The Book Babe Speaks

I had my appt with Dr Maffi aka Hot Surgeon on Monday and it went great. Except I did not get my drains out. Boo Hiss. But I did get to meet his new co-worker named Dr Nessett, who assisted Hot Surgeon with my surgery. She is hi-larious! She spent most of the visit making poo jokes. It was great. She explained everything and answered all of my questions, a couple of them even before I was able to ask. I cannot stress the awesomeness of her. She also gave me some valium to help with the pain. Apparently it is a muscle relaxer and it works amazingly well. I am totally loving it. Even though I am not supposed to eat grapefruit while taking it. I am not sure why grapefruit is the arch-nemesis of valium but apparently it is.

Having such a great visit with Hot Surgeon and Dr Nessett has made me think about the fact that, once again, I am blessed in my life. I know other people who have to deal with horrible diseases and do not have the luxury of having nice doctors. My mother was one such person. She was diagnosed with breast cancer about 10 years ago. Her surgeon, while being very good at what he did, was a total jerk. I did not like him in the least. But she stayed with him because he was good at what he did. I just can’t imagine what this experience would be like for me if my doctors were not as wonderful as they are. Even my pharmacist is super awesome. (Any local people looking for a great pharmacist, go to the Safeway pharmacy on Eliot and McClintock. My favorite is Robert. He totally freakin rocks. When my insurance company was being stupid during chemo, he always went to bat for me and made the phone calls that I was too tired to make. He kind of makes me want to become a pharmacist myself.) It makes me think about doctors and their bedside manner. Just a little bit of niceness goes a long way towards making a patient feel comfortable. I wonder if anyone has done a study as to the healing effects of a nice doctor vs a mean one. I would imagine that patients who have nice doctors would respond better to treatments. I should research that… Someone should do a study if there is not already one.

Anyway, my healing is progressing nicely, although slower than I want. I have good pain pills so the pain is not too bad. It is not gone completely but the drugs make it so I don’t really care about the pain Yay, fun!

As I have been typing this, my friend’s bulldog, Seamus, keeps interrupting me. Here is a message from him: “Hi this is Seamus, I am cute and lovable. My favorite things are pets and cookies. I am sad that I can’t jump all over Auntie Faith. You should come over so I can jump all over you!”

Ok that is all for now. I am going to take more pills and go to bed.

Ok so I have to talk about my awesome friend Audie. She is pretty much the rockinest chick out there. I would say, top 5 at least! The other 4 being part of Team Faith… She has been with me for about 90% of my doctors appts and always knows exactly what to say/do in order to make them less anxiety ridden. For all you new rock star authors (ahem, Tom Leveen and Shannon Messenger), if you ever get to a point where you need a personal assistant, I recommend her. She is great at running peoples lives and is super funny.  Anyway, here is the hilarious and not so rambling update that she sent to the Team Faith email thread. I just had to share with everyone cause it made me laugh…

Audie

My surgery was yesterday at 9:30 am. It was supposed to be at 11:30 but then at 6:21 am, I got a call from the surgical dept asking if I could come in right away. It was mildly annoying because I had only been asleep for a few hours. So I woke Audie (she stayed over so she could drive me) and we left and got there at 7:30. My check in went smoothly and I did not have to wait very long before being taken into pre-op. They did all the normal stuff, verifying my procedure, getting my medical history, etc. That is when the llama parade started… Seriously, it was awesome. Every guy that walked in or out of the room was a total llama. It helped my anxiety levels drop. I had a ton of anxiety about this surgery, still not sure why… Anyway, the pre-op stuff went well. Audie and I spent a good 45 minutes amusing the surgical team and the other patients with our jokes. We came up with a new B-rated horror movie involving zombie boobs. Here is how that all went down… the expanders are held into place by alloderm, which is basically cadaver tissue that has been broken down so it resembles nothing like cadaver tissue and therefore will not be rejected by my body. And since we all know how much I love zombies, when Dr Maffi, heretofore known as Hot Surgeon, started talking about the procedure my mind immediately went to the zombie place and Audie and I ran with the story, complete with Bruce Campbell and everything. And then they gave me a drug and it was off to happy land! The surgery took about 3 hours and according to Hot Surgeon “it went beautifully”.I was in the recovery room for about 90 minutes and then they sent me home, or rather to Shannon and Bills. They have been taking care of me after all my surgeries, which is very lovely. Being surrounded by friends and adorable dogs is not a bad way to recover. Also they have cable so I get to watch a ton of Food Network…

