wrote:
Has anyone heard about how Ray’s surgery went yesterday?
Wondering the same thing, Barbara. Haven’t seen any news here or on the PSE forum in yahoo.
Dick
Hi, Patti. Yes, I know, thanks, but I thought Ray’s roommate was supposed to be in touch with someone around here. I doubt we’ll see any blogging for quite a while. At least when I was in the hospital I sure wouldn’t have wanted to do any!
I think we are supposed to hear from Ray’s friend on Friday…so maybe tomorrow. Hope so.
I thought we were supposed to hear last night….hope all is well.
Probably not until tomorrow(Friday) from what he said in the beginning. I imagine that he feels pretty doggone bad, and wants to sleep. Hope that Rick will let us know if everything went OK though.
Yes, hope that all is well!
Any jaw operation is very painful, so we know that he will be not too happy for at least a week. Jane
Ray’s operation was successful! It did last longer than the original plan. But he came through it OK.
When more details come in, I think that Sara will put them here. But it sure makes us feel great that he is OK. Just have to get thru the recovery period where eating and drinking will be difficult.
Jane
Jane Carter wrote:
Ray’s operation was successful! It did last longer than the original plan. But he came through it OK.
When more details come in, I think that Sara will put them here. But it sure makes us feel great that he is OK. Just have to get thru the recovery period where eating and drinking will be difficult.
Jane
Thanks, Jane, for posting the info. I saw Sara’s post and hoped someone would. Got interrupted by a phone call.
Dick
Ya. Thanks Jane for posting as I didn’t see the one by Sara.
I’m glad the operations was successful and rAy came through it okay as it will make the recovery period all worthwhile.
beth
I didn’t see the post from Sara, so this may be redundant. Ray’s surgery went 9 hours, about 3 hours longer than expected. No complications, just slower. As with most major surgery, he spent some time in the Intensive Care Unit, but came out of there last night and is continuing his recovery in the hospital today. Sorry I didn’t post sooner; just got home from work.
Chuck
Chuck, thanks.
In another posting I talked about this forum as a kind of family. This proves I’m right. Although probably none of us has ever met Raymond face to face, we all care about his well being.
Hopefully he will recover soon to take his place behind the keyboard.
Leen
I’m sure if there was any new info it would be here. This is just to keep this thread active and nearer the top.
Update:
I got an email from Ray this morning and it sounds like his doing well, at least as well as can be expected having just endured 9 hours of surgery on his jaw. He’s eating grape jello and had a cup of coffee this morning. π
Ray, I hope you don’t mind me posting this little update.
Joe
Joe,
Thanks for letting us know … I was getting a little worried that we hadn’t heard anything.
Wendy
I did get mail from his friend a few days ago…same message that Chuck posted but no mail from the actual man himself.
Reading his weblog I noticed the surgeons didnot take away his lovely sense of humour.
Leen
Good something all !
(It’s 4 AM here, and I don’t know if I shall call this the beginning of the day, or the middle of the night…)
I will slowly start to read this board again. I mean like a few messages every day. On heavy postings day, I might get behind. That is because I’m under codeine (near maximum daily dosage) and it has various effects and I don’t have a lot of "business hours" between two shots. I don’t want to take max dose because this stuff isn’t the best thing on Earth, so once the pain kicks in, there’s no computer time for me…
I don’t know what you know so perhaps I’ll just repeat what others told you here (again, sorry) :
The surgery went well, but longer than anticipated (9 hours as opposed to
5.5 planned). I got out at around 5 or 6 PM on June the 2nd. I was
transferred to ICU (Intensive Care Unit) as a normal procedure, where it was assume I was awake. Which I wasn’t. I was ok, but I wasn’t awake. I realized I was out of the surgery at 2 AM on the 3rd. Ouch! I lost 8 hours (I wish this could have happened on a regular workday shift, though… Haha!). I just came to realized I was awake at 2, although my friend Rick said I was awfully quiet after the surgery, and very calm until then…
Since the surgery, my face gained 17 lbs (a little swelling each day) and my body lost about 45 pounds. It certainly feels that way. The truth is that I lost about 8 to 10 pounds because Endure and Bruise (oops… Ensure and Boost) aren’t exactly the latest French delicacy… And baby food taste horrible. Please parents, avoid Spaghetti + Meat + Tomato Sauce (Heinz, colour code : light orange opaque). It tastes wallpaper glue, deluxe, with no salt, sugar, pepper, and flavour added.
