The last 48 hours were a blur.  it was a great experience but don’t really wanna do it again.  It involved drama 1) sprinting through the airport 2) missing the flight after the aforementioned sprint 3) canceling plans with some friends, it involved mystery… am I really going to get on a flight?  it involved success…giving a stellar presentation on Head, Neck, and Eye Integration at the AHSE Convention.

Phew.  All that’s enough to light up any-body’s back pain…seriously.

Nothing seems more stressful in travel than standing in line these days.  Wait in this line for your ticket.  Stand in this line to change your ticket.  Stand in this line and take your shoes off.  Oh yeah you need to remove your laptop and put it in a separate bin.  Not many people are worried about the keys in their pockets anymore…that is soooo pre-9/11.  Now we have to worry about that awesome foot cream that is just a fraction of a ml over 4 oz…cuz that’s a national threat.  And please remove your sweatshirt…

So on the last few times I have been in the air I have observed some crazy things happen in line and mostly with body language.  Language that screamed “back pain coming.”

It mostly starts just before the people ahead of me start to reach for the bins to disassemble their personal effects and slide them through the x-ray.  Shoulders slide up.  Speech becomes slurred.  Eyes dilate.  Their head starts to move around quickly assessing the situation…trying to mulitask.  Maybe they snap at their spouse.  Stink eyes thrown.  Removing the shoes.  What goes in what bin again?  No I am not going to pound the 1L water bottle right here.

Here’s some tips for eliminating back pain while standing in the stressful lines at the airport:

1. People watch. Who needs wacky reality TV when you have the real thing happening all around.  Unfortunately watching other people melt down will remind you that things are not as bad in your world as they are in theirs.  Check in with your self and then offer to lend a hand.
2. Rock on. A tai chi warm-up movement called the rocking motion has a calming effect on the entire body. While standing, shift your weight on your feet so you come up slightly on the toes and then back again on your heels. The rocking motion stimulates the 4 Corners of the Feet. It’s very soothing and something you can easily do while standing in line
3. Feel the 4 Corners of your Feet. Try balancing out the pressure on the bottom of your feet and align your whole skeleton.  Feel the pressure under your big toe, little toe and inside and outside of your heel.  If the pressure is equal on all 4 Corners of both feet you will be more in balance (from the ground up) and pain will shift away…seriously.
4. Do some simple shoulder and back stretches.  Soft and easy stretches while waiting your turn will help you come back into the moment and become aware of how you feel.
5. Tune it out. Carry your iPod in your pocket or purse for some musical distraction as you wait.  Be sure you put it in the bin with the laptop though!
6. Breathe.  Take a deep breath in and out.  time will slow down and things will start to ease up.  Continue 10-15 times and then stretch.

I am no means immune to getting whacked with a stress stick and I have to remember to pull myself up above the line if I start to feel myself head south.  Using these small tips are a great way to start.  How do you handle it?  Let me know at charlie@4seasonfitness.com

When I functioned full-time in the real world, being busy everyday was a given.  But since I have become a semi-hermit and have turned my house into a nice comfy cave, having committments every day all week, has been a change.  Not bad, but a change.

I am ending my first full week of being off one of my main preventative (Zonegran).  I have noticed a difference and can’t decide if it is good or bad.  I do feel less drowsy, but I can’t sleep at night.  I have had more major spikes, but have been able to control them.  I will give it another week before making a call to the Neuro.

I had to have some bloodwork done–fasting bloodwork.  Yeah, you know what that means.  It means that your very own blood is going to betray ever sugary or fatty thing you ate.  It will rat you out and not even blink.  But, my A1C and cholesterol rocked.  It is sad to be so happy about this, but you take your bright moments when you can…because…I also had a fitness assessment done.  Not such a good time.  My blood pressure was fine, but it took almost no time of excersion to get my heart up to its target zone.  My BMI is a national secret as is my weight.  I could tell you, but then I have to…  Anyway, even though it was a little harsh, I’m glad I did it.  I know what I need to do and am building a plan to do it.  As I posted earlier, my goals aren’t as lofty as running a marathon, but I do want to be healthy enough to see my granddaughter grow up.  I want to enjoy my rapidly approaching retirement years, if only to see how bad our 401(k) has tanked.  I want to be in less pain now.

I need to make some adjustments in my eating, but I have a good routine.  My basal metabolism is roughly 2000 calories/day.  What I need is the enery to be more active.  And to get that energy, you have to start being active.  See the Zen-like conundrum here.  Dr’s will be adjusting my meds for the rest of my life.  I can’t count on the next med change to revoluntionize my life.  I need other options.

I am going to try the chiroprator again.  Insurance limits what I can have done, but I will pursue it as far as it goes.  I am even thinking of going to an acunputurist (sp?).  I have tried it before, but the practioner wanted to do a series of “cleansing” sessions before she dealth with the pain.  I ran out of money and she was in a severe accident, so I let it drop. Let me know of any feedback you have on the success or failure  of your experience.

So, why has is been a full week?  Well, Monday was Memorial day, so instead of getting up and actually accomplishing anything, I laid in bed with a Level 4-5 migraine.  Tuesday was Bunko.  Now this is important for two reasons:(1)It is about the only social event I go to, and (2) I am very close to these women.  My instinct is to not go and hide in my cave, but I almost always feel better for having gone.  However, the chronic pain has made me feel isolated, so I feel uncomfortable around them sometimes.  It’s not their fault.  I just feel raw, exposed.  The migraines and meds have cause a variety of problems, ranging from IBS to losing my train of thought mid word.  I will be talking and just no remember what I was saying.  I sometimes get words twisted or combined.  For example, my brother bought a Tahoe.  There is a similar vehicle called a Yukon.  I could never remember which he had and one time called it Yahoo.  He thought I was making fun of his vehicle (we have a Ford Expedition, which is similar to both).  I wasn’t-I knew what was supposed to come out-I just got the words twisted in my mouth. Tonight asked me a question while doing his crossword puzzle.  The answer was “Rowan”.  When I spelled it out for him, I said “Woran”.  I knew immediately it was wrong, so I corrected myself.  My husband is very tolerant about these things, but is not exactly what you want to do in public.  So, long story short, I really hate getting out.  I feel dumb.  This is hard because I used to be smart-really smart.  And witty.  Now I say something that I think is funny, only to find no one is listening.  I still have the feelings of being smart, but can’t execute it.  That is a tough pill to swallow.

Wednesday was my fitness assessment.  Enough said.  I had to run a few errands after that and had to settle for doing the top two only.  Gaylin was coming over with Bella and Gia, so I needed to save what strength I had.  Then I had to oversee the cleaning of my house by Ellis and Gaylin.  They don’t want to do it and I feel ENORMOUSLY guilty for having to have them do it.  I usually settle for far less than I needed done, but feel powerless to ask for more.  Thursday, my in-laws came.  They aren’t a problem, but there was just a lot more activity than normal.  Friday, they left and we went to a 3D movie.  It went okay with my headache, but by then I was running on adreline.  I even forgot to take my AM meds.  Ate out and then came home.  While checking my usual web sites, I read two stories on FoxNews.com that enraged me that I had had to research them just so I could believe the absurdity of the news.  I believe FoxNews, but believe in measuring twice, cut once.  Watched the last “Tonight Show with Jay Leno.  Still revved up from the news story, I didn’t make it sleep until too late.  Whew.  That is a big week for me.

This blog is a rambling-I admit.  But this is to be expected from time to time.

By the time I moved to the Twin Cities in ‘88, this metro area was a rarity for still having two daily newspapers. The newspaper industry is monopoly prone and even in markets where two papers were allegedly duking it out for readers (in reality the PiPress was the St. Paul paper and the Strib more widely read) the bottom line was usurious ad rates that bled the local business communities and enabled too high b’cast ad rates.

There was a meeting of newspaper folks in Chicago Thursday to openly conspire about how to put the genie of news turned loose on the web back into a prepaid and controllable venue. The L.A. Times’ (a newspaper devoted more to profit than breaking non-white Bronco news) Tim Rutten spins the meeting:

div id=”_mcePaste” style=”position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;” The meeting, whose participants included an antitrust lawyer to make sure the conversation didn’t stray into impermissible collusion or price-fixing, was conducted under the auspices of the Newspaper Assn. of America, and its agenda was titled “Models to Lawfully Monetize Content.” These guys may be slow on the uptake, but their legal departments have schooled them well in risk management./div
div id=”_mcePaste” style=”position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width: 1px; height: 1px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden;”Simply put, the reason industry leaders — a fractious, hidebound and habitually timid group even in the best of times — finally were willing to come together and discuss the crisis is this: Unless the English-speaking world’s newspapers find a way to charge for the content they currently give away free on their websites and allow to be aggregated and sold to advertisers by Internet search-engine companies that pay no fees for the privilege, most papers won’t survive very far into the next decade./div

Sorry, for some reason I didn’t feel like chopping out the gratuitous overcoding that is now so common among newspapers’ online product. It puts the “we had a lawyer present so that proves we weren’t breaking the law” tone into perspective. But here’s his money quote without the coding:

The facts are stark: Over the last three years, American newspapers alone have lost 40% of their classified advertising — $7 billion worth — to free Internet sites such as Craigslist. Over that same period, display advertising sales have dropped by a quarter, which amounts to an additional $12 billion each year.

Although it’s true that newspapers’ own online advertising has grown significantly in percentage terms over those 36 months, the annual increase actually amounts to just $445 million, according to the Associated Press.

