I dont harp on about footy too much on here, in the main Liverpool do well and come out fighting when the chips are down.
Last night was the Champions League semi against Chelsea. We lost 3-2 on the night (4-3 over 2 legs) and in typical Liverpool fashion there was a late show of hope and extra time ensued.
I am bitterly disappointed that we did not progress to face the scum in Moscow but don't take anything away from Chelsea, they deserved their win.
What does force me to scribe here though is the tactical calamity of Benitez in subbing Torres immediately after we conceded a goal. The man is a prat. I don't care that he had a "slight hamstring problem", it did not show and he looked gutted to be pulled off the park. We needed our best player to do a job and taking him off cost Liverpool the tie. He only had to play 15 minutes more and then, even if he did not make the final, he would have 3 month's off to sort the problem out.
As I said....PRAT!!!
So his prat like decisions took league hope away from us and his prat like decisions cost us all the cups this year.
For the record, I state it now, he is not the man for the job. Sorry Rafa, I love what you have done but don't lose the respect, stand aside.
Thursday, 1 May 2008
Progression.....
It looks like I am getting back into the old routine of using the blog to track my progress again.
As I said in my previous entry, I know what is happening to me, I know its early stages but I am also fully aware of what it can turn into.
As I recapped on last year, I forgot all about the severe coldness in my hands and the loss of any kind of accuracy in my typing. It frustrated the hell out of me.
So with both of the above in mind, I am very aware of how things change day to day.
At the moment, my symptoms (we will call them spaz attacks) seem to really only occur when I am combining being in my car and talking (legally of course) on my phone. Its only a slight amount of discomfort but enough for me to say...oh God here comes another.
I have had a few spaz attacks outside of the car too. I seem to have them in bed (same as last year) and occasionally just in a random place at a random time.
As yet, I don't feel the need to demand the steroids but it is nice to know they are there when I need to call on them. I will know the point at which I need them as I know what level I can tolerate so perhaps its all in my hands!!!
As I said in my previous entry, I know what is happening to me, I know its early stages but I am also fully aware of what it can turn into.
As I recapped on last year, I forgot all about the severe coldness in my hands and the loss of any kind of accuracy in my typing. It frustrated the hell out of me.
So with both of the above in mind, I am very aware of how things change day to day.
At the moment, my symptoms (we will call them spaz attacks) seem to really only occur when I am combining being in my car and talking (legally of course) on my phone. Its only a slight amount of discomfort but enough for me to say...oh God here comes another.
I have had a few spaz attacks outside of the car too. I seem to have them in bed (same as last year) and occasionally just in a random place at a random time.
As yet, I don't feel the need to demand the steroids but it is nice to know they are there when I need to call on them. I will know the point at which I need them as I know what level I can tolerate so perhaps its all in my hands!!!
Monday, 28 April 2008
The second coming......
Well folks, it looked like (as I kind of thought it might when I was writing the entry) that I spoke a little too soon on the previous entry.
A very mild but familiar feeling came over me last week when I was driving up and down this great country and almost instantaneously I rang Lourdes hospital in Liverpool to get booked in with my consultant neurologist Dr Nicholson.
The mild feeling is similar to that described in the beginning of my blog over a year ago http://mj2000uk.blogspot.com/2007/03/today-medication-starts.html and I recognise the cramp like feeling coming on and moving down the left side of my body making me feel like a complete spastic while it happens. As I say, this is a mild version of it so spasticity is not quite there yet but I know what this will develop into so I was straight over to Lourdes!!!
Anyway, Kerris and I went to see the consultant tonight (I always like to take Kerris as she seems able to fill in all kinds of blanks that I cant) and after explaining all that's going on on top of the usual hand numbness and balance on the left side we came to the rather obvious conclusion that what happened to me last year was not a one off. I don't swear much but........*******ks.
I now face the very real possibility that this could be MS.
We had quite a long chat with the consultant and decided that there is still a chance that it may not be and that I can be tested for a further condition (neuromyelitis optica or Devic's disease - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devic's_disease) and that the best course of action was to hold out to see if these attacks get worse and if not there will be a note sent from my consultant to my GP for a course of Methylprednisolone and anyone who reads the blog will remember the fun I had with that last year.
All in all though, I feel quite upbeat. The attacks aren't severe, I have a course of treatment on standby if they change and I am being tested for something other than MS (although the consultant did say that MS was the better of the two to have!!!).
If over time I can find something to control the numbness and weakness and the worst case for me is a course of steroids once a year then I can handle that. There is also a strength in me that says "Listen Mike, you have been here and stared this in the face before" so I am not heading into territory that is unknown. So yes, I feel more up than down.
Also on the plus side....just downloaded the new Def Leppard album. Now there is a reason to be cheerful!!!!