I don’t have an appetite for anything, and when I do, everything tastes a specific something. Yesterday, it was plastic. Soft, highly colored, sun resistant plastic. Don’t ask how I know it tasted that, I just know it did π
Today’s special : iron with a touch of Turtle Wax (Car wax) for imported cars.
As for the surgery itself, everything went according to plan except the surgeon needed to remove a piece of my hip to serve as a bone transplant in my mouth. I knew this was a possibility. Just as never coming back was. Guess what I thought would happen? Neither of those! So, the first thing I did when I woke up was to check my hip. I didn’t have to.
IT HURTED LIKE HELL!
Today, the pain in the hip has become manageable, but last Saturday, it felt like a teeth extraction had been performed without proper anesthesia. What was troubling me is that the pain wasn’t localize there. It run to my entire lower abdomen. I was very scared. Now, I’m less. I lost sensation π This may sound silly, but it’s a normal thing. It only means nerves are healing and it will come back again. Someday.
Also, the second thing I did once I woke up completely (2 AM) was to check I didn’t have more tubes ‘n’ wires attached than holes available.
I HAD ONE TUBE WHERE NOTHING NEVER, EVER SHOULD GO THERE.
At the time, both the surgeon, the nurses and my friend Rick realized : "He’s out of trouble, he’s yelling again" I told them they didn’t have to have a tube in there to know I was awake. I would have ranted anyway. It’s in my nature π
Finally, after I woke up completely, I realized I could talk. Humm.. It felt strange. I could actually talk, breath, chew… I panicked! Staff had to explained (well, re-explained they told me that 8 hours before) that I wasn’t wired because the surgery lasted longer. My surgeon was able to put more stuff in my bones and, as a result, I will need less banding.
Cool!
The joy stopped about 24 hours later when my surgeon realized the joints (TMJ) were taking a beating because of the swelling and that my lower jaw was returning to where it was. Before the surgery. That wasn’t good. So she installed a tiny series of rubber bands (they’re as big as a finger… So cute!) to let my lower jaw knows where its resting position is. It seems to work, although the pain is not getting any better. In fact, that’s what has been keeping off this board for so long, the pain is getting worst every day. On Wednesday, I’m seeing her (my surgeon) and I hope she’ll find something to correct this, or I will be permitted to have some other medicine. I would even consider another journey at the hospital, if it would help.
So, what to look ahead… Someday, I will have a medically free appartment. Because now, it looks like a sick bay from Star Trek. There’s medical stuff all around the place.. "Where are the tissues? Near the game console… Where the decongestant? Near the vanilla pudding mix, second shelf"
I’m also looking to have those bands removed next week. At least, some of them for good, and other only when I eat. That’ll be a hit for me, as I will be permitted to eat soft food again (macaroni and cheeze never sounded more delicious than today!) For now, I’m on a strictly liquid diet. Pudding needs to be soften with water. Jell-O through a syringe is cool because it becomes liquid again, even when cold! Try this at home π
Finally, within a few weeks (3 to 5 more), I will completely regain my energy, and most importantly, my equilibrium. As of now, MuchMusic (MTV if you prefer) is off ground for me. Any movies that change scenes more than one time per minute makes my head spin… Yesterday, we watched Mosquito Coast, and the day before that, it was Frantic. It’s our own Harrison Ford Film Festival. For those who saw those movies, you can tell already, there’s no big action in any of these π I know things are returning to normal in this area because yesterday, I was able to flip my body, without feeling too dizzy. That’s a good sign!
Well that’s it for now! I will try to get some rest. Codeine shot, the last one I got an hour ago, is making me sleepy again… Yay!
Good night everybody,
Ray
P.S. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention… I quit smoking 7 days ago. Just the night before the surgery, I decided I would quit smoking for good, not only the 5 regular days I was asked to. Tomorrow’s gonna be my seventh day. So, perhaps I will get that 28-135mm IS Lens I am looking for, finally π
Well, Ray, good morning! I see they didn’t remove any of that terrific sense of humor you have.
