Before I get to the happier things, I'm trying to get this out to as many people as possible tonight: many of you know my friends Mark and Terra Dynna, and others have encountered Mark in the comments section here. Mark's dad Glenn (who is also my Grandma's cousin) had a bad accident today. Glenn fell off his roof and hit his head hard; he ended up in emergency brain surgery today. I just talked to Terra and Glenn came safely out of the surgery, but they don't know the extent of the damage because he'll need to be heavily sedated for the next few days. They were glad to see that he was using his hands and aware of his surroundings, but there had also been swelling that they had to take care of in the surgery, and they don't know what else might be wrong.
For those of you who pray, please pray. Please also remember Glenn's whole family: his wife Donna, his son Mike (who is with his wife in the Bahamas right now), and Mark and Terra and their little girls.
Okay. (Deep breaths.) I promised that I'd talk about the small happy things about every day, and so I have to do it today.
1. Today Chris and I went and bought groceries for supper at a cute little grocer called Peppers Foods (which won Best Canadian Independent Grocer in 2005!). (Andrea: why can't I find Aubergine?) I love Peppers. I didn't even know it existed until we drove past it today. The food there is beautiful.
2. Supper: grilled marinated steaks on a bed of mushroom risotto, with roasted beets and sauteed beet greens. For dessert, I did these little Vanilla Bean Lava Cakes, and used the leftover sauce from last night's cheesecake fondue as the topping. With blueberries. So, really, Valentine's Day was an excuse for me to try every Canadian Food Network recipe I've been hoarding for a while.
3. Chris somehow wheedled me into buying him the stuffed version of Quatchi, one of the mascots for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. They're very cute together. (Uh, but it's not the 3'2" version that I just saw online. Dear goodness.)
4. We just finished watching The Princess Bride. If I could hug a movie, I would hug this one.
5. I have a wonderful Christopher. And such wonderful friends back home and here. Happy Valentine's Day, everyone. Even to those of you for whom today isn't so happy.
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query glenn. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query glenn. Sort by date Show all posts
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
GiST Day 49: Just in under the wire edition
1. Woo! I remembered to do this two days in a row. And it's even before midnight right now.
2. We had a really good visit with Chris's parents this week. And they're the sort of house guests who clean up the guest room and fold all the blankets before they leave. And they fill the house with delicious snacks. The House Guest Bar has been raised.
3. I have a very understanding Christopher, who managed to understand when I got all worn out and all peopled-out after his parents left, and didn't get upset when I told him that I needed him to go take a half-hour walk so that I could be alone at home and reset my brain for a while. (I'm really not used to having people around all the time.) He went for an hour-long walk, and my brain felt much better.
4. After that, Ariann and Derek came over and we played games. I demanded that all the games we play be easy and fun because my brain is very tired today, and they all complied.
5. We've had a bunch of wonderful news about Glenn today: not only has he been moving around and responding to physiotherapy a lot more than the doctors had ever predicted, but today they tried out a few things to see who all he remembers (he can't talk so far because of the trach the doctors had put in, but he can point) and first they discovered that he recognised the whole family in pictures, but then someone handed him his Blackberry and he tried to send a text message to a friend. Which means, contrary to the doctors' predictions, Glenn can: understand language, read, remember everyone, remember how to operate electronic equipment, and perform many tasks that require fine motor skills. This is all stuff that they thought he'd have to be re-taught or would never come back. And his personality's all there. This is huge and exciting.
2. We had a really good visit with Chris's parents this week. And they're the sort of house guests who clean up the guest room and fold all the blankets before they leave. And they fill the house with delicious snacks. The House Guest Bar has been raised.
3. I have a very understanding Christopher, who managed to understand when I got all worn out and all peopled-out after his parents left, and didn't get upset when I told him that I needed him to go take a half-hour walk so that I could be alone at home and reset my brain for a while. (I'm really not used to having people around all the time.) He went for an hour-long walk, and my brain felt much better.
4. After that, Ariann and Derek came over and we played games. I demanded that all the games we play be easy and fun because my brain is very tired today, and they all complied.
5. We've had a bunch of wonderful news about Glenn today: not only has he been moving around and responding to physiotherapy a lot more than the doctors had ever predicted, but today they tried out a few things to see who all he remembers (he can't talk so far because of the trach the doctors had put in, but he can point) and first they discovered that he recognised the whole family in pictures, but then someone handed him his Blackberry and he tried to send a text message to a friend. Which means, contrary to the doctors' predictions, Glenn can: understand language, read, remember everyone, remember how to operate electronic equipment, and perform many tasks that require fine motor skills. This is all stuff that they thought he'd have to be re-taught or would never come back. And his personality's all there. This is huge and exciting.