You don’t need a CFO — or even a calculator — to know where all this is heading.

My guess would be that it’s all heading towards ad rates that more accurately reflect the cost of creating content and publishing said content without huge balloon payments to the business idiots who way overpaid when they bought up our daily newspapers. In plain English Ruten just said the the intertubes are eating his lunch, but that he’s still making money.

Smaller market independently owned newspapers are doing just fine, thank you. Big dailies and small town chains are in trouble because they overpriced their ads and became excessively profitable, thereby becoming attractive targets for takeovers by people who could care less about the news. 

The rest of Rutten’s “op-ed” is a shameless pitch for letting newspapers continue to behave like the abusive monopolies they’ve degenerated into. 

Name one other industry that — when the internet offered an opportunity to cut costs dramatically — saw their profits decline. Think about it. Newspapers are no more than ten years away from shedding all printing costs, replacing entire union locals with a handful of html coding experts, yet their only solution to their decreased profits is to bolster their monopolistic practices.

And at each step of the process their lifeboat mentality threw more employees overboard so as to avoid cutting bonuses to publishers and executives and their lawyers.

A once proud industry gone rogue.

-·•·-

Ben Crair breaks out the “code words” and I wordled them:

Dog whistle stuff in part, but the harder the right smears Sotomayor, the more popular Obama becomes.

I argued with Kossacks at the Chicago Yearly Kos that Lakoff’s teachings were dangerous. Yes, we need to understand how the right gained its power through manipulative language but NO, that doesn’t mean this strategy will work for the left. The right has beaten language to death and voters no longer react to words having been taught to pick up on tone instead.

See G. Gordon Liddy for some very loud tonalities.

-·•·-

Jesus killed Mohammed, a 2004 Christmas story about our troops in Afghanistan from Jeff Sharlet that I bet you’ve never read before.

Brace yourself for a long read and then some sleepless nights as you think about which branch of the Armed Forces controls the launch codes and missile silos.

-·•·-

Wikipedia bans the “Church” of Scientology from making edits. 

Calling the lying liars liars. I like that in an encyclopedia. I’m finding that I’m really enjoying Jonathan Turley’s new blog. Check out the real story behind the woman who lost both legs and an arm to malpractice and then lost her court case thanks to aggressive lawyers totally obfuscating the real issues of the case.

-·•·-

How “The Race” embraced Fredo.

(But that was different and in any event this is now, not then.)

-·•·-

Using oxycontin to buy votes in Kentucky.

Proven to work better than a $100 bill on a fishing line.

-·•·-

The homeschooling of Sarah Palin’s extremely undereducated children.

-·•·-

Redefining wealth once again.

Then again I suspect that many of “winners” who subscribed to the old definitions are no longer making quite that much money now that the bubbles have burst and overcompensation is harder to come by.

-·•·-

Tonight America’s Most Wanted will do a first: they’ll look at a man’s claim of innocence.

Dale Helmig was railroaded by a hyper-ambitious Republican prosecutor.

Helmig getting out of prison concerns me less than the ambitious prosecutor angle. There will never be any justice in this country so long as prosecutors’ jobs lead to political advancement. I don’t care for it when Amy Klobuchar does it, and I like it less when some Jesus-snorting wingnut freak does it.

-·•·-

I learned something a lot of sports fans already knew last night. Fed up with a choppy pirated feed of ESPN’s broadcast I switched to the radio and Yahoo’s stat feed. Both were a full half-quarter behind the actual action!

ESPN embargoes all news from their games for what must be at least fifteen minutes. Even the radio broadcasts are way delayed.

I did not know that.

Isn’t sports so much better when it’s treated like a fungible commodity to be tightly controlled and profited from?

-·•·-

Twin Cities GLBT Catholics will be denied communion at the Cathedral this Sunday. 

Call this one any way you like: it’s a church and they get to make their own rules. Nothing in our law demands that Christians ever behave like Christians so just let it go. The proper response to bigotry is to shun the bigot, not drink his wine.

-·•·-

If you’re into typesetting, this is way funny.

Also via Crazy Internet Beatz, why you shouldn’t sell in parking lots what you illegally download at home for free. Especially if your skin is darker than mine.

-·•·-

Finally, Hulu on your desktop.

Since I started menstruation at 9 years old, I’ve had a problem that I never even told my mum about. About a week before my period I get a boil on my vagina area that is very painful and gets bigger and bigger as the days pass.

Eventually it either bursts and releases pus and blood, or it just goes down. This will always happen by the time my period is over. Over the years it has come and gone, sometime being as big as an egg. I used to use a sterilised needle and prick it to get relief from it.

The skin around the area is awful, there is a lot of scarring

I’ve seen many doctors, they usually give me antibiotics, and tell me it’s an inflamed hair follicle, but this never made any sense to me because it was always around my period, which makes me believe it’s hormonal.  No-one has ever really questioned it further and folliculitis has been the reason written in my medical notes. A few years back a doctor told me to stop shaving as it was probably the problem.

I used hair removing cream and the problem still existed. The doctor then told me to stop removing hair full stop which I did and the problem was still there.

Over the past few months, there has been a big change.

3 months ago, the boil did not go down by the end of my period. 2 months ago another boil came up right next to the other one, and didn’t go down either.

I started searching online  for ideas of what it could be and a discussion on a women’s health site made me look into hidradenitis suppurativa. As I was reading the experiences from other women, I felt like someone had written my story down. I went to my doctor, and said I suspected this condition and that these 2 boils are very painful.

He said that HS usually appears in the armpits and he hasn’t heard of it being in the vagina area before. He gave me some antibiotics and sent me on my way. I didn’t ask him to have a look, as I still don’t like being examined by a male doctor.

Well I finished the course last week and not only were they still there, but they were now open wounds. It hurt to wear underwear, and was really really itchy. To top it off another one has started forming as I’m due on my period soon.

I managed to get an appointment yesterday with a female doctor and walked in with no underwear on, lifted up my skirt and asked her what the hell was going on! She had a look, and then said I have HS.

I nearly cried with relief, finally someone has given me a name. She gave me some strong antibiotics that will help the ones I have, some magnese sulphate paste to dress the area, and then I have to take a long term course of antibiotics to see if it will kill the bacteria that causes HS to form. I’ve been given 2 months to start, and if it works then I will have another 4 months of the to take. She was glad to hear that I wash and dry the area with a different flannel/towel as she said while the condition is not catching, the pus can cause boils in other areas too.

When I asked her what would happen if the antibiotics doesn’t work, she said surgery. That shocked me so I came home last night and started to research this condition.

There is no cure.

Apparently it is always mis-diagnosed (as I know) and people feel too embarassed to speak about it, so there has not been any real research done into why people get it.

I’m really upset that there isn’t a cure, but I have found some treatment ideas on some of the support sites I have found. I will work my way through them to see if they will make a difference.

This has got me thinking about the potential results of my back and neck pain. It feels good to have a name, but what if there is no cure? I still think knowing what you have is better because you can try treatments that are supposed to work for your condition and can have a support network.

Here is the information from the British Skin Foundation

What is hidradenitis suppurativa?
Hidradenitis suppurativa is a chronic and stubborn disease centred on inflammation of the large specialised sweat glands (apocrine glands) that are found mainly in the armpits and groins. These areas show a distinctive mixture of boil-like lumps, areas leaking pus, and scarring.
What causes hidradenitis suppurativa?
It is still not clear why the apocrine sweat glands are affected like this in some people, but mechanical blockage plays a part. As the secretions cannot escape, the tubes containing them may swell up and burst, or become infected.
Contributory factors include the following:
Hormones are involved in the control of apocrine sweat glands and certainly play a part in the disease. Hidradenitis suppurativa affects women more often than men. It does not start before puberty or after the menopause. It may get better during pregnancy, but is often worse before menstrual periods. Some patients do well with hormone treatments (see below).
Bacteria play a part too, but a variety of germs, and not just one special type, is found in the spots. It is not clear whether they cause the disease, or just flourish within it.
There may be a link with acne.

Is hidradenitis suppurativa hereditary?
Hidradenitis suppurativa sometimes runs in families, and some patients or family members may also have had bad acne, or a chronic abscess at the base of the spine (a pilonidal sinus).
What are the symptoms of hidradenitis suppurativa?
Hidradenitis suppurativa can be itchy, but is usually painful, and the lumps hurt if they are pressed.
What does hidradenitis suppurativa look like?
The severity of hidradenitis suppurativa varies from person to person. The main areas to be affected are the armpits, and the skin around the genitals – in the pubic area and in the groins. The skin around the back passage, on the upper buttocks and thighs, and below the breasts, can give trouble too.
In these areas, the skin shows a variable mixture of blackheads, red lumps looking like boils, pus spots, cysts, and areas that constantly leak pus (sinuses). The abscesses can even burrow into nearby structures. As time goes by, more and more scarring appears.
How will hidradenitis suppurativa be diagnosed?
The diagnosis is made clinically, taking into account the areas that are affected, and the look of the spots. Your doctor may take swabs from the area to see which type of germ is present.
Can hidradenitis suppurativa be cured?
No, it usually persists for many years, but may disappear eventually. Treatment usually helps even though it cannot switch the hidradenitis off once and for all.
How can hidradenitis suppurativa be treated?
There are many ways in which your doctor can help you with your hidradenitis suppurativa. In general terms, early hidradenitis suppurativa is usually treated medically, whereas hidradenitis suppurativa that has been going for a long time may need surgery:
If hidradenitis suppurativa suddenly becomes worse:
This may be due to an infection with ordinary germs of the types that infect cuts and grazes; so antibiotics such as flucloxacillin may be used as a short course.
Frequent episodes of this type, with proven bacterial infection, usually mean that you have a sinus or abscess (see treatments below).
Suppressive therapy:

Antibiotics by mouth, taken are long-term, help to suppress attacks. The ones that are used are the same ones used for acne – such as oxytetracycline. They are sometimes put on as topical applications.
Other anti-acne drugs such as isotretinoin (vitamin A derived tablets) may help too, but have important side effects and are available only from dermatology departments.
For women whose hidradenitis suppurativa flares before each period, tablets known as antiandrogens can be useful. The usual one is cyproterone acetate, 50 mg taken on days 5-15 of the menstrual cycle in conjunction with an oral contraceptive called Dianette. It cannot be used for anyone with a tendency to have high blood pressure or to form blood clots.
If the disease is severe, stronger drugs including oral corticosteroids may be used but all carry the risk causing of side effects.

