Go HEELS

According to some of my friends, my husband has a flaw. Sometimes I appreciate this flaw and other times it can be an annoyance. On our first unofficial date, he showed up in my driveway right on the dot. What I didn't know then was that he had been driving down my road for the prior 30 minutes to an hour because he feared he would be late. I am notorious for being early. I was taught a long time ago "to be early is to be on time."

Well my husband has taken this art to the extreme. Sometimes it can be quite annoying to get somewhere a few hours early. The tickets that I am able to get for UNC basketball games are "general admission." This essentially means, "first come first serve" and "you run to get the best seat you can." If you're lucky, the spot you run to isn't reserved. The first year Rob & I went to the Dean Dome, we got there after the doors opened. We walked in and got the best seat we could, but those were in the Upper Level of the Dean Dome. We didn't even try to go to the Lower Level because we knew the seats would either be taken or reserved.

The next year we went to the exhibition game, we arrived extremely early to tour the campus and the basketball museum. We still wound up sitting pretty far up because we were well behind in line. We were just trying to find "A" seat. We didn't care where because we were in the Dean Dome! There are no bad seats in the Dean Dome, but there are more desirable locations.

This year we had what I considered awesome seats for Late Night with Roy. Now consider this. The exhibition game on Friday began at 7:30. We assumed that the gates would open around 5 to 5:30. Now most of my friends would arrive around 5:30 or possibly even later. Not my husband. We arrived on campus around 3pm (if not earlier), a mere 4 1/2 hours before Tip Off and a probable 2 1/2 hours before the gates would even open.

We get in line and yes there was a line already. We were fairly close to the door and I heard the most beautiful thing ever. The doors were to be opened at FOUR because they were opening up the Dean Dome for the volleyball game scheduled around 5. So this meant that we would not be waiting outside all that long. I was thrilled. We have a game plan. Go in through the doors, Rob & I will dash to the first opening and "run/walk" to the lowest row we can. Yeah we got really low. We could have gone further down, but we found our beautiful seats side by side. It was awesome. Looking over to my left, the tunnel was filled with cheerleaders, coaches, players and all sorts of Very Important People. And to my right, my husband. It was as if we were in our own little world of UNCdomeness. We had a whopping 3 people in front of us. Section 123, Row F Seats 1 & 2 treated us well. And if it weren't for my husband's tenacity to arrive places early, we never would have gotten such great seats!

Volleyball Photo



Roy's boys coming out for practice and in this photo you can see the only three people that were directly in front of us. (Man w/ cell phone, woman's shoulder and man with blue wig. )



Coach Roy Williams looking on as his boy's take the floor for practice.



When I look at this photo below I think two things. First thing is that I'm glad I got both Wear twins in one shot. For those that don't know, we have a set of Identical twins on the team this year. David Wear wears number 34. Travis Wear wears number 43. In photos they can't even tell themselves apart. True story.

The second thing is that I *must* have a "find Eric Montross" button on my camera. Go ahead find him? You can't? Well my camera did. Click on the picture ... Look to the left of the ball at the man in the blue long sleeved sweater with bald head. That's right. ERIC MONTROSS! Go Olympus! You're the bomb.


The freshman are going to rock our worlds this season and in seasons to come. You want proof? Here are David Wear (34) , John Henson (31) and Dexter Strickland (5)



We had a little bit of a scare when Dexter Strickland (5) fell and came back up holding his shoulder, but then he came back immediately with a jump shot.



Look here he is flying in the air.



My friend Missy was also at the game. She came down to see us after the game was over. Rob took this photo in front of my awesome seat.



Now you can see how close we were to the floor.




And thanks to a very generous friend, I get to go back to the Dean Dome on Sunday to see UNC play Valparaiso. I'm so stoked. He's bringing me the tickets today at work.

Upcoming UNC post

Coming up is the photographic proof that I was at the Carolina vs. Belmont Abbey game. To give you a little taste of what we saw ....

Dexter Strickland, a freshman guard from New Jersey, impressed me with this shot. He's our new number 5. Let's hope he has a little of what Ty Lawson had.

Glasses

For the past two plus years, I have been sporting this look. I went to get my eyes examined shortly after my diagnosis of Lyme Disease. The very cool thing about these particular glasses are that they are Green on the inside. I thought by the time I was to get new glasses that I would not have Lyme or be seeing my Lyme doctor any more. I was wrong. I went on Friday morning for my annual check up. I say annual, but really I haven't been in over two years.

I just don't do doctor's appointments that well. I have crazy fears and I'm not even sure where some of them came from. It has taken time, but I do love my eye doctor's office. The lady in the frame department is phenomenal with me. She took her time when I started going there just talking me into the door and then talking me into looking at frames and etc. Then finally scheduled an appointment for me. This was about 5 pair of glasses ago. I tend to go with the same style of glasses for two eye visits. I am not much on change so something that changes my "face" that drastically just isn't cool. So I go in one time wanting an upgrade and I spend about a month trying on frames and taking photos of myself in said frames.

The day I went in to schedule my appointment 2 and 1/2 years ago, I tried on three pair until I saw these.



I put them on, took a photo in them, put my regular glasses back on and looked through the camera lens to see what I looked like. It was like a whole new person. So when I went into the frame department this time, I knew what I wanted for another year or two.



Why would I want anything else when I finally found glasses that not only have style, but that fit my face? I had a shock when I went in though. The place didn't have them! I almost went into a state of panic until my sweet frame lady called Kate Spade Company herself to find out if they still carried these frames. Yes they do and my sweet frame lady ordered them for me.



