-Yesterday, after hours and hours of overcast skies punctuated with periods of light rain, we finally got the downpour that had been indicated by the skies. Of course, the downpour didn't last all that long, but at least it was accompanied by some thunder.
[Embedded video]
Today we had grey skies but have, at least so far, avoided rain. Maybe more amazingly, we even managed to have brief period of blue skies this evening.
-It seems that my friend Greg was able to find mention online of the tie about which I posted earlier today. It seems that at least one of these ties has been somewhat recently sold for $76, about $74 more than I paid. Of course, this site doesn't really provide much information about the tie or what its origins are.
-Last night Jeannette and I watched a few episodes of the 1980s British sitcom Yes, Minister. What we have both found amazing about the show is how relevant many of the issues dealt with are to contemporary society. When watching the show it is almost hard to believe that it is 30 years old.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Another new tie or Congressional paraphernalia
A few weeks ago Jeannette had the good fortune to be able to quickly visit Annapolis Royal on her way back from a conference. Since then she has been keen on returning and engaging in a more in-depth exploration of some of the sights in the region.
Yesterday, though it was a little overcast and at times rainy, happened to be the day when we finally got around to making a return trip to Annapolis Royal (and it also happened on one of the days of the Gathering of the Clans event - though we couldn't actually find much evidence of this event).
After a very pleasant stroll through downtown Annapolis Royal and through the grounds of Fort Anne and a quick stop at a local bakery for lunch we started to make our way back to Wolfville.
Instead of taking the highway back we decided to take the slow road that would take us through a number of communities in the region.
One of the communities we ended up driving through was Coldbrook, a community that just happened to have another Guy's Frenchy's. While Jeannette looked at lady clothes I decided to check out the tie selection (among other things). Almost immediately I found a tie that I found intriguing.
Almost immediately Americanness of this tie was apparent. When I flipped the tie over and looked at the keeper that it was American in origin became even more apparent.
Of course after seeing that this tie was "Made exclusively for US Congress" I couldn't not spend the $1.95 to buy it.
Shortly after I returned home I tried to figure out if this tie was made specifically for members of Congress or if it had some other role. Unfortunately, the few searches that I did conduct on ties and neckties turned up nothing. At least I haven't confirmed that this tie was nothing more than an item made just to be sold in a Congressional gift shop - it might still have been created for use exclusively by Congressmen (and that is my hope).
Yesterday, though it was a little overcast and at times rainy, happened to be the day when we finally got around to making a return trip to Annapolis Royal (and it also happened on one of the days of the Gathering of the Clans event - though we couldn't actually find much evidence of this event).
After a very pleasant stroll through downtown Annapolis Royal and through the grounds of Fort Anne and a quick stop at a local bakery for lunch we started to make our way back to Wolfville.
Instead of taking the highway back we decided to take the slow road that would take us through a number of communities in the region.
One of the communities we ended up driving through was Coldbrook, a community that just happened to have another Guy's Frenchy's. While Jeannette looked at lady clothes I decided to check out the tie selection (among other things). Almost immediately I found a tie that I found intriguing.
Almost immediately Americanness of this tie was apparent. When I flipped the tie over and looked at the keeper that it was American in origin became even more apparent.
Of course after seeing that this tie was "Made exclusively for US Congress" I couldn't not spend the $1.95 to buy it.
Shortly after I returned home I tried to figure out if this tie was made specifically for members of Congress or if it had some other role. Unfortunately, the few searches that I did conduct on ties and neckties turned up nothing. At least I haven't confirmed that this tie was nothing more than an item made just to be sold in a Congressional gift shop - it might still have been created for use exclusively by Congressmen (and that is my hope).
Another mystery is solved
A few nights ago, during a particularly beautiful sunset, I decided to go for a walk.
While walking along a street not to far from where I live I happened to take a look at a set of mail boxes. Because of the ongoing mail strike I hadn't taken a look at one of these in quite a few weeks, even though when I get mail it is delivered to such a unit.
Almost immediately I noticed that this unit had been modified. The mail slot above the mail boxes had been sealed off (though, strangely, the material doing the sealing still mentions details of mail pick-up).
Until seeing that at least some number of mail slots have been closed I had been wondering how Canada Post expected to deal with all of the mail that must surely be piling up as a result of the strike and it seems that one approach is not to accept it until after the strike. Now that I have seen this one approach to rejecting new mail, I am curious to see if other forms of mail slots have also been sealed, or if they are still capable of accepting mail.
I also do wonder how bad that first day back will be. Will people have saved up all kinds of items to mail? Or with they be like me, and have nothing to send after weeks without access to a mail slot?
All in all, I am just glad to know how at least part of the problem is being dealt with.
While walking along a street not to far from where I live I happened to take a look at a set of mail boxes. Because of the ongoing mail strike I hadn't taken a look at one of these in quite a few weeks, even though when I get mail it is delivered to such a unit.
Almost immediately I noticed that this unit had been modified. The mail slot above the mail boxes had been sealed off (though, strangely, the material doing the sealing still mentions details of mail pick-up).
Until seeing that at least some number of mail slots have been closed I had been wondering how Canada Post expected to deal with all of the mail that must surely be piling up as a result of the strike and it seems that one approach is not to accept it until after the strike. Now that I have seen this one approach to rejecting new mail, I am curious to see if other forms of mail slots have also been sealed, or if they are still capable of accepting mail.
I also do wonder how bad that first day back will be. Will people have saved up all kinds of items to mail? Or with they be like me, and have nothing to send after weeks without access to a mail slot?
All in all, I am just glad to know how at least part of the problem is being dealt with.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
A Few Quick Notes 542
-Though it is still before noon I get the sense that in the hours since I awoke the sky has darkened significantly and the temperature dropped a few degrees. How is it still so cold in late June that I am regularly required to wear a sweater and a jacket? Isn't Wolfville supposed to be warmer than this?
