tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55314246643421034802024-03-14T00:03:28.653-04:00Keith's Sugar BeatI was perfectly healthy in September, but in November we discovered that I had a glucose level of 435. Normal is from about 75 to 115, so 435 was pretty much through the roof.
This meant goodbye to glazed donuts and hello to daily injections...but the needles are really small.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.comBlogger56125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-83498607865665719962011-01-10T22:30:00.000-05:002011-01-10T22:30:29.359-05:00Getting To The PointWow, I guess I've been so busy today that I'm just getting to post this stuff at about bedtime. Wow. I know how important this stuff is to my three followers, so I'll try to do better next time.<br />
<br />
Well first thing is that I think I've finally figured out the secret of the little blood testing strips I have to use every day. I just couldn't figure out why sometimes I'd get a drop of blood the size of a Mini Cooper on the stick and it wouldn't register, while other times it would work just fine with what seemed like a mere molecule. I mean I was aiming for the little black dots on the strip. What was going on here?<br />
<br />
Then a few days ago I figured it out: It wasn't about the dots, but about the little pointy things in the dots. Apparently the times when I couldn't get it to register, I had a big glob of blood sitting firmly on the dot, but not touching the pointy thing. Once I thought I'd unlocked this little secret, I tried just aiming the pointy thing at the blood.<br />
<br />
Voila! Success. OK, this means a whole lot less sticking of myself and wasting of test strips.<br />
<br />
Oh, and today's number was...hmm, let me run and check...it was 101.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-78187301890853865822011-01-09T17:01:00.000-05:002011-01-09T17:01:51.381-05:00Finger Lickin' Good!After having not seen him since some time back in November, I paid a visit to the <a href="http://www.kfc.com/">Colonel</a> last night. That's right, I went to KFC. I figured I'd been good, so I could treat myself to three wings and a biscuit - and give the biscuit to Sofie.<br />
<br />
Frankly, the jury's still out on whether or not the Colonel's chicken is better than what I can get at <a href="http://www.wegmans.com/">Wegmans</a>, and whose is cheaper. But I just happened to be near the place and decided to go for it.<br />
<br />
My number this morning was 92 and this afternoon was 140. That's pretty good.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-42377876837077935112011-01-08T07:47:00.000-05:002011-01-08T07:47:39.949-05:00Still Within The BoundariesLast night we went grocery shopping, and as usual, bought a half-pound of sliced mozzarella at the deli counter. And, as also is usual, the whole half-pound didn't make it home, as we noshed on it while we shopped.<br />
<br />
For dinner we foraged through the leftovers, and I had pasta and meat sauce (not quite the same without my Park's Sausage, but maybe we'll get that on the next trip down, with room in the van).<br />
<br />
This morning's number? 106.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-29814322130679721662011-01-07T15:37:00.001-05:002011-01-08T07:41:59.685-05:00That's An After Lunch Number?So the Diabetes Ladies told me that two hours after lunch I should be between 140 and 160. Today I was 91. What's going on here? And on a day when I wasn't sure I got my entire dosage!<br />
<br />
Could it be that I was just extra careful about what I ate because I wasn't sure? Nah...I had a pizza for breakfast, and because they didn't have anything I particularly liked in the campus shop for my snack, I had that AWFUL microwave popcorn. But since lunch was pizza again (hey, it's Friday, what do you expect?), I had 10 tiny little Buffalo chicken wings...like totally no carbs at all.<br />
<br />
This is really strange.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-50748719567859357342011-01-07T09:35:00.000-05:002011-01-07T09:35:37.406-05:00It Bounced!Yeah, when I gave myself my shot this morning, the needle sort of bounced out of me. I hope I got my full dosage. I guess we'll find out later.<br />
<br />
This morning's number was 106.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-58760071167666983772011-01-06T08:21:00.000-05:002011-01-06T08:21:34.108-05:00On the TreadmillSo last night I finally got on the treadmill in the basement. I was afraid it was gonna be boring, so that's why I took Jamie, Adam, Kari, Grant, and Tory (especially Kari) with me. If you recognize these names, then you know that I'm talking about the cast of <a href="http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/mythbusters/">Mythbusters</a>.<br />
<br />
Rather than recording the shows on our DVR, and missing the last minute of each episode, I signed up for a "season pass" at the iTunes Store, and have the entire season on my iPod Touch. So armed with the latest episode on the failed <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Von_Stauffenberg_plot">bomb plot to kill Hitler</a>, and whether or not you can slap some sense into someone, I got on the treadmill and walked for 45 minutes.<br />
<br />
Not bad, not boring at all. I'm just gonna need a lot more episodes of <b>Mythbusters</b>.<br />
