Blog forward...

I'll try to have someone post my blogs for me while I'm in the hospital. So all my entries from now on can be seen here...

http://djrick.multiply.com/journal
(click on link, or copy and paste to your browser address bar)

vs. eating dog meat

I just signed an online petition pushing for stronger laws against the eating of dog meat. We Filipinos often joke about this, but to foreigners it's just plain uncivilized.

Here's the link to sign (it takes less than a minute)...
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/879609320?ltl=1169181769

Hopefully the petitioners get the fifty thousand signatures that they need. I'm ashamed to admit it, but I wish I were a little more active in causes like this. Maybe on some level, we all do.

Operation

It's official. I'm having my surgery this week. I met with the Neurosurgeon yesterday and he confirmed what the Neurologist and Orthopedic surgeon said. I have two slipped discs and I have to go under the knife.

The procedure is scheduled for Wednesday at the Medical City. So I'll be admitted Tuesday morning for testing.

Even though I've known for a while that I'll need the operation, somehow it feels so sudden. Maybe I'm just a bit nervous. As far as I know, I've never had any serious medical work done. I've never even broken a bone. But surgery on my spine sounds so major, even if the Doctor says that it's rather routine.

I thank God for my company's health plan and the nice people at the HMO. Hospitalization isn't cheap, and they're doing their best to handle all the costs. At least, that's one less thing for me to worry about.

I hope that this thing goes smoothly and I'll be as good as new when it's all over. This whole thing has been really tough on my wife. She's as worried as I am, but she's kept it together.

"House arrest"

I admit, I'm a homebody. I could spend hours in front of the PC without setting foot outside. But at least then, before this back injury, I had the freedom to choose. Staying inside was a conscious decision. Now, I'm a prisoner.

What sucks even more is that my leg and back are teasing me. I don't feel all that bad when I'm here. I'm sitting or laying around the house feeling like I'm perfectly healthy. But when I go out, (even on a short errand to the store) the pain strikes.

It's like my back and leg are some sort of hi-tech tracking device the Feds puts on prisoners under house arrest. When I get too far, it activates. The only way for me to get away from this confinement is to face the music. Instead of testifying or something like that, I have to push thru with my operation. I just hope its over soon.

MRI images and full results

I've been getting so many questions regarding my condition from doctors and medical practitioners that listen to Jam 88.3. So I decided to just post the details online.

The MRI images, results and Neurologist's Rx are at this site...
http://djrick.multiply.com/photos/album/43

It's nice to know that lots of people want too help.

Bombshell

Just the other day I found out that I'm going to need surgery on my back. I was hoping that the past weeks of PT would free me of the darn cane I've been using. Unfortunately the MRI results show that surgery is the way to go.

I've gotten the advice of both an Orthopedic surgeon and a Neurologist. Now, I just have to choose which Neurosurgeon (covered by my HMO) will be the best for the procedure. It's pretty scary worrying about the worst-case-scenario.

Since I'm taking this week off to rest my back, it looks like I'll be out of work for up to a month. It stinks because both my shows were getting into a real groove. But of course I have to focus on more important things, like my health.

Water therapy

My back problems have really hurt my weight-loss efforts. But the summer season has made me realize the one activity that I can do that doesn't hurt my back; swimming!

I've tried to take every opportunity that I can to swim. Over the weekend I took a trip to Calatagan Batangas with the family, and I swam my heart out. I've even passed by my parents' village on weekdays to do a few laps at the pool in their park.

I grew up in Hawaii so I'm at home in the water. Even with my back pains I feel like my movements aren't limited there. I feel so free when I'm gliding thru the water. I just can't wait until the next time I can take a dip.

The Blend Beatles Special Replay!!!

This Saturday I have to go on leave, so I figured it would be a great time to do a much-requested replay of The Blend Beatles Special. At 10am I'll replay the 2nd part of the all-a cappella Beatles Special (which aired last November).

That installment of the show was only about 40-45 minutes long. So for after the last set, I'm adding a couple of my favorite Jam-cappella Beatles tunes. That should fill up the whole hour.

I hope the audience of my new timeslot will like the show, even if it's recorded.

The "Buzz"

No, I'm not talking about the gossip TV show. I'm talking about the Yahoo Messenger feature.

I just find it so rude how some people initiate chats by buzzing you. I mean, it's so irritating to have your whole screen shake while you're busy doing something important.

But what really gets me is the fact that the other person can't just type "Hi" or "Hello". I don't think this was the intention of the Yahoo people when making this feature.

Maybe technology has made us become so detached from one another that simple courtesies, like proper greetings, have fallen by the wayside.