Murder, Opioids, Eyeballs, & Teeth

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

6/28/25

 

Aloha All!

 

Wow, it looks like you mainlanders are having summer a little early this year -- scorching temperatures,

Above line is electric we had to buy

violent storms, fires, floods, etc.  Fortunately the NWS forecast predicts some relief for you over the weekend.  Our crappy weather has continued for yet another week, and is predicted to keep going into the foreseeable future.  This is undoubtedly the longest stretch of bad weather we've had since we moved here 25 years ago.  For the third month in a row our PV system couldn't generate enough energy to cover our electric usage, and the pool solar heating has barely kept the water temperature in the geezer-tolerable zone.  The best thing about the cloudiness is that it makes nice napping weather.

 

On a happier note, last Saturday we went to our local community theater's production of "Murder on the Orient Express."  It was great fun.  I've read and seen versions of Agatha Christie's famous mystery many times, of course, but enough time has passed that I forgot a lot of the details.  The local actors were quite good and the staging was very clever in its depiction of the train. Tonight we're going to another local presentation, this one at the theater up north in Waimea.  It's a performance by a touring mainland musical group called  "Dirty Cello."  We've never heard them before, but the name promises a fun time. I'll let you know next week.

 

 The Geezer Gazette news this week is more about my hernia surgery recovery, and about medical manipulations of other parts of my body.  I was premature in touting the low level of pain following my operation a week ago Wednesday.  I thought the nerve blocks had worn off when I wrote last time, but they were longer lasting than I thought.  When the deadened nerves fully woke up, they let me know they weren't happy -- big time.  I finally tried the opioid pain killer my surgeon had prescribed (Hydrocordone-acetaminophen).  It dulled the pain but after 2 days it also drove my blood pressure so low I nearly passed out if I stood or even just sat up.  I stopped taking it, figuring I'd just power through the pain, and my bp recovered quickly.  I was pleasantly surprised that the pain had subsided on its own and I didn't even need over the counter pain killer.  In general, I've been surprised and fascinated by how fast my improvement has been.  At the moment I'm very sore, but not much more so than after a rigorous workout at the gym.  The small incisions seem to be healing nicely, except for the one at my navel which has required some antibiotic ointment.  I see my surgeon next week, and I will be interested in his assessment of my overall progress.

 

On Tuesday I had a double-header, first with my Ophthalmologist and then with me Endodontist. As expected and needed, my retina doc gave me another eyeball injection, this time in my right. This has become so routine that it is pretty much a non-event.  Later that day I finally had a root canal -- my first real treatment of the tooth I broke on May 1.  I laughed when it was all done and the assistant advised me to (a) be careful to chew mostly with the other side of my mouth, and (b) be sure to see my dentist for a real restoration because my filling was only good for 30 days.  With slurred speech I informed her that I had been careful since May 1, and that I'd be lucky to get an appointment with my dentist within 30 days -- it had taken longer than that to see the Endodontist  She seemed chagrined, but could only mumble "sorry about that."  I was shocked when I called the dentist office and was told I could have an appointment on Friday, only 3 days out!!  This is the first of at least two sessions to finally get this thing fixed. So, for my third doctor visit of the week I got to lay flat with my mouth open for two hours while the dentist drilled, chiselled and built up my broken stub to hold the crown, now on order.  Next appointment, on July 29th to put in the actual crown, a total of about 2.5 months since my first dentist visit after the break occurred.  Patience, grasshopper...... I should note that the care I'm getting seems first rate, but it is obvious we need more physicians to speed up the delivery of that care.

 

Ok, on that snarky note I'll sign off for this week.  Keep cool, physically and mentally.  CarpeVitam. 

Surviving Surgery: Warning, Contains TMI!

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

6/21/25

 

Aloha Everyone!

 

Well, I made it through my surgery ok. I've now joined the other 800,000 people who have this type of hernia repair each year.  It wasn't pleasant, but the medical professionals who were involved made it the least unpleasant as possible.  I'm very grateful to them for being very personable, professional, efficient, and skilled at their jobs.

