Tuesday, August 16, 2022 7:38 PM

Hello! No I'm not saying a 'bad' word, today was all about Larry's blood. When we arrived around 11:30 the dialysis nurse was struggling with the machine & Larry's pic line in his neck. She said she'd been at it for 3 hours, using 2 different machines and was at a loss for what to do. She bandaged up his neck & said someone would come later.

I left for lunch when the nurse came In to do Larry's hygiene. When I came back, there was a white towel against his neck, blood was showing. His blood was not clotting. The challenge is that he has been on blood thinners for clots since his strokes. When I thought too much was too much, I spoke to a nurse in the hallway who said they were aware, and someone was coming. When the tech came to remove Larry's Holter monitor from yesterday, he told me to tell someone about the bleeding. I saw the Unit Neurologist & asked her to come see. She said that she understood why it would look alarming to a non-medical person. I told her my concern was, without frequent monitoring when I'm not there, if it got out of hand. She assured me that an alarm would go off. Shortly after, a nurse came and did a good cleaning and extra gauze & bandaging, along with that white towel over it, which quickly started absorbing blood. I have no idea about what will happen regarding dialysis. 

  The neurologist gave me a lot of information. She said that they would put a feeding tube through his abdomen, removing the one from his nose, as it has been there too long. She said that it was not a guarantee that he would not vomit, and at the worst, aspirate his food. She said that if it happened and he got pneumonia again that would be a huge set-back. She said something like "Are you willing to have him go back to ICU & be intubated again?" I told her that a 'set-back' and a longer road ahead, were not reasons to throw in the towel. Larry is farther behind with the delirium than he was a few days post-surgery. So, yes the road is a very long one. We have absolutely no idea how long and how difficult. I can only manage getting through today and hoping for tomorrow. Larry belongs to God, not to me! I have to surrender to whatever will be. 

  Larry only opened his eyes about 5 times for barely one minute each time. I was happy to see him sleep peacefully for a couple of hours without coughing, until the afternoon.

  Now, let me tell you 2 lovely stories. I saw an invoice for Larry's on-line violin lessons. I wrote to tell them about Larry's stroke and present situation. I thanked them very much for the joy they've brought Larry and even now, as I play the songs that he learned. The teacher wrote the most beautiful email, as if Larry had been her 'favorite' pupil, taking lessons & playing with her in her living room studio. She said such lovely things & said she was so pleased that his lessons brought him such joy & is praying for Larry & hopes he'll join her again soon.

 The 2nd story is about Larry's long-time friend through GF Strong and on the rivers & lakes, for many, many years. Phil wrote in story form, about a fishing trip to a lake, where Larry (out on his own) caught more fish than the rest. It turns out that Larry saw a tackle box floating far away from where the others were fishing. He was thrilled with the beautifully tied flies in the box, and helped himself to a few. Hence the fisherman's luck! When they told their fish stories that night, one of the lads said how sad he was to lose his tackle-box, filled with his special flies, & having no clue where it might be. Well… you know the rest of the story. Plus, Larry ended up with a few more beauties, as Aaron told him to pick a few, as a thanks for finding his tackle box. Phil is so faithful in cheering his 'buddy' on, telling him the fish are waiting for him. Fishing & music, 2 of Larry's favorite pass times!

 Hoping for a good night of rest and a good day tomorrow for Larry.  God bless you!