A very mild but familiar feeling came over me last week when I was driving up and down this great country and almost instantaneously I rang Lourdes hospital in Liverpool to get booked in with my consultant neurologist Dr Nicholson.
The mild feeling is similar to that described in the beginning of my blog over a year ago http://mj2000uk.blogspot.com/2007/03/today-medication-starts.html and I recognise the cramp like feeling coming on and moving down the left side of my body making me feel like a complete spastic while it happens. As I say, this is a mild version of it so spasticity is not quite there yet but I know what this will develop into so I was straight over to Lourdes!!!
Anyway, Kerris and I went to see the consultant tonight (I always like to take Kerris as she seems able to fill in all kinds of blanks that I cant) and after explaining all that's going on on top of the usual hand numbness and balance on the left side we came to the rather obvious conclusion that what happened to me last year was not a one off. I don't swear much but........*******ks.
I now face the very real possibility that this could be MS.
We had quite a long chat with the consultant and decided that there is still a chance that it may not be and that I can be tested for a further condition (neuromyelitis optica or Devic's disease - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devic's_disease) and that the best course of action was to hold out to see if these attacks get worse and if not there will be a note sent from my consultant to my GP for a course of Methylprednisolone and anyone who reads the blog will remember the fun I had with that last year.
All in all though, I feel quite upbeat. The attacks aren't severe, I have a course of treatment on standby if they change and I am being tested for something other than MS (although the consultant did say that MS was the better of the two to have!!!).
If over time I can find something to control the numbness and weakness and the worst case for me is a course of steroids once a year then I can handle that. There is also a strength in me that says "Listen Mike, you have been here and stared this in the face before" so I am not heading into territory that is unknown. So yes, I feel more up than down.
Also on the plus side....just downloaded the new Def Leppard album. Now there is a reason to be cheerful!!!!
Friday, 18 April 2008
Happy
I am in a good place right now I think.
I was telling Kerris earlier that I am happy.
Happiness is something that most people take for granted but with me, I have had a lot of reasons to not be happy. Following on from my aches and pains, my discontentment at Ingersoll Rand and the rough ride I had from Burg during my time at Onyx, there must have been a good 18 months of my life where happy was not a word used in excess.
I have just completed my 3rd week at Salto. I know the product, I know the sales pitch, I know the people and basically I know what I am doing!!!
Take today as an example, I drove over to Newark (find that on the map) and did a presentation to a company taking care of a security specification for a school of Islam in Oxford. I was happy to drive over on a Friday, contently switching between Thunder MP3 tracks and Radio 2, the customer greeted me and made me feel welcome. I listened to their problem, identified where the Salto product could solve the problem, back up all claims with case studies and practical demonstrations and left with the warm feeling that I know our system will make it into the specification.
THIS IS WHAT MY JOB SHOULD BE LIKE!!!!
I drove home contently, switching between Radio 4, Classic FM and Queen MP3 tracks (1973-1982) and got home on the nose of 5.00 in time to drink a beer and prepare our evening meal.
Its not a lot is it, but for now, I am happy.
I was telling Kerris earlier that I am happy.
Happiness is something that most people take for granted but with me, I have had a lot of reasons to not be happy. Following on from my aches and pains, my discontentment at Ingersoll Rand and the rough ride I had from Burg during my time at Onyx, there must have been a good 18 months of my life where happy was not a word used in excess.
I have just completed my 3rd week at Salto. I know the product, I know the sales pitch, I know the people and basically I know what I am doing!!!
Take today as an example, I drove over to Newark (find that on the map) and did a presentation to a company taking care of a security specification for a school of Islam in Oxford. I was happy to drive over on a Friday, contently switching between Thunder MP3 tracks and Radio 2, the customer greeted me and made me feel welcome. I listened to their problem, identified where the Salto product could solve the problem, back up all claims with case studies and practical demonstrations and left with the warm feeling that I know our system will make it into the specification.
THIS IS WHAT MY JOB SHOULD BE LIKE!!!!
I drove home contently, switching between Radio 4, Classic FM and Queen MP3 tracks (1973-1982) and got home on the nose of 5.00 in time to drink a beer and prepare our evening meal.
Its not a lot is it, but for now, I am happy.
Thursday, 17 April 2008
Amitriptyline
I have held back from adding this entry for a few weeks as for once I wanted to give something a chance before reporting back.
Amitriptyline is a drug that has been prescribed to me following on from some advice I got at the recent MS Life exhibition in Manchester. I got the chance to speak with an MS nurse and I was surprised at how easily she was able to relate to my symptoms.
For over a year now, I have had 2 lingering symptoms of the full blown attack of last year. The 2 symptoms are a constant pins and needles/numbness in my right hand and also a lack of control over my left leg when I walk for any great distance.
The nurse gave me answers to both of these.
