marylou

Kurt's still spraying, he just doesn't have internet access at the hospital.

Yesterday and today, Kurt showed marked improvement. Today he was downright chipper! (pun intended) He's watching a lot of TV and visiting and cracking jokes. His mom tells me that it will help his brain rewire if he interacts with people from all facets of his life, so if you've thought of visiting, maybe it's time. Short visits are still the order of the day, and he is most comfortable with only one or two people at once, otherwise he can easily get overloaded. He still has a huge long way to go, but he is making some really impressive progress. Go Kurt!!

I'm pretty sure that would be 'Ezra'. Now shag your ass down to the bank!

In my experience, people either really like them or don't. There seems to always be a market for them somewhere, so it might just be about what is out there already. Personally, I don't care for them, however, the long zipper (I call it 'burrito loader') like you see on the Granite Gear packs is really functional. If you eliminate the back lid, a couple of pockets with bellows or spandura on the sides behind where your ears are if the pack is on, are an excellent substitution. I actually prefer this design to a pack lid. That said, all my packs are top-loaders.

Kurt's hanging in there. His brain swelling is way down, but he's still pretty grouchy. At the request of his parents, if he doesn't seem to be enjoying your visit, you should leave. Keep visits short, use common sense. Tomorrow is another day.....

Aye, that would be D'artanian. Looks kind of like a wedding cake in person, very purdy. I spelt it wrong, but you get my drift.

She doesn't seem to mind, either. I hope Gary bought her a nice dinner or something.

Kurt was pretty irritable again today, though his neurology team says that is pretty standard fare for a person with a bad head injury. He's on the defiant side of things, and is not inclined to believe a lot. There is a dark cloud in his head, unusual for a guy who typically has such a bright outlook on life. I told him I'd been visiting every day, and he refused to believe it. He's a crazy guy! He is able to drink water now. He needs to use a straw and drink sllooowly. Good luck with that last part. Be sure he's sitting up. Other info on eating and drinking are on the wall on a yellow paper behind the bed.

I wish they'd allow people to use their ATCs at the VW. I hate those #%!!! grigri things. I have, on many occasions, belayed through my ATC at VW when out of sight of the front desk. Thanks for sharing your story. I hate Grigris, but never realized just how easy to drop someone with one.

Kurt was pretty hard to deal with today. Tomorrow will be a better day. He was moved to another floor today, so check at the information desk on the first floor of the west wing of the hospital. He seems to always have a rough day after they move him. Tomorrow is bound to be better.

I THINK HE WOULD LOOK HAWT IN A CHEERLEADER UNIFORM. C'mon, anyone have a nice big one they can bring to the hospital? Hell, he has a head injury, he'd never even remember!!

YES. GO VISIT.

Good day today. Kurt had a rough morning from what I hear, but by afternoon he was in excellent spirits. He was very funny, and memory was good. They have had to keep him restrained until today, and he's a lot more comfortable now. He just has a little seatbelt now to keep him from unscheduled wandering. We tried shaving again today. He did it himself, and he did a little better job than when I did it, though without a mirror he missed a few spots. He gave me a ration of shit about how I needed to treat him with 'respect' and how he was going to teach me about that, *snerk* and said 'exactly' a lot, a classic Kurtism. He was damn funny, and we both had fun. It was just the two of us for a couple of hours. Jack came by and shot some video for our amusement, and Vern and Priscilla were being entertained by Kurt when I took off. His sister is flying down from Alaska today, I'm sure Kurt's going to be thrilled to see her. He is eating pureed things and thickened juice. If he sees you with a water bottle, he's going to try and convince you to give him some. Do not be talked into it, he can choke on water. He gets his water through an IV for the time being. Also, be sure to sign in on the 'Kurt's visitors' notebook, it's a great way for other visitors to see progress and know how much visitation he's had for the day. If he gets irritable, it usually means he needs to take a nap.

Jordan So glad you guys hooked up tonight. Your arrival has been advertised for days. Smuggling him out to get drunk has been a reccuring theme lately.

We had a trying half hour or so when I tried to give him a shave. Hey, it looked so easy when I saw one of the nurses do it. He was a big handful today. More improvement, and he's remembering everyone's name. Lots of visitors, I think he will be all worn out and will sleep like a baby tonight. I second the business about him being exhausting.

