YAY and OMG!!

Alright I know, I know. Many of you have been nagging at me to blog some more (which I am thankful for; I need the motivation). So here goes.

Item #1 on the agenda: MRI
I did get to get a pre-peek at my MRI report. It was all normal! (YAY!) But I haven't gotten the official report for the doctor. I am calling tomorrow to follow up with them. I am so so relieved that my brain is "normal" (HA!) but now I am wondering even more what those crazy dizzy spells are. I haven't had them so often lately, which is great. Still weird.

Item#2: Dave Matthews Twittered me!!!
Okay so if you don't know what Twitter is, its a mini-blog sort of page where you can post 150 character blogs and send "tweets" or messages to other users. (www.twitter.com) At first I didn't think I would like it so much, but now I am addicted and I receive tweets from people I am following on my cell phone so that I can reply to them without being on the internet.

Anyway, long story short, Dave Matthews has a Twitter account (http://twitter.come/DaveJMatthews) and yes it is really him. If you read enough of his stuff and look at all the pictures he posts you would know. You can send messages to him on Twitter and if you are lucky (like me :P) he will tweet you back. I have been tweeting him for a little over a week now and today was my lucky day. Below is the actual Twitter Conversation between myself and Dave Matthews copied and pasted from our Twitter pages.

DaveJMatthews @dmb4141 I had a delicious shawarma from mr gyro's on greenwood ave. Thankyou. Delicious. I want another.about 7 hours ago from twitterrific in reply to dmb4141

CamiRose @davejmatthews what is a shawarma? i know gyro but not shawarma. . . about 7 hours ago from mobile web in reply to DaveJMatthews

DaveJMatthews @CamiRose yummy about 6 hours ago from twitterrific in reply to CamiRose

CamiRose @davejmatthews well thanks for clarifying. lol about 6 hours ago from mobile web in reply to DaveJMatthews

Okay so, not much right. He gave me a one word tweet: "yummy". But if you are going to get one word from Dave, "yummy" is a pretty damn good one.

Yes. I know. Chris already told me. I have a sad, sad obsession. I have embraced it.

Okay that's pretty much it for right now. We went to the pumpkin patch last weekend and got some great pictures which I will post this weekend!

(OMG! Dave tweeted me *faints*)

M.R...WHAT?

It all happened pretty fast but I got the authorization for the MRI for my brain and made the appointment for this morning. Chris (being the amazing husband that he is) took the day off to be with me lest I have a complete panic attack meltdown.

During registration I couldn't help but peer at the paperwork the clerk had. I hadn't seen my diagnosis or anything and I was curious. The whole thing changed when I read it.

First of all, my diagnosis is listed as "rule out acoustic neuroma" which is an inner ear/brain tumor. Now, in my heart of hearts (whatever that means) I know that this is all just a precautionary thing. However, I would have felt better not actually being given the diagnosis that a tumor needs to be ruled out. I would have been happier with "Diagnosis: Crazy Girl is dizzy, gets annoyed by it" or something trivial like that.

Second, in little letters next to the order for the MRI it says IVC. Umm..IVC!!? OMG!!! WTH!!! (okay I know it means intravenous contrast, but I had NO idea I needed it.) Apparently (later explained by the MRI tech) they put in the authorization without contrast but for what they are looking for they needed pictures both with and without contrast. I have no idea why, but I was struggling not to freak out about this. Either way it had to be done, so I quickly compartmentalized it and pushed it out of my mind.

Fast forward- The radiologist comes in to talk to me and Chris about the sedative he is going to give me (Ativan) and why it's better than Valium blah blah. Then he gets to the good part about how I can't work the rest of the day AND how Chris should take me out to dinner. I love doctors.
He gives me the pills and tells me to let them melt under my tongue because they will work faster that way. Then he gives me a little zen lesson about going to my happy place, a place where I feel safe and peaceful. He prohibited us from speaking about the Vice Presidential debate (he must have overheard our former discussion which I won't bother you with the details of) and said that I have to focus on calming thoughts. We then waited for the MRI tech to come get us, which wasn't long.

