More Surgery

 Wednesday, I had a tumor removed from above my right eye. It's more than likely a lipoma, but was sent in for testing to verify the diagnosis. It was an interesting experience, and not what I envisioned. 

I guess I've watched too many television programs where the doctor removes a lipoma with the patient sitting up, smiling, having a conversation with the doctor, and family members in the room watching. That's how I thought it would be, since the surgeon told me he would sedate me, but not put me out. He, also, told me it was a short, simple procedure. 

I arrived early to complete some papers, and then waited for over thirty minutes for them to call me to the back. When there, I was told to remove my clothes and put on a gown. That surprised me, but I determined it was a guarantee no blood would be on my clothes. The soon put in an IV, after checking my vitals. My wife was allowed to be in the room, so she took my the contents of my pockets, and my clothes were put in a plastic bag. 

They came for me, grabbed my clothes, and left my wife in the examination room. Soon in the operating room, they told me they were injecting the anesthetic, and I felt  a burning sensation in my arm. I notified the nurses, who explained it was normal, and I had no need to worry. I was out in seconds. 

I awoke sitting in a wheelchair facing the discharge door. How I got dressed is beyond me, but I was dressed, and waiting for my wife to pull under the awning. I don't remember being loaded in the car, any conversation, or the trip home, except for eating a sausage and biscuit sandwich during the drive. 

At home, I have a foggy memory of making a cup of coffee, using an ice pack, and being very tired. I don't remember climbing in bed, but do remember dreaming of being with my wife at a strange house, with a big friendly dog that was jumping up and playing. I was concerned the dog would jump, hit my head, and accentuate the terrible headache I had. Awakening, I realized the headache was not a dream. If I had to describe it, I would describe the pain after being struck in the head with a claw hammer. I took a tramadol, went to the kitchen, and started making some coffee. 

My sister-in-law knocked on the door. She was upset because someone hacked phone number, social media account, and email. I had a short conversation with her, but the pain wasn't lessening, and I had to break off the conversation to go take another tramadol. I took another one, laid down in the bed, and was finally rewarded with enough relief to fall asleep. 

I woke during the early morning hours with a headache. Looking in the mirror revealed the start of what can only be described as a shiner. I took my antibiotic,  pain medication, and started my day of resting. I'd sleep, on and off, and used an ice pack between naps. The day was somewhat of a blur, but the naps helped. 

I woke during the night. The swelling was worse, with my eye half-closed. After some coffee, and television, I finally was sleepy again, so I went back to sleep. 

Yesterday morning, the swelling was still there. Since it was time, my wife removed the bandage to reveal the incision. It's about two inches long, and in a crease in my forehead. Scarring will be minimal, and the stitches will dissolve over time.

This morning, the swelling is still there. I'm guessing sleeping has something to do with that. I have no pain, so that's a good thing.

Next week, I do bloodwork for my surgery to remove a ganglion cyst that is growing. Pain is intermittent, but will only disappear by surgery, with removal and suturing the root of the cyst. The surgery takes place Monday week, and will result in a wrist brace for a month. Hopefully, this will end surgeries forever. 

It's Been 80 Years

 I wasn't alive during the attack on Pearl Harbor. My parents, grandparents, and most adults were, when I was younger. They remembered the initial shock, and horror. They had to deal with the following years and losses of vast numbers of young folks that fought in places that were once exotic vacation locations. It all happened 80 years ago, and it's apparent many today have no idea of the significance of today's date. The call "Remember Pearl Harbor" has faded away into the past, and those that endured are mostly gone. 

May we never forget how the world can be an evil place, run by evil people, and never be unprepared.

I have to add a local man's remains were finally identified, and they laid him to rest today. He was killed on the Oklahoma, and only modern technology finally allowed positive identification. He was given the burial of a hero, which is a fitting sendoff for a soul lost 80 years ago.

They Don't Realize

Too many politicians, too much of the media, too much of academia, and too many of those that inhabit the largest cities don't realize they're completely out of touch. They never think of the hard labor that leads to their meals, how many hours were spent in brutal weather to keep their infrastructure intact, how many truckers spent long hours hauling goods, how their electricity is made, or that they've managed to alienate those that have complete control over their existence. It's folly on their part, and maybe dangerous.

Hard to Watch

 During my career, I was responsible for thousands of cubic yards of what is usually called "dirt". In construction, the material is called "embankment", and comes in many varieties. Quantities are usually determined by surveying the location, and using calculations to find the amount needed. With enough measuring, and a proposed elevation, quantities can be accurate.,

I was blessed to work with some of the finest engineers, operators, and old supervisors over the years. They taught me much, and the knowledge they passed on allowed me to be able to complete projects as anticipated. That's why I'm writing this post.

