Ivy has been wanting some ferrets for some reason. Somewhere she saw some ferrets and immediately fell in love. She has been begging me to get her a ferret for a few months. So I figured that might make a good Christmas gift.

I started looking around and discovered they were expensive. And somewhat rare. Stores that sell ferrets are rare (none in Houston), and there is only ONE ferret rescue place in all of Texas and it is in Dallas. I actually submitted an application at the ferret rescue in Dallas, got approved, and planned to go up there to get one (or two, possibly).

But literally the day before we left for our trip to Switzerland, a woman from Jersey-village (north of Houston) called me and said she had some ferrets that needed to be re-homed. THREE ferrets, in fact. After a brief discussion, I said YES! We’ll take them. How much? Nothing, everything is free – including the cage and supplies – she just wanted to know someone would take care of her furry babies.

We agreed to meet up AFTER our trip. I gave Ivy a wrapped-up ferret leash for Christmas (in Switzerland on Christmas morning). Then, the day after we returned to Houston, we met up with Christine McCalip… and now we have these three cute little weasels.

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A bit messy? Yes. A little smelly? Sometimes. But do we like them? YES!

If there was a theme to 2019, it was about change and venturing into new territories. It hasn’t all been pleasant. Some good. Some bad. It has been a year of loss and change. It has been a year of travel and visiting new places as well. It has also been a year of financial boom (job bonuses, retirement fund swelling, inheritance money, as well as unexpected cash just out of nowhere). What a twisty year it has been.

List:

Chilly Day in Galveston – The Pleasure Pier often has cheap deals in the off-season. So we took advantage of it and spent an afternoon on the beach and some thrill rides.

Goodbye George Kjeldseth – Holly’s uncle George passed away February 15th

Unexpected Cash – In late February, I received an email from an old business that I was involved in waaay back in 2011. It said they had some money of mine. Do I want it? Uh,… Yes, I guess. How much is it? Almost $13,000. Whaaaat?? I really thought it was a spam/fake email at first, but as I looked into it more… nope, it was for real. So, on March 26th, I received and deposited a check for $12,971.00

Gymnastics Competitions Tour – Several more trips to competitions in League City, San Antonio, Austin, Lubbock. Then she quit.

Urban Chicken Tour – A tour bus full of chicken people (some rather tipsy) came and looked at our urban chicken coop.

Chaperoned a School Trip to Austin – We visited the capitol building and ate some pizza on the lawn. Four hours on a bus with a bunch of kids is a lot.

Got A Robot Maid! – Her name is Rosie. And she sucks. Got a new stove, too! It’s hot.

Hatched a Rooster! – Gave egg-incubating a try. Managed to hatch 4 chicks! Two turned out to be fabulous strutting mount-every-hen roosters. Eventually sold one (the one that we hatched in this video).

Got An Exercise Bike! – Not just one, but two! Got a stationary eliptical with an iPad and the iFit application (which I really, really like), as well as a Strider eliptical bicycle (which is harder than I expected).

Graduated from Elementary! – Said some tearful goodbye to some friends since pre-school. Completed with segment of life with a nifty school play.

Goodbye Shirley Dutton – Mom passed away.

Viva Las Vegas! – I take Ivy with me to visit Ray in Phoenix, with a short visit to Las Vegas in the mix as well.

Let’s Go Ride Some Horses – Got a Groupon! Let’s take some kids horseback riding on the hottest day of the summer.

Holly Got Some Gadgets – Dropped a chunk of change on a laser printer and 3D printer.

Holly Got Hearing Aids!!!! – Omg. Finally! It’s been interesting seeing her try to adjust to normal conversations, hearing around corners, and just about everything in the normal hearing world.

New School! Ivy is a Hogg – She started Middle School at Hogg Elementary. She seems to like it. She’s a hogg now.

Fishing Boat – I’ve been wanting to go fishing on one of those charter boats out of Galveston, but they cost too much. Hundreds of dollars for just 1 day! Until I discovered there are two services that cost less than $50 and provide the rods, reels, bait, and even lunch.

Sinuplasty! – Omg. The pain. But, oh, the relief from sinus problems after I healed.

A Bout with Gout and a Kidney Stone – Oh lord, here we go again. Woke up in the night with pain in my side. It’s a kidney stone. I’ve been through this 4 times already. This time, however, it comes with a bonus pain in my foot… which turns out to be Gout (same thing as a kidney stone, but instead a calcium stone in the joints of your foot).

Kanye West! – He’s been stirring up a fuss with his latest gospel album. I decided to go see the show at Lakewood Church on November 17th

Thanksgiving Cruise to the Caribbean – We board one of the biggest ships in the ocean and head into the Caribbean once again.

Vacation in Switzerland – Goodbye warm weather! We’re headed to the Swiss Alps for snow and scenery.

