After waiting about 15 minutes, we were called to check in and pay. That took about 10 minutes, then we went back into the waiting area for a few minutes before I was called back into the room with the laser. The nurse asked me some questions, like what are you having done today and on which eye. She took my blood pressure, which seemed a little high for me as of late. It was 131/78. She told me she was going to give me four drops – two to dilate, one to reduce my IOP, and one to numb my eye. Before she gave the drops, I asked if I could take a pic of the laser machine. She laughed and gave me a second to take the image (see it below.) After she put the drops in, she told me to close my eyes until the doctor came in. She left the room.

I grabbed my iPhone and opened the app for Absolute Radio (since I use the VoiceOver setting I didn’t need to open my eyes.) Absolute Radio is a station based in London that is my favorite. Geoff Lloyd’s Hometime Show was on. I usually don’t like listening to him while working (he’s on noon to 3.00 ET, 5.00 to 8.00 in the UK,) because he is so funny I end up listening and not getting any work done. As it turned out, I only listened to him for a minute or two, then a short newscast by Tania Snuggs, and then about half of a song by Manic Street Preachers before the doctor came in and I turned the radio off.

Dr. Ayres gave me another numbing drop, then lined up the machine. Before he started blasting, he put a lens with a lot of goo on my eye to help focus the laser. Then he started shooting. Besides seeing the flash of the light from the laser, I heard these pops in my ears. It was a weird sensation. After a bunch of shots, he paused for a few seconds then took a few more shots. He took the lens off my eye and started filling out some papers. That was when he said he took 29 shots. The nurse put a couple drops (Pred Forte, a steroid) in my eye. Dr. Ayres told me to take a similar drop twice per day until I visit him in a couple of weeks. I’ve been on the steroid drop since the endothelial transplant back in December 2008, but have only used it once per day for the past few months. That was it, I was done.

It’s now about 12 hours after the surgery and my sight is still weird. We went out to dinner tonight (Carrabba’s, it was just okay) and lights really bothered me, especially car headlights. Hopefully it is just the drops. I’ll know in about six hours when I wake up.

29 Shots is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: drop, general anesthesia, geoff lloyd, hometime show, lens, machine, manic street preachers, Shots, surgery, weird sensation

It is so frustrating to me that nothing can be done to get me back to where I was just days after the surgery.  For about 10 days from 18 April, my vision was the best it had been in years.  Seems now like that was a cruel tease.  I’m getting tired of running to the doctors multiple times per month and not making progress.

In other news, Jacob is in Japan with a group of students from Westtown.  The last few days they’ve stayed in Kyoto and taken day trips by rail to other cities and sites (Hiroshima, Miyagima-guchi, Miyagima, Kinkaku-ji.)  Sunday, they move on to Tokyo where they meet their host families and prepare for a week at Tamagawa, Westtown’s sister school in Japan.  The family Jake is staying with has a boy a year or two younger than Jake and seems to live a bit of distance away from the school.  Eliz and I hope Jake can manage the train transfers…

Jane is looking forward to meeting her favorite band All Time Low on Sunday at meet and greet during The Bamboozle Roadshow.  Monday, she heads to softball camp at Villanova for a week.  She is also doing two weeks at an overnight camp at Bryn Mawr College in July and going to the Outer Banks in August with Margaret, Meghan, and Chris.  Did I mention she spent yesterday (Thursday) in New York with her friend Rachel?

Since Eliz and Jane won’t be here on Sunday, I’m planning a day of football…  Well, at least the last two games (Azzurri/All Whites and Brazil/Ivory Coast (sorry Slovakia/Paraguay, I’m not rolling out of bed at 7.30am.)  So, if you want to watch some footie, come on over!

Finally, I’ve lost another pound, which I am trying not to do.  I’m trying to maintain 163 pounds, but have been between 161 and 162 the last couple of days.  I’ve bumped to 1800 calories per day (from 1700) to try not to lose any additional weight.  It’s been tough this week, because we’ve eaten out four times and I’ve had to estimate my calories once and calculate my calories after the fact another time.  By the time I added ‘em up, I was short by 200 calories (ate 1600 calories) and it was too late to have anything else if I wanted to go to sleep by 2.00am.  At 161, I’m down 73 pounds since I started on 10 December 2009.