 

I may have over-thought this just a teense, something I am prone to do in general, so I was pretty anxious.  My experience with hospitals is limited to a few trips to the ER, visiting friends and family, and one overnight stay many years ago.  My surgeon felt that having it done in a hospital instead of a clinic was advisable because of my age and past history of heart and breathing issues. Geezerhood strikes again.

 

I was scheduled for 11 am on Wednesday, with a check-in time of 9:30. I checked in on time, but the surgery was delayed until about 12:00 because some emergency cases tied up the surgical suites.  I was getting very hungry and thirsty, and more anxious than ever. However, once the process started, it went very quickly.  I talked to the surgeon and the anesthesiologist,  got into the lovely hospital garb, then was wheeled into the operating room and hooked up to all the monitors. The anesthesiologist warned me that he was running some antibiotic through the i.v. and it might sting, and then the anesthesia would begin.  The last thing I remember was him saying to think of a pleasant dream.  No counting backward or slowly fading out, I went into another dimension immediately. The next thing I remember was a voice far, far away calling my name -- the nurse waking me up.  "All done, everything went fine."  All the embarrassing and unpleasant stuff happened while I was out -- shaving, inserting tubes in various orfices, and of course the slicing and dicing itself.  I came back to life fairly quickly and without too much brain fog (something I had feared) and then I was required to pee before they would let me go.  I was given liquids through the i.v., so it wasn't long before this was kind of urgent (they had removed the catheter while I was unconscious).  Mission accomplished, the surgeon came in the recovery stall and explained how it went, complete with souvenir photos of inside of my abdomen! This was a surprise and very interesting.  In a laparoscopic procedure several small incisions are made in the target area and in one of them a catheter  with a light and camera is inserted so the surgeon can see to work (sort of a "Geezer Go-Pro").  You are also blown up like a balloon with CO2 to make room for the surgeon to work.  Wow  Anyway, my surgeon not only fixed the two hernias I knew about, he also fixed one that was starting to form, and on the outside he removed a benign cyst that my dermatologist had assessed earlier.  A four-for-one visit!

 

Recovery has been another adventure altogether.  Karen drove me home about 2:30, where I had a bowl of ramen noodles and then had a long nap.  There was no pain at all for the first 24 hours because while I was visiting Alpha Centari the anesthesiologist gave me two long-lasting "nerve blocks" (note, not an epidural) that involved locating and deadening a nerve in my lower waist area and another in my groin. The blocks worked well, and all I've needed so far is acetaminophen, even though I have a prescription for some heavy-duty opioid pain killer if I need it. When the blocks started to wear off, in about 36 hours, I mainly felt some discomfort and bloating at ground zero. Today I've had more pain as the nerve-block drugs continue to dissipate, but overall.I'm amazed and very pleased, given what that area went through.

 

Modern Medicine

For the next six weeks I have to be careful not to lift anything heavy or do anything (like golf) that might put too much stress and pull out my internal stitches.  By the way, the procedure used stitches to close the holes where the hernias were, and to install reinforcing mesh patches over them. The small incisions on the outside were closed with.....glue .  I've heard of surgical glue before, but now I am the proud recipient of the stuff.  It's waterproof, so I can shower right away, but since it can't be soaked the pool is off limits for awhile.

 

Ok, I'm sure that's more than you really wanted to know about this.  There are even more details, but I've overshared enough for this week.  Take care and enjoy whatever good things you can find. They are still there, behind the political smoke and fog.  Carpe Vitam.

Hoof Leis, Irrigation Irritation, Golf(!!)

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

6/14/25

 

Aloha Folks!

 

Last Saturday after our beach breakfast picnic we went to the annual King Kamehameha Parade.  This is

one of our favorite events because it is uniquely local.  Kamehameha, who was born on our island, unified the numerous separate kingdoms across the islands and began the modern era of Hawai'i.  He did this through brilliant military strategy, ruthless cunning, good old trickery, and his willingness to adopt the recently introduced weaponry of the Europeans.  After unification he turned out to be a very good oeacetime leader, ushering in what many consider the golden era in Hawaiian history.  The parade features the usual community marching groups and floats, but also groups of horseback riders representing each of the major islands.  The colorful costumes of the riders are beautiful, but for us the real stars are the

horses, who are decked out with their own neck and forehead leis.  One group of horses even had ankle leis made from a special local flower called the Crown Flower.  Great fun, and the horses seem to enjoy it, too!

