You don't expect your life to change overnight. Nobody ever does, but it happens all the time. Last night it happened to me.
It could be a lot worse, but naturally I'd have preferred that it not happen at all. Yesterday afternoon it seemed like the right side of my tongue wasn't tasting properly. I noticed it first with water. I love drinking water. It concerned me enough by evening that I tried a teaspoon full of sugar, then a dab of salt. I could taste them, but it still seemed like it was weak on my right side.
Well, what to do? It wasn't any big deal. I don't have a sense of smell, so the contrast wasn't huge, really. I went to bed.
This morning I woke up and twitched my nose. Left side worked fine. Right side didn't. Weird. I can curl my tongue the way one does for long distance watermelon seed spitting. I tried. The left side curled. The right side didn't. I can wink quite well with either eye. I tried that. The left side worked. The right side didn't. I can flare my nostrils at will. Same result. I can raise my eyebrows. Same result. The right side of my face was simply weak.
Fearing that despite being relatively young (mid 30's) the worst had happened, I called the on call doctor. He was very nice and asked about symptoms. I described them, and he said it seemed much more like Bell's Palsy than a stroke. I had heard of Bell's Palsy because it was what my Dad insisted he'd had after he had an actual stroke. Unlike him, I had no weakness in my limbs on the affected side, nor loss of sensation. Also, it turns out that for some reason, stroke paralysis doesn't usually affect the eyebrow on the affected side. Bell's Palsy does. My eyebrow was affected.
We took a trip to the Emergency Room, since no matter what, immediate treatment is important. They confirmed it was Bell's Palsy, and sent me home with antiviral medication and steroids to reduce any inflammation. Textbook treatment for a textbook case of Bell's Palsy--it was precisely what the on call doctor had said was likely.
Not having much sense of taste is really odd. Now I think I know what people who lose their sense of smell must go through. I've never had one, so I know I'm missing things, but it's not a huge deal to me. Food pretty much tastes like cardboard. The joy has gone out of eating. On the bright side, at least it will be easy to lose weight.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Saturday, February 20, 2010
King Tutankhamun and the California Academy of Sciences
A month or so ago, a coworker told me about a delightful visit to the Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibit at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. Knowing I had this week off, I talked about it with Bubbles and we decided that not only did we want to see it, but Spawn would have a delightful time. Since that visit is only about an hour and a half, we decided to spend the rest of the day at the California Academy of Sciences.
The trip was fantastic. The drive involved very light traffic, which is rare and really pleasant when driving into San Francisco. We arrived before 9:30, found a perfect parking spot (right next to the stairs up to the Academy of Sciences), and went and got tickets to get into the California Academy of Sciences (which I'll abbreviate CAS for the rest of the post).
We had enough time to line up and go see the Tropical Rain Forest exhibit. It's in a massive plexiglass globe that's kept hot and humid. I nearly died, since I hate those conditions, but it was worth the oppressive conditions to see the plants and animals. Near the lowest level were two gorgeous macaws that make a tremendous amount of noise (you can't hear it outside the globe). No flashes are permitted in the exhibit, so some of the pictures aren't great, but if you live close, go see them.
We saw and photographed more than I wanted to upload and post, but I'll show a few things. The globe is filled with beautiful smaller birds, incredible butterflies and small enclosures with rain forest creatures living in them.
Spawn loved it, and posed at the top for a picture.
Once we got through the Rain Forest, it was time to rush over to the de Young Museum. Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs was amazing. You're probably aware Tutankhamun really was a footnote in history and we'd probably never hear his name except that his tomb was discovered undisturbed by grave robbers, so we have a ton of artifacts from it, and they're incredible.
The first six galleries of the exhibit take you through the history leading up to Tutankhamun's brief reign. The artifacts are amazing, and text presentations on the walls put them in historical context. You can't take pictures in the exhibit, and there's too much to post anyway, but I found this tour preview. I'll post a few of my favorites since the link will probably eventually expire.
This little shrine was amazing:
The craftsmanship on all the items we saw was remarkable. Doing all of it by hand kind of boggles the mind.
Many of the artifacts were carved from stone and decorated. Here's an example of a jar that probably held cosmetics.
The last four galleries were artifacts from Tutankhamun's tomb. It's hard to describe, because it's so much information and so much to see.
The actual sarcophagus and death mask are not on tour anymore--Egypt declared them national treasures and too delicate to move any longer, so they're on permanent display in the Cairo museum, I believe.