Monday, February 23, 2009
GiST Day 34: So I Missed a Few Days Edition
First some GiST and then some updates.
1. Christopher made a blanket fort around the couch. And now we're both working on the couch while hiding in the fort.
2. Today I just let my hair air-dry and didn't style it, to see what the haircut really looks like. (Okay, I was also tired and lazy.) And it still looks serviceable! Hurrah for a just plain good haircut that doesn't need a lot of work to look nice!
3. I did pretty well on my Oscar predictions. (Except for those places where I went with Nate Silver over logic.)
4. Chuck on TV always makes for a good day. (Chris's version of this entry involved the words "It warmed my heart." Because he's a hopeless romantic and swoons about TV character relationships.)
5. I'm glad that my wee Celeste kiddo is getting better. She still has a few more days left in the hospital, but it's more for "needs a few days on IV antibiotics" reasons rather than "they don't know what's wrong with her and they're making her stay in her room because they fear she's contagious" reasons. Small victories.
Updates: Please keep praying for Glenn. Things went really bad yesterday, and they ended up having to take out part of his skull to take pressure off of his brain. And then when the surgeon was doing that operation, he discovered that Glenn's left side of his frontal lobe is a lot worse than they thought, and the doctor doesn't think it'll get better. And they think he might have had a stroke this week. So, Mark and Terra and their family are having a rough time.
1. Christopher made a blanket fort around the couch. And now we're both working on the couch while hiding in the fort.
2. Today I just let my hair air-dry and didn't style it, to see what the haircut really looks like. (Okay, I was also tired and lazy.) And it still looks serviceable! Hurrah for a just plain good haircut that doesn't need a lot of work to look nice!
3. I did pretty well on my Oscar predictions. (Except for those places where I went with Nate Silver over logic.)
4. Chuck on TV always makes for a good day. (Chris's version of this entry involved the words "It warmed my heart." Because he's a hopeless romantic and swoons about TV character relationships.)
5. I'm glad that my wee Celeste kiddo is getting better. She still has a few more days left in the hospital, but it's more for "needs a few days on IV antibiotics" reasons rather than "they don't know what's wrong with her and they're making her stay in her room because they fear she's contagious" reasons. Small victories.
Updates: Please keep praying for Glenn. Things went really bad yesterday, and they ended up having to take out part of his skull to take pressure off of his brain. And then when the surgeon was doing that operation, he discovered that Glenn's left side of his frontal lobe is a lot worse than they thought, and the doctor doesn't think it'll get better. And they think he might have had a stroke this week. So, Mark and Terra and their family are having a rough time.
Friday, February 20, 2009
GiST Day 31: Spring Break! Edition
(Remember to keep praying for Glenn and Celeste! Glenn's back on sedation a bit more, and we still don't know what's wrong with Celeste, but she can't keep down food and is in the children's ward of the hospital.)
1. I'm going to miss having the girls in town. We went all over downtown this afternoon, and Bronwyn found me a dress that I can wear to my brother's wedding.
2. Seriously, how perfect is this dress? I feel so cool when I wear it. I just need some black pumps that aren't in excess of $100. (Oh goodness, I tried on these beautiful Cole Haans...)
3. And I got to talk with my family over webcams today, which is always delightful.
4. Boy, do I ever enjoy Food Network Challenge. I've seen this "Sweet 16 Cakes" episode a million times, and I just can't get enough of that guy who does the pretty sugar flowers.
5. Library tea. I bought a whole bunch more today.
1. I'm going to miss having the girls in town. We went all over downtown this afternoon, and Bronwyn found me a dress that I can wear to my brother's wedding.
2. Seriously, how perfect is this dress? I feel so cool when I wear it. I just need some black pumps that aren't in excess of $100. (Oh goodness, I tried on these beautiful Cole Haans...)
3. And I got to talk with my family over webcams today, which is always delightful.
4. Boy, do I ever enjoy Food Network Challenge. I've seen this "Sweet 16 Cakes" episode a million times, and I just can't get enough of that guy who does the pretty sugar flowers.
