whaaa happened?

what's that saying - time flies when you're having fun?

or, time flies when you're crazy busy at work but in a good way because the days go fast and you're being productive and that makes you feel good? (i think that was a run-on sentence).

anyhoo, that's my excuse for not having written.

for an update: while this blog began with the GAB, i now present the ASS: annoying shoulder saga. the latest installment of the ASS has me traveling to palo alto to visit a sports medicine doc. the last i heard from my doc (Dr. W) in santa cruz, he thought i had something like a loose shoulder - but unusual (would you expect anything else?) because it's never been broken or dislocated, and those are the main causes of the looseness. Dr. W's idea was that i'd need surgery to tighten/shorten everything in my shoulder, and he only does this as an open procedure. 4-6 weeks in a sling + then rehab = not a happy cheese. he recommended i see Dr. E because this dude can do the surgery arthroscopically. doesn't save a whole lot of rehab time, but smaller incisions are better than big cuts.

Dr. E saw me a couple of weeks ago and i can't say that i'm a big fan of his after my first visit.

• while the PA was great (and knows the Burninators' goalie!) and very helpful, the doc himself seemed like i was wasting his time. never a good feeling.
• i drove home after yet another cortisone shot - this is #3 in the same area. not a big fan of too many injections in the same place, not to mention the fact that it really messes with my period.
• doc didn't seem interested in hearing what Dr. W thought. in fairness, this could be due to the fact that Dr. W's notes hadn't been faxed yet....grrrr.

anyhow, Dr. E's solution was to give me the shot. my orders were to rest for 2 weeks - no pushing, pulling, lifting, etc. of more than 10 pounds. no hockey, no nothing. that 2 weeks is now up, and for 2 weeks now i can do what i want (hockey!) and don't have the weight restriction.

in 2 weeks, the Dr. E will see how things are (not better as of yet, and i could have told him that without another injection) and will likely order an MRI and might also want to biopsy some of the tissue in my shoulder socket, since it looked red and inflamed. he mentioned the dreaded word autoimmune, so i'm hoping that isn't the case. i've already been tested for lupus (back in high school, for other randomly appearing health issues) and it was negative, thank goodness.

anyhow, it's just the waiting game now. i plan on being at hockey until my next appointment and until i have specific orders NOT to play. the game is too fun and the people i see bring me too many smiles to shut me down just yet.

so that, my friends, is the ASS thus far.