More next week, after my cornea doc appointment.

It’s Been a Few Weeks, Not Much New is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: bamboozle roadshow, Brazil, bryn mawr college, Chris, cornea, Hiroshima, Ivory Coast, Jacob, Jake, Jane, Japan, kinkaku, Kyoto, macular edema, Margaret, Meghan, New York, Rachel, retina specialist, surgery, time, Tokyo, vision, week, Whites

While we were in the waiting room, Eliz and I did the word scrambles in the Inquirer (her mother gives that section to us after she finished the crossword puzzle, so we usually have a few days of scrambles to do.)  I realized today while we were doing the scrambles that I am a visual thinker when it comes to these puzzles.  That is not good since I can’t see the puzzles at all.  I have no trouble doing math in my head without seeing the numbers, but I am slow, usually, with the words.  I do occasionally get the words before Eliz, but she is usually quicker than I am.

After completing three puzzles, we were called back to Pod 2.  I was able to read the OBLB (20/100) line, though it didn’t seem as crisp as it did the day after the surgery.  The pinholes brought it into focus, but I couldn’t read any of the CAV8 (20/80) line.  Dr. Ayres came in and had a look.  He said things looked very good.  My IOP was up to 10 (which is higher for me than normal,) but he believes it is from the steroid drops that I was taking four times a day and believes that will fall back a few notches as I lower the amount of those drops (I take them three times per day for the next week and then two times per day until I see him on 21 May.)  I hope he is correct about the pressure…

After he finished looking, we talked about what is going on with my vision.  I told him of my difficulties seeing things close to me and the trouble I had since the weekend even on the computer.  He apologized about not giving me the whole story before the surgery and said that the lens he put in was for distance.  I told him I was happy with how I could see things in better detail than before.  He explained that, like a person 10 to 15 years older than me, I had lost the ability to focus at things close up.  He hoped that the problem could be fixed with glasses, but it was too soon for that since my eye is still healing and will continue to change as it does.

I brought the pair of reading glasses I’d been using since the surgery to read on the computer and see food on my plate so he could check the strength.  I’ve used several different magnifications since the transplant in December ’08 and I wasn’t sure which pair these were.  I was also concerned, since they were less effective over the last few days.  Fortunately, they were 3.5X.  I knew that I had a pair of 4x glasses at home, somewhere.  When we got home, I found them and was relieved that they made reading my screen much more comfortable than the 3.5X pair.  I hoping I don’t need to go up to 5X, but they would still be cheaper than prescription glasses.  They will do a refraction at my next visit on 21 May.

I don’t know if it was the 4X reading glasses or what Dr. Ayres had to say about how good things looked, but it seems that I can see better after the appointment.  I only have to wait two weeks before I see my glaucoma specialist, so we’ll see how the IOP is doing then.  I’d also like to get a fields test to see how that has changed since the surgery.  Maybe I can have that done then too.  I’ll post it here on the blog if I have it done…

Generally, I’m happy with the results so far.  Eliz and I may go to the movies this weekend (her birthday is Saturday and she’s requested Mexican Post for dinner, then a movie at Regal across the street.)  Jane’s Bar/Bat Mitzvah schedule (six in the next eight weeks) may force us to reschedule…  I tried to help Eliz prepare some parts of dinner tonight, with limited success.  Shooting pictures and video is something I’d like to try soon.  I tried taking a picture a day or two after the surgery, but couldn’t see well enough through the viewfinder.  I may have to leave the lcd screen on for pics and videos to be usable…  For now, lets see what tomorrow brings.

This post is sponsored by Buy.com.  $5 off $100 or more in ALL Stores! New Customer Coupon! exp 4/30/10.

Second Post Op Visit is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: Bat Mitzvah, crossword puzzle, day, Dr. Ayres, Eliz, eye drop, Jane, pair, pod 2, surgery, vision, visual thinker, word scrambles, X.  I

The fact that I can do that with some confidence is a result of the surgery.  I use reading glasses that enables me to see the computer screen more clearly than I did prior to the surgery.  I have the font size at +2 (two steps above medium,) which is where I used to have it.  I am now also able to read, briefly, without the screen being reversed.  For those not familiar with Macs, you can easily reverse the screen to see a negative view.  Fonts that are usually black on a white background are reversed and become white on a black background.  If my eye improve a little more, I may even be able to use a Windows machine (though why would I want to do that?  Our point-of-sale system runs on a Windows machine…)

Other achievements I’ve had in the past week include seeing colors more vividly.  I love just walking outside and looking around.  The grass and leaves are so green and the sky is so blue.  Flowers seem to have so much more color.  I can also see cars on the road, signs on buildings, and, on the down side, marks and dirt on the carpet and walls.

