Well, campers, I can't say it's been exactly a fun week. Details to follow.
Update on the BIG project, the move. The guest cabins are all but finished, just some junk that needs to be transferred to the dump.
"You said that last week. juvat! you slackin?"
Not exactly, Beans, you'll see why shortly. Whatever you do, after reading this don't eat anything you don't want to see again though.
Mrs J has been ruthless in getting rid of things. My office is quite uncluttered now. Hers should be by the time this is live. Kitchen is about 75% ready, just the island needs decluttering. however, we're holding that for a bit, it's where we have meals, read mail, deposit packages and so on. Rabbits don't reproduce as fast as "Stuff" does in that environment.
But...as I said, progress is being made.
One of the projects at the old house was to remove the old lumber from the deck. It had been sitting on the lawn for a couple of weeks. So, I finally got around to it.
No, not that kind!
I decide to pick up an armload of the lumber and put it in the bed of my truck. Then return and get another armload. I'm on trip 3, reach down to pick some more up.
I feel a very intense sting on the tip of my left ring finger. It felt like somebody had stuck me with a sewing needle. Hurt like hell, but the wound was extremely small and no blood.
So my first thought was scorpion. Unlike James Bond films, scorpion stings are not very deadly, so I didn't worry too much and finished loading. As I moved the last piece of wood, I noticed a spider nearby, it wasn't black, but tan, so I didn't think much about it. Silly me!
By the time I got back from the trash bin, my hand was throbbing and the tip of my ring finger was numb . Called an end to the workday (it was about 3:30) and put it on ice. In and out for about an hour, the ice hadn't seemed to help, so I decided to go to the Immediate Care clinic.
I got there just as they were closing. They sent me to the ER which was busy, so it took a while. When I got in, the nurse looked at my hand, which was now bright red down to the second knuckle. She called the Dr in who said this would fade away over the next few hours and released me.
RIIIGGGHHHTTTT!
Didn't sleep much that evening which didn’t help my mood much, so I called our Family Dr's office and talked his nurse into slipping me in. Including a picture of the hand might have done the trick as I saw him about an hour later.
In the interim, I did a bit of research on the symptoms. Didn't take long when a picture of a relative of my friend I had seen on the woodpile popped on the screen.
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| Source |
And one of those symptoms, very concerning, is something called necrosis. All of this I conveyed to the Doc.
He takes a look at it. There is now a black line going through the red (Fiery both in color and pain). I ask about that necrosis thing. He says that is concerning and that draining might be needed. He calls a friend who's an orthopedic surgeon, explains the situation and mention that he thinks necrosis might be starting. Can we get on his schedule quickly?
There"s a bit more doctor talk, then he turns to me and asks if the next morning will work.
Why yes, yes it will!
Wake up the next morning at 0600 for an 0645 prep and 0800 surgery. all goes well and by 0900, I'm woken from my beauty rest and prepped for release.
Dr was smiling when he came to check on me.
He also said to keep the wound clean and dry. Ziplock bag and duct tape seems to work.
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| Yeah, I know. Bandage needs changing. Mrs J is out running errands. This was taken as this post was being written |
Well, 5 days into this adventure, how's it going?
I'll let you be the judge.
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| Looks kinda gross, but it doesn't have as much black on it, so i got that going for me |
Follow up visit is a week from Wednesday. We'll see what's what then.
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| Borrowed this for the post title from this Source |
Peace out y'all!
P.S. I apologize for any Typos, Capitalization errors, or uncaught misspelled wrong words in this post. Typing with one hand is a bit much, fingers on the left are still numb. Hope (and pray) that feeling comes back soon.
Vitamin C IV . HARD,and Fast. I have taken a buncha chelation therapy to pull heavy metal. The doctor held court with us often. Six recliners, people in there from one to three hours, hooked up to IV s. Those damn things live in East Texas and she had a patient who encountered one. I don't remember the regimen, it was either 3 days in a,row,evaluate, decide,
ReplyDeleteHuh,,Howboutthat? Dr. Google is in.
Search
Vitamin c IV to treat fiddleback spider bite
Justin,
DeleteI appreciate the info and will look into it. If things start to go bad, I’ll mention it to the Doc.
Thanks
juvat
Grateful you thought for yourself and got a second opinion in a timely manner.
ReplyDeleteA gentile suggestion that protective garb might make you even more sweaty, takes time to put on correctly EVERY TIME and the other "reasons" I've heard as EMS over the decades.
JUST DO IT. Few spiders can bite through a decent work glove. Eye protection, let me not go there...
Michael,
DeleteYeah, I got in a hurry after finishing one project. Mrs J had a little bit more work on hers, so I decided to take care of the wood. Canvas work gloves were up in my workshop…and the rest is history. But, there will be another pair of gloves in my truck from now on.
juvat
I much prefer those funky gloves with armor-pads on the back and leather palms and fingertips. Much safer than canvas gloves as they'll cut down on the bruises and stuff.
