Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Basketball Camp
Austin started a week-long basketball camp yesterday in his first round of summer activities. The camp runs all day long this week. Even a day full of running around doesn't seem to faze him as he continues his normal outdoor activities when he gets home. I can actually remember a time when I could do things like this.
Kidney Stone
Tracy has an appointment tomorrow (Wednesday) to have her kidey stone broken up sonically. The hope is that the stone will break into much smaller pieces, known in medical terms as 'sand'. This should allow the stone to be passed as much smaller pieces although she has been warned that too much 'sand' will present its own unique set of problems.
From a laymen's perspective I wonder how a device that can generate sound waves strong enough to break a kidney stone will fail to affect your heart. Kidney stones are formed from crystals found in urine and as a result must be very hard. Let's assume they know what they are doing.
On a light note, Tracy also discovered that her Urologist is a physician of some note. His claim to faim is that he surgically reattached John Wayne Bobbit's penis after his insane wife, Lorena Bobbit, severed it. This was a big story in the Northern Virginia area when it happened in 1993. Here is a link to the sordid tale.
From a laymen's perspective I wonder how a device that can generate sound waves strong enough to break a kidney stone will fail to affect your heart. Kidney stones are formed from crystals found in urine and as a result must be very hard. Let's assume they know what they are doing.
On a light note, Tracy also discovered that her Urologist is a physician of some note. His claim to faim is that he surgically reattached John Wayne Bobbit's penis after his insane wife, Lorena Bobbit, severed it. This was a big story in the Northern Virginia area when it happened in 1993. Here is a link to the sordid tale.
Sunday, June 26, 2005
Health Issues
Last Monday night, Tracy and the kids went to the Outer Banks for an unplanned vacation. The beach house that we borrowed two weeks ago was available and school was out so off they went. She was accompanied by her friend Dawn Johnson and her kids. The next day, Tracy had extreme pain in her left side and collapsed at the house. Dawn called 911 and Tracy had an ambulance ride to a local urgent care center. The x-rays showed a kidney stone of some size (~9 mm).
When I found out, I took off for the beach and arrived later that night. On the way down I was able to talk to her and discovered that the urgent care center recommended that she go the The Outer Banks Hospital first thing in the morning. They also told her that she would most likely require laproscopic surgey to remove the stone.
We got to the hospital the next morning only to find out that hospital did not have a Urologist on staff and really couldn't handle her situation. Lesson: Don't get sick in the Outer Banks. They did do a CATscan and told us that she was in no immediate danger and recommended that she return home to her usual medical facilities. The CATscan showed that the kidney stone was actually 7mm in diameter which is probably too big to pass on its own. They also told us that surgery was very unlikely and that a sonic procedure was the likely solution. I only hope that when we get to our doctors in VA we don't get a third opinion.
After several prescriptions for painkillers were filled we went home for the day. Tracy was able to stay off the painkillers on Thursday for the ride back home and although it took much longer than planned we made it safely. As of this writing we are still tryin to get her in to see a doctor but plan to get all this done on Monday.
Back in North Carolina, Grandpa Pete has returned home but I don't know how he is doing at the moment.
When I found out, I took off for the beach and arrived later that night. On the way down I was able to talk to her and discovered that the urgent care center recommended that she go the The Outer Banks Hospital first thing in the morning. They also told her that she would most likely require laproscopic surgey to remove the stone.
We got to the hospital the next morning only to find out that hospital did not have a Urologist on staff and really couldn't handle her situation. Lesson: Don't get sick in the Outer Banks. They did do a CATscan and told us that she was in no immediate danger and recommended that she return home to her usual medical facilities. The CATscan showed that the kidney stone was actually 7mm in diameter which is probably too big to pass on its own. They also told us that surgery was very unlikely and that a sonic procedure was the likely solution. I only hope that when we get to our doctors in VA we don't get a third opinion.
After several prescriptions for painkillers were filled we went home for the day. Tracy was able to stay off the painkillers on Thursday for the ride back home and although it took much longer than planned we made it safely. As of this writing we are still tryin to get her in to see a doctor but plan to get all this done on Monday.
Back in North Carolina, Grandpa Pete has returned home but I don't know how he is doing at the moment.
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Airtime
Tracy was on the "Workday Music Marathon" contest on WMZQ (98.7) today. This is our local country music station and she entered online to have 5 songs of her choice played during the lunch hour as well as a brief on-air conversation. She also had an on-air introduction of the marathon.
I was able to hear the entire thing in my car at noon. Jim Lamb @Lamus had surgery today, but still took the time to call me today at 2:00PM to tell me that he heard Tracy on the radio when he was on the way home after his outpatient surgery.
I was able to hear the entire thing in my car at noon. Jim Lamb @Lamus had surgery today, but still took the time to call me today at 2:00PM to tell me that he heard Tracy on the radio when he was on the way home after his outpatient surgery.
