Confused and going insane!

ellisa said:

John1- Thanks for the info. So what temp. would it be if it were freezing up there. Has bee awhile since I had to convert Celsius to Fahrenheit, plus math has never been one of my favorite subjects.

Click to expand...

Water freezes at 0°C. I was in Louisiana in 2003 and really enjoyed the novelty of the warm weather and seeing roses blooming in March at the National Rose Garden in Shreveport.

A Southern Lady.....

I'm not saying anything against anyone else, don't get me wrong, but there is just something special about, A SOUTHERN BELLE.

For the benefit of you northerners and Canadians, we in the south have always had a attitude about our souther heritage, especially as it goes back to the time when the southern woman was considered a woman with exceptional good manners, dressed modestly, and made their men think they were in charge. When we all knew better, haha.

I still picture the flowing gowns, the magnolias in bloom, the smell of the rose garden, and the wonderful honey suckle.

So when you say you are a Southern Lady, that's what I picture in my mind. Aah let me dream anyhow. Please don't tell me your riding a hog motorcycle with a t-shirt on, smoking a dobie..

God Bless
Capt AL
A Southern Gentleman

OK guys. Canada 101. We use Celsius for temp. O'C is 32'F which the US uses. 15'C is 59'F and 30'C is 86'F. I watched the NFL games on Sunday but missed the Ohio/Michigan game Sat because of the party. Our Gray Cup Game which is the Canadian Football League equivalent of your Super Bowl was Sunday. British Columbia Lions beat the Montreal Allouettes and the game was in Winnipeg Manitoba in an outdoor stadium and the temp was about-6 which is about 24'F. We quit playing earlier because half of the teams don't have domed stadiums and the snow and cold make playing no fun. But then we still get 2 months more of NFL and there is Hockey for those that are fans of that. We get all the US shows up here as well. So if anybody needs to know more let us know. It's all part of the service. Oh and by the way. We do Thanksgiving on a Monday in Oct. so we don't get turkey or a holiday this week. But we can still watch football. AL.

Sad to say AL I did not know any of that. Thanks for the information. They ought to name an encyclopedia after you. You are a wealth of knowledge. I hope you have a wonderful day.

God Bless
Capt.AL

Hey John1- I just noticed that you are in Newfoundland. I was born on the New Brunswick border in northern Maine so I, too understand about cold. But our winters here in southern New England nave been mild of late. Global warming, ya think?

Grampa Al- I'll have an extra slice of pumpkin pie for you on our Thanksgiving. It will be tough to cram it in but somebody has to do it! Plus if I feel up to it I may make my famous (sort of) chocolate cheesecake. I will have TWO slices of that-one for each of us since I recall you also like chocolate, does memory serve me right?

MT-will your Turkey dinner have any regional specialities from the deep south?

Ellisa -

How 'bout you - what are you guys doing for Thanksgiving?

Liz

Hi,
Just let me say you guys and gals are a riot. When I woke up this morning I was feeling a bit down in the dumps, but after reading all of y'all hilarious post I have to say THANK YOU for the laughs.

Al-I have to agree you are a wealth of information. So now that the Canadian League Football is over, What NFL team are you rooting for. Naturally I am for the N.O. Saints (now they will probably not win the Super Bowl but will most certainly go to the playoffs and win their division)and Indianapolis's Colts, Payton Manning (from New Orleans) is unstoppable. Now as for as College Football GO TIGERS (LSU)!
Bless you for trying to explain Celsius and Fahrenheit to me, but still a little over my head.

Mt.- I am most certainly a Southern Belle I still dress modestly (as I was raised the less skin showing the more people will respect you and the more sexy gentlemen will find you) and as for manners Yes Sir and Mam, No Sir and Mam along with please and thank you are still practiced in my home. So no need to worry there are still Southern Belles out there and as for me teaching my 5 year old daughter the same Old Southern Values that I was taught (how to be a LADY).

CindyM-Thanksgiving Dinner would not be the same if we did not have Eggplant and shrimp casserole, meliton with shrimp, smothered okra and shrimp and my moms famous smothered pork roast stuffed with garlic.

John1-I am glad you enjoyed your time here in La. We usually have pretty warm winters on average But do not like to have extremely cold winters because as we say down here really cold winters make for a really bad Hurricane season.

