rear tire finally gave up after ~4000 miles. I got a really bad flat riding home from school on Thursday and had to replace the whole thing. SAD! Not as sad as pushing my bike for a mile in 90 degree heat to the bike shop :( Also, my opinion of weather forecasters has suffered a lot this week. Just about every day we were supposed to have TStorms, so I only rode my bike on the three most promising days. I think it sprinkled once or twice all week. This week the forecast is clear, so I assume that means it will piss down rain on my head every single day ;) Commuting on the bike is going well so far, but I have used the car a few times. I still haven't filled up the tank, but it's now quite empty. I'll have to really be careful if I want to make it until Molly gets back before I fill it up again. Went on a ~50mi ride with Zach through The Grand Rounds trail system in Minneapolis today. Very nice ride with good trail surfaces (many are new) all the way around. We began at finished at Minnehaha Park, although we did stop to eat near the U around 10. Here is a nice diagram of our route as captured by Zach's GPS. 5/28/2008 CatnipMy cat was pestering me too much tonight, so I decided to distract her with some catnip. We don't have any toys I can stuff it into anymore, so I just poured out the loose-leaf nip that came with her cardboard scratcher box, and rubbed it in. It took her a minute to realize what I was up to, but then she went APE! She started meowing up a storm and scratching the crap out of that box, and generally purring and rolling around on it and carrying on much more loudly than before. She has been stratching at it and sniffing it for an hour now. Oiy, I should have just let her meow at my chair a little longer... 5/15/2008 Moki can't get enough sleeping bagOur cat Moki loves it when we leave the sleeping bag on the couch: 5/13/2008 The Giant Pool of Money: The housing bubble explained on This American LifeThis show is by turns one of the most incredible, depressing, and informative episodes of This American Life that I've ever heard. I listened with rapt attention to how the mortgage-backed securities industry went from reliable, safe, fixed-interest mortgages into a death spiral where at one point $500k+ loans to were handed with ZERO verification to people with no income and no assets (they even had an acronym for them: NINA) just to satisfy the hunger of the investors. Then one day in October of 2006, everyone noticed that these NINA securities they'd packaged up as AAA-rated investments actually contained huge numbers of mortgages where the owners defaulted on their first payment. Then things got really bad. A special program about the housing crisis. We explain it all to you. What does the housing crisis have to do with the collapse of the investment bank Bear Stearns? Why did banks make half-million dollar loans to people without jobs or income? And why is everyone talking so much about the 1930s? It all comes back to the Giant Pool of Money. 2/22/2008 Exploding Dell batteries worrying you? Watch out for your Dell notebook power supply instead...Molly brought home the fancy Dell Precision laptop (a giant 17" ~15lb behemoth) from her office and sat on the couch with it to do some work. I left for a few hours, and when I returned home, I noticed an odd odor when I walked in the door, but after a brief look around, I couldn't identify the culprit. I gave up and made something to eat. Later, when Molly packed up her laptop, she complained that the power supply was too hot to touch, and had to wrap it in several coils of cord before she could safely put it in her bag. A short while later, I noticed that the power supply had, in fact, melted a bright impression of itself into the fabric of our couch. That really sucks. Photo coming soon. 2/20/2008 Duty CallsXKCD is on a roll this week:
Molly has been the victim of this pattern many, many times. Damn youse internets!! xkcd - A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language - By Randall Munroe 2/18/2008 How it Works
Gotta love XKCD. To any high school or college-aged female readers: this doesn't change when you get a job. Sorry. 1/15/2008 Thailand is way better than Minnesota, in case anyone is wonderingIt's been below freezing for like 2 months now, and doesn't look to let up for another month. Molly and I can't wait to go back to Chiang Mai, which we've easily and thoroughly romanticized into completely unreality after the last 9 months in Minnesota. See you in fantasy land! 12/28/2007 You know you love a Sonic Youth fan when......You can sleep through 20 minutes of The Diamond Sea played loudly enough to keep someone awake through a late-night drive. Thanks Sweet Pea! |
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