Treatment of scarred sinuses and abscesses:

Persistent discharge or infection in the same site usually means that the medical treatments listed above will not work, and surgical operations – either to remove small areas of repeated inflammation, or wider procedures to take away all the diseased glands – are needed in some cases. In general, hidradenitis of the armpits does better with surgery than hidradenitis in other sites.

What can I do?
If you are too heavy, you will need to lose weight.
As with many other diseases in skin folds, friction makes hidradenitis suppurativa worse, and should be avoided.
You should wash with antiseptic soaps or bath additives.

ok so amy’s in freak out land cause our we’re borderline toxic for a while now and they’re trying to keep us at home cause of our DNI but we’re all like wigged out cause last time before when we almost died was cause an idiot pain doc made us fucking toxic and almost killed us.  and it was only our kids rushing to th computer and searching out the very few speciaists across the country that give a fuck about our orphan disease and put us in the back of the van in a made up bed and took off for the baylor medical center to find this doc.   we had 3 organ shut down and he toldjohn when he arrived later that day we wuldnta survivded the day.  well part of that was our tiny body suddenly swelled up like we was about to give birth. 

anyway i started ut saying amy was too wigged out to write this and then got off track so finishing that thot here  and sayig  i’ll do it.   somebody please shoot me

anyway so you know those days tht are just days from hell you’d like to break every damn thing in site and have the whole fucker just swiped from your memory and never wanna another experience another day  like it?  well yesterdayy was one of those days. 

damn it to hell cody’s stupid break stuff song he put a vid up on another entry recently nd plays that fucker ad nauseum cause his attitude sucks worse than mine just came in my head as i wrote that.  i’m gonna kill the fucker after i finish this.

ayway so the list. 

we fell – as in hit the floor cause managing to control fall into furniture or wall dont count.  i knowwe hit the floor 4 times cause Jess says she saw 3 and i knowthere was at least 1 more.  ok first here in oklahoma the thing for years now has been those really expensive tile floors (which we started and then stopped mid project after our brilliant self discovered that solid concrete hurts way fuckin worse to hit in a fall than carpt) and now thre’s a new trend where the cement foundation’s been i donno treated or some shit and has designs in it and crap and then gets these high sheen finishes.  looks hella cool.  ______’s new house has them.   anyway stay on topic moron

so obvisouly our balance was so fucked hat we spent the whole fuckng day on the walker.  dont ge me wrong.  i thank God – and the dad – fo that cadillac walker (we cant spell for shit no more – i think people with dying brains cant spell – but we candamn sure pop out the arm-long latin medical words.  somebody hre asked jess how do we do that!  she said its a different part of the brain.  i donno.  damnitothell i just went offtopic again.

ok so we had 2 – count them 2 – of those terrifying sudden heart grippiing maybe you hit the floor or just a wall and your sure in those few secondsof that spell that this is it your dying.  so we had 2 of them break-thru heart spells.  have we told a home health or doc that?  NO  just leave us alone dude  leave us alone.  make us as comfortableas possible please, do as little as possile to us, andlet us die at home, and otherwise leave us alone cause you can stick a fork in us all.  we’re just fuckng done with suffering

shit a  couple of tiny bloody bricks that you’d a thot we was trying to pass a baby thru our fucking anus.  and thats probly too much tmi right there so that’ll do donkey.  that’ll do

ok so we been swelling some – face, feet, stomach mostly.  its fromt he toxicity evidently.  the medical team is working on trying to get the toxins outa our body and replace the good bacteria in our colon so maybe it’ll work a while longer or some shit.  i donno.  its trigery as fuck so every time it gets brought up or ttempted to be exlained to us, we just shut downand immediately block the info.

our mouths’ been dropped a while.  worse yesterday.  then the eye dropped yesterday.  so yeah we looked like a freak. 

oh and strangers in the house for days.  nice strangers. w onderful people.  but we’re not norma anymore remember?  we’re terrified of like everything.  people most of all.  so meltdown happened.  and tht was just so nice.  not

its aother situation of we know the pros are tring to make us feel better and tell us that all end-stage homebound people get this overwhelming fear of strangers and people and different things happens – we just bascially turn in to weird freaks who should be shoved off a bridge on a deserted road. 

*

so hom, our angel from god, had to take care of the ___________ all day, and its good for them andher that she loves the pool much as they do – cause we was too sick to do anything.  those heart spells kick  our fuckng ass for th rest of the day and we’d already had 2 gby afternoon. 

so toniteis a memory nite.  we have to make a difference.  we have to.  so we had to make a decision – the dreaded cancel SF adn try to rest and hopefully improve some today or at least get a little strength or go thru with it and put it all off on poor jess cause we’re just a msotly worthless dying lump now that aint even gonna get anything we HAVE to get accomplised before we die evidently.  oh god dont let me stray off on to another topic

oh yeah forgot to mention that we had at laest 3 of them suddenly go to sleep and if we can be woke up we’re disoriented ad prbly go right back in to it.  they think its narcolepsy.  one of the ________ said why you having all these weird life-threatening complications?   cause we keep out-living the complications that MOST people with this godforsaken disease have died from like a fucking normal person so we’re now just going down the line of strange horrific complications…

can you survive this?  yeah?  ok can you survive THIS?  really?  ok well lets see if you can survive THIS ONE!!!   its hell.  we’ve livedtooo long. we’ve lived too longand now the med profession d ont knowwhat to do with us.  how fuckng comforting is that? raise the constant opium patch again?  ok.  raise the this and the that?  ok  stick you on 52 (i’m exaggeraing) rounds of superantibiotics – which oh by the way KILL the “good” bacteria in your already fucked colon that’s already shut-down on you before annd supposed to aint even work?  ok

miracles my ass.  these “miraculous” recoveries/going on dont feel like miracles.  but hey we’re =getting what we’ve prayed so hard for just like we got for the girls – time.  tiime to mke memroies, make a difference, leave a legacyof love to those we love so much.

we’re about all about at the limit of how much we can suffer.  there’s like some invisible line of suffering i thnkn in which the dying person just goes ok i’ve had enough.  long time ago, john named our suffering the “oh meter”.  he’d come in and say to take a pain pill and he always seemed to know when.  so does Jess.  anyway soembody here asked him how he knew from another room that we needed pain meds (we get so bad off that we cant thinkk well enough to take pain meds). 

anyway so John says he goes by the “oh meter” and whoever here was like we have an oh meter and he was like yeah when he hears too many “ohs” coming outta this prison – i mean room – he knows our oh meter has gone too high and we need pain meds.  good lord

oh yeah and then wee get yelled at for hours last nite.  fucking hours dude.  godplease have somemercy on us

 

*

so the weight’s being going up from swelling and we get told that they expect anywhere from a 3 to 10 lb weight loss whent hey do thisthing they’re fixing to do to try to re-set our colon and beg it nicely to work agan for a while longer.  most likly 5-10 lbs. 

WHAT?!?!?!   that’s our fucking cushion we’ve worked so hard to get!  we have a fucking DNR dude AND a life trauama to end all life trauma’s now within a month or something away.  and your telling us that we’re probly gonna lose our cushion – nd we by god are not going back o the DNR and that includes colon, stomach, kidney, whatever fucking bags.  i betcha they wish there was a mouth bag they could put over us.  

 we are not a good patient.  we dont mean to be a pain in the ass but we dont understand hardly anything that’s goingo n anymore – and that makes us feel VULNERABLE.  and it wigs us th fuck out cause we’re still in the stage of the i’m not gonna say the word where we know we’re losing our faculties s0 hysterics and irrationality and panics and hold mes and oh god please shoot me – its all just part f our days now.  the fam probly kinda wishes we’d go into the next stage already.   i’m morbidly kidding.  i know they dont.  i’m just fucking overwhelmed and i’m just a fuckng girl dude.  i’m 15.  15. i’m 15.  i’m not equipped to handle this.  help

offtopic again.  what a fucking shock sigh 

*

k heres where this mornings wig=out comes in.  we’re 4 lbs up in one day.  saying that again slowly - 4 lbs up in one day. 

oh for gods sake can we get a fucking break?  please.  cant we just die like a regular person for gods sake?

we do NOT go up 4 fucking lbs in a day.  oh we can lose 4-5 fucking pounds in a day – which then does NOT come right back and can take anywhere from weeks to montsh to gain back.  but UP 4?  in 1 day?!?!?!   no 

oh god ad the pain.  oh and the sick.  did i mention we wok up this morning looking 6 months gone?  that can only mean one thing.  disaster.  we are definitely toxic.  now we have insiders wigging out that we’re gonna die like that poltergeist kid and that movie star also here a while back from colon toxicity. 

we’re either gonna have to do soemthing or things so traumatizing to us that i dont jnow how we’re gonna pull ourself together for tonite or we’re gonna get thrown in the hospital today for crossing over in to too toxic.  evidently just killing us doesnt seem to be an option

*

hell even i’ve given up even claiming to be a dark hard bitch anymore.  i’m just a scared 15 year old kid dying a death i wouldn’t wish on even our worst enemy (and i mean that) who’d give anything for a hug, a kind word, some time spent with me to try tohelp me calm the fuck down (already had a fucking xanax bar which obviously did not work - and i’m one of those who cant stand to be touched except by the dogs and ______.   

i’m lost.  i’m as lost as D.  i’m almost as fallen apart as Amy.  and i’m shutting the fuck up now.  nothing i said is gonna make any difference anyway. never fucking does

i just read this.  what a fucking mess.  nobody gonna read this.  oh wel whatever.   i got it out anyway.