Now something amazing miraculous happened when I went for my appointment. Something that can only be attributed to God. Something that has NEVER happened since I started wearing glasses. I was warned 2.5 years ago that I definitely needed to come in after only a year. That if I didn't my prescription would likely change so drastically that it would call for bi-focals (for those that dont' know which shoudl be likely ALL of you except one or two I wore bi-focals for a long time and a while back my doctor realized that I didn't *need* them). So I was all about Yes I will be back in a year. Yes I will. Well that year passed. In fact, two years passed. So with that said, Something miraculous happened. My prescription stayed the same! If I don't want them, I don't NEED new glasses. I don't NEED new lenses and I don't NEED new frames. However, I *want* new frames because my current frames are a bit worn out and I *want* new lenses because my current ones are scratched.

I want to scream from the mountain tops that:

Lyme didn't take more from me. :) My eyesight has not changed in the 2 plus years I've been in treatment even though the eye doctor said it would! Yah!

So You Think You Can Dance

There were 9 couples on Tuesday night's show. I already have a few favorite couples from last week's show, but I suspect that I will be surprised again. I am pleased that Billy Bell can come back at the Top 100 next season and that Brandon can reapply next season as well to potentially return to the Top 20. However, each season it's gets harder and harder to return. So I'm sure that they will have their work cut out for them. Noelle is also back to perform for the first time after she hurt her knee last week. Listing the top three dances for me in order of my most favorite routine to least favorite. Top four for me at this stage of the game: Kevin, Karen, Kathyn & Legacy. And my apologizes to poor Jakob. FOR some reasons that can only be blamed on Lyme Disease, I have thought his name was Jakde. Even when I saw it in print, I read "Jakde" and when I heard them pronouncing it I thought it was Jakde (Jake duh for those that might be wondering how to pronounce it in my head). So I'm so so sorry Jakob. If I ever accidently write "Jakde" on here, you all will know that i'm talking about Jakob. Now back to the regularly scheduled program ....




Kevin & Karen: I couldn't keep my eyes off of Karen because I was trying to see her mistakes. Guess what? It was EXCELLENT. Adam is cracking me up again this week by falling off the chair about Karen's hot tamale traine ride. So great to see Kevin working it out in his own style and right up in the train with Karen. I will have to watch this again just because it was so good. These pair have become my favorite.


Kathryn & Legacy: Absolutely beautiful & unique. The unique lifts, the jerkiness of movements and the extreme smoothness made for a beautiful routine. The color of Kathyn's dress partnered with the darkness of Legacy's clothing made for a beautiful couple. I can see these two sticking around for a long time especially if Legacy keeps improving the way he has the last few weeks.


Mollee & Nathan perform Bollywood for us. I was just thinking .. what if they have to do a Russian Folk number in a few weeks. I hope they don't throw that at us again. Lighting and music have a lot to do with the performance factor for me. So the beginning of the routine was my kind of lighting. I was completely surprised at how well Mollee wowed us in this routine. Both of them blew me away. They are so young and are performing so well. I hope they can keep up this kind of wow factor throughout the show. I know that Mollee was one of the last dancers picked for the show, but can you imagine the show without her? I can't. Nathan on the other hand was given a ticket to hollywood for this season during the summer audition. They knew he had that special factor and together they are completely awesome.

Kudos to Ellenore & Ryan to performing so well even with her dress caught on her heel 1/2 the time.

The bottom three couples for me were the ones that Nigel pulled up front to pull the bottom 4 dancers from. Bianca is the only one that is truly disappointing. She was my favorite pre-season dancer. She's just doing as well as I thought she would. Truly surprising. I am very disappointed that she had to go home so early, but honestly she was the right choice to leave based on the 30 second solos alone. Phillip also was sent home. He was my least favorite overall male dancer, but boy could he tap. I felt his solo was better than Victor's solo, but Victor has more potential to be an outstanding dancer in all areas. After hearing about the death of Phillip's father, I'm glad they didn't string him along with the whole come forward and go back business that is known in this show. Phillip has had a difficult week.

Best place in the world.

I'm in the best place in the world tonight. UNC began playing basketball with its first game against Virginia Christian College, on January 27, 1910. They won that very first game at 42-21. For the record, my birthday is January 27th. I was destined to be a Carolina fan. Born on the very date that Carolina Basketball began a mere 66 years later. The Dean Dome, which was named after Dean Smith former Head Coach of the Heels and current home of Men's Basketball, opened 9 days before my 10th birthday. And on my birthday in 1993, UNC pulled off a doozy of a comeback win. They managed to win after making up a 19 point deficit after Lynch hit a three pointer to ignite a comeback with under 9 minutes to play. (The ball in the photo is from the 1993 NCAA championship win and the spot on the floor is the location that Lynch threw the ball for the January 27th win).



I was there. I was in the building the day of this tremendous win. I was serving Cokes and Sprites with and without ice. But Carolina served me a win. A win on my birthday, a win on my 17th birthday. That same year, they gave me a National Championship win. This year on January 27, 2010 ... Carolina Basketball turns 100 years old. I turn 34. Tonight on November 6th, I watch Carolina in exhibition from the nosebleed section. I will help Turn it Blue and I will smile b.c I am in the best place in the world tonight. Last year I went to watch UNC vs. UNC Pembroke in exhibition. This year I went to Late Night with Roy (photo below) with Rob. I had purchased tickets for this year's exhibition game so I could see the boy's in action again. By the time this posts, Rob & I will be cheering on our Heels!





I said, "Nosebleed section," but I actually got really good awesome completely close up seats. Got to shake the hand of a coach from the other team. I had to. Not because I'm a fan of the "other" team, but because we graduated high school together. I looked down and saw him standing there. He just happened to look up the moment I looked down. Crazy!

Not just any ole day

I'm taking today off.
It's not just any ole day.
I'm having my eyes examined this morning.
It's not just any ole day.

I'm eating lunch with my best friend.
It's not just any ole day.

