Sunday, December 23, 2018

Marie and the Aortic Aneurysm

We met online a decade or more ago. Our conversations were always fun, but after a while we'd drift on. But we kept bumping into each other here and there.

Last summer I stopped in for a visit. We grilled steaks and, both of us being of low-stamina, an hour and a half was enough.

In October, anticipating being near,  she let me mail some books to her house. Whim had its way and it wasn't 'til this past weekend we got together.

We share an appreciation of art and clouds and went to see the sky and galleries in Jerome (Arizona). On our way down the hill some deer stepped in front of the car. We stopped, but the guy behind us didn't.

X-rays indicated no mechanical damage, but there, clear to see, was an abdominal aneurysm on the aorta (in me, not her). In 2013, when Wiki last checked, aortic aneurysms accounted for 150,000 deaths, mostly guys. It's only 3 cm (size matters) and may never be a problem.

But it's funny, Kenn Louie lost some of his (right) leg over the last month; the cancer's taking him bit by bit. (If you look closely at the image in the link above, you'll see his left leg is all wires...a prosthesis.) But he's indomitable and annoyed at being bed-ridden; while waiting to heal from the surgery he can't work.

I, on the other hand, had started to worry (too much free time) about how I was gonna get outa here. It was a heated debate:  Revolver's handy; nahhh, a shotgun's for sure. Either way quick, but oy vey, such a mess!

Now I can relax. Of course there're (I know, I SHOULD say there's...to be up with the times.) no guarantees, but at least I now know I have a decent chance. I just hope it doesn't happen while I'm driving. Hmmm, a chauffeurette?

2 comments:

  1. I - obviously - missed this piece. You're saying that this jack-in-the-box may jump up at any point during your melody? So, this relieves you of the need to be proactive about which note you end on, I'm guessing.

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    Replies
    1. I couldn't bring myself to join, but their motto appeals - Be prepared. And there's a rumor luck favors them that are.

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