Competition

I sniped this photo on the way back from Target. It's near the Marine training base so the area is littered with "gentleman clubs". It's good to see that our anti-monopoly legislation is working and benefiting the consumer with a fair deal. Unfortunately, I had already eaten so I will have to face to this tough appetizing decision on another day. (click on the picture to enlarge)

Surgery Scheduled

I saw the doctor on Thursday for my pre-op appointment. The surgery is scheduled for Thursday, August 12th. It is outpatient surgery and I am encouraged to walk around after the procedure. I need to take it easy for the first few days, but after that I should be able to take care of myself. It is hard to say how long it will take for the nerve to heal, but at least it will finally be able to now that the pieces of the disc will be gone. Here is a video of the procedure if that kind of thing interests you but I warn everyone that it is very graphic...but, the music is lovely.

More Kitties...

I am still waiting for worker's comp to authorize my surgery. Tomorrow is their last day to make a decision (which should be an OK) so I am hoping to be able to schedule it then.

In the meantime, here are some more pics of the cute little kitties...

Backiotomy...Fo' Real

I saw the doctor this morning and since I am in a fair amount of pain now that the epidural has worn off and the numbness has not decreased at all, he (and I) have elected to do surgery. He will do a micro-discectomy (aka backiotomy) to remove the loose fragements of the disc. I will be out for a few weeks following surgery but this should lead to a much quicker over all recovery.

Now scroll down to see all the cuteness...

Meet Stella and Binx!!

These little girls are only 4 and half months old. I adopted them from The Rescue House which is a cat rescue organization that Brittany and I volunteer for.


Binx...

Stella...

Sunset with Angie

Angie came over for dinner the other night while Josh was out of town. San Diego has been gray for the last few weeks but we finally got a nice sunset. Probably the best one so far this year.

Roman Numerals

OK, so about a week ago I noticed an unusual sun dial while I was out shopping. The Roman Numerals on it were weird and did not look right to me. I saw IIIV and wondered if that was supposed to be 2. Upon closer inspection it appeared that the numbers were fine if you saw them in a mirror or read them from left to right. I took a picture but decided this oddity was not worthy of being on my precious blog. Well, a few days later I saw another sun dial with bizarre looking numerals. This one had IIII on it which I suppose is supposed to be 4. It doesn't matter how you read it, that is just plain wrong and therefore was worthy of a picture and blog mention. Enjoy...

Keg Bike

This is something that only an engineer would do. I have seen his mountain bike mounted on the back of his motorcycle (very interesting), but this raises the bar (like the pun?). I will have to ask him if it is full or empty...

The Blog is Back!!

Sorry for the second blog hiatus. I have been busy with a couple moves and have been a little less motivated now that I am no longer confined to a bed in a pain pill daze. I am gradually getting better I think. I am doing physical therapy twice a week which has increased the strength in my back and right leg but the numbness still goes all the way down to my toes.

Fear not blog addicts for I will continue the blog but it may take a more random direction. I like to do a thing called "sniping". It is where you take a candid photo of someone with your cellphone because they are interesting, doing something weird, or wearing a ridiculous outfit. Here is someone I sniped a few days ago.



Now at first you may think this is just a horrible picture of an intersection with some comic book nerd on the way back to his room in his mom's basement. Well, if you look a little closer you will see that he is carrying a huge plastic sword (and trying to hide it I think). What I have sniped is actually a LARPper. LARP stands for Live Action Role Play and is basically a bunch of virgins who play dungeons and dragons in person. Pretty neat, huh? More snipes coming soon...

Day 33 - Rare Sighting in San Diego

When I jumped on the 5 (how Californian's refer to Interstate Highways) I spotted a familiar bumper sticker...



A little blurry I know, but it says...Becky's Diner, Nothin' Finah!

For those who don't know, Becky's Diner is a small diner in Portland, ME where the locals go to discuss their latest Lobster catch over a hot cup of coffee.

Back Update: I saw the doctor on Wednesday for my epidural follow-up. He recommended physical therapy for me and I will start working half-time next week. I have my physical therapy evaluation later this afternoon. They will discover that I have the body of a 58 year old man.

P.S. World Cup starts today!!!! GO USA!!!

Day 30 - New Pad

I have finally found a new place to live. It is located in Midtown (just NE of the airport). I have given up on location in favor of space and amenities. Although the new place is not exactly large, it does offer some nice views and comes with a huge 1-car garage! I will be moving in on the first of the month.

I think the epidural is beginning to wear off as I am starting to have back pain again. I see the Doctor tomorrow morning for a follow-up so I should know more then. Hopefully he will recommend physical therapy so I can at least start exercising on some level.

Here are some pics of the new place...

Day 18 Pt. 2 - Tara's Reaction to My Blog

Tara is my stylist's girlfriend. Despite what her face may say, she was actually mesmerized by the blog. Yes, I do have a stylist...and a personal shopper.

Day 18 - Spray Bottles

Sorry...it's been a few days. Yesterday morning I was trying to clean the glass surface pictured below with your everyday household cleaner. As you can see I was running low but still had sufficient quantity to complete the task.
However, when I went to spray the solution nothing came out. When I pointed the nozzle towards the surface, the cleaning solution collected AWAY from the suction tube. It would be one thing if the tube went straight down and scavenged as much liquid as it could. But if you notice in the picture below, the tube is intentionally bent away from where the liquid collects.
I doubt this is any accident. How often are you cleaning your ceiling or some other surface that requires you to aim the bottle up? Basically never. This is a conspiracy. They clearly have the technology to shape the tube to a desired shape and orientation but they do not use it to benefit the consumer. Instead they force you to buy a refill so that you can use that last precious ounce but then the cycle repeats itself over and over again. Or you do the thing where you point the bottle up and spray a few times so it will suck up the liquid, and then point it where you want so you can shoot those 3 partial sprays on to your dirty surface. Either way I am fed up and am going to start manufacturing my own bottles and making my own cleaning solution.

