Crohn's and Me

In the spring of 10th grade I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. This treatable, but incurable chronic disease initially made me question “Why me?” I have come to realize, however, that I could let Crohn’s limit and dictate my life—or I could take control. So I now ask “Why not me?” Living with Crohn’s has made me more aware and able to better appreciate the strength and courage of others who wrestle with physical and emotional health problems every day. My interest in pursuing a career in health care, for example, has been heightened since my ongoing experience of being a patient myself. Many around the hospital may now know me as a "regular" considering my monthly visits to the doctor and to Nurse Karen for my weekly infusions. As awful as these fluent trips to the doctor may sound, I would have to say it has its benefits. Because of it, I am proud to say needles are no longer one of my worst fears. Getting "stuck" with those things every so often is not nearly as bad as I usually anticipated. However, most importantly, I have started feeling better than ever. Despite my keen eye for what I eat each day, I can now say I live a relatively normal life (even though I can never again call myself healthy). Having Crohn’s disease will define me for the rest of my life, but I keep reminding myself that it's up to me on how I choose to learn from it, manage it and adapt to it.

Whipped Cream Revisited

It's white, sweet and fluffy and best (I think) when you squirt it out of a can. I've always loved whipped cream on a scoop of ice cream or on top of a milkshake or mixed in with a bowl of strawberries or slathered over a piece of key lime pie. That was how I felt about it until swim practice this morning. As a coach of a swim team, our coaching staff issued a "challenge" to our swimmers before a BIG meet on Monday night. This dual meet is between the biggest rivals in the league and it's always an exciting, competitive and close match-up. The "challenge" was that a victory for our team would allow any swimmer to throw a pie at a coach during practice the next day. Given the topic of this blog, you've probably figured out that we won...and only by 2 points! And so the fun began this morning with nearly every swimmer armed with pie plates and PLENTY of whipped cream. There were a few ground rules. Coaches sat in chairs with our swim goggles on and swimmers had to throw from a reasonable distance. A few older kids managed to sneak behind us and smush the plates of whipped cream into our hair. I've showered now but the distinct smell of whipped cream will be with me for awhile. Whipped cream may be something I enjoy again on food...but I'll never look at it the same again.

The Lake

I had an awesome experience at Lake Blue Ridge this weekend. It was a nice escape from some long days spent at work and school. The lake is located just outside of Ellijay about an hour and twenty minutes from my home. My next door neighbor invited me with a couple of her high school friends. She and I attended different schools so I was a little nervous being the "outsider". As it turned out, I had no reason for concern and quickly felt like one of the gang. We could not have asked for a more perfect lake day. We actually woke up early contrary to our natural talent to sleep all day, so as to take advantage of the weather. The main event was of course tubing. Although tubing can at times be very relaxing, some boat drivers strive to make the ride a bit more interesting. These types take it as a personal challenge to seperate you from your tube. My friend's mom is one of these people and she has a special skill at taking the boat in one direction while sending us careening in another direction. Later, we collapsed on the dock, baked in the sun and nursed some bruises and sore muscles. All in all, the weekend was a relaxing and quiet change of pace from my daily grind. Despite my near death experience of tubing with a "crazy driving" mom, I look forward to the next time I can get away to Lake Blue Ridge. The aches and pains are always worth it!

Why Facebook?

My parents were forever asking me about Facebook. "When we were your age we actually had friends you could talk face to face with!" Of course comments like that came before my dad created his own facebook page. Now he is best friends with half of my high school class. I have no doubt it is his way of keeping an eye on me in cyberspace. I will be the first to admit that Facebook has become a way of life. The actual act of calling someone on a phone is becoming a thing of the past. Where else can you have five conversations at once with no one friend within 100 miles of the other. It allows me to not only keep up with lots of people I might not ordinarily see but once or twice a year, but actually get to know them better. The key to using facebook is to not let it consume you. It cannot replace the day to day interactions we have with our friends. It requires discipline just like everything else we do on a regular schedule. It is also important that I continue to use common sense when posting something on my facebook page. I must always work under the assumption that once it appears on that page it can become public information. If I do not want the world to see something then I should not write about it on Facebook.