 

My house repair project this week involved fixing a couple of leaks in the irrigation system.  Because of all the rain we've been getting, I've had it shut off for the last couple of weeks. but it is only a matter of time when I'll have to turn it back on, so this was a good time to get it working right.  This project also involved squatting and straining, so I wanted to get it done before my surgery next week. My system is a low-flow set of emitters that are fed by a flexible tube that runs from the valve controller to various garden areas.  When we bought the house I expanded the system that was already here, a fun project that involved learning a lot of new skills.  The leaks I had to fix were in the older section of the system, in tubing that had been buried a few inches.  This meant I had to dig out the dirt to reach the tubing, sacrificing a few plants in the process.  I was afraid that the leaks might be from disintegrated sections of the old tubing, requiring cutting back to sound portions and replacing the bad part with new tubing.  However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the leaks were much simpler to fix.  One was a hole where one of the emitters  had been attached to the tube, probably broken off by our gardener.  This was easily fixed by inserting something called a "goof plug" into the hole to seal it.  If necessary, I can replace it with a new emitter later. The other leak was at the very end of one of the tubes where the tubing had been crimped by the original installers and the crimped tube had finally disintegrated. Another easy fix by cutting off the end back to good tubing and then putting on a proper end piece.  I love projects like this that aren't as difficult as I had feared.  Unfortunately, as most do-it-your-selfers know, it is usually the reverse -- something you expected would be trivially easy turns out to be a major undertaking.

 

Also in the pleasant news department was that I was able to play golf on Thursday without getting soaked! Karen and I went to Makalei and our usual golf friend joined us.  None of us had played for at least a couple of months and the first couple of holes weren't pretty.  Then we started doing better, at least at moments.  I've now decided that the score on a hole isn't as important as the number of good shots I make.  Anything greater than "1" is enough to keep me going.  And overall I did pretty good -- three bogeys and a par.  However, I have to admit that three of those required invoking various Kona-A-Lago Rules, like if the ball circles the rim of the cup 180 degrees or more, it counts as going in, and an automatic do-over is allowed if an approach shot doesn't go at least 30 feet.  Anyway, we played our usual 16 holes before pooping out, and we didn't encounter any rain, even though the course was soaked from heavy showers nearly every day the previous week.  The wet grass made cart-driving a little treacherous at times.  Our friend did a beautiful slow-motion 360 degree spin as she tried to navigate one steep hillside section. I did a brief sideways slide in the same location.

 

The Geezer Gazette  is pretty quiet this week. I saw my retina doctor on Tuesday, and got an injection.  I expected this because my vision had gone south, especially over the previous week.  He suggested treating the "good" eye first, since it has a chance of improving the most, and then I will return in 2 weeks for a shot in the other eye.  This will be on the same day as my root canal.  Sheesh. The effects of this drug are surprisingly and pleasantly quick -- my "good" eye has improved noticeably since Tuesday.

 

Ok, that's it for now.  On Wednesday I have my surgery.  I'll try to get a missive done about this experience if I can.  Take care. Keep your passport handy.  Carpe Vitam. 

Tooth Saved, Almost Golf, Pre-Op Pre-Bleeding

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

6/7/25

 

Aloha Everybody!

 

Geez, June already. I see that things have warmed up a tad on the mainland -- Ohio was hitting near 90d a few days ago.  We're still getting a lot of rainy and cloudy weather, and it is getting very, very old.  An example of how we are suffering tragically is that I haven't been able to play golf since we returned from our mainland trip. Each time we've had a day free it has rained by late morning, a deal-breaker for a fair-weather golfer like me.  Finally, on Wednesday this week Karen and I decided to go to the Makalei driving/putting range and at least hit some balls. It was cloudy but dry when we got there about 10:30, but by noon it started to rain as we were getting to the bottom of our bucket of balls.  I ran to the shelter of the golf-cart but Karen just kept whacking.  Like I said, I'm a fair-weather golfer. We consoled ourselves with a burger and a beer at one of our favorite restaurants that overlooks the small boat harbor, a very picturesque spot. We'll watch the forecast and try to get in at least part of a round next week. I sure would like to play before my hernia repair recovery puts golf off limits for 4-6 weeks.

