Thanks for the update, Kimberley. Very frustrating that you've got more tests to suffer through, but at least there's still hope that it will look better than they think.

You both are in our thoughts. We're here for you!!!

Thanks, you guys! My mom sent me the following joke...Considering everything, it's oddly appropriate.

The Devoted Wife

A devoted wife had spent her lifetime taking care of her husband. He had been slipping in and out of a coma for several months, yet she stayed by his bedside every single day. When he came to his senses, he motioned for her to come near him.

As she sat by him, he said, ''You know what? You have been with me all through the bad times. When I got fired, you were there to support me. When my business failed, you were there. When I got shot, you were by my side. When we lost the house, you gave me support. When my health started failing, you were still by my side. You know what?''

''What, my dear?'' she asked gently.

''I think you bring me bad luck!''

So are you saying your bad luck. I always knew there had to be a reason for all this. Your the best babe I don't know about luck but it must have been my lucky day when I met you.

Thanks for all the kind words everyone. I'm at the point where I don't want them to say you need surgery but then what if they say you don't need surgery. Kind of a catch 22. I would like them to fix it but I don't want to have to go through surgery again. Such a mixed batch of feelings.

Howie - so sorry to hear that you are having such back problems again. Good luck on Monday.

Back trouble is just awful. for you.

Well, the mylegram was no walk in the park, but everyone at the hospital was beyond courteous - just wonderful folks there. The doctor had a tough time finding a spot to inject the dye and at one point hit a nerve. Howie said he felt like an electric jolt went clear down both legs to his toes. It's one miserable test to have done and he's glad it's over. He tried reclining in his chair for a while, but needed to lie down in bed after all.

Howie's mylegram, CT and X-rays went okay today. He had a very painful jolt down his legs when the radiologist hit a nerve when injecting the dye at first, but he's doing okay now.

Our van was damaged by the parking garage's entrance, though. The hanging guard tubes said the height limit was 6'8" and though our van's front end had adequate clearance, once we started in, the back of the van started scraping the ceiling as the drive sloped down! We couldn't risk getting really stuck in the garage somewhere, so I had to back it out - that ended up pushing down some roof and breaking the third brake light.

Howie mentioned it to the registration clerk just in passing, not expecting them to do anything. She called security, though, and the man took a look at the van and got our contact info. Looks like they'll cover it since the tubes didn't accurately show the minimum clearance. You could see nothing had scraped the van's roof except for the last 18" of it.

Now we just hope the parking garage company will take care of it directly with their insurance and that State Farm won't have to subrogate; if they do, we'll have to pony up $250 until they get payment from the other insurance company and we won't see our money back for 12-15 weeks.

But in the grand scheme, it's small potatoes, you know? We weren't injured and it's only a vehicle.

He's snoozing and I think I'll join him...been a long day and a nap sounds good!

thanks for giving the update. That's great they are going to handle the van problems. Hopefully these next few days will fly by until Monday.

I am ready to hear what he says Monday but I never ever ever want the weekend to go quick. LOL It's Friday and I have the day off and I'm looking forward to a long weekend of nothing. Thanks for all your concerns you guys are great.

I'm so sorry that the two of you have to face this.
I'm sending you my strongest healthy back...good news Monday..healing, loving vibes

I hope everything goes as well as it possibly can.

xoxoxo
Linda

for Monday, Howie. Hoping you hear some good news!

Beverly

Howie,

Weren't you quite a bit heavier the first time you had surgery? I wonder, if surgery is what they tell you, if it would be a different story this time around? I wonder if they could do it less invasively this time around? Did they mentionanything like this?

He's been really sore today so is lying down for a while. I'll fill in what I can.

He had lost weight before his initial injury, getting down to 299. By the time he had surgery, he had gained some back, but I'm not sure how much. He definitely weighs less now than he did back then.

His surgery was a laminectomy (fusion of two vertebrae together) and they came in through his back. Sounds like this surgery would be another laminectomy, just another set of vertebrae. We'll know more Monday.

Howie, I'm so sorry you're having to go through all this pain. I got the shivers when I read about the mylegram--not a procedure you want to have ever again, I'm sure.

I'm crossing my fingers for good news on Monday, and wishing you a relaxing weekend of doing absolutely nothing.

Try to relax and enjoy your weekend the best you can, Howie Best of luck with the visit to the doctor on Monday.

Wow this is all crazy Howie, I hope you at least force your self to disconect from everything this weekend and relax. It's also crazy about the fan, I would imagine even the sound of it scratching against the roof was un-nerving. Any help we can give you on the boards, we're here! (sans-surgery of course. Though if you really wanted i'm sure i could figure it out with a couple text books )