Watching TV has become enjoyable again.  I can now tell characters apart, where as before the surgery I was happy if I could tell if a character was white or black.  I’ve also noticed that I am reading the ticker(s) at the bottom of the screen while I watch Bloomberg, CNBC, FNC or CNN.  All the graphics on the news and sports looks sooo good.

The best thing for me so far on TV has been watching the Flyers.  I don’t know if it is just from the surgery or also from watching in HD, but I can follow the puck much better that I’ve been able to in a long, long time.  I guess it doesn’t hurt that they’ve been winning either.  Lets see if I enjoy watching them play the Caps…  I do like Ovechkin — he is one of my favorite players.  He is a complete, tough player, unlike Crosby who is a gifted player but the worlds biggest crybaby.

My first outing to a sporting event was this past Monday.  I went to Jane’s softball game against Abington Friends.  I was very happy how much more of the action I was able to follow.  I did lose track of the ball on some hits though.  I enjoyed the game even though Jane’s team lost (though Jane knocking in a run and scored another) and the umpire was terrible (though that is not why they lost.)  I am looking forward to watching some of Jake’s lacrosse games.  His last game before my surgery, I had trouble seeing the players who weren’t near the sideline we were on.

Lets face it, my eyes still suck in a big way, BUT, I can see so much more than I could before the surgery.  I have more confidence wondering around a store by myself (of course, until I get glasses or better reading glasses, I still can’t see what is on the shelf…)  I’d also be comfortable finding the bathroom on my own in a restaurant, which is something I would not do before the surgery.  I am still hopeful of reading printed material and throwing a ball around with Jane or Jake.  Maybe next week…

One Week After Cataract Removal is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: blue flowers, game, Jake, Jane, point of sale system, productive time, reading, reading glasses, road signs, screen, surgery, time

I received many well wishes and good lucks today from my friends.  They are all greatly appreciated.  My involvement in this whole thing is easy.  I just have to lay there.  Eliz is the one that has the difficult job.  Beside all she does normally, which is just about everything, she’ll now have even more tasks — put eye drops in (as often as the Dunkin Donuts guy makes the donuts,) read everything to me (including email, orders from ForYourSalon.com, business/news/political/sports sites, and who knows what else,) lead me around everywhere, and do just about all my tasks running the business (which aren’t many, but it is more stuff to do.)  Her father once told me, after I mentioned a small problem Eliz was having, “Sorry, no refunds.”  Who’s looking for the refund now…

At this point, in my mind there were no other solutions to my eye trouble.  I won’t second guess my decision.  I wonder how it will turn out.  I’m hoping the planets are aligned.

Eight Hours from Now… is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: business, cataract extraction, current vision, dunkin donuts, everything, eye, eye trouble, good lucks, surgery, thing

From what I gather, recovery time on the cataract extraction is about half that of the DSAEK (which is about four months.)  Seems like I won’t have to wear that awful eye shield as long with only the cataract coming out.  After the last surgery, I had to wear it for over a month.  Lets not forget the misery on the day after my last surgery.  My IOP went from seven to about 30.  I puked my guts up all day long from the dramatic change in pressure.  Showering was difficult too since I had to make sure I didn’t get any soap or water in my eye.  That was only for a few months.  Eliz will be shaving my head this weekend so that I only need to use a washcloth to wash my head.

I am very excited about the prospects of seeing more than I see now.  Maybe I’ll see well enough to go to the movies again.  I’d love to go and see a few Phils games, or even go see an Eagles game (you know, I’ve never been to the Link.)  If things go really well, maybe I’ll be able to throw a softball around with Jane, a lacrosse ball with Jake, or even read the mail instead of having someone read it to me.

Of course, there are risks and I do worry about something going dreadfully wrong.  I see only light out of my other eye, so any failure would dispose of the fantasies I’ve listed in the previous paragraph and make life a bit more challenging.  I have no idea what I would do then.  Lets just hope for the best.

