I Have A Dream

Last night I watched the Peter Jennings special on the 40th anniversary of the March on Washington, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech, "I Have A Dream". It's sobering to see just how much, and just how little, has changed in North America with respect to human rights since that speech.

For anybody who cares to read, here are three speeches:

November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln: ( The Gettysburg Address )

June 11, 1963, John F. Kennedy: ( televised address to the nation )

August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr.: ( I Have a Dream )

Ode to SUV's

AKA, How do I hate thee, let me count the ways.

You know how there have been articles lately about a study that shows the health dangers of suburban sprawl? Basically, since sprawl results in people taking their cars everywhere because nothing is within walking distance, sprawl dwellers end up with increased rates of heart attacks, hypertension, an average of 6 lbs extra of weight, etc etc.

Well, this article is somewhat related. It's from the Des Moines Register, and I got to it after following a yahoo news link, "Cars, Trucks Now Outnumber Drivers".

( Gaps: Combat death vs. SUV: It doesn't compute )

Mother Nature is a Misogynist

Warning: this entry falls entirely within the category of Big Old TMI

My much-anticipated appointment with GyneGuy was today. And what's been resolved?

Bugger all.

For one thing, he didn't get my ultrasound from the lab yet (they're still not done processing), so there wasn't much he could really tell me. He did do a quick exam and said that as far as he could tell, the fibroid hasn't grown much. It's still about 10cm (4") across. Making my uterus the size of one that holds a sixteen-week old fetus. How nice.

Then, after looking at my file, he said we've got the following options:

1) Wait and see
2) Pain meds of various varieties
3) Anti-bleeding meds
4) Hormones of various flavours, to stop bleeding or shrink the fibroid
5) A couple of different kinds of surgery to shrink the damn thing - basically by stopping the bloodflow to it and killing it off
6) Removing the fibroid, which because of its size would probably pretty much be the equivalent of
7) Hysterectomy

Do we still want more kids? he asks.

Well... yeah.

OK, then we'll just wait and see, he said.

Basically, back to where we were before I went back on the Pill and the other hormone therapy. I'm supposed to stop taking the hormones, give myself another month to get it out of my system, then resume trying to have another child. But this time, take iron supplements, keep better track of my cycle, and go back to see him after three months.

This time we also have his phone number for his clinic, so that we aren't put in the position we were in this last time: I'm basically bleeding to death, everybody says I've gotta go in and see him NOW, but the hospital gives me an appointment five weeks away.

He'll also probably end up doing some kind of test to see whether I've been unable to conceive for over a year because the fibroid is blocking my fallopian tubes.

So. ::deep sigh::

Back to square one.