Forget the underwear...

I learned a long time ago that minor surgery is when they do the operation on someone else, not you.

~Bill Walton

Remember when your mother always said "Make sure you have on clean underwear, you may be in an accident and have to go to the hospital."? Well, I am here to say, forget the underwear, they make you take it off at the hospital. Make sure your legs are shaved. As many of you recall I blogged once about how I am a late bloomer. Here is more proof, appendicitis is rarely ever seen after the age of 40, and is most prevalent among teenage boys. Yet somehow I managed to spend 5 days in the hospital having what is considered to be a minor procedure.

I love the picture above telling us there are no scars to show off...perhaps I need to email them a picture of the 3 inch long incision on my lower abdomen, no laparoscopic procedures on this belly! I won't go on and on about my fiasco, I am finally on the mend and working hard to get my stamina back.

For those of you in the healthcare field I have collected a few observations; don't tell a woman who has vomited every drop of fluid in her body nonstop for 12 hours that "it's just a bug going around, you'll be fine in 24 hours", don't scream at a patient whose IV has been alarming for 20 minutes that someone will fix it when they are done with report, don't wake a (finally) sleeping patient at 4:30 in the morning to write your name on a chalkboard because "there are some inspectors going around" after all the wrong patient name and doctor have been on there for the last three days, don't tell them their blood transfusion is going fine...until you've looked under the blankets to see the pool of blood covering their bed, and don't tell a patient that "technically we aren't supposed to use this machine when it's this hot" and my personal favorite following a diagnostic scan, "that was fun, bring a keg the next time and we'll have a party!".

Healthcare givers should be welcoming, skillful, and respectful. I am happy to say I did meet a few who fit that description, hopefully others will take notice and follow their lead. The picture below is Marilyn Monroe recovering from her appendectomy in 1953. I am almost a week post-op and I don't look a thing like that, then again, I didn't look like that before my surgery! :)

girl talk

You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.

~ Desmond Tutu

Last night I went to a Mother-Daughter Banquet. Nothing unusual about that, except for the fact that my mother passed away years ago and my daughter lives 5000 miles away. Still, I was not alone. Pictured above are the women at my table. Fortunately, I am lucky enough to be related to all of them.

Our ages spanned eight decades; left to right are me, Madison(my great niece), Ally (my great niece), my sister Sharon, Lily(my great niece), Krista(my niece) and Jane(my mother-in-law). The food was not going to win any five star awards, and the entertainment probably won't be signing recording contracts, but I had a lovely evening. I have been blessed with a mother-in-law that is loved and admired by everyone and my conversations with Lily about Barbie hats, Sponge Bob and preschool happenings were highly stimulating.

I used to dread that phone call around the end of April because I knew it was coming..."Do you want to go to the Mother-Daughter Banquet?". I would go, more for my husband's sake (after all, I'd tell him, she's your mother) than anything else. I go now without hesitation. Life and time are precious. I know there will come a day when the phone rings around the end of April, but it won't be my mother-in-law, and I won't be joining some of the women I love the most for dinner.

Save the date...

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.

~ Margaret Mead

A general information meeting will be held in the Community Room at Hamilton High School on Thursday, May 20th at 7pm, for anyone interested in volunteering or supporting The Caring Closet. Hope to see you there, feel free to bring a friend!

The Caring Closet

What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us: what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.

~Albert Pike

A while back I mentioned that I was in the process of starting an organization to help clothe the underprivileged children of the Hamilton City School District. With the help of some wonderful and amazing friends, (Mary, Joni, Gail, Sarah, Sharon, Dr. Cobb) we are seeing wishful thinking come to fruition.

I want to take time here to explain what The Caring Closet is all about. A few months ago I met a lovely woman and her mother that were working to collect gently used clothing for deserving families, particularly for school aged children in another school district. The more I talked with them, and some teacher friends, the more I found out about the need (or hidden poverty as my friend Mary termed it) that existed in all the schools in our own school district.

Our goal is to collect gently used clothing and package it along with new socks, underwear and a book for children who are referred to us through school principals, teachers, and counselors. We are also hoping that through donations we can provide basic toiletry items such as toothpaste and toothbrushes. We are committed to making this a "faceless" operation. We will not have any contact with the children or their families, all boxes will be delivered to the schools to be distributed. Our hope is that the recipients and their families maintain a sense of dignity and self-respect. Everything will be completely confidential and we, as an organization will never know names, only boy or girl, age and size.