One Week to Go is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: cataract, cataract extraction, endothelial, endothelial keratoplasty, eye, eye shield, Jake, Jane, lacrosse ball, partial thickness, surgery, transplant

I was not looking forward to another surgery on my left eye until things started going downhill in July.  The problem was, none of the doctors knew what was causing the problem.  The cataract didn’t seem much worse than a few months earlier, if at all.  After going from one specialist to another, it was determined it wasn’t a glaucoma issue or a retina issue.  Lets just hope it is the cataract that is the issue.

I’m having the cataract removed on 15 April (so I guess I’ll send our taxes in early…)  There is also a possibility that I’ll have another DSEK (endothelial transplant.)  The donor endothelia will be in the OR, just in case.  Evidently, removing the cataract risks damaging my now 70 year old endothelia (along with the other common risks associated with this in most people and specific risks for unique individuals, such as myself, with other eye issues.)

I am disappointed that I have to wait that long for the surgery.  I joked with Dr. Ayres that I was ready to have it yanked on Wednesday.  I’m sure I have been less than pleasant to be around at home.  Tonight, I was home alone while Eliz, the kids, and a few of Jane’s friends went to see Alice in Wonderland — I miss going to the movies.  My frustration level is high and it takes me so long to do many basic things.  I am so ready to get the cataract out, it is hard not to get excited.  I’m trying to temper the excitement, since it only leads to disappointment after the surgery (at least after the last three.)

Surgery No. 14 is Set is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: Alice, alice in wonderland, cataract, cornea transplant, Dr. Ayres, Dr. Garg, Dr. Ruffini, DSEK, eye, frustration level, issue, Jane, retina, retina specialist, surgery

There were plenty of other things I could do then that I miss terribly now.  I still love sports, I just can’t participate anymore.  I used to go to about 30 Flyers games a season.  Even then I couldn’t see the puck, but I could follow the game and enjoyed going.  I’ve been to three since 28 January 2003.  That date was the last home game before my surgery.  It was the last game I “saw” (and it was a bad game — a 3-0 loss to Tampa Bay.)  I’ve been to two Phillies games at Citizens Bank Park, one this past season when they played Baltimore (and lost 6-5.)  A friend had two extra tickets and Jane wanted to go (it was her first Phils game, but her second O’s game.)  It was great seeing her get into the game and get excited, and I enjoyed spending time with my friend and his son.  As far as the game went, I pretended like I knew what was going on, but I didn’t.

My whole life was about trying to maintain my vision.  Glaucoma cannot be fixed or reversed.  I remember as a kid I used to ask my eye doctor if anything new had been developed that could improve my vision.  The answer then is the same as it is now: not yet.  Maybe some day.  On that day back in 2003, we tried.  It just didn’t work out the way we hoped.

Seven Years Ago Today is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: bad game, Baltimore, citizens bank park, eye, game, glaucoma, Jane, last game, phillies games, season, surgery, Tampa Bay, trabeculectomy

When I had the surgery, I wondered how well I would see in the days and months afterwards.  As I’ve mentioned in other posts, most of my doctors were pretty optimistic.  They all agreed that unless something went wrong, I’d get back to 20/200.  Some thought I could get to 20/100 or even better.  One year later and my vision is at 20/400.

Dreams of reading a newspaper, magazine, purchase orders, invoices (those that I create to send to a customer, not those sent by a vendor — Eliz can read those,) mail, and anything else printed on paper never came true.  Wild fantasies of tossing a softball around with Jane, hitting a tennis ball around with Jake, going to a Phillies, Flyers, or Eagles game (you know, I’ve never been to the Link) and enjoying it have all been placed back deep in the corner of my mind next to being a rock star, an action-hero actor, or a top chef.

As I’ve previously posted, none of my ophthalmologists know why my vision has deteriorated since June.  Maybe it’s from the mold at our business (we’ll know shortly, because we are vacating or current building very shortly.)  Maybe it’s age related.  Maybe it’s because I’ve gained weight.  Maybe it’s just supposed to be this way.

I have an appointment on 9 December with the cornea specialist.  Perhaps he will have an answer better than the last time I saw him, when he told me that he didn’t know what it was and it would be a hard fix.  I’ll post sometime after the appointment and let you know.

