Perhaps a Surgery Delay?

So I got this text message from my bestie last night:

        ... but I just got a call from my gastroineroligist and according to a ct scan from a few days ago I have            multiple hernias.YAY!!!! So I am praying this doesn't suddenly mess up this whole surgery. FUCK ...

Of course, her health is the number one priority but I will admit that I was super stressed reading this, thinking that all of the plans we have made to drive to Seattle and proceed with the surgery on June 21st are in shambles.  I know that she needs to talk to her team at the hospital and until then ... we just don't know.  But if it delays the whole thing, then so be it.  I just hope that we can do the surgery soon (while she is in better health than what might be true a few months from now).

So now I am stressed but I guess I am always stressed.  A part of me will be super disappointed if this whole thing gets delayed but there isn't any way for me to control this situation.  What happens is going to happen.  The surgery has been feeling so "unreal" that maybe I knew that it wasn't going to happen on some level?  Or maybe I am just overthinking this whole thing?

The End of the Semester!

I think I must say this at the end of every semester but thank. god. we. are. almost. done.

Whew!  Since 2020, every semester has been a little hard.  I had great students this semester so it wasn't them that was causing any of the main issues -- I think I am just exhausted to the bone and that made it hard for me to keep my motivation.  I always try my very best with my classes but sometimes I felt during this past semester that it just wasn't enough.  To make matters worse, I ended up with Covid during Week 15 so I had to teach via Microsoft Teams for most of that week.  So many students didn't show up and I don't think even one student responded to my emails.  Sigh.  We had about a half of a week left by the time we came back and I tried to gain the momentum that we had in all of the classes but I feel like at this point that everyone was tired.  Most importantly for me, though, is that all my Covid testing is negative now!

For a few days I was super worried about whether having Covid was going to impact the donation or not.  Thankfully, I didn't have a major case (it just felt like I had a cold) so I am still able to donate and the surgery will be happening on June 21.

We are in the midst of finals at the moment and I am just waiting for some more final papers to be turned in.  I should be 100% finished with grades turned in by Thursday.  Then I can focus on creating a packing list for the drive to Seattle, squeezing in as many spin classes as I can, and finishing up some quilting projects.

So Let Me Try This Again ....

 I know that is is hard for me to just sit down and write, even if I know that it is something that will make me feel "better."  I keep trying to get a re-start on this blog and .. I keep failing.  I think that there is a lot going on for me right now -- the semester rapidly coming to an end, the kidney donation process becoming very real and almost upon me, and just life in general.

So let me take another go at this.  I mentioned before that last August (2021), I started the process of testing to see if I would be able to donate a kidney to my best friend.  There were a ton of tests before I could even get tissue matched (including a 24 hour urine collection which sounds just like what it is!).  Eventually, I was able to pass a bunch of tests and in late March 2022, Jim and I travelled to Seattle for something called an "Evaluation Day."  This is a full day of appointments to meet with an entire team of doctors to verify the health of my kidneys and of me in general.  In fact, just before I came, I was sent this list of appointments.  

That's a lot of doctors, right?  Most of the tests were pretty easy on my end though the 23 vials of bloodwork was a little daunting (I have never given that much blood at one time!).  I had to see the Hepatologist which was an addition to this day that others might not have to do because of some high numbers I was showing on some prior tests but we discovered that my body just normally has higher numbers and I am 100% normal.

The last appointment was with Dr. Kuhr who is Tanya's surgeon (and I think mine?).  He offered me this amazing 3D image of my own kidneys that was taken during this evaluation day (this is just a still):

Pretty damn cool, eh?  That is Ethel on the right (my left) and she is the one being donated to Tanya.  I am keeping Lucy who is on my right (but left in the picture above).

I ended up passing the Evaluation Day and we found out about a week later that Tanya and I were a perfect match.  What were the fucking chances?!  I mean, yikes!  I am still in shock that this is going to happen and I am both delighted and scared shitless.

So .., perhaps this blog can be a way for me to document what this journey is going to be like!

New Blog Direction: Kidney Donation

 So ... here it is a month later and I still haven't updated this blog!  But I had a thought -- since I just finished up a huge obstacle in terms of possibly donating a kidney, how about I focus on that as well as the teaching and researching that I would like to write about?!

My bestie, Tanya, has had Diabetes since she was young (I think 7?) but in the last dozen years or so, her body has been giving her a hell of a time.  Last summer she started talking about having to go on dialysis soon and she mentioned the long waiting list there is for a kidney donation.  Since I had cancer about 11-12 years ago, I was pretty sure that I wouldn't be able to step up and help but .... it turns out that you can donate if your breast cancer has been in remission for at least ten years (I think some forms of cancer keep you out of the donation pool no matter how many years you have been in remission).

So in early August 2021, I started the process.  I didn't understand at the time how long this would take.  Obviously, there were some screening calls early on (in terms of my health history) and then tests after tests after tests (including a 24 hour urine collection that was an interesting experience to say the least!).  At the time I was doing these tests, I was also getting an MRI done on my bum right knee so there ended up being mass confusion about insurance and who was getting the results (For the kidney process, I am working with Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle since (1) that is near where my bestie lives and (2) it is the transplant center she is working with).  