Initially this nonprofit operation will be housed in my basement. My hope is that someday it outgrows me and there will be others who open their space to become part of the closet. For now, we need volunteers and donations. There are a multitude of things you can do to help; pick up and delivery clothing, do a load of laundry, watch for sales, (my friend Gail just bought 10 brand new polo shirts and 10 pair of khaki shorts for $20.) Donate items; gently used clothing appropriate for school wear, new socks, underwear, toothbrushes, toothpaste, washcloth and towels, books for all ages, laundry detergent, softener, hangers, totes.

We will be holding a meeting for anyone interested in helping in the Community Room at Hamilton High School, I should have a definite date in the next few days and will post it on here and Facebook. By the way, we do have a Facebook page (The Caring Closet)under construction, please visit it and tell your friends, we need everyone we can get to make this successful. We will also be having a couple fun filled fundraisers this summer, come to the meeting to hear about those!

If you have any questions or would like to get involved, please contact me at 513-368-9678 or email me at cmcrowthers@gmail.com

The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports

Whether you're a fan of horse racing or not, The Kentucky Derby is the one horse race everyone bets on.

~ Alex Czajkowski

I had decided weeks ago to cancel our (almost) annual Kentucky Derby Party. Having been gone from work for two weeks and knowing Mark would be working around 70 hours this last week left me little excitement for preparing for a houseful of people. Not that I don't love each and every one of you, I'm just getting old. Little did I know what would happen when I answered the phone late Thursday afternoon.

"Don't you ever check your phone? We've been calling you all day, do you want to go to the Kentucky Derby?"my friend asked. "You mean the one in two days!?!" Of course I wanted to go, but how on earth was I ever supposed to be ready to go in approximately 40 hours? Preparing for the Derby takes weeks, if not months! It was about this time I cursed under my breath for not sticking to my diet...I knew my existing fashion options were going to be limited, and I really didn't relish the idea of spending money on a dress in a size I'd rather not be. The only thing I knew for sure was that I already had the perfect Derby purse. So...the mission began.


I found out that we were incrediby lucky and were getting tickets in the Skye Terrace on Millionaire's Row. Mark was expected to wear a suit and tie (no problem, men have it easy) and I was only expected to "dress to impress" ( a little more daunting). So for the next two days when I wasn't working, I was shopping...and shopping...and more shopping. After much debate I decided on a classic black dress hanging in my closet and a pale, buttercup yellow organza hat. But wait, the weather forecast said cold and rainy, I had to buy shoes and some type of cover up as the dress only had small straps and no sleeves. So I came home both nights looking like I was packing for a vacation. Three pair of shoes, a shrug, a wrap, two hats, a short jacket and earrings. Then the tough part, deciding which of it to wear and what to return.


So Saturday morning we were off. In the back of my mind I had nagging concerns that I would be the only one in black. This turned out to be nothing to worry about, I'd estimate that close to 50% of the women there had on black. The weather co-operated with us, there was only a light mist as we walked from parking to the entrance (thank goodness for that big hat!). And once we inside the track we were scanned, wrist banded and put on a private elevator to the Sky Terrace. From our table next to the window we could see the entire track, and I'm forced to admit that had I been in the grandstand I would have given up as the rain came down harder. But from where we were the weather wasn't a concern. Neither were food and drinks; both were flowing freely. Buffets with prime rib, roast turkey, asian chicken, breads, salads, steamed asparagus, succotash, and a variety of appetizers and yummy desserts.




To follow tradition I drank a mint julep and even though it was better than ones I'd had before it still won't ever be something I'll order outside of Derby Day. We placed some bets, because after all, we had our own betting windows right in our box. We also had celebrities. Author Norah Roberts, the guys from the world series of poker, Rueben Stoddard from Idol, Bob from The Bachelor, golfer Corey Pavin, multitudes of pro football players, actress Jamie Presley, former LV coach Denny Crum and couple of other actors from Bones and the old WKRP in Cincinnati. Lots of big time betting going on (not at our table) but I heard bets ranging from $8,000 to $60,000.


It was a fabulous day! One thing that had always been on our bucket list, and we are so thankful to the friends who were generous enough to offer us this opportunity. I'm sure we will never forget it. THANK YOU!

One other very important thing happened yesterday. I just wish I could have been with her to enjoy it...Baby Lela turned one month old! Grandma loves you and misses you!

what a week!

Up early today, heading down south to the Kentucky Derby. This has been one crazy week, tomorrow I am planning a nice long blog to recap. Right now I am waiting for the polish on my toenails to dry (I know, I don't usually do my own toes) so I can finish getting ready. Keep your fingers crossed that it stops raining, and check in tomorrow for a full report!