-Though I seem to have forgotten to eat breakfast this morning I had a rather enjoyable lunch of left over beef stew and salad.
-This morning, because I still had a partially used can of pumpkin, I decided to try to find a recipe for a yeast-based pumpkin bread that I could make quickly. After a quick search I found this recipe. Of course, I modified this recipe slightly by omitting the caraway seeds and salt.
Though I haven't tried the resulting loaf of bread yet I can say that it looks pretty good, though I think that if I make it again I would be inclined to drastically reduce the baking time and/or temperature as it really didn't need 35 minutes at 400.
Oh, I should also note one nice aspect of this recipe is that it is simple and fast. It really only took a few minutes to prepare the dough before I let it rise. And as recipe complexity and preparation time seem to be the chief complaints about baking bread at home I thought that these features were worth noting.
-I guess I should get back to work.
-Though I seem to have forgotten to eat breakfast this morning I had a rather enjoyable lunch of left over beef stew and salad.
-This morning, because I still had a partially used can of pumpkin, I decided to try to find a recipe for a yeast-based pumpkin bread that I could make quickly. After a quick search I found this recipe. Of course, I modified this recipe slightly by omitting the caraway seeds and salt.
Though I haven't tried the resulting loaf of bread yet I can say that it looks pretty good, though I think that if I make it again I would be inclined to drastically reduce the baking time and/or temperature as it really didn't need 35 minutes at 400.
Oh, I should also note one nice aspect of this recipe is that it is simple and fast. It really only took a few minutes to prepare the dough before I let it rise. And as recipe complexity and preparation time seem to be the chief complaints about baking bread at home I thought that these features were worth noting.
-I guess I should get back to work.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
A Few Quick Notes 541
-The weather has really been yo-yoing for the past few days. On Sunday I woke up to sun and blue skies only to find that within an hour the skies had turned so grey that it seemed like the sun was about to set. Only minutes later I was in the midst of an intense downpour and thunder and lightening store. After the sky cleared we had another such transition at about 2:00 PM. My recollection is that yesterday was also intermittently bright and dark while today, at least so far, seems to be a beautiful, if cool, day. Of course, rain seems to be in today's forecast so who knows how things will actually turnout as the day moves forward.
-Fortunately yesterday evening turned out to be quite pleasant, even if the skies were a little grey. Jeannette and I decided to go for an evening stroll and, somewhat unintentionally, ended up visiting Acadia University's botanical garden. Though we didn't take as much time to visit the gardens as we could have, it was nonetheless a very enjoyable visit. I am sure we will be heading back throughout the summer.
-I should be paying more attention to some of the legislation that has recently been introduced, or that is about to be introduced, by the Harper government. Some of these bills, if enacted, could really change the way things work in Canada and, sadly, I get the sense that they are being rushed through without too much consideration of their potential impact.
Anyway, not that my opinion counts for much, I think that the Senate reform attempts are likely to be particularly important and could really change some of the central institutions of government. While I am not so much of a fan of the current structure of the Senate to say that we should never consider changing it, I do think that any changes should be discussed openly and widely before they are implemented. Currently it seems that the plan is to implement the changes without really having much of a national discussion about what impact these changes might have or whether or not it is even constitutional for the federal government to unilaterally make such changes to the constitution and the functioning of a powerful (or potentially powerful) institution.
I really should probably motivate myself to write a letter to Mr. Harper and my local MP (Mr. Harris), but for now this will have to do.
-Now that I am about 12 days removed from my surgery I have enough energy and have recovered enough that I can get back to work. I guess this means that I should probably stop blogging for the time being and actually get back to work.
-Fortunately yesterday evening turned out to be quite pleasant, even if the skies were a little grey. Jeannette and I decided to go for an evening stroll and, somewhat unintentionally, ended up visiting Acadia University's botanical garden. Though we didn't take as much time to visit the gardens as we could have, it was nonetheless a very enjoyable visit. I am sure we will be heading back throughout the summer.
-I should be paying more attention to some of the legislation that has recently been introduced, or that is about to be introduced, by the Harper government. Some of these bills, if enacted, could really change the way things work in Canada and, sadly, I get the sense that they are being rushed through without too much consideration of their potential impact.
Anyway, not that my opinion counts for much, I think that the Senate reform attempts are likely to be particularly important and could really change some of the central institutions of government. While I am not so much of a fan of the current structure of the Senate to say that we should never consider changing it, I do think that any changes should be discussed openly and widely before they are implemented. Currently it seems that the plan is to implement the changes without really having much of a national discussion about what impact these changes might have or whether or not it is even constitutional for the federal government to unilaterally make such changes to the constitution and the functioning of a powerful (or potentially powerful) institution.
I really should probably motivate myself to write a letter to Mr. Harper and my local MP (Mr. Harris), but for now this will have to do.
-Now that I am about 12 days removed from my surgery I have enough energy and have recovered enough that I can get back to work. I guess this means that I should probably stop blogging for the time being and actually get back to work.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Exciting Day
Yesterday, given that I am now post-comps (at least the most recent phase) and post-surgery, Jeannette and I decided to do some touring in the Annapolis Valley. While we had been planning on doing this for some time we ended up putting it off because of my two aforementioned commitments (and because of the relatively bad weather we have been experiencing here).
Our first stop yesterday morning was the recently opened Wolfville Farmers' Market. Unfortunately, the bad weather that seems to have been limiting our touring seems also to be limiting plant growth and development so there seems to be less local produce available than I might have expected. Of course, that is not to say that there aren't a number of other local producers at the farmers' market whose ability to sell hasn't been so negatively impacted by the bad weather. In particular the local meat producers and wineries were there in full force. Eventually I would like to get around to more extensive sampling of the wares of both of these types of vendors.
After a quick stop at the local public library for Jeannette to pick up a book we continued on our trip.
Our next stop was the Oaklawn Farm Zoo. We scheduled our visit so early in the day with hopes of avoiding rain that was forecast to arrive by the afternoon.
