Saturday, June 28, 2008
Go, Me!
I won! Today I'm off to the Missouri Botanical Gardens to accept a little award, Best Individual Plot, I think -- though I've seen nothing official so it's hard to feel secure saying it, but Linda came over and told me, so -- in the St. Louis city-wide community garden contest. Woo-hoo! Really, it makes me very happy. I'll expand this post once it actually happens. And I'll post a picture, though the peek of the garden that was in existence when the judges came through is over, and it's in a bit of a transition moment right now. Anyway, gotta go get ready!
Friday, June 13, 2008
Too Sad
Because the Angel of Death did stop in this afternoon for Tim Russert. Newsmans's newsman, he was the one who set the standard for Washington journalism. He was the measure. And the word. And the man who met me every Sunday morning for good conversation. I kinda feel like a member of the family is gone, and I'll tell you, I'm going to miss him real bad.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Stone Temple Pilots & The Angel of Death
I don't want to jinx him by saying it, but Scott Weiland looks as close to death as any animated being I have ever seen. You can see Death hovering over him, heavier than the stage lights, vectoring out on his breath when he sings. From his outfit I would say it's likely he's travelling with a stylist: well coordinated big hat, big glasses, scarf, layers of shirts and jackets that he stripped off throughout the show, until he was a pale-skinned skeleton in low, low jeans and nothing else. But Death hasn't gone after his talent. He was mesmerizing, and the band itself kicked ass. Though his voice weakened considerably as the set wore on. I wondered why sound didn't crank up his mic levels, but in a way the fact that they didn't sort of confirms what I heard. Maybe it gets more than weaker. Maybe it gets off key, too. Still, back in the '90s when I was a music critic (and stuff) for the Nightlife, most of my co-writers and musician friends looked askance at my love of STP's work. I've always thought they were under rated, and now I'm sure of it. Those are great songs, and they do them really well.
While Weiland seems to live with Death as a Familiar, I, as everyone knows, (knock on wood) scare It off no matter what I do. It's not on purpose. I have no problem with Death. But I do have further confirmation that my presumed diagnosis of the black widow spider bite was correct. The strange symptom of the skin looking and feeling burned on the bite area? Then blistering and peeling, exactly like a sunburn? And then ending up (now) discolored (tanned, and pink where the peeling occurred)?
:
Annals of Burns and Fire Disasters - vol. XII - n. 1 - March 1999
BURN-LIKE SYNDROMES
Atiyeh B.S., Kayle D. I., Nasser A.A.
Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Centre, Beirut, Lebanon
http://www.medbc.com/annals/review/vol_12/num_1/text/vol12n1p39.htm
Skin disorders manifested by blistering and exfoliation mimic burn injuries in their clinical presentation and behaviour as they are characterized by sloughing of the epidermal layers, which uncovers the underlying dermis. When extensive epidermal loss occurs, the condition exceeds the capacity of general medical wards as well as medical intensive care units, necessitating transfer of the patient to a surgical intensive care facility or even to a burn unit. Such burn-like syndromes may be congenitally inherited, such as epidennolysis bullosa, or they may be a manifestation of severe viral, bacterial, or fungal infections. They may also be a post-vaccination reaction or a manifestation of a neoplastic process such as Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, leukaemia, or ovarian and prostatic carcinoma. Similar conditions have been observed in graft-versus-host disease, in severe forms of lupus erythernatosis, and following black widow spider bite [emphasis mine].
So, to the skeptics I say: when are you going to learn? How often do I get a diagnosis wrong? Uh, huh. That's what I thought. And when I was cramping and puking and achy and feverish, and I knew that if I went to the ER they'd just get it all wrong, I didn't feel the ole Angel of Death coming in, not really, though I did kind of feel Him pull the curtain back for a sec to take a peek at me -- anyway, faced with the alternating prospects of either taking myself to the ER or calling a friend (who would surely insist on taking me to the ER), I pretty much just said fuck it, if it's time it's time and waited Him out. Then, it turns out that people rarely die from black widow spider bites, anyway. Though they can be debilitating. And I did find, as well, confirmation of my experience of diving into depression and major emotional rollercoasterness for those first few days after: BW spider venom seems to effect neurotransmitters, quite specifically, including norepinephrine "and all neurotransmitters" (http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=392921)! That would include serotonin, I suppose. Duh. I knew it. I said it to Metal Ox and to Springblossom. [btw, one can find additional sources of both my claims, in the googles; I've just sited the two because I'm lazy).
