Max is so funny

Yesterday Max wanted to wait in the car for me when I picked up the baby from the neighbours. He always says that he wants to wait in the car for me when we run errands in town and I never let him, so when we were picking up C-note I told him he could wait. I took the key out of the ignition and he said to me "Leave the key, ma."... Yeah right!!!!!
I took the key with me and went to the door to get the baby and he started honking the horn. He honked and honked and honked the whole time until I came back to the truck. I opened the door and told him it was not nice to honk the horn over and over like that to which he replied... " I KNOW Mom. I was honking for you!"

planning on nothing

It is impossible to plan on doing nothing when you have a three year old and a one year old.

broken ankle .....

Shel broke her ankle. I was on my way out of town to run some errands. She sent me a text message... " I think I broke my ankle.". I turned the vehicle around immediately and came flying home. You would have to know Shel, but for her to send me a message saying she THOUGHT she broke something meant there was a serious problem.
The funny thing was that then she started to text me with things like..." It's pretty swollen so maybe it is just sprained.LOL"

I got home, got her loaded into the van (she only passed out once on the way out the door) and into town we went.

To make a long story short, she was too swollen last night for them to cast it so she is in a "half" cast with the back half of her leg in a cast and then the whole thing wrapped very tightly. We have to go back for more x-rays and stuff when the swelling goes down a little (about a week).

We are both relieved and frustrated that it happened while I am on days off from work. relieved because it would be impossible for her to be home with two boys and two dogs and a broken ankle. She is in a lot of pain today now that the adrenaline has all gone away also. We are frustrated because we were in the middle of doing a ton of projects which now we have to put off and we won't be able to get out of town at all. Bummer trails.

She did get a good library book today though - so although she is in pain I think she is glad she has a good book to read.

meme: day 25

My day in great detail is the assignment for today....

This morning was my morning to "sleep in" but Max had daycare today and so I needed to drive him into town. I took Max and Zuva into town. I dropped Max off at daycare and went into work for a minute while I passed some time. Zuva had a haircut appointment at 10:30.
When I got to the office I found out there was a sale of bedding plants at the greenhouse so I went over to the greenhouse with two co-workers and picked out two flats of bedding plants. I went back to pick up the van soI could just load them into the back and to get some money to pay for them. I decided when I went back to pick up the flats that I would just pick up another one and pay $18 instead of $12. It is such a bargain to get flowers from the greenhouse at work - and today is our ninth anniversary so it was nice to have something to come home with for Shel!
I took Zuva to get her haircut and they said they would call me when they were done. I hadn't planned on staying in town - for some reason I thought it would be really fast ? - I have no idea why I thought that. I didn't have anything to do so I went to the library and picked up two books. I took my books over to the hotel restaurant and had breakfast and a cup of coffee and read for a bit and then I went back and picked up Zuva. I hadn't received a phone call but it had been over and hour so I thought I would drive out and check on her and if she wasn't done I would just sit in the van and read, but they were done. It is weird to me when people say they will call and they don't.
Zuv and I came home and we arrived just as the trucks arrived to remove the grain bins from our property. The man who purchased the land around us asked us last year if he could move the bins onto our land until this spring and we said he could. They were just sold at auction and the people who purchased them have come to work on removing them. We will be left with four very large cement circles - which were the bases of the bins. I suppose we will have to figure out what to do with them which is somewhat annoying since they aren't ours and the owner just handed us a hassle. Oh well. I went to take some pictures of the bins coming down but realized it was going to take a long old time so I came back inside and went to take a nap. I lay down for a while but read mostly, it was not a very good nap.
When I got up from my nap I finished the book, took some more photos of the bins coming down and spoke to the case manager about having an aboriginal elder come out to the house this week to meet with us. I am excited to meet with the elder. Shel and I made a list a mile long of things we want to do before she comes. I called CC to check if the boys could spend one day with her so Shel and I could get some projects done and got that all arranged. Then Shel had me put together the steam cleaner we got for the floor. That was a HUGE pain, but I got it done and went to pick up Max.
Once I had Maxie we went to IGA and got drinks and chicken for supper and then went over to the ball diamonds at the lake to watch B play softball. We ate with B and B and watched ball until 7:30 and then we left to come home. Max fell asleep while we were driving home so I carried him up to bed and then the dogs and I went for a walk to check out how far they have come on the bins. It looks like they have two bins out of four taken down, and one of the pads is a MESS of rotten seed which we will need to clean up once they are gone.
Everyone in the house is asleep and I am now watching soccer and blogging!
That is my day - in detail!

