...we could use your thoughts and prayers...UPDATE 5/27/12

[Ratkity]

It's great to hear from you! No apologies necessary because of not posting. I kept sending healing vibes your way. Wonderful news about your sweet wife!!! I'm sorry that it's taking you a bit longer than before to get up and running with your new hip. Sounds like you will be going full tilt when your sweetie has her surgery in May. Yay for talkative mothers too!! I have one of those as well.

Thanks for the update. Keep up the great work. I'm not stopping the positive thoughts and healing vibes until you give the okee dokee!

Hugs,
Ratkity

[Miriam C.]

Hope this finds you both well MJ and Marlene! No post for almost a month???

[thepoorgirl]

Well, I don't post very often but thought to let everyone that I go for blood work, ekg and chest xray along with a talk to my doctor on May 15 and have a right sided aneurysm removed May 21. Naturally just as I finally get to feeling somewhat better mentally, here we go again. Please keep praying for us. When things go bad, it seems everything goes bad. Hope to see ya'll at Bostineaux in October.

[tonyj]

Wonderful to hear from you! Sucks that you are gonna have to go thru this again, but at least now you know what to expect. You and Jack are in our thoughts and prayers, and we do plan to see you in October, so plan on it!

[madjack]

....sorry for the long wait on an update...things just get in the way...we had computer issues that took a month to get the money to fix...finally went to pick it up to day and apparently the starter locked up on the car...my bud, Gary came and towed me home and we will try find car problems tomorrow...

...now for the updates...first up is me...I am in my 2nd mo of recovery...I am coming a long OK, not quite as fast as the first but it is coming around, I have been off the walker and using a cane for about a month now and use it as much for balance as weight distribution...hopefully, I'll be as good as (almost) new in another month...at least be free of the cane.....

...now for Marlene...her next surgery is scheduled for the 21st of May...she is still very weak, not much stamina and the heat is a killer to her...her ability to write clearly and deal with numbers comes and goes along with her stress levels...which still remains high especially when she has "brain farts" resulting in confusion and emotional distraughtness...she continues to do her knitting, crocheting and bead work(made several nice rosaries)the hospital she worked at for the last 18yrs has effectively thrown her under the bus and dealing with the insurance companies(multiples), the hospitals and the Doctors are enough to drive sane people nuts and stress sick people to death...while we have gotten excellent care, the facts remain, dealing with the various bureaucracies is enough to make a person BELIEVE in single payer, universal health care...

...once again, my apologies for the rant above and for the PC probs that caused this late update...Marlene and I both highly appreciate all the prayers and positive thoughts and humbly ask you to continue to think of us...
Jack...........

[S. Heisley]

Thanks for the update, you two! It's encouraging to hear that the medical care for both of you has been good.

Thanks for this, too:

…dealing with the various bureaucracies is enough to make a person BELIEVE in single payer, universal health care...

Take good care of yourselves and know we all are wishing you well, as you go through a multitude of life's challenges.

[PaulC]

Thanks MJ. I don't post as much as I used to but I like keeping an eye on my family up there You and Marlene take care.
Cheers
Paul

[Ratkity]

I'm happy to hear the update, and am sorry about your PC and car and medical bureaucracy problems. I am going to send extra extra healing vibes on the 21st for Mrs M. Continue to heal yourself as well!

I'm sending cyber teddy bears to give you both hugs. The car problem is temporary, as are the medical bills. As long as they are not ignored, all will be taken care of in due time. Focus on healing!!

Lots of Hugs and LUV!
Ratkity

[mikeschn]

Thanks for the update MJ. I was getting worried again.

Anyways you guys take care of each other and get well soon.

Mike...

[satch]

Hang in there MJ! You'll be dancin' before you know it

[madjack]

...the latest updates...5/18/12...
...first off, I am doing fine...walking (a bit) without a cane except for help with balance...I have even picked up my big ol' weedeater and started on a couple of year backlog of yard work( a little at a time)........

Marlene finally seemed to have turned the corner on her recovery, showing a little more strength and endurance along with much less emotional distraughtness...unfortunately, she goes back into the hospital on the 21rst for her second brain surgery...we are understandably a bit on edge about this and hope for an outcome similar to the first...please keep her(us) in your thoughts and prayers...they sure seem to help.........

