The Owl, Lion, and Baby Panda

A trip to the Zoo with Nana and Celia

Celia had a hankering to go to the zoo when she was home for a break, and we bravely decided to take my mother. My mom loves animals and used to volunteer with other former teachers at the zoo preparing city school children for their trip to the zoo. She knew the inside story of every animal there, and was constantly talking about the animals.

The problem with the National Zoo is that it is built on a very hilly part of the city, and walking around it is grueling. There is also a lot of walking between animals. I didn't know how much stamina my mom would have, but she did great! She really surprised us. There were lots of highlights for us, one was that we saw the baby panda (not such a baby, but she only recently began being viewed by the public. The lion was magnificent, but people were very wary about walking around his habitat due to the freaky incident with the tiger at the San Francisco Zoo.

Really Really Really Good News

Joyce got into NYU!

We are elated, Joyce was accepted Early Decision to the school of her dreams.

It is so rare to get exactly what you want, but if anyone can do it, Joyce can. Now we can all breathe a sigh of relief and get rid of all of the college guides and SAT books which have been filling our shelves for years.

My Dad's Broken Neck

Wow - I can't believe I've been away for so long! This is hard to believe, but my Dad broke his neck! We just got home from the hospital Friday, so we've had lots of chaos, but things seem to be settling down now.

I brought him to the emergency room at Georgetown University Hospital because he was acting really bizarre. I thought he had had a stroke or something. He had actually fallen a few days before but complained of no pain, so we thought we were just lucky. Then his speech as slurred (could be the parkinsons), he was very tired (not unusual), and he was acting manic in his studio. Anyway, after trying to reach his neurologist, I finally decided to have him checked up. A CT showed a broken C1. Further imaging proved that he needed neurosurgery.

There are a million images that have gathered in my head from the 10 days we spent in the hospital, which I'm sure I will convey as they unfold.

Important parts of this story:

My dad is fine and recovering well for someone who is 80 years old.

We took him off of most of his Parkinsons drugs and he is almost symptom free. He was clearly overmedicated.

It turns out he has had a broken neck since May 1, 2007. His orthopaedist decided not to do any further imaging after a CT showed the fracture in his neck. He was prescribed physical therapy which in retrospect endangered his life. I will pursue this issue when my Dad has stabilized.

I have way too much experience with spinal cord injury, so I was filled with dread during this whole fiasco. One of my students was injured at the c4 level and I guided him back to a meaningful existence.

Nurses are the bomb, doctors are the worst.

Amazing Treats from Sweet Repeats

Look at all the Sweet Treats I got from Lucy! Opening this package is the best thing I did all week! I love how everything is color coordinated. You've got the touch, Lucy!!

Here are some more photos from Frederick. I hope I don't bore you with them, but we had a really good photo safari.

Frederick photos