Sounds like all is progressing, albeit much more slowly than you’d like! But, hey, it gives you more time to discover alternate ways to stay on a liquid diet!
Glad to have you back in person even if it’s only for a couple of times a day.
Take care, follow the doctor’s orders and come back more and more each day.
Dick
Hi Ray, GREAT to hear from you and to know that everything will be OK.
Here is a little info from one of my neighbours; Dave told me one day that he needed a new truck for his business, but money was tight, as they have a new baby. So he sat down with his calculator and added up his 2 pack of cigs a day habit and that was about $10/day. (I had no idea that they were that expensive, as nobody in my entire family smokes.)
So Dave said, 30 days in a month = $300 for cigs,($3600/year), and that is what the payments would be on a new F-150 with the club cab and 4WD. So he quit smoking and bought the truck!
That’s a lot of computer goodies and softwares!
Congratulations!
Jane
Morning Ray !
It’s good to hear from you and to know that you are on the road to recovery. Maybe you might start watching soap operas on T.V. . . there is not a lot of action and the plot line as well moves at a snail’s pace. π
take care,
beth
Ray, it’s so good to hear/read that you’re starting to feel like ‘one of the living’ again. The ONLY good thing about pain is how wonderful it feels when it stops!
You are wise to take the opportunity to quit smoking, especially if it was a real passion. I quit a 1-1/2 large-pack-a-day habit over 20 years ago now. I was, to put it bluntly, severely addicted to the things. And quitting ranks among the hardest (and smartest) things I have ever done in my life.
Speedy recovery, and best of luck with kicking ‘the habit’.
Allo, comment ca va ? Sounds like you are progressing to a good point. So two good things have come from this…new jaw and new lungs….good for you ! If I could only be so lucky. π Try to enjoy your time off from work ! Think of it as the calm after the storm. Lots of heavy work to get back on track but all worth it in the end. Always thinking of you ~ Jodi
Ray,
It is great to know that you are beginning to heal, well enough already to spend some time with us.
Byron
Hi Ray,
Good to hear from you and to get a full report on how things went and how you are now.
I quit smoking when I got a terrible chest cold. I don’t remember trying but I simply couldn’t smoke and the craving was gone after I recovered.
Wishing you a speedy recovery.
PS Babies have different tastes than a full grown adult. They probably love the stuff.
Ray,
It is certainly good to hear that you are making fine progress. Be well, and be well soon! Giving up smoking is, of course, a great help for your recovery and also for your entire future.
Take care,
Juergen
Ray, what can I say without repeating what has been said before? I envy your giving up smoking. I think I will have to go to the USA and sue those tobacco manufacturers. Then I will be able to buy that new Kodak camera!
I wish you a speedy recovery, just like all the others did before me.
Leen
Ray,
Glad to hear that you still have your sense of humour ….
AND great news that you have given up smoking … I gave up 3 years ago, my husband said he would give me Β£1 per day and I too put Β£1 per day into a jar. Over the years I have not spent it but waited until I found something I really wanted … the Camera was it !! AND I still have quite a bit left in the jar.
Take my tip … keep a jar then when you feel you really want a cigarette just go and count you money π π It worked for me π
Ray … may you heal fast and may you always be HAPPY π
Wendy
Ray,
It was wonderful to read your post and know the surgery went well. I’m thinking of you and hoping you will be more comfortable…right now!
Nancy
First, many thanks to all of you who have expressed kind wishes toward me. Rest assured, my ordeal is only temporary. And I’m already planning my first meal. Beef, I’m positive. Now, what kind of dish will it be ? This, I still have to choose. But no rush there, it could still take months before beef and I get acquainted again together! Sure thing, it won’t be shopped beef anymore !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In the meantime, I’ve updated my Pbase account with some pictures of me.
**** WARNING *****
Some people are mentally affected when they view someone they know / care of / have met in real, being medically affected the way these pictures show. If you recognize yourself, please, don’t visit this page. You’ll only be more traumatized.
