Another Pint

I didn’t mention in yesterday’s post that I had just returned from giving another pint of blood. This brings me to a total of three. Next time will make me ½ gallon giver. Sort of sounds like a lot doesn’t it? It’s not really, close to half what’s in a man’s body, but it sounds impressive. OK, I’m visualizing a ½ gallon of blood… OK, let’s stop.

Anyway, the process is becoming fairly routine and my body seems to handle it reasonably well. Although, it is somewhat hard to tell as last night my wife fixed roast and veggies (mmmmm!) along with some homemade rolls (double mmmmm!) and once again I underestimated the amount of carbs in her dinner rolls.

I need that little guy from calorieking to jump out and say, “Keith, that roll is at least 45 maybe even 52, grams of carb, will you please quit guesstimating it at 23! You know that messes you up EVERY time!” If that happened a few times I’d probably get it right more often. However, I suspect that everyone struggles with these foods that we don’t eat often.

Back on track, I read on the web today that the Red Cross receives $225 for every pint of blood it sells. This figure was from a post written in 2001 and I have no idea how accurate or legitimate the figure is. I also found out (and verified) that the Red Cross has an annual budge of approximately 3.9 billion dollars (yes, that’s billion with a B folks) and that 60 percent of their money comes from revenues received as a byproduct of blood donations. So I suspect $225 or more for a pint of blood is about right (my own calculations put this up around $325-$350). Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad for the good it does and that organizations such as this exist, but I’m not going to feel bad about the two bottles of water and the 6oz can of V8 I had… I don’t care how much of an evil eye that volunteer gave me!

8th Month Anniversary

Exactly 8 months ago today I started what I then dubbed the jb100. Following johnboy's lead my goal was to exercise 100 days straight… no days off, no excuses… 30 minutes of aerobic exercise a day for 100 days. In the back of my mind I wanted to make exercise stick permanently, but I knew it was too big a chunk to bite off initially… and probably still is.

I am now at 243 days or 8 months 1 day minus the 1 day I missed in July. So given the duration what are the results?

Well I feel great. I’ve toned up, but my girth still isn’t exactly where I want it. I had to buy more jeans recently and was able to get into a 34” waist comfortably. I had been wearing 34’s before but so tightly that it caused the material to eventually tear at the back pocket gusset. I’m still in a 35 dress pant but here again much more comfortably than I was before.

I could probably drop back to my goal of a 33 waist if I cut back on my diet a little. Over the summer I let my daily carb count slip up to the 150 – 165 gram range from my usual 120g. With all the fresh fruit around and not to mention my arch nemesis-- ice cream I’ve let the carb count rise. So far this fall I’ve cut back a little but still not to where I need for further reduction.

The benefit I enjoy most from exercising everyday is predictability of insulin. A 1.5 unit correction bolus will adjust my blood glucose level downward 50 mg/dl every time. Before exercising so regularly I got into S.W.A.G. bolus periods, where doubling and sometimes tripling the correction bolus wouldn’t effect my sugar levels in a predictable manner. This is currently not an issue… woohoo!

I hope the next time I write about this is at the successful celebration of the one year mark.

The 12th Hole

Previously I’ve alluded to the fact that I’m on the board of the local chapter of a non-profit entity. This entity provides room and board for families with hospitalized children. If I wrote the name you’d recognize it, but I don’t want it popping up on a search engine so it’ll remain anonymous for the time being, but you get the idea and hey, the name doesn’t really matter anyway.

Yesterday we held our annual golf fundraiser. We rent what many consider to be the best golf course here in East Tennessee and then teams play for various donated prizes. We had 120 players and the entry fees go towards the operating budget of the entity. I couldn’t help with the event in the morning but I went out for the afternoon to ‘do my share’.