technically a day off

Today it is Saturday and technically it is a day off for me from my projects but I still managed to get some stuff done today. I needed to get to the dump to get rid of some stuff in the truck but before we left Shel and I managed to get the air conditioner into the kitchen window.
We have a small window a/c unit which we have had for MANY years and which came with us from Utah when we moved. As we were putting it into the window Shel reminded me how we had a conversation when we were loading the U-Haul as to whether we needed an air conditioner in Canada! We decided to bring it and we are sure happy that we did!
Max and I went to the dump and then to the library. When we were leaving the library and heading to pick up the mail we noticed that it was the car show in town. We spent an hour checking out some of the cool cars and I took some fun photos which I will upload when I am using a computer I can upload photos from!
When we got home I mowed the lawn while Shel cooked supper (on the BBQ - YAY!) and then we hung out for a bit before putting the boys to bed. They are LOVING the sand and I need to build something around the pile to contain it as the pile comes down. I was feeling pretty warm and asked Shel to check the temperature. It was 30 degrees today, which makes me feel really good because if it had only been 20 degrees I would have been sad to be feeling so warm! LOL
It turns out we put the a/c into the window on the perfect day.
I told the neighbour that I would be over today to get some manure, but it was pretty warm and I was tuckered from mowing. There's still a lot of yard to be done, but a dent was made at least.

projects day five

I think I made up today for all the things I didn't get done yesterday. Shel and I had a meeting in town to go over concurrent plans for the boys. We HOPE that this is the last time we will be meeting to do these - the adoptions should be complete next month. (But we have been told that before so we are not holding our breath.)

We stopped by the vision center and picked up new glasses for Shel. We ordered two pairs and one pair had arrived. Just after we got home the plumber called to say he could come out and install the dishwasher if we were home so of course we jumped at the chance to get that done today. (Another project completed by someone else!)

While the plumber was here I figured it was a good time to start working on some projects for today. I couldn't face two days without accomplishing something on my time off!

1. I brought the new dishwasher in and unloaded it to get it ready for the plumber.
2. I had a burn pile for the garbage.
3. I raked up all the small twigs from the trees cut yesterday and burned them.
4. I brought the window A/C unit out of the Quonset ready for the kitchen.
5. I put the shell from tinkey winkey into the Quonset.
6. I took the old dishwasher out to the pile ready to take to the dump.

YAY! It feels good to be getting so much done. It just feels like the list of things to "get done" grows exponentially.

The boys are now in bed, the PVR is programmed for soccer tomorrow, and the dishwasher is almost ready to be unloaded! I am ready to grab a book and head to bed.

projects day four

Technically today is the day I am supposed to get my fourth project done. It is now ten pm and I haven't done anything today ! I watched three soccer games, watched the Lakers win the playoffs and watched a movie. I watched my neighbour cut down two trees in our yard for us (they were dead trees and I was worried they were going to fall) and he also rototilled a garden spot for us again... we have been working on it for a while. So I don't know - does it count when your neighbour does projects?

meme: day 23

A youtube video:

What we do in the summers in Canada.

Here is a video of ditchboarding. Some men in Saskatchewan needed something to do because the rains had put a damper on their farming. Very inventive, but according to CBC news who ran the video, it is illegal!