Back to last night… Around 7: pm, I started having shooting, sharp pains in my lungs and was having trouble breathing. Shannon called the hospital trying to get ahold of the plastics doctor on call. No surprise that he or she was unreachable. She finally was able to speak to a nurse and explained the situation and was told to take me to the nearest ER. Since they live less that 2 miles from Chandler Regional, that is where we went. I should add that right about the time my pain started, it started a torrential down pour. So that was fun, by the time we got on the road, there was flooding. So much so that we had to take a detour to the ER. It was a little scary… We eventually got in to the ER and there was a line. Super fun. I apparently passed out at one point and they got me back pretty quickly considering how busy they were. Luckily, even though I was having trouble breathing, my oxygen levels were not bad. The ER doc that talked to me first was super hot, thus starting the second llama parade of the day. I will admit that the llama parade sort of helped me keep my mind off the not-breathing and the pain. They poked and prodded me, took me for a CT scan and an EKG. Not sure what the results of the EKG were but the CT scan showed a shadow on the bottoms of my lungs so they determined that it was the start of pneumonia, also evidenced by my fever. Which according to Audie, is totally normal especially considering that it has only been 4 months since my last surgery…

There was lots of waiting as is normal in any ER but it was made easier by the giant parade of hot guys that kept walking by and/or checking on me. I am pretty sure that the HR department has a picture of Nathan Fillion in the office with a sign that says “You must be at least this hot to work here” It was so awesome! Made the pain worth it, almost. Even the women were really pretty… And then, my doctor walked in and OMG, he was hotter than all the other techs and RN’s. Quite possibly the hottest man on the planet. Shannon and Audie will vouch for me. He even had pearly whites that I swear did the sparkly thing when he smiled. Possibly that was the drugs… So they decided to admit me so they could continue to monitor me. Of course I could not say no to the hot doctor… So I got to a room around midnight and was poked and prodded even more. I was so freakin tired at that point that I could not communicate or understand anything. It was completely frustrating. Luckily for me, Audie was there to do my talking and thinking for me. I got more awesome drugs and that did not help my ability to communicate either. Susie came over too so I had lots of company. There are few things better in this world than being surrounded by amazing friends while also being hopped up on morphine. Yay fun. Sleep finally came around 3am but of course, since I had to be monitored, I was woken up every hour so they could check my vitals. Around 7 am, I met my doctor (llama), the day nurses and the male RN, Brent, who was also super hot. And super nice. Seriously, every single guy I saw yesterday and today was hot! He told me I was his favorite patient today cause I was so nice… Such a sweet boy he was… I spent most of the day napping, watching Top Chef, playing Plants vs. Zombies, taking pain killers and being taken care of by a nurse llama. As days go, it was not too bad. Except for the excruciating, not-being-able-to-breathe pain… Around 4:30 the hot doctor said they pneumonia was no longer a huge concern so said I could go home and I could take off my bandages. I have to take two anti-biotics for the next 10 days but whatever… The hot RN helped me take off the bandages and that made it easier to breathe. It did not take away the pain, but it helped with the pressure so I was able to breathe easier. And now I am home, well at Shannon’s (she is such a good derby wife!) and am currently stuffed with Picazzo’s.

I will add more drugged up rambling updates as the week progresses.

Love to you all!

Here are some books that I have read in the last month or so…

Blindsided by Priscilla Cummings

A sweet and sometimes heart wrenching novel of a girl, Natalie, diagnosed with juvenile glaucoma. It is a well-told story and the author deftly leads us on an emotional ride that at times had me in tears. I kept expecting Natalie to turn into a whiny character and even though she spends most of the book praying for a miracle and is internally rebellious, she never crosses that line. I was impressed. There were a couple of plot moving scenes that I felt were a bit forced and generic but the beauty of the writing, the fact that the author spent  a lot of time researching and the well crafted characters made up for them. For all my teachers/librarians out there, this is appropriate for 11+ and I think should belong in every library or classroom.

Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey

This book actually came out last year but I just now got around to reading it. A fun story about a family of vampires where the vampirism is genetic. The story is told in alternating first person between the two main characters. Solange, the only daughter born to this vampire family in centuries and Lucy, her very human best friend. The book has all the things that I enjoy about vampire books. Hot guys, fighting, intrigue, humor and romance both forbidden and not. While the story is not terribly original (but what is anymore) it was a ton of fun to read and I enjoyed every second of it. It is the first in a series but unlike a lot of series books that I have read lately, this story actually ends. It did leave a couple of loose ends but it was not a cliffhanger ending. I was very happy about that, I am starting to grow weary of cliffhangers. I will definitely read this author again. Good, clean story for 13+ and of course for any fan of vampire novels.

Matched by Ally Condie

Ah the joys of reading dystopian fiction. I am a big fan and probably always will be, so when I got this arc I was thrilled and ended up reading it, no, devouring it in one sitting. And, as usually happens with books this good, I totally forgot that I was supposed to be somewhere because I was so involved in the story. The quiet rebellion against a society bent on controlling every aspect of a citizens life, the love story and the characters that refuse to let their thoughts and feelings be controlled all come together to create a novel that no one should miss. I hesitate to compare it to Hunger Games since it does not have the action that HG has, but I know that fans of that series will love Matched as much as I did. This is in my top 5 for the year! Appropriate for 15+ and another one that every library/classroom should have.

My recovery is coming along. I still have random pain, mostly when I overdo it, but my doctor did clear me to go back to work soon and resume my “daily activities”. As long as I make sure to stop when I get tired. He could not say that last part enough. He even cleared me to take a weekend road trip to LA for a friends birthday. It was a ton of fun. There were six of us that went, all derby girls. I had a great time getting to know them better. I will say this, Disney on percocet is an interesting experience. Thank goodness for the blue pass… I am still wiped out from it though…. One of these days I am going to listen to my doctor when he tells me not to “overdo it”. I also had a chance to meet Shannon, who I have been corresponding with on my blog for the last year. She was able to take a break from revisions and meet us for dinner. It was a ton of fun. She was so nice! Soon she will be published and we will all be reading her work. Yay. Very exciting. She told me what her book is about and I want to read it already! This is me drumming my fingers in impatient anticipation of  her book. *Stupid world where things take time* (that was my Homer Simpson impression)

Ok, now it is time for relaxing nap-time…for the rest of the week…

…is Tom Leveen. He is completely amazing. His book Party came out today and I highly suggest that you all buy it. I attended his event tonight and it was one of the best book signings I have ever been to. He was fabulous! Also, quite possibly the most humble author I have met yet. Which is part of the reason I am gushing, because he never would… I love, love, LOVE him. Also, total llama… (hopefully we all remember what that means…)Instead of a traditional reading, he had an actress do a monologue reading of part of the first chapter of the book. She totally rocked the part.  I have a feeling that he is going to be huge! He has a second book coming out in 2012, and I am already desperate to read it. Go Tom!

My recovery is coming along. Made the mistake of wearing jeans for the first time the other day. Huge, giant mistake. If you ever have to have a hysterectomy or a c-section. Do not wear jeans until you are completely healed. It is painful… I am telling you because no one told me and I wish some one would have…

I am currently reading Changeless, the sequel to Soulless, by Gail Carriger. It is just as much fun as Soulless and I want to read a billion more stories about Alexia. She is a fabulous character. As is her husband, the devastatingly sexy Lord Conall Maccon. Shirtless Jacob has nothing on him. Yummy

Ok so I don’t actually think I am better than anyone… Here is what happened. When I was preparing for my hysterectomy, I spoke with all my friends who had also had the procedure (or a c-section which is a similar procedure surgery wise) and one thing they all told me was that I had to take it easy and not push myself. They all made the mistake of overdoing it (because they were feeling better) and then paid for it in pain the next day. I told them all that I would not make the same mistake and that I would take it easy and not overdo it… So cut to yesterday, I wake up and am feeling  pretty good and slightly stir crazy so decided to do the dishes. And then I decided to surprise Shannon and Bill with scones. Two batches no less. I had a great time experimenting with different fun spices and the scones turned out pretty good. I spent all day proud of myself that I was able to do so much and was patting myself on the back for not making the same mistake as everyone else.  Well, it turns out that I am not nearly as awesome as I think I am. I am totally paying for it today… Silly me, I should have listened to my friends. When will I learn that my friends know everything?