Otherwise, I know this may sound like a big deal, but it isn’t, and seeing these pictures, I don’t want to attract pity from you. That’s besides the point. I think it’s actually cool how "deformed" one has to become in order to achieve a better existence (better bite in my case).
On my staying at the hospital, I saw some truly more dramatic scenes. A man fighting blood cancer (3 times a week he had to have his blood tested, filtered and manipulated, for the rest of his life, and the guy was only 53 !!!!!!!!!). I saw people slowly loosing their mind, over great period of times, there was a lady which couldn’t have any form of liquid (something with her stomach being unable to process water or liquids)… Gosh! All the liquid she would have, would have to be ingested within the food!!! That’s terrible… Try to imagine not being able to drink anything (coffee, tea, water, beer, wine, etc.) for a full day. Then multiply this by several weeks (I think she had been suffering from this for months).
That’s why I say what I’m currently facing is really nothing compared to the real misery, diseases, trauma. It’s only a short detour on what has been so far a very pleasant life!
http://www.pbase.com/carbone/gallery/surgery Ray
P.S. Grant: last night, I took a detour on your website. I stayed there long enough to visit your son’s wedding, amongst other things. Are you Scottish or of Scottish origins? The Wedding seemed to point in that direction.
And here I was all set for some really gruesome stuff!
Those picture don’t look so bad, however you sure can see where the swelling is.
Already you can see a major difference.
Dick
Dick, it isn’t exactly the Little Shop Of HorrorsΒ… but still, I’m not exactly myself neither π
(have I been myself at some point in my Life ??)
Ray
Well, the way you were talking Ray, I expected something really bad! You wanna know my first thought when I saw that after picture? Too bad, you have to read it anyway.
My first thought was…. Whoa! What beautiful eyes he has and very clear skin. LOL
And then…what a nice clear photos that that camera takes!
My daughter looked worse with more swelling after she has her wisdom teeth extracted. π I don’t think she had your pain though.
Three cheers on the smoking thing!!! Keep it up and buy something for your camera.
Patti
Welcome back Ray, glad all is well and the healing process is in full swing. I do hope you mend in the appropriate amount of time to insure that all goes well. I promise I will not make any comment about living life through a stray. well not this week but when you are able to give as good as you get I might throw in the odd zinger but then again I expect them back.
All in all Ray I am sure glad you are on this side of the surgery with your sense of humour in good shape.
Grant
Hi Ray, The surgery is over with, you look great( Nice Eyes, yes Patti, I agree), and the most important thing is the end of the smoking.
About the Scottish stuff, yes I am too, Douglass is my family name, and my husband is French Canadian and Scot and English. Our kids are quite a mixture.
But what ever we are, if we like computers, photography, and PSE, we are OK.
So glad you are OK, and thanks for posting the pictures.
See if you can work on coming to MacWorld Boston, would be fun to meet you and any others from this forum.
Jane
Ray, geeze, the way you were talking I was almost afraid to look ! It doesn’t reflect the way you described it at all. The pain must have been worst than the sight of it I’m sure. My face has looked worse a time or two π
Glad you are feeling better ! Enjoy the beef !
oh wait, " Where’s The Beef ! " …couldn’t resist π
….that might have been only an American thing ??
Ray, you are a little devil. π
You warn everyone about looking like Frankenstein and now all women on the forum are melting because of your eyes and would love to pamper you.
This is most likely part of a very intelligent masterplan. I wonder what will be your next move. π
Leen
BTW: Tonight on the radio I heard someone talking about the results of a research that indicated men use emoticons over twice as much as women seem to do.
Leen
Ray,
The before and after images taken from the side really do show a major difference … just wait until all the swelling goes down and it the result is going to be amazing π
Get plenty of rest and take care
Wendy
Ray, (dreaming of beef): Steak Tartare should be manageable soon!
Let’s hear a "YAY RAY"!!!!!!!!!!
Welcome back to the land of the living; hope your convalescence is brief!
π
Chuck
I’m sorry, I didn’t want to sound too alarmist… My sister is scared at looking at me and my brother says "I’ve seen worst… But not much". So I took it I was really looking bad.
