A Day With My Beloved Husband!

I love spending time with my Petey :). Today was off to a leisurely start with a nice relaxed morning together at home. At around 12:30 we left for Gaylord to do our monthly Meijer/www.gfs.com "big shopping".

For this shopping sometimes we go to Gaylord, sometimes to Cadillac, sometimes to Mt. Pleasant, sometimes to Midland - they're all about an hour away from us, give or take. And when we want to spend a day, and also visit Oryana (one of my favorite places!), some thrift stores, and the largest Meijer in the state, we go to Traverse City which is about 70 miles of beautiful winding hilly roads and scenery away.

Anyway, today we picked Gaylord. And stopped at the truck stop just off the highway in Waters and had some excellent salads for lunch. In Gaylord we went to Meijer first, and I was quite disappointed because they didn't have everything I wanted, which is pretty unusual. Next stop their Sav-a-Lot - we have one here in Houghton Lake, but the one in Gaylord is bigger so I wanted to see what they had the we don't. Then to GFS for our frozen veggies among other things...then a stop at Glen's for the things that Meijer didn't have. The only thing I came home without, in the end, were shiritake noodles; some Meijer stores have them and some don't and I can't always remember which do. Or don't :).

It was a good day because I spent it with Pete. I love being with him, talking with him, listening to him, laughing with him...I love the whole package. And these occasional days that we can spend together, no matter what we're doing, are the jewels in my life.

Facebook Privacy

I love FB. I love that I can communicate and keep up with my friends and relatives, and share aspects of my life, all in one place.

But even though FB has up until now stressed that the privacy of its users was its top priority, that is no longer the case. You can get details in any number of websites so I don't need to go into it here too. I do, however, want to detail the steps I've taken to help keep MY words on MY wall to be seen only by MY friends of MY choosing.

(The #1 rule of the internet has always been that NOTHING IS PRIVATE on the 'net. And the 'net includes not just the web and forums = even private, password-protected ones - but email, IRC, usenet, etc. Anything you write, anywhere, that uses the 'net to take your words anywhere can never be guaranteed private. EVER! Remember that whenever your fingers are on your keyboard or you are speaking into your mic or broadcasting on your webcam.)

The first thing I did to try and protect myself was to tighten up all of my privacy settings, through Account/Privacy Settings and Account/Application Settings. Just root around in those areas until you've covered every possible category and subcategory, changing everything possible to "only friends" or even "only me" where applicable.

Next I deleted all of my profile information that FB had automatically linked to the pages it considered appropriate. This is done under Edit My Profile (under your profile pic on your profile page), Basic Information. FB warned me that those areas would be blank. Yeah, so? At least I'm no longer linked to pages I didn't choose to be linked to.

Then I deleted all of my likes and interests, since those are also automatically linked to pages outside of my own. I deleted every TV show, type of music, everything. It is fairly easy to do. To the right of each section is a clickable icon that takes you to the page; on each page you "unlike" it. Yes, it is time-consuming, but easy. Make sure you click on Show Other Pages when you get to the bottom, too. That's even easier, since it pops up a list of the remaining pages and you just have to go down the list and click to delete each one.

Perhaps the most important thing, since this now links us to sites OUTSIDE of FB, is to opt out (FB automatically opts you IN) to the Instant Personalization Pilot Program. I reached this via Privacy Settings/Applications and Websites. It's the last option at the bottom; click on Edit Setting to opt out. THEN, I went to http://www.facebook.com/help/?faq=17103 and to each of the 3 (so far!) sites listed and had to opt out on each of THOSE! FB promises to add more sites, so I have set this link as my browser's homepage. Every day when I open it I will see if they have added any more, so I can opt out right away.

Since I'm doing housecleaning, I'm also leaving groups, although there haven't, AFAIK, been any privacy concerns with those yet. (If I missed something, please let me know ok?) I'm in hundreds of groups - they really build up after a while! So any that aren't personally important to me on a daily - or at least weekly - basis I am leaving.

If you have any questions about what I've done or why, please feel free to ask and I will try to answer the best I can. I'm not a FB geek by any means. I just want to be free to share my news and things with the people who are part of my life, not with everybody everywhere. And as long as I have some control over my ability to do that I will continue to use FB.