I'm walking by the hospital that kept me for a week.
And I'm not going in.
It's not just any ole day.

I'm watching the Tarheels play basketball.
It's not just any ole day.

I'm going hog wild taking photos in Chapel Hill.
It's not just any ole day.

I'm soaking up the day I was given.
It's not just any ole day.

I'm loving the fact that I woke up this morning.
It's not just any ole day.

Each day is a gift.
It's not just any ole day.

It's not just any ole day because
I'm getting four any ole days.
Four any ole days to do what I want.
I'm filling my days with wonderful things
because it's not just any ole day.
It's the day that the Lord has made.

Flowers in November

We have these beautiful Hydrangeas on the side of our home. I hadn't really paid them much attention this season until I was about to pull into my driveway today. We bought them a number of years ago knowing that they probably wouldn't thrive and they give me surprises every year when they bloom. Some years they are purple and some years they are blue. This year they a beautiful combination of the two colors.

Upcoming Post

I am going to be working on my full background story. I told a very abbreviated version when I began my blog. I wanted to share with you a more complete picture. I wish I could share with you every detail of every symptom prior to diagnosis, but I can't remember bits and pieces of them. So stay tuned for my pre-diagnosis story.

Living the Lyme Life

I want to welcome any newcomers to my blog by reposting something I post every so often. I know I struggle when I come across a blog that is a year plus old to find the most important and relevant posts. So I've compiled a list of the most relevant posts that relate to my health. Whenever I write a new post, I add it to this list. You will find "this" post over on the right side under the category, "Living the Lyme Life" right under a list of music. You can go over there at any time and click on it will bring up a post very similiar to this one. If you're here and you have or think you have Lyme Disease, I hope you will find my journey helpful. Please feel free to comment and introduce yourself. If you care to have correspondance with me, please ensure to leave your email address so that I can contact you. This comment with your email address will be deleted as soon as I read it in order to protect your account. :o) Without further ado:

Also, I have posted quite a few things in the past week or so. If you haven't been to the blog lately, scroll down after you read this and see my introduction as well as the photos from my fair trip.


**Updated** October 10, 2009***

Welcome to all of you that are new to my journey. Here are my most relevant posts to my health. Start at the top and work your way down for the Chronological Lyme Journey.

My Diagnosis
My Therapy
A day in the life of a treatment
My PICC Line Story Part 1
My PICC Line Story Part 2
Live Blood Cell first visit
Grey's PICC Line Story
Slow Progress
My LLMD appt
November 15, 2008 Update
Chelation Challenge
Mercury Toxicity (My Mercury test came back negative)
Living the Lyme Life Post
Aluminum Toxicity
PICC Line Removal
Two weeks post PICC
Two year anniversary plus supplements
March 15, 2009 Update
Post PICC Pics
Conflicted Lymie
CDC Positive Test Results
Ups and down of Lyme
Live Blood Cell of Rob & Me
Previous Photos of me
Small Victories
Curious Lymies Goes to the Doc
OCD about ticks
The Serenity Prayer
August 8, 2009 Update
Supplement Strategy
August 30, 2009 Update (Rob & Jennifer)
Starting LDN
Explaining LDN
October 10, 2009 Update

There ya go. The most important health blogs all in one place! Enjoy reading if you've not read them before.

Welcome to the Lyme Life

My name is Jennifer and this is my blog. I have been actively fighting this world of Lyme Disease and co-infections since March of 2007. I've also dabbled in mineral deficiency, Progesterone Deficiencies, Heavy Metal Toxicity and other health issues. I had a PICC inserted into my right arm July of 2008 and I battled with it every day to keep it in for almost 7 months. There were several moments where it probably should have been pulled, but between my wonderful nurses, doctor, picc line insertion team and husband ... we managed to keep it in as long as I needed it. We used it up to the night before it was finally pulled.

I've used regular antibiotics, supplemental therapies, IV vitamin & minerals, yeast battling medications and chelation treatment. I know there is more that I have used, but the most important part of my protocol was keeping the Candida (yeast) at bay. I feel as if the IV vitamin & minerals did the best at keeping my energy levels up. I had an extremely experimental IV which I used for well over 7 months (probably more like 9 months) which isn't available any more. I feel like that IV did more for more than anything else I have tried.

Now while that stuff pretty much rules my life, I am a person. I live my life the best I can with the skills that I have and the love I receive. My husband and I have been coupled together now for 12 years. This coming April, we will celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary. He has been with me on almost every single doctor visit I have endured. He's only missed ONE hospital visit and that one was just a quick check on my picc line when I was having an allergic reaction to the cleaning solution. I wasn't even there that long. He's supported me with his quirky sense of humor and determination to get to the root of my health issues. Google was his best friend when I spiralled out of control in 2006/2007. He is the one that found my Lyme Doctor, he is the one that diagnosed me, and he is the one that ensured that I filled out the paperwork to get to see the Great Oz of Lyme.

We have two delightful and mischievous dogs. We rescued both. One is a lab mix that we rescued from the SPCA. He is about 8 to 9 years old. We rescued him when he was about 8 months old. We also rescued a Dachshund from a house. I went over to this house with a friend of mine to donate clothes for the mother. When we arrived, there was a terrible stench that greeted us. The house was full of children and pets. I mentioned how many pets they had and the lady said they were trying to get rid of one of them. I found this lovely scared overweight Dachshund under the couch. I told the lady I would take her to the SPCA and find her a home. I fell in love and she's been under our loving care ever since. I speculate she's around 10 to 11 years old now. She's definately no longer shy, but does get scared at new people. She's no longer overweight either!

