Socialized Medicine: Here's another WTF for you.

A man won the lottery in the UK.

Guess what he wants to spend his winnings on?

Knee replacement surgery.

Why?  Because he tore his cruciate ligament 15 years ago and had to go on disability.

Why was he on disability?

Because NHS will not put you on the wait list for knee replacement until you are 55.

So instead of paying maybe 20k for knee replacement they wanted to pay him disability until he had his surgery.

He tore the ligament when he was 35.

Does that make sense to you?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-10893111

BTW Google lottery winner and knee replacement and see what you get.

http://www.google.com/webhp?tab=yw#hl=en&source=hp&q=lottery+winner%2C+knee+replacement&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=&fp=9cebbf5a0cce78cd

There are a lot of people in the UK who use their lottery winnings to get knee replacement.

WTF?!

Feelin' Groovy

This entire week I've had this overwhelming feeling of dread.

A constant sick feeling in my stomach.

Waking up in the middle of the night trying to figure out what was wrong, what was missing.

Half asleep asking myself, "Where is Gabi?".

Then remembering.

Oh.

Yeah.

She's at the vet.

Crap.

So everyday I visit.

I call two, three times a day.

Everyone knows me by sight now.

"Oh it's Gabi's Mom, go get the Doctor" (I have no name at the vet).

Well, today the Doctor called me at work to give me an update on her condition.

Good news - her blood count is up from 16 to 23, it's suppose to be around 45, but it's increasing rapidly so he's not worried.

Her kidney function is in normal range - which he said was surprising considering she's had two major surgeries in the past 6 days which left her with one kidney.

The best news of all... she can come home!

But we still don't have the biopsy results from her spleen and kidney.  They had to send that off to South Africa.

Third world country you know.

And people here don't really give a crap about animals, so off to SA pet testing goes.

Anyway, on my way to pick her up I was thinking about how sad I felt and how I missed my husband and I figured I'd spend the evening wallow in the bed or sitting on the couch staring into space.

Because, well, I've got this overwhelming feeling of doom hanging over me.

And that's what you do when you have doom.

I walk in to the vet - and I get the regular shout out... "Hi Gabi's Mom!" (I'm resigned to the fact they will never know MY name).

I collect my little dog with all her medicine and instructions on how "calm" I have to keep her for the next two weeks.

And I can't believe how much more alert and happy she is.  She even sat up for the whole car ride home looking out the window like she usually does.  And she was wiggling in joy around me.

The last time I took her to the vet she didn't even raise her head from the car seat, much less sit up.

My mood starts improving.

Then we get home, I change then sit in "our" chair.  It's the chair Gabi and I hang out in during the evenings.  I'm scratching her back, rubbing her belly, massaging her feet...AAANNNDD

I realize that I'm happy.

All the way to the bone happy.

No doom and gloom, no sick feeling.

Just happy.

All is right in my world.

Tonight at least.

It doesn't get any better than this...

Well without my husband home it doesn't get any better than this.

With him home it would be perfect.

O.K. I'm a little D.R.U.N.K.

I'm a little drunk tonight.

Maybe not a little - maybe a lot.

My little love Gabi, my little dog that I've had for the last 10 years is ill.

Very ill.

Like they've taken her spleen and one of her kidney's ill.

And they still don't know what exactly is wrong with her ill.

I've had her since I was single and she landed on my door step.  Someone had starved her and dumped her in the park across the street from where I lived to die.  And of course she found her way to my front door and I had to keep her.

She was in my bed before my husband (he has her side of the bed now).

She keeps me company when he's out of town.

She's the reason why I don't freak out at every little sound in the house.

She's the reason why my blood pressure isn't sky high.

Even the cat misses her (she's in the hospital right now and the cat is freaked out).

I love this little dog (maybe not so little - she weighs 40+ pounds and has pitbull in her).

I rub her belly and everything is o.k. in her world and in mine.

She's so sweet.

Look at that face.  How can you deny it?

I'm shattered.

I don't know if I've done the right thing in having the vet take her spleen on Tuesday and her kidney today.

Am I prolonging her life because I'm being selfish and I need her in my life?

They don't know if it's cancer and if it's not they think she can have a full recovery.

But I'm putting her through so much.  She's had 2 major surgeries in the 6 days.  I don't want her to be in pain, but I want to give her every opportunity.

For her sake and mine.

I love this little dog.  She's been with me through so much - being married, living in the hell that's known as London, living in Dubai - which while it's not hell but it's half way there.

I know that she's "just a dog" but anyone who's had a dog as a part of the family knows they worm their way into your heart and it's like losing a member of the family.

And I worry that I'm trying to extend her life past what is good for her, just because I need her so much.

I'm so sad.

I wish we were in the US where she would have better care.

The great house hunt...

We're going to start looking for a new place to live...

Here in Dubai.

For about 6 months.

Hopefully we can find a 2 bedroom with maid's quarters for a low price.

I'll start on Sunday.

Right now I'm enjoying my Ben Nevis, watching movies, while the hubby is napping.

Life is good.

YES! YES! YES!

California overturned Prop 8!

I'm so excited!  One more step toward equality for everyone in America!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100805/ap_on_re_us/us_gay_marriage_trial

Hopefully this can be something that will soon be at the Federal level and not just state by state.

My life

Is  a bit up in the air right now - I don't really want to talk about it because I think it'll jinx the outcome.

Superstitious much?

If it doesn't go well I'll be crushed.

So thinking positive, happy, healing, thoughts.

Please feel free to join in.

I'm back....

And I started my diet yesterday.

So far so good - but it has only been 2 days...

Being in the good old US of A was not kind to my waistline.

I just couldn't help myself - Brisket, Cupcakes, TexMex, drinks and eats with the peeps.

How could I say no?!

When I go to the US it's the only vacation where I gain weight - anywhere else, Europe, Asia etc... I never gain a pound.

But send me to America - I can't help myself - I chomp down all the foods I miss.

And I chomp them down multiple times.

Yum, yum, yum.

What can you do?