One last note: FB has promised over and over again that they won't charge its users for the service it provides...and certainly it shouldn't have to, with its massive user base it can pay for itself (and hopefully profit, as well anyone should who provides a great service!) from advertising - even targeted advertising. But when they start violating the trust of its users, most of whom signed on back in the "we value your privacy" days - which ended just a few short months ago! - that's when I will regretfully have to go elsewhere for my online social interactions. And that will be a really sad day for me.

Got a Referral...

...to a gastro guy. My doc had said a gastro surgeon, this guy doesn't have surgery listed on the website. So if I end up needing that, will I have to wait for yet another referral to yet another doctor?...at least we don't have socialized medicine yet, so my wait will be in terms of weeks rather than years...

Anyway, I see this guy on May 25th. Wonder what tests he'll want to do, and how long it will take to get them?

Meanwhile, I've tried the bland (read: carby!) diet that my doc suggested, and was sicker than sick. I'm back on my low carb regimen (the word "regimen" has a negative connotation, I think - and eating low carb is totally positive!), and back down to the pain/swelling levels I had before I tried the rice and white bland junk.

Got through the day yesterday without a single pain pill. Not because I didn't have pain of course, but because I really fear addiction. I was starting to choose relative comfort (meaning the pain/swelling/bloating wasn't bad enough to make me short of breath) over fear of addiction. But I think I'd rather deal with pain now than have to overcome an addiction later.

Just some of my thoughts on what's going on.

Today I'm doing some stuff in the kitchen which is one of my favorite things to do. Making some crackers, a jelly roll panful of Oopsie "bread" - focaccia style, will also do up some cookies. Maybe if the rain clears up, Pete will grill the steak for supper; we'll also have a salad on the side. If I have any energy, or can still move :), after all this I'll clean some cages - another favorite thing to do. Not the actual cleaning, which ok but of course kinda messy, but the playing-with-birds that happens at the same time.

So I'm still doing some things, taking breaks as needed to put my feet up (naturally helps) but doing as much as I can. I may be more comfortable in the chair with my feet up, but that just ain't livin'!

Next update as I have anything to report...

CAT Scan Results

It didn't show anything other than what I already knew, which is the hiatal hernia that I've had for years. Apparently it didn't even show the umbilical hernia, although it's easy to see and my doc palpated it easily during her exam Monday morning...it would be obvious to anybody but apparently not to a CAT scan machine - lol.

Talked to the nurse at my doctor's office, she said the next step will be the appointment with the surgeon, they're still "working on that referral". Hopefully he can figure it out...meanwhile I'm thinkin' that while I don't have an answer yet at least they didn't fine anything catastrophic like a big fat tumor (which was the original thought) or something! Yeah, there's always a bright side :).

Life and Health

You know, you're going through life, got some things wrong but who doesn't? Then get some health insurance to start working toward a healthier future, 1st thing is to go to the doc to get started on building said healthier future...but hear words you don't expect to hear.

I'll be very honest in my blog writings about what's going on with my health so if you don't want to read about it, that's fine and I understand :).

Have had some belly pain lately, swelling/bloating - won't go into all the details. But figured I'd ask the doc about it while I'm there. By the time I left her office I had orders for blood work (done right then and there) and a CAT scan ASAP which happened to be this morning, 48 hours after my appointment.

I asked her what are all the possible things that she thinks could be going on. She gave me a list of her "rule-outs" - ulcers, hernias (umbilical and/or hiatal), pancreatic, esophageal or other cancers (had a barret's esophagus dx several years ago). Said she would have thought I'd be getting sicker faster than I am (she sees me quite a bit for various chronic stuff I've got going on) were it pancreatic cancer, so that's a good thing at least.

So blood work came back all fine. YAY! Now will just see what CAT shows.

Chronic conditions include arthritis in the knees and spine (right knee is disintegrating/wobbling around and not very supportive, hence the walker to get around), the whole issue of nerve damage to digestive track/very weak peristalsis for the last few years, since a particularly nasty bout of food poisoning, and of course the prinzmetal's that was first diagnosed in 1997. Also I want to address this cataract that has my left eye pretty much blinded but still somehow manages to mess up distance perceptions and spatial relationships (why I run into, knock over, and trip on things constantly, and why I can't drive). Yeah, my right eye is ok but needs a new lens rx - no point in getting that until I get my left eye fixed. I manage but of course it affects my quality of life. All of the above does. Seems like everybody I talk to has chronic pain, so why bother to mention mine? Between knee and belly these days, I'm pretty much totally sedentary, even with the stronger pain med she's got me taking now. In the recliner, legs elevated to keep pressure off my belly (while I watch it swell and prepare to explode) is the limit of my activities these days...