As expected, we had a great time at the zoo.
Almost as soon as we entered we were greeted by a rather impressive display of intimacy. And who knew tortoises had even the slightest ability to climb?
Though, at least yesterday, the other animals weren't as keen on exhibitionism as the tortoises pictured above they were ,nonetheless, fun to watch. In particular, a family of gibbons with a new addition were particularly amusing.
If you want to to see some of the animals we had the pleasure of observing, with a particular emphasis on the gibbons, check out the video I have included below.
[Embedded video]
When the rain eventually did start to fall Jeannette and I left the zoo (as was our plan) and started to make our way towards Berwick, which is where we decided to have lunch.
After a very pleasant lunch in Berwick, which included the best fish and chips I have had in Nova Scotia, we decided to make our way through some of downtown Berwick. This was my first visit to Berwick and I was quite impressed with the place.
While in Berwick we also visited a Guy's Frenchys, a used clothing chain that I have heard is legendary in the Annapolis Valley. Because my confidence has been buoyed by my recent decision to read and follow the pro-thrifting men's fashion blog Put This On I decided to scope out the menswear section for some hot finds. After a few minutes I found a silk tie that I decided to pick up. Jeannette found a jacket and a book that she wanted. We ended up spending less than $10 for the three items.
After our success at the Guy's Frenchys in Berwick we decided to head in to New Minas and visit the Frenchys there (I still can't figure out exactly what the name 'Frenchys' means or how the various stores are connected to one another). At this second store I became even more ambitious (though this was at least partly due to availability) and I picked up three more (silk) ties and two (wool) suits. Jeannette also picked up a nice dress on the cheap. I should note that all of our acquisitions at these stores were shockingly cheap.
After some shopping in New Minas (and at attempt to find an open dry cleaner) we eventually made our home where I immediately tried on a few of my new acquisitions.
While the photological conditions (and my sense of what matches) were less than ideal, I hope that the above photo does my new acquisitions (at least those pictured) justice.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable and action packed day. Hopefully it won't take us another month and a half before we head out to see more of what the Annapolis Valley has to offer.
Our first stop yesterday morning was the recently opened Wolfville Farmers' Market. Unfortunately, the bad weather that seems to have been limiting our touring seems also to be limiting plant growth and development so there seems to be less local produce available than I might have expected. Of course, that is not to say that there aren't a number of other local producers at the farmers' market whose ability to sell hasn't been so negatively impacted by the bad weather. In particular the local meat producers and wineries were there in full force. Eventually I would like to get around to more extensive sampling of the wares of both of these types of vendors.
After a quick stop at the local public library for Jeannette to pick up a book we continued on our trip.
Our next stop was the Oaklawn Farm Zoo. We scheduled our visit so early in the day with hopes of avoiding rain that was forecast to arrive by the afternoon.
As expected, we had a great time at the zoo.
Almost as soon as we entered we were greeted by a rather impressive display of intimacy. And who knew tortoises had even the slightest ability to climb?
Though, at least yesterday, the other animals weren't as keen on exhibitionism as the tortoises pictured above they were ,nonetheless, fun to watch. In particular, a family of gibbons with a new addition were particularly amusing.
If you want to to see some of the animals we had the pleasure of observing, with a particular emphasis on the gibbons, check out the video I have included below.
[Embedded video]
When the rain eventually did start to fall Jeannette and I left the zoo (as was our plan) and started to make our way towards Berwick, which is where we decided to have lunch.
After a very pleasant lunch in Berwick, which included the best fish and chips I have had in Nova Scotia, we decided to make our way through some of downtown Berwick. This was my first visit to Berwick and I was quite impressed with the place.
While in Berwick we also visited a Guy's Frenchys, a used clothing chain that I have heard is legendary in the Annapolis Valley. Because my confidence has been buoyed by my recent decision to read and follow the pro-thrifting men's fashion blog Put This On I decided to scope out the menswear section for some hot finds. After a few minutes I found a silk tie that I decided to pick up. Jeannette found a jacket and a book that she wanted. We ended up spending less than $10 for the three items.
After our success at the Guy's Frenchys in Berwick we decided to head in to New Minas and visit the Frenchys there (I still can't figure out exactly what the name 'Frenchys' means or how the various stores are connected to one another). At this second store I became even more ambitious (though this was at least partly due to availability) and I picked up three more (silk) ties and two (wool) suits. Jeannette also picked up a nice dress on the cheap. I should note that all of our acquisitions at these stores were shockingly cheap.
After some shopping in New Minas (and at attempt to find an open dry cleaner) we eventually made our home where I immediately tried on a few of my new acquisitions.
While the photological conditions (and my sense of what matches) were less than ideal, I hope that the above photo does my new acquisitions (at least those pictured) justice.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable and action packed day. Hopefully it won't take us another month and a half before we head out to see more of what the Annapolis Valley has to offer.
Another round two
During my recent hospital stay I had the pleasure of being served a pumpkin bran muffin. Almost as soon as I tasted this muffin I thought about trying to make a batch for myself. Sadly, the hospital didn't include the recipe, or even a list of ingredients, with the muffin.
Perhaps even more frustrating than the hospital's lack of diligence on the recipe front is that the web seems to have been flooded with recipes for pumpkin bran muffins that didn't appear to be what I was looking for (many had too much spice or other aspects that I found displeasing).
Anyway, after looking at about a dozen recipes for pumpkin bran muffins I thought that I had finally found one that would meet all of my needs. Yesterday morning I got up at about 6:00 AM and threw a batch together.
Not long after I took the muffins out of the oven for the first time I realized that I had a somewhat severe problem on my hands. The outer layer had developed a leathery texture. This problem was paired with another problem, the innards of the muffin were still relatively raw and doughy.