They do have videos of them including details you'd never get close enough to see in a physical exhibit anyway. They do have a coffin on display that contained his liver (evidently he got better than the standard canopic jar).
Bubbles was impressed by the falcon pectoral piece that was on the mummy's chest in one of the layers.
The reason it's so impressive is how thin it is. The gold must have been carefully beaten to an almost delicate thickness and then decorated. You can't tell that from the pictures, really.
I was impressed by the inlays done in the gold, wood and stone.
Some of the stone statuettes are in incredible states of preservation. I can't believe a wooden artifact can last that long. Naturally if flesh can, wood can, but it's still a bit of a surprise. Egypt's dry environment and the preparation work by artisans yield remarkable results.
I'm a boy, so of course I was interested in the ceremonial dagger buried with the mummy.
We spent about an hour going through the exhibit. You could easily spend longer, but Spawn wanted to get back to the aquarium at the CAS, and we got a good look at all the artifacts, so we moved on.
After grabbing lunch and eating in the park between the museums, we headed back into the CAS.
We spent some quality time down in the aquarium, which is really nice. It's not the Monterey Bay Aquarium, but it's still impressive. Spawn loved it.
Mostly I got pictures of the back of her head as she admired various tanks, but here's one where she turned suddenly as I was taking a picture.
Pictures don't do the tanks justice. My camera's not very fancy and I think solutes in the water make the images much less impressive than what you'll see during a visit.
Also, you're not allowed to use your flash for many of the exhibits. So, unless you have an amazingly steady hand, you'll end up with a blurry image.
The African Penguins exhibit was probably Spawn's favorite, and it was actually a lot of fun to watch them. The runner up would be the albino alligator. If I heard staff correctly, his name is Claude. Here are my amateur shots of him:
Spawn needed one of her own. Here's the CAS photo of Claude:
Here's Spawn's alligator, which she decided was female and named Alana.
Startling resemblance, wouldn't you say?
Alana is Spawn's new favorite:
Uh, kid? The pillow's for your head, not to showcase your new favorite animal.
We wandered around the exhibits and enjoyed them, and finished up with a showing of Journey to the Stars in the planetarium. It's not for those who get motion sickness. Bubbles just about chundered, but I really enjoyed it. Sit toward the upper/middle if you can. We were near the bottom and had to do a lot of neck craning, but it was a great show nonetheless.
After a quick trip to the living roof, we were done. It was pretty to see, but I mostly appreciated the cool fresh air.
We went over the Golden Gate so Spawn could see it (it was my first time crossing it, too, though I'd seen it many times, naturally). That proved to be something of a mistake as we headed up Highway 37. Near the Napa/Sacramento split, traffic got awful. It took us 3 hours total to get home, but at least the scenery was much nicer than getting stuck in say, Richmond.
Yesterday was fun and memorable, hopefully for Spawn, too!
The trip was fantastic. The drive involved very light traffic, which is rare and really pleasant when driving into San Francisco. We arrived before 9:30, found a perfect parking spot (right next to the stairs up to the Academy of Sciences), and went and got tickets to get into the California Academy of Sciences (which I'll abbreviate CAS for the rest of the post).
We had enough time to line up and go see the Tropical Rain Forest exhibit. It's in a massive plexiglass globe that's kept hot and humid. I nearly died, since I hate those conditions, but it was worth the oppressive conditions to see the plants and animals. Near the lowest level were two gorgeous macaws that make a tremendous amount of noise (you can't hear it outside the globe). No flashes are permitted in the exhibit, so some of the pictures aren't great, but if you live close, go see them.
We saw and photographed more than I wanted to upload and post, but I'll show a few things. The globe is filled with beautiful smaller birds, incredible butterflies and small enclosures with rain forest creatures living in them.
Spawn loved it, and posed at the top for a picture.
Once we got through the Rain Forest, it was time to rush over to the de Young Museum. Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs was amazing. You're probably aware Tutankhamun really was a footnote in history and we'd probably never hear his name except that his tomb was discovered undisturbed by grave robbers, so we have a ton of artifacts from it, and they're incredible.
The first six galleries of the exhibit take you through the history leading up to Tutankhamun's brief reign. The artifacts are amazing, and text presentations on the walls put them in historical context. You can't take pictures in the exhibit, and there's too much to post anyway, but I found this tour preview. I'll post a few of my favorites since the link will probably eventually expire.
This little shrine was amazing:
The craftsmanship on all the items we saw was remarkable. Doing all of it by hand kind of boggles the mind.