The MRI facility at Arroyo Grande Hospital is a modular unit in the parking lot. The MRI tech was a super cool, funky 1970's-esque guy (I could almost see him in bell bottoms with a bandanna tied around his forehead) who played awesome music like Hendrix in his own little MRI world. It was oddly comforting AND Chris got to come into the unit with me and stay behind the safety glass. It was so comforting knowing he was nearby.

Now by this time I was told the sedative would start to take effect, but nothing so far. Not until I laid down and the tech put a metal cage over my head and pushed me into the tube did it actually start kicking in. Let me tell you, it wasn't a minute too late. I was on the verge of freaking out until I felt my body relax and then I was sleeping..mostly. When I was awake I tried so hard to go to my happy place. I was back at my very awesome DMB concert and I was rocking out and then the sound of the MRI machine would mix in with the sound of the music and it started to sound all out of tune and just...wrong. So I had to give it up. I tried several more happy places, which lasted the rest of the time in between consciousness.

Then came time for the IV contrast. By this point, I was on cloud nine. I tried to tell the MRI tech where my best veins are for IV's, but I am not sure if he understood me because I am not sure if I was speaking English. Apparently it took him quite a few pokes to find a vein, which was A-ok by me because I was totally out of it. After he got the contrast in, it was back in for more happy place pandemonium set to the tune of the MRI machine.

Bottom line is this: I made it out of the machine! YAY!!!

I managed to get some lunch in me before I passed out for the rest of the afternoon and into the early part of the evening.

For those of you still reading, you will be happy to know Chris took me and Logan out for my post-MRI pre-birthday dinner at Red Lobster. And now we have a nice relaxing evening at home while Logan spends some quality time with his Oma.

I got the most awesome birthday present ever, but I will save that for a different blog (probably Sunday after my actual birthday!)

Last but not least, I will probably know the results of the MRI sometime at the beginning of next week. Good news: Chris saw some of the images of my brain and ladies and gentlemen: I do have one.

The Stupid Movie

This is what happens when you leave the boys home alone with a video camera. Without further ado, I give you The Stupid Movie.

(I have no idea either, but not bad for their first try, right?)

Umm..WTH?

First off, do NOT click on the link below if you are easily offended. But what the HELL?!
Click first, then continue to read the blog.
http://dreamlovechair.com/en_seats.php

Umm...wow. Okay so I totally get it if you are disabled perhaps and this chair is a blessing for you. But there are probably more kinky people that buy this thing than there are disabled people. And how fast can that thing possibly move? I mean..wow.

And just in case you may be asking yourself, "Self...why is Camilla looking at such things on the internet?" I shall inform you that I found this item while browsing the furniture section of my local Craig's List website. Yes. Furniture.

What is the world coming to!? Are we so lazy...oh nevermind. I could go on all night. Please do NOT buy the chair..but do spread the link because let's face it...we could all use a little "What the hell?!" in our lives.

And Logan videos coming soon. Chris, Logan and Adam (my lil bro) made a movie today. If Chris can get it edited tomorrow I will post it!!

Random Silliness.

Okay, I didn't quit blogging! I just..got sidetracked. I have a totally cute video to post of Logan, but it won't upload right now for some reason and I'm frustrated so I am going to stop and try again tomorrow. In the mean time, please enjoy this hilarious Penny Arcade that Chris shared with me. If you play World of Warcraft (or any MMO, really) you will totally get this. If not, I'm sorry! Oh and sorry for the curses (for those of you who mind). You will have to click on the picture to read it as the font is a bit small.

If that doesn't work, just go here: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2008/9/12/

OHHHH AND!!!!

Logan's pre-school teacher (who lives in my neighborhood and is totally awesome by the way) informed me that never in her sixteen years working with children has she seen one with as much energy as Logan. We very cleverly bought him a bright orange shirt that reads "My Parents Are Exhausted" before we went to Nebraska in June. He still wears it. It's true. We can take him to the park and run him until we are both beyond tired and he STILL won't take a nap!! I suppose it's something that he has more energy than every pre-schooler in Nipomo for the past sixteen years. Should we be proud or scared?

Apparently we also need to buy a thousand dollars worth of candy to feed all the children in our neighborhood at Halloween. It was nice to have a head's up and it should be nice to be near home and Trick-or-Treat in our neighborhood safely. Our last two neighborhoods were not the best.

