From haldeman at earthlink.net Thu Oct 1 11:31:10 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Thu, 1 Oct 2009 11:31:10 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Thursday 10/1 update Message-ID: <13716399.1254411070494.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Thur. 10/1 11:30AM The pulmonary doc was encouraging yesterday, telling me all signs were just a little better. Last night Joe's fever was up above 104 again, though. Right now it's 101. The same doc is still weaning him slowly from the ventilator, a small amount at a time. So far so good. He's still critical but stable. I went to dinner with the CFG (Cincinnati Fan Group) last night, 11 of us if I remember correctly. My friend from Gainesville Doris Nabors is coming in today, just for a couple of days, bringing hugs. It'll be great to see her. Carolyn Doyle, who's in culinary school, is bringing dinner tonight. One more day. From haldeman at earthlink.net Fri Oct 2 12:57:48 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Fri, 2 Oct 2009 12:57:48 -0400 Subject: Fri 10/2 noon update Message-ID: <64ADAC1F-1B3F-4C33-B055-9840E49135EA@earthlink.net> Joe's about the same, though they had to turn the respirator back up. He's working too hard to breathe. This is not unusual. The doc will try again over the next few days, then do a trachiostomy if he can't get off the machine. It's temporary, he can be less sedated then and able to talk. His white cell count is down, his fever is at 101 and didn't get high over night. He was (too) alert just now, but I was able to talk to him and he understood. The nurse is giving him more medicine so he isn't bothered by all the tubes down his throat, poor dear. It's a waiting game. Love, Gay -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.mit.edu/pipermail/haldeman-announce/attachments/20091002/0683868e/attachment.htm From haldeman at earthlink.net Sat Oct 3 15:34:57 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sat, 3 Oct 2009 15:34:57 -0400 Subject: Sat 10/3 update Message-ID: <358F2EC8-E057-4182-920A-141D9EADE7DA@earthlink.net> Sat 10/3 3PM Joe had a CT scan this morning. I've been waiting for the results, but may not hear anything until tomorrow, so I decided to update now. He's still in ICU, on the respirator, running a fever of 102. They did turn the respirator down a small amount, to try again to get him off it. He's been really sound asleep most of the day, a good thing I think. His digestive system seems to be working fine. They took one of the drain tubes out. He's getting some food through a nose tube, bypassing his stomach and pancreas. I had dinner last night with Doris Nabors' college roommate Linda Tule and her husband Lynn. Comfort food! We had a wonderful time. Boy, there are some great people around Cincinnati! Love, Gay -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.mit.edu/pipermail/haldeman-announce/attachments/20091003/ddae06c6/attachment.htm From haldeman at earthlink.net Sat Oct 3 16:03:50 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sat, 3 Oct 2009 16:03:50 -0400 Subject: Sat 10/3 update 2 Message-ID: <519280A9-0D27-472C-8344-70C35D87130A@earthlink.net> Just got the CT scan report. There is stuff going on around his pancreas, but nothing that requires more surgery at this time. Swelling is down. The hope is that time will heal everything. He's definitely holding his own and not losing ground. Gay -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.mit.edu/pipermail/haldeman-announce/attachments/20091003/b8b6acaa/attachment.htm From haldeman at earthlink.net Sun Oct 4 14:31:34 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sun, 4 Oct 2009 14:31:34 -0400 (EDT) Subject: Sunday Oct 4 update Message-ID: <27418972.1254681094707.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Oct. 4 Sun No change today. Still fever, icu, respirator. They'll be doing a tracheostomy tomorrow; sorry they have to, but they say he'll be more comfortable and it's temporary. Wonderful dinner at the condo last night. Carolyn Doyle and Dave Rowe brought Mexican. My sister Wendi Swidler arrives today, any minute. I can't wait to see her. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Mon Oct 5 13:27:22 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Mon, 5 Oct 2009 13:27:22 -0400 Subject: Monday 10/5 update Message-ID: <917F0F67-6437-4984-978A-32285D51CB1C@earthlink.net> Joe's fever is down a little and didn't spike over night, a good sign. The pulmonary doc says his lungs are clear. They're going to do the tracheostomy tomorrow afternoon. He's still out of it. My sister Wendi is here and great company. We went out to dinner with Becca and Guy last night, to New Krishna, a fine Indian restaurant. Love Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Tue Oct 6 18:13:39 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2009 18:13:39 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: Tues Oct 6 update Message-ID: <15703265.1254867219012.JavaMail.root@mswamui-valley.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Still fever, still ICU. Joe had the tracheostomy this afternoon. He came through fine and looks more relaxed, with that tube out of his throat. They?ll keep him sedated tonight to recover, then will begin letting up on the sedation tomorrow. We'll see how that goes. I'm hoping this is a strong turn for the better. We'll see. One day at a time. Guy and Becca loaned me a car! I returned my expensive rental car today. My wonderful sister leaves tomorrow and my wonderful niece Lorena and her husband Tim come in tomorrow. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Thu Oct 8 19:09:28 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2009 19:09:28 -0400 Subject: Thurs 10/8 update Message-ID: <83ED7F22-96BF-495B-A80F-4135E66CADC0@earthlink.net> Thurs 10/8 Went in to see Joe for a few minutes and found him asleep. Temp 99, respirator turned down a bit, food intake up a bit, all good. He heard niece Lorena talking, turned to look at her and smiled. Smiled at me and squeezed my hand. We explained, again, that he couldn't raise his hands because he had a gastric tube down his throat and a trach tube and they didn't want him to touch them. He mouthed "Oh, shit." Smiled after that. Next week they plan to move him to an acute care rehab facility, a step down from the ICU, not too far, with an emphasis on rehab. I have to decide which of three would be best. I'll go visit each over the weekend. After three hours with Joe and nurses and social workers, Tim, Lore, Rusty & I went to the Cincinnati Zoo. Of course it poured down rain the whole time. We bought ponchos and had the zoo to ourselves. Enjoyed giraffes, elephants, bears, tigers, lynxes, rhinos. Ate ice cream afterward. From haldeman at earthlink.net Fri Oct 9 15:45:41 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Fri, 9 Oct 2009 15:45:41 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: Oct 9, Fri, update Message-ID: <28493781.1255117541751.JavaMail.root@mswamui-valley.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Oct 9, Fri. Joe seems a little better. They cranked his bed up to almost a sitting position to give him a chance to get used to that. May get him into a chair soon. They're not moving him out soon. They're reducing the vein feeding and increasing the nose tube feeding, all good. Also reduced the respirator a bit, tolerated so far. Kelly the social worker came in and talked to him; when he responded she gushed about how good it was to finally meet him. He grinned and made a kissing motion. She said she'd tell his wife and he laughed. She couldn't wait to tell me about it. Went with Lore, Tim and Rusty to Jungle Jim's crazy grocery store. What a place! Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Sat Oct 10 20:25:39 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sat, 10 Oct 2009 20:25:39 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: Oct 10, Sat, update Message-ID: <15599697.1255220739848.JavaMail.root@mswamui-valley.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Oct 10, Sat.Good Boston friend Jag Patel arrived. Joe was agitated until Jag and I figured out (duh) he wanted to know what had happened to him & what the prognosis is. He smiled when he saw Jag. Food only through the feeding tube now & they increased it. Respirator down a little more. Fever almost normal. Less pain med. All good. Went with Jag, Becca & Karol Brown to look at acute rehab places. Please don't send anything to Bethesda North Hospital anymore. I don't know when he'll be moved. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Sun Oct 11 18:18:47 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sun, 11 Oct 2009 18:18:47 -0400 Subject: Sun 10/11 update Message-ID: <1B3B15A1-59BF-49A7-A1DB-3B2B2DC448C8@earthlink.net> Sun 10/11 My birthday and Lore's. Joe is awake and aware of us. They moved him from the ICU to the Transitional Care Unit. 3 patients per nurse, rather than 2 patients per nurse. A nice BD present. Fewer tubes and needles. Temp is almost normal, though it was up a bit earlier. Giving him more food through the nasal tube. Tomorrow they have to do some minor surgery on his incision, pretty normal they tell me. They'll also evaluate his ability to swallow. They weren't able to reduce his respirator today, but maybe tomorrow. For our BDs, Lore, Tim, Rusty, Tim's parents & sister Jenny & Jag are going out for a fancy dinner. From haldeman at earthlink.net Mon Oct 12 15:22:39 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:22:39 -0400 Subject: Mon 10/12 update Message-ID: <8F603499-EFBD-45DD-915D-4CAF5895CF5D@earthlink.net> Mon 10/12 The best day so far. Found Joe wide awake. He was evaluated for swallowing with apple sauce, juice and a graham cracker.He rolled his eyes and made happy faces when he had food in his mouth. When the speech therapist asked him to smile, he made exaggerated monster teeth faces and cracked everyone up. He's been cleared for a soft diet. If his pancreas enzymes stay down, he'll eat on his own and be unhooked from the gastric tube. The whole visiting family got to interact with him. Physical Therapy showed up, sat him on the edge of the bed for a while and he did well. He paid attention as I was given a lesson in caring for his iliostomy. He made writing motions, so we dug out the dry erase board Tim's sister Jenny gave us. Jag asked him if there was anything she could send him. He pointed, slowly, letter by letter, to W-O-R-L-D P-E- A... before we caught on. A lovely day so far! It's like a giant leap forward. The whole group, minus Joe, went out for ice cream at Aglamesis before dispersing in five directions. Last night we had a fabulous birthday dinner at Eddie Merlot's Restaurant. Thanks so much for all the good wishes. They really help. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Tue Oct 13 12:03:47 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:03:47 -0400 Subject: 10/13 Tues update Message-ID: <81E7B389-52F0-4801-B51B-4923ACF8F410@earthlink.net> Tues 10/13 In his room right now, noon. Set up the iPod and he has a smile on his face, listening to Jack Williams. PT sat him on the side of the bed. A chair tomorrow. He's on a trach cuff now, room air plus oxygen. The cuff was moved aside and he's tolerating room air alone just fine. Yay! No fever. Yay! Real food. Yay! Haven't had much conversation yet. PT wore him out. Love, Gay -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.mit.edu/pipermail/haldeman-announce/attachments/20091013/d9d1fb11/attachment.htm From haldeman at earthlink.net Wed Oct 14 16:25:03 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:25:03 -0400 Subject: 10/14 Wed update Message-ID: <8D9AA9A0-60FE-4B03-9010-A477FA0ED308@earthlink.net> 10/14 Wed Joe's still doing well, though weak. Sat in a chair for the first time. Catheter is gone. Still has gastric tube, but is eating a little. He has a speaking valve & uses it well, though it tires him out. They're moving him tomorrow to Drake Rehab Hospital. When the nurse was checking his blood sugar, I asked where his sugar was. Joe said, "She's sitting over there," pointing at me. He had the nurse call me this morning to bring the laptop, said he was bored. As soon as we got there, though, the parade of nurses and therapists started and wore him out. He did see all the cards that've been piling up, finally. He laughed at each of the funny ones. One more step forward, none back so far. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Thu Oct 15 17:26:58 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:26:58 -0400 Subject: 10/15 Thurs update Message-ID: 10/15 Thurs update. Joe moved to Drake Center, 151 W. Galbraith Rd., Cincinnati, OH 45216. Private room. The transition was smooth, though tiring. He's being assessed by everyone, so people were in and out interacting with him all day. Everyone seems upbeat and happy. The gastric tube is out, so he's trying to eat more and the food is better. He's stronger today, able to shift in bed and hold a fork. He even read a couple of e-mails and the comics. Seems like a good place for him right now. Dinner with Denise and Steve Leigh for Rusty and me. I'm exhausted but thrilled at how well Joe's doing. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Fri Oct 16 18:39:51 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:39:51 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/16 Fri update Message-ID: <6074197.1255732791296.JavaMail.root@elwamui-ovcar.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Mike Glicksohn came in for a visit, from Toronto. Joe was delighted to see him. As we arrived, the OT lady was having Joe put on his own pants and he succeeded. Then she got him on his feet long enough to transfer to a tall wheelchair, where he sat up for over an hour. The pulmonary doc started him on the protocol to get off the trach tube. First, they cap it for four hours, to see if he breathes okay without any help. He's doing fine. Tomorrow, it's 8 hours; then 12. If all goes well, they'll pull the tube on Tuesday or Wednesday. He fell sound asleep after all the activity, so we went to Guy and Becca's for a quick visit. Then came back to find him wide-awake and alert. He'd received an Edible Arrangements bouquet that smelled wonderful, full of different kinds of fruit. I had to get permission to give him any, but we were finally able to cut it up small & let him have some. Strawberries, cantaloupe, honeydew, oh my. He ate until he didn't want any more. Just then his dinner arrived; he ate most of it, for the first time. I think the fruit was an appetite stimulant. I forgot to mention yesterday: One doctor came in and asked who Rusty was. Joe said he didn't know; that guy was here when he arrived. Today the nurses thought Joe, Mike and Rusty were all related. I think it had something to do with the gray beards. From haldeman at earthlink.net Sat Oct 17 18:03:10 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:03:10 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/17 Sat update Message-ID: <11428059.1255816990599.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe's doing well. He sat up in a wheelchair for an hour and we wheeled him around the hospital ward. He enjoyed looking out at the beautiful leaves and sky. No therapy on weekends. He played two hands of 7 card stud and won one (Rusty won the other). He talked about beauty, love, death, Hemingway, like his old self. Ate okay, loved some more of the fruit he had yesterday. Still weak, but progressing. Tonight we're ordering pizza for the gang, Mike G., Rusty, Brandy, Christina, Frank Johnson & Steve & Denise. From haldeman at earthlink.net Sun Oct 18 19:19:07 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2009 19:19:07 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/18 Sun update Message-ID: <26311450.1255907947638.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> 10/18 Sun update Joe sat up an hour today. We took him around to see the little aviary, full of finches and a canary. He ate well all day. Lots of company today, and he held up okay, letting everyone else do most of the talking. He spoke on the phone twice. He's clearly stronger, though he's frustrated to be so weak. Looks like he's lost 30 pounds on the famous ICU (lack of) diet. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Mon Oct 19 17:47:08 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:47:08 -0400 (EDT) Subject: 10/19 Mon update Message-ID: <19174963.1255988828810.