My birthday was two days ago. I had a wonderful day filled with celebrations and well wishes. I got some good news from my doctor, too, who had sent me for an assortment of kidney function tests. They all came out fine. And today I had a visit with my pulmonologist. He said that my lung capacity has increased a little since a year ago. He said that that was probably because I had lost weight and it would increase a little more if I continue on this path - which is my plan. According to his records I am down 9 pounds since last year. That's not a lot but I only really started this campaign in August.
He also told me that my oxygen absorption rate has gone up from about 80% to 97% since last year. That was really good news to me. I still have less lung capacity than I did before - since I have less lung to work with - but it's good to know that it's working well. He told me that improvement like this is to be expected after surgery. he also told me that I seem to be where I should be at this point in the process and that I don't need to come back unless something bad - and unanticipated - comes up. I'm very happy about this. He's a very encouraging and kind man but I welcome the idea of not having to go back. One more part of this whole saga that is completed. I've been working with this doctor for three years. It's amazing to think back over that time and think of all that has happened, how much I have learned, and how my understanding of things both medical and non-medical has deepened since it all began.
I haven't tagged one of these posts as a medical update in a long time this counts as one. A happy development today.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
A walk along the river
I was out for a meeting yesterday afternoon. It ended early and I planned to head home and plow through work email for the rest of the workday. It was so beautiful outside that I put myself down for a couple of hours of vacation time instead and took a walk.
I went to the Daniels area of Patapsco State Park. It's not far from my house and I sometimes take my kayak there to paddle up the river.
On foot, my favorite route there is to take a path along a ridge that meets the river about a mile upstream and then return along the riverbank. There are several stands of tall tulip poplars along that route. They seem to do well in the hollows between the hills. On windy days, which yesterday was not, it's fun to watch them sway back and forth.
I usually come upon deer in the woods and along the river I'll sometimes see turtles or frogs and occasionally a beaver. There are always geese. I think people feed them because when you get close to them they swim out to the middle of the river but then hang around and watch you. It's late enough in the year that they wouldn't be protecting a nest so I assume they're hoping for a handout.
I went to the Daniels area of Patapsco State Park. It's not far from my house and I sometimes take my kayak there to paddle up the river.
On foot, my favorite route there is to take a path along a ridge that meets the river about a mile upstream and then return along the riverbank. There are several stands of tall tulip poplars along that route. They seem to do well in the hollows between the hills. On windy days, which yesterday was not, it's fun to watch them sway back and forth.
I usually come upon deer in the woods and along the river I'll sometimes see turtles or frogs and occasionally a beaver. There are always geese. I think people feed them because when you get close to them they swim out to the middle of the river but then hang around and watch you. It's late enough in the year that they wouldn't be protecting a nest so I assume they're hoping for a handout.
The light along that part of the river is always good in the late afternoon but it's best at this time of year. Yesterday evening I was there early enough that there were very few other people around. Taking those hours off was a good decision.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Early September
Well, it's early September already. This year is flying by in a way I've never experienced before. All of the signs of the coming autumn are showing themselves. When I go walking in the morning the constellation Orion is clearly visible in the sky. I go very early and at the same time each day. It's interesting to watch how Orion began close to the horizon and now it's high in the sky. This morning I started to learn the names of the stars in Orion. I'm impressed by people who can identify the stars.
It's interesting too, to see how the colors of the landscape have changed - slightly but definitely. All summer the fields and woods were almost the same shade of green. Now there are differences. There are deep greens, pale greens and yellow or brown greens. It's as if everything wants to show its individual identity before fading completely for the winter.
The animals I see in the morning are changing, too. In midsummer I see groups of deer. I've seen as many as seven at a time. Now I see mostly only solitary ones. And there are owls calling in the woods now. I see foxes regularly. That hasn't changed. They're always alone, although you can sometimes hear them barking as each other. This morning I saw one that was just playing in the grass by itself. He headed for the woods when he saw me but he wasn't in a hurry. There have been groups of ducks most of the summer huddled in a quiet, shallow spot in the river but I haven't seen them lately. It has been so dry that the river level is too low for them now.
I do see one cat in the same spot each morning. She just sits and watches me stroll by. I say hello to her every morning that we see each other. That's one of the advantages of walking very early in the morning. Nobody hears you when you're talking to a cat or a deer or a fox. And don't ask me why the fox is a he and the cat is a she. That's what feels right. I certainly don't know for sure.
In other news, I'm having a little success in the weight loss campaign. I'm down about six pounds. It's not noticeable as far as I can tell but someone did ask if I had lost weight. That gave me more motivation to stick with this. I still have a ton of weight to lose but I'm just going to chip away at it a little at a time. One plus is that I'm saving a fortune on lunches at work. It's pretty cheap to pack a lunch made up of a container of yogurt and a few rice cakes.
It's interesting too, to see how the colors of the landscape have changed - slightly but definitely. All summer the fields and woods were almost the same shade of green. Now there are differences. There are deep greens, pale greens and yellow or brown greens. It's as if everything wants to show its individual identity before fading completely for the winter.
The animals I see in the morning are changing, too. In midsummer I see groups of deer. I've seen as many as seven at a time. Now I see mostly only solitary ones. And there are owls calling in the woods now. I see foxes regularly. That hasn't changed. They're always alone, although you can sometimes hear them barking as each other. This morning I saw one that was just playing in the grass by itself. He headed for the woods when he saw me but he wasn't in a hurry. There have been groups of ducks most of the summer huddled in a quiet, shallow spot in the river but I haven't seen them lately. It has been so dry that the river level is too low for them now.
I do see one cat in the same spot each morning. She just sits and watches me stroll by. I say hello to her every morning that we see each other. That's one of the advantages of walking very early in the morning. Nobody hears you when you're talking to a cat or a deer or a fox. And don't ask me why the fox is a he and the cat is a she. That's what feels right. I certainly don't know for sure.
In other news, I'm having a little success in the weight loss campaign. I'm down about six pounds. It's not noticeable as far as I can tell but someone did ask if I had lost weight. That gave me more motivation to stick with this. I still have a ton of weight to lose but I'm just going to chip away at it a little at a time. One plus is that I'm saving a fortune on lunches at work. It's pretty cheap to pack a lunch made up of a container of yogurt and a few rice cakes.
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