Thanks again for turning my frown upside down
Ellisa

Thanksgiving dinner would never be the same if my wife did not make her wonderful Giblet gravy. All the children ask for it each year.

Sometimes we splurge and do the brine soaked turkey, it keeps the moister in the old bird, and of course the oyster stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pies, pecan pies.

Geez I'm getting hungry.

God Bless
Capt. AL

Nobody mentioned sweet potato pie. We used to get that and I loved it when we visited Lee's nephew when he lived in Lexington Kentucky. We made it down there a couple of times for Thanksgiving. You guys sure know how to throw a party. I told Lee I want turkey on Thursday too. We'll see. AL.


Oh and by the way I'm a Bills fan. They aren't doing that great but darn near beat Indy so there is hope for next year.

Liz,
we will be spending the day at my moms house enjoying the fact that we ar able to have my brother home this holiday season. You see he just returned in Oct. from Iraq after serving a 1 1/2 year tour of duty.

Al-Sweet potato pie yuck! Now how about my famous blueberry cheese cake or pecan pie now we are talking. Oh I almost forgot we will be having gumbo also. Why not have turkey on Thursday, The whole turkey thing on Thanksgiving is a little bit over rated (LOL).

God Bless
Ellisa

In my house, the most coveted Thanksgiving treat is that canned cranberry sauce. I think it is gross but the kids and husband actually fight over it if they think we're running out. I make sure we have a can for each of them just in case.

Liz

Need to know about atrophy

Hi,
I have a few questions about muscle atrophy. Everything site on the internet basically give you the same information and no visual pictures.

1. What exactly does atrophy look like?
2. How and where can and does it occur?
3. When it affects the limbs (hand, fingers, foot, toes) is
there any visual changes?
4. Does stiffness accompany atrophy?
5. Do you have to have muscle twitching in order for atrophy to happen?
6. Does weakness occur with atrophy?
7. Does numbness and tingling happen with atrophy?
8. Do your muscles start to feel like"marshmallow" especially in areas
where there is more muscle mass (abdomen)?

For the last 5 months I have not been able to open my fingers and hand fully which is gradually getting worse. Now my Lt. hand and fingers are beginning to do the same thing. I am finding it more difficult to type, grasp items with my Rt. hand and finding it increasingly awkward to do simple everyday task like brushing my hair and teeth as well as holding a fork or pen. I have also notice bilateral indention's where my tibia and fibular bones (shin) are. Any information would be appreciated.

Thank you in advance,
Ellisa

Hi Ellisa.
Those are very good questions. As someone who is new to all this I am waiting to see how the others answer, as well! I can tell you that I get stiff if I don't stretch three or 4 times a day, and I am weak most of the time, worse if I try to do anything physical. The day I pried open a window and pulled the storm window down I was too weak to lift a cup of coffee for the next 2 days! My calves feel like marshmallow and leave an indent when I poke them. In my right hand, there are holes where muscle once lived.

Let's see what some of the otners have to say. Anybody?

Ellisa -

My most advanced atrophy is in my right hand. The first thing I noticed was weakness and then gradually also stiffness. All the while my fine motor coordination got worse and worse. I never even thought of atrophy until I got to my first neuro appointment and he showed me differences between my hands. Basically, all the "meat" or muscle on the top and bottom of my right hand and fingers was gone. My fingers are gnarled - I can't straighten them out or hold them together. For me, the twitching didn't start until almost a year after all of this began.

Liz

Hi Ellisa. I'll try to get time to take some pictures of my finely atrophied hands later today and post them. 1. It ain't pretty. Where there was muscle there is now hollows. 2. If you have a muscle it can and will eventually atrophy, if you live long enough. 3 The visual changes in my hands showed up as hollows on the top side between the thumb and forefinger. 4. Yes in my case in my calves it has. 5. I don't think so. 6. Yes. As the muscle dies off you have less muscle to do the work so you feel weak. 7. Sometimes. I got numbness but only for a short time in the beginning. 8. Actually it is not your muscles feeling like marshmallow it is the fat showing up that you didn't know you had because the muscle is now going away. The fingers curling happens when the tendons shrink because the muscles aren't strong enough to hold them straight anymore. Braces can be made to hold them straight at night which keeps them straight longer. Your OT or PT can get you set up for that. I'm using an electric toothbrush as it is easier to hold. Utensil holders that velcro around your palm make it easier to hold fork and spoon. Hope this helps. AL.