Thanks once again to everyone for your support, you are all so dear to me.

And now for something completely different:

CAPH, YIPPIE YI YAY!!!! Boy, did we ever need some good news today!!

I did the Riverdance on the day I got my new job, and I'll do it again when you post to tell us that your DH is completely cured. Here's a preview of me doing the Riverdance:

\:D/

Great news, Caph!

And in case you don't like the HMO decision, you can go to arbitration without the high lawyers fees.

What good news Caph! And I want to see PM Riverdance! :)

And when PM does her Riverdance, she will also yodel! ;)

Thanks everyone! I wanna see that Riverdance too!!

stw, too funny--I forgot she can yodel! Start practicing P_M!!! ;-)

CAPH,what a perfect, perfect rave.

Jorr,
I barely caught the end of a CNN report about two hours ago. Evidently the protesters did not show, as planned, at another military funeral today.

Caph, what wonderful news! You're often in my thoughts and prayers and i hope things continue to get better and better....you'll have to plan another trip to celebrate!

ronkala, I'm glad the protesters did not show up and I hope they will not show up at the Tuesday funeral in Oklahoma that okieinkauai is talking about.

PM, From what you have said about your BIL it makes me wonder about my alcoholic brother. He has done some strange things in the past few years which doesn't seem normal. He has been obsessed with getting his name off of email he sends and also blocking his name from all caller ID systems. He also uses several phone cards to further block his identity on long distance calls.

I think that someone who sends email to people and hides who he is, or blocks his identity to people he calls is very strange. I told him a few years ago that I think it is strange and that I don't like getting unidentified phone calls and emails, and that nobody else does either.

He makes nearly a hundred thousand a year and still lives in a very small house with no mortgage, no wife, no kids, nothing but what he started out with thirty years ago. I'm pretty sure he has a gambling problem but I can not figure out why he is so secretive and closed. If you ask him a normal question about anything concerning his personal life he gives you the stare of death.

Has your BIL displayed any behavior like this? Please give me your thoughts.

Hi, jorr. I know you've been dealing with similar issues and I'm happy to help you in any way possible. BIL does act very paranoid, like he doesn't want to be found. Like your brother, BIL is always broke. BIL is also very defensive just when you ask him a simple question, and he constantly accuses people of judging him, even if you just look at him the wrong way. So yes, I can see some parallels here, and I wonder if your brother's problem doesn't extend beyond alcohol.

Unfortunately I must get to work now, but I'll be back on the board later tonight. I'll give this some thought and post more later.

Regarding my entertainment skills, I will yodel, Riverdance, or even do flips when CAPH's DH is cured. :-)

Hi PM, The simularities are increadible. The words paranoid and defensive which you used are exact words for my brother. One difference is that my brother does not accuse people of judging him but only because he is so secretive about everything and he has managed to keep himself out of most leagal or criminal trouble.

I will give you some more information so you can give me some feedback since you are in a very similar situation with your BIL.

My brother calls M&D to say he is coming to our town to meet for breadkfast (he does not exist past 2 in the afternoon). When morning comes he calls and has a sickness excuse and doesn't show up.
He tells M&D he has tons of money but he does not.
He shuts up everybody and carries a black cloud when ever he does show up for something.
He gets very irratable when someone is talking about something they like, are proud of, a new friend, a new bird on the feeder, a wort that went away. It does not matter what the subject is, he gets all bent out of shape and brings everybody in the room down to his level of gloom.

Another trait of my brother is that he trusts nobody. Installing a ceiling fan in my house was going to result in my house burning down. My driving is going to get everyone in the car killed. Our retired mother who is a very sharp accountant does not know what she is doing. All of M&D's friends are using them. This is all false.

I hope to hear from you when you get back from work.

Jorr

Hi, jorr, I'm at lunch now so I have a few more minutes to visit with you. Some of those things you mentioned do not apply to BIL, but some do. We don't have a lot of family gatherings, but when we do, he does bring that black cloud with him. Everyone is afraid to say anything, because he's so easily offended. It's like he's got a chip on this shoulder and he's waiting for someone to say the wrong thing so he can get mad and tell everyone what he thinks of us. For example, one time his elderly aunt had called for some info for a family history scrapbook she was making and she asked us to get info from BIL. When I called BIL to ask him if he would like to participate in the project, he shouted, "Sure, I'll tell you what you want to know, why do you think I have something to hide?" I tried to explain to him that I was asking permission because some people don't like to give out personal info. He continued bellowing that he has nothing to be ashamed of and he can't believe I asked that question. As it turned out, the only info his aunt wanted was on marriage dates and childbirth, so he provided that.

As far as our personal lives go, we tell him very little, if anything. Unlike your brother, BIL does not claim to have a lot of money, in fact, he constantly talks about how poor he is while we are so "rich." (we're not really) He plays on DH's sympathy and says we should "help" him more. (Help=give him money) Before we knew he was an addict, DH was giving him money from time to time, and in those days he was very lovey dovey with us. But when we found out it was going to drugs, we cut him off financially and since then he has been very angry and hateful to us. He still asks for money from time to time, but it's in the form of a demand. Of course, he is always refused now that we know what it's for.

Regarding your last paragraph, yes BIL does look for fault in everyone, then he harps on it endlessly. He tries to make us feel worthless because it's the only way he can feel superior.

If I think of anything else I'll post back later. I am happy to talk to you about this anytime, I would love to help.

CAPH, Good news!
Sounds like your Docs have more sense than several others mentioned here recently (esp. JJ5's person who apparently didn't know muscle problems were serious side effects of statins).
I think, as a retired doc, I'll hang on to my self paid "world wide indemnity health insurance".

M

CAPH--Yay!!! YAY!!! YAAAAAAYYYYY!! What a great bit of news.

OWJ

CAPH, when I heard your news, I thought of attempting a cartwheel .... but then I thought not! :-d I am SO HAPPY that your visit was much better than expected. You and your husband will continue to be in my thoughts and prayers!

Regarding the cholesterol discussion, I am from a family of seven children .... and considering our experience, and the research I've done in my battle to resist statins, I really believe it's all about genetics and very little about your diet. My ratio of good to bad is excellent, though my total cholesterol is considered high enough that my doctor wants me on Lipitor. I flatly refused ... I am not convinced that cholesterol is the culprit the drug companies would like us to believe it is. Fully one-half of heart attacks patients have no problems with cholesterol. JMHO ... I am willing to follow my own instincts ... which is to say JUST SAY NO to my doctor. :-)

For those of you having to deal with loss and illness, I am so sorry and send big hugs to you all.

I read an interesting statistic today.

*A recent survey by the American Heart Association found that nearly half of women know their greatest risk of dying is from heart disease, but only 13% believe that a heart attack or stroke could happen to them.* ~Prevention Magazine

Heart disease is the <b>number one killer of American women</b>.

http://tinyurl.com/h3kr5

Seetheworld, hey there! Good to see you ... :-)

Just wanted to say that I, for one, am very aware that heart disease is the #1 killer of women, BUT I am not convinced that high cholesterol has that much to do with causing it. I've read and read and read .... and I'm not convinced. Too many *studies* are sponsored by the drug companies, and they have oh-so-much to gain. :-( Everyone has to do what they think best ... Nothing is guaranteed in life.

Dana Reeve lost her battle with lung caner.

Hey there, Bonnie! :)

My numbers are beautiful, couldn't really be much better. They are NOT due to genetics, that's for sure. :)

Yes, everyone needs to do what they feel is best.

Information is power.