I work in a child care facility. Originally, I worked full time in a preschool classroom. However as time went on, I became in charge of my center's reading program. I did both teach in the classroom and run the private reading program. Then it became crystal clear that I was struggling doing both well. I would spend 2 or 3 hours outside of my classroom and only have my class 3 to 4 hours (and two of those hours would be at nap time). So I had a choice to make. Do one or the other or feel like a failure at both. Even though I was still doing both quite well, my health was starting to fail and I needed to focus on as few things as possible. I could have done either, but my passion was the reading program.

So now, I teach 3 & 4 year olds how to read. I also dabble in the Math program as well. It's quite a rewarding job to know that the children I send to Kindergarten already know how to read before getting there. A lot of the children I have taught in the past are now in Academically Gifted programs. It makes me so proud to know that they took the basics I taught them and expanded into very gifted students. I just recently saw one of my students that I taught at 3 and 4 and she's now in 3rd or 4th grade.

There are several things that I love. I love taking photographs (especially of flowers, trees and clock towers), watching Carolina play basketball, collecting angels & snowmen, reconnecting with old friends and watching TV (especially So You Think You Can Dance). I used to be in the marching band and winterguard. I love to go to competitions to see my alma mater perform. Speaking of Alma Maters, I went to Western Carolina University and performed in the Pride of the Mountains Marching Band for one semester. So any chance I get to see WCU perform, I grab it. That band is one awesome band. Youtube does not do it justice. If you ever get the chance to see WCU perform live ... take it! You will not be disappointed.

A Whole Lotta Favorites

Some more of my favorite photos from the NC State Fair.

Carefully crafted cake for a baby shower.


October is the month for Pumpkins. There were a plethora of pumpkins. I took plenty of photos of a plethora of plump pumpkins, but here is one in solitude.


Carefully and cautiously photographs of cerulean candles.
It's a miracle that I did not fall when taking this.


This fellow was created out of traffic barrels and cones.
A Student stole Barrel and Cones to build a Barrel Monster.
After he was released, a construction company hired him to recreate his Monster.
So this year, the State Fair featured the Barrel Monster and his bride.
His bride was at one of the entrances.
However it was raining when we were leaving so we couldn't take a photo of her.
I wanted to take my photo with him, but there were so many people stalking him
that I didn't feel comfortable holding his hand. :P


Well that's all she wrote folks.

I had a whole lotta happy!

A Whole Lotta Jennifer

Rob took many photos of me that were bad and many of me that were great.
This was one of my favorites. No my legs aren't that short. I just assumed Rob was taking a waist up photo so I put my knees on the bench in the gazebo.

Here is me in a Whole Lotta Chair!



And lastly, I had so much fun at the fair. I hope you all enjoyed
visiting the North Carolina State Fair through my photos.
And thanks to my friend Missy for fixing this photo for me.
I had a huge drink spot on my shirt and she took it right off magically! Love her!

A Whole Lotta Flowers

I absolutely love taking photos of flowers. At the North Carolina State Fair, there were plenty of flowers and things of the sort for me to photograph. Here are a selection of my favorite photos.

This one took exactly one shot. I saw it in my head and I snapped the camera.

This one on the other hand took me about 10 minutes and a bunch of "erases" on the camera.
I knew exactly what I wanted to see in the lens, but I couldn't adjust
my camera to get it just right. Until I remembered the magic word: Macro.
Once I switched settings on the camera, it took one shot! And what a shot it is. :o)



This also took one snap of the camera. I saw it in my head,
snapped the photo and bam .. it was there.
The vibrant colors make me smile.



If one flower makes me happy,
then a whole lotta flowers make me
a whole lotta happy. :o)



Stay tuned for one last post that will share some favorites
that didn't a place in my Whole Lotta Posts.

So You Think You Can Dance

A fall edition has made me very happy.

There were 10 couples on Tuesday night's show. I already have a few pre-season favorites. There is always one person that surprises me. I will showcase my personal top 5 performances. I am very disappointed that Billy Bell won't be performing this season due to his illness. It's also a shame that Noelle hurt her knee. Though it must be said ... how come those on reality shows from NC make us all look like IDIOTS? I did kind of laugh at Noelle when she was talking about the Fox Trot.

Legacy (B-boy Street Performer) & Kathryn (contemporary) perform a Hip Hop routine. I look at this routine and Legacy reminds me of Gollum of Lord of the Rings. I could just see him going "My precious." This was my favorite routine of the evening. I hope they continue to do as well next week.

Ryan (Ballroom) & Ellenore (Jazz) perform a Contemporary Jazz Routine. I absolutely LOVE Ryan in this piece. He's so strong. Their dance was raw with movement and the transitions from one movement to the next seemed seemless. I feared that Ryan & Ashleigh would have difficulties dancing with other partners, but they both killed it with their new partners this week. :o) My 2nd favorite piece of the evening.

Kevin (Hip Hop) & Karen (Ballroom) perform a Cha Cha. Who isn't shocked that Karen knocked the Cha Cha out of the park? Even made Adam Shankman go "Aaaah oooooooo gah." Both really did an excellent job in this routine. Karen was the first one on the Hot Tamale Train! They both were just so good and I was amazed at how well Kevin did throughout the routine.

Bianca (Tap Dance) & Victor (Contemporary) perform a Contemporary piece. I've watched Bianca try to get on the show for a few years now and I'm so glad she's finally on the show. Who hasn't been there? Being either the object of someone's affection and not wanting that person OR .. having someone that you just want to notice you and they ignore you completely. I think I've been on both ends of the spectrum.

Nathan & Mollee perform a Disco. Our teenage couple of the show performed this routine very well. Bits of it made me a tad uncomfortable b.c I know these two are only 18. :P ~ ~ ~ They are just so adorable and I have a feeling that they'll have a great fan base.