On a more serious note, I am nearly pain-free after my epidural steroid injection!! I still have numbness and weakness in my right leg but at least it doesn't hurt. And since I am no longer on a steady diet of pain pills I can start to think clearly once again...

Day 15 - Epidural Day

Early this morning I received my lumbar epidural steroid injection. I felt like I was conscious during the entire procedure, but I don't remember them injecting anything. I think that may have been the result of the light sedation. I feel slightly less pain in my back but that is probably from the local anesthesia. It will take a few days to notice the full effect. I don' t have any pictures of the procedure so I'll post some that I took on Saturday.
Yeah, we were wondering the same thing...WTF?!?
They were everywhere...walking/running along the street and through Balboa Park.After some research, it was discovered that it was the Red Dress Run. The RDR is put on by the San Diego Hash Hound Harriers and raises zero dollars for no cause.

Day 14 - Triscuits

If you're like me, then you've often wondered how in the heck they make a Triscuit. It's much more complicated than your everyday cracker. It has a formed shaped with ridges on both sides, but more than that the individual "fibers" are striated parallel to each other.Well today I found a little surprise at the bottom of my Triscuit bag. One of the Triscuits was not properly formed and there was an air pocket between the two halves. When I separated it I noticed there was a uniform mesh on each half. I hypothesized that this orthogonal mesh was pre-made out of soy or some other organic material. It is this mesh that is used as a backing for the fibers. The fibers are laid uni-directionaly on the mesh and then it is formed and baked. Check out the mesh...Well, that is my guess at it anyway. Maybe the TV shows "How It's Made" or "Unwrapped" will feature it one day. Yes, I am bored...epidural tomorrow!!

Day 13 - BBQ

coming soon...

Day 12 - Popeye's Delivery

I was treated to some southern hospitality tonight by my brother Josh and his fiancee Angie. They went out of their way to grab me some delicious fried chicken and hot buttermilk biscuits from Popeye's. I often receive flack from people when they find out about my infatuation for Popeye's but I will tell any of you doubters, Don't knock it til you try it. Thanks Josh and Angie!!

Day 11 - Pain Stache?

Believe it or not I had several requests to get rid of my facial hair growth. I am now clean shaven once again but I did take a brief pause during the process to see what I would look like as the guy who drives this van...

and here he is...
Is that dude creepy or what?!

Day 10 Part 3 - Pain Goatee

Due to insufficient growth and bum-like appearance I decided to clean up the ol' pain beard and go with a goatee. It looks equally ridiculous, but a couple of braids and some grey hair dye and I'll be looking like Brad Pitt.

Day 10 Part 2 - Day Care

I am fortunate to have 2 full-time nurses during the day. They do not bring food or drinks when I ask them but they do keep me company. I told them I would mention them on the blog, so I present to you Sweet Pea (pictured left) and Luna.

Day 10 Part 1 - Pain Reliever

I have some exciting news...my number of occurrences of daily pain has been instantly reduced. Thanks to Brittany, I now have a portable/bedside urinal. I had the pleasure of using one of these devices in the ER (quite handy when you are unable to walk or stand). I decided I wanted to personalize it a bit so I added some frog and insect stickers. I will probably add robots too. Can't wait to try this bad boy out!

Day 9 - Pain Beard

Ever since my visit to the ER, I have not shaven. If you were wondering what I would look like if I got lost in the woods for 9 days and then found this is it...(well, I probably wouldn't have the droopy eyes from pain meds and muscle relaxers)
Although it is nowhere close to a full beard, I have dubbed my facial hair growth the "pain beard" as a measure of how long it's been since this whole backiotomy thing started. Also, Chuck Norris has a beard and he does not feel pain. None whatsoever.

Day 8 - Orthopedic Surgeon

Unfortunately, not a whole lot has changed since last Monday. I am still in a good amount of pain and limited to being able to do nothing. I decided to start this blog to keep people up-to-date on my current condition and progress. It also helps me from having to repeat things frequently. And I am extremely bored during the day.

I saw a orthopedic surgeon today to evaluate my MRI results and discuss treatment options. We are going the non-surgical route first. I will be getting an epidural soon to relieve the pain while my back slowly heals. If that is not effective, I will most likely undergo a microdiscectomy to remove the disc fragment blocking the nerve.

Below are some excellent videos about my injury and treatment.

Sciatica Video
Microdiscectomy Video

Background (read first)

In the early morning hours of Saturday May 8th I was shifting large bags of rocks (don't ask) which generated some of my occasional lower back pain. After a few hours of sleep in the morning it was time to head home. When I went to load an 82-pound equipment case I aggravated my back a bit further. I flew home Saturday night and went straight to bed. The following morning when I got out of the shower the occasional intense pain became constant and started escalating. I ended up taking an ambulance (could no longer walk) to the ER. I was given morphine, tramadol, and another painkiller but none of them seemed to help. Finally, fentanyl offered some pain relief. Because of the intense pain and location they suspected a possible kidney stone. A CT-scan quickly ruled that out. Eventually a MRI revealed the exact cause of my symptoms. I have a large right paracentral soft disc herniation with subarticular gutter sequestered free fragment. Below are a few of the MRI shots...