Late start after last night's blog-writing.
Got my laundry in and folded.
Showered
Bus to Chick Fil A for coleslaw.
Lousy dinner for mom at Darcy. Grilled cheese sandwich and cold, pickled vegetables. They are usually left in the plates all over the dining room. Why is it served?!
Glad I had coleslaw and banana.
I'm surprised that no CNA's noticed how often I pressed on my chest, but I kept feeling it must be a strained muscle pain.
SPOILER ALERT: I'M OKAY!
I'd had such a pain before, but it usually goes away soon. This was more disturbing because, frankly, it was only on the left side above my heart. Tightness. No other symptoms of heart problem, but I kept thinking...if I did something in the gym yesterday or day before, then BOTH left and right sides should hurt (though I admit machines work them independently). See (in photo) how my chest presses against cushion. I'm sitting backwards on a chest machine, using it to work my back. I also use it normally to work chest. Either way might account for chest pains later.Bus home.
Pain still there.
I thought about two brothers who tragically died too young of heart failure. "Too young"? They were in their 60's, but full of love and life and wonderful plans for traveling with their wives upon retirement. They both made friends easily wherever they went; there was joy in sharing meals and sports and travel and gatherings.
Herb Ugalde died suddenly, confessing that - yes, he had felt chest pains but never reported them.
His older brother, Henry - partly motivated by that tragedy - was seeing cardiologists and keeping a healthful regimen, but somehow, despite his apparent vigor, he was also taken from us.
Many times when I had this pain I thought of them.
At home, I began doing emails.
I also downloaded a trial of copy of Finale. It's a music-writing program. Expensive, but highly intricate and professional. Some of you know I once claimed to have written an "opera." Nothing else to call it. It's all singing.
I stole the music. All from Modest Mussorgsky, a Russian composer. You probably know ONE piece of his (which I use)..."A Night on Bald Mountain", made famous mostly by the original Walt Disney "Fantasia" in the Halloween-like segment of a gigantic mountain demon summoning skeletal/ghostly spirits from their graves to romp? in his fires.I also employ a lengthy piece of Mussorgsky's called "Pictures at an Exhibition", written for piano but best known for an orchestrated version by the French composer Maurice Ravel.
Best YouTube sound for Pictures at an Exhibition I found was broken into three parts. (Ballet was added to this particular performance.) You'd enjoy it if you had my lyrics accompanying!
I'm old enough to not care how silly this sounds any more: I wrote lyrics to all that music, to the story of....
(drum roll)
......
Genesis 1, 2, and 3. Creation, Adam and Eve, Serpent, Apple, Evil enters the world, A&E kicked out of the G o' E.
Yep. I stole the story too.
Amazingly, I sent my complete lyrics off for copyright, and obtained it. The "amazing" part is that my lyrics include, almost verbatim, the entire Chapter 1 of Genesis.
Some day I'm gonna start some copy infringement lawsuits
I took a year off from teaching in 1990/91 and created my own orchestrations with 1980's Roland sequencers.
Sounds were produced by two Roland sound synthesizers and one Roland Sampling keyboard. All obsolete now. Even if I found some of that equipment that worked - my arrangements are in some Roland language on floppy disc and ... it seems impossible to update to any common form.
So MAYBE I'll see how tough it might be to redo with Finale. I ain't dead yet.
Also, I want to get my cousin, Debbie, to use a computer for arranging music. That won't happen without someone (like me) to know how such a program works, and to push her into it. Not much pushing needed. She's ready/willing/able, esp with guidance vs. figuring it out on her own.
It was through Debbie that I chose Finale software. When the two of us visited Washington DC a few years ago, we lunched with one of her former music students who is now married to a man who is now (as I understood it) in charge of any music you hear sponsored by the Smithsonian. That's the whole mall, I think. He told me that Finale was the choice for professionals.
Coincidentally, Debbie called that night (Saturday), telling me she was at a barbershop singing show in New York. My old college baritone, Mark, had told her about the show which featured two really great quartets, Old School and Storm Front.
Here's barbershop sample. This one is comedy:
You gotta give it a chance!
You also need to know that "Lida Rose" is traditionally performed with a woman who usually waits in the wings until after the first sing-through. Then she performs her part of the duet ..."Sweet and Low". You see the quartet early on looking for her. Storm Front ends up doing both parts.
PS: This was at Int'l Competiton. They mention "Old School" who were a strong, competing quartet.
More babrbershop:
To hear good, less comical barbershop singers, try the first of the three songs on this selection by young 2012 Gold Medal Quartet from Sweden
One of these days I'll collect my favorites on a YouTube "channel"? If interested, I collected links that I can email on request.
I'm glad Debbie went to the show. Her own show (she directs) is coming up soon in New York.
I didn't tell her I was feeling chest pains.(That WOULD be dumb!)
I texted Ariel, who lives at my house, but was downtown working Saturday night at Sloan's Ice Cream. They had closed late. "Moonfest" - a popular, annual, crowded Halloween-themed street party. I went to bed, and slept.