Can't wait for next week. :D

A Whole Lotta People

The employees at the fair are quite interesting creatures. I wish I had taken a photo of one lady. This lady made my restroom experience quite enjoyable. What? It wasn't dirty, it wasn't nasty and it wasn't crowded. This lady ushered you into the bathroom with her boisterous voice. Several of her phrases included, "If you have to pee, this is the place to be." "Sit down and make your bladder gladder." When all the stalls were full, she announced that they had a full house and momentarily a room would open up. I should have just taken a photo of her.

In the Yesteryear area, there were lots of vendors making things. Here are some photos of the ladies and gentlemen making things. Here is a lady working on the eggs. :o)

It was in here that we found Steve Troxler (our NC Commissioner of Agriculture) walking around from vendor to vendor.

Here was a fellow woodworking ~ he was making a gun.



This guy made me smile. He just had a jovial way about him as you can see.

Pray for Stellan

Pray for baby Stellan. He's back in the PICU in SVT.
Click on his picture to go straight to MckMama's blog.

A Whole Lotta Fun Stuff

When you go to the fair, you can expect to see a whole lotta neat things.
Some are prizes, some are sculptures and some are just plain neat.

First case in point, a sculpture of a cow made out of milk cartons.


Second case in point, a lady carrying a huge Pink Panther.
I wonder how much dough she threw down to "win" Mr. Panther.



Third case in point, Some people are just way too creative with their fruits and
win blue ribbons for their stop light apples.


Then some things are just at the fair for way too long.
Exhibit Number One (and No I won't be sharing with you Exhibit Number Two).



And lastly some more Eggs




Stay tuned for A Whole Lotta People

Why do I do this?

Why do I blog about my experiences with Lyme Disease?
Why do I tell others about my life?
Why do I share so openly and honestly about my feelings about the doctors that don't treat Lyme appropriately?

I got the answer today.

Not one, but TWO friends emailed me today. I have often thought that if the pain I had for 12 years prior to my diagnosis could help one person it was worth every moment.

Now I have the opportunity to possibly help impact the lives of my friend's family members.

You don't *get* Lyme until you GET Lyme. No two Lyme patients are the same either. I have had a pretty rocky journey, others have it worse than me and I know others that were treated with two weeks of Doxy and are fine.

I hope that those that my friends know will be in the two weeks of Doxy and they are fine. In my experience, that is rarely the case.

A Whole Lotta Exhibitions

At the North Carolina State Fair, you can expect a Whole Lotta Exhibitions. In this post, you'll find a whole lotta photos of different things that I thought were unique, cool or neat to photograph. :o)

I asked Rob if he could carve a pumpkin like this for me this Halloween.
He said my expectations were higher than his skill level.

Guess if he can't carve the pumpkin, he can't make these bird houses either.
What's he good for? ;)



I really love Easter Eggs. Easter is a very special holiday that reminds me of my family. We spent every Easter at my Grandparent's house and Easter Egg Decorating was our top priority. Wonder if we could have done something like these.



What's a fair without a whole lotta farm equipment?

A Whole Lotta Food

We only go to the fair every few years. I don't think it would be as fun if we went every year. Plus the past few years, I have been very sick so I would not have lasted an hour (much less the seven that we spent there today).

I really view the whole idea of fairs and carnivals and things of the sort as crowded and dirty. I just prefer to stay away from the whole scene of the fair, but ... the first month or two that Rob & I were together, he took me to the fair. So now we pretty much go every few years. This is the first year I think we've brought the camera and gone hog wild on the photos.

The whole reason I go to the fair is for a Whole Lotta Food! We head in thinking about the foods we want so we won't go crazy eating everything in sight. We know that I have to have Roasted Corn. We know that we have to have something sweet. We know that there will be some sort of "main meal." I can't remember what all we ate today, but we sure took lots of photos of food booths.

One of the Midway Food Booths. We didn't buy anything at this one, but it was pretty to look at.

Another booth of food sugar.


The whole reason I go to the fair is to get a WHOLE LOTTA ROASTED CORN! :o)
This stand even offered a "cheese" version of the corn. I was tempted, but decided to stick with good ole butter & salt. It was a real bargain at 4 dollars for the ear of corn & a bottle of water.

A Whole Lotta Rides

The theme of this years North Carolina State Fair is a Whole Lotta Happy. So I will do my blog posts in the theme of the photos that will be posted. So this post is A Whole Lotta Rides.

We arrived at the fairgrounds around 8:30 in the morning. This gave me the opportunity to take photos of the rides. As you can see in the photo below, it was very cloudy today. Aside from the moments of downpours and massive wind, it was perfect weather. It wasn't too hot and it wasn't too cold.

We were able to get right up close to the rides so we could take close up shots without losing the clarity by using a zoom lens. This was one of my favorite shots of part of one ride.



And here is another:




I personally am not a rider of fair rides. I don't like spending 6 to 8 bucks per ride for one after paying 17 dollars just to get in (7 dollars for the ticket and 10 dollars for parking) for one and for another ... my stomach just does not handle rides. I do, however, enjoy taking photos of them. :o)

And PS: I loved being about to walk around for SEVEN hours yesterday.
I think it's honestly the most I've walked straight
(work doesn't count since I spend most of my day
sitting in a chair teaching a child how to read)
and neither do UNC or WCU games
b.c again I spent most of the time sitting.

My legs are paying the price today. My calves are in brutal pain.
I'm sure it's from the exercise and not from the Lyme.
However, I will keep an eye on it.

Photo Tease

Wherever might I have gone? I wanted to leave you with a taste of what I did today! And btw: You will have the pleasure of having a new post every day the rest of the month.

Oh like my new hair cut?