 

That leads to the Geezer Gazette news for the week.  On Tuesday I finally got in to see an endodontist about my broken tooth (it's now six weeks since I broke it).  Of course, I had to fill out the new patient forms which ask for medical history, insurance, promise to pay anything not covered, etc., etc.  I was particularly amused by the question on the medical history which asked "Are you under the care of a physician? If so, for what condition?" The answer space was tiny, evidence that no one ever looks at this form.  I was tempted to write "Dr. Zook, leprosy & scurvy" to test my assertion.  Instead, I put the name of my internist and listed just Afib and Emphysema.  Both true, but hardly a thorough answer.  Which physician, exactly?  My internist, my cardiologist, my ophthalmologist, my dermatologist, my dentist?  Which condition?  My Afib, my hypertension, my retina vein occlusions, my glaucoma, my osteopenia,  my cancerous skin lesions, etc., etc.?  When I returned the form I tried to joke with the 20-something receptionist that they needed a longer form if they were going to ask that question of someone my age.  She gave me a blank, somewhat puzzled look.

 

Anyway, after yet another x-ray of the tooth, the endodontist examined me and confidently informed me that I had broken a tooth. I countered this startling news by saying I would really like to save the tooth, if possible.  He did some more examining of my tooth and the x-ray, had me do a full jaw CT scan

The Plan

(fortunately on the spot) and concluded that it might be possible to do a procedure where the nerve is removed and a metal post is cemented into the vacated channel that would provide a support for restoring the missing part of the tooth. I agreed.  The plan is that he will remove the nerve and put in a temporary filling where it was located.  I will then go back to my dentist, who will drill out the temporary material and insert the post and ultimately restore the tooth, hopefully sometime before I die of old age.  Great.  The next step was to schedule my return to the endodontist for the nerve removal.  I was pleased that the first available slot was only two weeks out -- unfortunately, though,  it was on the same day as my hernia surgery!  I joked with the receptionist that maybe my surgeon and the endodontist could team up and do both at once.  I got the same blank, puzzled look as before.  I took the next available slot after that, which will be the following week, a bit close to my surgery perhaps, but I'm motivated to get both of these things done!

 

If I sound somewhat snarky it's because I think this process has been ludicrously inefficient, has involved unnecessary costs in terms of time and money,  and has exposed me to unnecessary, duplicitous x-rays.  Why couldn't my dentist have forwarded the initial x-ray to the endodontist along with my relevant history and then the two of them conferred on the best course of treatment?  I could have then scheduled just one visit to the endodontist who would have done the root canal (perhaps contingent on his in-person examination), and sent me back to the dentist for the restoration work. As reasonable as this sounds, it would have required coordination and sharing of information, two things that are sorely lacking in our medical system and that contribute to our country having the most expensive health care system in the world. Grrrrrrr.

 

I also had some of my blood sucked this week as part of my hernia pre-op preparations.  I can understand why it would be important for the surgeon and the hospital to have a recent blood analysis in case a patient has some unusual issues that might require special handling.  However, here again there is duplication, because I had just had blood work done in April for my internist and my cardiologist -- same tests on factors that don't change quickly.  However,  the hospital requires the tests to have been performed within a month of surgery, so the April results were considered too old.  Fortunately I was able to get this done quickly and conveniently, so it wasn't a big deal.

 

That's about it for the week.  Off to market and our usual beach breakfast picnic.  Take care. Stay away from the medical establishment if you can.  Carpe vitam. 

Stress Tests, More Bird Sitting, Retirement Anniversary

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

5/31/25

 

Aloha Everyone!  

 

I'll start with some positive news. Today is the 25th anniversary of the last day of teaching for both Karen and me, and tomorrow will be our first day of retirement anniversary.  Amazing it has been so long.  Neither of us regrets a minute of retirement, which has allowed us to have so many enriching and enjoyable experiences.