Though I did eat two of these muffins, they were basically inedible. The one aspect of the muffins that I did like was the level of spicing, which was minimal and not exclusively cinnamon (there was also a little ginger and nutmeg and there would have been allspice had I had any).
After this relatively disappointing failure I was still left with the better part of an open can of pumpkin puree so it was clear that another batch of these muffins would be in my future, though this time with a somewhat modified recipe.
Maybe it should have been obvious to me from the beginning, but while thinking through my first failure I realized that I might consider modifying the the recipe I normally use for bran muffins to accomodate the addition of pumpkin puree.
When I got down to doing an ingredient-by-ingredient examination of the recipe I determined realized that I would likely only have to make a few modifications the the recipe. The primary change would be exchanging the molasses and some of the milk for the pumpkin puree. I decided that I would also add the spicing component from the first recipe.
In the end the recipe I settled on in as follows:
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
3/4 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cup wheat bran
3/4-1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Combine the brown sugar and then add and mix the eggs, pumpkin puree, milk, and bran. Add the baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and flour and mix. Scoop into greased muffin tray (12 large/medium muffins) and bake at 400 F until done (probably between 15 to 20 minutes).
While I am not sure that this will be the definitive pumpkin bran muffin recipe for all time I am certainly pleased with the results and am inclined plan on using it when I next want to make pumpkin bran muffins.
Perhaps even more frustrating than the hospital's lack of diligence on the recipe front is that the web seems to have been flooded with recipes for pumpkin bran muffins that didn't appear to be what I was looking for (many had too much spice or other aspects that I found displeasing).
Anyway, after looking at about a dozen recipes for pumpkin bran muffins I thought that I had finally found one that would meet all of my needs. Yesterday morning I got up at about 6:00 AM and threw a batch together.
Not long after I took the muffins out of the oven for the first time I realized that I had a somewhat severe problem on my hands. The outer layer had developed a leathery texture. This problem was paired with another problem, the innards of the muffin were still relatively raw and doughy.
Though I did eat two of these muffins, they were basically inedible. The one aspect of the muffins that I did like was the level of spicing, which was minimal and not exclusively cinnamon (there was also a little ginger and nutmeg and there would have been allspice had I had any).
After this relatively disappointing failure I was still left with the better part of an open can of pumpkin puree so it was clear that another batch of these muffins would be in my future, though this time with a somewhat modified recipe.
Maybe it should have been obvious to me from the beginning, but while thinking through my first failure I realized that I might consider modifying the the recipe I normally use for bran muffins to accomodate the addition of pumpkin puree.
When I got down to doing an ingredient-by-ingredient examination of the recipe I determined realized that I would likely only have to make a few modifications the the recipe. The primary change would be exchanging the molasses and some of the milk for the pumpkin puree. I decided that I would also add the spicing component from the first recipe.
In the end the recipe I settled on in as follows:
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
3/4 cup milk
1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cup wheat bran
3/4-1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
Combine the brown sugar and then add and mix the eggs, pumpkin puree, milk, and bran. Add the baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and flour and mix. Scoop into greased muffin tray (12 large/medium muffins) and bake at 400 F until done (probably between 15 to 20 minutes).
While I am not sure that this will be the definitive pumpkin bran muffin recipe for all time I am certainly pleased with the results and am inclined plan on using it when I next want to make pumpkin bran muffins.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
A Few Quick Notes 540
-The rain and grey skies seem to continued into mid-June here in Wolfville. I am hoping that at some point in the not-to-distant future things may take a turn for the better.
-The aforementioned weather seems to be negatively affecting the rate of growth of some of the plants in our container garden. As a point of comparison, the beans that we planted outside are about a 18 to 24 inches inches taller than the plants outside. The basil plants outside are at most about 1 cm tall while the plants inside are close to 5 cms and are starting to display second and third sets of leaves.
-On Monday Jeannette and I made the mistake of watching game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals. It seems that tonight we have made the mistake of watching game 7. As some of you may know, as things stand right now it looks as though the Canucks are going to be trounced as badly in this game as they were in game 6.
-I made a batch of hummus tonight and am quite pleased with the results. I think that the freshly squeezed lemon juice that I used may explain the high quality of the output. If only real lemons weren't so expensive hear I might be inclined to use them more frequently.
-My post surgery recovery is still ongoing. I am hoping that within a few days I won't need to continue spending a few extra hours in bed a day. This recovery process is definitely a bummer.
-The aforementioned weather seems to be negatively affecting the rate of growth of some of the plants in our container garden. As a point of comparison, the beans that we planted outside are about a 18 to 24 inches inches taller than the plants outside. The basil plants outside are at most about 1 cm tall while the plants inside are close to 5 cms and are starting to display second and third sets of leaves.
-On Monday Jeannette and I made the mistake of watching game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals. It seems that tonight we have made the mistake of watching game 7. As some of you may know, as things stand right now it looks as though the Canucks are going to be trounced as badly in this game as they were in game 6.
-I made a batch of hummus tonight and am quite pleased with the results. I think that the freshly squeezed lemon juice that I used may explain the high quality of the output. If only real lemons weren't so expensive hear I might be inclined to use them more frequently.
-My post surgery recovery is still ongoing. I am hoping that within a few days I won't need to continue spending a few extra hours in bed a day. This recovery process is definitely a bummer.
They still don't have it right
Since I have been in Halifax there has been something of a brouhaha surrounding rules regarding winter parking. After relatively snow-free winter there was much talk about making changes to the rules that would prevent people from being ticketed when there was no snow on the street.
It seems that just a few days ago the HRM council finally got around to making a few changes to the rules, unfortunately they have still left the primary problem in place.
Now instead of tickets being issued all winter long, tickets will now just be issued on nights when the cities issues a snow warning. Another change is that cars will no longer just be ticketed, they will now also be towed. One major consequence of this second change is that the cost to the offending owner will increase almost seven-fold.
