Whoa, Nelly!

This is not your usual Midwest roadkill...

The Mom Update

This is one of those posts I really wish I didn't have to write. In the past couple of weeks, the Princess Mom has had a couple of setbacks, including two psychotic episodes, that have led the family to make some hard decisions.

The first decision was to take her off all but her heart and anti-seizure medications. The second is no more hospitals. The third was to get hospice care at home.

While she still eats like a horse, she is steadily losing weight. Her short-term memory is spotty. She has less and less energy each day. She has some odd obsessive-compulsive issues.

Yes, we're on that long, slow march to the end. The hospice folks tell us it will probably be a matter of weeks, instead of months.

Mostly, we're not at the crying point yet. There'll be plenty of time for that later. What we are doing is trying to make every day good for her, and enjoy her while we've got her.

Two of my cousins have flown in to spend some time with her. We're encouraging friends and family to do it now. My daughter has spent a good bit of time with her, too, and she's probably been the best medicine of all.

Please keep holding us in your prayers. Believe me, the knowledge that they're there has really helped us to hold (mostly) rock-steady.

And to those of my friends out there who are currently going through the same kinds of travails (and you know who you are), our prayers are with your families, too.

Drive-Bys

Quote of the Day:

Human beds are simply too small. It would be great if the humans would do me a solid and sleep on the floor. -- Mackenzie

_____

Found via Jay:

You Are Cayenne Pepper

You are very over the top and a bit overwhelming. You have a fiery personality, and you can give anyone a good jolt. You can easily take things up a couple notches, no matter what crowd you're running with.

What Spice Are You?

Which led to this logical leap:

You Are Hot Sauce

You are the life of any party, because you're so good at bringing people out of their shell. You have a knack for helping people happily embrace their true selves. You are ambitious, driven, and fearless. You love taking risks. Your taste in food is 100% adventurous. You're up for sampling any exotic cuisine or someone's kitchen experiments. You live for trying new things, and you get sick of eating the same food (even if it's very delicious).

What Condiment Are You?

There's no getting away from it, is there?
_____

The funniest thing I've read all month is here. It's also why I believe little white lies are sometimes a very good thing.
_____

Giggle of the Day:


more cat pictures
_____

Ear Worm of the Day:



This one is for Long-Departed Dad and the Princess Mom. Daddy danced left-handed, and the only person in the world who could follow his lead was the Princess Mom. This was one of their favorites.

Drive-Bys

A couple of Blogthings I couldn't resist:

You Are Archery

You are a bit of a traditionalist. You like old fashioned things with deep traditions. You also like to see the result of your accomplishments right in front of you. If practice makes perfect, that's fine by you. You like to practice a skill.

What Olympic Sport Are You?

You Are An Attention Seeker

You're only human, so you can't help but want a little attention every now and then. You love the spotlight, but only when it's well deserved. You'd hate to be known for the wrong thing. And you also don't mind sharing the spotlight. You can easily give someone else credit or a complement. You know there's enough attention to go around, and it makes you happy when your friends shine. You come across as: Friendly and interesting People may wrongly think you're: A little more modest than you actually are!

Are You An Attention Whore?

Yup.

You Are a Red Wine Woman

You're not a big drinker, and when you do drink, you go for the best. You probably know a good deal about wines, and you know how to order a great bottle. When you drink too much, you tend to flirt - but only in a subtle, understated way. You prefer to date a man who's worldly and wise. He's got to be as sophisticated as you are.

What Kind of Drinking Woman Are You?

Bwaaaaaaaaaahahahaha!!! That's me to a "t".
_____

Global warming? I don't know about for you, but here's how it's affecting Chicago:

August is the wettest and often the muggiest month of the year. Yet, summer heat continues in short supply, continuing a trend that has dominated much of the 21st Century's opening decade. There have been only 162 days 90 degrees or warmer at Midway Airport over the period from 2000 to 2008. That's by far the fewest 90-degree temperatures in the opening nine years of any decade on record here since 1930.

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
_____

To all whose birthday calls I missed yesterday, I apologize. @%#$*^ cell phone was sitting on the coffee table at home... (but I had a hell of a good time with Walt, Zen Master Ken, Uncle Bill, Kat and Gabriel. You guys rock!)
_____

Ear Worm of the Day:


_____

One of the nicest guys I know is having a birthday. Go wish Richie a very happy one!
_____

Drive-Bys

Ear Worm of the Day:


_____

American Airlines is doing what???

