The hazards of using Oxygen....

Dropping the tank on your foot....

Ouch!!

Dr. Shaf Keshavjee at TEDMED 2010 explains Ex Vivo Lung machine

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=T2EmuyHoMAI

Winter White City This Morning

Last night, there was a scheduled building-wide blackout for some electrical work to be done here. The notifications had been up since I moved in, so I was trying to be as prepared as possible. The power outage was scheduled Friday night at 10pm to Saturday morning at 10am. My concern was mostly being without TV and coffee in the morning..... However, the building management issued instructions to prepare, so I felt I should try to be ready. Thursday after physio, I made a trip to Future Shop to buy some rechargeable batteries for a solar powered lamp that I brought from home (because I had experienced the Big Blackout in the GTA in 2003). This was a good start for my "bug-out" kit, I thought. I also purchased an external rechargeable battery pack for my iPhone and iPad, because even though TV and Internet would be down I thought I could survive by reading my book on the iPad or playing games. In my adventure to be prepared for the blackout, I foolishly did not think to bring an extra O2 tank (sometimes my No Fear attitude gets me in a pickle)..... Driving back from the store, I found myself in rush hour traffic. Usually not a problem heading back into downtown, it also happened to be a Maple Leafs game night. There is a bit of construction going on along the Gardiner Expressway and a shortcut street I jumped on to get me past the hockey fans took me directly into a one way path to the front doors of the ACC, which also currently happens to be the main entrance to Union Station (while Front St. is closed for renovations to the station). I was surrounded by cars, buses, taxis and streams of pedestrians who move for nothing! There was much cutting in front and honking going on, but I took some deep breaths and smiled as if I didn't want to panic and scream. Time stood as still as the vehicles around me as I wondered how I get myself into these things? Patience and deep breathing paid off and finally I inched back toward York St. I saw my opportunity and scooted through the walkers to a clearer street. Upon arriving at my parkade, I realized it was another place NOT to be at rush hour. The lanes down to the fifth level parking are narrow and cars are heading both ways. I had just received a rolling walker at the hospital that day to aid in walking with my heavy O2 tank so I unloaded it out of the car and pushed my way to the elevators on the last of my oxygen. I was never so glad to be in my own home away from home! Friday morning as I prepared for the power outage, I realized I had bought AAA batteries instead of AA, my new rechargeable battery was not charging properly and maybe the only useful part of my adventure the night before was finding a Tim Horton's drive-thru to pick up my Tassimo coffee discs. In the afternoon, I headed over again for my physio. On the way home at 4pm it was already getting dark and drizzly cold. I was greeted by building staff who wanted to know if I had full O2 tanks for the night, filled my bathtub with water for toilet flushing, if I had enough warm blankets, letting me know they would be patrolling the hallways all night and were on call if I needed to call for help anytime. Dutifully I got to my apartment, filled one bucket with water (how much would I need to flush in one night?). I made sure my O2 tanks were full and went to bed to watch TV and read. The announcement came at 10pm that the power outage could happen anytime. I watched TV until midnight, fell asleep and when I woke up at 9am, there was power! I enjoyed my coffee and only knew the power had been off because clocks were flashing...... Its good to be prepared but I was sure glad I didn't eat that whole carton of ice cream to save it from melting!!

Feeling a little blue

I'm on my own again for awhile. Meghan headed home this afternoon so it's a lilttle quiet and empty  in my place. I'm going to miss having my dining room be her walk-in closet!

Seriously, we had a great time and she got in lots of visits with her friends here in TO. They gave me many suggestions for my "Where to Eat" list and most of them are within blocks of here. 

The other night she had some of her friends over to swim and they ordered in Indian food. Mmmm, we loved the Butter Chicken, Tika Masala, Vegetable Korma and the NAAN bread. 

I'm learning so much about eating in the city. 

Yesterday was a challenge for me. It was my test run for walking over to the hospital for my physio. Just the idea of walking there was making me short of breath but I loaded my bag and my O2 in the wheelchair and pushed it the block to the hospital. Naturally it was cold and a little windy but I made it. I had to do it because I'll be doing it on my own at least 3 times a week. I'm so glad I had Meg for my first trip. Physio went vey well, but they will be pushing me a little harder than I was working at home, increasing weights right away.  

After the walk home I went straight to my bed and crashed for an hour to recover, too exhausted to talk or even sleep. 

Today, I am pretty sore and glad it's my day off!

While Meghan was here, I put her Swedish heritage to the test and she embraced the challenge, putting together my IKEA desk. No wonder everyone cringes when I look at the catalogue....

I love the stuff, a good cost-effective way to furnish a temporary living space. 

Thanks Meghan for all your help and for spending your vacation here with me!

Getting some culture

Yesterday we splurged and went to see the matinee performance of "Les Miserables" at the Princess of Wales Theatre.  It was a challenge to get there as there was a lot going on in downtown Toronto yesterday. 

Not only was there a big football celebration and Argos game happening, but it was also the annual Santa Claus Parade, so some of the main streets, including University Ave., were closed around noon just as we were to head over to the theatre on King St.

Driving the car or even a cab weren't going to be an option, so we decided to take the underground PATH system.

Meghan definitely got a workout pushing me in the chair. I put my life in Meg's hands as we bumped over sidewalk cracks, curbs and streetcar tracks! It was a lesson for us in the plight of those that require accessibility.  Although there was always a ramp or a tiny claustrophobic wheelchair sized elevator along the way, the trick was a) to find it, b) to figure out how to operate them and c) to have enough hands & feet available to open doors or push buttons to manoeuvre through. 

I had to be told once or twice to put my pointing finger away and let Meghan drive, but we had a few good laughs on the way. 