Anyway I will post that video of Logan tomorrow so check back. It will be worth it, I promise.

(By the way, no update on the noggin problems. I was assured my authorization would come through for my MRI by tomorrow so I will hopefully get it scheduled next week.)

ENT's, Cucumbers and Facials: OH MY!

I saw an Ear-Nose-Throat specialist today because I've been having these strange dizzy spells accompanied by a sensation of falling. I've been having them off and on for about a year and a half but they have become more frequent over the past couple of months. The PA I see for primary care thought it was benign positional vertigo but apparently changed her mind and send me to the ear specialist to check and see if I was having hearing or inner ear problems.

I had a hearing test which I passed with flying colors (although sitting in a small booth repeating words to a woman who seemed to love her job a little too much that early in the morning was trying) and the doctor came in, took a look in my ears, nose and throat and said "Well...dizziness can come from many things and I may not be able to tell you what it IS but I can tell you what it ISN'T and it isn't your ears." YAY! I'm not going to go deaf or some such silliness (Yes, I have a very over-active imagination). I was thinking "Awesome, it's nothing now I can just know it's some weird thing, deal with it and move on." Wrong. Now they want me to go have an MRI of my brain to "make sure everything is normal." What is that supposed to mean!? There is also talk of sending me to a neurologist for a work-up for possible migraines or something else? I dunno. Anyway I'm sure it's just stress (another possible cause she listed) and I will surely blog about my MRI experience when I have it because I am claustrophobic and will be visiting Valium land for that experience.


On to more fun things. (Exhibit A)
At dinner tonight (Logan's favorite Subway: Eat Fresh, yes he says the whole slogan when he wants to go there i.e. "Mom, can we go to Subwayeatfresh?") Logan took a huge bite out of his cucumber and then put it up to his face like a smile. I present to you our first piece of evidence:

Totally cute, right? Okay but THEN he takes the cucumber away, frowns and says "My skin is unhealthy." To which Chris responded by almost choking on his sandwich amidst his silent laughter.

Turns out that Logan had seen a magazine picture of a woman with cucumbers on her eyes at the dentist yesterday (no cavities, yay!!)) and my sweet husband, not knowing how to explain a facial, told Logan that the woman was trying to make her skin more healthy.

It's so funny how kids pick up on things and the way their little minds work to interpret them and fit them into their daily lives.

Cucumber smilies for all, I say!!

Dave Matthews Concert!!

Disclaimer: If you are not a DMB fan, this post may bore you to tears.

So it's not that Logan didn't do anything cute today (he always does), but I wanted to take some time to blog about my amazing Dave Matthews Band concert experience in Berkeley on September 5th.

First of all you have to know that I became a huge DMB fan earlier this year. Of course I knew all of the hits like Crash, Where Are You Going, Ants Marching, etc. It wasn't until I was bored with all of my music on my iPod and Chris offered his Live at Luther College album to me that I fell in love with all that is Dave related (seriously I am driving Chris insane with all of my new found Dave knowledge which borders on a serious addiction/obsession problem).

So naturally when I heard they were going to be playing a three night show in Berkeley California at the Greek Theatre (which was paid for be William Randolph Hearst), I just had to go. I have heard some wonderful things about DMB and their live performances being amazing and I was not disappointed. And then tragedy struck. About two weeks before our concert, the sax player for DMB, LeRoi Moore passed away from complications surrounding an ATV accident. I thought for sure they would cancel our show. Not ONLY did they not cancel our show, they didn't even cancel the show at the LA Staples Center the night their good friend and band member passed away. They knew he would want them to play, so they did. To quote Dave, "LeRoi Moore gave up his ghost."

Fast forward. Chris and I get to Berkeley five hours before the concert and we change (Insert cute picture of us to the left :P) eat and catch a cab over to the campus. We got there two and a half hours early and there was already a HUGE line. Thanks to some confusion and a little poor judgement on our part, we managed to skip half of the line (SO SO sorry to everyone we cut in front of, it was an honest mistake...at first). We get inside and OH MY GOSH!! This place is GORGEOUS. We could have been in the very front (General Admission Seating) but decided to stick back a little bit so my short self could see. Our seats were still AMAZING. It wasn't too long before Dave came out himself to introduce Sharon Jones at the Dap Kings, the opener. I just adore that woman. She is so full of like and energy and spunk and she can sing like no other. She did a great job, but this blog is not about her so that's all I will say. If you are interested in checking out soul music, check her out.