DeleteAnd find some spider spray and nuke the area. It's the only way to be sure. (Bonus points if you know the movie I kind of referenced here.)
That would be Aliens. Watch that several (many several) times sitting alert at Osan AB ROK. Brings back memories, thanks.
Deletejuvat
UFF DA! As might be said by one neighbor who is of Norge descent......at least it didn't happen to that all important middle finger......:) Persistence pays off health wise juvat.
ReplyDeleteNylon, yeah walking around with arm in a sling and canted upwards, and THAT finger held extended might be, well, problematic!
ReplyDeleteI was a bit displeased about the ER routine. Based on the wait, they might have been busy, but at that point in the episode the pain level was high. So I might have been a bit cranky.
juvat
After several less-than-good ER visits involving me transporting Mrs. Andrew and them not being Johnny-on-the-spot, our mantra is "Call the Ambulance!!!" Because ERs prioritize people who arrive by the 'bus' over people who walk in, no matter how unserious the injuries of the person being transported are.
DeleteThe only exceptions are blood, lots of blood, like when you accidentally shove a huge knife through one's finger or your Lisinopril causes your tongue to swell and start occluding the airway.
Other modifiers are if they find out you're diabetic and they take your blood sugar and it's high. They'll automatically assume that you are experiencing high blood sugars and that's the reason you're in the ER. Not the obvious signs of a stroke or a deep brain bleed or an infected gall bladder or a ruptured hernia or cancer or... Because nobody in the medical world seems to understand that physical injuries or infections cause... blood sugars to rise. Stress causes blood sugars to rise. Physical injuries or infections are... sources of stress. Only doing things like projectile vomiting (like one experiences from brain injuries caused by strokes or deep brain bleeds or concussions) will get the medicos to start looking past the 'Obviously elevated blood sugars because patient isn't managing patient's blood sugars and/or eating too much.
No. Never have I personally seen or experienced any of the above... Grrrr...
And, yes, a Brown Recluse spider bite is an emergency.
Beans,
DeleteYour Paragraph 3 above. That’s exactly what happened. Which probably contributed to the release from the ER. When I haven’t eaten since Breakfast and my numbers are as high as they were , well, 2+2 does NOT 220. But fortunately other persons kept things on track.
juvat
I wonder if that ER doc was the same veterinarian they had at my ER when I bashed in my noggin. Poke, prod, press.... "No soft spots, you're good. Mind if I shave a spot for some glue?" "Knock yourself out, doc.... hehehhee..." "Patient's sense of irony still intact...."
ReplyDeleteSTxAR,
DeleteCould be. Don’t know how many DRs they have on the ER staff. I also don’t know how many other patients he had, so I’ll cut him some slack. Now that I’m not in pain and seem to be on the mend anyway.
juvat
Goodness Juvat - I hope you heal up quickly!
ReplyDeleteGood reminder to always be conscious of such things (says the guy who is often not conscious of such things...).
THBB
DeleteYep, that “many a slip twixt cup and the lip” comes to mind.I learned a lesson and shall endeavor to remember it.
But I can’t make any promises, unfortunately!
juvat
Wow! Nasty looking, both the before and after pictures. Hang in there!
ReplyDeleteYeah, but the after (surgery) picture, while a tad gruesome, is better than the prior ones. At least from my point of view. Thanks, will do!
Deletejuvat
Reason # 432 of "Why I Won't Live in Texas." (Australia's list is way longer!)
ReplyDeleteWhat is it with carpenters and fingers?
I'd like to offer this, there are old carpenters and there are bold carpenters ... (You know the rest!)
Seriously, watch where you put your hands! (Like you've never heard that before. 😉)
Well, this time I wasn’t wearing my carpenter uniform, rather my garbageman one, but the old/bold comment is still valid.
DeleteAmazing! My wife says the same thing!
😏
juvat
🤣
DeleteSpiders... Why'd it have to be spiders?
ReplyDeleteSnakes are no problem for me, but spiders trigger my pre-lizard brain.
DV,
DeleteWell brown recluse has passed black widow into the #1 position on most hated insect list now tha’s for sure!
juvat
Never crossed with a "brown" but those damned black widows love the warm machinery I work on, I deal with them, all the time. I could probably take a lap around my house and find a dozen or more. But I don't want to...
DeleteDV,
DeleteI can understand that!
juvat
for the future:
ReplyDeletewhen I was still living in (semi?)- rural Orygun and the wifely unit found jobs for me to do (moving excrement as well as accumulations) out of storage in our RV garage, I'd spray (a very noxious chemical fatal to all members of the bug genera) on Saturday (early AM) and move the stuff on Sunday.