5. Library tea. I bought a whole bunch more today.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Further Confessions by the Queen of WP
Okay, so the girls over at Amandolyn and Ky are are confessing embarassing stories about themselves these days, and so I feel the need to copy them. Because I'm their special guest and all. Not necessarily embarassing, but just random things:
1.) I still have bits of toenail polish on my toenails, FROM MY WEDDING! Yes, that's two months ago on Friday. (My toenails were blue.)
2.) Phobias: (okay, I've listed these before, but I've come up with more) kidnapping, tornados, losing everything in a housefire, spiders, being cut by a sharp object (or more specifically, dropping a knife on the floor and having it stab my foot -- it's never happened, but it could!), that people in stores will think I'm shoplifting, dying in a car accident. That kidnapping phobia's from childhood, but it still lingers.
3.) Number of Glenn Miller CDs I own: more than 10. I'm too lazy to count them. (Many of them were presents, from friends who were aware that I was a Glenn Miller fan, and that especially I studied well to him.)
4.) I own Newsies in VHS, DVD, Soundtrack and songbook form.
5.) A Mighty Wind: DVD, Soundtrack and Songbook.
6.) Sense and Sensibility: VHS, DVD, oddly enough I don't have the soundtrack (but would love to have it, and have a dubbed copy from ages ago somewhere) and screenplay with Emma Thompson's diaries. I have read the diaries several times, and have watched the movie while following with the screenplay, noticing the changes they made in editing. In fact, when Emma Thompson started dating Greg Wise (Willoughby), I went back through the diaries, to their first meeting, to look for clues.
7.) I own about four copies of Jane Eyre and a comparable number of copies of Pride and Prejudice.
8.) I was once bored in class when I was in Grade 5, and started reading through the dictionary, and then a kid asked me why I was doing that, and I said (and I don't know why): "I want to improve my vocabulary." And then I got teased about it and someone told my sister and she made fun of me. It haunted me.
9.) When I was in Grade One, I obsessively loved my runners and my Canada Flag gym bag, both of which I had gotten the previous summer in Calgary. At recess, lunch time, and home time I would put my shoes carefully in my gym bag, and carry it with me everywhere. Finally, one day my Mom came to pick me up from school, and I was being slow with my shoes and gym bag, and she told me to just leave them on my chair, like all the other kids did. "Nothing will happen to them overnight!" she told me, exasperated at her crazy child. And then that night the school burnt down.
10.) Ky, Lyn and I used to make up detective radio shows called Spade King: Private Eye. I was really into writing the episodes. Ky did an awesome Brooklyn accent. We also made a soap opera, starring our Barbies (at an age that was way too old to be playing with Barbies) called "16 going on 30." I am thankful that none of said tapes showed up at my wedding.
11.) When I was in Grade 7, I had only my bangs and the front section of my hair permed. I looked like a poodle.
12.) I am a linguistic sponge. Anything I say that's in any way remotely clever is actually a copy of somebody else. In fact, the phrase "I'm a linguistic sponge" is Lyn's.
Other notes, as a result of compiling that list:
a.) When I looked up Newsies on IMDb, there was an entry on the forum proposing a Newsies game, by a mrs_daniel_radcliffe_4ever. Lyn, is that you? Ky?
b.) Amazon has advertised a book that has the sheet music (piano, vocal, guitar) from Sense and Sensibility! And it's $5, and 12 pages long! I MUST OWN IT! Wow. I would be able to play "The Dreame" while I sing it.
1.) I still have bits of toenail polish on my toenails, FROM MY WEDDING! Yes, that's two months ago on Friday. (My toenails were blue.)
2.) Phobias: (okay, I've listed these before, but I've come up with more) kidnapping, tornados, losing everything in a housefire, spiders, being cut by a sharp object (or more specifically, dropping a knife on the floor and having it stab my foot -- it's never happened, but it could!), that people in stores will think I'm shoplifting, dying in a car accident. That kidnapping phobia's from childhood, but it still lingers.
3.) Number of Glenn Miller CDs I own: more than 10. I'm too lazy to count them. (Many of them were presents, from friends who were aware that I was a Glenn Miller fan, and that especially I studied well to him.)
4.) I own Newsies in VHS, DVD, Soundtrack and songbook form.
5.) A Mighty Wind: DVD, Soundtrack and Songbook.