Many of the artifacts were carved from stone and decorated. Here's an example of a jar that probably held cosmetics.
The last four galleries were artifacts from Tutankhamun's tomb. It's hard to describe, because it's so much information and so much to see.
The actual sarcophagus and death mask are not on tour anymore--Egypt declared them national treasures and too delicate to move any longer, so they're on permanent display in the Cairo museum, I believe.
They do have videos of them including details you'd never get close enough to see in a physical exhibit anyway. They do have a coffin on display that contained his liver (evidently he got better than the standard canopic jar).
Bubbles was impressed by the falcon pectoral piece that was on the mummy's chest in one of the layers.
The reason it's so impressive is how thin it is. The gold must have been carefully beaten to an almost delicate thickness and then decorated. You can't tell that from the pictures, really.
I was impressed by the inlays done in the gold, wood and stone.
Some of the stone statuettes are in incredible states of preservation. I can't believe a wooden artifact can last that long. Naturally if flesh can, wood can, but it's still a bit of a surprise. Egypt's dry environment and the preparation work by artisans yield remarkable results.
I'm a boy, so of course I was interested in the ceremonial dagger buried with the mummy.
We spent about an hour going through the exhibit. You could easily spend longer, but Spawn wanted to get back to the aquarium at the CAS, and we got a good look at all the artifacts, so we moved on.
After grabbing lunch and eating in the park between the museums, we headed back into the CAS.
We spent some quality time down in the aquarium, which is really nice. It's not the Monterey Bay Aquarium, but it's still impressive. Spawn loved it.
Mostly I got pictures of the back of her head as she admired various tanks, but here's one where she turned suddenly as I was taking a picture.
Pictures don't do the tanks justice. My camera's not very fancy and I think solutes in the water make the images much less impressive than what you'll see during a visit.
Also, you're not allowed to use your flash for many of the exhibits. So, unless you have an amazingly steady hand, you'll end up with a blurry image.
The African Penguins exhibit was probably Spawn's favorite, and it was actually a lot of fun to watch them. The runner up would be the albino alligator. If I heard staff correctly, his name is Claude. Here are my amateur shots of him:
Spawn needed one of her own. Here's the CAS photo of Claude:
Here's Spawn's alligator, which she decided was female and named Alana.
Startling resemblance, wouldn't you say?
Alana is Spawn's new favorite:
Uh, kid? The pillow's for your head, not to showcase your new favorite animal.
We wandered around the exhibits and enjoyed them, and finished up with a showing of Journey to the Stars in the planetarium. It's not for those who get motion sickness. Bubbles just about chundered, but I really enjoyed it. Sit toward the upper/middle if you can. We were near the bottom and had to do a lot of neck craning, but it was a great show nonetheless.
After a quick trip to the living roof, we were done. It was pretty to see, but I mostly appreciated the cool fresh air.
We went over the Golden Gate so Spawn could see it (it was my first time crossing it, too, though I'd seen it many times, naturally). That proved to be something of a mistake as we headed up Highway 37. Near the Napa/Sacramento split, traffic got awful. It took us 3 hours total to get home, but at least the scenery was much nicer than getting stuck in say, Richmond.
Yesterday was fun and memorable, hopefully for Spawn, too!
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
2nd Annual Snow Trip
Here are some photos of the highlights of our trip to the snow.
First we made a snowman. We named him Rowdy.
Then we found a great hill and told Ellie she could just slide on her pants. She liked that.
Then she made a gift for Daddy.
After all that she was tired.
First we made a snowman. We named him Rowdy.
Then we found a great hill and told Ellie she could just slide on her pants. She liked that.
Then she made a gift for Daddy.
After all that she was tired.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Lessons from Church
I love going to church. Today one really important lesson didn't come from class. More on that in a bit. One thing I did learn in the Gospel Doctrine lesson was about the Hebrew word "yom." The teacher didn't source it, but taught that yom may mean "time," "day," or "period." On one site I found a word study on it. I haven't checked the entirety of the site's content, so I can't say I agree with it all, but the information on yom is fascinating. As an aside, I like the intent of this site. I don't think there is any conflict between science and religion. In any case, yom is translated into English in various verses of the Bible as "time," "year" or "years," "ago," "always," "ever," and "evermore." For those of us who believe God used the laws He created to organize the Earth, that's an important concept.
