You Know Who... and Happy News About the Lahaina Banyan

I saw this comics in the Star Advertiser and had to 🙄 roll my eyes. It's so true isn't it?

And You Know Who is still the Republican frontrunner. 

Now... for some happy news.

Whenever we've flown to Maui and visited Lahaina, we've always stopped at the Banyan tree. It's one of Maui's most famous sites. And it's the largest banyan in the US, planted on April 24, 1873 which makes it 150 years old.

It's so huge that I could never get a photo of the entire tree.

So after the horror of the Lahaina fires and the lives and famous town lost, we did wonder about the tree.

This is how it looked after the fires.

Seeing this article gave us a glimmer of hope. Could it be that Lahaina could come back again? Would local people and businesses come back again?

I hope so.

Staying Safe

I don't know if you've already seen this on CBS News, but I thought it was interesting. I was wondering about getting the flu, RSV and COVID that are now available this fall. 

I've had this weird thing twice now where I've gotten that plugged ear feeling followed by vertigo in 2021 (after flu shot in October) and this year (after COVID bi-valent in May).

I've had several friends who took the flu and RSV together and then the COVID a week later. They were absolutely fine. I thought I'd do the same thing but decided to ask my primary doctor just in case.

He said juuuust in case, I might want to skip the RSV this time (since I haven't had much of a respiratory problem) just because of that possible past history with the plugged ears and vertigo. OK. I had the flu shot last Friday and I'm fine so far. I'll get the COVID next week and keep my fingers crossed. There's a LOT  of COVID walking around right now according to friends and relatives.

Then I saw this CBS News article which I thought was very interesting. 

"Some people are saying, 'Well, could I get RSV, COVID and the flu vaccine on the same day?' Yes, indeed, you could. But honestly, I might not," said Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. 

Instead, he said he intended to get the COVID shot right away and the flu shot in early October.

Marks, who was speaking during a recent call with FDA stakeholders, stressed that he did not disagree with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention which allows giving multiple different routine shots during the same visit. Doctors refer to this as "coadministration" or "simultaneous administration" of vaccines.

However, he acknowledged that getting up to three of the different vaccines at the same time could lead to more side effects — like stronger fatigue or a small fever — in the days after getting the shots. 

 Spacing out the shots by around two weeks could "minimize the chance of interactions, and minimize confusing side effects from one with another," he said. They might be a good option for people who did not mind multiple trips to the pharmacy or their doctor's office."

Luckily, we live quite close to the CVS pharmacy. Not everyone has that luxury. I recently asked my brother and another friend about the RSV vaccine and was told they absolutely intended to get the RSV just because they've had a lot of respiratory, allergy, asthmatic, etc. problems in past.

Stay safe everyone.

Testing for Vertigo

OK, I had my vestibular testing last Tuesday and it was not fun. Not fun at all. The definition for vestibular is " relating to a vestibule, particularly that of the inner ear, or more generally to the sense of balance".

I went to Audiology Associates to be tested both for my hearing and my vertigo. The ENT doctor at Tripler had told me not to worry and that the Audiologist would just be putting me through some tests that would show my vertigo triggers.

OKKKKKK....

It started fine. The doctor was very kind, explaining first what she would be doing. She said my ear canal was unusual because it went up instead of ..... (I forget).

After that, it was more of an in depth hearing test which was more comprehensive than what I had at Sam's Club some 8 years ago. Art took a photo from where he was waiting for me. It looked like my right ear was better than my left. And it did look like my hearing had deteriorated, somewhat.😕

I was feeling OK.

So far.

But then she said Art would probably want to go into the other room because I was going into a dark room to be tested for my vertigo.

Uh oh...

She put infrared goggles on me (to record my eye movements) and had me follow some red dots on a long bar. It didn't feel great, but it was OK. So far.

I was then told to lie on my right side and then my left side.

OK. So far.

Then she said she would be blowing cold air into my ear. It was a very strong stream of cold air. And it was OK until it wasn't . I got hit with vertigo.

Then she did the left ear and it was worse. Yikes! She had me look at her finger and take deep breaths until I felt a little better.

If that wasn't bad enough, she shot a strong stream of hot air into my right ear. Awful. I asked if she had a bucket or something because I was definitely nauseous. (Good thing I was told not to eat anything 4 hours prior to the test.)

Then the left ear and I heard her say, "Whoa... that was a good one. Uuuummm... I mean strong one."

I felt sick leaving the office and still nauseous on the way home. The doctor said I'd feel better once I took deep breaths, etc.

The following day... I was still not feeling great. I had to take a meclizine.

I'm doing relatively OK now after 5 days, but still not 100%

I have an appointment with my ENT doctor at Tripler in a couple of weeks and he is supposed to explain what I will have to do.

But gosh! Is there a cure for this? My 95 year old aunt told me she's had it for 60 years.

Sigh...

REusing #2 HDPE Plastic Bottles

Art likes to reuse plastic bottles to carry water when he goes jogging. It's because they're lighter to carry and smaller in size.

When mom had her digestive issues I noticed that these bottles were a great size for him to use. I looked under the bottle and saw it had the #2 rating for HDPE. 

I was nervous because you often see water bottles that advertise no BPA. But I didn't even know what BPA was that could be leached from plastic into your drink. I just looked it up. It's bisphenol A and linked to disruptions in the endocrine system which regulates your hormones.