Remaining:

Day 24 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 — Your day, in great detail
Day 26 — Your week, in great detail
Day 27 — This month, in great detail
Day 28 — This year, in great detail
Day 29 — Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 — Whatever tickles your fancy

Thursday Thirteen: removing the trees

Unfortunately, we have some trees in our yard that are dying. The trees have been there for over 50 years and they are at the end of their lifespan. We need to do a lot of planting to make up for the losses we expect over the next few years. In most cases I feel confident enough with my chainsawing skills that I will remove them myself, but we had two that were pretty close to the house and I was not confident that I could get them to fall the "right" way and so my neighbour and "tree feller" extraordinaire came over to help me. I'll be honest. He has way better equipment and he is a LOT faster than I am, but as it turns out he did exactly what I would have done and the trees were not tall enough to reach the house anyway. It was nice to watch him work though!

Here are 13 pictures of the process unfolding:

1. Before photo. There is one on the left and one on the right. I was most concerned with the one on the right.

2. A closer look at the tree on the right.

3. Getting the equipment ready.

4. A closer look at the tree. Decision time.

5. Cutting!

6. On to the next one.

7. Cutting the wedge.

8. Cut number two - almost got the chainsaw stuck on this cut...

9. Bucking it up. ( I just love to say that!)

10. You can't really tell from this picture but the base of the second tree that was cut was soaking wet. I have never seen so much water come from a tree. We were very lucky the middle of this one was not completely rotten.

11. Twig pile.
12. Wood pile. I was surprised at how little there was from cutting down two trees.

13. After picture. Thankfully there is not an immense gap from losing these two trees. We still have a lot to plant in our yard, but I was grateful there was not a significantly larger difference made with the loss of these two trees.

meme: day 22

Today I am sharing a website:

Since we are right smack dab in the middle of the world cup, here is a link to the official world cup website. I know many of you may not be interested at all in soccer, however you might find something interesting on this site - even if it is just photos of some of the fans. I always enjoy checking out how the fans are dressing up to support their team.

www.fifa.com

Check it out!


Day 23 — A YouTube video
Day 24 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 — Your day, in great detail
Day 26 — Your week, in great detail
Day 27 — This month, in great detail
Day 28 — This year, in great detail
Day 29 — Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 — Whatever tickles your fancy

day three of projects already

How did it get to be day three already? These days are flying by and there is so much I want to accomplish.


1. Sorted the shoes at the back door. I swear those things multiply - unfortunately nothing in my size, just the boys!

2. Took a box of clothing to the donation bin.

3. Voted... There has been this big thing at work about getting rid of the union and joining the staff association that exists on another campus. Tensions have been high and I am glad it has come down to a vote that will be over today.

4. Took the mat into the frame store and ordered two (Should be in next week).

5. Replaced the camera Hugo ate.

6. Chose a spot for the sand delivery :)

vehicle frustration

What is it with vehicles? I am so frustrated right now with our van. Frustrated enough to never want to buy a Dodge caravan again. (Then again maybe it's just the dealership in town?)


We were pretty desperate for a vehicle when we went in and bought our van. By desperate I mean.... we had NO transportation and two small children and so we got what we could afford.

The process of buying a vehicle frustrates me and I LOATHE going to car dealerships. For anyone out there who needs to get a vehicle - go to your bank FIRST and get financing and THEN go to the dealership. Don't go there and let them play there financing games with you. Maybe I'm the only adult in the free world who doesn't do this already, but we (meaning "I") made the mistake of going to the dealership and not to the bank (because my spouse TOLD me to go to the bank but I didn't listen) to get the vehicle and the financing. ANYWAY. We got a van. To be honest with two small children it is what we need right now as much as I am loathe to admit it.


The van was under warranty when we purchased it. We got it around October and in the very first spring we realized that the air conditioning was not working so we took it in. The air conditioning at that time was "fixed" and it was under warranty and so we went on our merry way.