<br />
Oh, and this morning's number was 104.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-76621455388491817122011-01-05T15:01:00.000-05:002011-01-05T15:01:27.311-05:00You Do The Pokey Pokey...and you turn yourself around. That's what it's all about.<br />
<br />
Yeah, sticking myself with things seems to be what it's all about. Today I actually remembered to do the after-lunch stick at 2.30.<br />
<br />
I've been talking to a lot of the "Diabetes Mothers" and "Diabetes Siblings" around school, and first they offer their condolences that I've got this thing. Then they tell me that I really should go on The Pump, because it makes life so much easier. They tell me that it's like night and day.<br />
<br />
Well, quite frankly, what I've had to do so far hasn't been all that bad. I stick myself in the finger once or twice a day, and I give myself a shot in the thigh once every morning. It's not all that bad. And quite frankly, I'm a little concerned about how cumbersome The Pump would be.<br />
<br />
Nah...I'll take the current system for now.<br />
<br />
By the way, this afternoon's number was a dead-on 140, and the Diabetes Ladies told me that it should be between 140 and 160.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-74042614013456010152011-01-05T08:08:00.000-05:002011-01-05T08:08:39.926-05:00Spicy Thai Chips and Pizza GoldfishMmmm! I hadn't had Kettle brand Spicy Thai potato chips since before the diagnosis. Yesterday I decided to treat myself to a bag. And this after noshing on Pizza Goldfish all afternoon. I figured that if I ate enough meat later on, that would take care of it.<br />
<br />
Actually, when I think I've had too many carbs earlier in the day, I look for something later on that has a high meat to carb ratio (that's why there are so many Gorton's fish fillets in the freezer).<br />
<br />
Last night's dinner was pasta with meat sauce, which didn't exactly cut down on the carbs, but this morning's number was a fairly good 109.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-85842015596374088452011-01-04T09:11:00.000-05:002011-01-04T09:11:26.188-05:00Teriyaki MeatballsThat's what was for dinner last night. Teriyaki meatballs and fried rice...sort of. I was going to get some ground beef to make spaghetti sauce with, and saw that they had teriyaki meatballs, so I figured I'd buy a half pound and try them out. Everyone liked them...even Sofie.<br />
<br />
Anyway, after the meatballs and the fried rice, this morning's number was 98.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-21675035635900828632011-01-03T15:33:00.000-05:002011-01-03T15:33:16.361-05:00The Second PokeOK, so the Diabetes Ladies told me that I should test myself three times a week two hours after lunch, in addition to my daily morning test. I was gonna do Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday - my normal shampoo days, but as you know from the previous post, I forgot to do it yesterday. So I started today.<br />
<br />
When I asked the school nurse where I should do this, she said that diabetics have the right to test themselves anywhere they want. Cool. So I gave my class a break, rolled over to the front table, and poked myself. The Diabetes Ladies told me that after lunch I should be between 140 and 160. I was 125. I'm not sure if that's good or bad.<br />
<br />
One thing I do know is that I need a snack right now. Anybody got any Pizza Goldfish?Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-47279143168967111992011-01-03T12:40:00.001-05:002011-01-03T12:41:29.196-05:00Oops!It's been quite the day for oopsies. I was supposed to start testing myself two hours after lunch yesterday. Well, first of all, I forgot what time I ate lunch. Was it 12.30, was it 1.00, was it 1.30? Who knows? Then I was so busy at the laundromat because our own washer was having issues, that I forgot to test. I remembered around 5.00, which was definitely too late.<br />
<br />
So that was the first oopsie. The second was when I lay down on the couch for a short nap at about 6.00, after I'd finished helping a friend with an MS Word problem. I figured I'd get up and make dinner in about an hour.<br />
<br />
I woke up at 1.52 this morning.<br />
<br />
Well, not wanting to go too long without food and having my morning numbers be too low, I broke my <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gremlins">Gremlins rule</a>, and ate after midnight, baking myself two Gortons Breaded Fish Fillets. I'm starting to think I should buy stock in the company.<br />
<br />
My number this morning was a spot on 100.<br />
<br />
The third oopsie was the link I put in here for subscribing by email. Seems I copied the wrong HTML code, and it's subscribing people to my other blog, <a href="http://wordfromg.blogspot.com/">The Word From G</a>. I hope to have that fixed soon.<br />
<br />
Oy...what a day!Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-54192686144320245272011-01-02T08:40:00.000-05:002011-01-02T08:40:38.815-05:00Me and Roger Clemens<h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" data-ft="{"type":"msg"}" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="UIStory_Message">I get it now! Being the big needle wimp that I am, I just couldn't understand the whole steroids thing in sports. You're gonna stick a needle in your leg every day, just to hit more home runs? What are you, crazy?<br />
