Saturday, December 22, 2007

Good News of the Month

Well, the good news of the week, other than being on vaction for another week is: my tests came back normal! I will just have to continue with 6 month pap smears and check ups to monitor all. I have been being tested for cervical cancer for the past year and a half, due to abnormal changes on they didn't konw why. So now, things look as if they may be heading in the right direction. Yeah, a repreive for once!

Other than that, I am done with my class for the semester and will be beginning another class this January. Hopefully it iwll be a little easier than the last one. I do know I ended up getting an A in the class though, so that was pretty exciting. Joe and I are doing well, and have had limited fighting which is awesome! We've been ride-sharing to work and working out in the morning or afternoon during work days. We've also been doing a spin class at the Center for Personal Fitness in Duluth, which is great! I love how much you can put your body through and still be able to stand up!

My best guy friend, Zack, who is in the military is doing well, as of the last time we talked. He said he may be coming home sometime in June, which seems like forever from now. But as long as he is safe, that is all that matters to me. I may not agree with the reasons why we are over there, but I will support our troops while I can, even is that is all I can do.

I am also contemplating a change in where I work. Even since I had that internship down in Rochester at the Mayo in Rehab, I have been thinking about returning to that field of work. I was over at Miller Dwan Rehad two days ago working with a severely debiliating patient who was in a car accident over a year ago. She was given a less than 1% chance of survival right after her accident and she is just amazing now. She now has an Above the Knee Amputation with a prosthesis and is walking amazingly. To me it is so rewarding to work with patient's like this. To see them recover from terrible injuries and to say I helped with it is great. I absoluately love what I am doing. Someday soon, I hope to say I will be over in that area permanetly. We'll see what Joe feels about that as well but he is always supportive about the choices we and I make. He loves me so much I often wonder why!

Well, now that I have nothing more to say, I hope all of you have a wonderful Christmas and are able to handle those family gatherings as I am preparing for. I found out that the drunker you are, the easier it is! Who would've thunk that!? Anyways, I wish you all well and safe ventures in the next couple of days!
Love and friends as always!
Erin Marie

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Snowed In, but actually over!

Well, yesterday started off great! Joe and I woke up, showered and drove together to work. Outside, it was just snowing little pelts of snow, nothing big, right? Well, I dropped him off at work and drove to the hospital. Just a nothe normal day in the lives of Erin and Joe. At about 9 AM I looked out side, and wow, it was snowing and I mean snowing. Lunch rolled around and the entire time I sat eating and attended a meeting, it kept snowing, about an inch an hour! I talked to Joe and he said there was a Winter Advisory for us again. Now it was up to 6-8 inches with over an Inch an hour falling. Great! Just what I wanted to do when I got home was shovel. oh well, right, things happen. So at about 3:30 Joe called and said he was going to get a ride home with a co-worker to start the "clean-up" at home. I thought, ok, why not, leave your WIFE to drive home by herself in a hell-of-a-snow storm. Great idea.

At 4:00, I talked to my co-worker and said I needed to leave. The Blaknik bridge was closed because of an accident and the Oliver bridge in West Duluth was closed because of a jackknifed truck, which only left one other bridge home. So, I left to brave the snow and the idiot drivers. As I left the parking ramp, I thought "Ok, I can do this, just take your time and you'll get there." I got down to 3rd Street and sat there for about 20 minutes. It took me and all of the other million of cars on there to move 1 block in 20 minutes! 20 MINUTES! Ok, I can handle this. The radio said there was a huge mess on Mesaba Ave, so I thought I'd head on down to Superior Street towards Lake Ave.

So I turned down 2nd Ave East, thinking it might move a little faster. Well, it took me about 40 minutes to travel TWO BLOCKS! I finally made it down to the Casino on Superior Street, although I was still behind four cars. NO ONE WAS MOVING!! EVERYONE WAS AT A STAND STILL!! And some idiot, lameass b--ch cut me off and starting yelling at me! I had never felt so claustraphobic in my entire life. I couldn't go anywhere or do anything! My heart was pounding like crazy, and I just couldn't slow it down. I called Joe and he told me, "Don't bother heading to the bridge, they are all closed now. Just park the car and go get a hotel room." I just about died and started crying. How do you get home now when there is no other way across to the other side. "I give up! I need a cigarette or something, maybe a drink too" I said. The great man that Joe is just asat on the other end trying to calm me down. I don't know what I would do without him.

Well, I took matters into my own hands at this point. Since no one was able to turn RIGHT onto Superior, Street and no one was moving that direction at all, I decided to go down the wrong way of the ave and I turned LEFT! It was so wonderful to move! I went and entire block in three minutes verses four blocks in 1 HOUR! It felt awesome! As I was driving down Superior Streat, heading out East, I passed so many cars just sitting there, no moving at all. No one was going anywhere as I had been previously. I made it to Fitgers, thinking I could just go in, grab a bite to eat and then wait out the storm. BUt then i realized they were taking the plows off the roads at 5:30 p.m. so they woudn't go over their 12-hour shifts per law and the DTA buses were coming off the roads at 6p.m. So obviously, nothing was going to be cleaned or moving for awhile.