Late Night With Roy

It's a tradition at Carolina the last 7 years to have a Late Night With Roy. Last night's included, I have attended two. The first I attended, I honestly don't remember. I was so sick at that time that I was fortunate just to be able to go. It was my dream to go see the Carolina basketball team play and I felt so close to death's door that I had to get there. It was completely awesome, but I don't remember much b.c my photos didn't turn out well.

I use photographs as a back up to my mental memory. This year Rob & I took both cameras. One has a really great lens for taking close up pictures from far away. This was one of my favorite photos from my regular canon.



Me after the end of scrimmage. I had walked down to say hey to my old boss from my WCU days! Her daughter is a junior at the UNC women's basketball team.



Anoop Desai was there too and got called out by ESPN's Stuart Scott (the EMCEE for the evening's events).



But what did I go there to see? UNC MEN'S BASKETBALL!

Lyme Merry Go Round

Public Health Alert Article is out

Go read the Public Health Alert. September issue is out now. Many great articles and it's a privilege to be an occasional writer.

If you're joining my blog from the PHA, welcome to the blog.

Follow up 10/10/09

August was my worst month this year. It was absolutely horrendous. I compare it to months that I had in 2008. I had exhaustion, headaches, word finding problems, memory problems, joint pain in hands & legs, balance issues, nausea and twitches in my legs. These problems lasted about 2 weeks of the month, but they were the worst two weeks I've had this year.

September gave me exhaustion, poor stamina, joint pain and swelling. I also had unexplained histamine reactions resulting in swollen eye lids. October has proven to be tough with the bout of Bronchitis. I walk into my LLMD's office with knowledge.

The good news is that each bad spell I had ended on it's own. I fought back with my "strong" immune system and the symptoms disappeared (excluding the Bronchitis). In August, we ran a bunch of urine and blood tests. I received the results of these tests today and what they mean for my treatment.

My sodium level is borderline low again. This means I have to add sodium into my diet yet again. My iron is better than he expected, but was still borderline low. My vitamin D is extremely low. Zinc was also overtly low. In the urine testing, it showed that I have low glutathione, and low B6. I also had a nutrient test done. The three things that were overtly low were Zinc, Magnesium and Selenium. It also showed borderline low levels of B12, inositol, Vitamin A, Copper, Chromium, Vitamin E and Vitamin C (which is absolutely astounding considering how many Grams of Vitamin C I take in a day).

He would provide me with "good news" to be followed by the "bad news." "Well, your metal test was within normal range." (YEAH) "Your Zinc levels are overtly low." (BOOO)

You may ask why are so many minerals defiecent. I can answer this. EDTA (not only to help with metals, but also to help with biofilms) not only binds to metals, but it binds to minerals. Therefore depleting my mineral supply. We were aware of this problem prior to the blood test and I was given Trace Minerals. However, Trace Minerals make me so nauseated that I can't take them. So he's going to give me specific minerals that I need. So I will be taking Vitamin D, Magnesium, Zinc, Selinium and a B6 complex. However because I have a sensitive system, I may not be able to tolerate them. If I can't tolerate these, I have been advised to get IV minerals.

The urine testing also showed high level of yeast. So therefore I will begin a regiment of Diflucan. We're going to hit it hard and take 4 full weeks of Diflucan. I will then take one week off and then take another 4 full weeks. I won't go on any new supplement until I'm off the antibiotics. However, I will start the Diflucan as soon as I get the prescription filled.

Rewriting Lyrics

If you want to share this, please do so by only sharing the URL to this blog. This was my creation and it took me weeks to write this. Do not copy & paste it onto your own blog. Just copy the link for this and post that instead. Thanks ***



I'm notorious for changing lyrics to music. I've done it since I was little. Well I've never gone all out and changed the WHOLE music lyrics. Well last year when I had my PICC line, I changed the lyrics to several songs. It made me laugh so hard I almost peed in my pants when I was done.

One of the songs was "Barbie Girl" by Aqua. Now I do not like the original song, but my lyrics I think are completely awesome. Wrote it a few days after my PICC line insertion when I was frustrated that I couldn't even brush my own hair. You can hear the real song here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p68rj879Zyg

- Hi Lymie!
- Hi Friend!
- You wanna go for a ride?
- Sure, Friend!
- Jump in!
- Ha ha ha ha!

I'm a Lymie girl in the Lymie world
My arms in plastic, it's fantastic
You can brush my hair, I can't reach up there
Exasperation, Lyme is my frustration

Come on, Lymie, let's go party.

I'm a Lymie girl in the Lymie world
Wrapped in plastic, it's fantastic
You can brush my hair, PJ's everywhere
Exasperation, Lyme is my frustration

I'm a disabled girl in the normal world
Dress me down, take your time, I'm your Lymie
You're my nurse, sit converse, tell of hideous pain
Wrap me here, Ice me there, I'm the drug store.

We can't touch, we can't play
We can say I'm always Sick , oooh whoa

I'm a Lymie girl in the Lymie world
My arms in plastic, it's fantastic
You can stop and stare, my pills are everywhere
Exasperation, Lyme is my frustration

Come on, Lymie, let's go party , ha ha ha, No
Come on, Lymie, let's go party nooo, nooo
Come on, Lymie, let's go party, ha ha ha, No
Come on, Lymie , let's go party , nooo, nooo

I can't walk, I can't talk, it makes no sense you see
I was bit by a tick, I was hit with panic.
Come right out , give a shout, let us scream "Oh" again
Hit the docs, I'm in shock, let's go Lymie

We stay in, can't go out
We can say I'm always Sick
We go out , Start to pout
We can say I'm Car Sick.