Of course the problem is that these changes to do nothing to address the primary problem with the original regime - which is that people don't like being ticketed when there is no chance that the street will actually be ploughed. Furthermore, whether or not snow is forecast for that evening is not particularly important if ploughing is scheduled to take place.
Anyway, I suspect that this regime will have a few supporters as well as a few detractors. Presumably the failure to address the real problem and the increased cost and inconvenience for offending drivers will be the attributes of the new scheme that will be particularly despised by HRM residents.
It seems that just a few days ago the HRM council finally got around to making a few changes to the rules, unfortunately they have still left the primary problem in place.
Now instead of tickets being issued all winter long, tickets will now just be issued on nights when the cities issues a snow warning. Another change is that cars will no longer just be ticketed, they will now also be towed. One major consequence of this second change is that the cost to the offending owner will increase almost seven-fold.
Of course the problem is that these changes to do nothing to address the primary problem with the original regime - which is that people don't like being ticketed when there is no chance that the street will actually be ploughed. Furthermore, whether or not snow is forecast for that evening is not particularly important if ploughing is scheduled to take place.
Anyway, I suspect that this regime will have a few supporters as well as a few detractors. Presumably the failure to address the real problem and the increased cost and inconvenience for offending drivers will be the attributes of the new scheme that will be particularly despised by HRM residents.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Another extended absence
A little while ago I explained that comps a move to Wolfville had been keeping me away from the blog. My most recent absence was for a completely different reason. This time I have a medical excuse.
On Thursday of last week I had a Percutaneous nephrolithotomy to surgically remove a few kidney stones from my right kidney. The procedure resulted in a two-night hospital stay and then some post-hospital downtime. (Now that a few days have passed and I am not losing as much blood I am getting a little energy back).
Anyway, it seems that this procedure, like other surgical procedures that I have had, is a little more involved I imagined it would be when I agreed to it. Instead of just removing the stones surgically, the process is really three somewhat distinct process that all involve some form of anesthesia or sedation.
The first step, which is conducted while under a general anesthetic, involves the places of stents in the urinary tract. And, surprise, surprise, I also woke up with a catheter (one of the aspects of the whole thing that I don't recall being mentioned explicitly much in advance of the surgery). Once the procedure was complete I was sent to the recovery room where I pretty soon regained consciousness and had a nice talk to the nurse about the fact that all three of my names are last names (this fact is commonly noted in Nova Scotia).
After a relatively brief wait in the recovery room, where I foolishly declined pain medication, I was sent along for the second step of the procedure - the introduction of a tube from my back to my kidney. Much to my surprise, this procedure didn't involve a general anesthetic. That this was to be the case was a little disconcerting at first as the last time that I had surgery to my back I was quite awake and could feel the whole thing. Fortunately in this case I managed to sleep/pass out for most of the procedure. As far as I recall I don't even really remember very much of them placing the tube or how I got from the operating table back to my bed, something for which I was likely at least partially responsive.
The third and final step of the procedure, though it involves no new holes or incisions, is really the most significant part of the whole process. Through various means the stones are broken up and/or removed (an exclusive 'or' is used in this case). All in all, these processes can seeming be quite aggressive and really lead to fair bit of internal bleeding and disruption. And apparently in my case at least of one batch of stones was located in a particularly hard to reach area that required some particularly aggressive maneuvering of a scope (the miming of this process that the doctor did for Neil, Rebecca, and I really made it clear why my procedure was particularly sanguineous).
After this third procedure I was finally sent to my hospital room. Soon after I arrived one of the nurses offered me something for pain - this time I gladly accepted the drugs and began to feel less bad almost immediately.
As I was slowly coming to my senses in the room I started to become aware of the fact that my three roommates were all quite a bit older than I and also, arguably, in much worse overall health. This fact fact was pretty quickly driven home when the patient to my right lost control of his bowels all over the floor next to his bed (and then there was some talk of c. diff). Discussions that doctors and nurses had with the other two guys also made it clear that they too were not in the best health.
That evening Neil and Rebecca came to visit, which was a very nice distraction from the general madness of the room. The visit also allowed Neil and Rebecca a chance to soak up some of the atmosphere of the room and meet my doctor. My sense is that they were somewhat shocked by the 'atmosphere' and impressed by my doctor and his general demeanor.
Not too long after Neil and Rebecca's departure things appeared as though they were starting to calm down and patients were washed and lights were turned off. Of course it didn't take me long to realize that the night wasn't going to be particularly restful.
One of the first problem I noticed was that the IV machines that we all had were really quite noisy and produced a special sucking noise every few seconds. The gauze that the nurse gave helped to some extent but really didn't do all that much to muffle much sound.
Pain and general discomfort were another set of issues that made it somewhat hard to sleep. Even though I was taking pain medication regularly almost any movement or muscle contraction would wake me. It felt as though I had to stay awake just to concentrate on not moving.
Finally, and this was maybe the biggest impediment to sleep, the incontinent patient to my right continued to make noise and lose control of his bodily functions all night long. If I recall correctly, at one point he might have urinated on the floor while at a later point he did something to necessitate a middle-of-the-night sheet change. Several times throughout the night while changing his own diaper he thought that he had messed up his IV drip. While in most cases his IV was fine and he hadn't really needed to buzz for a nurse, though in at least one instance he did manage to completely disconnect his IV from his body (amazingly, in this case he had called the nurse for a completely unrelated reason).
By about 5:00 AM all pretense of trying to sleep by any of the four patients in the room was lost. We were up for the day (or at least until our first nap). Fortunately breakfast soon arrived and I was once again pleasantly surprised by the quality of the hospital's food. I was particularly taken with the pumpkin bran muffin I was served.
Fortunately patient drama decreased dramatically on this second day, and the decrease was basically noticeable from breakfast onwards. Perhaps not surprisingly, at least three of the four of us were clearly getting better.