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Academic Awards
As reported earlier, the school year has drawn to a close. The kids received the following academic recognition during awards ceremonies held this week:
Kellie Clark
Kellie Clark
There are 3 sixth grade math classes at Pennington and these classes are attended by ~80 students. Of all these student, Kellie Clark was the only student to be recognized for Excellence in Achievement in Math. Kellie has obviously inherited what we in the Clark family call the "Uncle Chuck" gene. Kellie also received recognition for making the Honor Roll every quarter this past school year.Austin Clark
By missing one day in the entire 2004-2005 fourth grade school year, Austin Clark was awarded an "Excellent Attendance" award. This is evidence of what the Clark family calls the "Uncle Mike" gene.Kara Clark
Kara was identified by her first grade teacher as the "Most Expressive Reader". Kara's continued enthusiam for both and work is easily recognizable to anyone around her.
Grandpa Pete's Status
I just heard from N.C. that Grandpa Pete is having a pacemaker installed within the next hour. His heartrate has not exceeded 42 bpm today and the doctors feel that an increased heartrate will make him more energetic. I found some useful information here.
Last Week of School
Tomorrow is the last day of school for the Clark kids. One more day to wake up and go to school.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
Grandpa Pete Back in the Hospital
Grandpa Pete went back into the hospital last Sunday due to extremely low blood counts and sugar levels. Nothing much has changed since then, but we are hopeful for better or least encouraging news.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Thank You Mr. Winslow
As a motorcycle rider, I have taken a more than casual interest in the events surrounding Mr. Kellen Winslow Jr's recent motorcycle accident. Kellen Winslow is a professional football player. He wrecked his sportbike during the offseason and was villified by the press for participating in 'dangerous activities'. The message relayed by the general and sports media was very clear; Motorcycles are dangerous machines that are not ridden by responsible adults. This is, or course, bullshit.
As Paul Harvey would say, here's the rest of the story:
It seems that young Mr. Winslow had recently become infatuated with a sportbike stunt group in the Ohio area called the Starboyz. This group of riders became famous for filming some of their exploits and selling the videos. He was known to attend stunt shows in the Cleveland area, and was in fact returning from such a show the day he crashed his bike.
We all know that professional football players are badasses and this particular badass thought that riding like the Starboyz was something that anyone could do. Please note that the bike he was riding was purchased in April of this year and he was riding on a learner's permit.
So, after riding for one month, Winslow decided that it was time for some stunts. You may have heard that he crashed at 35Mph, but the injuries he sustained, i.e. puntured spleen, torn ACL, etc, were disproportionate to the indicated speed. The reason for this is that he was trying to do a 'stoppie'. This is done by locking the front brake and balancing the bike on the front wheel. This is not a beginner's trick, and he found out the hard way.
He crashed because he was attempting to do something stupid on a motorcycle, not just because he was riding a motorcycle. There is a difference here. If you don't respect the bike, it will bite back. This is sometimes a hard lesson to learn.
I prefer to think of the entire incident in this way. Unlike driving a car, riding a motorcycle is not something everyone can do. It takes skill, and above all, a healthy respect for the things that can happen to you if you don't pay attention or do something boneheaded.
As Paul Harvey would say, here's the rest of the story:
It seems that young Mr. Winslow had recently become infatuated with a sportbike stunt group in the Ohio area called the Starboyz. This group of riders became famous for filming some of their exploits and selling the videos. He was known to attend stunt shows in the Cleveland area, and was in fact returning from such a show the day he crashed his bike.
We all know that professional football players are badasses and this particular badass thought that riding like the Starboyz was something that anyone could do. Please note that the bike he was riding was purchased in April of this year and he was riding on a learner's permit.
So, after riding for one month, Winslow decided that it was time for some stunts. You may have heard that he crashed at 35Mph, but the injuries he sustained, i.e. puntured spleen, torn ACL, etc, were disproportionate to the indicated speed. The reason for this is that he was trying to do a 'stoppie'. This is done by locking the front brake and balancing the bike on the front wheel. This is not a beginner's trick, and he found out the hard way.
He crashed because he was attempting to do something stupid on a motorcycle, not just because he was riding a motorcycle. There is a difference here. If you don't respect the bike, it will bite back. This is sometimes a hard lesson to learn.
I prefer to think of the entire incident in this way. Unlike driving a car, riding a motorcycle is not something everyone can do. It takes skill, and above all, a healthy respect for the things that can happen to you if you don't pay attention or do something boneheaded.
The Outer Banks
A few days ago, Tracy and I spent a long weekend at the Outer Banks. We have the fortune to know someone who both has a house in the Corolla Light Resort and was willing to let us stay there for free. Tracy had never been to that part of N.C. and I had been only once back in '98.
The resort sits in the shadow of the Currituck light house and as a result I received a crash course in the history of the North Carolina lighthouses. Interesting stuff if you have never heard it.
As it turns out, we did not actually spend more than a few minutes on the beach. We spent most of the grueling weekend sitting by the pool and taking advantage of the wait service and restaurant located there. Note: There is another half of our population and they live better than most of us. I've seen it.
We both really enjoyed the 'Banks and it has vaulted to the top of our vacation plans for next year.
The resort sits in the shadow of the Currituck light house and as a result I received a crash course in the history of the North Carolina lighthouses. Interesting stuff if you have never heard it.
As it turns out, we did not actually spend more than a few minutes on the beach. We spent most of the grueling weekend sitting by the pool and taking advantage of the wait service and restaurant located there. Note: There is another half of our population and they live better than most of us. I've seen it.
We both really enjoyed the 'Banks and it has vaulted to the top of our vacation plans for next year.
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