The NEXT summer rolls around and lo and behold the air conditioning is not working again. Back to the dealership where we purchased the vehicle and it was repaired again, under warranty still. At this time I brought up the fact that this has now happened twice and I wondered if there was something else happening with the a/c but we were told there was nothing wrong and that we should have no problem at all.

That brings us to this summer. We notice immediately as soon as the temperature begins to warm up that the a/c is not in working order for the THIRD time. So back to the dealership we go. This time the vehicle is no longer under warranty. This time in it takes quite a few hours and when all is said and done it costs $170.oo for a "temporary" fix. The A/c works - in the BACK of the van but not in the front. There is some cold air coming through on the passenger side and almost none on the drivers side. After many hours of working on the van the technicians have found a MAJOR problem with the system. The kind of problem that will cost over 3000.oo to fix.

I am so frustrated I don't even have words. How is it possible to take a vehicle in for work on the same problem, to the same dealership and have "nothing" wrong for as long as the vehicle is under warranty and then all of a sudden a massive problem which they had NO idea was indicated in previous visits as soon as we have to pay for it ourselves?

The truth of the matter is this. I don't trust them. I don't believe that they have been remotely honest with us. I believe they are dishonest in their dealing s and that they took advantage of us. I will never purchase another vehicle from them again.... nor will I pay them the 3 grand to fix this problem. I'm rolling down my window this summer - until I can get rid of this vehicle.

talking to mom, laughing and bleeding, and vuvuzelas

I hate living so far away from my parents. They are currently living in South Africa and the only contact we have is through email and phone. With the time difference I can call them, but only in the mornings - which doesn't work on days when I am working - or after 11 pm at night. I am usually awake at this time but I talk loudly and often wake my sons. ( I have tried to be quiet... I just can't!)

I am thrilled to be off from work for a few days because it means I can talk to my mom lots. With World Cup games being played in South Africa we are both watching them live and so it makes for sun and interesting phone conversations.

I initially called her tonight to tell her a funny story about me cutting myself. The cutting was not so funny. I do not deal well with my own blood being spilled. I was trying to open some scissors and I cut my thumb. I rushed to the sink and held my thumb over the sink and my spouse was taking care of me. She knows my weakness! As I was standing there my son came in and wanted to know what was happening. His comment to everything these days is "Why?" , so my souse was explaining to him what was happening and that I was in pain. He asked her why I was in pain and her response to him was " When people get boobies it hurts Maxie." Oh, I laughed. We just stood there, my thumb bleeding into the sink, laughing till our sides hurt. "She meant BOO-BOO's, Maxie" I told him. He was unimpressed with us and left us to our laughter.

Of course I had to call my mom and tell her. Our conversation went from boobies to soccer and from soccer to the vuvuzelas.Vuvuzela's you say?

Columnist Jon Qwelane described the instrument as "an instrument from hell".

Initially, vuvuzela's were banned from the World Cup, but the ban was lifted in July 2008, and the plastic instrument with the huge buzz will be a main feature at the games. In recognition of this truly South African instrument, the South African Post Office issued a set of stamps, a commemorative cover and a miniature sheet in June 2009.

The origin of the vuvuzela is unclear. According to Wikipedia, they are a derivative of the kudu horn, blown to summon African villagers to gatherings. First versions were made of tin, but by the late 1990s they had become so popular at soccer matches that a local company formed to mass-produce them in plastic. They cost a few cents to manufacture and are selling at the world cup for at least 7 rand - and some cost a lot more.

The origin of the word “vuvuzela” is also unclear. Some claim it is a Zulu word meaning “sprinkling around”, while others say it originates form township slang related to “shower” or “sprinkle” as it showers people with sound. A fanciful saying from Africa folklore is that “A baboon is killed by a lot of noise.” During the last quarter of a match, supporters blow vuvuzelas frantically, trying to “kill off” their opponents.