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Yesterday, Joe really didn't eat the finches? Brandy and Christina went in to see Joe this morning and I went for a walk around Sharon Woods Park. He spent an hour in the wheelchair with them. I met them for lunch, then went up to watch his PT session. He wheeled his own chair down the hall, stood with help and walked 6 small steps. Then he sat a while, then stood once more. He stayed in the chair for a little while, but was exhausted. A really good job for his first full PT session. He still can't sit up on the edge of the bed without help, but soon will be able to. Slow but surely. It was wonderful to see him standing and walking. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Tue Oct 20 20:20:45 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Tue, 20 Oct 2009 20:20:45 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/20 Tues update Message-ID: <20638767.1256084445737.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> 10/20 Tues update Brandy & Christina went in to see Joe this morning and I took another lovely walk in Sharon Woods Park. Rusty and I met them for lunch, then we all went up to see Joe. He worked a little longer with PT this morning, mostly standing and sitting. Still can't quite sit himself up on the edge of the bed. They plan to remove the trach tube tomorrow. He ate well and talked a lot, about writing, teaching, poetry and what happens next. Read the newspaper. Fell asleep trying to read e-mail. We wheeled him outside into the nice atrium, wrapped in a blanket, for just a few minutes. Great to be in the sunshine, he said. He was up in the wheelchair three times today. Hope that means he'll sleep well tonight. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Wed Oct 21 20:56:49 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:56:49 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/21 Wednesday update Message-ID: <13499742.1256173009671.JavaMail.root@elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe walked with a walker today, just a few steps. They pulled out his trach tube (easily). Now his throat whistles when he talks, but that'll heal up quickly. He passed the barium swallowing test, so he can have real food instead of "dental soft" food. And real water and juice instead of thickened water and juice, yuck. He was able to read quite a bit of a book for the first time, too, and watched a whole movie on TV. They made him play with a medicine ball, throwing it back and forth and wore him right out. I drove Rusty up to Dayton to get his mail. He's off to be toastmaster at ICON in Iowa City tomorrow. Thanks for all the messages and cards and stuff. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Thu Oct 22 19:33:08 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:33:08 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/22 Thurs update Message-ID: <7109495.1256254388900.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> A small setback this morning. While walking between parallel bars, something pulled in Joe's abdomen. He kept going, but It hurt so badly, he had to stop. Turns out something in his wound-repair vacuum system had let go (this is a futuristic fast-healing vacuum device that involves a machine, aluminum, collagen and I don't what else). Everyone hopped around and fixed it, but it still hurt some this evening. In spite of this, he got up and let me wheel him around the outside of the Center, to look at the beautiful yellow, red, orange leaves. He was up for almost two hours, exhausted, but his reward was a complete sponge bath. So with luck it wasn't a big setback. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Fri Oct 23 20:05:26 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Fri, 23 Oct 2009 20:05:26 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/23 Fri update Message-ID: <8674741.1256342726293.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe was tired and wobbly at 10 this morning as he started PT. He stood twice, for two minutes each time, and did an arm exercise with bicycle pedals. It seems that the wound team had just spent quite a while with him, cleaning his incision and readjusting the wound vac. It turns out he has an infection in the incision. He was droopy all day, at least partly psychologically. He reluctantly let me get him up for an hour in the afternoon and we wheeled to the cafeteria for coffee. He worked on a crossword puzzle for a while. The speech therapist found us there and taught him another exercise to strengthen his swallowing muscles. At 5, they put in an IV connection to start antibiotics while they wait for a culture to determine exactly what kind of infection it is. His spirits were much better by then. So were mine. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Sat Oct 24 20:30:58 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2009 20:30:58 -0400 (EDT) Subject: 10/24 Sat update Message-ID: <5218578.1256430658220.