Dodging caterpillars
So many caterpillars hanging from trees this time of year. I spent so much time dodging, ducking, dipping, diving and dodging so they didn’t hit me in the face.
So many caterpillars hanging from trees this time of year. I spent so much time dodging, ducking, dipping, diving and dodging so they didn’t hit me in the face.
Okay, so it’s been a little longer than five years since I had the surgery, but you get the idea.
It was the end of December of 2009 when I had the surgery done. I was incredibly nervous, as people often are when things are going in, around or on their eyes. I’m not sure what made me so nervous, but I remember sitting there, waiting for my turn. I hear the zap zap zap through the door to my right as the person before me was having their treatment done. I equated it to hearing a tattoo gun for the first time while waiting for your first tattoo. The noise makes it even more terrifying.
I made it through the procedure unscathed – if you want some details from that day, this post is what you’re after.
In the last five years, I haven’t missed wearing glasses even once. Some awesome things you can do without wearing glasses:
I still look back and am incredibly glad I got the procedure done. If I had to do it again, I would do it in a heartbeat. Being able to wake up in the morning and not wonder where my glasses are, where I left them last night, or if they’re clean is such an incredible feeling. It’s nice to not worry and be able to just roll out of bed and get dressed.
It’s amazing how quickly the last five years have gone by. I look forward to a full five years after my tattoo removal treatments are done, so I can reflect back on that as well.
I weighed myself a couple of weeks ago and was very unhappy with what the scale reported back to me. After it mocked me for a bit, it told me that I currently weigh more than I’ve ever weighed before. And that’s not cool.
So I did what anyone would do: I went out and bought an exercise bike. It’s in the corner of my office, conveniently aimed at the TV that sits on my desk. Coupled with a pair of wireless headphones and my trusty TiVo remote, I’ve been pedaling like crazy while I watch some TV. It works out pretty well.
I also bought an ab roller based on the advice of a buddy. I’ve used it a few times, but I’m pretty convinced it’s a device thought up and constructed by the devil himself, so I haven’t been using it as much as I should. If you’ve never used one before, it’s basically a wheel with handles. You roll it out in front of you, causing your body to stretch out and your abs have to support your entire body weight. The first time I did it, I could barely get out of bed the next morning. My abs haven’t been used like that in years. Probably ever in my lifetime, actually.
But it’s a “good pain”, or so someone who isn’t me might say.
I’ve also been cutting back on my soda intake, to stop having so much caffeine in my system. Or at least trying to. After years of drinking mostly nothing but Coke (and Coke Zero in recent years), it’s tough to cut back. I’ve been getting splitting headaches from the withdrawal that only more caffeine get rid of. It’s kind of terrible. I can’t even imagine weening off something stronger. Good thing I never tried drugs.
I’m hoping the exercise and less soda will help drop a few pounds. I figure anything’s gotta be better than nothing, so I’m taking baby steps.
Once I move out of this apartment and can setup my drums again (and actually play them), I’ll get more exercise regularly. And that’s never a bad thing.
It’s not secret that Fitbits are taking over the world. Everywhere you look, someone’s got one on their wrist or in their pocket. It’s a great little invention and one that’s being made by dozens of other manufacturers now.
If you don’t know, a Fitbit is essentially a glorified pedometer. It counts your steps, calories burned and stairs climbed and syncs them (through either your computer or your smart phone) to the web. You then get pretty graphs about how far you’ve traveled, how many flights you’ve climbed, and a bunch of other stuff that’s supposed to motivate you to be healthier.
Here’s what a random day in January looked like for me. Yes, I blurred out my weight, ’cause I’m chubby right now. (We’ll get to that shortly.)
I’ve had one for about four years now. I started with the original on, putting it in my pocket every day, feverishly checking my steps to see how far I’d gone. I upgraded as new ones came out and they got smaller and smaller. They now have bracelets that you can wear, but I’m not big into that idea, so I never got that one.
About six weeks ago, I looked at my step history. It was clear which days were weekends and which days I was out of town for business. On an ordinary day, since I work from my home office, I didn’t walk all that much. Most days less than 4,000 steps. Which, for working at home, is still a lot.
The reason I stopped wearing the Fitbit was because it didn’t do anything for me. I wasn’t motivated to walk more or be more active in any way. It was just this thing that sat in my pocket and I’d occasionally go to the Fitbit site and see how poorly I was doing. Some days, when I’d go out shopping, I’d break 10,000 steps. Health professionals say that 10,000 is the magic number to stay healthy, but it’s kind of insane if you work an office job. For me, a mile is about 2,000 steps based on my height and my gate. That’s 5 miles a day that you should be walking. FIVE MILES. That’s a lot of freaking walking every single day.