I am looking for suggestions for a baby gift. A friend just gave birth to what I can only imagine is the cutest baby in the world (her parents are both stunning as is her big sister so even though I have yet to see her, I know she has to be).  Also, what would you suggest for gifts for the parents?

I just finished Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King and totally loved it! I mentioned it the other day and I was right about the ending. It was completely satisfying. Not only is she a good storyteller but a great writer. Quite often it is hard to get both good writing and good storytelling.  The basic premise of the book is about a girl, Vera Dietz, dealing with life after her best friend Charlie dies. There are so many more layers to that story though. It is told mostly from Vera’s point of view but every once in a while we get to hear from her father as well as Charlie and those chapters add so much depth to the book. I thoroughly enjoyed her first novel, Dust of 100 Dogs, but I think this one, while not as creative a story as the other one, is still a stronger title. Vera Dietz also has more school library potential, not as much swearing and such as in 100 Dogs. Regardless of which title you read first, you are going to get a great story, fabulous characters and wonderful writing. I look forward to a million more books by her!

This is me finding the upside of having major surgery: I get to read more, as much as the pain medication lets me anyway. I have been able to catch up on some of my favorite cable shows. Today I caught up on a few hours of Top Chef, in between naps of course. I adore that show, it is a ton of fun to watch.  I nap frequently, which kind of makes me feel like a lazy-ass but only kind of. I like naps too much to give them up. I think that we as a country should have daily nap time. It would make us all better people.

Tonight after dinner, Shannon and I had an interesting discussion. We were watching Top Chef Masters and one of the chefs had inadvertently left her main course back at the prep-kitchen so had to go back and get it. Two of her competitors jumped in to help prep her other food while she was rushing back. Watching them step in to help a fellow human being out was quite refreshing. It once again brought to mind just how great people can be. I think about that a lot since the event. I have known quite a few big giant jerks in my life and while some of them may be more successful than I am, a fact that sometimes pains me, I know for a fact that not one of them would ever be surrounded by so many loving people. And not one of them would ever have enough friends to raise money to beat cancer. This was part of the discussion Shannon and I had. We should always treat people the best that we can. If you screw someone over today, they may be in a position to screw you over tomorrow.

I have been reading the new A.S. King book, Please Ignore Vera Dietz, and it is incredibly well-written. It is contemporary fiction and the more I read the more excited I get because I know that the ending is going to be amazing. It is not very often that a book does that to me.  I am not quite done with it yet so will give a review when I am done. Her first book Dust of 1,000 Dogs, was good but this one is better! Once again, it is an arc but should be coming out this fall.

I finished the latest in the Kitty Norville series by Carrie Vaughn, Kitty’s House of Horrors. It was quite a bit darker than the rest of the books but I really liked it. So far, the books have been fairly light, as much as  books about a werewolf battling demons and such can be. If you are unfamiliar with these books, they are about a werewolf named Kitty who hosts a call-in radio show for supernatural beings. She gets into all sorts of adventures and comes up against an interesting mix of supernatural characters. There are some hot guys in the books but the character ends up the person least expected. That was my favorite part about the series. They are good, clean fun and I adore them all. For those looking for books for teens, they are appropriate for high school and even mature junior high.

Ok, time to take more pain pills. On the plus side, I am starting to be able to walk upright. It is like I am evolving or something…

I am still at Shannon and Bill’s, still hopped up on Percocet and am being entertained by English Bulldogs. I have been having fun surfing the internets while in this rather amusing drug induced state. The internets are funny….I hurt everywhere but I can still type and look at things. So there is that…  I walk all hunched over like a pre-historic woman, only slightly less hairy. It is quite amusing.

I recently remembered this hilarious, or at least I think it is hilarious, short story I found on Amy Nichols‘ website and I want everyone to read it. Cause it’s funny… There are some other interesting stories there but the one that is my favorite is called Numbers Nine and Ten. I met Amy at Project Book Babe and she is pretty cool. At least from what I remember, I remember very little from that day.

I have also been having fun watching cable. Yay for Food Network! Best network ever. Am currently watching Ace of Cakes. Mmm, cake.

I started a few books too and will keep everyone posted when I finish them. I probably will not mention the ones I dislike. I prefer to listen to the wisdom of my mother and keep my mouth shut if I can’t say anything nice.