A conservative has changed his plea in a vote-buying case in Kentucky, and what is shocking is not merely how long this went on for, but the fact that Oxycontin was used in this case.  Another conservative Oxycontin deal, maybe the reason they don’t want to legalize drugs is because they are already getting all the drugs they want.

Co-defendants named so far:

Former Circuit Judge R. Cletus Maricle, School Superintendent Douglas Adams, County Clerk Freddy Thompson, Charles Wayne Jones, William Stivers, who was an election officer, and Bart and Debra Morris.

From Kentucky.com
by Bill Estep

That charge alleges that members of the conspiracy used the county Board of Elections as a vehicle to corrupt voting between 2002 and 2007 so they could hold on to power and enrich themselves and others.

…Participants in the conspiracy allegedly went through lists of voters to determine which ones would sell their ballot in the 2002, 2004 and 2006 elections.

According to court documents, some worked at polling places, making sure people voted for candidates they were supposed to and then giving them stickers or tickets, which the voters then showed at other locations to get cash from others involved in the conspiracy.

The indictment said Bishop, a Republican election officer in the Manchester precinct in 2002 and 2004, hosted meetings at his house where candidates for office pooled money to use in buying votes.

He also bought votes at the polling place, giving voters a mark or ticket so they could get paid later, the indictment says.

Bishop and Stivers also used OxyContin to buy votes at the direction of Adams in 2002, former Manchester assistant police Chief Todd Roberts told investigators, according to another court document.

_________________________________________________________

So not only were these conservatives rigging elections, they were using drugs to help do it.  But not all parties involved here have plead guilty, and until proven otherwise, they are of course innocent.

This by no means should infer that ACORN is innocent of any of the charges against them (also charged with rigging elections, though without the drugs), because they are not conservatives.

And we all know that only conservatives should get the benefit of that whole “innocent until proven guilty” thing.  Wait, do we even have that right anymore?  Hard to tell, there have been so many changes in the past 8 years.

Prescription & Street Drug Information
ALCOHOL – Beer, wine, liquor, cooler, booze, malt liquor

What type of drug is it?
Alcohol is a depressant.

What does it look like?
Alcohol is used in liquid form.

How is it used?
Alcohol is drunk.

What are its short-term effects?

constricted peripheral blood vessels
dilated pupils
increased temperature, heart rate, blood pressure
insomnia, nausea, vomiting
loss of appetite
dizziness, slurred speech
feelings of restlessness
irritability, anxiety
depression, fatigue
What are its long-term effects?

addiction
aggressive paranoid behavior, severe anxiety
depression
ulceration of mucous membrane of nose (when vapors are snorted)
permanent damage to liver and brain

AMPHETAMINES – Bennies, Crank, Go Fast, Speed, Uppers, Ups

What is it?
An amphetamine is a drug that is a stimulant to the central nervous system.

What does it look like?
Amphetamines are taken in tablet and pill form.

How is it used?
Amphetamines are colorless and may be inhaled, injected, or swallowed.

What are its short-term effects?
Short-term effects include increased talkativeness, increased aggressiveness, increased breathing rate, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, reduced appetite, dilated pupils, visual hallucinations, auditory hallucinations, compulsive, repetitive action. Other effects of large does can include fever and sweating, dry mouth, headache, paleness, blurred vision, dizziness, irregular heartbeat, tremors, loss of coordination, collapse.

What are its long-term effects?
Possible long-term effects include tolerance and dependence, violence and aggression, malnutrition due to suppression of appetite. Amphetamines can be addictive.

COCAINE – Cocaine: Big C, Blow, Coke, Flake, Lady, Nose candy, Snow, Snowbirds, White Crack, Freebase, Rock

What is it?
Cocaine is a drug extracted from the leaves of the coca plant. It is a potent brain stimulant and one of the most powerfully addictive drugs.

What does it look like?
Cocaine is distributed on the street in two main forms: cocaine hydrochloride is a white crystalline powder and “crack” is cocaine hydrochloride that has been processed with ammonia or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and water into a freebase cocaine – chips, chunks, or rocks. How is it used?

Cocaine can be snorted or dissolved in water and injected. Crack can be smoked. What are its short-term effects?
Short-term effects of cocaine include constricted peripheral blood vessels, dilated pupils, increased temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, insomnia, loss of appetite, feelings of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety. Duration of cocaine’s immediate euphoric effects, which include energy, reduced fatigue, and mental clarity, depends on how it is used. The faster the absorption, the more intense the high. However, the faster the absorption, the shorter the high lasts. The high from snorting may last 15 to 30 minutes, while that from smoking may last 5 to 10 minutes. Cocaine’s effects are short lived, and once the drug leaves the brain, the user experiences a “coke crash” that includes depression, irritability, and fatigue. What are its long-term effects?

High doses of cocaine and/or prolonged use can trigger paranoia. Smoking crack cocaine can produce a particularly aggressive paranoid behavior in users. When addicted individuals stop using cocaine, they often become depressed. Prolonged cocaine snorting can result in ulceration of the mucous membrane of the nose.

DMT – The Substance: Dimitri, Business Man’s Special

What is it?
DMT is a powerful, visual psychedelic which produces short-acting effects when smoked. It is used orally in combination with an MAOI, as in ayahuasca brews. It is naturally produced in the human brain and by many plants.

What does it look like?
DMT crystal-like powdered substance that sometimes comes in large rock-like chunks.

How is it used?
DMT is smoked, injected, snorted, or swallowed (when taken with an MAOI such as haramaline)

What are its effects?

immersive experiences
intense open eye visuals and kaleidescopic patterning
powerful “rushing” of sensation
radical perspective shifting
change in perception of time
auditory hallucination (buzzing)
colorshifting (for example red green and gold coloring to the whole world)
overly-intense experiences
hard on the lungs to smoke
slight stomach discomfort
difficulty integrating experiences
overwhelming fear

DEXTROMETHORPAN – DXM is a widely available over-the-counter cough suppressant. When taken far above its standard medical dosage, it is a strong dissociative used primarily by teens.

Can also be a central nervous system depressant. Dextromethorphan is a synthetic drug chemically similar to morphine, was approved by the FDA as a cough suppressant in 1954. Drug manufacturers developed and began putting it in cough syrups in the 1970s as a suppressant that would be less addictive and have fewer side effects that the narcotic, codeine.

When used at the recommended doses, it is a very effective cough suppressant. When taken at much higher doses, however, it acts as a disassociative anesthetic, similar to PCP and ketamine. At these high doses, DXM is also a central nervous system depressant. DXM is often used in combination with other drugs such as marijuana, ecstasy, or alcohol, which only increase the dangerous physiological effects.

Poison control experts point to a four-fold increase in abuse cases since 2000, mostly involving school-aged youth and young adults, particularly among those who are part of the dance club or “rave” scene. Intoxication comes from swallowing large doses of the cough syrup, known as “robo-dosing” or “robo-tripping” or taking hands full of cough suppressant pills, sometimes called “skittles” (because of an appearance similar to the popular fruit candy). Those who use the cough syrup to get high are sometimes called “syrup heads.”

The drug creates a depressant effect, as well as a mild hallucinogenic effect, and is often used as an alternative to ecstasy. According to addiction experts, cough syrup’s inexpensive price and easy availability is attracting adolescents.

ECSTASY – Street terms for MDMA/Ecstasy: XTC, go, X, Adam, hug drug, E

What does Ecstasy look like?
Ecstasy is distributed in tablet form. Individual tablets are often imprinted with graphic designs or commercial logos, and typically contain 100 mg of MDMA.

How is Ecstasy used?
Ecstasy is usually ingested in tablet form, but can also be crushed and snorted, injected, or used in suppository form.

Who uses Ecstasy?
In 2000, more than 6.4 million people age 12 and older reported that they have used Ecstasy at least once in their lives. Ecstasy is popular among middle-class adolescents and young adults. Ecstasy is sold primarily at legitimate nightclubs and bars, at underground nightclubs sometimes called “acid houses,” or at all-night parties known as “raves.”

How does Ecstasy get to the United States?
The vast majority of Ecstasy consumed domestically is produced in Europe. A limited number of Ecstasy laboratories operate in the United States. Law enforcement seized 17 clandestine Ecstasy laboratories in the United States in 2001 compared to 7 seized in 2000.