So, well. It's pretty interesting, I think. Life, Death, rock, venom. How close do we get to these things? Close as we want, if we're willing to look, stop pretending we didn't see that curtain move. Sometimes Death just, you know, wants to see how we're doing.
And Scott? You, too, buddy. Hey -- heads up. I wish you well.
While Weiland seems to live with Death as a Familiar, I, as everyone knows, (knock on wood) scare It off no matter what I do. It's not on purpose. I have no problem with Death. But I do have further confirmation that my presumed diagnosis of the black widow spider bite was correct. The strange symptom of the skin looking and feeling burned on the bite area? Then blistering and peeling, exactly like a sunburn? And then ending up (now) discolored (tanned, and pink where the peeling occurred)?
:
Annals of Burns and Fire Disasters - vol. XII - n. 1 - March 1999
BURN-LIKE SYNDROMES
Atiyeh B.S., Kayle D. I., Nasser A.A.
Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, American University of Beirut Medical Centre, Beirut, Lebanon
http://www.medbc.com/annals/review/vol_12/num_1/text/vol12n1p39.htm
Skin disorders manifested by blistering and exfoliation mimic burn injuries in their clinical presentation and behaviour as they are characterized by sloughing of the epidermal layers, which uncovers the underlying dermis. When extensive epidermal loss occurs, the condition exceeds the capacity of general medical wards as well as medical intensive care units, necessitating transfer of the patient to a surgical intensive care facility or even to a burn unit. Such burn-like syndromes may be congenitally inherited, such as epidennolysis bullosa, or they may be a manifestation of severe viral, bacterial, or fungal infections. They may also be a post-vaccination reaction or a manifestation of a neoplastic process such as Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, leukaemia, or ovarian and prostatic carcinoma. Similar conditions have been observed in graft-versus-host disease, in severe forms of lupus erythernatosis, and following black widow spider bite [emphasis mine].
So, to the skeptics I say: when are you going to learn? How often do I get a diagnosis wrong? Uh, huh. That's what I thought. And when I was cramping and puking and achy and feverish, and I knew that if I went to the ER they'd just get it all wrong, I didn't feel the ole Angel of Death coming in, not really, though I did kind of feel Him pull the curtain back for a sec to take a peek at me -- anyway, faced with the alternating prospects of either taking myself to the ER or calling a friend (who would surely insist on taking me to the ER), I pretty much just said fuck it, if it's time it's time and waited Him out. Then, it turns out that people rarely die from black widow spider bites, anyway. Though they can be debilitating. And I did find, as well, confirmation of my experience of diving into depression and major emotional rollercoasterness for those first few days after: BW spider venom seems to effect neurotransmitters, quite specifically, including norepinephrine "and all neurotransmitters" (http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=392921)! That would include serotonin, I suppose. Duh. I knew it. I said it to Metal Ox and to Springblossom. [btw, one can find additional sources of both my claims, in the googles; I've just sited the two because I'm lazy).
So, well. It's pretty interesting, I think. Life, Death, rock, venom. How close do we get to these things? Close as we want, if we're willing to look, stop pretending we didn't see that curtain move. Sometimes Death just, you know, wants to see how we're doing.
And Scott? You, too, buddy. Hey -- heads up. I wish you well.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Tell Me I'm Not A Survivor! Tell me the world isn't changing!!!!
Go ahead, just try. Two weekends ago I made it through my in-laws, a dual-interstate full speed tire blow-out, and a black widow spider bite.
But before we get there: Go, Obama! My God! Can you believe it???????? To paraphrase Tim Russert Tuesday night, I would loved to have been a history teacher in the inner city on Wednesday. The potential here is that every black male in the country will see an entirely different set of possibilities every time he looks in the mirror. I know I do. And I'm neither. And the DNC announced yesterday: No more money from lobbyists or PACs. Guess what? TRUE paradigm shift may be underway. Shut up. Don't be such a cynic. Evolution comes in leaps and bounds. And ya, I do think it's white people who need to evolve. Virginia can catch up later. For now, let the enlightened and the hopeful lead the way.