Come on, Lymie, let's go Party, ha ha ha, No
Come on, Lymie, let's go Party, nooo, nooo
Come on, Lymie, let's go Party, ha ha ha, No
Come on, Lymie , let's go Party, nooo, nooo

I'm a Lymie girl in the Lymie world
Wrapped in plastic, it's fantastic
You can start to care, I'm hurting everywhere
Exasperation, Lyme is my frustration

I'm a Lymie girl in the Lymie world
My arms in plastic, it's fantastic
You can brush my hair, I can't reach up there.
Exasperation, Lyme is my frustration

Come on, Lymie, let's go Party, ha ha ha, yeah
Come on, Lymie, let's go Party, nooo, nooo
Come on, Lymie, let's go Party, ha ha ha, yeah
Come on, Lymie , let's go Party, nooo, nooo

Can't wait for this to be done.
Well, Lymie, We're just getting started!
Cant wait till the end.

Dose 5

I have a very strange reaction to antibiotics. It's very very weird and it has always happened.

Dose 1: Something always happens to make me think maybe I shouldn't take it. Sometimes it's (TMI) massive bathroom breaks, sometimes it's a strange rash, sometimes it's swelling somewhere. This time was no differnet. My left eye started swelling and it appeared that I had pink eye. I knew this would go away by the evening (the trend with most of my 1st dose episodes).

Dose 2: It generally goes better than dose 1. I always get excited that maybe nothing will happen while on antibiotics.

Dose 3: ALWAYS get nauseated & puny on Dose 3. As the tradition continued, I was nauseated all morning. However I had almonds with me so I ate them and felt better afterwards.

Dose 4: Last night, I felt so puny. I felt like I was going to barf at any second and was all hot & sweaty. I finally went to bed at 7:30 missing my favorite show. Now if this tells you anything, this show is the ONLY show I watch live anymore. All the rest I watch on DVR. But Survivor ... I hve to see it live! In i'ts entire season, I have only missed 3 episodes LIVE. Make that four now.

Dose 5: Always Always Always get the diahrea. I've already been to the bathroom 3 times and I just took Dose 5 15 minutes ago.

I have 15 doses left. Let's hope that the tradition doesn't continue b.c if so, I will be very sick by Sunday. At least I'm not having any other of my herx reactions. This is a VERY good thing.

I'm still coughing up a storm uncontrollably. I try not to take cough syrup b.c I know that I need to cough junk up. If I take the cough syrup, it will surpress my cough so that I won't be coughing stuff up. Bad part is that ... I fear. If I cough, I'll ... well .. I think you can guess what I'm scared will happen and it has to do with both "ends" if you get my drift.

I could take an expectorant, but I try to take as little medicine as possible. I will see my LLMD for my appointment tomorrow. We'll see what he says about my still lovely hacking cough.

Well off to run to the bathroom. Oh joy!

Bronchitis Update

I'm still coughing up a storm. I stopped by my LLMD's office this afternoon. After speaking with my nurse, I plunkered in my "favorite chair." She plunkered down right in front of me with needle in hand. After two tries, she got the IV inserted and the drip began. First IV I've had since February and the first time I've had an IV insertion since July of 08.

After the 2 and 1/2 hours of IV (which is a nutritional IV consisting of 50 grams of Vitamin C plus some other nutrients), my nurse informed me that my LLMD does want me to go on the antibiotic. So ... here we go again. Hopefully this time ... ONE antibiotic for TEN days (instead of FOUR antibiotics for over a YEAR).

All of my other s ymptoms are pretty much gone except the horrible cough. It's been a while since I've been a fly on the wall at my LLMD's office. I forgot how very busy my LLMD is. He was busier than an one legged man in a butt kicking contest. He was running from patient to patient trying to hear what the office staff and nurses were telling him about other patients in between visits.

Today was a crazy day. I know it's about to get crazier for him. I'm sure he'll get patients that would have gone to Dr. J in South Carolina, but don't want to wait for his transition to DC or even drive to DC.

I see him on Saturday for my follow up. Hopefully I'm feeling a lot better. I got my test results today. I am not looking forward to the appointment either b.c some things didn't look good.

Doc in the Box Visit

** Edited down at the bottom **

Woke up this morning feeling even worse so I decided to make a quick stop to the doc in the box. When I say quick .. I mean really quick. I got online to ensure that I knew where the doc in the box was located. I saw a link that said something about getting in line now. So I registered for a 10am appointment. I was the 5th one in "line" but I was the first on to be seen b.c I registered online. How's that for prompt?

They asked for my symptoms: Fever, Cough, Body Aches, Runny Nose, Headaches

They took my temp: Normal (Go figure that I had taken a Tylenol an hour prior .. of course my temp was normal)

They took my blood pressure and Ox: Normal.

Listened to my chest and stuck a huge stick up my nostrils which made my eyes water.

Doc in the Box comes in and listens to my chest. Said he was just waiting on the rapid flu test to come back, but he speculated that I did not have the flu ... but a really bad case of Bronchitis.

He leaves and comes back with three prescriptions and the good news. I don't have SWINE FLU, but only a bad case of Bronchitis. The thing is that I am not sure that I want or desire to take these prescriptions. First: One is an antibiotic. I've not had an antibiotic in over a year. There is no telling what kind of Herx reaction I'll have when I take it. It's also the antibiotic that gave me the worst reaction when I was on it for Lyme Disease. Second: He wrote a prescription for Steroids. Anyone that's anyone in the Lyme community knows you should run screaming from Steroids. I questioned him and he said that if I don't take it ... I could wind up in the hospital. What he doesn't understand is that if I do take it, I could wind up in the hospital. *sigh* Third: he wrote a prescript for a cough medicine. The strongest they have besides a narcotic. I am *really* sensitive to cough medicines. They knock me out on my backside.