6.) Sense and Sensibility: VHS, DVD, oddly enough I don't have the soundtrack (but would love to have it, and have a dubbed copy from ages ago somewhere) and screenplay with Emma Thompson's diaries. I have read the diaries several times, and have watched the movie while following with the screenplay, noticing the changes they made in editing. In fact, when Emma Thompson started dating Greg Wise (Willoughby), I went back through the diaries, to their first meeting, to look for clues.
7.) I own about four copies of Jane Eyre and a comparable number of copies of Pride and Prejudice.
8.) I was once bored in class when I was in Grade 5, and started reading through the dictionary, and then a kid asked me why I was doing that, and I said (and I don't know why): "I want to improve my vocabulary." And then I got teased about it and someone told my sister and she made fun of me. It haunted me.
9.) When I was in Grade One, I obsessively loved my runners and my Canada Flag gym bag, both of which I had gotten the previous summer in Calgary. At recess, lunch time, and home time I would put my shoes carefully in my gym bag, and carry it with me everywhere. Finally, one day my Mom came to pick me up from school, and I was being slow with my shoes and gym bag, and she told me to just leave them on my chair, like all the other kids did. "Nothing will happen to them overnight!" she told me, exasperated at her crazy child. And then that night the school burnt down.
10.) Ky, Lyn and I used to make up detective radio shows called Spade King: Private Eye. I was really into writing the episodes. Ky did an awesome Brooklyn accent. We also made a soap opera, starring our Barbies (at an age that was way too old to be playing with Barbies) called "16 going on 30." I am thankful that none of said tapes showed up at my wedding.
11.) When I was in Grade 7, I had only my bangs and the front section of my hair permed. I looked like a poodle.
12.) I am a linguistic sponge. Anything I say that's in any way remotely clever is actually a copy of somebody else. In fact, the phrase "I'm a linguistic sponge" is Lyn's.
Other notes, as a result of compiling that list:
a.) When I looked up Newsies on IMDb, there was an entry on the forum proposing a Newsies game, by a mrs_daniel_radcliffe_4ever. Lyn, is that you? Ky?
b.) Amazon has advertised a book that has the sheet music (piano, vocal, guitar) from Sense and Sensibility! And it's $5, and 12 pages long! I MUST OWN IT! Wow. I would be able to play "The Dreame" while I sing it.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
GiST Day 26
Some days it's probably good for me that I have to end things off by coming up with the small happy things. I'm buried under marking, and my heart hurts for my friends Mark and Terra (update: Glenn didn't respond when the doctor wanted him to, but did squeeze Donna's hand when he was taken off of sedation; the CAT scans showed that swelling had reduced significantly, but it's all still a waiting game). But I need to look to the good things.
1. I had a nap this afternoon. I so rarely nap, and a good nap is worth more than rubies.
2. Even though we messed up with the VCR on Friday, we managed to see this week's BSG on TV today. That always makes a day better. (That's right: incredibly dark sci-fi brightens my day.)
3. Strawberry tea makes my marking better.
4. Some of my students exceeded my expectations with this assignment. And others said funny things unintentionally that make me laugh and laugh. Both of these things sustain me.
5. Chris and Quatchi Work On Puzzles:
1. I had a nap this afternoon. I so rarely nap, and a good nap is worth more than rubies.
2. Even though we messed up with the VCR on Friday, we managed to see this week's BSG on TV today. That always makes a day better. (That's right: incredibly dark sci-fi brightens my day.)
3. Strawberry tea makes my marking better.
4. Some of my students exceeded my expectations with this assignment. And others said funny things unintentionally that make me laugh and laugh. Both of these things sustain me.
5. Chris and Quatchi Work On Puzzles:
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Mid-Tuesday Grace in Small Things
I was too tired to write last night, and feeling a touch whiny, and so I'll post now.
1. Nothing wrong with my kidneys, huzzah! I just got back from the doctor, and from what she can tell, it looks like I'd had a mild bladder infection last week, but I managed to knock it out of my system already with all that cranberry juice I've been guzzling, and the back pain is just my hips acting all crazy again. So no medication, no looking forward to crazy lots of pain, and all I have to look forward to is an extra trip to the chiropractor.
2. I promise to never tell you about my urinary system again. Pinkie promise, in fact.
3. This isn't so much a "small thing," but Glenn started talking on Sunday! His memory and his personality are intact, and he can now communicate. These things are huge and his family is so excited.
4. I got to talk on the phone with my grandpa today! Today is his 85th birthday. I was talking with a bit of a Norwegian accent for the next half hour after that.