Hey friends, Another pretty big day for Kurt. He pulled his feeding tube out today (that's three days in a row) so the therapist did a 'swallow test' to see if he could instead have a regular liquid diet, AND HE PASSED. Right on!!!! So no more feeding tube. Yesterday, I brought him a copy of the picture from Pub Club, and I asked him to read the sign in front of everyone. He said, 'Get Well Kurt'. This is a pretty big deal for a guy with a head injury. He read a little bit more today with his speech therapist, but he made a big revelation in the last day or so and can really just focus on that mainly. He still doesn't know where he is, but he knows he's hit his head and he has to recover from that. Unprompted, he said he knows he might have to do some different things outdoors for a while and that's okay. With this new awareness, he knows he is having to relearn things, but he's frustrated and his brain is working overtime. It's a huge advance, but it's a lot do deal with for him intellectually and emotionally. He gets overwhelmed by this at times. The great thing about it though is that he is learning he has limits and can tell you if you need to go and let him rest. They have moved him into a more permanent room, just him, and with a view of Elliot Bay. I left an envelope by the window with some 8 x 10 headshots of people, with their names written on them. He has a really hard time with names, so if you want to add one, feel free. Make it a close-up shot with the face easily recognizeable. There is also a steno pad labeled 'Kurt's visitors' that you may write anything you wish in. It might be a handy way to track some of his progress. Keep the candle lit for him. Allison

Naaaww...alter ego.

Today's gems: "Nice tits!" "When you see Kurt, tell him Feck says he's a total chickenshit and he ought to act more like a man and less like a fucking chickenshit." Feck? FECK? That YOU?

MattP came up with a good term for digital darkrom work last night. If one needs to do that sort of work, the image is said to be "Yngve'd". As in, I got a nice shot of MattP last night at Pub Club, but his third eye did not show up clearly in the picture, so I Yngve'd it back in.

Late in the afternoon, he was quite chatty, and is remembering all kinds of random things. He's doing a little pain medicine, but not as much as he was. He said that his head hurt a bit sometimes, but they are doing a good job with keeping him comfortable. The nurse cautioned me about prompting him too much to remember things, and he answered a lot of questions and got most of the answers right. He also directed the conversation himself a lot, and that's the first time he seemed able to do that. He's responding to commands like "wiggle your toes" and thinks we ought to go ski Daniel some time. Boy is definitely improving.

Kurt's expecting pictures tomorrow. I spoke with him (or should I say he chatterboxed at me! Jeez!) and he wants to see pictures. He said he might not be able to make it because it's really hard to find Matt's house, and it was agreed that pictures might be a better way to go.

Don't tell my surgeon, but the word of the evening is castless here at mi casa. It was good enough for a broken ankle ten summers ago, it's good enough for a broken wrist now.

Big improvements today. Lots of color in his face, at times very chatty. Memory is very spotty. He knows people, but can remember very few names. Kellie and I were there together for an hour or so, and he really enjoyed getting all of that female attention. We asked him lots of questions when he was awake, and he gave us lots of answers, some right, some wrong. He was extremely sarcastic toward me a couple of times. A move out of ICU is imminent, though he's still going to be very sensitive to getting overstimulated.

That's great news, thanks. My guys were comfortably ensconced in a cabin by the S la S campground (as was I) and the two Daniel guys really felt that they should have done more to keep that situation from developing at all. I forwarded them onto this thread, and I'm sure they will, as I was, be happy to hear she made it out. As Wayne said, the drainage is pretty tight, in any case, thanks to SAR for getting this woman home safe and sound. We were all pretty worried about her safety last night.

Laura has it spot-on. Right now, most of the work with Kurt has to be done by the man himself. Lots of sleep, some visits, and what we can do to keep Frank and Margaret from being frazzled and tired. If anyone needs something to do, from what I know, there is going to be plenty to do in the coming months. This might mean financial help, it might mean helping out with caring for Kurt and his house, and his life in general. Anything we can do to make his re-entry into the world that we know (and maybe take too much for granted) it is going to be welcome and appreciated. Keep sending those good vibes, and stay tuned as the recovery develops. Alli