<br />
But if they're using the same needles I'm using...well then, it ain't that bad.</span></h3><div><span class="UIStory_Message"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="UIStory_Message">Oh, and by the way...I'm 118 this morning. I had a little ice cream and some popcorn last night. I'd rather wake up a little high than too low.</span></div>Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-3549252441316531762011-01-01T09:27:00.000-05:002011-01-01T09:27:02.297-05:00Time For A Cookie77? I'm sorry, but that's a little low for my tastes. <b>Glucose Buddy</b> doesn't like it either; it thinks that normal starts at 80. I think I need to have a few more carbs before I go to bed at night.<br />
<br />
But for now, I'll have a cookie before I shoot up.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-13375303424781721922010-12-31T10:59:00.000-05:002010-12-31T10:59:38.852-05:00Auld Lang Syne<h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" data-ft="{"type":"msg"}" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="UIStory_Message">Today is 111. We're back from vacation, we finally have our van back, Sofie's at camp for two days, and all"s right with the world.<br />
<br />
Now I just need to get some half-inch #8 flathead screws for the kitchen.</span></h3>Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-32589101029101254272010-12-30T09:36:00.001-05:002010-12-30T09:38:26.265-05:00$180 Is Not Fine!This morning's number is 104, and that's good. But in my attempts to photograph the Bethlehem Star, I ran across another number that I didn't like: $180. That's the fine that <b>each</b> of a group of <a href="http://www.lehigh.edu/">Lehigh University</a> students got for trespassing and going where I went.<br />
<br />
With that in mind, I decided not to make one more attempt to get the star while lit, and with the sky light too. I've been lucky so far, and didn't want to push it.<br />
<br />
But...I've heard that you're able to see it from the tower in Iacocca Hall at Lehigh, and that's pretty close. Maybe I'll check that out today while Devra's getting ready, or maybe I'll check it out on some other trip.<br />
<br />
Who knows, maybe I'll even get official permission to go to the site without worrying about a $180 fine.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-86944886103152057042010-12-29T21:24:00.000-05:002010-12-29T21:24:15.225-05:00Follow The StarI was 104 this morning, and then rushed out of the house to follow the star. What star? The star of Bethlehem, of course!<br />
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You see, we're visiting friends of ours in Bethlehem, PA, and one of their famous landmarks is the star on the north face of South Mountain. It's been said that at night it can be seen from as far as Wind Gap, 20 miles away. Well, for years we've wanted to see this thing up close, rather than at the nice respectful distance of downtown Bethlehem. The problem is that the closer you get to it, the harder it is to see it. It has something to do with the way the trees are cut just below it, so that it doesn't overwhelm the folks who live just downhill from it.<br />
<br />
Well today I finally found the hidden path to it, and got a few pictures. Problem was, it was the wrong time of day, and the sun was almost right behind it. So much for that idea. I figured I'd head back up at about dusk. Then the sun would be out of the way, and the star would actually be lit up.<br />
<br />
Good idea in theory, but by the time we got to the star, it was dark enough that that's about all that showed up in the pictures. We really should've headed out there about an hour earlier.<br />
<br />
So...if I want the perfect picture of it, I either have to head out there in the early early tomorrow morning, before it's shut off, or wait until our next trip down in a few months. Right now I'm thinking it'll happen on our next trip down.<br />
<br />
Here are the pictures. One from this morning and one from this evening.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_k-L5w11nrvQ/TRvsjB1EJBI/AAAAAAAAJYw/465CAeStLUI/s1600/2010-729.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_k-L5w11nrvQ/TRvsjB1EJBI/AAAAAAAAJYw/465CAeStLUI/s640/2010-729.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>The daytime shot.</b></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_k-L5w11nrvQ/TRvspJI6l0I/AAAAAAAAJY0/vXVD4qjUj2Q/s1600/2010-768.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_k-L5w11nrvQ/TRvspJI6l0I/AAAAAAAAJY0/vXVD4qjUj2Q/s640/2010-768.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b>The evening shot.</b></div>Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-24743659829077313002010-12-28T09:52:00.000-05:002010-12-28T09:52:08.374-05:00A Little Bit Of BethlehemPretty much ever since we've been coming to Bethlehem, we've visited the Chopstix Express takeout for fried rice and egg rolls. That means we've been doing it for 16 years.<br />
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When we arrived last night, Dev asked if we were going to get rice, because it just wouldn't be Bethlehem without it. So back into the car we went to get a quart of the stuff. And even though I had already had a Subway turkey sandwich, I decided to treat myself to 2/3 cup of Bethlehem.<br />