Holly treated us to a trip to Zermatt and St Moritz Switzerland this year. We spent Christmas day in the beautiful village of Zermatt with snow up to our necks (okay, not quite, but still lots of snow). Then we experienced 2 full days of fantastic scenery aboard the Glacier Express and Bernina Express railways.

Instead of heading north to Arkansas for Thanksgiving like we usually do, we headed south…way south…to the Caribbean and even the coast of Central America.

We flew to Florida, and then boarded Royal Caribbean’s MASSIVE ship the Harmony of Seas for a 7 day adventure. We visited Costa Maya, Cozumel, and Roatan, as well as the brand new Coco Cay private island.

I haven’t been a fan of Kanye West, but lately he is turning some heads by turning his life around and making gospel music.

When it was announced that he would be doing a free show at Lakewood Church, I decided to give it a try. Luckily, I got a free ticket (they gave priority to church members), even though ALL of the tickets were given out in a matter of minutes.

I went to the concert not really knowing what to expect…. but I have to say I absolutely LOVED IT! Wow! Super inspirational with a whole lot raise-the-roof black gospel choir, a little bit of Opera, a touch of EDM, and a whole lot of foot stompin’ praise and worship. It was FANTASTIC!

I can see why Kanye’s change of direction in life is causing such an uproar and getting so much attention. It is quite revolutionary! God bless you, Kanye! Keep the faith! Stay with it.

This is just 3 minutes from the show. Doesn’t do it justice. In real life it was awesome. Go see this show if you get the chance….

Spent the night in an ER. My old kidney stone friend woke me up again in the middle of the night about 1 a.m.. That’s 5 times now over a period 25 years that I’ve had to go the hospital for kidney stone pain. It’s a miserable experience. The pain lasted about 5 hours.

The doctors and nurses and administrators at Memorial Herrman Convenient Care did a GREAT job! They were fast and attentive. I was able to show up, get into a bed, see a doctor, and get pain meds within about 45 minutes. Later I got cat-scanned and confirmed, yes, it was a kidney stone. They congratulated me on correctly diagnosing myself. lol. I guess that helped speed up the process.

No more pain! $100 copay. I returned home at 7 a.m. Exhausted.

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While at the ER, I asked the doctor about the pain I’ve been experiencing in my left foot. She didn’t examine my foot closely, but said it was probably Gout. It turns out that Gout is the same thing as kidney stones – a tiny little ‘rock’ or crystal that forms inside your body and can get lodged in your kidney or in the joints of your toes. If you have kidney stones, then it is very likely you’ll have gout problems, too. So, apparently, that is what is happening. 🙁

I thought I’d just write my experience down here for anyone who was considering getting these procedures done themselves. I imagine you googled some questions and landed here, right? I did the same when I was first considering fixing my nose problems. Well, I got both procedures done yesterday afternoon in about 1 hour, and now I sit here suffering somewhat with sinus pain. That was predicted. Pain pills supplied. So not a surprise.

Was it worth it? Yes, I think so. Although, right now all that I feel is discomfort and sinus pressure. I’ll let you know in a week or so after I heal. (Updates below)

This isn’t the first time I’ve had this procedure. I actually had the Turbinite Reduction done in 2013.

I’ve suffered with chronic sinus and respiratory problems my entire life (born with asthma). Cats and mold and grass are my biggest enemies. But, in 2013, after a severe bout with sinusitis, I sought out professional help and discovered one of problems was ‘redacted sinus cavity’ as well as a ‘deviated septum’, which simply means the bone in my nose is crooked and causing one side of my sinus passages to be smaller and thinner than normal. So I paid for a procedure called ‘Turbinite Reducation’ which basically hollows out some of the passageways inside your nose a little bit.

It wasn’t a cure-all, but it was certainly an improvement! The good affects lasted for many years. I could breath a little better. I could blow my nose a little easier. However, in 2019, some of those same sinus problems returned. So I revisited the same doctor and discovered my sinuses had reverted back to narrow once again. I don’t really know why, but I learned that, indeed, nasal passages could (and did) regrow.

This time I decided to get the Turbinite Reducation surgery PLUS a procedure called Balloon Sinuplasty. They literally put a balloon inside your nose, blow it up, breaking some bones in the process, and widening the passageways.

To cut to the chase, I’ll tell you this… it is the AFTER EFFECTS of the procedure are far (far far) worse than the the pain during the procedure itself. For at least 2-3 days AFTER the procedure, you’ll be suffering with the most intense sinus pain you’ve ever experienced in your entire life. It does get a little easier each day, but that first day will be just pure torment. It feels like the WORST sinus and migraine headache ever.

