Nurse, Serve, Bead, Work

May 24, 2009

I have taken Let's Do It quite seriously lately.

Last week before Walter and I left town to judge at the state History Day competition, I had to do medical duty for Willie. He had developed a significant limp. I couldn't remember any significant precipitating event and when I manipulated his affected leg, he didn't wince or pull back. I kept expecting him to get better, when in fact he worsened each passing day. A complete vet exam and four x-ray's later we had a diagnosis: cervical stenosis. [Aside: I was slightly agog when the vet mentioned this as a possibility because I momentarily confused the concept of cervical with cervix. Luckily, I recovered my knowledge of anatomy before I said anything that would have labeled me as hopeless and signaled a high need for owner education.]

The polite vet thought that the condition might be congenital, and I didn't confess that I suspected that having compressed vertabrea in the neck came from Willie's reluctance to stop when he reached the sliding glass door if he saw what he calls "a squirrel of interest" in his line of sight. I wondered about the vet's powers of observation when he did not comment on the obvious plateau-like flat spot on the top of Willie's head. We have switched Willie out of his collar into a harness to avoid the obvious ascerbation of his joint and tissue inflammation cause by the way he gently leans on the end of the leash anytime I don't move the direction he want to go as fast as he wants to go.

By the time we returned from Austin, the anti-inflammatories and chondritin supplements seemed to have helped substantially. Willie's back to full speed now. Thank goodness?

Another bit of action going on around here is planning for the "Let's Do It" Mission Weekend *click here and scroll down). Previously, our church involved the elementary-aged children in a mission project every June (creatively called The Elementary Mission Weekend). This year it gained a new name in honor of Erin. Any of Erin's friends who have completed K-6th grade are invited to participate this year (even if you are not Presbyterian!!). The group will gather at 8:30 on Saturday, June 6 at the church for breakfast and a presentation on childhood cancer by Tammy Raulerson. Following the presentation, the kids and their parents will work on various mission projects at the church, including making lanyards for Erin's on-going project to fund neuroblastoma research. The day will conclude with swimming and pizza at the Thomas Pool Park. Leave me a message or email me if you would like more information for you and your child(ren).

Speaking of lanyards, we have had continued interest in making and selling beaded lanyards, necklaces, and eyeglasses chains:  I'm thinking about Erin's Dream:  Beaded Jewelry Inspired by Erin. To that end, I will have lanyard making workshops on Friday afternoons this summer at my house to build up the inventory for the start of the school year. You are all invited this Friday (May 29) for the kick off at 3:00. Parents are welcome to drop their kids off or stay if they would like to join in. Again, drop me a message or an e-mail if you want more information or if you have questions.

Finally, I am doing a few work-related things, even though I don't have to officially get back to my office until the fall semester starts. I've done a little committee work and some prepping for my fall classes. I am also reviewing a book manuscript for the A&M Press about the family that started the Fritos Company. If you look at the side bar, you will see a trivia question prompted by the first few pages of that manuscript. Vote in the poll, and I will reveal the answer to you next week.

Erin's kindergarten teacher reminded me what a wise-cracking kid she was even as a five year old. Here is Erin's autobiography from Mrs. Borski's 5's class in 2003, just as she was finishing up her initial treatment for NB (You'll note that some things never changed and other's changed significantly. You will also notice what a cradle robber I am):

Erin Channing Buenger is five years old and lives in Bryan. Her favorite restaurant is Gina's. She loves the Laura books, the color green, horses, and the song, "Swing Lo, Sweet Chariot." Her favorite thing at Kindergarten was the Gingerbread Hunt, and she learned the names of all the planets this year. Her favorite place to go on vacation is a farm. Erin's mom, age 60, works at the Business office at A&M, and her dad, age 20, works as the head person at the History office. When Erin grows up she will be 20 and she would like to be a veterinarian and a dog teacher. She thinks she would like to have four kids.