I've had enough experience now with chronic pain to state that if you've not experienced itself, you won't really understand just how sucky it really is. It's far easier to "suck it up" with a finite injury or temporary condition. Even a mild chronic pain can be like 400 1-lb canaries landing on your back.

Yes, I'm aching a lot this morning, as it happens. :-(

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Well, that was incredibly frustrating. I am not at lisah's show. Why? I couldn't find the place. Why? I wrote down the wrong address. I'm feeling really stupid and irritated right now.

If it makes you feel any better, we all missed it. Lisah told me to arrive early 'cause of the lines, but did I listen? No. So, although we got there about six, we spent the next half hour in the "will call" line. Very frustrating. At least we got to see other buffistas. And roller derby. Which was all I hoped it would be, and more.

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Local news is reporting a high school in Holden will be closed tomorrow because of a bomb threat. what is this world coming to?

Sometimes there will be a big, psychotic spree, and then a bunch of aftershocks. Maybe we're seeing the ripples from the Virginia Tech murders.

I'm glad everyone's everyone in Kansas City is safe.

I guess I have to go see a doctor about it as well as my favourite masseuse. I already have chronic migraines and consider my life borderline ruined because of it. I can't lose my neck and shoulder health too. This is remarkably remarkably painful. I'm on the biggest drugs I know how to take safely and I'm scared to turn my head. The informal massage helped, and dramatically. I just hoped it could get me to bedtime.

A doctor is a good idea. Depending on what kind of injury this is, a cervical collar might help. What happened, ita? If you said, I missed it.

Thanks Cindy!

The cheesecake feeding can be the second thing, once he's too worn out to resist.

Yeah see, that was crystal clear to me all along. I don't know why it wasn't to Jess.

It's far easier to "suck it up" with a finite injury or temporary condition.

It really, truly is. And pain in some locations is easier to keep in a mental box, than pain in others. Head, neck, shoulder, and back pain? Not so much.

ita and Theo, I hope you both feel better.

eta...

The Boston Globe has an article about Botox treatment for migraines: [link]

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I have reentered the world of the regular coffee drinkers. Just one cup a day. Some days, like today, one cup is still too much. I am almost too jittery to do anything. I wonder if drinking a lot of water will dilute it's strength.

I have a friend who gets botox injections for rigidity cause by her MS. It's injected into the muscles and then there's physio to helo get movement into the muscles. It helps, but she dislikes it.

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Sue, one cup of regular coffee became too much for me (I think because I completely abused coffee with abandon from about September through January). We started making our coffee with two scoops of regular and three scoops of decaf. I can now drink quite a few cups of it. The slower caffeine delivery is making a huge difference for me.

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I think for me, it's drinking it on an empty stomach, because it seems to hit harder first thing in the morning.

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Another Teddy update --

He had another vet appointment yesterday afternoon. He'd gained half a pound, so the appetite stimulant has been cut back to 1/4 pill once a day because we don't want him to get fat. Turns out it's also an anti-anxiety pill, which may explain why he's also seemed happier over the past few days. And even fighting back when Max and Marie try to bully him.

He took well to sub-cutaneous fluid, at least in the vet's office. He gets 200 ml every three days, so we'll have a better idea of his regualr reaction on Wednesday. He also seems to be taking well to the lower protein diet.

The regular vet also explained the situation better than the specialist did. So best guess at this time is, we're dealing with low-grade kidney disease, which is pretty normal for aging cats. He also may have a low-grade heart murmur, which is also pretty normal for aging cats.

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Aw poor Teddy. It's sounds like he's getting lots of care and love.

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Yay Teddy!

ION: Wacky headline of the morning (almost sounds like an Onion headline, but it's not):

Anti-piracy group pirates anti-piracy report

A reader writes, "The International Chamber of Commerce 'Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting And Piracy' initiative has been accused of pirating thousands of documents from anti-piracy tracking service Gieschen Consultancy. The documents apparently later reappeared in a slightly different format under the ICC's own brandname. Statement from the consultancy:"

"The ICC and BASCAP misrepresented themselves as a partner in 2006 and 2007, gained access to proprietary information and then took what they learned and incorporated it into their own product offerings.

Its functionality, user interface, presentation, method of classification, and delivery is clearly based on our designs and existing products. It is extraordinary that an organization committed to fighting counterfeiting and piracy would steal the intellectual property of another organization."

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Sounds like a good Teddy report to me. Yay!

Gentle soothing vibes to the Buffistas in pain. I can't even imagine. I rarely have any pain and I'm a big baby sissy head when I do. I wish there were clearer solutions and that you didn't have to try so many varieties of therapy to find relief. I'd shoulder a bit of it for you if I could.

Insanity this week as I attempt to do too damn much in too little time. I fear I will have to limit my visits here drastically. Sad making. You may not hear from me until I get to Atlanta. Have better than normal Mondays all.

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