Just Another Wednesday

I'm processing a lot of information right now. The short version is, I'll probably have radiation at the end of April. The long version involves a lot of variables that aren't that interesting. Meh. We're keeping the faith that it'll all work out this time.

Meanwhile, today was whackadoo. By the numbers:

Hours in the dentist's chair this morning: 3
Hours in the car, driving to UAB and back: 5
Hours at UAB: 3.5
Number of burglars I found in the house when ADT called because the alarm was going off right before I drove to UAB: 0 (however, the dog looked like she'd been up to something)

Here are some highlights:

I got in! I got an appointment at UAB endocrinology before the April 2nd appointment I was originally given. Woot!

So, I got there after the dentist and super-long drive and I barely made it on time. But I made it. It counts as a win.

I met with the new doctor and it's going to be ok, I think. We talked about the options and he wanted me to go right over to nuclear medicine while I was still there. Hooray for saving a trip to Birmingham! I was supposed to go back to the waiting room and wait for an escort to show me how to get to nuclear medicine because it really was a ridiculously confusing route. So I went back to the ginormous waiting area.

And waited.

And waited.

After an hour, I got bored, so I started to explore. I got really excited when I saw this:

because I LOVE herpetology and I was stoked to find some little friends to play with. Then I realized that it said "Hepatology" not "Herpetology" which was just really disappointing because there were no snakes and anyway, I don't even have a gall bladder anymore. But then I thought that it might be odd for a hospital to have a reptile department anyway. And then I remembered that it was 3:30 in the afternoon and I had had anything to eat yet that day because of the dentist and then driving really fast to Birmingham. So that's when I asked the nice people at the desk if an escort was really coming or if this was some sort of hazing for new patients. And that's when one of the endocrinology people walked me to nuclear medicine herself.

So the doctor had told me that I would have to assert myself with the nuclear medicine doctors to show that I understand the treatment, what's involved, and the risks. I had to convince them that I was making an informed decision. But the way the doctor said it... I started psyching myself up. I was totally preparing for a throw-down. I was going to assert myself all over the place.

What I didn't prepare for was a time-warp. The nuclear medicine docs were in a lab that was the spitting image of EVERY lab I ever saw at Georgia Tech: six computers and a mini fridge in a big room. And the doctors... were of a familiar type. I didn't have any trouble communicating with them... four years at Tech more than prepared me for that conversation.

After a quick stop at the lab for some bloodwork (p.s. that lady got me on the FIRST stick- absolutely unheard of!) it was time to go home.

Because at home, there are people like this guy who reads old 6th grade science books during his hair cut:

And that was Wednesday. A long, long Wednesday.