| The LIBRARIAN is IN |
[Aug. 5th, 2009|09:13 am] |
I'm your answer man, that's what I am!
It's Reference Wednesday again! All questions considered! |
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| Mmmm |
[Aug. 4th, 2009|09:09 am] |
Coming in to work and putting on a pot of coffee: good.
Coming in to work and finding that the pot of coffee your boss made is finished brewing: better.
*coffeenoms* |
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| Moving on |
[Jul. 31st, 2009|03:16 pm] |
I quit capoeira on Tuesday. It was a difficult decision, and I spent a couple of weeks thinking about it and discussing it with ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) otterkin. What it comes down to is that I can't continue to punish my body this intensely and *not* injure myself seriously; my left shoulder's been wonky for over a week - since my last training session - and the week before that I couldn't comfortably bend or twist for three days due to the tension in my lower back. Add to that my continued tendency to develop blisters on my feet every time I train, despite wearing pads, and the drawbacks of recovering from training sessions outweigh the enjoyment I get from them. I'll continue to do some light training at home as part of my daily workout - that's never been a problem - but I'm done training in any formal sense. |
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| Dad update |
[Jul. 31st, 2009|10:25 am] |
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I realized yesterday that it's been a while since I posted one of these. My dad moved out of M.D. Anderson in Houston yesterday, and into a physical rehab facility in Katy, which is substantially closer to their house in Sugar Land. (Yes, that's the name of the town. I've learned not to ask.) There were apparently a few hiccups related to different procedures at first - dinner is served at a set time and on a set menu rather than Anderson's order-what-you-want anytime-before-9:30 deal, and my dad's a picky eater, so that may be a bit of a challenge for him - but he's ready to give it a little time before he gets grumpy about it. He's been doing both physical and occupational therapy since he's been back in Texas, but it's slow going. He's getting frustrated with being in hospital. After nearly 4 months, I imagine I would as well. We're all hoping that he'll be back home in time for Christmas, and that doesn't seem like an unreasonable goal - which is pretty astounding, given that six weeks ago I was pretty certain he wouldn't be leaving the hospital with a pulse. |
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| The LIBRARIAN is IN |
[Jul. 29th, 2009|08:34 am] |
Reference questions. Bring 'em.
[EDIT: I ended up being busier than I expected today. I *will* get to the outstanding questions - thanks for your patience!] |
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| Play it again, and again, and again.... |
[Jul. 27th, 2009|07:41 am] |
During a comment thread on s00j's journal last week, I mentioned my continual brain-radio phenomenon, and that prompted me to go and do a little research on it. For those who haven't heard me say this in so many words before: I have a constant musical soundtrack in my head. It's clearly an "interior" phenomenon - I'd never mistake it for an actual radio playing in my environment - but it is more "like" hearing a radio than just thinking about a song. The choice of song varies: it's often what I was last listening to, or a piece that I've been listening to a lot lately, or something whose lyrics were suggested by something I heard or thought, but not infrequently I'm unable to determine what triggers a particular tune. (I had both Weird Al's "Lasagna" and Richard Marx's "Should've Known Better" while I was in the shower this morning, for no apparent reason.) I can consciously "change the channel" to a different song, but it doesn't always stay there. I can swamp it out with other auditory input, like listening to music for real, but otherwise it's always with me, and occasionally interferes with my ability to actually think.
The clinical term for this is apparently "musical hallucination" or "musical hallucinosis," although by some standards this is actually a pseudohallucination, since there's no confusion about its subjective nature (there's no agreement on terminology in this particular aspect of neurology). Oliver Sacks' new book Musicophilia has an entire chapter on the phenomenon, and I found some good recent clinical reviews by searching in PubMed. It's most common among older people who've had some degree of hearing loss, but it's by no means limited to that group - Sacks mentions one patient who was anecdotally presenting symptoms at age five. There's been some limited success at treatment with a variety of antipsychotics, but I'm very unlikely to go that route personally.