A neighbor is having embankment delivered to raise the low spots on his acreage. It's needed, since his property can pond water, which leads to tall grass. The tall grass keeps him from having a neat yard, and is hard on the mower. The problem is who he has doing the work. 

Since I've been watching the process, I know nobody ever cross-sectioned the property, so quantities are completely subjective. That leads to paying for loads as they are dumped, which can be good, but only if there's a competent operator spreading the fill ahead of the material. This avoids having to move material over long distances, since it's dumped close to the machine, and the operator can spot dump loads of material where needed. Failing to follow this process can lead to irregular dumping, too much material, and overspending by the property owner.  That is now what has happened. Loads were dumped in various spots, quantities needed are not near some areas, and too much is in others. This increases time for the operated dozer, and can lead to disputes over the time needed to place the material.

Before placing fill, the existing top three inches of soil, and vegetation need to be stripped, unless the area to fill is extremely deep, and the material can be compacted in lifts to prevent unwanted settlement. The stripped material, which is usually part of the quantities calculations as the last three inches of material to be placed, needs to be stockpiled on site, or hauled to a temporary area to prevent conflicts with moving material on the site. Failing to do this can lead to an area that is only a material that won't support vegetation. Where placing topsoil allows new growth within days, Inert fill can take years to establish any vegetation, since there's no nutrition to provide growth. Sod can help, but with large areas, cost prohibitive. Seeding is what's needed for this process, and necessary, but without topsoil, wasted money. This hasn't happened at the neighbor's so the results are yet to be seen. I have no idea if the new material will support vegetation, but knowing the local soil, many areas will remain bare, until years of unwanted vegetation finally supplies some topsoil for growth. Grass won't be established unless the areas is seeded, and that might only lead to patches of dead growth that will remain in that state for years. 

Embankment should never be placed in standing water. Two things happen when this is done. One is the embankment becomes so saturated, uneven areas with a clay subgrade can lead to ponding under the embankment, and only hot sun over a long period of time will dry this area for manipulation. That, and the super wet material can't be manipulated. If the machinery doesn't sink in this area, grading is impossible, since only ruts are the final result of trying to grade the area. This leads to more equipment time, and wasted money. This hasn't happened at the neighbor's, and the problems I described have developed. 

Regardless of final grade, all soil has to drain. This is accomplished with sloping to natural outfalls, or digging swales. This hasn't happened at the neighbor's. Areas are not draining, so the soil is too wet to work successfully due to recent rains. 

Embankment should never be placed on top of an existing road, or drive. Manipulating the embankment will damage the road. If the road is crushed stone, the layers will be mixed with the material, and the thickness of material reduced. Soft spots, and total failures, can develop, making vehicle traffic impossible. The neighbor's driveway has basically disappeared, and he barely made it up his drive after a small rain shower this afternoon. His trip out will probably lead to being stuck in his own drive. I have the feeling he's in contact with his contractor over this problem. 

The entire project has been a mess from the beginning. From conversations with people that know this neighbor, he was warned about the contractor, but decided to use them anyway. To me, that's foolish. Even if there is a contract (which I doubt there is) final satisfaction will only be arrived at in a courtroom. Even then, a judgement won't guarantee a solution, since a bankruptcy filing will make that disappear. 

To add insult to the debacle, the contractor is destroying the edge of the pavement as he hauls in and out. That created a different critter, since getting the county to take care of such things is damn near impossible. With the contractor's reputation, I'm just about sure he'll try to skate on repairing the road, and we'll be left with paving problems. Time will tell, but all the rest of the neighbors are like me, and not happy about this situation. I don't know how we'll handle this, but the contractor has some nice equipment that will fetch a fair price at auction. That should cover repair costs. 

Bravo

I read where Baldwin had an interview with the Clinton bitch boy, and claimed he didn't pull the trigger of the single action revolver that killed his coworker. He even cried, which is what he's paid well to do. He cries during many of his performances, and it even looks convincing. 

So, Bravo Mr. Baldwin. While you may have not pulled the trigger, how do you explain how the hammer of a single action revolver was cocked? We're waiting, and wondering when the local prosecutor will stop trying to shovel through the bullshit and charge you for the crime you committed. The scene is complete, they've called cut, and now you have to face the real world.