These things are insanely loud, they are said to be louder than a chainsaw. One of the very first things I noticed about vuvuzela's when I watched the first world cup match was the sound of buzzing over the television. At first it was very annoying, but I have become used to it already - though admittedly I have only heard them over the tv and not in real life! Apparently this sound has been so annoying to some viewers that networks have been adjusting the sound of the broadcasts. Other networks have been posting information for people on how to change their television settings to reduce the noise. All in all, there has been a lot of "buzz" about them.

For the game my parents are attending, they plan on taking earplugs - the sound of 60 thousand of the things can be quite damaging. Mom and I had to laugh though because friends of hers have been sending her emails and complaining about them as though she is personally responsible for their use and as if there is something she can do about it!

I am loving conversations with my mom and missing her dreadfully.

time off.. and what to do with it

I have ten days off from work. What I really should be doing is holing up somewhere and working on my thesis. In actuality I will be sanding time at home doing mini projects which I will keep you all up to date on here, and hanging with the family. I imagine that we will be barbecuing lots and I HOPE that for at least a few of the days we will be getting out of dodge and doing something "fun". It is the world cup though you know.... so we will likely be staying close enough to civilization that I can keep track of what is happening in the soccer world.
What i have decide to do is complete ten projects on my time off. One project at least for each of the work days I have off. That gives me the weekends off to do whatever I want to! We'll see how it goes. I'm being inspired by my mom, she is the project queen of the world and gets ridiculous amounts of things done.... I'll see if I can live up to her standard of accomplishment.

meme: day 18

Today is whatever tickles my fancy:

So my son and I were doing errands and we came across a car show in our small town. As I was walking with him (he of course was more interested in the drains than in the cars) I noticed all the different headlights and tail lighta on the cars. I thought it would be cool to take pictures of them all - so I did! I took as many as I could with a small child in tow who was mildly interested for a very short amount of time. Then I had to take him to look in some more drains! Here is some of what I gathered. Unfortunately I did not get all the names and dates of the vehicles so you will just have to enjoy the photos.

And here is what is remaining:

Day 19 — A talent of yours
Day 20 — A hobby of yours
Day 21 — A recipe
Day 22 — A website
Day 23 — A YouTube video
Day 24 — Whatever tickles your fancy
Day 25 — Your day, in great detail
Day 26 — Your week, in great detail
Day 27 — This month, in great detail
Day 28 — This year, in great detail
Day 29 — Hopes, dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 — Whatever tickles your fancy
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belonging to something I don't believe in

I work.
The place where I work has "changed hands" over the past few years and in the time I have been here I have "worked for" three different employers.
The current leader of the organization has spoken with the staff here on a number of occasions and he has spoken about values. In those speeches the topic of ethics has come up. He has spoken of the belief he has that when you work for someone and when you draw a check from them it then you shouldn't talk badly of them. If you don't like them , leave. Don't stay someplace you hate, take their money, but then talk about them negatively.
I believe this.
Believing this creates some conflict for me - not at work - but in another area of life.
We are foster parents.
I BELIEVE in being a foster parent. I have loved the children that have come into care and have been in our home. Unfortunately, the system is broken. There are HUGE - and I mean HUGE flaws. I don't think these problems are going to be fixed anytime soon. These flaws have affected our lives and the lives of children we have cared for.
I honestly think it is time for us to be done with fostering - but if people like us leave - people like us who love the kids and who provide a great home for the kids (if I say so myself). If we leave then what is left? And if we stay - how can we stay a part of something so broken? How can I stay a part of something I simply don't believe in anymore.

opening emails I shouldn't

I have been known to have been suckered once or twice by emails people send ... "LOOK CLOSELY at the screen" they say, and then I am peering at my screen something horrible pops out and scares me. I would like to have thought that the days of being suckered were past me. But no.

