Tone Parsons

Dusting off the keyboard and writing a post

It’s been a few days since I’ve written a post, and unlike some people, I’ve taken it upon myself to put something on this page (love ya, Eve!).

My back has been kicking my ass as of late. I’ve been taking my medications, but they only reduce the pain… it never goes away. My feet are the biggest issue. They feel as if my shoes are full of broken glass, and each step is very painful. I’ve been seeing a psychologist who specializes in chronic pain, but that hasn’t helped at all (he released me yesterday, saying there was nothing else he can do). I do, however, have an appointment with a neurologist on the 25th of this month (I made that appointment in January or February), so there is hope on the horizon.

I’m hoping that they’ll give me a pain pump. They surgically implant it under your skin and it injects micro grams of medication directly into the spine, 24 hours a day. I’ve been told by people who have it that it’s amazing. Hopefully, I’ll be a candidate for getting one.

In the interim, I’ve asked my doctor to up my prescriptions. I’m allowed have 1 or 2 oxycodone every 4 hours, but am only given enough to have 3 per day. Unfortunately, it takes 4 – 6 of them during the day (plus my morphine) to keep the pain bearable. This means that I can’t take any on the weekends or else I’ll run out long before I’m allowed to refill. I only take them at work, and just deal with it in the evenings and weekends, neither of which are very fun.

But enough with the whining….

The other morning, I was having a cigarette in the smoking area. One of the engineers here, Dan, came out and said “Good Morning” to me. I replied “Mornin’ Cap’n!”

“Capitan?” He replied.

“No… Cap’n… C-A-P-N” I said.

“What’s that stand for?” he asked.

“Um…. Completely asinine, possibly neurotic” was my reply.

He seemed to think that was a good answer.

Oh… and I programed my Cisco IP phone so that I have a direct dial to God. Here’s the proof:

I’ve got a direct line to God!

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Vacation and Graduation

It’s all over, and Michael is a very happy man!

Today is the last day of my mini-vacation, and what a week it’s been!

My wife and I took the week off to prepare for our eldest son’s graduation from high school. We spent the week cleaning the house from top to bottom, decorating, and preparing food for the party. On Saturday, it all came together and we had a blast!

The graduation ceremony was held at the Opera House here in Spokane. We went in about a half hour early and found that all the seats on the lower level were gone, so we sat in the balcony. At least my wife and I were able to get into the front row there. We also took a ton of pictures (which didn’t turn out so good), there’s a slide show here (opens in a new tab/window).

Michael recieving his diploma

Afterward, we had a huge party at our place! Good food, family, and friends always make for a great time!

A huge thank you from Michael to everyone who sent a gift (they were most generous!!). He’s sending out “thank you” cards today.

4 comments

Some cats and rats and elephants….

Last night, I was sitting in my garage, petting my cat Magellan, and it stuck me…. we’ve had a lot of cats in the past 20 years that my wife and I have been together.

I’m totally a cat person. I like dogs too (I have two of them, Shasta and Chloe), but there’s something about a cats attitude that strikes a chord with me. They aren’t domesticated, they live with people because they choose to, and they’re chock full of attitude.

I started thinking of all the cats we’ve had…

  • Vermin – The first cat I could call my own. She was pure attitude, and hated everyone but me. She would disappear for days on end. One day she came home with a new collar and tag (showing she had been immunized). Then she quit coming home. I saw her one day in the window of a house down the street, so I know she found a new home.
  • Fritzie (the first) – My wife’s cat when I met her. She brought him over from her old place (where her ex lived), but Fritzie wasn’t happy, so she took him back.
  • Jazz – a stray my sister brought over one day. We had him for 9 years until he went out and never came home again.
  • Mode – Jazz’s brother (he didn’t stay long)
  • Bear Tank – one of Vermin’s kittens (the only one we named). He went to a good home.
  • Quinto – A vicious little bastard who would attack me as I slept by biting my nose (I worked graveyard and he didn’t feel that his human should sleep during the day). A co-worker of mine adopted him when we moved to a new apartment.
  • Pookie Bear – A loving kitten who became feral later in life after my eldest son was born and had to be put up for adoption at the shelter (I hope he made it).
  • Fritzie (the second) – a great cat. He finally died of old age two years ago.
  • Magellan – We also call him “Jelly” because he’s the fattest thing you’ve ever seen. He’s a great cat with one exception: He’s obsessive-compulsive about spraying everything in sight (he is now our garage kitty).
  • Icon – We think she suffered brain damage when we had her spayed. She went from being a great cat to being incredibly stupid overnight. She met a bad end with an automatic garage door.
  • Cisco – an all white kitten adopted from the shelter. He had the feline version of kennel cough. We paid a small fortune trying to keep him alive, but he died just 2 weeks after we got him (on my wife’s birthday).
  • Bondi – a brother of Cisco. We adopted him after Cisco died, and if not for the immediate medical care we got for him, he would have met the same end as his brother.
  • Switch – from the same litter as Cisco and Bondi. He received the same medical treatments and barely survived.
  • Darwin – quite possibly the coolest cat that ever was. Darwin got his name from the fact that he’s a polydactyl (he had extra toes on his front feet that looked and acted like thumbs). I loved that little bastard like I’ve loved no other. Sadly, some bastard ran him over. He now resides next to Fritzie (the second) in our back garden.
  • Roxie – Darwin’s sister, and quite possibly the most expensive “free kitten”I’ve ever owned. Every year, she does something to herself that requires emergency surgery. She is quite the lover though.
  • Seven – another polydactyl (seven toes on each foot). This one is pure attitude. She is the queen of the house, very vocal (she has to get in the last word if you talk to her) and is famous for walking in front of you, plopping down, and demanding affection when she desires it.

I’m sure I’ve forgotten a few of them (my will will point them out later today once she reads this).

Oh… and the most original name I’ve ever seen for a cat one my sister has. Her name is Noname (pronounced: “No-nham-ee” but spelled like “no name”) 🙂

5 comments

Sunshine and Buttercups

First and foremost, sorry about the previous post. I was feeling pretty low, but my attitude is much improved now. Also, thank you Mike for the support…. I appreciate it. It’s nice to know I’m not alone in this.

The weekend was pretty low key at Casa de Tone. We went to my sister’s place on Friday because my father and step-mother were in town. We had a good visit and got home in time to watch Stargate SG-1 (which is in it’s last few episodes). Saturday, our boys marched in the torch parade here in Spokane (yeah… they’re band geeks). On Sunday, it was back to my sisters to eat a smoked beef brisket (mmmmmmm….. it was gooooooooooood!) and have a few beers.

All in all, a very good weekend!

I’m also making good progress on my project here at work! I found a way around one of the major issues I was having and am hopeful to get it all finished and published by the end of the week.

And there you go… a post that was far less depressing!

Sunshine Buttercups

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