It's late in the afternoon or early in the evening, do you know where your Jack Shoegazer is?

[jackshoegazer]

I went to the doctor this afternoon to have my surgical wounds checked out and to get a refill on my pain meds.  Everything seems to be in good healing order and my doctor said I seem to be doing extremely well for having just gone through a very major surgery. 

I've been sticking to my weight restrictions, not lifting anything over ten pounds, not stressing my chest or back.  I've been getting my 30-45 minutes of walking in every day, though that's not difficult since I have to do that much just to get to and from my bus stops.  Work is a bit difficult because I can't lift luggage, wheelchairs, or heavy packages.  Turning around to look when backing up also hurts quite a bit, so I've been keeping that to a minimum.

Sleeping is kind of the worst because laying down is no fun at all.  I can't lay in any one position for long and I need to be propped up quite firmly.  On top of this, I have to get up occasionally to take more pain meds.  Nothing feels quite as nice as waking up in excruciating pain in the middle of the night :P

On a bright side, I've lost about eight to ten pounds since I left for the surgery.  Being on an 1800-calorie diabetic diet for 8 days might do that, on top of the fact I have to eat slower because it's exhausting to move that much or that fast.

Ethan's been here this week to help me with all the tasks and chores I can't really do and he's been awesome.  Jacquelyn has been having a good time in Milwaukee being a genius.  Today was her award ceremony where they heaped her with praise, accolades, money, and giant posters with cute pictures of her all over them.

I think Ethan and I are going to have some pizza and watch more ALIAS.  I finished S02, but I have to get him caught up.  angrybunnyman and lady_fox got me Little Britain S02 for my birthday (amongst other yet-to-be-determined items) so there's always that evil temptation.


Waiting for the bus, on the way to the doctor.

Comments

[kiwikat.livejournal.com]

I'm glad things continue to improve. I'd say I'm jealous of your weight loss but it seems like a really rough way to get it, so I think I'll pass. : P I'm glad Ethan is there to help with things.

I need to see more Little Britain sometime, that show has potential.

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

I'm guessing the weight loss is temporary, but maybe not, if I can keep my portion size down. I have been pretty good at stopping eating while still hungry, which is good, as I'm finally starting to get my appetite back, but I don't want it!

[kiwikat.livejournal.com]

I think as long as you keep the habits you've been forming over the last few weeks there's no reason you should gain it back.

Today is day two of being more careful with food, so far so good. : P

[seeitbloom.livejournal.com]

I don't have the permission to access that post. ):

+Glad that everything went well and that the healing is also. I hope that things are fully back to normal soon and that you have the same energy and motivation before long. *Nods*

I went to see Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson today, and you crossed my mind for a brief moment. I'm definitely glad to hear read that things are going smoothly.

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Thank you, me too. I can't wait to feel "normal" again.

I really want to see that movie. There's a new biography out about him I've got my eye on as well.

[seeitbloom.livejournal.com]

It made me far more fascinated with him than I already was, so I guess there were some good bits in it, but the documentary was actually a bit boring at parts, and it borrowed wayyyyy too much from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Where the Buffalo Roam, and the BBC documentary. I would still suggest seeing it, though. You should look at all of the theaters near you and see if it's playing anywhere. We actually drove 40 minutes to be able to see it, because it wasn't playing at the theater right by us anymore. It was great, though, because the theater was practically empty and quite secluded. (: Try to see it!

Of course, it'll probably be on DVD before too long or can be rented or something, I'm guessing.

[lucidpseudogod.livejournal.com]

can you drink beer?

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Not that I'm aware of. It might be bad since I've got some clotting issues at the moment.

ah

[lucidpseudogod.livejournal.com]

garlic, raw. stat?

natural painkillers..... cherry juice concentrate

[dakini-grl.livejournal.com]

I guess now comes the hard part where plain old domestic life collides with a chest cavity recently rearranged. Your patience is pretty amazing to me. Hang in there.

(And the fact that you can actually drive? You're that cab driver I always want to get into a conversation with... "How are you?" "Great, heart surgery turned out good...")

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's rough. It's like I go to do a chore, get started and realize I've only got the energy for about 5 minutes of work. Or I can't really kneel down for that long. Standing things aren't too bad, so sweeping seems to be okay. I can cook a little if it's not too labor intensive.

Driving is kind of a pain and I have to go a bit slower and more careful, so I suppose that's a good thing :)

[katachthonios.livejournal.com]

Much sympathy for the pain, but I got to say: Ethan seems to be in for a rough night. I mean, hanging out with dad, eating pizza, and watching a scantily-clad Jennifer Garner kick all sorts of ass?

Poor kid.

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Yeah, geez. Maybe you should call child services or something. Obviously this is ABUSE!

[kiwikat.livejournal.com]

I think you might like these: http://www.bobstaake.com/posters/conga.html

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, these are great! *BOOKMARK*

[ohsochewy.livejournal.com]

Glad you're continuing to improve day by day. Computer says yes!

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Thank you :D

[irishspongie.livejournal.com]

Good to hear you're on the mend, even if it's slow. Best picture is still the first one, where you have those staples running down your sternum. Herman Munster ain't got nothin' on that :D

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Not staples actually, I think they called them stereostrips or something like that. They basically sewed me up from the inside and then covered the whole thing with stereostrips, which seem to be the crazy packaging tape of the medical world. The scar is still pretty impressive. I'll post more pictures of that when it heals a bit more.

[abmann.livejournal.com]

Gee, what a thoughtful gift! ;D

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

I can't wait to see what else you're going to get me ;)

[cashmirjungle1.livejournal.com]

This is super delayed b/c I've been away from lj for a bit. Just wanted to say that I'm glad to hear your surgery went well. I remember when my dad had his heart surgery many years ago, how scared I was for him. And I remember how, when I was much older, he told me how scared he was too. So I hope it wasn't too scary. And I'm glad to hear that you have such a great support system helping you on your way to a full recovery. And nothing is better for a recovering soul than pizza :o)

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Thank you :) Things are going pretty well. I'm healing, slowly, but consistently. I was straight freaking out for the few weeks before hand, but once I got there, I calmed down and got pretty Zen about everything. In hindsight, it seems silly to have been so scared, but hey, it was scary and I treated that fear with the respect it deserved.