I am a part of this email group at work. If you want to be a part of it you can sign up and its the group that anyone can advertise things for sale, send jokes or news stories or whatever. If you don't want to be a part of it you don't have to and then you don't have to worried about getting your email box filled up with things unrelated to work. I signed up. I receive the emails.
Yesterday this email comes around about hazards at work and there is a story about being careful around paper shredders. There is a photo attached to the email. What do I do? I open it.

Honestly I can say that I thought it was a joke. I thought it was one of those emails where they talk about how the faxes weren't going through and when you look at the picture there is a cute little kitten attacking the fax machine. I honestly expected there to be some funny thing "shredding" paper. Oh no. It was a REAL photo of someones REAL hand after going through a paper shredder. I threw up in my mouth. I can't get the image out of my head. It was downright NASTY. Who does that anyway? Who sends those nasty pictures around? I thought the email group was all rainbows and sunshine but it is not.

But worse than opening emails when I "think" it is going to be something of a joke is the fact that last week I went to a link - which there was a warning for - for video taken undercover of the treatment of animals in the USA at a dairy farm. The man in the video had been charged with multiple animal cruelty charges. (check out the "story"...no video! here) There were MANY warnings about the video. I thought " how bad could it be?" and I went to check it out. Let me just say this.. When there IS a warning about something - it is likely there for a reason. This warning was appropriate. I think I watched about 8 seconds of the video and I turned it off. It was 8 seconds too much though and it was very disturbing. I guess I just don't want to believe that things like animal cruelty to this extent can happen in the world I live in. I just do not understand why anyone would be motivated in any way to be so harmful, so destructive and cruel. I just don't understand human nature. I think to myself - it can't be that bad can it? But it can. Oh, it can.

There's a reason for labels people! In case you didn't already know. So I'm going out on the web now to google rainbows and sunshine so I can get the image of shredder hand out of my mind.

meme: day 17

An art piece

This is titled "The City on a Hill".

One of my all time favorite artists is James C. Christensen.
Here is part of an article from 2005 (the entire article can be found HERE)


FISH INHABIT THE HUMAN WORLD--breathing air, walking on leashes, balancing on noses--in James C. Christensen's art.

"Why not stick a fish in it?" he says. "If I [paint] a guy walking a fish it's more fun. Fish became a reminder that the paintings are magical."

Christensen, who lives in Orem, has gained fame over the past 20 years by painting "unique people, places and things that exist somewhere between adult dreams and childhood memories," according to a Web site that features his work. But, he says that as fantastic as his work can be, it's often grounded in reality, with conscious thought, not dreams, behind every stroke of his brush.

Take the "poofy" men, for whom he is arguably best known. These men exist under heavy layers of clothing, and though they often are unsmiling, Christensen's intent is to elicit a knowing grin from the viewer, to get us to laugh at our own weaknesses. "They're wearing on the outside what I think of as baggage," Christensen says. "They become us. We're all human, we're all flawed, but we're also colorful and fun."

(above: The Oldest Professor)

He sometimes interprets the classics. Jack Be Nimble is hilarious, with a poofy, aloof Jack appearing incapable of stepping--never mind jumping--over a candlestick. But there's more to Christensen's portfolio. Though works with titles such as Lawrence Pretended not to Notice that a Bear had Attached Himself to his Coattails suggest the extent of his whimsy, others such as Madonna with Two Angels highlight his serious, spiritual side.

Art fans take Christensen's work seriously. His paintings are in collections worldwide, and an original can sell for many thousands. Touching the Hem of God is being offered for $39,000; Sisters of the Sea can be had for $64,000.

(Above: The widow's mite.)

meme: day 16

A song that has made me cry....

The one that came to my mind immediately is the song by Evanescence... My Immortal.
For your viewing pleasure, here it is.

Doctor's. A HELPING profession

I understand I am not a doctor. I understand that I have not gone through the years of schooling necessary to become a doctor. I understand that doctor's know "more than me" about health. I understand that I am a part of a wonderful program whereby I can walk into a hospital or medical clinic to see a doctor and not worry about going into debt over it.