How much does Ecstasy cost?
It costs as little as 25 to 50 cents to manufacture an Ecstasy tablet in Europe, but the street value of that same Ecstasy tablet can be as high as $40, with a tablet typically selling for between $20 and $30.

What are some of the consequences of using Ecstasy?
In addition to chemical stimulation, the drug reportedly suppresses the need to eat, drink, or sleep.

When taken at raves, where all-night dancing usually occurs, the drug often leads to severe dehydration and heat stroke in the user since it has the effect of “short-circuiting” the body’s temperature signals to the brain.
An Ecstasy overdose is characterized by a rapid heartbeat, high blood pressure, faintness, muscle cramping, panic attacks, and, in more severe cases, loss of consciousness or seizures. One of the side effects of the drug is jaw muscle tension and teeth grinding. As a consequence, Ecstasy users will often suck on pacifiers to help relieve the tension.
Ecstasy may cause hyperthermia, muscle breakdown, seizures, stroke, kidney and cardiovascular system failure, possible permanent damage to sections of brain critical to thought and memory, and death.

FOXY / AMT – Foxy Methoxy, 5-MeO-DIPT, alpha-methyltryptamine, fake Ecstasy

What type of drug is it?
Foxy and AMT are hallucinogens.

What does it look like?
Foxy and AMT come in tablets and capsule form, and often are passed off as Ecstasy. Foxy tablets are usually purple or red with an embossed spider or alien head (as pictured).

How is it used?
Swallowed.

What are its short-term effects?

hallucinations, visual and auditory disturbances or distortions
euphoria, “feelings of love”
dilated pupils
emotional distress
nausea, vomiting
diarrhea

GHB – Street Names: Liquid Ecstasy, Scoop, Easy Lay, Georgia Home Boy, G rievous Bodily Harm, Liquid X, and Goop.

What are the different forms of GHB?
An odorless, colorless liquid form, White powder material

How is GHB used?
Usually ingested in a liquid mixture; most commonly mixed with alcohol.

Who uses GHB?
GHB has become popular among teens and young adults at dance clubs and “raves.” Body builders sometimes use GHB for its alleged anabolic effects.

How does GHB get to the United States?
Because the drug is easy to synthesize and manufacture, local operators usually handle distribution.

How much does GHB cost?
GHB is usually sold by the capful, and sells for $5 to $25 per cap.

What are some consequences of GHB use?

In lower doses, GHB causes drowsiness, dizziness, nausea, and visual disturbances.
At higher dosages, unconsciousness, seizures, severe respiratory depression, and coma can occur.
Overdoses usually require emergency room treatment, including intensive care for respiratory depression and coma.
As of November 2000, DEA documented 71 GHB-related deaths.
GHB has been used in the commission of sexual assaults because it renders the victim incapable of resisting, and may cause memory problems that could complicate case prosecution.

HEROIN – Street terms for heroin: smack, thunder, hell dust, big H, nose drops

What does heroin look like?
Pure heroin is a white powder with a bitter taste. Most illicit heroin varies in color from white to dark brown. “Black tar” heroin is sticky like roofing tar or hard like coal, and its color may vary from dark brown to black.

How is heroin used?
Injecting, Smoking, Snorting.

Who uses heroin?
In the United States in 1999 there were 104,000 new heroin users. In 2000, approximately 1.2% of the population reported heroin use at least once in their lifetime.

How does heroin get to the United States?
The U.S. heroin market is supplied entirely from foreign sources of opium. Production occurs in South America, Mexico, Southeast Asia, and Southwest Asia.

How much does heroin cost?
Nationwide, in 2000, South American heroin ranged from $50,000 to $200,000 per kilogram. Southeast and Southwest Asian heroin ranged in price from $40,000 to $190,000 per kilogram. Wholesale-level prices for Mexican heroin were the lowest of any type, ranging from $13,200 to $175,000 per kilogram. The wide range in kilogram prices reflects variables such as buyer/seller relationships, quantities purchased, purchase frequencies, purity, and transportation costs.

What are some consequences of heroin use?

One of the most significant effects of heroin use is addiction. Once tolerance happens, higher does become necessary to achieve the desired effect, and physical dependence develops.
Chronic use may cause collapsed veins, infection of heart lining and valves, abscesses, liver disease, pulmonary complications, and various types of pneumonia.
May cause depression of central nervous system, cloudy mental functioning, and slowed breathing to the point of respiratory failure.
Heroin overdose may cause slow and shallow breathing, convulsions, coma, and possibly death.
Users put themselves at risk for contracting HIV, hepatitis B and C, and other viruses.

INHALANTS – Nitrous oxide, whippets, laughing gas

What type of drug is it?
Inhalants aren’t drugs in the regular sense of the word. They are in the form of household products that are inhaled or sniffed by children to get high. There are hundreds of household products on the market today that can be misused as inhalants.

What does it look like?
Examples of products kids abuse to get high include model airplane glue, nail polish remover, cleaning fluids, hair spray, gasoline, the propellant in aerosol whipped cream, spray paint, fabric protector, air conditioner fluid (freon), cooking spray and correction fluid.

How is it used?
These products are sniffed, snorted, bagged (fumes inhaled from a plastic bag), or “huffed” (inhalant-soaked rag, sock, or roll of toilet paper in the mouth) to achieve a high. Inhalants are also sniffed directly from the container.

What are its short-term effects?

intoxication
loss of consciousness
headache
muscle weakness, fatigue, lack of coordination
abdominal pain, nausea
severe mood swings, violent behavior
decrease or loss of sense of smell, nosebleeds
numbness, tingling of the hands and feet
hearing loss
limb spasms
What are its long-term effects?

hearing loss
limb spasms
decrease in heart, respiratory rates
hepatitis or peripheral neuropathy
central nervous system or brain damage
blood oxygen depletion
heart failure
death

KETAMINE – Special K, vitamin K, new ecstasy, super-K, breakfast cereal, Ketalar, Ketaject, psychedelic heroin

What type of drug is it?
Ketamine hydrochloride is a central nervous system depressant and a rapid-acting general anesthetic. It has sedative-hypnotic, analgesic, and hallucinogenic properties.

What does it look like?
Ketamine is a white powder, similar to cocaine.

How is it used?
Normally found in liquid injectable form, it is converted into a powder and re-packaged in small ziplock bags or capsules. Ketamine is generally snorted but is sometimes sprinkled on tobacco or marijuana and smoked.

What are its short-term effects?

visual distortions, delirium
lost sense of time, sense and identity
amnesia
vomiting
impaired motor function, convulsions
potentially fatal respiratory problems
What are its long-term effects?

addiction
flashbacks, memory
dysfunction
possible development of psychotic illnesses (if vulnerable to drug)

LSD – Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, acid, microdot, tabs, doses, trips, hits, sugar cubes

What type of drug is it?
LSD is the most common hallucinogen and is one of the most potent mood-changing chemicals.

What does it look like?
Colored tablets, blotter paper, clear liquid, and thin squares of gelatin.

How is it used?
LSD is taken orally and licked off blotter paper. Gelatin and liquid can be put in the eyes.

What are its short-term effects?

dilated pupils
higher body temperature
increase heart rate, blood pressure
sweating
loss of appetite
sleeplessness
dry mouth
tremors
What are its long-term effects?

flashbacks
chronic recurring hallucinations

METHAMPHETAMINE – Meth, speed, crank, crystal, ice, fire, croak, crypto, white cross, glass, chalk

What type of drug is it?
Methamphetamine is an addictive stimulant drug that strongly activates certain systems in the brain. Crystal meth is the smokable form of methamphetamine.

What does it look like?
Meth is a crystal-like powdered substance that sometimes comes in large rock-like chunks. Meth is usually white or slightly yellow, depending on the purity.

How is it used?
Methamphetamine can be taken orally, injected, snorted, or smoked.

What are its short-term effects?

irritability, aggression
anxiety, nervousness
convulsions, hallucinations
insomnia
increased blood pressure
loss of appetite
What are its long-term effects?

addiction
extreme paranoia, toxic psychosis
hallucinations, convulsions
repetitive behavior patterns
delusions of parasites or insects under the skin
stroke
heart and blood vessel toxicity
long-term damage to brain cells similar to that caused by strokes or Alzheimer’s disease

MUSHROOMS – Caps, magic mushrooms, shrooms, psilocybin, psilocin

What type of drug is it?
Certain types of naturally occurring mushrooms contain hallucinogenic chemicals—psilocybin and psilocin.

What does it look like?
Dried mushrooms.

How is it used?
Mushrooms can be eaten, brewed and consumed as tea.

What are its short-term effects?

intoxication
hallucinations
increased blood pressure
nausea
distorted perceptions, nervous feeling, paranoia
sweating
What are its long-term effects? Flashbacks

OXYCONTIN – killers, OC, OXY, oxycotton, hillbilly heroin, poor man’s heroin

What type of drug is it?
OxyContin (oxycodone HCI controlled-release) is the brand name for an opioid analgesic – a narcotic. Oxycodone is the narcotic ingredient found in Percocet (oxycodone and acetaminophen) and Percodan (oxycodone and aspirin). OxyContin is used to treat pain that is associated with arthritis, lower back conditions, injuries, and cancer.

What does it look like?
OxyContin is available in tablet form in 4 doses: 10, 20, 40, and 80mg.

How is it used?
As pain medication, OxyContin tablets are taken every 12 hours. Most pain medications must be taken every three to six hours. Oxycontin abusers remove the sustained-release coating to get a rush of euphoria similar to heroin. They chew the tabs, crush them for snorting, or boil the powder for injection.