Now. Back to my personal survival of every possible disaster. It's true. On the way back from Chi town I was passing a semi-truck and its tire blew out. I hit the gas to try to get around it before I lost control (it was a front tire), but not quite in time. There was a lot of debris flying in front, and then behind us, one bit of it being a hub cap (I saw it), which I think is the thing that hit my back right tire and, yes, blew it out. My God. But all was well, no one lost it, Metal Ox changed the tire while I stood guard to push him out of the way if some space cadet veered toward him, and we drove the rest of the way home under 45 MPH on the secondary roads.
Black widow? Short version: they cleaned out his mom's attic. There were dozens and dozens of boxes, mucho grande dust, and the next day my hand was red and swollen. I got sick, stomach cramps and muscle aches and fever. Once well enough I looked it up, and the symptoms (plus the range) spelled black widow. Took the TCM herbs Leigh recommended, used a potato compress, got better. The skin peeled off, the puncture wounds are now visible (swelling subsided), and the skin is very dark. I think it may scar, stay dark permanently. But here's the up-side. I took a bullet for nature. It's kind of romantic, in a swashbuckling, Raiders of the Lost Ark kind of way, isn't it? Now I've been bitten by a black widow spider and lived to tell it?
The down side? Pretty soon I'm going to be nothing but scars.
Oh, and thank you, Leigh, for not questioning mu diagnosis. Given that you are the person (non-relative) whom I've known the longest, and that we once did women's health together, and that you are a doctor yourself, what do I care whether other less smart people looked skeptically at my diagnosis? I don't. And anyhow, much of their lack of faith vanished as they watched the damn thing progress.
But before we get there: Go, Obama! My God! Can you believe it???????? To paraphrase Tim Russert Tuesday night, I would loved to have been a history teacher in the inner city on Wednesday. The potential here is that every black male in the country will see an entirely different set of possibilities every time he looks in the mirror. I know I do. And I'm neither. And the DNC announced yesterday: No more money from lobbyists or PACs. Guess what? TRUE paradigm shift may be underway. Shut up. Don't be such a cynic. Evolution comes in leaps and bounds. And ya, I do think it's white people who need to evolve. Virginia can catch up later. For now, let the enlightened and the hopeful lead the way.
Now. Back to my personal survival of every possible disaster. It's true. On the way back from Chi town I was passing a semi-truck and its tire blew out. I hit the gas to try to get around it before I lost control (it was a front tire), but not quite in time. There was a lot of debris flying in front, and then behind us, one bit of it being a hub cap (I saw it), which I think is the thing that hit my back right tire and, yes, blew it out. My God. But all was well, no one lost it, Metal Ox changed the tire while I stood guard to push him out of the way if some space cadet veered toward him, and we drove the rest of the way home under 45 MPH on the secondary roads.
Black widow? Short version: they cleaned out his mom's attic. There were dozens and dozens of boxes, mucho grande dust, and the next day my hand was red and swollen. I got sick, stomach cramps and muscle aches and fever. Once well enough I looked it up, and the symptoms (plus the range) spelled black widow. Took the TCM herbs Leigh recommended, used a potato compress, got better. The skin peeled off, the puncture wounds are now visible (swelling subsided), and the skin is very dark. I think it may scar, stay dark permanently. But here's the up-side. I took a bullet for nature. It's kind of romantic, in a swashbuckling, Raiders of the Lost Ark kind of way, isn't it? Now I've been bitten by a black widow spider and lived to tell it?
The down side? Pretty soon I'm going to be nothing but scars.
Oh, and thank you, Leigh, for not questioning mu diagnosis. Given that you are the person (non-relative) whom I've known the longest, and that we once did women's health together, and that you are a doctor yourself, what do I care whether other less smart people looked skeptically at my diagnosis? I don't. And anyhow, much of their lack of faith vanished as they watched the damn thing progress.
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