1. I bounded into the Camry early this afternoon and roared over the 4th of July Pass to the Lung and Asthma Clinic in Coeur d'Alene. The transplant program at Providence/Sacred Heart referred me to this clinic because they wanted a pulmonary specialist to examine the CT scan I had taken on February 2nd and evaluate the presence of bronchiectasis in the base of my lungs, the long term result of having been exposed to a heavy dose of sulfur dioxide fifty years ago this July in the accident I had at the Bunker Hill Zinc Plant.
I met with Dr. Forrest Jespersen. We looked at the Feb. 2023 scan and back at the 2019 scan and Dr. Jespersen pointed out that they were about the same. Unless a problem surfaces in the Immunoglobulin blood draw he ordered, and I had done before I left CdA, he will report to the transplant program that the condition of my lungs should not be a barrier to me being transplanted.
I realized once again, as Dr. Jespersen and I talked, that I'm very fortunate. As he questioned me about my pulmonary health, I realized all the difficulties I could be experiencing in the long aftermath of my 1973 Zinc Plant accident: but, I don't cough chronically, I don't have much wheezing, I'm not chronically short of breath, I have not had recurring instances of pneumonia, I don't produce inordinate amounts of phlegm, and I don't experience night chills or sweats.
I'll just say that when I was first evaluated 50 years ago, the doctors I saw agreed that I was likely going to suffer difficult consequences after this accident and there was concern about how long I would even live.
For now, the best thing I can do for myself is stay active -- that my feet feel great again and that I'm back walking and got in a hike is great news. Dr. Jespersen reminded me that he's had patients in much worse shape than I'm in avoid more aggressive treatments because they stayed active.
His words motivated me.
So, now I'll wait for the next message from the transplant program and if they deem me healthy enough to stay on the transplant list, I'll have to decide whether to remain inactive on the list or change my status to active.
2. Dr. Jespersen didn't have me do pulmonary tests on site today, but I'll have them done in the near future here in Kellogg.
When I left his office and after I fueled the Camry, I was hungry and wanted a small bite to eat along with a beer before blasting back to Kellogg.
I hadn't been to Moon Time for ages. I'd almost forgotten that Moon Time's atmosphere is, to me, similar to High Street in Eugene. It all came back to me the second I burst in. I took a seat at the bar. Their printed tap list included Bell's Two-Hearted IPA, one of my very favorite beers in the whole USA, but they'd sold out. However, they'd put on a keg of Boneyard IPA and that made me very happy. I ordered a pint along with a small Caesar salad with grilled chicken and it was just what I yearned for: a solid West Coast IPA and enough food to hold me over until eating dinner in Kellogg.
3. Because I wouldn't me at the helm in the kitchen this afternoon, Debbie and I had agreed that we would make an order from GarrenTeed BBQ. When I arrived home, my dinner awaited me: a beef brisket sandwich with sides of Cole slaw and baked beans.
I enjoyed filling up on this dinner and, before long, Debbie and I watched Monk have an incident that landed him in a mental facility where a murder had occurred about four years earlier and Monk couldn't resist digging into the case to see if he could identify who the real killer was.
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