Shortly after breakfast the doctors came through on their morning rounds. It was at this point I learned that I would soon be losing both my IV and my catheter and that the tube that was still directly connected to my kidney would be stoppered and disconnected from the bag that had been collecting run-off directly from the kidney.
The upside of these changes were that I was no longer bed-ridden and I didn't have to have a loud IV machine constantly making noise next to me. The downside of these changes were that I was now expected to start moving around and I was cut-off from real pain medication (real pain would have been a sign of problems/infection so they didn't want to risk masking it). Fortunately I was eventually given an ibuprofen-acetaminophen cocktail that did a little to dull the pain.
Almost before I knew it I was walking around and pounding water to clear my kidney and bladder of stones, stone fragments, and clots. Relatively early on in this process it became clear that there were a few obstructions that were likely going to force me to stay an extra night in the hospital.
Fortunately, after maybe only an hour or two of aggressive water drinking and shuffling up and down the hall I managed to clear the worst of the obstructions and demonstrate that I was generally in pretty fine health. Of course, I had to deal with the consequences of all of the water drinking for the rest of the day.
Later in the day I had the pleasure of having visits from Jeannette, Neil, and Rebecca. Though at times I might like to put on a face of stoicism, it really is nice to have at least a few hospital visitors for a few minutes a day otherwise the days have a way of passing very slowly.
My second night in the hospital went much more smoothly than the first. Though I didn't wake up much I have the sense that the nurses were called to the room much less frequently and that there were fewer big problems for them to deal with.
During my second morning of rounds I learned that I would be heading home that day and that I would be losing the drainage tube that was then leading to my kidney. Much to my surprise one of the residents told me she would be removing the tube right away. Even more surprising was that the tube removal only took a few minutes and didn't hurt. That this could be painless and so fast and easy still surprises.
Of course the big downside of the removal of the drainage tube was that the drainage was no longer limited to the tube but soon began to flow directly from my side (a development that was expected). Of course, even though this drainage was normal at times it came a bit more quickly than I expected. At one or two points before I was released the drainage was abundant that it overwhelmed the dressings that had been taped to my back.
Not surprisingly, since being released from the hospital I have been trying to take it easy and limit my level of physical activity. Of course this sentiment has been reinforced after my one attempt at dishwashing/floor sweeping seemed to reinvigorate the drainage from the relatively small incision in my back.
Now that I am a few days removed from the surgery I am finally starting to feel a little bit less like I have been hit by a truck and a little more as though I am just at about 75% power. Hopefully with a few more days I will feel more like 90% or 100% power.
On Thursday of last week I had a Percutaneous nephrolithotomy to surgically remove a few kidney stones from my right kidney. The procedure resulted in a two-night hospital stay and then some post-hospital downtime. (Now that a few days have passed and I am not losing as much blood I am getting a little energy back).
Anyway, it seems that this procedure, like other surgical procedures that I have had, is a little more involved I imagined it would be when I agreed to it. Instead of just removing the stones surgically, the process is really three somewhat distinct process that all involve some form of anesthesia or sedation.
The first step, which is conducted while under a general anesthetic, involves the places of stents in the urinary tract. And, surprise, surprise, I also woke up with a catheter (one of the aspects of the whole thing that I don't recall being mentioned explicitly much in advance of the surgery). Once the procedure was complete I was sent to the recovery room where I pretty soon regained consciousness and had a nice talk to the nurse about the fact that all three of my names are last names (this fact is commonly noted in Nova Scotia).
After a relatively brief wait in the recovery room, where I foolishly declined pain medication, I was sent along for the second step of the procedure - the introduction of a tube from my back to my kidney. Much to my surprise, this procedure didn't involve a general anesthetic. That this was to be the case was a little disconcerting at first as the last time that I had surgery to my back I was quite awake and could feel the whole thing. Fortunately in this case I managed to sleep/pass out for most of the procedure. As far as I recall I don't even really remember very much of them placing the tube or how I got from the operating table back to my bed, something for which I was likely at least partially responsive.
The third and final step of the procedure, though it involves no new holes or incisions, is really the most significant part of the whole process. Through various means the stones are broken up and/or removed (an exclusive 'or' is used in this case). All in all, these processes can seeming be quite aggressive and really lead to fair bit of internal bleeding and disruption. And apparently in my case at least of one batch of stones was located in a particularly hard to reach area that required some particularly aggressive maneuvering of a scope (the miming of this process that the doctor did for Neil, Rebecca, and I really made it clear why my procedure was particularly sanguineous).
After this third procedure I was finally sent to my hospital room. Soon after I arrived one of the nurses offered me something for pain - this time I gladly accepted the drugs and began to feel less bad almost immediately.
As I was slowly coming to my senses in the room I started to become aware of the fact that my three roommates were all quite a bit older than I and also, arguably, in much worse overall health. This fact fact was pretty quickly driven home when the patient to my right lost control of his bowels all over the floor next to his bed (and then there was some talk of c. diff). Discussions that doctors and nurses had with the other two guys also made it clear that they too were not in the best health.
That evening Neil and Rebecca came to visit, which was a very nice distraction from the general madness of the room. The visit also allowed Neil and Rebecca a chance to soak up some of the atmosphere of the room and meet my doctor. My sense is that they were somewhat shocked by the 'atmosphere' and impressed by my doctor and his general demeanor.
Not too long after Neil and Rebecca's departure things appeared as though they were starting to calm down and patients were washed and lights were turned off. Of course it didn't take me long to realize that the night wasn't going to be particularly restful.
One of the first problem I noticed was that the IV machines that we all had were really quite noisy and produced a special sucking noise every few seconds. The gauze that the nurse gave helped to some extent but really didn't do all that much to muffle much sound.
Pain and general discomfort were another set of issues that made it somewhat hard to sleep. Even though I was taking pain medication regularly almost any movement or muscle contraction would wake me. It felt as though I had to stay awake just to concentrate on not moving.