American Airlines is charging troops for their extra baggage, a practice that forces soldiers heading for a war zone in Iraq to try to get reimbursement from the military. One of the country's largest veterans groups is asking the aviation industry to drop the practice immediately.

That's just wrong on every level.
_____

Who asked Suzanne Somers? Nice.
_____

Giggle of the Day:


more cat pictures

Tootin' the Horn

Yup. It's the big one. Every decade has been an improvement, too.

What do I want for my birthday? My Adorable Rodent-hood back. With a little linky love, which I promise to send right back 'atcha, I'll bet we can do it, too.
_____

A big Thank-You to Jay, who always sends out the first birthday greeting link of the day!

Thanks, Livey!

A big smoocherooni right back at GuyK!

P.S. -- If you're here for the first time by way of one of these fine folks, stop back by and visit again!
_____

And just to show you how much has changed over time, here's a little blast from my past:

Boston, MA -- Birth to Age 2-1/2:



When I was a baby, my dad would come home from work for lunch. He'd plop me on his lap, and we'd watch Liberace together every day...

Cleveland, OH -- Age 2-1/2 to 10:





(He used to lead daily calisthenics to this little ditty. Gah!)

Glen Ellyn, IL -- Age 10 - 18:





Yeah. TV sure ain't what it used to be!
_____

It appears I share a special day with Baby Butter Biscuit. Go add your own birthday greetings!

Drive-Bys

The Ear Worm of the Day:



Try getting that one out of your head. (And hang in there through the whole screamingly funny thing. The biggest giggle of all comes very close to the end.)

Brought to you via Jihad Gene. Thanks, bro. I really, really needed that laugh today.
_____

I'm not surprised. Disappointed. But not surprised.
_____

Zonker has it right. Obama's campaign left themselves wide open for that one.

Here's a little Quizzy swiped from Mog:

Your result for The Best Thing About You Test...

Passion

Hot! Passion is your greatest virtue

Passion is an intense emotion that compels feeling, enthusiasm, or desire for anything, and that often requires action. Get that? Requires action. It's very likely you submit to your deepest needs and live life with a flair few others achieve, but many envy. All 7 virtues are a part of you, but your passion runs deepest.

Passionate types: artists, writers, composers, athletes, and heroine addicts.

Your raw relative scores follow. 0% is low, and 100% is perfect, nearly impossible. Note that I pitted the virtues against each other, so in some way these are relative scores. It's impossible to score high on all of them, and a low score on one is just relatively low compared to the other virtues.

YOUR VIRTUES

50% Compassion

44% Intelligence

63% Humility

44% Honesty

13% Discipline

29% Courage

83% Passion

Take The Best Thing About You Test at HelloQuizzy

_____

Okay. I know I shouldn't find this funny. But I do. I really do.

This, on the other hand, I find revolting.
_____

My SSIL loves "yard art" with dragon flies and other pretty things. I'm thinking my brother, however, would prefer something like this or this. Heh. (Tempting. Very, very tempting.)
_____

Ear Worm of the Day:



Fly right!
_____

Head-Scratcher of the Day:

A New York man who pleaded guilty to murder in Oregon in exchange for buckets of fried chicken will get calzones and pizza to go with his life sentence.

If only it were always that easy...

Drive-Bys

Can't understand the judicial system? Just ask folks like these what they're being charged with as they come out of the courtroom.

Well cause she dumb like that. She tried to cheat and all that, you know what I'm saying. I was living with her and all that you know. She's um that type of female. I don't what's wrong with her man, for real, seriously. She's um. Yeah man she's a little bit psycho. Yeah. I could say that. But you know.

MMPC deals with stellar citizens like this every day. Sigh.
_____

I've just gone nuts over these cool Scrabble tile pendants. At only $6.50 each, they'd make great inexpensive gifts.
_____

The weirdness continues:

A man accused of stabbing and beheading another passenger on a Greyhound bus in Canada pleaded Tuesday in court for someone to "please kill me," and was ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation.