(UGH!! There are so many things to say and I feel like I am rambling already.)

There was a thirty minute break between Sharon Jones and Dave Matthews so I figured "Hey, I'll go to the bathroom and get a t-shirt so I won't have to later or I won't miss out on an awesome shirt." I wandered over to the bathroom and there was a line of about fifty women. I figured I would do the t-shirt thing first, then the bathroom. I turned around. There was a line of about fifty people in the merchandise line. CRAP! Do I have to pee or do I need a shirt? I can only pick one! I decided to hold it and wait in the line for the shirt. Little did I know that everyone in line had to look at every shirt and every size of every shirt. *Sigh* Okay so it's finally my turn and then..THEY WERE OUT OF THE SHIRT I WANTED!!!. WHAT?!?!? *Cries*

So I got a totally awesome limited edition poster for our concert and an awesome flame dancer sticker for my car. Then I went back to wait for the concert and not a moment too soon because as soon as I got back to my place the band came on stage.

It was electric! Everyone on their feet, chanting and yelling and waving signs and...what's that smell?! Pot!! My first concert where I actually saw a pipe being passed around..crazy! My eyes where burning by the end of the concert and I'm sure I got a contact high, but overall the pot-heads were mellow and cool and well..like everyone else just there for the company and the music. I can't even begin to describe the feeling of being there. It all went by so fast. I can tell you there is nothing like Carter's drumming pounding out through a huge speaker so near you that you can feel every low note in your chest. Ahhh!

Carter, Rashawn, Boyd, Dave, Tim (Reynolds, yes he was there and it was awesome! Chris and I had no idea he would even be there because he doesn't usually tour with the band) and Jeff Coffin blowing on the sax in LeRoi's place...you can see the pure joy on their faces when they make music together. They all get such pleasure from entertaining us, which makes them the best live band in...well in my opinion in forever.

We also got to see Warren Haynes of the Allman Brothers who did a cameo on #41.

The only downfall was that Dave's mic was either too low when he was talking in between songs or the crowd was too loud, but we missed a lot of what he said. Overall the atmosphere was just perfect, weather perfect, show perfect, all perfect.

PLUS...I joined an online fan group at antsmarching.org and found an awesome guy to send me a recorded copy of all three nights of the Berkeley show (I LOVE YOU HOSS!!!) so that I can enjoy it on my iPod for years to come. He said the recording is pretty good and that I will be impressed so this makes me happy.

The Ants have been great so far. I even got some good pictures from one of them of my night of the show since I had to take mine on my cell (tickets said no camera's and I didn't want to risk not being allowed in with mine) and they came out a little blurry as you can see. They usually try to meet up before the shows and hang out, so I am looking forward to meeting more of them this year via the forums and next year at the Gorge (*crossing my fingers*).

I will probably bore you with more Dave posts in the future as I am trying to butter Chris up to take me again next yet. Below is the set list from our show in case you care and I hope you enjoy the pictures and video (which isn't mine, but I wanted to show you anyway).

Until next time!

Set List: The Greek Theater September 5, 2008

The Stone *
One Sweet World *

Don't Drink the Water *

So Damn Lucky *

Dancing Nancies *

Eh Hee *

Water Into Wine *

Gravedigger *

Grey Street *

Dreaming Tree *

Stay Or Leave *

Corn Bread *

Burning Down The House *

#41 *+

Anyone Seen The Bridge *

Too Much Intro *

Tripping Billies *

Encore:

Sister ~

Two Step *

Special Guests:
* Jeff Coffin

+ Warren Haynes

~ Dave, Tim, Carter and Rashawn

And for those of you who stuck with me long enough to read this far, for your viewing pleasure: Burning Down the House: (I couldn't imbed it, but you can follow the link)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsvKz9IguwM

(OH!! And thank you Mom for watching Logan for us so we could enjoy our time together!))