 

I continued my bird sitting duties this week because my neighbor had even more complications with his ablation procedure.  Recall that this was supposed to be a simple, routine operation done on an out-patient

Ultimate Techno-Toy

basis.  All seemed to go well and he and his wife were preparing to return to Kona when his heart suddenly started beating very fast. They quickly returned to the hospital's ER, where his heart stopped altogether.  They jump-started him, admitted him to the hospital, put in a temporary pace-maker and then in a few days a permanent one to keep his heart from stopping again.  His high heart rate was controlled by heavy-duty drugs that can restore a normal rate and rhythm.  So far so good,  He was ready to be discharged a week ago today.  However, they did one final test to make sure the pacemaker was working ok. This is called a stress test, and compares your normal heart function to what happens when you exercise or do something that puts a burden on your heart.  The results suggested massive blockage in one or more arteries, with a survival rate of 1-2 years!  The treatment for this is usually to install stents in the arteries or even open heart surgery to fix the problem.  The stent procedure involves running a catheter with a camera on it into the heart and directly examining the blood vessels. This is called an "angiogram" in medical jargon, the definitive test for determining blockage.  He had to wait in the hospital for 3 days until this could be scheduled. It showed....Nothing.  No blockage at all.  No stents needed, no open heart surgery.  No dropping dead in the next two years.  In short, the stress test result was a false positive, which apparently is not that uncommon.  Indeed, another friend of mine who lives here had a clean angiogram last week after a stress test had suggested blockage.  Anyway, my neighbor finally escaped from the hospital on Wednesday and is now back home after a 10-day stay.

 

Having two friends within a week who experienced nasty outcomes from a stress test got me a wee bit uptight about my own test, which happened on Thursday.  Being the wimp that I am, I was getting very worried that this would lead to a round of unpleasant tests that might delay my hernia surgery. Now that I've decided to go through with it, I want to get it done!  I was greatly relieved when my ticker passed with flying colors!! No problems at all. The test was done on a treadmill with me wired up to a very fancy ECG machine which also tracked my blood pressure.  The goal was to get my heart rate up to about 85% of my age-adjusted maximum, which for me is 120 bpm. This didn't take very long to achieve, thanks in part to my emphysema.  My cardiologist didn't spot anything problematic, much to my delight. Yippee! I celebrated with a quick dip in the pool, lunch, and a nice deep nap. 

 

That's all the Geezer Gazette news this week, but of course there will be more next time.  Carpe Vita.

Bird Sitting, Cold Recovery, Hurry Up and Wait

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

5/24/25

 

Aloha Ohana!  

I'm finally on the down side of my cold symptoms, just a nagging cough that brings up goo-balls from my chest, and I still don't have much energy. The cloudy wet weather we've still having has been very conducive to naps because it gives me a great excuse to snooze since I can't work outside.  This past week we got about 2 inches of rain in almost daily installments.  By covering the pool at night we've managed to keep the water temperature in the low 80's, so the few times we've been able to take a dip between rain showers haven't been too bad.

 

One focus of my week was taking care of our neighbor's two exotic birds, a rose cockatoo and an African grey parrot.  The neighbors went to Oahu for a couple of days.so he could have an ablation procedure to

Cockatoo

treat his Afib.  Bird-sitting is pretty easy compared to dogs.  There's no walking and poop bags involved, for instance.  It was just a matter of giving them special food a couple of times a day and cleaning up the bottoms of their cages.  We've known the birds for years and they seem to know us, too.  Both are in their 30's,  raised by our neighbors.  Both are very friendly, but they have very different personalities.  The cockatoo doesn't talk but loves to dance.  The African grey is very talkative, and tends to be a real show-off.  Anyway, my duty was extended to most of the week when my neighbor had complications and wound up having to have a pacemaker installed yesterday. In addition, the African grey became ill and my neighbor's wife flew home then returned to Oahu with the bird to get treatment from a special bird veterinarian there. BTW, flying with a bird is not a simple matter.  Most airlines no longer allow them in the cabin, and only a limited number of cargo hold slots are available.  Also, the bird has to be inspected and cleared by USDA.  If all goes well the neighbors and the bird will return late this afternoon.  Talk about a stressful week for them!