Long story short:  I went to an in person evaluation day in Seattle last week (March 30) and found out on Monday afternoon (April 4) that I have been approved to donate.  Now we just wait for the tissue matching with those results coming in next week.  I really, really, really hope that Tanya and I are a match.

Dianna is Back!

Currently Reading:  Chike and the River (Chinua Achebe)

There used to be a time when I would blog every couple of days.  I even wrote articles and read academic research and ... well, I did all the things.  And then I didn't.  I am not exactly sure what happened.  I do know that working on my PhD while working full time was exhausting and in many ways I feel like I "crawled" across the finish line in 2014 and just needed a break.  I never thought the break would be 8 years but that is what happened.

For the longest time, this blog was called "Dissertation Girl" because that is how I saw myself (Yes, I know that some folks might be offended at the "Girl" business but I liked it).  I felt like a new title was in order so it just made logical sense to rename this blog "PhD Teacher."  I would like to keep the same URL and so I didn't want a huge name change (though I leave myself the choice to do that if I want). As most folks know, I teach writing and I am always telling my students that we all need to write, including me, and so this blog is going to give me the space to get back to something I used to love -- writing.

Today is the Friday before Spring Break starts and I can't think of a better time to get back into blogging (even if no one else reads it!).  I thought I would also try to track what I am reading (or even watching). 

So this first entry is a start!  Stay tuned!

Ugh. January.

I am already stressing about keeping this blog updated and super stressed and we are at like, what, day 8 of the new year?

So what am I stressed out about?  Will it help to write this all down?

1.  Whisky.  Every walk with him is leaving me in tears lately.  He pulls so hard and I have been trying to train him with words but it isn't working.  He cowers at me when I say "no" and it makes going on a walk = the last thing I want to do.  But we need to help him get exercise because his puppy-ness leaves us tired.

2.  School.  I will be teaching in person in another week.  I have no idea when I will get a vaccination and I am terrified of catching COVID after we have been so careful for the past 9 months. I always feel a little nervous before a new semester (I so desperately want to be a "good" teacher, not just an "okay" teacher).

3.  Hemorrhoids.  I hate them and I need to see a doc soon because I am experiencing the worst problem with them that I have ever had. The big issue with this is that I no longer have a primary care physician and so I am not sure how I go about getting one.

4.  Our old place.  We want to put it on the market by Feb 1 but it is taking so long to get things done -- like painting, dealing with the floors, installing new appliances, etc.  I am terrified that we won't be able to sell it and will always be paying two mortgages.

5.  No sewing.  I just seem to have lost my mojo on this one.  I start a project and then never get past the second step.

Ugh.  This won't help with any of the above, but I need a glass of wine now.

New Year's Eve 2021

 I saw an advertisement back in November for a virtual sewing party on New Year's Eve and I thought ... why the hell not?  Perhaps this will help me get some of my "mojo" back in terms of motivation (especially in terms of sewing for myself and it being a pleasurable activity).  This was a joint party held by Sulky (a long-established machine embroidery company) and Sallie Tomato (a sewing pattern company by a young designer who has really taken off the last few years!).    It started at 8 PM EST and went to midnight EST (so an hour earlier for me here in the Central Time Zone!).

What got my attention was that this party was focused on creating a bag in about 3-4 hours called "The Zelda Bag" named after the infamous and seriously brilliant  Zelda Fitzgerald (the whole event had a 1920's theme to it!).  I also pre-ordered the kit so I didn't have to cut anything out.  Access to the event was $5.99 and then the kits itself was $39.99 (link here).  With the choice of color -- beige or charcoal -- I went for the charcoal and the machine embroidery option.  And I am a bit of a sucker for fringe!

So now that the event is over (welcome to the first morning of 2021!), what is my assessment of this whole event?  Though I said a ton of bad words (why did I think sewing late at night was a good idea?) and the pacing was fast to make sure completion happened before midnight, it was a great experience (and, luckily, my admission to the event includes the video that I can watch over and over again).  

Of course, being New Year's Eve, I had to start with a drink (and the pre-purchased kit came with some 1920's themed party favors).  My computer and desk area are a part of my new sewing studio so I was perfectly set up to watch and sew:

Thankfully, there were plenty of guests (as you can see from the picture above, there is apparently a "Sewing Cowboy"!).  I was glad for this because I needed to the time to catch up several times (and, yes, the seam ripper made a few appearances!).  I didn't win one of the awesome door prizes but fun was still had during the entire event.

Sure, I definitely made a few mistakes (I am always struggling with zipper tabs and how they fit into a bag's side seam) but I like the overall look.  Here is what I ended up with:

I am not crazy about the embroidery design that came with the bag but I like the overall design and this was the first time I ever added a fringe to something.  My machine struggled a little but I didn't have time to look for a plastic foot or tissue paper (two suggestions from the host to make this part easier).  The instructions was going so fast that I am curious to make another without the time pressure.

So there we go!  I ended 2020 with a crafty project!