I cannot even begin to tell you how PO'd I am at her employer (for the last 18yrs)...they have thrown her under the bus without so much as a how ya do...luckily, her insurance is still in effect as long as we pay the premiums(near 1000bux/mos) which amounts to half her disability pay which hopefully remains in effect at least until her 3rd surgery...after Aug(her 3rd surgery should be around this time), she will go on long term disability which is another 10% cut...we have made application to Social Security for permanent disability...just in case she doesn't come back fully and have retained a lawyer to assist us in this...we'll see what comes down the pike...the truly funny/ironic thing is the Docs tell ya to avoid stress at all costs and the insurance beuracracies do everything in there power to cause all the stress they can...this is not a new story to anyone with major illnesses but sure has been an eye opener to us...I advise all with(or even without) insurance to take a hard long look at their policies and think about what they would do if they found themselves without an income for a year or more.....

...anyway, I would like to thank all for the continued support, prayers and positive thoughts and humbly ask you to continue them on our behalf..........Jack

p.s. after 10+ years of using "cheaters" to be able to read and see finally, broke down and went to the eye DR and got a pair of bi-focals...and rediscovered an amazing fact, leaves have edges...lololol........j

[WarPony]

Jackson, we are glad to hear from both of you guys!! Tell Marlene we are thinking of her as she goes into surgery tomorrow. Stay strong, brother!!

Jeff and Anna

[mezmo]

Good to hear you are recuperating well. keep it up!

All our positive thoughts for Marlene's upcoming additional
surgery and recuperation.

Cheers,
Norm/mezmo

[madjack]

***UPDATES 5-27-12***

...well, we made it home Fri evening...what a long strange week it was...when the surgeon went in to clip the aneurism(the second one), they found a 3rd, unknown aneurism hiding behind the second, luckily, it was placed where they could go ahead and clip it as well...when Marlene came out from under the anesthetic, she was actually kinda chipper and they moved her out of NeuroICU early on Tues morn...she remained chipper that morning...and then the bottom fell out and scared me as bad as I have been scared since this all started...for some reason, the nurse gave her two 10mg hydrocodeine tabs and it really knocked her out...in addition, they disconnected her IV(last time they didn't do this until we were leaving)...anyway, her blood pressure bottomed out and they administered a bolus of IV fluid to bring it back up....it came up for a bit and then bottomed out again, causing her to receive another bolus...when her BP started dropping again, they hooked her back up to the IV fluid, stabilizing her BP....from this point (Tues evening) until Thur evening, I could get no response from her except a 1000yd stare and skeeeerred the heck outta me...twice during this period, I was scared enough to buzz the nurses, who came running and Marlene would respond to them in a way she was not responding to me...finally on Thur evening she ate some supper(her first food since Sun night) and on Fri morn, they brought her in for another CT which, showed clean and green....she ate her breakfast, took a shower with help from one of the PT folks and after talking with the Docs, they let us comeon home Fri afternoon...once home, Marlene(and I) slept for darn near 24 hrs and she seems to be coming along OK at this point...now we just need to get her recovered enough for her to have her last surgery on the aneurism on her carotid artery(sometime in Aug)........

Once again, let me humbly express my appreciation and thanks for all the prayers and positive thoughts we have received and ask you to continue to think of us..............Jack

p.s. I did OK with my hip during this round except for when they discharged us, I moved so quickly to get the car(parked a block or so away) that I sprained or twisted my knee on my "good" leg and it swole up about grapefruit sized and I have been cripping around on it...it is getting better already........J

p.s.s. ...once again, many thanks and appreciations to St Sunny of Vegas..........J

p.s.s.s. ...still fighting with the insurance companies...SHEEEEESH, they should be lined up with the lawyers/politicians and dumped in the BIG POND!!!!!!!!...J

p.s.s.s.s. I would also be remiss if I didn't gratefully thank the Pounds...Eddie & Anna for the use of a bed on Mon night and breakfast of Tues morn...thanks gize...J

[dguff]

Jack and Marlene,

I am confident that all will go well from this point on and that we will see you at LCG VII in October.

Jerome