Glad you all think I look ok, ‘coz tomorrow is the big day… I’m going out ! I’m visiting my surgeon, but since she’s not only performing this kind of surgery, her waiting room is usually filled with "normal looking people" π So I won’t have to present myself with a paper bag hat that covers all above the shoulders…
Leen: you’re right, I think I must be using emoticons twice as much as women !! π
Ray
Ray,
good to see you are getting better every day, and i’d love to read more of your blog entries.
about quit smoking help:
instead of nicotine addiction, get addicted to some sport!
[you’re lucky if you already do some sport, else go find one.]
now:
try to be *really* good at it.
try as hard as you can to improve your skills.
think about extra excercises.
think about what things drain power off of you. eliminate these things.
maybe this works for you too.
flar
Ray,
Glad the operation went well. Just blame the medication for the emoticons. I have to agree with the rest of the ladies…bruises aren’t that bad and you do have exceptional eyes.
Terri
i think i will start hittin myself in the face right now. π π Leen, what emoticons? *verybiggrin*
Ray,
Heureux tout va bien pour vous. Dans l’attente de vous avoir joignez-nous encore dans le Challenge.As que vous pouvez dire de tous les poteaux, you’ve deviennent comme un membre de toutes nos familles.
P.S. J’ai dΓ» tricher sur ce poteau. Ceci poussait les limites Γ l’extrΓ©mitΓ© pour mon FranΓ§ais.J’espΓ¨re que ma signification (et grammer) pas obtenez Γ mutilΓ©! If only Babelfish had existed when I was taking my exams.
CR
Chris, if Babelfish existed at that time…;-)
I suppose you passed your exams?
Don’t think any further et n’oubliez jamais. π
Leen
Ray, glad you’re OK, good news on the smoking front. I think maybe it’s time I gave up myself.
Take good care
Cal
Leen,
Barely and I’ve mostly forgotten. π
CR
Yup, I only went to french school up to grade 4 and I still have a very limited vocabulary. I can read it and understand it but ‘talking ‘ the frog talk ‘…lmao….( sorry Ray…just a ‘bloke’ thing ;)) is not my strong point π
flar,
Sport : I got the green card from the surgeon to get back to the gym on my 8th week, pending an X-Ray (my name’s in there..!!) shows the grafted bones have merged significantly with the old ones. In this case, I’d be allowed to do whatever I want.
So that’s the plan!
Ray
Jodi, I have no trouble with square heads like yours… Lol!!!!… Just a joke π
Ray
Ray, square heads ? Geeze, I have been away too long. I have never heard of that one before.
Susan, we have alot in common, stuck between two worlds π
It’s OK, I kind of like it.
Ray – glad to hear you are doing well. Congratulations on giving up smoking. I was lucky, I never started!
Jodi – I know exactly what you mean- England has moved on and I have moved on elsewhere. It feels odd when I go back to where I was brought up, seeing through adult’s eyes things that were once very familiar, but now seem to have changed in imperceptible ways. But although I have lived in Australia for more than half my life, I don’t quite feel as "at home" as someone who was brought up here. No doubt a very common migrant experience…
Susan S
Hi Susan, I also never smoked either, I tried when I was a teen ager and found out that I was allergic to tobacco! Still am. Think of all the money we non-smokers save, and spend on computers and software. Makes me feel less guilty when I go out and buy some more software that I haven’t even learned how to use yet!
Like
this,,,,,http://www.autofx.com/creative_xtreme/dreamsuite_on e.html And it has 4 others, Bryce, KPT Collection included which I already have. Just wondering if I would use the Knockout 2, the Dreamsuite Series One and the Gel series. Do the people who use PSE here tend to use these 3 programs? I am having a difficult time deciding, as I need a new bicycle too. The bicycle is ‘need’, the software is ‘want’.
I would love to go to Australia! And see that wonderful great barrier reef! Jane
Jane – Sadly that offer is North America only – I’d love to have Bryce. I’ve not tried any of the other stuff – generally I fiind that i download the demos of these filters and things and then play with them for a week or two and then stop. If you want free graphics programs Microsoft has bought out the people who make Creative Expresssion (a vector drawing program with attitude) and are making version 3 available as a free download
<
http://www.microsoft.com/products/expression/default.asp?pg= home>
I’m a looooong way away from the Barrier Reef where I am.