<br />
This morning's number: 92.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-48792532420192891262010-12-27T08:46:00.000-05:002010-12-27T08:46:34.559-05:00Let Him Eat Cake!So yesterday I treated myself to a coffee shake from Friendly's and had another piece of cake from Christmas (but obviously couldn't finish the piece that Sofie didn't want). Dinner, to make up for my indulgences (paging <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetzel,_Johann">Johann Tetzel</a>), was two Gorton's breaded fish fillets.<br />
<br />
Today's number is...88.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-50331822028377543242010-12-26T07:56:00.001-05:002010-12-26T07:57:24.153-05:00'Twas The Day After ChristmasHo! Ho! Ho! I had pasta and breaded chicken cutlet at my sister-in-law's house yesterday, a few Pillsbury shape cookies at our house in the morning, and a slice of that cake when we got home last night.<br />
<br />
My number this morning? 111.<br />
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My only problem is that it's getting to be really hard for me to get enough blood to test myself. By the time I manage to get a big enough drop, I've gone through three fingers and the test meter has given me an error message because I took too long. ARRGH!Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-52445065228034342642010-12-25T09:54:00.003-05:002010-12-25T10:15:12.966-05:00Merry Christmas!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I've been diabetic for about a month now...or at least I've known that I'm diabetic for that long. I was 97 this morning. I figure that's pretty good. And now that I've got this blog thing running, here's a graph of my morning numbers for the past month or so.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Anything within the yellow band is considered good.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_k-L5w11nrvQ/TRYKNYc33pI/AAAAAAAAJYk/VBp2M8JsNZU/s1600/glucose+graph2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="437" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_k-L5w11nrvQ/TRYKNYc33pI/AAAAAAAAJYk/VBp2M8JsNZU/s640/glucose+graph2.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-65130762458986504142010-12-25T00:19:00.000-05:002010-12-25T00:19:13.224-05:00A Meal For Your Money, Not A SnackSo here's the story that was too long for Facebook.<br />
<br />
On Monday I had to take Sofie to sing with the MPH Lower School Chorus for a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotary_International">Rotary</a> Meeting at a local restaurant. In the rush to get out of the house and to the venue on time, I didn't have a chance to have my mid-morning snack. In fact, it was pretty much lunchtime by now. I figured I'd just pick up something on the way, but being lunchtime, the drive-thru line at Wendy's was just way too long. Oh well, I'd figure something out.<br />
<br />
Once I got Sofie with her group, I went to the person in charge of the meeting, and explained my situation. I said that I was a parent of one of the singers, a new diabetic, and hadn't had my snack yet. Was there a little something I could nibble on until I got home.<br />
<br />
Well, this person must've known diabetics, because she rushed me right over to one of the people in charge of the food, and said, "This man's a diabetic, give him anything he wants." And sure enough, I didn't get just a few crackers, they took me over to the buffet table and fed me the same thing the Rotarians were eating.<br />
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I guess they didn't want me passing out on their property.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-2583742398168733462010-12-24T08:17:00.003-05:002010-12-24T08:17:15.584-05:00After the PartyDrumroll please...today's number...after having been at a Christmas party last night...is...90.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-82841809058526789862010-12-23T07:42:00.001-05:002010-12-23T07:42:48.005-05:00A Piece of CakeBy the way, did I mention that Cheryl is making my favorite cake for Christmas? I can still have it, but I can only have one piece a day instead of four.Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-71853271123289619822010-12-23T07:19:00.001-05:002010-12-23T07:19:39.560-05:00Eat First, Shoot Up Later<h6 class="uiStreamMessage" data-ft="{"type":"msg"}" style="color: black; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 5px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; word-wrap: break-word;"><span class="messageBody" style="line-height: 14px;">77 this morning. I think I'll eat before I shoot up.</span></h6>Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5531424664342103480.post-50158142636893799612010-12-21T10:32:00.000-05:002010-12-21T10:32:00.102-05:00The Great Thing About Being Diabetic<h3 class="UIIntentionalStory_Message" data-ft="{"type":"msg"}" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><span class="UIStory_Message">By the way, one of the great things about being diabetic, if one can say that there is anything good about being diabetic, is how eager people are to feed you in order to avoid having you collapse on their floor from low blood sugar.</span></h3>Mr Ghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17397233594699904878noreply@blogger.com0