Why bother with this now? In my continuing quest to know myself in all my parts, it's comforting to me to have a name to put to this phenomenon, and more so to know that it is not *necessarily* associated with more serious psychoses. Knowing its name also allows me to quit beating myself up over my inability to banish it simply by mental effort - when I'm meditating, my mind is *never* going to be completely silent and still, and now I can stop viewing that as a failure on my part. |
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| *squint* |
[Jul. 23rd, 2009|02:45 pm] |
Hat tip to featherynscale: The eyeballing game
What's your best aggregate score? After 5 rounds or so, I came out at 4.54, which is pretty solidly in the center of the "bell" portion of the distribution (it's got a really long tail, so my estimate is that I'm better than 50th percentile, but not by a lot).
[EDIT: An additional round got my score down to 3.88. I can quit any time....] |
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| Reference Wednesday |
[Jul. 22nd, 2009|09:12 am] |
Back with a vengeance! You've got questions, I've got time to waste! |
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| Coming soon to a CD player or iPod near you! |
[Jul. 17th, 2009|09:19 am] |
| [ | music |
| | Placebo, as above | ] |
After picking up a few new tracks on iTunes yesterday, I think I may finally have enough songs for the widely-anticipated follow-up to my breakthrough compilation CD "Spawn of the 80s!" (OK, "widely-anticipated" in this case means "six people are probably interested" - but dammit, I'm not gonna let those six down!) The new acquisitions are something of a mixed bag. Seether's remake of "Careless Whisper" is entertaining, if only for the novelty of having a rugged male vocalist of the current "yeeeeaaaaah!" school of Southern-tinged alt-rock interpret a song originally recorded by George Michael. Ra does a decent job of keeping "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic" peppy and upbeat while increasing the crunch factor a little. The big winner, though, is Placebo's minimalist version of Kate Bush's classic "Running Up That Hill" - vocals, bass, piano, sparse synth, and some skeletal guitar. It's nearly creepy, in that shivery spine-tingly awesome way. I'm tentatively calling this mix "Spawn of the 80s II: The Revenge!" We'll probably work up to "Roommate of Bride of Son of Spawn of the 80s!" eventually, but one thing at a time. (And I think I'm culturally obligated to make a 3D reference in the title of the third disc, or my membership in the 80s Alumni club will be revoked.) |
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| A Daria flashback |
[Jul. 16th, 2009|02:33 pm] |
| [ | music |
| | Placebo - Running Up That Hill | ] |
"Spirit animal! Come back, spirit animal!"
For some reason, the show's not yet been released on DVD, although it's rumored to be coming next year. |
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| Librarian for hire, cheap! |
[Jul. 15th, 2009|01:02 pm] |
It's a slow day. Anyone got a reference question they need answered? No topic too trivial.
[EDIT: Wow, this was fun! I think I'll make Reference Wednesday a regular feature.] |
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| (no subject) |
[Jul. 6th, 2009|10:38 am] |
Just back from a long weekend near Asheville with kenllama, pumaviking and Dr. Turtle. Good times were had, although I had a bit of an upset stomach through most of Friday (too much bacon at breakfast?), and we had to strike camp in the rain yesterday morning. If you've not been to Asheville, it's a pretty hip town, especially if you're looking for good food. Highly recommended are the Early Girl Eatery (locally-produced ingredients, cooked Southern style) and the Laughing Seed (funky eclectic vegetarian; folks preferring meat might have a hard time finding a suitable entree, so check the menu first). I also discovered the debut album by MC Yogi, who performs what can only be described as bhakti hip-hop. If the concept doesn't immediately turn you off, check out the samples on his website. Ganesh is fresh, yo. |
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| Dad update |
[Jun. 24th, 2009|09:30 am] |
My dad flew back to Houston yesterday on a medical flight. (A *small* medical flight - it was a twin-prop plane with only room for maybe four patients.) When I talked to him after capoeira last night, he'd been in the emergency room at M.D. Anderson for about four hours, waiting for a room to open up and eating anything they'd give him. He was tired, but in good spirits. My mom and one of her sisters are driving back to Texas from Chicago, and should arrive today or tomorrow.