Day 1 (Friday)- Same day as procedure. So much sinus pain and discomfort I can’t even think. Can’t eat or drink because it puts painful pressure on my nose when I swallow. Can’t sleep at all. Stayin’ up all night. Gonna do a Netflix binge, I suppose.

Day 2 (Saturday) – still pretty miserable with sinus pain. Can’t breath through my nose at all. Constant sinus drainage. By the end of the day I was just exhausted from dealing with this, but I can’t sleep… so another night of Netflix.

Day 3 (Sunday) – Stayed awake almost all night again! Finally fell asleep about 4 a.m. When I awoke at 6 a.m., I felt a little bit of relief. A hot shower and pain pills took the edge off. But, I can tell this is healing and improving, and the pressure and pain are less than the day before.

Day 4 (Monday) – Feeling quite a bit better. There are moments where I can breath through my nose, although there is still a tremendous amount of drainage rattling around in there. I’m able to function and go about my day. Pain is almost gone now. I took the last of the pain pills they’d given me even though I didn’t particularly need it.

Day 5 (Tuesday morning) – I was able to sleep for awhile last night. I woke up often with a stuffy nose and drainage and dry mouth (from breathing through my mouth), but for the most part I got more sleep than I had in days. Then BREAKTHROUGH! I got up about 6 a.m. and took a hot shower. While blowing my nose, HUGE glops of mucus came out (sorry, that’s gross, I know) and I felt instant relief… and could breath through my nose for the first time in days! Ahhh!!! I’m finally recovering and feeling normal (almost).

So, all in all, it took about 3 days recover enough to return to a functional life. After 5 days, the pain and discomfort was gone.

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How did the procedure itself feel? Actually, it wasn’t that bad. The doctor gave me a sedative about 9 a.m. which, I suppose, took the edge off. He also covered my eyes with a warm cloth. Then as he began the procedure, an assistant would audibly count down each painful probe. 5 4 3 2 1… and done. The doctor poked objects up my nose, and … I suppose the most disconcerting part… was hearing popping and cracking as he inflated the balloons. Later, when I asked what was that popping sound I kept hearing, he confessed it was the sound of bones breaking.

Then, on to the Turbinate Reduction which I had experienced before. I knew what to expect. It’s a feeling of pressure and electrical burning for about 5 to 10 seconds. Again, the assistant would count down each ‘session’ of burning. Painful? Yes, but not unbearable. Just unpleasant, really.

All in all, both procedures took about 1 hour to complete. It was out of the office by noon.

But, as I said, it is the healing afterward that is the difficult part. I strongly suggest you block off the day or two after your procedure to just stay home and do nothing. Because you’ll probably be miserable.

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Update: Day 7 – How do I feel now? Oh wow, I can breath through my nose better than I ever have in my entire life! It’s wonderful! It feels like a rush of fresh air each time I take a breath. All pain and discomfort is gone, and only easy unrestricted breathing remains. Well, I do still have some congestion going on, but it is minimal. The doctor said (in a follow up appointment) that my nose was still healing and producing mucus. Hopefully, that will clear up in a week or so as well. I’d say it was totally worth the cost and discomfort.

Was it worth the cost and temporary suffering? YES! Totally yes. I’m very happy with the results.

Update Update: Okay, it is now November 3rd and there is literally so much air passing through my nostrils that I am now experiences dry sinuses. Wow, I’ve never experienced this much air through my nose before! Is this normal? Is that what you normal breathers do? There is so much air is passing through my sinuses that my nose is drying up. I’ve been doing the neti-pot thing maybe 2 or 3 times a day. Plus, it is soooooo easy to blow my nose now. Wow, this is amazing.

I love living just a few blocks away from Sawyer Yards, one of the biggest art campuses in the nation, complete with lots of excellent restaurants and bars and rock climbing and cool stuff nearby. There are hundreds of artists in these buildings, and twice a year they have an Open House. Thousands of people come to walk around and look at art, drink wine, jam on some music, and just pretend like they are really sophisticated and stuff. 😀

Here are just a few snapshots of some of the art/artists I liked:

(right click on image and select ‘Open in new tab’ to see full size pic)

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Jose and I decided to try out one of those group-fishing boats in Galveston. It is affordable and easy (they provide rods and bait), so off we went. You have to share the fishing experience with about 20 other people, so you chances of catching something awesome is a bit limited. But at least 3 people on the boat DID catch large fish. We didn’t. 🙁

Still, it was fun and a nice experience. We spent about half o the 4 hours just motoring out to the destination. But that wasn’t bad either. It was relaxing and nice. Overall, would I do it again? Yes! Hopefully, we’ll catch some big fish next time.

Ivy started Middle School today! She is a Hogg. She is going to Hogg Middle School. I went to visit the teachers and tour the classrooms and facilities. It’s rather big! Ivy is a little intimidated by it all at the moment.