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe was in much better shape this morning. He was already up in his wheelchair, about to wheel himself out of the room when I arrived. Escaping, he said. We went down to the cafeteria for coffee. He was in good spirits. In the afternoon, Steve Leigh dropped by and Joe did most of the talking for over an hour. He rested a while, then got up in the chair again for a spin around the hallways. He ate dinner sitting up, then collapsed for the night. He's been practicing his handwriting, trying to get his muscle tone back. Here's the poem he wrote: The pancreas, a curious beast Has functions hard to scry. It sits around for sixty years Then tries to say "bye-bye." Yesterday I forgot to mention the two therapy dogs we met in the hallway. They helped both of us to feel better. A beautiful little shelty and a Cavalier King Charles spaniel. Joe realty enjoyed petting them both. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Sun Oct 25 21:29:41 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sun, 25 Oct 2009 21:29:41 -0400 (EDT) Subject: 10/25 Sun update Message-ID: <13141965.1256520581594.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe was up for two hours this morning. When I came in at 11:30, we went to the cafeteria. He had a diet Coke while I ate lunch & we read the Sunday paper together. Back in his room, Joe took the beard trimmer and trimmed his beard and shaved around the edges. He ate lunch up in the chair. I was dragging, so I left him to nap and returned to the condo, where I took a nap. Then I went to Steve and Denise's for a wonderful salmon dinner and kitty and doggy fix. Then back to the hospital, where I found Joe in good spirits. He'd been in the chair for another two hours. He was about to fold up when I left. All good. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Mon Oct 26 21:21:04 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 21:21:04 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/26 Mon update Message-ID: <25526889.1256606464353.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe walked about a block with a walker and two lovely assistants. An ol' high school buddy, Bill Forlines, came by with his wife Martha for a visit. Later in the day, Joe did some upper body exercises. He was tired ( "Why is the gravity so strong on this planet?"), but he bounced back quickly. He was able to stand up and transfer himself from the chair to the bed without help for the first time. Rusty came back from Icon, tired but okay. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Tue Oct 27 20:41:44 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:41:44 -0400 (EDT) Subject: 10/27 Tues update Message-ID: <13378926.1256690504762.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> They piled PT and OT and a CT scan all together on Joe today and really wore him out. Hours up in the chair without a break. The good news is that he recovered pretty well. Chris Barkley stopped by and so did Joel Zakem. The doc said Joe may be getting out of the hospital soon. We don't yet know what soon means. Bet we won't have much notice, but we're excited. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Wed Oct 28 22:03:01 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:03:01 -0400 (EDT) Subject: 10/28 Wed update Message-ID: <29561477.1256781781025.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe had a rough day. They removed a lot of adhesive tape from his abdomen, taking too much hair with it. The wound vac is gone, though, a good thing. Then they had to reset his IV, involving more adhesive and hair pulling. He did well in PT and OT, cracking jokes the whole time. Yesterday's CT scan showed fluid around his pancreas; we don't yet know what that will mean, but I read that it's common. May cause problems, may not. He was returned to a regular diet?no more soft food! Rusty and I went to dinner with the Cincinnati Fan Group at a nice Mexican restaurant. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Thu Oct 29 21:08:59 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:08:59 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/29 Thurs update Message-ID: <12745432.1256864939462.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe worked hard at PT & OT this morning. He seemed tired all day, but ate well and got up and let me push his chair around the hospital a couple of times. We even got out into the sunshine, among the remaining fall leaves, still pretty. We both enjoyed our friend Christine Valada on "Jeopardy," winning, too. Chinese dinner for me, with Guy & Becca. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Fri Oct 30 22:03:21 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Fri, 30 Oct 2009 22:03:21 -0400 (GMT-04:00) Subject: 10/30 Fri update Message-ID: <27459377.1256954601134.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Joe's not feeling well today. I suspect it's just been a long, hard week. He's in similar shape to the way he was last Friday, tired, achy and depressed. Not a surprise. The speech therapist has released him. He's eating okay. I spent most of the day running Rusty to Dayton for routine medical appointments, so I'm tired, too. Also to be expected. Love, Gay From haldeman at earthlink.net Sat Oct 31 23:46:18 2009 From: haldeman at earthlink.net (Joe Haldeman) Date: Sat, 31 Oct 2009 23:46:18 -0400 (EDT) Subject: 10/31 Sat update Message-ID: <17396754.1257047178852.JavaMail.root@mswamui-chipeau.atl.sa.earthlink.net> Happy Halloween, everyone. The doctor thinks Joe may have the flu, sigh. I'm okay so far. Joe has chills, fever, weakness and aches all over. We'll see. I was finally able to get my flu shot today. I had a nice lunch at New Dharma with Carolyn Doyle and Dave Rowe, then went to a lovely Halloween party at Denise and Steve Leigh's. Love, Gay