The Coast Guard Experience

Last night I was tired but just could go to sleep. When I did sleep it was actually a pretty good night sleep. I got up and got ready for the day. Last night Jeff and Trisha were given tickets to the boat show today. I went to my appointment. Dr. Rhodes came in and talked to me. For the most part I was feeling pretty good. The pain was really bad in my shoulders and across my sternum, in my right ankle and calf, and my left knee. I told him that my sinuses have clogged up again. I said a silent prayer that he would be guided in his decisions today for my treatments. He decided to keep my lower body protocol the same since it seemed to be helping a lot. He changed my upper body back to the shoulder and sinus protocol. 5 days left! He's hoping the machines get here in time, they are supposed to be here next week. This volcano has really messed things up! If I get home before they come they will send me the new one and then I'll send them my machine back. I guess I'm starting to feel overwhelmed with gladness. I'm finally starting to feel somewhat more relief. I asked him about some medical questions. I have some moles that have gotten a lot larger He said it's from the lack of circulation in my body from the RSD. Hopefully when I'm in remission, they will shrink again. If not and I have to get them removed then I'm supposed to call first so that they can put me on a special protocol before the removal so it won't relapse the RSD. I also asked him about braces. My teeth have shifted and it's driving me crazy. He said NO! At least not for 1 year. That will relapse the RSD quickly too. (Trauma to the mouth). He's really hopeful that I'll be in remission really soon.


When I got home Trisha and I left for the boat show. It was SO windy! It was incredible! There were some huge yachts! I loved watching the water, it's so beautiful and peaceful. You could actually see the USS Lexington in the distance. Wow, it was so large. I made friends with some of the Coast Guard guys and got them to hold Max and Ducka in a few pictures. Then we went to the 81ft Coast Guard ship and took a tour. It was incredible. They have a rescue boat that comes out of a hydrolic door. On the bow of the boat the have 2 - 50 Caliber guns on each side. If you look really closely at the Coast Guard on the right and notice his right arm, he's got a really cool tattoo. Since I love tattoos, I asked him what it meant. He said that's the tattoo they get when they've finished 50,000 miles out on the sea. Above that tattoo, you can't really see it but I noticed he had a hula girl. When we were inside, I noticed a hula girl doll on the dash (or whatever they call it). I asked if there was some meaning behind the hula girl. He said yeah it's kinda their motto/ logo it keeps them going. I thought that was pretty interesting. The ship was just so amazing. They said we were like those kids on the field trips that ask a million questions. The guys that was giving is the tour was pretty new so his buddy had to come and answer questions he couldn't answer. It was funny. We got to inside and see all the radar equipment. They were excited that they have XM radio so they can actually listen to music while out on the ocean. They protect our coast from drug and immigrant smugglers, illegal fishermen, etc. When the tour was over we saw these really cool benches and tables. This is the biggest yacht I have ever seen in real life. It was huge! It also had a ski boat it pulled or somehow connected to and also another boat on the top deck, maybe as a safety vessel. We peeked in the front door area and saw into the dining room. The chandelier was a blown glass - incredible! I can't even fathom how much that thing cost. They also have the Selena memorial here, here's a picture. We walked back to the car. We ran a few errands and went to the grocery store. Doori wasn't feeling well this morning (another patient at Dr. Rhodes) so I dropped some crackers and Gatorade at her hotel. Hopefully the front office guy took them to her, she's been pretty sick the last few days. Then when we got home, I hurried and hooked up to my machine. I didn't get to finish the 2nd half of my upper body protocol. I got sick to my stomach and had to stop it early. It was ok though cause the Missionaries came over for dinner. Trisha had made the most delicious chicken enchiladas in the crock pot. After dinner I helped clean up and then made cookies for the office. Oh... and Jason Faras called! (He's my best friend from High School) He called to see what I was doing, I told him I was in Texas. He said how far from El Paso are you? I googled it 9.5 hours. Shoot! He was heading to AZ but would have stopped to say hi if I wasn't the complete opposite direction. He was heading home from the weekend because he's leaving for another tour to Afghanistan. That so bums me out that I don't get to see him again, we missed each other last time he came home too. Kel and I usually go out to dinner or go shooting with Jason. He has very colorful language so it's usually adults only. LOL! He's funny, he tries not to cuss so much around me, but it never works.
I was able to Skype with both kids tonight. Oh I can't wait to see them next week and just hold them in my arms. I'll probably cry when I get home and not want to put them down. I sure miss Kel a lot too. I'm really grateful for him and how he's really stepped up to take care of Hais. Well 3 more minutes for my lower body treatment then 40 more for my upper. Then I should probably go to bed at a somewhat decent hour tonight because I need to get up early and take a shower. I was so sticky when I woke up this morning. Gross! Oh yeah and can we say it is super crazy windy here and even more windy at the beach. I'd hate to be here during a hurricane. Well hope you enjoyed my picture from today!