With my nifty old cell phone I called Best Western Edgewater and got myself a room cuase I knew I wasn't going to be going anywhere. I finally made it to the hotel at 5:50 pm. after leaving the hospital at 4:15. Serioursly, it shouldn't take you that long to go about eight blocks, especially in Duluth! Once I got to my room, I took my good-ole drink tickets up the the bar level and got me a drink! Actually three and a little tipsie as well! There were about six of us who all had the same idea, not to drive and just stay where while we could. Let me tell ya, its not 10 in the morning almost and I just got home. Granted now things aren't all that bad but last night just was horrible. Hopefully this won't happen again, but if it does I sure know which direction I need to go to avoid all the stupid drivers.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

My---Space!

If anyone is interested, I also have a myspace account. Yeah a little overboard, but its a great way to keep in contact with others from high school to college. Hopefully I'll be able to keep in contact with more. But we'll see

http://www.myspace.com/pterin

Hope all are doing well!

Snowy Sunday Afternoon

Last night during the snow storm, we ventured out in our All-Wheel/4-wheel drive Jeep and went out for food and a nut roll from Joe's parents house! The roads, well, let's say they weren't the best but it was definately fun! Sometimes venturing out is what you need. After getting back home, we sat down for a mean game of Scrabble! Yep, I kicked Joe's ass again! Gotta have some fun I say.

Today we woke up to about 7 inches of snow in our yard and the roads too of course! Personally, I love the snow and inter!! The way I look at it, you can only take off so much clothing during the summer whereas the winter you can usually keep piling on the layers! I'd rather be warm than cold! But today, ater getting dressed, we headed outside in our snow pants and coats and started to shovel. Low and behold, the snowblower didn't work again!! I guess last year it didn't work because it was out of gas, okay that was my fault (but how was I to konw that! It was my first time using the stupid thing in three feet of snow, I can't figure everything out on my own!) But this time, after trying several times, nothing. Then Joe noticed gasoline leaking from a tube. Great, nothing neither of us can do about it. So we went out and got the snow scoop from his parents house. Again, roads not too bad but could have been better, but oh well. You'd think they'd want to keep everything cleaner around here, especially since it's the beginning of the season!

Anyways, I dropped Joe off at home and then ran to the grocery store. I had already shoveled the walkways and the patio, so I left him with the driveway. After I returned he was almost done, so assisted a little more. During this time, I slipped and fell, landing on my knee. Let's just say, I have ice on it and it still hurts! So we'll see, if sometime happens tomorrow and it hurts more, I may have to visit Urgent Care or something. It's not like I won't be at the hostpital already!

So, now, its almost five in the afternoon and I, again, am working on my final paper for my pharmacology class and Joe is watching Saw III, stupid yet suspenceful movie! Then we'll head on out to his parent's house for dinner. Nothing else too new now! Everyone is pregnant except me, but we're okay with that for now! Our time will come soon enough, right?!
Christmas is almost here! I just love this season cause everyone is in a good mood. It just makes me smile. The new year will be soon as well! Hope all is well! Love you all!

P.S. This week they are going to be putting up the chairlift at Mt. Ashwabay at home this week! I am excited, so I may be going out there to watch them, maybe help if I can! Try to watch the news this week, up here that is, cause they are going to have something on there about the hill and everything!! It's all very exciting, especially for this small ski hill!!

Saturday, November 24, 2007

My Beginnings

Well, life has thrown all of us a twist once in awhile, but sometimes others get handed a difficult hand. I wish there were easier ways to live life, but day by day seems to be the best. Joe and I have been busy with school, and let me tell you, it has been work. Joe goes to class one day a week and I am all on-line, but I really think I need structure and I'm not good at setting that up for myself. Work has been busier than needed, but it's what is keeping me intouch with everything else.

Healthwise, things are going in a different direction than I'd like to go, but I'm along for the ride now. Joe and I are going to the gym three to four days a week, and I'm learning how to swim at the ripe old age of 28! But it's fun. I'm at 35 pounds lost so far, yeah me, and I have about 15 more to go. So I can actually say I'm a little lighter in my boots! But on the other side, things could be better. As we all go in for our yearly pap's, last year was odd. It came back abnormal and since then I've been doing in for them every 5-6 months to monitor everything. I have had two biopsy's of my cervix, both of which have come back with mild to moderate changes, potentially and more than likely cancerous. They are continueing to do studies to see what is going on, but yet haven't figured out what it is. As for now, I have another appointment here in two weeks, another biopsy and possible taring of the cervix. We'll see. All I have to say is give me some good drugs and I'll just have to live with it.

So, as we go on with out daily lives, I am wondering what to do. So many of my friends are pregnant now, but as Joe and I say this is not the time for children. I know that, but I really want them. I know "they'll change your life" but sometimes we have to expereince that for ourselves to actually get that full meaning or that statement. So, we'll wait and see what else life is going to throw at us!

Life is what happens while you're making other plans. -- John Lennon