 

In stark contrast to my neighbors' whirlwind week, I'm in a "hurry up and wait" mode with several pending issues.  For one thing, we're waiting on parts to fix the transmission in Karen's 22 year-old Miata.  The problem has been diagnosed and the mechanic is standing by to do the work as soon as the parts arrive, ordered two weeks ago.  Also, I'm still waiting to see an endontist about my broken tooth. That should happen week after next. And Im waiting to take the stress test my cardiologist wants in order to clear me for hernia surgery in June. It's not uncommon here to have to wait for a resolution to some problem, of course.  But I seldom have this many important  things hanging at once.  Patience, Grasshopper....time is but an illusion.

 

Ok, off to market and a beach breakfast picnic.Take care, enjoy your Spring.  

Beach Birthday, Nursing a Cold, Cancelled Stress Test

Note: This is another blog based on my weekly emails to my family on the mainland. Since much of my news these days relates to trying to age gracefully, this series might be called The Geezer Gazette.]

5/17/25

 

Aloha Guys!  

This wasn't exactly a pleasant week here.  For one thing, the weather has been downright sucky -- grey, cool, and rainy. Since we returned it has been this way, and the locals are grumbling -- at the most we might get a day or two of this kind of weather, but this is way beyond the  norm.  My PV system is taking an extended snooze and even the hot water solar has needed a supplemental boost several times to give us warm enough water for showers.  One positive result is that I've been putting our garden irrigation on hold most of the week because we have been getting more than adequate rain.  Of course the plants love this weather, including the weeds, but conditions for working in the garden have been wet and muddy most days.  

Another thing detracting from our usual pleasant conditions is that I've been nursing a cold all week. I had

Nastius Culpritis

a slight cough last Sunday but I was able to ignore it.  By Tuesday, however, I was feeling downright crappy.  I haven't had a cold in years and I forgot how uncomfortable one can make you feel -- achy, drippy, lethargic, and toward the end a nice chest congestion that settles in for a few days.  BTW, I know this is a cold and not Covid from the negative results of 4 self-tests.  Actually, the two times I've had Covid the symptoms weren't as bad and didn't last as long as this. Maybe my cold virus antibodies haven't been activated in such a long time that they were asleep on the job.  My system is loaded with Covid antibodies from all my vaccinations and they headed off the virus early and more completely. Also, it is likely I have a  cold and not flu because I don't have a fever. But it doesn't really matter -- crappy is crappy.  Of course, my stress test had to be rescheduled from Thursday to two weeks out, May 29. This should still be in plenty of time to get my clearance for my hernia surgery in June.  My life is increasingly and depressingly revolving around scheduling medical procedures.  Damn!

 

In more pleasant news we celebrated Karen's birthday on Sunday with a low key picnic dinner of Thai takeout on the beach just north of town.  My cold hadn't fully developed yet, so it was an enjoyable outing.  Karen told me she didn't want anything from my usual go-to categories of gifts, so I had to get creative -- a new serrated sickle for gardening (her old one was very dull) and a deluxe personalized sharpening of her favorite pair of hand pruners.  Romantic, right?!!

 

A final piece of Geezer Gazette news is also pleasant -- I saw my retina doctor on Tuesday and didn't need a shot.  Very little edema in either eye, low pressures, new lenses are staying in place.  My acuity is stable (not great, but workable) and my new glasses seem to be helping a smidge.  I'll take it.  Next appointment is in a month, and by then I may need shots, but for right now there is no need.  Yippee!

 

The 22nd episode in Kilauea's lava fountain show started early yesterday morning and ended 10 hours later.  This was a good one, though short, with lava spouting up to 1000 feet for a brief time before backing down to 500 feet.  Like the previous 21 episodes, this one has ended, but the volcano is probably recharging for the next one.  No one knows how long this unusual pattern will go on, but so for it has been pulsing like this since December 23.

 

Ok, that's it for this week.  Remember, morality, ethics, and integrity aren't mythical qualities, though many prominent people seem not to have them...... 

Carpe Vitam.