Red Cells and White Cells and Platelets, Oh My!

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 8.5 13-17 ^ Platelets 113 140-375 ^ ANC 1930 1800-8300 ^ In the 1974 Mel Brooks spoof of Mary Shelley's classic novel, "Frankenstein," titled "Young Frankenstein," and starring Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman,  Madeline Kahn, Terry Garr, Cloris Leachman and Peter Boyle as the monster, there is a leitmotif that runs through the story. Wilder plays a professor in a medical school and the grandson of Victor Frankenstein, Shelley's protagonist. Wilder describes his grandfather's work (reanimating dead flesh) as "doo-doo" and, in an effort to distance himself from the disgraced scientist from generation...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 8.0 13-17 ^ Platelets 61 140-375 ^ ANC 1330 1800-8300 ^ Sometimes in life, it is good to stop and count your blessings, no matter what they look like. This is my fifth day home since I left Club Sunnyside. There was much to be done; things Jill was unable to do in my absence for lack of time or know-how, or just because they were low priority.  Somewhere along the line, the remote control garage door opener stopped working properly. Now this is a first world problem, of course. I lived a good deal of my life without a garage door opener right here in the good old US of A and thought I was happy. Much like other things in life, a g...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7.7 13-17 ^ Platelets 31 140-375 ^ ANC 750 1800-8300 ^ As an addendum to my previous post, I offer the following:  My loyal reader and dear friend DonaLynn is correct in stating that the saga of Las Vegas and the Hospital Escapee has had a very happy ending. I, myself, must admit to having made a few errors in the previous post, when I said, "Wouldn't you know, that evening the flight arrangements for Jill and Tara's return flight to Eugene collapsed because of, yep, ice storms predicted for Eugene."  Here is the corrected information, per 1st daughter and travel agent, Tara:  "Original flight to LV was set fo...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7.1 13-17 v Platelets 19 140-375 ^ ANC 590 1800-8300 ^ What a time!  I believe I have mentioned that Jill and daughters Tara and Laura cooked up a scheme to meet in Las Vegas with the express goal (pun intended) of attending a Las Vegas Golden Knights hockey game. The plot began in our living room a few months ago, when Tara was visiting on a weekend. She told us all about her plans to see the Knights play as well as to attend a Cirque du Soleil show.  She would be leaving Portland on Sunday morning, seeing the Cirque du Soleil that afternoon and then lounging about Monday morning until it was time for the hockey game on ...

BOX SCORE Element Current Std. Range Trend Hemoglobin 7.1 13-17 ^ Platelets 10 140-375 v ANC 50 1800-8300 ^ How time flies, when you're having fun at the hospital. Say what? It has been five days since I posted. Jill and I have developed a routine, which addresses a few challenges.  First, she arrives, usually, between 8:30 and 9:00am, and brings me coffee. Have I mentioned that the food service is nothing like I remember from my previous visits to Club Sunnyside? I have ordered food that was never delivered. Most of the dishes on the menu are quite unappetizing, but the medical team keeps telling me, "Eat, eat. Food is medicine." Following several disappointments from t...