Happy healing, Ray! It’s so good to have you back with humour intact. I’ve read where some adversity and suffering in your life will make you a better writer — but then, again, that was probably written by someone who never had a bad hair day in their entire lives.
I took a peek at your pictures and thought you looked rather cute — in kind of a chipmunky sort of a way:)
I’m anxious for you to feel well enough to start working on those TV scripts — a book would also be nice! I don’t do much TV watching, but am a real fan of the old BBC sitcoms (Allo! Allo!, Dad’s Army, Bless Me Father, Are You Being Served?) And although I never watch U.S. Soaps, I loved the BallyK series. I do hope you are successful marketing your scripts — I would definitely watch those!
I always wondered how a baby could possibly eat an entire jar of pulverized, mashed, sieved carrots. One squashed mini carrot would be enough for me, and that one would have to be buried in salsa. When it comes to "meat" in a jar, though, I’d have to pass. If I’m going to suck it up through a straw, it’s going to have to be fruit or veggies.
Anyway, keep up your great spirits — doing so will absolutely make you better faster.
Marilyn
Thanks for the kind words Marylin! My spirits weren’t so high this morning (I’ve had pain since yesterday morning until now). But reading your letter helped π
I’m like you on meat through a straw.. So, I fixed the problem! I decided to mix vegetables and meat in a cup, add water so that it’s thin enough to fit through my teeth… I know, this will sound disgusting, but I don’t have that many options, I need to have protein from meat and the other stuff found in meat as well, to heal faster. So creamy corn and sweet potatoes tends to make food taste a little better. Beef isn’t for me, not in baby jar that is. The texture is too "grainy" and it’s hard to swallow when your mouth can’t open. Chicken is ok, veal as well. Today I’m having lamb (or chicken again, I’d have to check my supplies!)
I’ve also started to use the blender yesterday and made my first smoothies! Milk, yogourt, banana and vanilla extract. It was delicious, and for the first day since my home coming, I wasn’t hungry at 8 PM.. !!
Side note : for the following 7 days, I’m shut wired for good. A problem has developed in my TMJs and needs to be repaired immediately. Therefore, the surgeon ordered (and for that matter, closed it manually) my mouth to remained motionless as much as possible with tight rubber bands. I’m sure it’s for the best, though!
Ray
Hi Susan, I did get Expression, thank you!
I found that Sara at Eclectic Academy gives classes in it. So sometime in the future, I will take them.
First I must learn more about PSE, I am just getting to the point where I can do what I need to a picture without going back to the books. It is my favourite of all software!
Bryce is reaaalllly difficult, I am taking a class in it now, and have fallen behind. The instructor is saving me a place in his September class. It is an amazing program. But the learning curve is a bit tough for me.
Do you want me to phone the Auto FX company and see if there could be a way for you to purchase it? It is a toll free phone and I can call them and ask for you, I could do that very easily.
Hi Ray, Try the Stonyfield Farms, whole milk yogurt, the French Vanilla; it is really good and nutritious. I ate gallons of the stuff when I came out of the hospital 4 years ago.
We still eat it. My grandsons love it too.
Jane
Ray – baby food seems to taste disgusting especially the meat based varieties. I used to blend my own as the kids had more sense than to eat the tinned/canned variety. Getting milk based protein from smoothies and yogurt based drinks seems to make much more sense than trying to get it from things that are just not meant to be pureed. Sorry to hear about the setback. I really hope that you feel better soon.
Thanks for the offer Jane – but I’ve just spent quite a lot of money on CS (and a collection of books to go with it) plus a teleconverter for my G3 (well the mid-winter sales were on, and it was either that or a really nice pair of half-price boots…). So I’ve locked up my credit cards for the moment!
Hi Susan, This sale goes on until next Christmas, so we have plenty of time. I did call them a few minutes ago, as I have 2 other friends who want to buy this. They do sell to people outside USA, the orders go thru the credit card as usual, and the shipping is International with a $25 extra charge.