At about 1:40 am I woke, and texted again, and - not wanting to text so much (it was difficult), I phoned and confessed... I wanted to go to the hospital. He bicycled home in 15 minutes and drove me to Good Sam. Strangest sensation: chest pain increased when the car made left or right turns!
Good thing about chest pains in an ER: No waiting.
I was interviewed on symptoms; blood pressure, pulse, take blood, take urine, take x-ray. And... being cynical here ... maybe because I have decent insurance, they admitted me as a precaution, though I think they had already ruled out heart problem.
They offered me morphine for pain. I declined.
They put a nitro-glycerin patch on my chest, which did little or nothing (evidence it wasn't heart).
I did agree to take ...? ... some relaxant that was administered through the IV shunt they had in my arm.
Besides two more blood samples the next day, a girl came in and did an ultrasound of my heart.
Renate called inquiring about progress with my wrists. Okay.
A cardiologist arrived to tell me that all evidence is against my having had a heart event. Then he left me a phone number to set up a stress test at his Jupiter office - possibly again because I have decent (School board, United Healthcare) insurance.
My tenant, Jason picked me up and took me home. The pain was pretty much the same or worse. Many different motions hurt.
I'm a little peeved that thousands of dollars were undoubtedly spent to tell me what was NOT wrong with me, but there was no hint about what WAS wrong. Best answer is muscle strain. Not until Monday did it begin to diminish.
I'm a little peeved that thousands of dollars were undoubtedly spent to tell me what was NOT wrong with me, but there was no hint about what WAS wrong. Best answer is muscle strain. Not until Monday did it begin to diminish.
Need I say I didn't go to the nursing home?
I didn't even ride a bus!!!!
Anyway, it was Sunday. Buses stop early.
I went to bed early Sunday and .....
Day 73 Monday 10/28
...woke up 4 am Monday.
Worked on Blog, on a Sudoku program, and email.
Left around 3 to get bus to go to my first Physical Therapy session. Started with simple heat pad on my hand. Massaging of hand and forearm. Exercises of touching thumb to other fingers. Raising and lowering wrist. Open and close palm (fist). Also some ice, but I disliked and it wasn't used long.
Nothing dramatic nor terribly unexpected.
Nursing home.
Bus home.
Day 74 Tuesday 10/29
It's right now nearly midnite, Friday nite. I want to quit and I'm going into digest mode ("digest" = summarized)
Nursing home.
Bus home.
Gave bus driver Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies as thanks for holding bus for me last week.
Day 75 Wednesday 10/30
Went to second session of Physical Therapy. They did the same as before and also had me squeeze a sand-filled ball and turn a bicycle wheel with my hands instead of foot-pedals.
Nursing home.
Home.
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Adapted from Taxidriver's Joke Book
*********************************************************Sam was sitting on a bench in the mall with Al.
"I'm a little hungry," says Al. "I'm gonna see if that place has personal pizzas."
"Every pizza is a personal pizza if you eat the whole thing," replies Sam. "I don't know about all that cheese, the cholesterol and salt."
"You're so full of advise," notes Al, as he ventures away in search of a nash (Yiddish for "snack").
"When it comes to advise, I'm a giver." Sam admits.
In a little while, a 20-something walks up, and sits down near Sam. To Sam, 20-something is just a kid. This kid is sporting a mohawk hair style.
Well, it more than that. His hair is yellow and green and orange and purple.
Sam begins to stare at him.
The guy has black makeup around his eyes.
Sam seems lost in thought, staring.
The guy has black makeup around his eyes.
Sam seems lost in thought, staring.
The kid blurts out, "What’s the matter, old man? Haven’t you ever done anything wild in your life?"
"I was young too, once. Maybe crazier than you," nods Sam. "Once years ago I got really drunk," he recalls slowly. "And I had sex with a parrot."
Sam hesitates a moment. "I was just wondering if you were my son."
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Day 76 Thursday 10/31
Ariel drove me to the airport to pick up Jamie coming in from S. Carolina. We dropped Ariel at PBSC and Jamie and I had breakfast - Jamie's first in weeks.
My brother picked me up for appointment with Dr. Saslow in NPB. Saslow told me to keep working hands, and perhaps seek CHT - Certified Hand Therapist.
Jody and I ate Duffy's.
Jody left me at LA Fitness for workout (lighter weights)
I then bused to Chick-Fil-A; coleslaw
Nursing home.
Nursing home.
Bus ride interesting with Halloween revelers.
Dinner w/ Jamie and Nian at Bistro - hamburgers all.
Watched 3 Breaking Bad episodes with Jamie.
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Random Internet Photo # 8
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Day 77 Friday 11/1
Breakfast at Dontes w/ Jamie.
Bus to LA Fitness.
Ate Sushi across the street from there.
Physical Therapy
Nursing home.
Home.
Done
Breakfast at Dontes w/ Jamie.
Bus to LA Fitness.
Ate Sushi across the street from there.
Physical Therapy
Nursing home.
Home.
Done
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