Prosecutor Joyce Dalmyn, who argued for the evaluation, revealed new details about the attack Wednesday night. She said Vince Weiguang Li had a plastic bag containing his victim's ear, nose and part of a mouth in his pocket when officers arrested him. The only response officers received from him was: "'I have to stay on the bus forever,'" Dalmyn said.

This is simply the scariest stuff I've heard in a long, long time.
_____

My family already knows where the Princess Mom stands on DNRs, and we'll respect that when the time comes. If you've never considered your own stance on whether or not you'd want one, I suggest you read this.
_____

This continues to be a crime -- a crime against Mike Mette.
_____

Giggle of the Day:


more cat pictures

Drive-Bys

Giggle of the Day:


more cat picture
_____

A judge in Canada is expected to decide whether a man charged with beheading a fellow passenger on a bus should be sent for psychiatric evaluation.

There's really a question there???

Eyewitnesses on board the bus, which was travelling through a desolate stretch of Canada's vast prairies, said Mr Li, a former church custodian, stabbed Mr McLean, who was sitting next to him, 50 or 60 times.

He then severed his head with a large knife, reportedly brandishing the head to terrified passengers.

According to a recording published on the internet of intercepted police radio transmissions from the scene, the attacker was seen to eat parts of his victim's flesh.

Nah. That's just normal behavior.
_____

I'm swiping a meme from Moonbeam McQueen.

Rules for ‘Insight To My Heart’

"Post the song that just gets to you every time you hear it.”

That's easy. This hymn was played at my Great Uncle's funeral, and now I can't get through it without a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye:



Gah! It did it again.
_____

Why do I love Hammer so? Oh, just little stuff like this.
_____

So tell us, Stingray, what are you allowed to do???

(A tip of the cap to Matt G. Dude, you left me in stitches!)

Tootin' the Horn

Go blow birthday kisses to blogger Pamibe!

Road Conditions

The Ear Worm of the Day is brought to you by the weather in Chicago:



Ugh.
_____

Update:

Nearly 90,000 thunderbolts had hit northern Illinois, according to the National Lightning Detection Network. At the storms' peak, it was firing off more than 800 bolts per minute; and that only counts those that hit the ground.

"There was no precedent for this," said WGN meteorologist Tom Skilling. "In every way imaginable, that storm last night was in its own league."

I just happened to be downtown when the worst of it hit. In the 19 years I've lived and worked in Chicago, it's the first time I've ever heard the tornado sirens go off. I've gotta tell you, folks -- it was freaky, freaky weather.

Drive-Bys

Simon's cat strikes again:



(OXOXO to my curmudgeonly and adorable BlogDaddy.)
_____

Looks like Mark Cuban's bid for the Cubbies is gaining some tracking. This would make me a very, very happy lady.
_____

Okay. Maybe there is a good use for Twittering.
_____

Well, I hadn't considered this theory before. It's a beauty, I'll admit.
_____

Now here's a church I could get into! (And I don't suppose I'll be finding one in Chicago, either.)
_____

Since when does Tyson Foods get to ignore a national holiday in favor of a religious one??? Count me in for the boycott.
_____

Let's get one thing straight -- when you start bombing people, you are not an activist; you are a terrorist.
_____

Giggle of the Day:


more cat pictures

Drive-Bys

Happy birthday wishes to Blown Star blogger Kerrcarto!
_____

I am 11% Idiot.

I am not annoying at all. In fact most people come to me for advice. Of course they annoy the hell out of me. But what can I do? I am smarter than most people.

Take the
Idiot Test
@ FualiDotCom

That stupid Vonnegut cost me 4 points. I have read him... but I just don't like his stuff.
_____

Earworm of the Day:



I don't know why, either, but it's been bouncing around inside my skull since about 10:00 p.m. last night.
_____

Yippee! The Two Fat Ladies DVD boxed set goes straight to the top of my birthday wish list! Man, I miss those feisty old broads.
_____

Yes, Chicago may be one of the nation's most friendly walking cities... but only because it sucks to drive and park in. No wonder the boys over at Second City Cop get their shorts in a bunch. Da Mair has them doing important stuff like writing parking tickets and clamping cars, instead of giving them the tools and freedom to take care of more important things... like real crime.

