A New Pill & Tattoo

I'm sitting here on the couch, watching re-runs of MASH. you'd think it'd get old, but I can watch the same episodes over and over without a problem. That's probably because I have this need to multitask so I'm not really watching the episode. Ever since I got this laptop (perks of faculty status) I have been absolutely addicted to the computer. I piss around on it on and off all evening. Sometimes I wonder what life would be like again without a computer at home.

I filled a new prescription today. It's some kind of calcium supplement I'm supposed to take with every meal. My nephrologist said my phosphorus is a bit elevated. I have been trying to cut back on colas, cheese, nuts, etc. but she put me on the pill anyhow. Apparently, when you take this supp with a meal, it binds with the phosphorus in the meal and doesn't get absorbed into your bloodstream. Whatever. I should look up just exactly what the harm is when a person's phosphorus is elevated. How harmful could it be? I know I mentioned this cola thing before, but to tell you the truth, I haven't been doing a very good job keeping off the soda. The funny thing is, prior to her telling me to limit my cola intake, I had nearly given it up entirely -- you know, what with the caffeine restriction, but after I have been craving it all the time! Cola with peanut brittle sounds just perfect right now. Really.

Did I mention I got a tattoo. It's to commemorate my kidney transplant. No, I haven't had the transplant yet, but the transplant center says that I can't get any more tattoos after the transplant. It's considered "risky behavior." I watched my dad do "risky behaviors" until his transplant started to reject so I'm not about to repeat that mistake. I need to get all tatted up before the surgery. I'm thinking maybe some flowers on my forearm. My transplant tattoo is on the inside of my wrist, by the way. Here's a picture. It's my first tattoo, too. I have always thought about getting one, but didn't think there was anything I wanted to commit to for LIFE. The transplant is for life! In case you can't see from the resolution of this photo, there are 2 kidneys in the tattoo! The green band is the color for kidney disease/transplantation.