The lesson I learned that didn't come from class was fascinating. At the beginning of the third hour of worship, all the priesthood holders come together to start their meeting together before dividing into various quorums. Usually, we sing the first verse of a song. Today, the gentleman leading the music told us we'd sing the second verse of "Sweet Hour of Prayer." A couple of times before we started he signaled the group with two fingers, recognized as, "We're singing the second verse, guys, not the first." More than half the group, having been oblivious in their side conversations, happily sang the first verse. Many of the rest just reverted to singing the first out of habit.
It was a fantastic lesson on obedience. Obedience is not to simply continue engaging in our comfortable habits, heedless of any new direction. Obedience involves flexibility and listening for God's instructions from the Spirit.
The lesson I learned that didn't come from class was fascinating. At the beginning of the third hour of worship, all the priesthood holders come together to start their meeting together before dividing into various quorums. Usually, we sing the first verse of a song. Today, the gentleman leading the music told us we'd sing the second verse of "Sweet Hour of Prayer." A couple of times before we started he signaled the group with two fingers, recognized as, "We're singing the second verse, guys, not the first." More than half the group, having been oblivious in their side conversations, happily sang the first verse. Many of the rest just reverted to singing the first out of habit.
It was a fantastic lesson on obedience. Obedience is not to simply continue engaging in our comfortable habits, heedless of any new direction. Obedience involves flexibility and listening for God's instructions from the Spirit.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
O Remember, Remember
The EQ President called up and asked if I could teach the lesson tomorrow, apologizing for the short notice. Fortunately, having just been released from Primary, Bubbles and I were renewed in our resolve to deeply study our lessons before going to Church, so I'd had some good preparation. He suggested linking the below video to the very basic lesson on God. I'm glad he recommended it. It's given me new resolve to do better in my record-keeping. Here it is for the interested:
I've also transcribed it to hand out with my lesson. For those who want President Eyring's words:
I've also transcribed it to hand out with my lesson. For those who want President Eyring's words:
When our children were very small, I started to write down a few things about what happened every day. I wrote down a few lines every day for years. I never missed a day no matter how tired I was or how early I would have to start the next day.
Before I would write I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us?” As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day. As that happened, and it happened often, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what he had done.
You might pray, and ponder, asking the question, “Did God send a message that was just for me? Did I see His hand in my life?”
Monday, November 16, 2009
Raul Frogashrew and pneumococcal pneumonia vaccination
I've been meaning to post this for a while. The other night I rediscovered a bean bag frog given to me years ago by my brother. He did that because I had such a delightful time hiding his bean bag frog in his wrist supports he uses to help prevent his RSI getting worse. I found it very amusing. I must have been tired.
I looked at Spawn and asked what to name the frog. Mind you, we don't use profanity, or profanity proxies around her. We're reading Redwall books together, so shrew was going in there. Raul was the frog's name from years back. She dubbed him Raul Frogashrew Friggin'. I think she was just playing with sounds for that last name, but it made me laugh pretty hard, so she likes it, even if she doesn't know why I was laughing.
Bubbles and I also went ahead and got pneumococcal pneumonia vaccines. I understand they're good for something like 10 years. Seasonal flu vaccines, which we normally get yearly, aren't available due to the H1N1 panic going on (people are getting any vaccine they can that says "flu." We figured although any flu is very uncomfortable, most people who die from them die from secondary infections, especially pneumonia, so this gives us some layer of protection, and long-term protection, too.
I looked at Spawn and asked what to name the frog. Mind you, we don't use profanity, or profanity proxies around her. We're reading Redwall books together, so shrew was going in there. Raul was the frog's name from years back. She dubbed him Raul Frogashrew Friggin'. I think she was just playing with sounds for that last name, but it made me laugh pretty hard, so she likes it, even if she doesn't know why I was laughing.
Bubbles and I also went ahead and got pneumococcal pneumonia vaccines. I understand they're good for something like 10 years. Seasonal flu vaccines, which we normally get yearly, aren't available due to the H1N1 panic going on (people are getting any vaccine they can that says "flu." We figured although any flu is very uncomfortable, most people who die from them die from secondary infections, especially pneumonia, so this gives us some layer of protection, and long-term protection, too.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Lost tooth!
Spawn lost her first tooth yesterday, with a little help from mommy, of course. I think she had anticipated something much worse than what actually happened. She was mesmerized by the tooth and stopped mid-moan to go, "Oooh!" No more pain after that. She went and rinsed out her mouth, all the while checking out the new gap in her mouth.
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