Nice to see Richie's got his priorities in order.
_____

Speaking of crime, I really don't understand the depths of depravity it took to do this.
_____

And here's a guy who's aptly named. Wurm, indeed.
_____

While I'm on the subject of things I really don't understand, where were all the other passengers and what were they doing while this guy was elbow deep in gore? It's brain-boggling to me that people could sit around while this was happening:

Witnesses say the victim was stabbed dozens of times in an apparently unprovoked attack Wednesday night aboard the bus, which was going from Edmonton, Alberta, to Winnipeg, Manitoba.

They say the attacker then severed the man's head, displayed it to some passengers and then began cutting up the body.

Nobody tried to stop him???
_____

Drive-Bys

Quote of the Day:

No one is really looking? No one is really looking?! I CAN SEE YOUR CASH AND PRIZES! THAT MEANS IT IS TIME FOR NEW PANTS.

The Plumcake, sometimes she makes me laugh out loud.
_____

Giggle of the Day:


more cat pictures
_____

The Chinese government takes a page out of the Chicago Alderman's Playbook:

China will punish airlines whose passengers refuse to disembark or misbehave in protest over problems like delayed flights, an official said on Thursday, as the Olympics host tries to lift standards before the Games.

Frustration at mysterious delays and abrupt diversions and cancellations have at times boiled over into violence at Chinese airports, with passengers trying to storm grounded aircraft and police having to be brought in to keep the peace.

There have also been cases in which passengers, after delayed arrivals, have refused to get off aircraft in protest.

Deputy head of the civil aviation regulator, Yang Guoqing, said enough was enough after numerous warnings to airlines to treat their passengers better appeared to have failed.

Yup. Punish the airlines. That'll work.

Drive-Bys

Happy birthday to blog buddy El Capitan!
_____

Some Blogthings, because I can never resist:

You Are a Heart

Your life philosophy can be summed up as, "Love like you've never been hurt." Your greatest wish is to have harmony in all of your relationships. You can't help loving people, even when they're incredibly flawed. You are a true romantic, and you are willing to give almost anyone a second chance.

What Hand Gesture Are You?

(A tip of the cap to Sourpuss.)
_____

You Are Most Like Charlotte!

You are the ultimate romantic idealist You've been hurt before, but that hasn't caused you to give up on love. If anything, your resolve to fall in love is stronger than ever. And it's this feminine optimism that men find most appealing about you. Romantic prediction: That guy you are seeing (or crushing on)? Could be very serious - if you play your cards right!

Which Sex and the City Vixen Are You?

Hmmm...
_____

This one reminds me of Tammi, whose birthday I missed this week:

You Are Bare Feet

You are a true free spirit, and you can't be tied down. Even wearing shoes can be a little too constraining for you at times! You are very comfortable in your own skin. You are one of the most real people around. You don't have anything to hide. _____ Not a Blogthing, but just as interesting: I am 33% White Trash. The white trash in my blood will not keep me from becoming a doctor or a lawyer, but it will keep me from a good haircut and any sort of fashion sense. Take the White Trash Test @ FualiDotCom Blame this one on Pammy. _____ You know, for someone who the media heaped praise on when he was running against Hillary, they sure are piling on Obama now: Barack Obama has long been his party's presumptive nominee. Now he's becoming its presumptuous nominee. Yeesh. _____ You know, I kind of wondered about this myself, but shook it off as the kind of conspiracy theory that only nutballs, loons and wingnuts believe are true. Looks like maybe it's not so nutty a theory. _____ Leave it to Chicago's aldermen to once again consider using a sledge hammer when a flyswatter would do just fine: Burke and Rugai say their proposal would not only cut down on the number of strays roaming city streets, but would protect residents from "random, unprovoked attacks by overly aggressive animals." Rugai, in particular, sees the measure as a way to cut down on pit-bull attacks, one of her longtime concerns. Chicago. Gotta love it. _____ Giggle of the Day: more cat pictures _____ Enough, already! You'd think people would be smart enough to know not to walk and text as they're crossing the street, but, noooooooooooooo. That doesn't mean, however, that we need to have new legislation banning the practice. Ugh. You can't legislate smarts. _____

The Mom Update

The Princess Mom got sprung from the hospital around noon on Saturday.