Also there are people who want the Dreamsuite series 2 which isn’t included in the package, but they will make a special order and include it for $100 more. And the cost of that is $149, but they will do this for people who want both the Dreamsuites. The total would be $298 plus shipping. Wow I think I will do this in Sept or Oct!!!
Also I am going to buy a new bicycle this morning, my old one is really old and decrepit. Need a new cell phone too, my old one is HUGE and difficult to carry, and the new tiny ones are on sale this month.
Oh, so many goodies to spend our hard earned money on!
Jane
Ray – RE: "I decided to mix vegetables and meat in a cup, add water so that it’s thin enough to fit through my teeth… I know, this will sound disgusting, but I don’t have that many options, …"
Is there an emoticon for Yuk! π Just kidding. Sometimes ya gotta do whatcha gotta do. But I would probably have to look into intravenous feeding:) I’m not a yogurt fan either, so I would be in a pretty precarious condition, or at least on the diet of my life. I could bury everything in chocolate–and thumb my nose at the diet!
If you don’t mind my asking–when you have your teeth wired (rubber-banded?) shut, do you have to poke your straw in behind your wisdom teeth to eat/drink your smoothies? (And if you don’t wish to answer that one, just silently tell me to stick it in my ear.) π
Sure sorry to hear that you had a bit of a set back. But just think how much more material that experience is going to provide you for that book you’re going to write on "100 Favorite Recipes for Meals through a Straw–Or How You Can Disguise Anything With a Touch of Vanilla Extract"! Seriously, hope that it’s just a short detour and that you’ll be back on track towards a full recovery very soon.
Marilyn
I could bury everything in chocolate–and thumb
my nose at the diet!
I’m usually very choosy myself. But, there are times when ones need to "endure" in order to get through the moment, alive π
If you don’t mind my asking–when you have your teeth wired (rubber-banded?) shut, do you have to poke your straw in behind your wisdom teeth to eat/drink your smoothies? (And if you don’t wish to answer that one, just silently tell me to stick it in my ear.) π
The wires are, indeed, rubber bands. I currently have 4 of them in places. I will be taught to remove and put them back in place myself next week, Thursday, so that I can eat soft food again (no more liquid). Yahoo!
I eat with a cup (or a glass) actually. Suction was out of the question from day 1 since it would have damaged the stitches inside my mouth. At first, I was able to open my mouth, so I could stick in a Playtex Child Spoon. But then, when the surgeon said no more, I revert back to a cup. Everything needs to be liquefied to let it pass through my teeth.
Near the wisdom teeth, those are the big areas of work, no food can get through there for the time being. I don’t know how better to describe this, that’s where the plates and screws were inserted.
Sure sorry to hear that you had a bit of a set back. But just think how much more material that experience is going to provide you for that book you’re going to write on "100 Favorite Recipes for Meals through a Straw–Or How You Can Disguise Anything With a Touch of Vanilla Extract"! Seriously, hope that it’s just a short detour and that you’ll be back on track towards a full recovery very soon.
LOL !
I was never able to smile and eat properly. Sure, I could eat, if I chopped or cut everything first, and a simple "Hello" smile was out of the question, it had to be a totally big smile otherwise my upper teeth wouldn’t show up.
So a week without eating with a spoon is like pretty much insignificant to me. In fact, I was ready to endure 6 weeks of this. That was the game plan at first. I was to be totally wired, with metal fibers, for 6 weeks solid. Then, reintroduce soft food for a while, then less soft, and so forth. It would have taken me several months. But when my surgeon suggested this approach (i.e. not wired solid, but don’t eat just yet), I was thrilled!
Ray
Ray – I tried experimenting drinking my Pepsi with my teeth clamped shut; and let me tell you (as if you haven’t already figured it out), that is much easier said than done! Now I am really, really impressed with your ability to laugh through all of this! You must be a super fun person to be around π
It would be lovely to have a nice smile, so you keep hanging in there.
I just realized that your book (I just know you’re going to write one:) will be in French, and unless it consists of such pithy rhetoric as "I am an American" and "Where is the telephone?," I won’t understand a word of it! π I do hope you can publish an English edition or one with subtitles…
Marilyn
Marilyn,
Ray could offer a service … If you buy the book I will come over to you and translate π π
Wendy
Hmmm….