All of this knowledge however does not preclude me from being ridiculously irritated with doctor's right now.

My spouse and my boys were sick a few weeks ago. REALLY sick. All three of them had the same symptoms. They all went to outpatients - one of the reasons we chose to take them to outpatients is that BOTH boys have previously been diagnosed with RSV and both of them have spent time in the hospital before with respiratory problems. We could not afford to wait the weeks to see our regular doctor in his office. So off to outpatients they went. Shel was told at that time (and I may have to check my info here) but the two boys had bacterial infections and were given antibiotics but she had a viral infection and was given nothing. No swabs were taken from anyone. X-Rays were ordered for only one of the boys. They were sent home. THE DOCTOR BARELY LOOKED AT SHEL! He didn't ask one question about her.

You know - I get it. Emergency rooms are overcrowded with non- emergencies. People go in to see the doctor and start listing off ailment after ailment and think they can get ten things taken care of in one visit.

In this case there were three people in one room and all of them were sick. The thing is, there WERE three charts and the doctor will receive payment for seeing all three of them. All of them were checked in and they were there to see him for one reason each. Two of the people in the room were under the age of 3. If he had taken a complete history of all of them it couldn't have taken him more than 45 minutes - which would have meant 15 minutes of face time per person in the room. Don't get me wrong. I don't think he needed to take a full medical history. I don't think he needed to spend 15 minutes with each person in the family. The ACTUAL amount of time that he spent with the family totalled LESS than ten minutes. LESS than 4 minutes PER PERSON - and one very sick person was sent away without any care provided at all. What I expect when we go to the doctor is that he take enough time to find out what is wrong, what symptoms we are experiencing, how long the symptoms have been present and "perhaps" get some further tests done to determine what measures should be taken - for EVERYONE who is ill.

At about the same time I was also getting sick. I didn't get as ill as the others but I was sick. My breathing has been really laboured for about three weeks now. I have been relying on my asthma inhaler almost on an hourly basis just to "get by" and feel as though I was not drowning. I have been weak. So weak I can barely stand in the shower - which is WEIRD. I have had a fever and hot and cold sweats.

I am allergic to just about every antibiotic known to man. I am deathly allergic to penicillin and any derivative. I have NEVER taken an antibiotic that I have not reacted very strongly to. I simply do not like going to the doctor especially since because of my allergies there is often nothing they can do for me. So,I didn't go to the doctor. I got sicker. Should I even admit that I was getting through the days by using the breathing treatments prescribed for my sons?

Finally on Saturday I could stand it no longer. I couldn't sit. I couldn't stand. I couldn't walk. I simply could not breathe. So I went to the emergency room. As soon as I was able to walk into the door they rushed me into a room and gave me a breathing treatment. Outpatients was scheduled to start at 9 am and the nurse told me she wanted to doctor to look at me because she could still hear that my lungs were not clear.

The doctor, scheduled to begin work at NINE AM, showed up at TEN THIRTY AM. He looked at m. He sent me to x-ray. He did not ask ONE question about how long I had felt this way, or if I was having any other symptoms. He simply stated that I was indeed sick. It was pneumonia caused by a virus (again, how can he tell this?) and that he was not going to prescribe me any antibiotics. Thank-goodness for THAT since my chart states I am allergic to them.... oh wait - he never looked at my chart. So he prescribed me an inhaler and some steroids to aid in my breathing and he sent me home.

I don't want to paint ALL doctors with the same brush. We love our family doctor and if we had the time to book an appointment and wait weeks on end to see him we would have.

I simply do not understand why some doctor's - people who have taken on a career of helping people - are not interested in helping. Could you take a minute? Show up on time? Maybe take a swab and send something away to a lab so we could be treated properly for what is ailing us?

A friend went to a specialist last week on a referral and was told by the specialist that it was not his job to explain medical terminology to her - about HER OWN medical problems! Is it just me or is there something seriously wrong here?