15 September 2005

Archaeology at your desk

I just read the most interesting story on DIGG about a man who discovered an ancient roman villa in his home town in Italy. He was just board at work and playing around with Google Earth and he stumbled upon it. After doing some more research online and with Google maps he decided to call a museum and find out if they knew anything about this site. They then confirmed that this was a new find and it is thought to be from ancient Roman times. So next time your bored, do some archaeology at your computer. Here is a link to the story about him at Nature.com.

Also for those of you who are good 'ol Tech TV fans, check out This Week in Tech. It is a weekly podcast from the screen savers crew. I have to say, its better than what comes through my radio while I am stuck in Atlanta traffic.

Oh and an update on the horrible pain I was in... It still hurts, just not debilitating. Meaning, whomever wants to play some disk golf/regular golf let me know. That one is for you Foster.

I think I am going to start posting more links I find interesting here. If you think they are cool, let me know, if they suck, oh well.

09 September 2005

Damn this hurts

I don't know how I did it but I managed to inflame a nerve in my neck. After the party(had a blast and thanks to all that came) I worked the next day building a deck up at the lake. All went well, I left with all fingers still intacked. Woke up the next day a little sore in the neck but no big deal. Then I the next couple of days I spent on the PS2 and studying for an accounting test without much sleep. Then Tuesday, the night before the test, my neck is really killing me.

I woke up at midnight with a stabbing pain. Ok, slept on it wrong, so I took some Advil and hit the sac. Only to find out that I couldn't move after I had laid down. Can't sit up, can't roll over, and now my left arm is in pain too. Ok now I'm here in the dark thinking, how can I only be 23 and having a heart attack? No more fries for me. That can't be it, maybe its hepatitis, they say you get a stiff neck from that, but I don't live in the dorms anymore, and thats a college freshman thing anyways. So I can't move and I am going crazy too. I try to fall back to sleep, I figure I'm stuck maybe it will go away when I wake up. I try my best not to move, even breathing hurts.

After some fitful sleep I fall out of bed, in more pain than before and I can not even hold my head up, My good arm now has to do that, and I can't feel my left. I wander the house and find Bobby at his computer letting his new bot cheat for him in WOW and watching Veronica Mars on his laptop. I tell him I am dying and that he can have my speakers when I'm gone. He calms me down tells me to take more Advil and go to sleep.

That does not work. By 8:30 I am calling my doctor. The phones are down, what the hell? I call bell south, they know there is a problem at the doctors office, but they are not authorized to tell me when it will be fixed or any other way I can get in contact with my DOCTOR! Gee thanks.

Next its time to call the family, Mother knows best and all. Call the insurance and go to a clinic. Like any good son, I listen to Mom when I'm in pain. Come to find out that even though I have the best damn PPO that blue cross blue shield offers that they will not cover walking into an emergency room unless there was an accident or it was proven to be an emergency. So I ask where I can go that is covered?
The response from the operator "you have the freedom of choice plan you can go where ever you want."
Great I say, so I am going to Emory right down the street and you will take care of it?
"No we will only cover you for doctors that are in network."
I am in alot of pain right now, and you have the nerve to try this bull on me??? I wanted to rip her head off. I hang up, that was a dead end.

Now I need to get to my doctor, I can't drive, Bobby doesn't have a license. Its time to wake up James.
Hey, can you drive me to the doctor? I'm dying.
James "What?"
Yeah I pinched a nerve in my neck or something and I can't move my head. Just let me know when you've got some pants on.
James still half asleep "ok"
What a trooper, so he gets up, checks his email, puts on some pants, downloads his work for the day and takes me to funwoody.

I get to the docs and tell them that they have no phone service. I have no appointment, I need to see someone. Ok go talk to so-and-so. I go talk to this woman, I tell her I need to see a doctor and that I am a walk in.
She says that only one doctor is in and that she doesn't have anything until around 1 in the afternoon.
I tell her thats fine as she leaves the room, and I ask if she could get me something for the pain in the meantime.
At that she turns around and says, He will see you in 15 minutes. Go fill out some paperwork.

I hobble my way to the waiting room. Mind you I look like a cross between frankenstine and the hunchback of notre dame because my head doesn't move and its cocked at a bit of an angle.

I tell James they are gonna see me. He's cool with it. He then informs me that there are fire ants where the male and female genders are different species. I have a feeling that he is enjoying his time in the waiting room reading Scientific American.

I get called, they take me in and weigh me. Why I do not know. Yes I'm 265; what does that have to do with the fact I can't turn my head or move my arm? Finally the doc comes in, he asks whats wrong. I tell him I have no idea how it happened but I can't move my head, and my arm is numb.
He pokes around my neck and back. "Ok, you have an pulled muscle, it has tightened around the nerve and thats why you can't feel your arm. This means that the nerve is inflamed, and that is causing more muscle spasms and thus is putting more pressure on the nerve." (you see the vicious cycle?)
Great.. now what? I wonder.
"Take some pills, you might be better in a week, if not call me back."
So I leave there with cortisone pills, muscle relaxers and pain pills. Time to call the fam back and let them know I'm ok. No heart attack or infectious disease, just too much playstation. In 30 minutes I will be in a doctor prescribed drug haze and all the pain will be gone. Hydrocodone can do that for ya.

Now it is Friday, and I just realized that. For some reason, I still thought it was Wednesday. Amazing what modern medicine can do. I'm still hurting and I can't really look around. However in 5 minutes when that pain killer I just took kicks in, I will be back to thinking its Wednesday, and when I wake up from this daze it will be the weekend. Yay for that.

02 September 2005

Party at Lavista!

Its Labor day weekend, you all know what that means. Beer, friends and fun. Friday night at 8ish, my place. White house with white mailbox with a big green plant under it. Here are Directions. Google is your friend. I hope to see you all. Bring folding chairs if you have 'em.