It’s been a year or so since I last tasted baby food but I recall tasty treats a plenty! My favorite was the Gerber meat (chicken or beef) sticks. You know the little hot dog looking things in a jar? Ray, I bet with a little liquid of some kind you could blend up some of those for a high protein and very tasty treat!
Oh and that Gerber gourmet (I think it’s called Tender Harvest) food isn’t to bad either. Of course any of the fruit, especially the peach cobbler and the blueberry buckle, are great. My boys and I would fight over who got to eat those. π
Hang in there Ray, you’re bound to encounter a few bumps-in-the-road along the way.
Joe
Ray – I tried experimenting drinking my Pepsi with my teeth clamped shut; and let me tell you (as if you haven’t already figured it out), that is much easier said than done! Now I am really, really impressed with your ability to laugh through all of this! You must be a super fun person to be around π
You tried the possibly most difficult stuff to have… Pepsi (and all colas) aren’t recommended because of the limited space in the mouth, air is difficult to expel. Try water, next time π
And thanks for the nice compliments. Friends and family always have a good time around me, that’s why I don’t have enough time for myself π
It would be lovely to have a nice smile, so you keep hanging in there.
It’s beginning to show. I mean, if I look closely, I will see it. The stiffness in my cheeks and lips is slowly going away. Still, I’m weeks (if not months) from "normality", but it’s reassuring to know I am getting there!
I just realized that your book (I just know you’re going to write one:) will be in French, and unless it consists of such pithy rhetoric as "I am an American" and "Where is the telephone?," I won’t understand a word of it! π I do hope you can publish an English edition or one with subtitles…
Marilyn
Ehh… I don’t know what to tell you… I’m really working on a TV project… I mean, perhaps destiny will bring this out as a book… Who knows!
Translating isn’t an issue. We get tons of books translated from English to French around here. In fact, I’d guess more than 70% of the books offered currently on the market here are "foreign", I mean English (Canadian, American, ROW). They’re all translated. It only takes a few months (3 to 5, depending on the size of the book). The last Harry Potter took 8 months, to my knowledge, a record in slowness!
Ray
I’ll probably give you a copy for such a service Wendy π
Joe, that’s what I do. I mix everything with water. It needs to be thinned enough so that it fits between my teeth (the space between)… !
Problem is, I become tired of eating after an hour (imagine yourself, emptying each and every plate you have over an entire hour). I become bored, and loose appetite. Then, an hour later, the cycle restarts… I get hungry, it takes an hour, I loose appetite and I’m not even half done.. π
On Thursday, though, things are about to change… I’ll be able to remove my rubber bands to eat… YAHOO ! Already, I have a meal with my friends at the restaurant planned for Friday. It will fit in my mouth, it has to π
Ray
Ray,
π π π
Wendy
Ray – I guess I’ve been hoping for a book because French TV series don’t make it to my cable/dish channels, not even with subtitles π
I wondered about the Pepsi–the foam ended up outside my teeth, and I couldn’t figure out how to get it inside without sucking it in (which you said was a no-no) and couldn’t spit it out either (as I couldn’t spit with my teeth locked together. π I will have to try the water (although I don’t really like water–people call me a camel:)
I wouldn’t doubt that it would take 8 months to translate the last Harry Potter novel — it took me that long to wade through it, too! I think maybe the hero is a bit too young for me:)
Happy eating next Thursday!
Wendy – I didn’t know that you could speak French. I envy you! I would love to be bilingual, and French is such a beautiful language.
Marilyn
"Ray" wrote
Already, I have a meal with my friends at
the restaurant planned for Friday. It will fit in my mouth, it has to π
Ray,
Just in case…
http://www.smarthome.com/9171.html π
Byron
Ray,
Just in case…
http://www.smarthome.com/9171.html
π
Byron
Byron… LOL !!!
I just don’t think I’m gonna need a blender long enough to invest in a portable unit. Knowing that I already ordered a "real" one which is supposed to arrive tomorrow afternoon…
But thanks anyway…
π
Ray