Finally, and this was maybe the biggest impediment to sleep, the incontinent patient to my right continued to make noise and lose control of his bodily functions all night long. If I recall correctly, at one point he might have urinated on the floor while at a later point he did something to necessitate a middle-of-the-night sheet change. Several times throughout the night while changing his own diaper he thought that he had messed up his IV drip. While in most cases his IV was fine and he hadn't really needed to buzz for a nurse, though in at least one instance he did manage to completely disconnect his IV from his body (amazingly, in this case he had called the nurse for a completely unrelated reason).
By about 5:00 AM all pretense of trying to sleep by any of the four patients in the room was lost. We were up for the day (or at least until our first nap). Fortunately breakfast soon arrived and I was once again pleasantly surprised by the quality of the hospital's food. I was particularly taken with the pumpkin bran muffin I was served.
Fortunately patient drama decreased dramatically on this second day, and the decrease was basically noticeable from breakfast onwards. Perhaps not surprisingly, at least three of the four of us were clearly getting better.
Shortly after breakfast the doctors came through on their morning rounds. It was at this point I learned that I would soon be losing both my IV and my catheter and that the tube that was still directly connected to my kidney would be stoppered and disconnected from the bag that had been collecting run-off directly from the kidney.
The upside of these changes were that I was no longer bed-ridden and I didn't have to have a loud IV machine constantly making noise next to me. The downside of these changes were that I was now expected to start moving around and I was cut-off from real pain medication (real pain would have been a sign of problems/infection so they didn't want to risk masking it). Fortunately I was eventually given an ibuprofen-acetaminophen cocktail that did a little to dull the pain.
Almost before I knew it I was walking around and pounding water to clear my kidney and bladder of stones, stone fragments, and clots. Relatively early on in this process it became clear that there were a few obstructions that were likely going to force me to stay an extra night in the hospital.
Fortunately, after maybe only an hour or two of aggressive water drinking and shuffling up and down the hall I managed to clear the worst of the obstructions and demonstrate that I was generally in pretty fine health. Of course, I had to deal with the consequences of all of the water drinking for the rest of the day.
Later in the day I had the pleasure of having visits from Jeannette, Neil, and Rebecca. Though at times I might like to put on a face of stoicism, it really is nice to have at least a few hospital visitors for a few minutes a day otherwise the days have a way of passing very slowly.
My second night in the hospital went much more smoothly than the first. Though I didn't wake up much I have the sense that the nurses were called to the room much less frequently and that there were fewer big problems for them to deal with.
During my second morning of rounds I learned that I would be heading home that day and that I would be losing the drainage tube that was then leading to my kidney. Much to my surprise one of the residents told me she would be removing the tube right away. Even more surprising was that the tube removal only took a few minutes and didn't hurt. That this could be painless and so fast and easy still surprises.
Of course the big downside of the removal of the drainage tube was that the drainage was no longer limited to the tube but soon began to flow directly from my side (a development that was expected). Of course, even though this drainage was normal at times it came a bit more quickly than I expected. At one or two points before I was released the drainage was abundant that it overwhelmed the dressings that had been taped to my back.
Not surprisingly, since being released from the hospital I have been trying to take it easy and limit my level of physical activity. Of course this sentiment has been reinforced after my one attempt at dishwashing/floor sweeping seemed to reinvigorate the drainage from the relatively small incision in my back.
Now that I am a few days removed from the surgery I am finally starting to feel a little bit less like I have been hit by a truck and a little more as though I am just at about 75% power. Hopefully with a few more days I will feel more like 90% or 100% power.
Sunday, June 05, 2011
A Few Quick Notes 539
-While today is still a little cooler than I might have expected it to be in early June in the Annapolis Valley, it is fortunately brighter than it was yesterday. Not that the forecast means anything here, actually it seems to be worse than it was in Halifax or St. John's, but they are not even predicting any major improvements in the coming days. Bummer.
-Yesterday Jeannette and I made our way to a meat shop in Windsor with plans of buying some ground llama and some llama and wild boar sausage. While we weren't able to get the second of these two products (we had to settle for venison and wild boar sausage), we were able get some ground llama and also some ground beef. Maybe more importantly, we learned that the store we visited is really a full-service butcher shop (we thought it might just be a speciality meat shop). So not only will they cut your meats how you want them cut, they also sell quite a variety of meats, including lamb, goat, beef, pork, rabbit, bison, emu, llama, and poultry. While we were in line waiting to be served we both had the sense that their customers were coming in from all over the province to take advantage of the wide variety of products and services that this company provides.
-Many of our container garden plants finally seem to be sprouting and starting the early stages of their growth. Unfortunately, some number of the plants seem to have been struck with a spider-mite like pest (though I think it is something different and that they picked it up from the local environment). Anyway, I just hope that they aren't too negatively impacted by these pests, as that would really bum me out.
-I definitely feel as though I am in something of a post-comps work slump. Hopefully by this afternoon or this evening I will find a way to roust myself from this period of sloth and get back to work.
-Because of the developments relating to the NHL team in Winnipeg and the possible AHL team in St. John's I have been thinking about hockey and sports teams much more than I traditionally do. That being said, even though I have been thinking about hockey teams I have spent very little time actually thinking about hockey. That people are so interested in watching the game still baffles me. I just don't get what makes the game so exciting.
-Maybe instead of trying to fill up the internet I should either have some lunch or get down to work.
-Yesterday Jeannette and I made our way to a meat shop in Windsor with plans of buying some ground llama and some llama and wild boar sausage. While we weren't able to get the second of these two products (we had to settle for venison and wild boar sausage), we were able get some ground llama and also some ground beef. Maybe more importantly, we learned that the store we visited is really a full-service butcher shop (we thought it might just be a speciality meat shop). So not only will they cut your meats how you want them cut, they also sell quite a variety of meats, including lamb, goat, beef, pork, rabbit, bison, emu, llama, and poultry. While we were in line waiting to be served we both had the sense that their customers were coming in from all over the province to take advantage of the wide variety of products and services that this company provides.