Loads of fluids and IV antibiotics finally zapped the nasty bladder infection that had knocked her flat, thank goodness.

She's also now on insulin, as her diabetes was so rampantly out of control. She's not to happy about that, but the alternatives are even less appealing.

She's got neuropathy problems with both feet, which makes her less than steady. (I held her hand more over the weekend than I have since I was about eight years old, only now I'm the one guiding her along safely.)

The memory issues are improving... and they did make for some amusing conversations while I was visiting her in the hospital. Little things like referring to Imodium PM when she meant Excedrin PM gave me fits of the giggles. The docs have requested that we make sure to keep her mind active, so we did a lot of crossword puzzles to pass the time. I'm also thinking about picking up a jigsaw puzzle or two for her, just to mix things up a little bit.

Her hair is coming out by the handful at this point. She's due for a buzz cut and wig fitting tomorrow. I'm strongly considering getting her a Harley Davidson skull cap or a do-rag just for shits and grins. (Oooh, looky! There are more cool ones here.) She is into fashion statements, after all.

All in all, she just keeps on chugging along. She's a like a punching clown -- impossible to keep down.

On a happier note, we did get to go out to the boonies to see MMPC's new home and have a cookout on Sunday. TPM and MMPC are thick as thieves, and that visit was better than any medicine for TPM. We also got to meet the Reverend Grampa (MMPC's maternal granddad), which was a big treat for me. I still can't get over how seemlessly our families have blended!
_____

Your prayers, as always, lift us up and help tremendously. I can't thank you enough.

The Mom Update

So here's the scoop:

Yesterday the Princess Mom's white blood count was sky-high.

Her blood sugar couldn't be stabilized.

Her INR was about 7 when they shuffled her straight off to the emergency room. By one point last night, her INR was 14. (I once had an INR of 5.3 and Dr. Hot Stuff went nuts. You can imagine how concerned they were with a score of 14!)

She wasn't real coherent, and she was having some incontinence problems.

Today's complaints include double vision (caused by the steroid she's on), a bladder infection and dehydration. After several transfusions of platelets, IV fluids and antibiotics and some oral diabetes meds, she's coming around.

She's out of Intensive Care, and in a step-down unit in the Heart wing of Edward Hospital. With any luck, they'll be sending her home after her radiation treatment tomorrow. I'll be heading out there first thing tomorrow morning to spend the day with her.

I'm so glad she's here and not in Florida.

Thanks for all the prayers and kind words. They really do help, you know.

Drive-Bys

It's catching:

I got it from the CrankyProf. Will you catch it from me?
_____

Did you know it's the 40th anniversary of the invention of the cubicle? From one of those to occupies one to the rest of you who do also:


more cat pictures

(Cubicle Kitteh reminds me a bit of Tiger Boots!)
_____

George R.R. Martin, he taunts me. A Dance With Dragons will NOT be out on September 30th, according to his website.

Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's not fair.
_____

See, this would have made me alert the cluebat patrol that some people need to have their license to parent revoked. Geeze.
_____

You Can Definitely Spot a Liar

Maybe you have good instincts. Or maybe you just have a lot of experience with liars. Either way, it's pretty hard for someone to pull a fast one on you. You're like a human lie detector.

Can You Spot a Liar?

That's one more thing Tammi and I have in common.
_____

BlackFive reports. You decide.
_____

My pal Christine is having a huge sale in her Etsy shop. I'm only telling you now because I already ordered a bunch of stuff I've been salivating over for quite a while. But there's still plenty of good booty to be snatched up. (Do what I do, and start your Christmas shopping early!)
_____

When you're on your second parent with cancer and things aren't looking great, you can either cry all the time or develop a heightened sense of gallows humor. Me? This gave me a fit of the giggles. Yup. Gallows humor.
_____

This totally squicked me out. (How yucky is that???) Never heard of it before, and hope to God I never hear of it again!
_____

The ear worm of the day is totally dedicated to the Princess Mom:



Get better, Babs, will you?
_____

The Mom Update

The Princess Mom has been readmitted to the hospital this afternoon. Apparently there are memory loss issues, personal indignity issues, her blood sugar levels are unstable and more.

It may be that they're able to get her stabilized and send her home. Then again... I don't really want to think about it.

Prayers, please, and keep them coming.

Thanks!