Spring break trip

I got to take a trip Saturday morning and unfortunately it wasn’t to an exotic sandy beach. It was a trip to the ER where I had a morning of poking, prodding and X-rays. Not the way I was envisioning ending an otherwise relaxing week :-)

It all started Friday when I went out to lunch and a matinee at the theater. My chest began hurting and my breathing got really tight during the afternoon. I crawled into bed, took some Tylenol and it seemed to help for a little while, that is until I wanted to turn the lights off.

At about 1 a.m. my ventilator pressures continued to rise and this caused my vent alarm to sound constantly. I tried my nebs and Cough Assist treatments but things didn’t improve. Eventually I was able to sleep for 90 minutes but then the problems returned. I decided it was time to seek medical help and the ambulance took me to the ER.

They did a breathing treatment right away and that helped a little. I played the role of the human pincushion for about an hour and finally they hit pay dirt. We also did an X-ray and a few other tests to rule some things out. The doc came in and said I had a slight inflammation in my lung tissue. I was discharged Saturday afternoon and sent home with a supply of steroid meds and antibiotics. The folks at Community Hospital were great and took awesome care of me. They remembered me from my last visit and that helped out a lot.

I felt much better last night and slept great. Today I’ve done well and I feel almost normal. Oh well the weekend wasn’t dull and spring break has come to a close. I’ll be going to class tomorrow if things continue to go fine. 6 weeks to go and I can feel the intensity building already.

Peace, Mark

Getting out of the hospital is a lot like resigning from a book club. You're not out of it until the computer says you're out of it. -- Erma Bombeck

Its Spring Break week here in Western MT and I’m really enjoying the downtime. No big plans during this week except to relax and catch up on a few things that have been on the back burner. Friday I’m going to head to the movies and bum around town for the afternoon. Hey maybe next year I can plan my trip to Cabo or Cancun :-)

Monday I’ll be ready to get back to work and make the final assault on my remaining 6 weeks as a UM freshman. It’s a great feeling to almost be done and hopefully the next steps will result in admission to the Journalism School. I’ll be meeting with my advisor soon to set my schedule for Fall 08 and go over my summer school plans. Applying to the Journalism School won’t happen until March 2009 but that will be here before I know it.

Last week was tough as we lost Dustin’s Grandma Rose. She was a great lady and she touched all of those who knew her. I only knew her for a short time but she always made me feel like part of the family when we were together. Words are inadequate to describe the loss of people like Rose but I will miss her very much.

Here’s ends my Spring Break update but I’ll have another as school commences next week. I want to wish our friend MJ in Ohio all the best as she continues a long hospitalization. Keep up the fight girl and I hope you get the heck out of there soon!


Peace, Mark

Life is eternal, and love is immortal, and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight. ~Rossiter Worthington Raymond

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

There’s one week to go until spring break and I’ll definitely need the break. I have major exams this week in Poli Sci, Macroeconomics, and math. I’ve studied hard and hopefully I will do well. No major plans for break except to relax and not think of school :-)

This weekend I went to the Big Sky Conference Women’s Basketball Championship at the university. It was a blast and the Griz women crushed Montana St. 101-65 to earn a berth to the big dance. The pairings will be announced on ESPN today and hopefully the women will have a successful tournament.

We’ll be celebrating St. Patty’s Day with the traditional corn beef and the trimmings. It was so good last year and I’ll be looking forward to that all day! It’s time for me to head off to class but I’ll be back next week with another update. Take care and I’ve attached a few pictures from the weekend. Peace…Mark

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; I'm not sure about the universe." -- Albert Einstein

It's the end of another crazy week and where do I begin. Wednesday night I was downtown to catch the CrippleXXX comedy tour as it passed through Missoula. Two of the comics were from Seattle and they were pretty funny, edgy, and outrageous. Missoula's own (and friend of ours) Mike Beers was the opening act and he was awesome as usual. A late night but a good time I must say.

School continues to chug along and in 8 more weeks my freshman year will wrap up. Hard to believe! I had my Geology test Monday and it went well. Grades will be given back next week, so I guess we'll see. The best news of the week is that I managed to get a 98 on my 2nd math test. It's been so much work but the results are worth it. I have a big midterm in Macroeconomics on March 19th, so most of my attention is now focused on that. Spring break is after that and I can’t wait!

I've been starting to get involved with ADSUM (students w/ disabilities group) on campus. ADSUM deals with improving the college experience for students with disabilities at the University of Montana. They also work with any barriers or issues that arise. It’s been good to meet some new people and be involved with a campus group.

I'm happy to announce that Dustin is running for House District 91 here in Montana. Running for public office requires quite a commitment and I wish him all the best in this endeavor. You can visit his campaign website for more details.

That all for now from Big Sky country and hopefully I’ll be back with another update real soon. Take care until then. Peace…Mark

Dustin for House Dist. 91: http://www.dustinforhouse08.com/

"He who walks in another's tracks leaves no footprints." -- Joan Brannon