There is not a single thing he wrote for me that doesn't have the red flags screaming. I'm going to have the hubby fill them for me. Try to get in touch with my Lyme doctor. The problem is that his office doesn't open until Tuesday. If I continue to go untreated, I could wind up in the hospital. If I go ahead and take these things, I could wind up in the hospital.


What's a Lymie to do?

*** My Pharmacist did not fill the cough med script. She showed hubby the strongest over the counter stuff for me. She did fill the other two. I love my pharamcist. She even gave me an easier way to take the antibiotics (filled a liquid instead of tablet like it was written). So once I get the go ahead from my wonderful doc ... I will have easy way to take it. Though she said "don't shake vigorously. that will make it taste even worse. Tilt it side to side like this easily." LOVE my pharmacist. Who do I love more than my pharamcist? My husband. He's the one that went to the pharmacist armed with questioned. He came back and gave me all the answers! ***

Please Pray

So back story. I used to be sick all year around with some sort of sinus infection. It generally would start off as something simple (like seasonal allergies and develop into a raging infection). I think I spent most of December & January sick, March & April, July & August, and October sick. It would start off with a running nose or cough, turn into a massive headache and soon a fever would develop. I would go to the doc in a box to be given the diagnosis I know "Sinusitus here is Amoxi to take for 10 days. See you in a month or two." I could diagnose myself. Oddly enough it seemed fitting that it was I that pretty much diagnosed myself as having Lyme Disease before a doctor labeled me.


So flash forward to this year. I have been so actively healthy that I haven't had a treatable bout of sinus infection in well over a year. In fact, in the last 2 plus years the only way I've treated sinus infections were by an IV of Vitamin C plus other immune boosting vitamins. Now if I lived under a rock, I would assume that this case of "funk" was seasonal allergies that would turn into a sinusitis. However, I don't live under a rock. I live in a world of TV's, news stories and internet. I live in a world of people who talk about what they've seen on the news.

You might hear about how they have most recently chosen Rio as the Olympic site for 2016 instead of Chicago, or you might hear about celebrities deaths, or anything really. The thing that has most people in a panic though can be summed up in 2 words. SWINE FLU. Now they can change the name all they want .. H1N1 ... but still .. everyone calls it the SWINE FLU.


I've heard the following phrases in the last week:

My mother has Swine Flu (spoken by an adult)
I think I might have the Swine Flu (spoken by yet another adult)
I know 5 people at work that have the Swine Flu and they aren't connected (yet a different adult).

Those are just a random sampling of the thought that has been planted in my head.
Well I woke up yesterday with a random small sore throat. I had been sneezing the day before (which is my huge clue that something allergy is a brewing). I whole heartedly believe that I have a case of seasonal allergies, but ... the world is infected with SWINE FLU. If I go to the doc in the box and present with my symptoms (and in parathesis my rationale for why it's NOT the SWINE FLU

Runny and Stuffy Nose (which can be present in regular seasonal allergies)
Low Grade Fever (in my case is generally present in regular seasonal allergies)
Sore Throat (in my case is also always present in regular seasonal allergies)
Sore Body (well ... this generally only presents with the flu, but I have Lyme. All bets are off)
Chills (this is the ONLY one that has me worried that it could be MORE than allergies)
Headache (again ... always with seasonal allergies plus I have lyme headaches)

They are going to immediately think .. SWINE FLU. Get me in and out of there without a second guess of maybe it might be seasonal allergies.

Now ... there is a reasoning for this: ( I apologize in advance for such a bad joke, but ... it's true or so I think) My eyes ITCH like a prostitute that failed to get her exam after having relationships with multiple men. Oh that was SO bad.

On Thursday and Friday< I was sneezing really bad. My eyes began to itch. I woke up Friday morning with a sore throat (from drainage from my nose). As the day progressed I felt worse and worse. By the evening, I felt as if I probably had a fever. I do. It's low grade. I went to bed promising my husband that IF I felt worse in the morning I'd go to the doc in the box ... all b.c of the newsworthy aforementioned SWINE FLU has become the two words everyone is talking about lately. With my job .. I would endanger many if I had it. It better only BE seasonal allergies. Please Pray.

I woke up this morning with a higher fever (though it's still low for normal people ... it's high for me. my normal temp is 97 and this morning my fever was 99. So for a normal person with a 98.6 temp that would be like 100.6 temp) and with body aches. My nose is stuffy yet runny. My eyes are still itching and I have a headache.

I have 1/2 a mind to follow my hubby to the LLMD this morning and have him go in for a mask for me to protect all the other sicklies just so I can speak with my nurse about what the possibilities are that I actually have something other than seasonal allergies and whether I need to go to doc in a box (whom I've aptly named Dr. Terry Fied) for a rapid flu test (who knows maybe she can perform one, but I'm not sure if those rapid flu tests .. are onsight at the doc in the lyme land box). (and this is my last use of parenthesis)

Or who knows .. maybe she'll convince me to come in and take a big ole dose of Vitamin C (50 Grams flowing in an IV bag ... which would take 2 hours to find a vein if we were lucky and then another 3 hours to inffuse)

SO please pray:

1. That it's just seasonal allergies and not SWINE FLU
2. That if my nurse wants to give me an IV ... that she can find a vein easily and it won't blow
3. That I'll feel better by Monday b.c it's going to be a long long work day and I'd rather not miss.


** Update ** I did not go to my LLMD's office this morning. I slept through the time that my hubby left for his appointment. Good thing too because the only people that were there was one office staff and the IV giver (that's not a FNP or RN and she wouldn't be authorized to give me an IV since Dr. P wasn't there to confirm that it would be okay). So I'm glad I didn't drive up there. Everyone was at a Cancer Walk so pray for the walkers.

I'm just going to stay put, drink lots of fluids and take Tylenol to keep my fever down and Zyrtec to keep my allergies at bay. Hopefully it won't get worse.