What are its short-term effects?

respiratory depression
constipation
nausea, vomiting
sedation
dizziness, weakness
headache
dry mouth
sweating
What are its long-term effects?

addiction
cardiovascular damage
liver, kidney disease
arthritis
greater risks for women during pregnancy

PCP – angel dust, embalming fluid, killer weed, rocket fuel, supergrass, ozone, peace pill, elephant tranquilizers, dust

What type of drug is it?
PCP, or phencyclidine, is a hallucinogen.

What does it look like?
In its pure form, it is a white crystalline powder that readily dissolves in water. However, most PCP on the illicit market contains a number of contaminates as a result of makeshift manufacturing, causing the color to range from tan to brown, and the consistency from powder to a gummy mass.

How is it used?
PCP turns up on the illicit drug market in a variety of tablets, capsules, and colored powders. It is normally used in one of three ways—snorted, smoked, or eaten. When it is smoked, PCP is often applied to a leafy material such as mint, parsley, oregano, tobacco or marijuana.

What are its short-term effects?

slight rise in blood pressure, pulse rate, breathing rate
sweating
generalized numbness of the extremities
muscular incoordination
distinct changes in body awareness
drop in blood pressure, pulse rate, respirations
nausea, vomiting
blurred vision
drooling
loss of balance, dizziness
illusions, hallucinations
symptoms of schizophrenia (delusions, mental turmoil, sensation of distance from one’s environment)
inability to feel physical pain
disorientation
fear, panic, paranoia, anxiety
aggressive behavior, violence
What are its long-term effects?

memory loss
speech difficulties
weight loss
loss of fine motor skills, short-term memory
mood disorders, depression
coma
death

RITALIN – Kibbles and bits, speed, west coast, vitamin R, r-ball, smart drug

What type of drug is it?
Ritalin, the trade name for methylphenidate, is a medication prescribed for children with an abnormally high level of activity or with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and is also occasionally prescribed for treating narcolepsy. It stimulates the central nervous system, with effects similar to but less potent than amphetamines and more potent than caffeine.

What does it look like?
Ritalin is in pill or tablet form.

How is it used?
Many non-medical users crush the tablets and either snort the resulting powder, or dissolve it in water and “cook” it for intravenous injection.

What are its short-term effects?

insomnia
loss of appetite, weight loss
nausea, vomiting
dizziness, nervousness
heart palpitations
headache
muscle twitching, tremors
changes in heart rate, blood pressure
skin rashes, itching
abdominal pain
digestive problems
toxic psychosis, psychotic episodes
drug dependence syndrome
severe depression upon withdrawal
What are its long-term effects?

malnutrition due to loss of appetite
tremors, muscle twitching, convulsions
fevers
headache
irregular heartbeat, respirations
anxiety, paranoia
restlessness
hallucinations, delusions
excessive repetition of movements and meaningless tasks
sensation of bugs or worms crawling under skin (formication)

ROHYPNOL- Date rape drug, roach, roofies, forget pill, ruffies, rope, rophies, R2, rib, roofenol, la roche, rib

What type of drug is it?
Rohypnol is the brand name for a drug called Flunitrazepam, which is a powerful sedative.

What does it look like?
A small white tablet with no taste or odor when dissolved in a drink.

How is it used?
Rohypnol is swallowed as a pill, dissolved in a drink, or snorted. It can be used as a predatory drug, otherwise known as a “date rape” drug.

What are its short-term effects?

sleepy, drunk feeling
blackouts with complete loss of memory
dizziness, disorientation
nausea
difficulty with motor movements and speaking
What are its long-term effects?

physical addiction
psychological addiction

SOMA / CARISOPRODOL – somas, DAN’s, D’s, Dance, DAN5513

What type of drug is it?
Carisoprodol (brand name: Soma) is a depressant; it is prescribed as a skeletal muscle relaxant to relieve pain from muscle injuries.

What does it look like?
Tablets in varying dosages.

How is it used?
Swallowed.

What are its short-term effects?

drowsiness
extreme weakness
headache
increased heart rate
dizziness
fever
burning in the eyes, temporary loss of vision
clumsiness, confusion
nausea, vomiting
impaired mental and physical abilities
difficulty breathing

STEROIDS – Juice, rhoids

What type of drug is it?
Anabolic steroids are a group of powerful compounds closely related to the male sex hormone testosterone.

What does it look like?
Steroids come in tablets or liquid form.

How is it used?
Anabolic steroids are taken orally or injected, and athletes and other abusers take them typically in cycles of weeks or months, rather than continuously, in patterns called cycling.

What are its short-term effects?

liver tumors
jaundice
fluid retention
high blood pressure
shrinking of testicles, reduced sperm count, infertility, baldness, development of breasts (in men)
growth of facial hair, changes in or cessation of menstrual cycle, deepened voice (in women)
paranoid jealousy, delusions
impaired judgment stemming from feelings of invincibility
depression, mood swings, extreme irritability
acne
What are its long-term effects?

liver cancer
Cushing’s syndrome
muscle wasting
osteoporosis
cataracts, glaucoma

TOBACCO – Cigarettes, cigars, pipes, chew, dip, smoke, butt, snuff, bone, coffin nail, cancer stick

What type of drug is it?
Tobacco is an agricultural crop.

What does it look like?
Brown cut up leaves.

How is it used?
Tobacco is usually smoked. Sometimes tobacco leaves are “dipped” or “chewed” so the nicotine is absorbed via the gums.

What are its short-term effects?

increase in blood pressure, heart rate
increase of blood flow from the heart
narrowed arteries
What are its long-term effects?

chronic lung disease
coronary heart disease
stroke
cancer of the lungs, larynx, esophagus, mouth (smokeless tobacco, cigars)
cancer of the bladder, cervix, pancreas, kidneys
adverse birth outcomes in pregnant women

VALIUM – Diazepam, T-Quil

What type of drug is it?
Diazepam (valium) is a benzodiazepine anxiolytic used in the treatment of anxiety disorders, seizures, muscle spasms, and alcohol withdrawal. It is one of the best known benzodiazepines.

What does it look like?
Valium comes in pill form.

How is it used?
Valium is consumed orally.

What are its effects?

drowsiness
ataxia
fatigue
dizziness
nausea
blurred vision
diplopia
vertigo
headache
slurred speech
tremors
hypo-activity
dysarthria
euphoria
impairment of memory
confusion
depression
incontinence or urinary retention
constipation
skin rash
generalized exfoliative dermatitis
hypotension
changes in libido.
leukopenia
jaundice
hypersensitivity
hyper-excited states
anxiety
excitement
hallucinations
increased muscle spasticity
insomnia
rage

VICODIN – Vike, vics, hydrocondone bitartrate, Watson-387

What type of drug is it?
Vicodin is a prescription pain reliever that contains hydrocodone (an opioid) and acetaminophen (more commonly known by the brand name Tylenol).

What does it look like?
Vicodin comes in pill form.

How is it used?
Vicodin is consumed orally.

What are its effects?

dizziness
nausea, vomiting
mood changes
anxiety, fear
drowsiness
skin rash
decreased mental and physical abilities
hearing loss
slowed breathing

XANAX / ALPRAZOLAM – Zanies, Zans, Blue Footballs, Blues, Z bars,Zan Bars, Quad Bars, Totem poles, Tombstones, Xanax, Niravam, Zopax

What type of drug is it?
Alprazolam (Xanax) is a pharmaceutical sedative and CNS depressant which acts on the GABA receptor system. Alprazolam is widely prescribed in the U.S. for anxiety disorder, panic attacks, sleeplessness, and sometimes for short-term relief of extreme stress. It is classified as a benzodiazepine.

What does it look like?
Xanax comes in pill form.

How is it used?
Xanax is consumed orally.

What are its effects?

drowsiness
dizziness
clumsiness
loss of muscle coordination
amnesia
dry mouth
headache
vivid dreams
changes in libido

Even when an intervention is successful, and an individual gets into treatment, the quality of the intervention determines the final outcome. If the intervention is so severe and so controlled that the person only feels that the main or only reason for going into treatment is because of the external controls, then the likelihood of failure after treatment is high. An intervention that is done lovingly and caring, so that the person themselves is willing to go, is the key towards a successful outcome.

 In looking for help with intervention, one needs to evaluate these parameters, and be willing to assist the person to come to grips with their own problem, and to be willing to get help.

Rush refused to acknowledge this woman’s comments any more than absolutely necessary, saying that people like her are “a dime a dozen.” I don’t really disagree, but I’ve got nothing better to blog on politically, so here goes:

And I keep getting asked the same question, ‘Are you nervous? Are you nervous?’ With this administration, what is there to be nervous about? If I do a good job, I get great press. If I screw it up royally, Tim Geightner’d give me a bonus! But I understand because it’s hard to poke fun at the President, because he’s so likable! Everybody likes him. There’s T-Shirts and bumper stickers. Listening to the radio and people are dedicating songs. ‘I’d like to send out ‘Always and Forever’ to Mr. President.’

What is there to be nervous about? Plenty, but let’s not get into that. I thought the Tim Geightner line was good. Now here’s where the butt-kissing and complete lack of logic begin to set in. She says it’s hard to poke fun at the President because he’s so likable. Two problems with this. First, he is Barack Hussein Obama! Aside from Biden, he’s probably the easiest political identity on the scene in America to make fun of! I’ve got a whole page devoted to his gaffes!