The play was amazing and very worth the challenge to get there. The weather was perfect even though there was an extreme storm watch in effect. 

After the show we stuck to the above ground sidewalks home, passing many hopeful Argos fans on their way to the big game and families wearing Santa hats after seeing the parade. 

We passed The Bay Christmas windows with people crowded around them taking puctures and selfies with the holiday scenes behind them. 

After a stop for dinner along Yonge St., it was home to the couch and bed by 9. I think my neice was more exhausted than me!

Officially listed today

This morning I saw my Transplant Coordinator to review my test results from last week. Nothing was found that would postpone my listing on the Lung Transplant waiting list. Next we met with the surgeon to review and sign all the consent forms. That was it. I'm officially on the list and now I wait. Things have changed a bit from last time. There is no pager to wait for or to carry, I will be contacted on my cell phone. I was blessed and grateful to have the support of my neice, Meghan, who was there with me as my support person for my listing appointment.

Making my life easier

Today I vacuumed.....

With my NEATO vacuum cleaner, he doesn't miss a spot in the whole apartment!

Window to the City

Funny thing I saw out my window last night. As I was looking out, I saw below a silver-blue minivan pull into a private office parking space on the side street behind our building. The doors opened and 5 young men spilled out. They huddled around the back of the van, then opened the hatch and pulled out some long items. I'm 9 stories up and it was dusk. I'm not sure why I continued to watch, but I am easily entertained these days. They started to skip off one by one, the van lights flashed as someone conscientiously locked the doors. It was only then I noticed that they were riding skate boards. They immediately stopped at a parkade entrance where a few of them started leaping and hanging from the black and yellow bars that stop tall vehicles from driving into the garage. As they swung from the bars, I saw one guy in a hoodie shooting pictures of each of them swinging. They took turns until a man with a security uniform showed up and they quickly rode off towards the Yonge St. Area. Was this a group of kids from the suburbs coming to town to ride the strip? Does that mom know where her minivan is? Will those photos be on Facebook to show their friends what badasses they are on a Saturday night downtown? Aw, to be a kid again.... The van was gone by around midnight when I went to bed, so I hope they had a safe night and didn't get into any trouble.

View out my window - you can see the top of the CN tower lit up in red.

View out my window - SickKids Hospital Elizabeth St. Entrance, the helipad is up on the right at very top of building. I hear the helicopters at all hours, have seen a few landings and take-offs.

Week 1 down, I'm on my way.

It was a few days of mostly sleeping & eating to recover from the move. I needed to build up my strength & energy for a full day of appointments at the hospital on Friday(yesterday). It was a very early start and my friend Bev Vandahl was here at 7:30am to haul my butt down the block & across Gerrard St. to TGH. Bev was a pretty good student, learning how to drive a weelchair, wrestle my O2 tank out of the carry case, find her way through the maze of buildings, wings & elevators. Most importantly, she knows where all the Starbucks & Tim Hortons are located now. After a CT Scan(0 on the ouch-factor 0-10 scale), blood work(1), chest xray(0), six-minute walk test(1), pulmonary function test(1), & 2D Echocardiogram(1 - for the digging into my ribs to find my heart), I was back across the street to the apartment by 4pm. What a bonus not having to fight through rush hour traffic after the appointments. I have been spending most of my time trying to watch TV on the Bell App on my iPad. I thought I'd be able to watch all the channels I subscribe to on Bell Satellite TV at home, but that was just too good to be true. Basically, you get all the Canadian programming that you would with the old "rabbit ears" antenna..... Unfortunately, local channels are a little obsessed with covering our good buddy, Mr. Ford. I broke down & ordered Bell TV to be installed here on Monday (then I can watch political fun in other countries, too). I'm also getting a local phone line because it turns out you need one in this old building to control guest entry. So much for saving $$$ on those things. Oh well, I'm a self-confessed TV addict & I will justify the expense with my usual reasoning - I don't smoke! so I don't spend money on cigarettes.....I tend to use this one a lot. Right now I am Netflix binging on "The Killing" TV series - such a good show. I've watched so much TV in the last year & I have discovered many great series. I'm going to add a section on the blog for my favourite shows, I'd love to hear your opinions & suggestions. Congrats Amy & Dan for a successful shag last night. (For non-Thunder Bay people, a shag is a pre-wedding social - concept and term credited to Thunder Bay in the dictionary). Wishing my Goddaughter, Carolyn & Rene a fabulous shag TONIGHT!!! I am with you in thoughts.

Here I go again...

I'm a small town girl from my beloved hometown of Thunder Bay, ON. For the 2nd time in 10 years, I am back in the city of Toronto, living near the Toronto General Hospital counting on the world-renowned UHN Transplant Team to save my life again. In the struggle to breathe, ironically I have landed in the town known as "the big smoke"! In 2005, after a 22 month wait, I received the gift of a new life in the form of a new heart and both lungs. To this day, I do not know who the generous donor was, nor do I know the loving family who made the ultimate choice to help a stranger. We have exchanged anonymous letters, so I know they are admirable people & that my donor loved life and was truly loved by family and friends. I have done well with my new organs, but while transplant is a gift of health & time, it is not a cure. Over the last 5 yrs, I have developed Chronic Lung rejection or Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome (BOS). As a positive, I will chalk it up to my body having a good immune system & has fought from keeping these new lungs. So....next step for me, another lung transplant. Heart/Lung transplant recipients have received 2nd lung transplants successfully, although it has not been done to date here in Toronto. Yay for me, I just love going first...(argh, hated having a last name that started with B, always front of the line for shots in school!) I hope for mostly positive days, but I could use some support with that. Please forgive me when I do allow myself some pity parties, its all part of the game.