Feel better soon.
BTW: My former MD (old Army bird colonel now ret'd to Paris - only G-d knows why) advised me that certain of these (recluse) spider bites contain a chemical (protein) in their venom that's linked to cardiac problems; please have your MD watch you carefully over the coming year.
Boron, Thank you for passing on that info. I will definitely discuss that with the family Doc as well as my cardiologist on next visits.
Deletejuvat
The venom also has a tendency to mess up the circulation in the area and the attached area and...
DeleteHate Brown Recluses. Fire. Poison. Sledgehammer. Tungsten penetrators dropped from orbit. Hate those damned things.
Beans, Me too!
Deletejuvat
I wouldn't say I'm particularly afraid of snakes or spiders, but your bite did give me a solid case of the willies, complete with shiver up my spine. Never a dull moment in your household. As for typos and one-armed typing, might I recommend dictating? I open a note app on my phone, speak what I want my post to say, then copy it into blogger (either direct to the app, or emailed from my computer). I still have to edit, but I can speak faster than I type so it still saves me time.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of computers, brand new one from COSTCO, a Lenovo thinkpad. Damn USB-C charging cord won't charge it, but same cord works on my wife's computer and my phone, so it's computer related. It worked 2 days ago, but not now. Any suggestions?
Tuna, I'd say take the computer back. If the cord charges other devices with similar power requirements and not yours, then the problem is with the computer, especially if it came with the computer. You might also google the charging requirements power wise of the computer and buy a charging cable with those reqs. (e.g. the cale has enough ummphh to power the other devices but yours requires more.). That might work.
Deletejuvat
Especially if the cord came with the computer.
DeleteJuvat
Yes, it did. Damn. Thanks
DeleteAnd stay away from Lenovo. Not the bestest brand out there. Price is nice though.
DeleteThe majority of ThinkPads are manufactured in Mexico, Slovakia, India, and China. Not exactly nations known for their high standards of quality control. In my experience, Lenovos are to be avoided, like the plaque. There's a reason they're cheap.
DeleteI’ll add a third down vote!
Deletejuvat
OUCH!! Glad the pain is better.
ReplyDeleteI have a thing about not walking out of the house without a pair of leather gloves either in my hand, on my hands, or in my back hip pocket...cause I am not a fan of splinters, blisters, or bites. Most especially if I am gonna be sticking my hands into places I can't see. Especially on "work days" when I am putzing around the place. Cause I am lazy, and will not walk my butt back to the house to grab a pair of gloves...and I got tired of having to call off work as we were not allowed to do patient care with open wounds on our hands...gets the patients cranky to see the nurse with dressings on---imagine that, right?!?!! So now that I am retired, it is an ingrained habit. One I think I will keep after seeing your "after" photo. Glad you were able to get in to see YOUR doc!!
Stupid spiders!!
Feel better!!
Suz
Thanks Suz. I consider Doc’s nurse a good friend and been on the up and up with her during the pre-doc check up portion of a visit. So when I called and left a message with a bit of what happened and what’s happening now, she called back within about 10 minutes. Pays to be nice, always!
Deletejuvat
Full sympathy and empathy.
ReplyDeleteMy Brown Recluse bite was on forehead over my left eye. Left eye swollen shut. No necrosis but head from eyebrow to mid-skull numb for weeks. Took 3 days before left eye fully open. Doc at dispensary had me visit before and after shift for a few days; "To make sure things don't get worse."
Oh man! Glad things worked out for you, also glad it was a finger not a cranium.
Deletejuvat
Reminds one of the old HeeHaw song, "If it wasn't for bad luck, Id have no luck at all".
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAAKPJEq1Ew
Yep pretty much sums it up!
Deletejuvat
I like to avoid all spiders and snakes (not being bright enough to tell harmless from dangerous). Nasty slooking stuff there.
ReplyDeleteI thought you had prior qualifications for do it yourself finger tip surgery, or maybe that was someone else who likes to make big wood into sawdust.
In any case, get well soon, and be sure to resist the temptation to press that digit into service too soon and get infected or something.
JB
JB, unfortunately I did have a close encounter with a tables saw. Fortunately it wasn’t a very deep cut and the immediate care clinic was able to sew it up. It’s sense of feel isn’t perfect, but not near as bad as my other hand now. We’ll see how thing evolve.
Deletejuvat
Just glad you 'caught' it before it got too far. And yes, looks bad but better than what it would have!
ReplyDeleteOld NFO, yeah I did get a bit concerned when the finger started turning black. Heck, I’m had a hard enough time doing things with my previous condition ( a slightly numb right thumb). Dealing with necrosis in the second hand would be difficult with a capita difficult. Things are looking up. We’ll see a week from Wednesday.
Deletejuvat
Ouch!
ReplyDeleteAmen!
Delete