A car was to be given away to anyone who could make a hole-in-one at the 12th hole. So ‘my share’ was to stand at tee box of the 12th hole and make sure players teed up at the right spot so if they made a hole-in-one it would qualify and they would win the car. (Unfortunately noone won the car, but one guy did hit the flag!) I don’t play golf but it doesn’t take a pro golfer to note that this is a really beautiful place. In addition to the course quality the leaves are about peak here, adding to the awesome beauty.

I ended up being on the course about 5 hours yesterday afternoon, a good ways from the clubhouse and without test equipment or hypo treatment material. Before you panic let me say that my blood sugars aren’t as volatile as they once were and they tend to move in slower swings rather than volatile shock waves. I think this is the result of a low(er) carb diet and that I’m maturing (at least age wise). When I was younger small amounts of insulin used to have drastic effects. Now, even though I exercise daily, the net effect of insulin is less. Anyway as luck would have it I could feel myself getting low about 3 hours into my duty. Since I had no sweets on hand, I cut my basal rate in half and fortunately this seemed to do the trick. When I was able to test again I was 98 mg/dl.

On a similar (and maybe TMI) note, one of the hypo symptoms I’ve noticed lately is that my bladder fills just about the time I ‘feel’ the hypo. I’ve noticed this several times before and have been keeping a mental log to verify this symptom. I’m about 90% sure I’m right about this. I’ve never read or heard about anyone else having this symptom so I’m passing it along for anyones' edification that can use it.

The final two hours I ended up standing in a drizzle with a slight breeze from the northwest. I was pretty chilly when I finally got back to the clubhouse, but no worse for wear. Diabetically speaking though, I am going to have to start living up to the Boy Scout motto and “Be Prepared!”.

Bye Summer Hello Tomato

We’ve basically had beautiful weather here in East Tennessee since the heat began to wane about mid-August. All good things must come to an end however and last Thursday it ended with a bang. We had two cold fronts blow thru within 12 hours and that night the weatherman was on the border about whether or not to predict frost. Well frost slipped across the border during the night and we awoke Friday to a heavy covering of frosty white. Friday morning also initiated the start of the winter heating bill season as I slid the thermostat control from Off over to Heat.

We have a garden every summer and it generally does well. We plant about 25 tomato plants along with various kinds of peppers and some years (not this one) squash and green beans. This year I got our tomatoes in the ground about a month late, about mid-june. That ‘one month’ late has thrown the harvest two months late… funny how that works. When the frost hit last Thursday we had tons of ripe and almost ripe tomatoes on the vines. So Friday evening I went out to pick the remaining goods ones. I kept picking and picking until I lost most of the sunlight. At the end of the evening I had 16 gallons of tomatoes. Yes, that was Gallons with a ‘G’ and there were 16 of them.

So what does one do with 16 gallons of tomatoes? Well, we canned them until we ran out of canning jars. No more jars means we hit our storage limit and no more canning! So now we’re trying to give tomatoes away and attempting to eat everything tomato we can think of. (I guess our licopine levels will be high for a while.) As I write this a bunch of them just left via two nice friends from church. Now we’re down to six gallons.

They say if you eat too many carrots you’ll turn a light shade of orange… check with me next week as I may be a nice shade of red!

Meme time again

I though I would join in on this meme that I believe Penny started.

1. Do you still have tonsils?

No, I lost mine about 8 years of age. I think my parents and the Dr were attempting to get me well as I was a sickly child. I now wonder if all this sickness was caused by D trying to rear its head before its official DX 3 years later.

2. Would you bungee jump?

If I was absolutely sure it was safe. While I’m not a wimp, life doesn’t go on forever and I don’t want to end it prematurely by doing something stupid.

3. If You Could Do Anything In The World For A Living What Would It Be?

Fly a medical rescue helicopter.

4. How many tattoos do you have?

None. I’ve always been afraid I wouldn’t like it later or I would change my mind.

5. Your favorite fictional animal?

I don’t have one… sorry.

6. One person that never fails to make you laugh?

My youngest son ‘T’. He’s a little person and has the keen wit and good sense of humor that so many little people seem to have. He can always cheer me up.

