Updates, updates, updates

[kaffy_r]

What I've Done Lately

• Been officially diagnosed with scleroderma, by a specialist, no less. Said specialist's burnish was rather emphatically transmuted to tarnish when she dismissed things BB and I tried to tell her, then told us that such and such a symptom "has nothing to do with scleroderma." Yeah, except that BB, whose Search and Google-Fu mastery easily and quickly disproved her with a tour through various NIH and medical research sites. When I told my Very Cool Rheumatologist, her bemusement and, at least once, outright shock were obvious through the phone. Well, at least I've got the VCR and the solid diagnosis, so the specialist, miserable woman,  wasn't a complete loss.
  
• Determined that I won't suck at the new editorial computer system at  work, largely because when I went to work the day before the projected switchover, expecting to practice on the system and panic (what, you think any reporter in the company actually took the time to practice on it after our totally inadequate training sessions three weeks ago? You don't know reporters ...) I was dragged into helping others get their way through it instead. Was informed I sounded very teacherly. Ah. Right.
  
• Got seriously bent out of shape over some opprobrium heaped this past week on Jacob, my favorite Television Without Pity recapper, over at the site, and actually started on a rant I was going to post here. Then I realized that a) everyone has a right to their opinion, even if I think it's wrong; more seriously that b) Jacob's style truly doesn't impress a lot of people whose opinions I actually respect; that c) Jacob most likely doesn't give a toss and I'm rather certain TWoP doesn't either, thank god; and that d) life's too long to get angst'd by the wank.
  
• Watched "The Impossible Astronaut" with BB, FB and his girlfriend, and with gerisullivan  and carnyjack . Geri, bless her soul, sat through the first or second DW she'd ever seen. carnyjack  knows the show well enough for it to keep his attention, and of course dr_whuh  shares a great deal of my fannish love. FB's girlfriend lies somewhere between carnyjack's and BB's level of interest. Ah, but FB, FB and I are Who fangirl and fanboy supreme, so we were able to squee about the episode. My thoughts on it? A definite success in the Moffat manner; skirting the edge of too clever, but standing a decent chance of being very good or possibly very, very good, depending upon how the convoluted plot turns out this Saturday. Stronger characterization than his efforts last year; Amy is far more believable and even more likable, Rory rocks, River Song is River. Fucking. Song, so she's awesome. And the Doctor was magnificent.
• Watched the royal wedding at ogodoclock and loved it. Loved the pageantry, loved the genuine affection so obvious between the two young people, (didn't love the American announcers who wouldn't stop talking, or making jokes about "You British, har har" so I eventually turned off the TV and went with the wordless streaming feed on the BBC site.) Loved the beautifully, gloriously, vertiginous camera shots from the top of Westminster, burst into tears when they sang Jerusalem, and staggered to bed as they left the abbey.

 And there you have it, what I've done since the 19th of April.

Comments

[ljgeoff.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad that you have your Very Cool Rheumatologist.

I owe you email.

I was blown away by "The Impossible Astronaut." But somewhere else on LJ, someone else was theorizing about how last season would have gone if it had been Ten, and now I can't get the thought out of my head of how it would have gone if Ten had walked through that door in the diner. Or Nine.

Cool, huh?

[kaffy_r]

Oh, I agree; sometimes it can be hard to get those kinds of images out of one's head. On the other hand, this is such an Eleven adventure to me, that I can't easily imagine a previous Doctor navigating it. (Of course, each and every one of them could undoubtedly handle it, but this feels "elevenish" to me, as did the entire last season.

[viomisehunt.livejournal.com]

I hope you get an answer soon. I hate getting conflicting diagnosis.

Didn't see the wedding; and have to wait until after I get off work to see Doctor Who, but I gather it kicked much booty.

[kaffy_r]

Oh, the first episode did indeed kick much (and assorted) booty. Hope you've seen it at this point (and you may be ahead of me now, since I haven't yet seen Day of the Moon.)

In the case of the scleroderma, it's less a matter of conflicting diagnoses than one of supplementary diagnoses. I have it in addition to the RA and the Raynaud's syndrome, and could probably have other things as well. It's all part of an umbrella'd group of autoimmune disorders. I'm just one of those folks, apparently, who get more than one. Now I hope I can focus on managing all of them so that I can get on with my life in as little pain, and with as much flexibility, as possible.

[viomisehunt.livejournal.com]

The Second Part did not dissapoint.

I understand what you mean. I have an autoimmune disorder that causes conditions that look and feel like other ailments. My Childhood Doctor (Because other Doctors were bouncing me around)encouraged me to find out everything I could about the condition, and that helps, because I know what to expect and what questions to ask the physicians, and what symptoms to worry about and what systems I can take care of. Keep me posted.

[apostle-of-eris.livejournal.com]

So does diagnosis give you things to try, or just stuck? You remind me a little of a very German dermatologist I saw (once!) when my dandruff was severe. She lectured me on my family history!

You won't be near the worst with whatever the new system is.
I saw an interesting comment on the intensity of the coverage. Some photographer will take the shot that gets reproduced a gazillion times, and make a bundle. (So far, it looks like the one with the extremely uninterested little girl in the corner of The Kiss picture.

[kaffy_r]

I'm going to try to get my VCR to focus on symptom management and amelioration at this point. You can't reverse most types of scleroderma. The one other thing I'd like to know is which kind of scleroderma I have, but that might be difficult; the explanations of what differentiates one type from another is a bit fuzzy, and still a matter of research and/or debate. I'll try to make up a list of questions to ask the "specialist" if I make the decision to actually return and see her. I'll also pose them to my VCR.

the extremely uninterested little girl in the corner of The Kiss picture.

If that's the rather unfortunately big-headed little girl, that would be Miss Grace van Cutsem, Prince William's goddaughter, the daughter of his friend Hugh van Cutsem. And you're right; she's apparently been turned into a (one hopes) brief Internet meme. She was terrified of the noise, something you could first see when she walked into the cathedral during the ceremony. My bet is that she was fine during rehearsals and such, and that no one guessed she'd be affected this way by noise, simply because few three year olds are subject to the peeling bells of Westminster and the full-throated roar of hundreds of thousands of people, or the looming sonic menace of Lancasters, Hurricanes, Spitfires, Tornadoes and such.

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

Well, at least you know you've got scleroderma! (I take a lot of the same lab tests.)

[kaffy_r]

Yes, and that's a relief, at least in terms of having one less "maybe so, maybe no" situation hovering about my shoulders. (Ah, lab tests; what would a week be without one? Heh.)

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

Well, at this point, I usually go four weeks without labs because I'm stable. But they do sometimes bunch up again.

I was sure I had another renal failure in May 1989 and the new, young, just out of school nephrologist wouldn't consider it. I got admitted at Christmas Eve because I'd gained, we think, about 300 pounds of water weight. When she got sick at the end of February, I had an older, more experienced nephrologist who found that I had a second completely different renal failure and was almost dead. I was so glad to at least find out what was wrong and that I had been right those 10 months. He also found something that saved my life and I'll never forget him for that.