« January 2006 | Main | March 2006 »

February 20, 2006

Having fun with photography again

Many of you know that I have a love of photography. Over the past couple of years I have let that hobby slip somewhat. I found that I was only taking photos at family gatherings or on an as-needed basis and not really having fun with it like I used to. I am happy to report that those days are over.   I bought a new digital camera last week that I have fallen in love with and it has ignited that fire in me again. It's a DSLR called the Canon EOS 350D. (aka Digital Rebel XT)  Let me tell ya, this is no point-n-shoot camera.  It's much more advanced and gives me loads more control over my shots.  Well, Sunday was gray outside so I decided to take it for a spin in my kitchen sink, of all places, with some water droplet shots. Below is one example and you can see 2 others by clicking on the link below it.  Wow, I really love this camera!!

To see two more shots click the link below.

Posted by pixelbrat at 7:07 PM | Comments (2)

February 14, 2006

Credit card fraud update

I doubt many of you remember this but back in December while my brother was still in a coma we learned that someone had gotten a hold of one of our credit card numbers. The evildoers racked up a huge amount of charges before we noticed it. (This happened because we pay our bills electronically so we were not in the habit of checking our statements every month. Lesson learned.) Well I finally got a call from the fraud investigator last night and all the fraudulent charges, finance charges, and over-the-limit fees have been credited back to our account. WHEW!! To say we are relieved is a huge understatement. I think I can finally relax now - Justin is safe at home, my breast lump is benign and now the credit card mess is resolved. ~Sigh~ Time for a vacation. Hmmmm, a trip to Topsail Island, NC is sounding damn good right now...
jive.gif

Posted by pixelbrat at 6:10 PM | Comments (1)

February 9, 2006

Update: I'm fine. The lump is benign.

Just a quickie tonight... had a really long day. I ended up having to call the doctor's office this morning because I hadn't heard anything from them. I finally got a call back a few hours later and was given the 'all clear'. The lump came back benign. They said it was a fibroadenoma (a benign lesion) and nothing to worry about. Whew!

Posted by pixelbrat at 9:01 PM | Comments (2)

February 6, 2006

Core Biopsies Suck!

I had the biopsy of my breast lump today. Ouch! Well, it wasn't horribly painful but it was certainly no fun to experience. You want to hear something screwy about the whole procedure? The most painful part was when they gave me the Lidocaine injections to numb the area!    Damn, those burned something awful!  Moving on...  While they performed the procedure they viewed the mass at the same time using the ultrasound machine so they could make sure they were sampling the right area.  I found this really neat to watch, but a bit daunting at the same time.  I'm not sure what sort of device they used for taking the actual samples (I was afraid to look at it, to be honest... ) but it sounded awful while they were doing it.  It was as though they shot me with a little punch or something.  It sounded kind of like an ear piercing gun.  From what I could tell on the ultrasound monitor, they shot a needle-like thing through the core of the mass to extract the sample.  I can't tell you how bizarre it was to be watching an enlarged view of the mass on the screen and then suddenly seeing a thin white line (the needle thing) shooting through the middle of it, all the while knowing that it was happening to my boob!  Icky, I know.  They did this five times (!) so surely they got a good sample.  When it was over they patched me up with a Steri-Strip and covered the area with gauze.  I went back to work, where it ached most of the afternoon, but feels a bit better now.  At least that part is over.  The doc said I should get the results by Wednesday.  I'll be sure to report back as soon as I get the info.  I'm sure all will be fine.

Posted by pixelbrat at 8:22 PM | Comments (4)