So then I looked up if plastic bottles with that #2 rating were safe to use and found the following on WebMD. I copied the information that were most important to me.

https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/is-it-safe-to-reuse-plastic-water-bottles

...High-density polyethylene (HDPE).  If your bottle displays a “2,” the plastic is high-density polyethylene (HDPE). HDPE is a more sturdy, durable plastic. This makes it a good material for detergent bottles, soap bottles, and gallon-size liquid containers...

 ...Concerns with type-2 plastics (HDPE plastics). If you happen across a water bottle marked with a “2,” you can reuse it as long as it’s washed well and not cracked or otherwise damaged. This type of plastic is a low risk for chemical leaching.

...Plastic Bottles and Bacteria Growth

Plastic bottles can harbor harmful bacteria, which is why most manufacturers recommend you use them only once. In truth, bacterial growth in water bottles is a much bigger concern than chemical leaching.‌
Bacterial growth can happen quickly from the ordinary use of touching your mouth to your bottle. Even unfinished beverages left at room temperature can have startling bacteria growth throughout the day. It’s best to reuse plastic water bottles sparingly and wash them thoroughly because germs spread so quickly.
‌Whether you want to reuse plastic water bottles for convenience or to help the environment, you might be better off choosing a reusable stainless-steel or glass bottle instead.‌..

OK, So I've washed them out thoroughly and will wash them carefully after each use. 

Granted, maybe I'm saving too many plastic containers around the house. I keep trying to reuse things instead of sending them to recycling or landfills.

My son-in-law did once mention to me that perhaps... uuuummm... I could be overdoing it a bit. 😁

Dolly and Arnold

I enjoy looking at Buzzfeed on my iPhone occasionally. They have a lot of funny, happy, exciting things that people do or experiece.

A recent post had food service workers telling about their experiences with celebrities. I guess they do this topic a lot. I couldn't find the one I saw, but this is one of their posts.

https://www.buzzfeed.com/kristenharris1/restaurant-workers-celebrity-encounters

The post I saw a few days ago told about Dolly Parton.

It's quite wonderful to know that she really is as cheerful and kind as she appears in talk shows, etc.

I wrote something about Dolly in 2009 and my cousin, Arnold.

"He's a Captain with Hawaiian Airlines (rated #1 recently). Here's a photo of Arnold with...guess who?

It was taken in 1990 or so. He says the cabin crew were all making a fuss over her and he went back to welcome her and say he was one of her fans. She insisted he sit on her lap for a photo and would not take, (I'll bet it was a weak) "no," for an answer. He says Dolly really is as nice as everyone says. Well, Arnold's a sweetie, too! Isn't this just the coolest thing?"

So yes, that confirms how nice she is. 

As a retired teacher I can't help but love that she promotes reading for all children. 

I'm Baaack

It's been a heck of a couple of months! I've written how I had an attack of vertigo (with a visit to the ER) in June a week before our trip to Tokyo to celebrate our 50th anniversary with the kids. With my bottle of meclizine to keep dizziness at bay, our Tokyo trip was wonderful. 

However, July had vertigo attacks constantly happening with a horrendous one with vomiting and diarrhea at the same time (Don't even try to imagine this. It was awful!). It happened a couple of days before Art left for Tanzania with our friend, Dave on August 1st. He had to do the trip. He really did. They'd planned this since 2020 and already paid for half of it. My brother reassured us that he'd be around for any emergency and he certainly was. That's why he's my favorite brother. OK...He's my only brother but, he's still my favorite.

It wasn't easy. I was doing the Epley maneuver three times a day and taking meclizine daily to prevent a worse attack while Art was gone.

Art returned after the two week trip, tired and full of stories about their fabulous adventure. They'd traveled to Tanzania and then spent a couple of amazing days in Dubai. He had a runny nose and what seemed to be a post nasal drip which he does suffer from occasionally. When he tested himself, yes... he was positive for COVID and had to be quarantined... IMMEDIATELY, but not before mom and I were exposed.

So then, there I was going up and down the stairs carrying his meals, laundry, medication, fluids to his closed door.

I was fanatical about this. I had windows open, fans blowing, etc. I couldn't afford to catch it and I had to keep mom safe.

I tested myself and mom constantly and miraculously avoided catching the virus.

The Paxlovid for Art did not work as quickly for Art as it did for others. I suspect he caught the virus earlier than he thought. (Someone told me you have to take the medication 5 days after symptoms show.) Whatever the case, he was quarantined for almost two weeks. He tested negative after about a week and a half but needed another 3-4 days to regain his energy and appetite. (Amazingly, Dave who was with Art for the entire time never caught COVID!)

And then...

Oh gosh...

I thought we might be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel when Art was beginning to feel better. But then, Mom started to develop some kind of digestive disorder. My brother and I took her to Urgent Care and they put her through a battery of tests. They couldn't find anything drastically wrong. I was now having to worry about what kind of meals I could safely give mom.

Sooo... I needed to encourage Art to eat a lot more and had to now limit what kind of food I could give mom safely.

After three weeks, mom seems to have recovered and her appetite is back to normal. She and Art now just have to regain the weight they'd lost. Me too, actually.

I have an appointment with an audiologist this week. She will test my hearing and then give me a series of vestibular tests for vertigo.

One of the questions I had to answer before my appointment was if I'm under stress.

Hmmmm.... you think?!?