With regards to the numbness. Its horrible. It does not stop me from doing anything but it is uncomfortable and causes me to feel somewhat defeated every now and then. The feeling increases when I lie down and most mornings when I wake, it is rife in my hand and I have no feeling at all in the hand. Once I wake, there is no going back to sleep and sometimes it likes to wake me nice and early!! Its a good job that I am not a wriggler in bed for Kerris!!!
Amitriptyline was prescribed by my doctor after I told him that the MS nurse recommended it to reduce the sensation in the hand. Our doctor is great, in his own words......"anything to help". So I have now been taking them for 2 weeks.
The result is a reduction!!! The effects can take up to 4 weeks to be fully felt so hopefully it will continue to reduce the feeling so I am happy that although it does not take the symptom away, it does make it more manageable.
My only other concern now is dependence on medicine to control a symptom. Well, its going to be a test to see if I can keep it up. Perhaps I can get to a stage where I take a lower dose or one every other day but at the moment, I am happy getting it into me!!!
As for the leg control, well that's another story for another entry!!!
Amitriptyline is a drug that has been prescribed to me following on from some advice I got at the recent MS Life exhibition in Manchester. I got the chance to speak with an MS nurse and I was surprised at how easily she was able to relate to my symptoms.
For over a year now, I have had 2 lingering symptoms of the full blown attack of last year. The 2 symptoms are a constant pins and needles/numbness in my right hand and also a lack of control over my left leg when I walk for any great distance.
The nurse gave me answers to both of these.
With regards to the numbness. Its horrible. It does not stop me from doing anything but it is uncomfortable and causes me to feel somewhat defeated every now and then. The feeling increases when I lie down and most mornings when I wake, it is rife in my hand and I have no feeling at all in the hand. Once I wake, there is no going back to sleep and sometimes it likes to wake me nice and early!! Its a good job that I am not a wriggler in bed for Kerris!!!
Amitriptyline was prescribed by my doctor after I told him that the MS nurse recommended it to reduce the sensation in the hand. Our doctor is great, in his own words......"anything to help". So I have now been taking them for 2 weeks.
The result is a reduction!!! The effects can take up to 4 weeks to be fully felt so hopefully it will continue to reduce the feeling so I am happy that although it does not take the symptom away, it does make it more manageable.
My only other concern now is dependence on medicine to control a symptom. Well, its going to be a test to see if I can keep it up. Perhaps I can get to a stage where I take a lower dose or one every other day but at the moment, I am happy getting it into me!!!
As for the leg control, well that's another story for another entry!!!
Monday, 14 April 2008
And another thing about being 35......
There are a few more scary things about turning 35.......
1 - Suddenly, I have moved an age bracket. On all application forms I am now a member of the 35-44 club. This time last month, I was in the 25-34 bracket.
2 - My year of birth, 1973, now requires me to use the scroll bar when selecting it filling out online forms. Again, previously it was there without the scroll!!!
Bummer hey!!!
I have made an executive decision, I will now deploy the power of the Google toolbar "auto fill" option. In doing so, I will no longer have to do any of the above, at least not online anyway!!!
1 - Suddenly, I have moved an age bracket. On all application forms I am now a member of the 35-44 club. This time last month, I was in the 25-34 bracket.
2 - My year of birth, 1973, now requires me to use the scroll bar when selecting it filling out online forms. Again, previously it was there without the scroll!!!
Bummer hey!!!
I have made an executive decision, I will now deploy the power of the Google toolbar "auto fill" option. In doing so, I will no longer have to do any of the above, at least not online anyway!!!
Wednesday, 9 April 2008
A little about being 35.......
I don't think that it comes as any surprise to me that as I change job (once again), it also coincides with my 35th birthday.
Whether you decide to believe this or not, I have had in my head a reasoning that told me that by the time I am 35, I want to be doing the job that will control my future years. This has been on my mind since I turned 30.
I never assumed that I would start down a new path at this time and I did not time this accordingly, it just happened.
So perhaps its fate that as my mental clock tick, I take on a new challenge as the magic 35 arrives.
All I can say about my new job is that it is exactly what I want to be doing right now, it falls nicely into place at the right time and for the first time in my life (certainly career wise) I can see a light at the end of the security tunnel.
Whether you decide to believe this or not, I have had in my head a reasoning that told me that by the time I am 35, I want to be doing the job that will control my future years. This has been on my mind since I turned 30.
I never assumed that I would start down a new path at this time and I did not time this accordingly, it just happened.
So perhaps its fate that as my mental clock tick, I take on a new challenge as the magic 35 arrives.
All I can say about my new job is that it is exactly what I want to be doing right now, it falls nicely into place at the right time and for the first time in my life (certainly career wise) I can see a light at the end of the security tunnel.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