I got to make a brief visit to Chicago on Monday to see my parents before they left. The change in my dad is astounding. He's still physically very weak, having been bedridden for the better part of three months, but he was more lucid than I've seen him since he had the transplant. Apparently he doesn't remember much of the period after the procedure, including his stints in the ICU - my mom was telling him the story on Sunday night, and it's affected him pretty deeply to know that he had been that close to death, and to know that my sister and I dropped everything and rushed out to be with him. My father's never been emotionally very demonstrative, but his emotions are running a lot closer to the surface these days. Family has taken on a new level of importance for him - and for all of us.
His health is still somewhat tentative, and he will remain in recovery for some time to come, but I feel as though a major obstacle has been overcome. I'm amazed, and incredibly grateful. Thanks so much to all of you for your prayers and good wishes. |
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| Dad update |
[Jun. 15th, 2009|10:08 am] |
My dad's doctors are planning to send him back to Houston.
No, I'm not joking.
I got the call from my dad Saturday afternoon. (And he's feeling well enough to make a phone call *himself*, which is sort of a big deal right there.) Apparently his doctors in Houston and Chicago have been talking, and they think that he's well enough to transfer back to M.D. Anderson to complete his recovery. They've identified a supplemental insurance program in Texas that my dad would likely qualify for, and are making arrangements for a medical flight to get him there. (My mom's sister Joyce would probably fly up to Chicago to drive back with my mom to Houston; this is an altogether better idea than *me* driving Chicago to Houston with my mom.) He could leave in as little as eight business days.
Wow. Just...wow. |
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| Dad update |
[Jun. 10th, 2009|12:13 pm] |
In an effort to post when things are *not* on the downturn....
My dad is doing better. By the time I got out to see him on Friday, they'd already taken him off the ventilator, and the hospital moved him out of ICU into a regular room while I was there. His infections were apparently localized in the lines which had been implanted for dialysis; after those were removed, the infections cleared pretty quickly. Theoretically those lines will be reimplanted in the near future, but for the moment he's relying on the temporary line they put in on Friday. (In his *neck*. Ouch.) I spoke to him on the phone a couple of days ago (I call every day, but he's often too tired to talk), and he definitely sounded like he was on the mend. The discomfort and listlessness that he was displaying on Friday has apparently faded.
Thanks to everyone for your good wishes. Non-dad related posts, including pics of my new tattoo, will be up sometime soon. |
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| Dad update |
[Jun. 3rd, 2009|01:21 pm] |
I should really learn to post when things are going *well*. Last week my dad was actually getting out of bed, working with a physical therapist and scooting himself down the hall by pushing a wheelchair with his feet. I even got to talk to him on the phone a couple of times - he sounded exhausted, but lucid, or as much so as one can when wearing an oxygen mask.
This week? Not so much. The doctors moved him back into the ICU on Monday, and they've put him back on a ventilator, as he's not breathing well enough with the mask, even with the oxygen dialed up to 100%. His blood gas readings indicate that he's not removing carbon dioxide from his system as efficiently as he should, which suggests that his lung function in general is affected, probably as the result of the alveolar hemorrhage. He was apparently in actual respiratory failure for at least part of yesterday. My mom says that he also has an infection, something "like MRSA," although she didn't or couldn't provide specifics. I'm going to Chicago on Friday to meet with his doctors for an overview of his current situation; I can't imagine that the outcome is going to be good. |
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| Band pics |
[Jun. 1st, 2009|02:30 pm] |
I just received some photos this weekend from Seven Tuesday's last gig in December, so I thought I'd put them up here.
( Photos below cut ) |
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| Dad update |
[May. 19th, 2009|12:32 pm] |
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Rather than try to recap the course of the last few days, I refer you to otterkin's public posts on our trip to Chicago and the recent complications with my dad. I convinced the attending ICU fellow to send me a copy of the review article that he'd been distributing to his staff, and did some follow-up research this morning. Some additional info: diffuse alveolar hemorrhage is not uncommon among bone marrow transplant patients, nor is it associated with a generally good prognosis - the survival rate is somewhere between 20% and 50% depending on the study. Getting off of ventilation is apparently a good first step, but it's only a first step. Dad is on day 4 of a 5-day course of high-dose corticosteroids (1 g prednisolone, I think), followed by a gradual weaning. If he survives the next month, I think he'll probably be through the highest-risk period. Many thanks again to everyone who has sent prayers and good wishes. |
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