5. It's fun talking with my grandma about how she's going to be a great-grandma for the first time (thanks to my cousin Ang) at the end of October. I'm glad that the first great-grandchild will be one that will live on the farm across the road from Grandma and Grandpa. (Wow: two-fifths of my Teen Girl Squad will be having babies the month that I fly to Germany. We must be grownups or something.)
1. Nothing wrong with my kidneys, huzzah! I just got back from the doctor, and from what she can tell, it looks like I'd had a mild bladder infection last week, but I managed to knock it out of my system already with all that cranberry juice I've been guzzling, and the back pain is just my hips acting all crazy again. So no medication, no looking forward to crazy lots of pain, and all I have to look forward to is an extra trip to the chiropractor.
2. I promise to never tell you about my urinary system again. Pinkie promise, in fact.
3. This isn't so much a "small thing," but Glenn started talking on Sunday! His memory and his personality are intact, and he can now communicate. These things are huge and his family is so excited.
4. I got to talk on the phone with my grandpa today! Today is his 85th birthday. I was talking with a bit of a Norwegian accent for the next half hour after that.
5. It's fun talking with my grandma about how she's going to be a great-grandma for the first time (thanks to my cousin Ang) at the end of October. I'm glad that the first great-grandchild will be one that will live on the farm across the road from Grandma and Grandpa. (Wow: two-fifths of my Teen Girl Squad will be having babies the month that I fly to Germany. We must be grownups or something.)
Thursday, February 19, 2009
GiST Day 30
Prayer updates: they've taken Glenn off of sedation today, and so now he's not in a chemically-induced coma anymore. Now we just have to wait for him to come out of the non-chemically-induced coma, and pray that it happens quickly.
Also, little Celeste is in the hospital tonight. So, prayer's needed there too.
1. Chris had the school science fair today! He brought home pictures and it was adorable. He won't let me show pictures from it, however.
2. And he brought home dessert!
3. We're getting housecleaning done around here finally. I threw open the windows and managed to stay awake all day. Although now I need to go to bed immediately.
4. Hey! I read a book today and made progress on my dissertation! Not too shabby.
5. I'ma go take some Benadryl now. Tomorrow promises to be cheerful.
Also, little Celeste is in the hospital tonight. So, prayer's needed there too.
1. Chris had the school science fair today! He brought home pictures and it was adorable. He won't let me show pictures from it, however.
2. And he brought home dessert!
3. We're getting housecleaning done around here finally. I threw open the windows and managed to stay awake all day. Although now I need to go to bed immediately.
4. Hey! I read a book today and made progress on my dissertation! Not too shabby.
5. I'ma go take some Benadryl now. Tomorrow promises to be cheerful.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Newsy
I've been silent on this blog for the better part of a week now. Partly, it was in the wake of hearing that Glenn Dynna (whose son commented in the previous comment) suddenly died of a blood clot during physiotherapy on Thursday. It was a pretty big shock for his family, and I think I was having trouble putting it into words. (I'm sending so many hugs out to you, Mark and Terra.)
There have been other things going on around here that have been keeping me busy. We took part in our neighbourhood watch's garage sale, which gave me the opportunity to finally meet some more neighbours. We had a barbeque at the end of it, and it was lovely. We live on a good block, one that feels like a small town even though we're in a capital city, one where you talk with your neighbours over the fence.
Finally, in other news, I'm going to be going crazy reading microfilm for the next few weeks! I thought I had another week, because I'd only ordered it a week ago, and then had heard back on Thursday that they hadn't sent off the order yet (because they got confused about my order, even though I filled it completely according to their directions). But it's here from Illinois, and I have a couple of weeks to get through 21 rolls of microfilm. Whee!
There have been other things going on around here that have been keeping me busy. We took part in our neighbourhood watch's garage sale, which gave me the opportunity to finally meet some more neighbours. We had a barbeque at the end of it, and it was lovely. We live on a good block, one that feels like a small town even though we're in a capital city, one where you talk with your neighbours over the fence.
Finally, in other news, I'm going to be going crazy reading microfilm for the next few weeks! I thought I had another week, because I'd only ordered it a week ago, and then had heard back on Thursday that they hadn't sent off the order yet (because they got confused about my order, even though I filled it completely according to their directions). But it's here from Illinois, and I have a couple of weeks to get through 21 rolls of microfilm. Whee!
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