But more importantly, that “because he’s so likable” thing is pure idiocy! I make fun of a lot of people in my personal life. With one possible exception, I’m friends with all of them. The overwhelming majority of them are “likable.” That’s why I can poke fun at them, because they’re likable! It’s when someone isn’t likable that you have difficulty poking fun at them (at least to their face, which is what we’re talking about here).

And then she goes on to talk about how everyone likes him because of T-Shirts and bumper stickers and the like. She hangs out in blue states and sees lots of Obama stuff. Imagine that! In the red states, there’s a lot of stuff (not as much, McCain wasn’t nearly as conservative as Obama is liberal, so less concrete support, etc.) that’s for McCain, but not everybody loves McCain, obviously. And I’ll bet that there were people dedicating songs to Bush way back when, and I never really would’ve said that everybody liked Bush, except for the first few months after 9/11.

People love you and even the media! You guys have been very favorable towards the President. It’s funny to me that they’ve never caught you smoking,

“Even the media”?! Are you freaking kidding me?! We conservatives are ridiculed for claiming that the media is so liberal-biased when FOX exists and so on, but we have it here from the horse’s mouth! What do you mean, “even the media?” The media were the first ones to hop on the Obamatrain! And I second her take on the fact that the media’s never caught him smoking. How could they not? I just did a Google Image search for “Obama Smoking” and found tons of hits. Some are, no doubt, Photoshopped, but how come I haven’t seen a single clip of him smoking on CNN or FOX or MSNBC or any of the other networks? Granted, I don’t watch them often, but I certainly got more than my fill of Obama coverage last fall.

But that’s the thing about you, sir. You’re so likable because you’re so accessible, playing basketball. I bet you rappers even give you their demo, ‘Hey, can you get this to Jay Z. for me?’ And you’re taking the First Lady out on dates. I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised if I walked past the White House and see you out there mowing the lawn. Don’t let him get a John Deere, please.

I don’t mind politicians like Obama putting on these shows of normalcy. It’s a necessary evil of politics. But, can I just ask when he has time to be president between the basketball games, the dates, and, most importantly, his constant additions to the new series Obama: The Most Common TV Guest? And the day Obama’s out mowing the lawn with a John Deere is the day I seriously reconsider my desire to own one of those hats.

And you just hang out, you – and I think you hang out too much. What was that, you and Joe Biden out getting hamburgers. The two of you can’t hang out together! Whose idea was that, Nancy Pelosi’s? Man. Man. ‘Why don’t you boys go out and get a bite?’ You know she was a Hillary supporter, what’s wrong with you? Oh, and God forbid if Joe Biden falls in the hands of a terrorist. God forbid if there’s ever a hostage situation. We’re done. Oh, they won’t even have to torture him! All they have to do is go ‘How’s it going, Joe?’ He come out with stacks of information. ‘What’d you do, did you waterboard him?’ ‘No, I just said ‘Nice weather’ and he’s still talking! I can’t listen to him anymore! It’s like torture!’

I’m not really sure how Sykes meant the first half of this. But I have a few ideas. First, it’s bad for Obama to be seen with Biden for reasons related to the latter’s intelligence and speaking abilities. Second, Pelosi wants something bad to happen to them because she was a Hillary supporter. Third, and most likely, if Obama and Biden are together, that increases the risk of them being taken out at the same time. If that were to happen, Pelosi would become President. I get chills in my spine just thinking about it. All the liberalness of Obama without any of the incompetence and not nearly as much humor.

And see, if you guys are running out like that, that’s why there’s the Secret Service, man, come on. You guys gotta stay on point, all right? You gotta step up your game. You may be a little nervous when those shoes got past you. They’re throwing shoes at Bush, maybe you’re a little nervous, but I did speak to the head of the Secret Service and, to their defense, he told me that, ‘We just don’t know how much footwear they stocked.’

Joke about the shoe thing if you want. After all, it is one of the funniest political “events” in recent history. But don’t make fun of the Secret Service for it. That’s like making fun of the military for any “failures.” Now, as I’ve said before, I don’t approve of Christians joining the military for a variety of reasons I’d be happy to discuss with anyone who’s interested. But I don’t make fun of them, and would never do so. (Oh, by the way, that “don’t approve” thing doesn’t extend to the Secret Service). These guys are working hard trying to keep people alive who they may or may not approve of or have voted for. My friend’s dad is the head of communications or something at the White House (Secret Service). And, in case you’re wondering, he didn’t drink the Kool-Aid. But he’s still hard at work keeping Obama alive. I guess what I’m saying is that they’re politically neutral. Leave them out of it.

I gotta say this about President Bush, man, he knows how to leave town, right? Never heard anything from him. He’s just quiet. He left like that house guest who breaks something in your house – They hurry up and get out of there before you find out. You look at your beautiful vase. You’re like ‘What the ****? Who broke my vase?’ And I gotta say, he broke a lot of stuff, sir. He broke a lot of stuff. I mean, you thought you were find a new home. You got a fixer-upper, huh?

I feel like a broken record responding to this anti-Bush fanaticism, but here we go. Former President Bush is doing what a former president is supposed to do. We have a new president, and the old one’s supposed to leave everything to him. That’s exactly what Bush is doing. As for him not saying anything, can you blame him? Every time he opened his mouth, even if he didn’t say anything wrong or stupid, the media and the Democrats unleashed their attack dogs on him, unless he was rolling over for them. He still said what he had to because that was his duty as President. But now that the responsibility’s gone, why should he risk further ridicule? Unlike Cheney, he doesn’t really stand for much in the way of conservatism, so what reason does he have to stay on the scene?

I agree with Wanda Sykes that Bush broke a lot of stuff. Not nearly as much as she’s probably talking about, but a lot. Mostly, that took the form of over-the-top spending. And you can’t criticize Bush for that (those of us who were against it can, but Sykes can’t), especially since Obama’s doing “more of the same” or, more accurately lots and lots more of the same. Yes, Bush broke a lot, but Obama would’ve done more and continues to doe so.

And there’s a lot of things that need to be fixed. And you’re trying to help and I’m amazed that there’s some people who won’t even allow you to help. Like what’s up with all these governors not wanting to take the money? Who turns down money? Maybe you should get Opra to give it away. Opra’s like ‘Okay, Governors. Look under your seats!’

Yes, there are a lot of things that need to be fixed, but Obama’s doing the exact opposite of what needs to be done to fix them! He needs to cut taxes and spending. Instead, he’s raising both. How can you attack Bush for something and then turn around and praise Obama for the same thing?! And as for the governors. “Who turns down money?” Any honest person turns down dishonest money. To use your own analogy from later in the speech, Ms. Sykes, it’s like robbing a bank and then being incredulous when one of the clerks refuses to accept the money (personally). Any honest governor will accept only the amount of money that they paid for (i.e. if they pay 3% of national taxes, accept only 3% of the bailout money). And that’s hard to do, so a really honest (and cautious) governor just decides not to accept any of what is, in effect, money stolen from posterity. And no self-respecting governor should take political advice of any kind from Opra.

I know Governor Palin – she’s not here tonight. She pulled out at the last minute. Somebody should tell her ‘That’s not really how you practice abstinence.’ Shutup, you’re gonna be telling that one tomorrow. Shutup. And these things, the states – they need the money. They need the money. Especially the school system. I’m so happy that you’re doing something about education and you wanna pay our teachers more. Because our teachers are grossly underpaid. That’s right. Pay the teachers more money. Maybe then they’ll stop sleeping with the students. You’ll tell that one, too. I’m telling you.

So you’re making fun of a politician for not attending an event that she knows is going to be all about praising a man largely responsible for the mountain of public embarrassment and ridicule she’s suffered in the past year? And as for abstinence (since I get the feeling she’s making fun of that, too), it is, as I and many, many others have said time and time again, FOOLPROOF! You cannot get pregnant (or get someone pregnant) if you abstain. Her daughter’s pregnancy is her daughter’s failure to practice abstinence. It is arguably the governor’s failure as a parent. But it is not a failure of abstinence. So stop making fun of the practice. I’ve been practicing it for 19 years and guess what? I haven’t gotten anyone pregnant! Imagine that!

Yes, the states do need the money, but where do you think the money comes from? The states, of course! You’re just moving money around, you’re not actually giving any money to anyone, so stop acting like you are!

I don’t know the specifics of whatever Obama’s supposedly doing to help education, but let’s say he is giving the teachers more money. Ms. Sykes, that’s a great thing. Teachers are certainly underpaid. But you don’t increase spending in any area unless you raise taxes or cut spending in another area. And while raising taxes is a fiscally responsible thing to do, it’s economically stupid! The only sensible option for paying the teachers more is to take it from places that need less money, like Global Whining research or building some obscure pathways in parks (bet you didn’t know that was in the “stimulus”) or, God forbid!, cutting the pay of Congressman and women and the President. It’s not like they don’t have enough money from their own endevours, and it’s certainly not like they earn the money they are paid.

How can you support teachers in one breath and insult them in the next? You ought to be ashamed. We’ve had a few incidents of teachers sleeping with students, to be sure, but those teachers are in the vast minority! The other teachers don’t deserve to be ridiculed and insulted (certainly not in such a public manner) because of the actions of a relatively tiny group. And I can’t understand why you’d make fun of them in the first place for something like that. They’re on your side! Most teachers are strongly liberal! You’re just not making any sense!

