Say what?

So I was in an accident on the 4th of January. Triton and I were in his truck, a Ford Ranger, stopped at a stop sign in a parking lot when we were rear ended by a Subaru Outback. The lady had to be going at least 25-30 mph because we were pushed over 10 ft out. Triton was fine and the lady was fine but my neck and back hurt so the police said they could call an ambulance to take me to the hospital to get checked out or I could go my self but that I needed to go. So once the cop left my mom followed us to Triton's house and then took me to the ER. We got there at midnight and didn't get out till 2:30 am. They took 9 x-rays and determined that my back and neck are strained.

Now, 2 weeks later, I still have pain every-other day in my neck, and have pain in my back every day, dull aches with stabbing pain thrown in once in a while. The lady's insurance said they are going to pay for all my medical and sending me a $500 check for pain and suffering. I'm thinking "Great! I could use $500!" but most people I have been talking to are telling me that they are just trying to pay me off and that I should get a lawyer. They tell me I should get more money because I am still in pain and I could still be in pain for a while. On the other hand people are saying I don't need a lawyer because $500 is plenty. I am also being told I need to go to the doctor again to get checked out again before I get the checked cashed in case there is something that didn't show up at the ER, so I won't have to pay for it. Yes, I am going to go to the doctor.

What do you think about getting a lawyer?

Stress!

I am SO stressed! I do enjoy Christmas but this year has been hard seeing as I have been out of a job since the middle of October and have very little money, very little. This year at least half of my gifts to others were either from eBay or were homemade. Now that Christmas is here, I am a little less stressed. But now I have to find a job asap and save all the money that I can for May. The other day I was told by one of my visiting teachers that the preschool she works at (Head Start) is hiring. So now I have filled out my application and just need to write a resume, which I have never done. Oh, how money causes stress. I have learned that when I am stressed I get picture-happy and take a lot of pictures. Most of them are of whatever is around me and random things and are pointless but I take them anyway. I have many, many, many other things that are causing me much more stress but I am sure I have bored you enough. Thank you for taking your time to read my nonsense rambling and putting up with my random links.

Would you want to know?

If someone close to you was going to die would you want to know? I have thought about this many times within the last month and a half seeing as there has been two deaths and one hospital visit in my family.

First. My grandpa (my mom's dad) was diagnosed about a year ago with Alzheimer’s and also with Dementia with Lewy Bodies, Lewy Body Dementia. Lewy Body is like Parkinson's, it can result in rigid muscles, slowed movement and tremors. He went down hill very fast. At one point my grandma had such a hard time taking care of him she put him in a home for those with Alzheimer's. He was only there for about 6 months because of money issues. He came home the end of September. I think he was happy being back home with my grandma and decided it was ok to go because once he was home he got worse every day. When he got home he was feeding himself, walking, and talking, though not always coherently. It got to where we had to help him walk, feed him soft foods, and if he said something, it was mumbling. Tuesday, October 12Th we were told he was going to go within the next 3 days and that he was what they call "actively dying". Actively dying is when you can literally watch them die, skin changes color, eyes sink back, veins get dark...etc. I was lucky enough to see him 4 hours before he passed. I held his hand and said my goodbyes. He died at 4:30 AM on October 14Th. This is a time I am glad I knew he was going because I got to say goodbye and I really needed that with my Grandpa.

Second. The same day my grandpa died, my dad went to the ER because he was having chest pains. They thought he was having a heart attack and admitted him into the heart and lung center and the Intermountain Hospital. After doing an angiogram, an echocardiogram and many Many MANY other tests, they told us he didn't have a heart attack but he had fluid in the sack around his heart and if he would have waited 3-4 more hours he most likely would have had a heart attack and died because the pressure from the fluid would have stopped his heart. They put a catheter in the sack around his heart and drained all the fluid. Even after doing all the tests they don't know what caused the fluid. They said it could have been from a virus but that is still a guess. After keeping him in the ICU for a couple days and doing more tests, they put him in a regular room until they let him leave on Saturday (October 17Th).

Last. My cousin Laura and her husband Nick were starting their own little family. She was due New Years day. When they found out they were having a girl they named her Jamie Elizabeth. Laura's sister Lisa told me I had to take a ton of pictures of Jamie and send them to her because she was leaving October 14Th for the MTC and wouldn't be here to see Jamie. We were all so excited. Nick would wake up for work and talk to Jamie and wake her up then would leave for work leaving Laura unable to go back to sleep with Jamie moving all around. They had the baby shower November 7Th and loved everything they got. The next day Laura was having contractions so Nick took her to the doctor and when they checked Jamie she had no heart beat. When they delivered her there was no fluid in the amniotic sack and the umbilical cord got smaller and smaller the closer it was to Jamie. The smallest part was as thick as a pencil. They aren't sure why there was no fluid or why the umbilical cord was the way it was. They had Jamie cremated and the memorial is still to come.

Would you want to know if you were going to lose a loved one? Would it make any different whether it was a grandparent, a parent, or a child?

Skunk Hands

I was on my way to Moon Lake when we stopped in Mountain Home for some gas and ice cream, like we do every year. When i got out there was a dog that greeted me so i decided what the heck, and pet it. A few moments later, my mom got out of the car and was about to pet the dog but just before she did some lady told us that the dog had been sprayed by a skunk. My mom was saved, I on the other hand was not so lucky. I washed my hands with soap over and over and over. I had once heard that tomato juice helps get rid of the smell so my mom gave
me what was closest, V8 juice. The juice helped a bit but not enough. My hands stunk like skunk the rest of the day.