-Many of our container garden plants finally seem to be sprouting and starting the early stages of their growth. Unfortunately, some number of the plants seem to have been struck with a spider-mite like pest (though I think it is something different and that they picked it up from the local environment). Anyway, I just hope that they aren't too negatively impacted by these pests, as that would really bum me out.
-I definitely feel as though I am in something of a post-comps work slump. Hopefully by this afternoon or this evening I will find a way to roust myself from this period of sloth and get back to work.
-Because of the developments relating to the NHL team in Winnipeg and the possible AHL team in St. John's I have been thinking about hockey and sports teams much more than I traditionally do. That being said, even though I have been thinking about hockey teams I have spent very little time actually thinking about hockey. That people are so interested in watching the game still baffles me. I just don't get what makes the game so exciting.
-Maybe instead of trying to fill up the internet I should either have some lunch or get down to work.
Friday, June 03, 2011
A Few Quick Notes 538
-We seem to be experiencing another overcast and cool, but dry, day in Wolfville. Though I am not a fan of particularly high temperatures, I really wouldn't mind it being a bit warmer than the low teens on most June afternoons.
-Maybe it was because I frequently vacationed in Michigan as a child, but Jack Kevorkian is definitely an individual I associate with my childhood (though not in as morbid a way as you might imagine). Anyway, I was somewhat surprised to hear that he recently died. I wonder if someone will try to fill his shoes?
-As some of you may know, as of this morning many Canada Post employees are striking. Much to my surprise, this development did not mean delays for packages that I was expecting from Newfoundland.
-I have been having a hard time motivating myself to get back to work in this post-comps period. Hopefully I can find a way to turn a corner in the very near future.
-For the few weeks leading up to my comps I was consuming far too much coffee. I suspect that I was frequently consuming upwards of 3 litres of coffee a day. My consumption was so high not because I wanted the caffeine, but mainly because I just like drinking warm beverages and I do my best to avoid tea during the day. Anyway, I am pretty sure that this rate of coffee consumption wasn't doing anything good for my mood, sleep quality, or rate of productivity. Fortunately, in the past few days I have seen a precipitous drop in my rate of coffee consumption. I just hope that I can keep it up and that I don't slip back in to this 3 litres a day trend (of course, I did just buy a few kilos of coffee beans).
-Maybe it was because I frequently vacationed in Michigan as a child, but Jack Kevorkian is definitely an individual I associate with my childhood (though not in as morbid a way as you might imagine). Anyway, I was somewhat surprised to hear that he recently died. I wonder if someone will try to fill his shoes?
-As some of you may know, as of this morning many Canada Post employees are striking. Much to my surprise, this development did not mean delays for packages that I was expecting from Newfoundland.
-I have been having a hard time motivating myself to get back to work in this post-comps period. Hopefully I can find a way to turn a corner in the very near future.
-For the few weeks leading up to my comps I was consuming far too much coffee. I suspect that I was frequently consuming upwards of 3 litres of coffee a day. My consumption was so high not because I wanted the caffeine, but mainly because I just like drinking warm beverages and I do my best to avoid tea during the day. Anyway, I am pretty sure that this rate of coffee consumption wasn't doing anything good for my mood, sleep quality, or rate of productivity. Fortunately, in the past few days I have seen a precipitous drop in my rate of coffee consumption. I just hope that I can keep it up and that I don't slip back in to this 3 litres a day trend (of course, I did just buy a few kilos of coffee beans).
That narrative changed quickly
About a week ago I posted about former Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams' attempts to arrange for an AHL team for St. John's. At the time the province's refusal to provide a $500 000 subsidy seemed likely to sink the proposal.
Amazingly, about a week later Williams seemed to have come up with a new deal that would see the team re-locate to St. John's without the public money.
Is it just me or was that turnaround fast?
Also, is Danny Williams not the guy who criticized the current provincial government for not taking the time to properly analyze the proposal? I get the sense that he is not drawing attention to the fact that it seems that he didn't really take that much time to run the numbers in the first place if just a week ago the project was only possible with public money and now it is not.
I am curious to see how many more curious developments are associated with this story as the final details relating to the re-location of the team are settled.
Amazingly, about a week later Williams seemed to have come up with a new deal that would see the team re-locate to St. John's without the public money.
Is it just me or was that turnaround fast?
Also, is Danny Williams not the guy who criticized the current provincial government for not taking the time to properly analyze the proposal? I get the sense that he is not drawing attention to the fact that it seems that he didn't really take that much time to run the numbers in the first place if just a week ago the project was only possible with public money and now it is not.
I am curious to see how many more curious developments are associated with this story as the final details relating to the re-location of the team are settled.
Thursday, June 02, 2011
Silence Explained
Some of you may have noticed that there have been fewer posts of late. (Though the more I think about it, thinking that any of you might have noticed this is a little bit presumptuous on my part and likely quite inaccurate.)
The primary reason for this reduced posting rate is that I was preparing for a comprehensive exam that I finally got to write on Tuesday (May 31). Moreover, last month Jeannette and I moved to Wolfville and had to deal with all of the frustrations associated with packing things and then re-arranging them in the new location.
Anyway, while I still have plenty of work to do, I hope that I might be able to post a somewhat more frequently in the near future (because I know how much you all want to hear about my trips to the grocery store and what I think about the current weather conditions wherever I happen to be).
The primary reason for this reduced posting rate is that I was preparing for a comprehensive exam that I finally got to write on Tuesday (May 31). Moreover, last month Jeannette and I moved to Wolfville and had to deal with all of the frustrations associated with packing things and then re-arranging them in the new location.
Anyway, while I still have plenty of work to do, I hope that I might be able to post a somewhat more frequently in the near future (because I know how much you all want to hear about my trips to the grocery store and what I think about the current weather conditions wherever I happen to be).
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