So I'm hoping in the next year to get back on track with whatever I need to gain back whatever I've lost in the last several years without insurance. Once we deal with whatever is causing my current state. Which brings me back to the beginning: I didn't think I'd spend the start of my 53rd birthday getting a CAT scan...

Of Insurance and Health

Starting tomorrow, I will have insurance for the first time in years. And, knowing that I would now have insurance, the first thing I did was make an appointment with my doctor for Monday. It will definitely feel great to be able to go to the doctor for a checkup and to get preventative type appointments instead of just when something is wrong. Hopefully I will be able to prevent things from going wrong in the future!

Having lived as both uninsured and insured, I realize that health insurance isn't a right, isn't guaranteed, and is a personal choice whether or not to purchase. I have had medical attention when I needed it, either by paying a reduced fee through my clinic, having a trust at a local hospital that helped me - funded by those who had worked hard, earned high, and chose to help, or repayment over a long period of time. It can be done. My personal choices had led to not having insurance at times - but the key here is that they were my personal choices - my choice of careers, of employers, of how to spend my own money. That's what the US has always been about...

So on Monday I exercise my choice to go my own doctor, also of my choosing, to work on a healthier future - MY future. While I still have those choices.

Windows 7 Starter: A Few Observations

New netbooks seem to come with either WinXP or Win7 Starter edition - "starter" being the key word. There are a lot of Win7 features that aren't available on this edition. Most I haven't noticed yet (since I've never used Win7 full edition before) but 3 are glaringly obvious.

First I can't change my desktop wallpaper from the default, which is black. Nor can I change the startup screen, although I kinda like it so that's not a problem. But I like having an inspirational desktop that I change regularly. While not exactly a problem, there are workarounds. One is that I could use the slideshow "gadget" and just have an inspirational picture. Then there are some apps that I read about yesterday. I opted to try the 2nd option first but it didn't work; I didn't get the new menu on the desktop when I right-clicked. Today I will uninstall that program and try the other one.

The other thing I don't like about Windows7 Starter is that everything is pastel. There is a limited selection of themes available; however, while I don't need the highest-contrast themes to be able to see what I need, the pastel is difficult to make out for me. I could go back to the Windows Classic theme but frankly, I want something different with this different o/s. By typing [themes] (without the brackets) into the "search programs and files" box, I get a window where I can select from the half-dozen themes allotted to starter edition users. Clicking on advanced gives me some limited color choices, and that's what I'm "messing with" to see if I can make things more visible for myself.

Of course, there's always the upgrade option that's included. For a special price I can upgrade to the Home edition of Win7, and apparently that's rather simple and quick to do using the Windows Anytime Upgrader. I may or may not do this at some point (read: I may or may not be able to afford this at some point), but it's nice knowing the option is there, quick, and easy if I can't manage the workarounds for the first 2 lacking features.

The 3rd is the lack of an email client, ie, OE, which I have used for years without a problem. I'm rather fanatic about how I archive my emails, and have an elaborate folder system that I've always used. Win7 offers Windows Live Email which is a lot different to use as far as archiving. I couldn't just set up folders, for example, as each account has its own folders. For example, I get low-carb-related emails from several email accounts, but I want all of them to be stored in a single "Low Carb" folder. Impossible with WLE. Ugh. So here's what I did:

First I set all of my email accounts to forward to a single address which I called Incoming. Then I set up my Incoming account, and added all of the folders (Low Carb, Friends, Family, LBD, Pets, Tech, etc.) to that one account. YAY! Problem solved! Um, not quite. I found out when I wanted to send an email that I still had to set up the other accounts so that I could send from them. But since I don't send from all of them, I only needed to set up 3 in WLE, and I unticked the "Include this account when receiving mail or synchronizing" box. I can still check it manually to make sure nothing slipped past the forwarding, but I only have to sync one email account, and then I can archive my mails to my heart's content.

I will post again when I have anything to add. Thanks for reading :).