The other reason I stopped carrying it? I keep things in my pockets. I’m a guy, that’s normal. Left pocket is my iPhone, right pocket is my keys. Imagine worrying that you’re going to drop this tiny little device every single time you reach into your pocket to take your keys out. Losing it’s a bit deal, too, because it runs you about $100 for one. Here’s the one I was last using for scale (mine was black, but you get the idea)
It’s pretty freaking tiny. Imagine the panic every time you reach into your pocket and it’s not there. You feel like you’ve essentially thrown away a crisp $100 bill. Granted, not using it is essentially like throwing it away, too. But at least I can re-sell it and get some of my money back.
In the years that I wore the Fitbit I stayed relatively the same weight. More than I want to weigh, hence having this little device to try to help me be healthier. The fact that I didn’t lose any weight at all is a testament that this little guy isn’t for me. Will it work for other people? Sure. Could it work for you? Maybe. Did it do anything for me? Not a thing.
I’ve fluctuated +/- 5 pounds over the last 3 years, but have stayed relatively the same. Fitbit didn’t do much for me that I couldn’t do on my own. Keeping track of my steps and my eating and calories I could easily do on my own, I just don’t care to. I’m not that type of person.
Is the Fitbit a good product? Sure. I never had any troubles with them, and the one time I broke part of it, their support sent me an entirely brand new one. (Great experience with their support team, that one time, three years ago.) For now, Fitbit (or Fitty, as I called him) shall sit in a drawer and collect dust.
I had surgery on Friday of last week, and to save myself from having to give the abridged version for the millionth time, I’m writing up what went down here.
I started seeing a new dentist last year to begin the process of re-building some teeth that I’d lost years ago. What we found was quite interesting — they don’t know what caused it, but essentially the bone in the top left portion of my jaw deteriorated over the years.
Which is why three teeth that were housed there came out on their own a few years back. My jaw simply wasn’t strong enough to hold them in place anymore.
We’ve been working towards this procedure for the better part of the year, and it was finally time. Our goal going in was to do a sinus lift, two bone grafts, and put in two dental implants. Our plan changed as we made our way into it, I’ll detail why in a bit.
First off, the sinus lift. Since my jawbone had become so thin, my sinus was literally in danger of breaking through my gum and ending up in my mouth, which according to the internet is incredibly painful and requires extensive surgery to repair.
The sinus lift works hand in hand with the bone graft. Essentially they cut you open, use some special tool to jam the sinus up higher in your sinus cavity, and then jam some fake bone in behind it. In my case, it was a mixture of composite material and cow bone. Gross, but true.
The surgeon had initially planned to do two bone grafts, but turned out to only need one once we got in there and started doing the work.
She’d also planned on doing two dental implants (to replace the 3 teeth I lost), and to put the third one once the bone graft healed. Turns out, once we started, that the bone was weaker than she’d have liked where the second implant was supposed to go, so we had to hold off.
I’ve now got composite and cow bone jammed up into my face, and have to wait six months for it to heal.
At that point I can go back and have the other two implants put in. Those then heal for 3 more months, and then I can have the crowns put on.
All in all, this is an incredibly expensive process. Dental insurance is great if you need two cleanings a year, and maybe a filling. But if you need anything extensive done, it’s useless. So far this year, I’ve spent about $30k on this process.
The surgery itself wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it’d be. It was probably because of the nitrous, which I got for the first time in my life. I’m not sure if it’s supposed to make you as loopy as it did, but I was a) hilarious and b) exhausted. I’m pretty sure I dozed off a couple of times.
Three hours had passed and they told me I was done. I could have sworn I’d only been in the chair for twenty minutes. +1 for nitrous.
I feel fine now. They said I’d be uncomfortable and would likely have a black eye, but I haven’t had any issues there. The medication I’m on to fight the infection from the surgery gives me an upset stomach, and the pain medication makes me exhausted. Needless to say, I haven’t been sleeping much the last few days. Staying up with a sick stomach is not a ton of fun.
So there you have it, now you’re in the know about the surgery. In just 9 short months I should be done with this process, and have some shiny new (fake) teeth where my jaw couldn’t support real ones anymore.
All of the price of an entry level BMW.