The Big 16

Lately, I have been reminiscing about the day I turned 16 (seems as though it was just yesterday). This memory is haunting me now, probably because it's my sister's turn. Like me she is counting down the days until she can drive. There was something about the thought of driving that made me feel that adulthood was finally at hand. Having a set of wheels meant “freedom”. I could for the first time go anywhere my little heart desired. My parents could and did give me parameters, but once I left the driveway, it was my decision to turn either left or right. I cannot, however, picture my "little" sister reaching the same milestone. Instead, I still picture her getting lost in her own bedroom! There is absolutely no way she will be able to find the nearest gas station. Along with driving comes tremendous responsibility. There are little things to keep in mind like putting the proper gas into the car. I found out by trial and error that diesel fuel doesn't seem to be as effective as good old fashioned gas. Mr. Tow Truck Man thought it was pretty funny. And maintenance cannot be ignored. Well actually I tried, but the flashing lights on my dashboard would not leave me alone; oil needed, light bulb out, wiper fluid low. My next car will definitely predate all this fancy stuff so I can listen to my music without interruption. Speaking of getting lost, a GPS device is a must for soon to be drivers like my sister who are directionally challenged. It does take some getting used to, having some strange guy telling you to turn left in 800 feet. How could he possibly know that? It absolutely makes my day, when the little man under the hood is wrong and I arrive somewhere that tuns out to be nowhere near the place I wanted to go. I could ramble on and on about the concerns I have for my little sister as her leap into adulthood arrives. Fortunately she has an older sister with experience that can guide her to her new found freedom.

The Imfamous Oreo Ice Ceam Pie

It’s the middle of the afternoon and I’ve had lunch. I’m not even that hungry. But I’m at home and the freezer calls. There’s a piece of Oreo ice cream pie with my name on it in there. What is it really? You take chocolate chip ice cream, the rich, expensive kind, and mound it in to a crust of smashed up Oreo cookies. Not one of those pre-made chocolate cookie shells but a whole bag of Oreos, crushed up with whatever is handy AND a stick of melted butter stirred in just to hold it all together. For as long as I’ve been a kid, it’s been a tradition in my family for my mom to make one to celebrate a birthday. My sister just turned sixteen. So, of course, she got an ice cream pie. You still put candles on the top. But you have to blow them out fast or the ice cream will start to melt. With the popularity of “mix ins” at the yogurt and ice cream shops--where you can add anything from fruit (nutritious) to M & M’s or Heath Bars (not so nutritious) to your scoop, my ice cream pie may not seem particularly special. But sometimes, less is more. And it’s right here, right now for me to enjoy every last crumb. By the way, I like to eat mine with a spoon and chase it down with a glass of milk.

Roll Tide Roll

Last week, I went to Tuscaloosa for my freshman orientation at University of Alabama. During the three hour drive with my mom, I had plenty of time to think about what to expect during the two day event. A few of my friends from Atlanta would be there too; otherwise, I knew no one. The next morning at 8am (too early!), we were herded to a room full of 300 freshmen and their parents being led in the Alabama fight song (way too early!). But if you just said "Roll Tide" every now and then, you could quickly fill in the rest. It was hard to believe that this scene would be repeated over the summer 15 more times. Realization...I was about to become a member of a campus with 28,000 students. At least I felt some safety in numbers with 4,000 other incoming freshmen.
Once we divided into smaller groups, I felt more at ease as we walked to get our student ID. It was kind of that same feeling of pride, ownership and accomplishment that I had when I got my driver's license...smiling big having taken one of many first steps in becoming a college student. The rest of the orientation was spent hearing ALOT of information about everything from housing to money to safety to classes. Oh yeah, that IS ultimatley why I'm here. Other than one 8am class, I was really happy with my courses and class schedule. As a student in the College of Nursing, I don't have many choices when it comes to course work. But by the end of the second day, I headed back to I-20, tired but really excited in anticipation of August 8th when I move in. Alabama was beginning to feel like my home away from home. Roll Tide.