7. Do you consider yourself well organized?

I try very hard to be, but don’t look at my desk.

8. Any Addictions?

Probably good chocolate and a good cup of coffee.

9. From what news source do you receive the bulk of your news?

We read the local paper for local news and events. Robin and Company (CNN) many mornings while I exercise. The internet for indepth news… we alternate between FOX and CNN to try to get a balanced perspective.

10. Would you rather go to a carnival or circus?

I really don’t care for either, you can have my ticket.

11. When you were twelve years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?

An commercial aircraft pilot. I was DX’d the year before and was still trying to come to terms with the fact that this was no longer an option.

12. Best Movie You've Seen This Year?

Enemy of the State. Yes, I know this movie is 8 years old but I still loved it.

13.Favorite alcoholic drink?

I don't drink much alcohol anymore. I used to really like a good frozen Marguarita though.

14. What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?

Go downstairs, get my Bible and a cup of coffee.

15. Siblings?

None. Like Tigger, I'm the only one.

16. What is the best thing about your job?

Freedom. Good thing as there’s not much money at the current time.

17. Have you ever gone to therapy?

No.

18. If you could have one super power what would it be?

The power to heal, but the responsibility would be incredibly heavy.

19. Do you own any furniture from Ikea?

No.

20. Have you ever gone camping?

Yes, many, many times. It’s still some of the best times I have all year.

21. Gas prices! First thought?

I’m in the wrong business. Just how do I go about getting 100 oil wells?

22. Your favorite cartoon character?

Dexter.

23. What was your first car?

A ’66 Dodge Coronet. My aging grandfather used to haul pigs to market in the backseat of this car!

24. Do you think marriage is an outdated ritual?

No. I think it’s still the best way to preserve the family and have stable, well adjusted kids. (I’m aware there are problems with many marriages and I'm sorry about this.)

25. The Cosby Show or the Simpsons?

The Cosby Show.

26. Do you go to church?

Yes. I’m on a couple of leadership teams at church. I can’t imagine life without it.

27. What famous person would you like to have dinner with?

Condoleezza Rice

28. What errand/chore do you despise?

I’m getting where I hate to mow the grass. I didn’t use to mind it. My youngest can’t mow the grass easily and my oldest absolutely hates it so that leaves dear ole dad… there’s got to be something better to do with the time.

29. First thought when the alarm went off this morning?

”Got to move Sam’s car”. ‘T’ just started a new job this week and has to leave at 6:30a. We didn’t juggle cars last night before bed.

30. Last time you puked from drinking?

About 34 years ago… once is enough!

31. What is your heritage?

Scotch Irish.

32. Favorite flower?

Begonias.

33. Disney or Warner Bros?

Warner Bros, I guess. I used to be a big fan of the Road Runner.

34. What is your best childhood memory?

In my early teen’s my parents bought a truck camper and a modest ski boat. We camped almost every weekend during the summer… it was a blast!

35. Your favorite potato chip?

A Lay’s Ruffle potato chip with a big bowl of French Onion dip.

36. What is your favorite candy?

A dark chocolate Milky Way.

37. Do you burn or tan?

I grew up in Texas, it’s a good thing I tan!

38. Astrological sign?

Virgo

39. Do you own a gun?

Yes. I never shoot them but I’m glad we live in a country where ownership is possible I hate it when guns aren’t used responsibly though.

40. What do you think of hot dogs?

I love them. My best endo ever told me that a quality turkey frank is a good alternative to high fat breakfast meats. I still have one with breakfast 2-3 times a week even now.

On the unhealthy side of the fence, have you tried the jalepeno and cheese hot dogs available at Pilot Truck Stops? These things rock, baby and at 2 for $2.00 it makes for cheap road food! (I eat one with the bun and one without to keep the carb count down. Bolus for 45g and you’re good to go!… is that ironic or what?)