Tax problems, man. Everybody’s complaining about taxes. Nobody wants to pay their taxes. Everybody’s complaining about ‘Don’t raise taxes!’ and wanna increase taxes. And, me, I don’t mind paying my fair share. I gladly pay my fair share. But a lot of people, they’re just have problems with it. And I see – you go dinners like this and fancy occasions and even fundraising events. You see people shelling out big money for charity dinners, like two thousand dollars a plate or something – I think it’s not the problem that people don’t like writing a check. I think they just like to dress up. So maybe next April 15, you have like a big tax ball. Give everybody some champaigne. Bring Rascal Flatts in; have it at the convention center. You see people getting all ready for – girls getting their nails done. ‘What are you doing, girl?’ ‘I’m going to pay my taxes!’

Do you want to know why everyone’s complaining about their taxes? Because it’s ridiculous! A good chunk of the reason for the Revolutionary War was taxation without representation. And despite MASSIVE public outcry, Congress OKs spending that will, as all deficit spending does, lead to higher taxes! My parents don’t have a lot of money to spare, and their taxes are “going up” as it is, with me becoming to old for the credit a couple years back and my brother and sister getting too old this year, and my other sister turning 17 next year. That means, over the course of three years, their taxes are increasing by $4000 per year, and your “Messiah” wants to tax them more!

And despite your ilk’s constant protests that Obama isn’t a socialist, you seem to like some very socialistic ideas. I mean, the concept of paying taxes being a “fun” thing! We pay our taxes when required by law, isn’t that enough?! And as for the whole charity thing, you can’t compare charities and paying taxes! Charities pay for medical research, education for the impoverished, food for the impoverished, and so on. Taxes pay for salaries of politicians, research into environmental hoaxes, subsidies to keep worthless companies afloat, and so on. True, some “charities” are about environmental research and such, but the people who contribute to those sorts of charities are probably people who don’t have a problem with Obama raising taxes, anyway.

And how would you pay for such a ball? Raising taxes even more, right? I doubt that would have the desired effect.

And the First Lady. Beautiful as always. Look very nice. And I – and how dare you people give her grief about baring her arms? The country is broke, all right? Sleeves cost money. And you have lovely arms. So, I’m glad you’re showing off your arms. That’s right. That’s why, also, you let some of these little floozies out here know. You can try some funny business if you want to, but you gonna get one of these babies around your neck! You have beautiful arms. Some of the previous First Ladies – they needed sleeves. Some of them needed ponchos. Good grief. I didn’t name any names!

I think Sykes unintentionally hit the nail on the head regarding Michelle’s character here. That concept of her strong arming her opponents isn’t too far from the truth. And those remarks about previous First Ladies were appalling. Maybe you didn’t name any names, but we can guess pretty accurately who you’re talking about. Republican First Ladies. It’s not enough that you ridicule and belittle their husband’s work and character. It’s not enough that liberal sympathizers sleep during the funeral of the most popular president of all time (excepting Washington). You have to attack the appearance of people who aren’t even holding office!

But, you do need to keep your arms to yourself, sometimes. Yeah. Went over to London, touching the Queen. You can’t do that! You over there, patting the Queen on the back like she just slid into home plate. ‘Way to go, Queen!’ And whose idea was it to give the Queen an iPod? What an aweful gift! Your – his idea? What’s she gonna do? Download ‘Lady Gaga’? What are you going to give the Pope? A BlueTooth? You should’ve given the Queen something, you know, like a momento of our country. Something that says ‘America,’ you know. Give her Texas. And I think they – to the First Lady, kudos to you for unveiling the bust of Sojourner Truth in the White House. That is – yes. And could you do me a favor and please make sure it’s nailed down well? Because when the next white guy comes in, they’re gonna move it to the kitchen. So…

Right on about touching the Queen and giving her an iPod. But I don’t think it’s the silly little mistake Sykes seems to be trying to make it out to be. That’s a serious breech of protocol and is indicative of a character that doesn’t care about our allies.

As for the Sojourner Truth thing, I couldn’t quite remember exactly what role she played in the whole slavery thing, so I looked her up on Wikipedia. She did a lot of good, but I’m not sure I’d want the bust of a women in my house who flashed a crowd publically. And how is that “white guy” comment anything less than racist? That’s no less racist than a white person saying the next black guy to come by is going to steal something!

But, Mr. President, you’ve had your fair share of critics. I – even Senator McCain. Senator McCain gave you grief about the new helicopters that you didn’t order. I think Mr. McCain was just a little bitter because he wanted to be in the new helicopters. But I’m gonna tell Mr. McCain, ‘I’m sure if you ask nicely, your wife will buy you a helicopter.’

I don’t know anything about this helicopter business, but are presidential candidates no longer allowed to criticize their (former) opponents, who make manifest a set of ideas partially or wholly opposite to their own?

Rush Limbaugh, one of your big critics, boy, Rush Limbaugh said he hopes this administration fails. So you’re saying ‘I hope America fails.’ You’re like ‘I don’t care about people losing their homes or jobs or our soldiers in Iraq.’ He just wants the country to fail. To me, that’s treason! He’s not saying anything differently than what Osama Bin Laden is saying. You might wanna look into this, sir, because I think maybe Rush Limbaugh was the twentieth hijacker but he was so strung out on Oxycontin he missed his flight. Too much? Oh. Rush Limbaugh. ‘I hope the country fails.’ I hope his kidneys fail! How about that? He needs a little waterboarding, that’s what he needs.

Rush isn’t going to respond, eh? Well, I will. Fact: “Rush Limbaugh said he hopes this administration fails.” Fact: Rush was very clear and specific about what he meant by that. Falsehood: “So you’re saying ‘I hope America fails.’ You’re like ‘I don’t care about people losing their homes or jobs or our soldiers in Iraq.’” He said quite the opposite. He said he hopes America succeeds and that’s why he wants Obama to fail. And that whole next sentence is just foolishness. He doesn’t care about soldiers in Iraq? Then why does he have the “Adopt-a-Soldier” program on the home page of his website?! That’s more than I can say for Obama. The best he’s done is (I know he’s not directly responsible for this) be in office when the DHS releases a report warning about veterans!

And how is saying you want one man and his cronies to fail the same as saying you want roughly 300 million people to die?! Because that’s what Bin Laden wants. And bringing up the Oxycontin thing is low on so many counts. First, I notice you don’t mention Obama’s alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine uses and barely mention his tobacco use. Second, I admire Rush a lot for the Oxycontin thing because, unlike some people (*cough* Obama *cough*), he had the self-control and fortitude to deal with the addiction and recover from it. You might say “Well, Obama isn’t doing those other things, either.” Two problems with that. First, Obama is still a smoker, but so is Rush, so I won’t go into that. Second, Obama got into hard drugs and eventually quit. Rush, on the other hand, was taking pain medication, and got addicted to that. He wasn’t “doing drugs.” He was taking meds and got addicted to them. Would you ridicule Harry from Jump Street for getting addicted to his pain meds?

So Limbaugh’s not allowed to say he wants a person to fail, but you’re allowed to say you want a person to die? How hypocritical. And since Rush is such a great leader in America, and since you’re talking death, not failure, I’d say you’re a lot closer to sympathizing with Osama than Rush is. As a matter of fact, I bet Osama would be a lot happier if Rush died than if Obama did, though I’m sure he’d like Biden as president, too.

Sean Hannity. Sean Hannity said he was going to get waterboarded for charity, for armed forces. He hasn’t done it, yet. Talk about taking waterboarding. Please. Yeah, okay, you may get waterboarded by someone you know or trust, but let somebody from Pakistan waterboard or Keith Olbermann. Let Keith Olbermann waterboard. He can’t take a waterboarding. I can break Sean Hannity just by giving him a middle seat in coach. Oh, I need leg room!

I notice that you, Ms. Sykes, have never been waterboarded. So you’re hardly in a position to criticize. And I’m afraid I just don’t understand the whole needing leg room thing. How is that breaking someone?

Dick Cheney. Oh my – he’s a scary man. I would – scares me to death. I tell my kids; I say ‘Look. If two cars pull up, one has a stranger, and the other car has Dick Cheney, you get in the car with the stranger!’ Dick Cheney is trying to defend torture. Trying to defend torture! He goes, well, ‘They should release the memos to show the good information we got from our practices.’ You can’t defend torture! That’s like me robbing a bank and then going in front of the judge and saying ‘Yes, your honor. I robbed the bank, but look at all these bills I paid.’

Dick Cheney is a scary man in some ways. Good for him. We need a few more intimidating people, particularly in conservatism. Cheney is not trying to defend torture. Waterboarding is not torture. I’ve got a lot of arguments for this, but for now, I’ll just mention one I got from Crowder. We waterboard our own troops as a part of training! So are we torturing these troops?

And your analogy is totally off, Ms. Sykes. It’d be a little more like robbing the Mafia and using the money to cure cancer. Terrorists are not law-abiding folks and American lives are not bills to be paid.

And finally, so, they’re even giving you grief about the dog – about Bo. The animal rights people are on you ‘Why didn’t you get a rescued dog? Why didn’t he get a rescued dog?’ Look, the man has to rescue a country that’s been abused by its previous owner. Let him have a fresh start with the dog. Thank you all very much. Good night.

Not being an extreme liberal hippie, I don’t much care about Bo. But I don’t like this whole “previous owner” business. That draws a disturbing parallel. The president is not the owner of the country. (S)He’s its caretaker and protector. And Bush abused America less in his eight years than Obama has abused it in the first few months in office.

Well, that’s all I’ve got. I have a feeling this is all a lot of wasted “breath,” but so what?