Friday, September 27, 2013

"Danke schoen, darling, danke schoen!"

Hi everyone!
All is well! Just officially met with my doctor the other day after last week's MRI, and all is stable! Yay! Thanks, Merci, Thank you UK, Danke schön, Bedankt, Dziekuje, Gracias, Spasibo, Terima kasih, Sakamat. And i also know Shukran and Grazie :o) But whatever the language... thank you much for all the prayers you have been sending my way... they are obviously working. P.S. that first group of thank yous are from the top ten countries reading this blog. And i apologize ahead of time for any misspelling.

Well... time is passing quickly, and we are now week 16 with the baby; we can't wait to find out the sex. We've also had reasons to celebrate... some family birthdays :o) ... Marita, Mary Frances (see M.F. post), and Karin... and Mexico's Independence Day on September 16. !Viva Mexico! And now... we are in the Oktoberfest period.

2009: Jackpot!
Unfortunately, I haven't made it to the real one in Munich, Germany, but I have made it twice to the Cannstatter  in Northeast Philly for its Oktoberfest celebration. It has beer, food, and music along with other German traditions. They also have kiddie rides and games. In fact, my sister and her husband actually won a bag of meats/ sausages as a prize. Jackpot! 



OKTOBERFEST FUN FACT:  Wiki says it's the world's largest fair, & it's usually a 16 day festival late September to the first weekend in October. But it also depends on how the calendar falls... sometimes it's longer to include October 3rd which is German Unity Day. I am learning so much doing this blog :o)... this day marks the formal reunification of Germany in 1990... almost 1 year after the Berlin Wall came down.

2009: merchandise shopping


2011: working their hats :o)
lots of love & danke schöns to all...

little lisa lollipop












Friday, September 6, 2013

Don't taze me bro!

Perhaps it was all the Halloween merchandise displayed way too early at the end of August... or perhaps it was because of the upcoming, dreaded Friday the 13th this week... but I've recently recovered from a 12 day stretch of horrible phantom pain. I know...  nobody likes a complainer :o), but for the love of God, let me complain this one time :o). Just kidding. But not about the pain part. See... following my amputation 19 years ago, I have experienced both phantom pain and phantom sensation. The latter is constant for me; I can always feel my right leg... even though it's not there. To best describe the sensation... well it's kind of like when your leg falls asleep and then it feels all pins and needly. Theory has it... it's because of all the nerve endings and the confused brain. And from time to time, I get phantom pain, which is pain in the missing limb... stabbing, crushing, or like jolts of electricity... which I imagine it is how one feels one you get tazed.

Anyhows, i'll experience phantom pain from time to time, but it usually isn't something that lasts very long. This time though, it was frequent... i got tazed every 20 to 60 seconds or so on some of the bad days. It made me awfully tired and awfully miserable. Bullocks! Not sure what caused it, but like anyone that has had cancer, the paranoia sets in. And your mind starts to wander... perhaps its this... or perhaps its that. Each day just spent waiting for it to pass and hoping the next day's sunrise will also bring relief.


Well I'm not Jewish, but perhaps I'll have to convert because come Rosh Hashanah, relief did come. What a good way to start a new year...

Happy New Year to everyone!
I hope it's a good one for you and for me.

lots of love... little lisa lollipop

P.S. These last images are from a card I sent my mom. She isn't Jewish either, but as a former public school teacher, Rosh Hashanah was one of her favorite holidays.