I do plenty of complaining, whining, and ranting here.  One thing I’m not sure I’ve ever done is thank the donor of the endothelia that now resides on the fifth layer of my cornea.  I don’t know who he or she was.  I only know that the donor was 69 years old when they died and without their cornea (even though they only used the endothelia, the whole cornea was available to me) I would almost certainly be much worse off.  Thank you sir/madam, I do appreciate your gift.

One Year Later is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: action hero, body, cornea, cornea specialist, cornea transplant, corneal transplant, DSAEK procedure, endothelia, endothelial, God, Jake, Jane, layer, ophthalmologists, part, partial thickness, surgery, transplant

There was a great deal of promise when I turned 44 last November.  I was having a very tough time seeing and surgery was scheduled for early December for a full cornea transplant or a partial cornea transplant (where only the endothelia is swapped out.)  The hope was for the endothelial transplant, but that was to be determined during surgery.  The surgeon was pretty optimistic that my vision would get to 20/100 or a tad bit better.

The result was the easier surgery, replacing only the endothelia, but vision that peaked at 20/200 in spring and then started going the wrong way by July.  I can now see 20/400 in my good eye and none of my ophthalmologists can tell me what the problem is now.  So the hopes and dreams from last Thanksgiving have been replaced by frustration and concern this year.

Then there is the business.  When I turned 44, I had absolutely no idea what was going to become of our business, Salon Supplies + Interiors (see the two previous paragraphs.)  Our lease at 1010 MacDade with the ganif (I am being too kind) was set to expire on 5 February.  Once my doctor informed me that the surgery was “a success,” we tried to negotiate a one year lease at a lower rent.  We were paying $3750 in rent, $1200 in taxes, and about $1100 for utilities on average per month.  (Utilities varied from $800 to $2000 and were billed by the ganif, not Peco.)

Now the question was to move or close.  I really wanted to launch ForYourSalon.com, which was suffering from massive delays (uh, yeah, my sight issues.)  Thankfully, Ken came on-board full time and got it moving again.  We looked at properties from the end of December to the third week in January, when we found our current location.  It was perfect!  It had a drive-in bay, a loading dock bay, and nearly 8,000 square feet.  This place could accommodate our cabinet shop, used equipment department, new equipment showroom, and beauty supplies department.  And the price was right too: $2,500 per month rent, no CAM charges, no taxes, and a utility bill that averages about $575 per month (highest was about $675 and lowest was about $350.)

We boxed all the supplies and moved everything in about five days.  We had everything setup in the new place in about three weeks, though we only closed for three days during the move (the last day at the old location and the first two days at the new location.)  The first few days at the new place were somewhat painful for me since we had so many different workers (moving temps, electricians, etc.)  While my staff knew to keep things off the floor and away from traffic areas, the others did not.  I walked into metal piping that was hanging out of the electricians truck by about three feet (the truck was parked in the warehouse.)  It literally brought me to my knees.

So our predicament is very similar this year.  Different building, different issues, with a move imminent.  This year there is greater worry.  The conditions of our “perfect” space began to worsen with every drop of rain that fell at the end of June.  As water poured in every day or two over the summer, the mold and fungus began thriving.  Samples taken by a mold remediation company in early November showed levels much higher than they should be.  We will be out of the space within weeks (hopefully two weeks.)

Besides my sight, my general health hasn’t been good over the past year.  I’ve had sinusitis multiple times since early summer.  Hmmm, I wonder if it has to do with the mold…  I am looking forward to evacuating that building and seeing if my health (and Eliz’s too) rebounds.

The immortal words of a great philosopher are always in the back of my mind, “It’s always something.  If it’s not one thing, it’s another…”  That said, I’m looking forward to a better year.  I’ll let you know right after I turn 46.

Goodbye 44! is a post from: ICantCU.com | © 2009, iCantCU.com. All Rights Reserved.

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Post tags: 2012, 44, 45, beauty supplies, cornea, cornea transplant, day, endothelia, full, good eye, hopes and dreams, ken, Mold, November, ophthalmologists, perfect, presidential, presidential election, remediation, rent, salon supplies, surgery, taxes, transplant, week in january, Year