Relieved

   I was in Rocky Mount working this morning and arrived at one of my Walgreen stores and noticed this going on across the street and thought that maybe someone was losing their home.  The manager of the Walgreen store later told me that it was a controlled burn to make that old house go away and at the same time train some of the firefighters during the process. There are many abandoned houses in most towns in my area slowly showing the signs of decay and neglect. There will be one less in Rocky Mount at the end of the day today.

New Life Abounds

   I was in Rocky Mount this morning and decided to check out the City Lake Park as it was a beautiful and sunny day. I was thrilled to see multiple families of ducks with little ones trotting behind them. I hope you enjoy as much as I did.

Notice the different colored baby ducks.

Breathtaking Photography Taken at Just the Right Time

I was fortunate to find these pictures at www.incredible-pictures.com

Hope you enjoy as much as I did.

Danger Will Robinson

   Surely many of you will remember this pair from "Lost in Space" that I watched in another life. Today it serves as an attention tool for one of my pet peeves. As we sit and watch evening TV we are bombarded with commercials for strange sounding drugs for whatever ailment and at least half of the commercial time is taken up by listing possible side effects if you take their drug.  I have compiled a list and it is actually a little long but it is alphabetical so you can scroll down to one that may peak your interest.  Just felt you should have this information to be more knowledgeable.

Celebrex

Brief Side Effects:
Death, gastrointestinal hemorrhages, stomach bleeding, cardiovascular problems, kidney and liver damage, ulcers, indigestion, diarrhea, abdominal pain, allergic reactions

Cialis

Brief Side Effects:
Permanent, partial blindness 

Coreg

Hypertension, heart attack, heart failure

With certain beta-blocking agents, stopping therapy abruptly has led to chest pain and, in some cases, heart attack. 

Crestor

Brief Side Effects: Unexplained muscle pain, weakness, liver problems, constipation, weakness, abdominal pain, nausea, food interactions, drug interactions

Enbrel

Brief Side Effects:
Serious infections, fatal blood disorders, cancer

* In medical studies of all TNF inhibitors, ahigher rate of lymphoma (a type of cancer) was seen compared to the general population, however, the risk of lymphoma may be up to several-fold higher in RA and psoriasis patients.
* The role of TNF inhibitors in the development of lymphoma is unknown.

Paxil

Brief Side Effects:
Suicide

OFFICIAL:
- suicidal thoughts or behavior whether or not you are taking antidepressants. In some children and teens, antidepressants increase suicidal thoughts or actions. You and your family should watch closely and call the doctor right away, if you have worsening depression, thoughts of suicide, or sudden or severe changes in mood or behavior (for example feeling anxious, agitated, panicky, irritable, hostile, aggressive, impulsive, severely restless, hyperactive, overly excited, or not being able to sleep), especially at the beginning of treatment or after any change in dose.

Plavix

Brief Side Effects:
Excessive bleeding (sometimes fatal)

Procrit

Brief Side Effects:
Hypertension, increased death rate, seizures, thrombosis

Epoetin may cause side effects. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:
* redness, swelling, stinging, bruising, itching, or a lump at the place where you injected epoetin
* headache
* joint or muscle pain
* upset stomach
* vomiting
* indigestion or "heartburn"
* stomach pain
* diarrhea
* constipation
* runny nose
* sneezing
* difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
Some side effects can be serious. The following symptoms are uncommon, but if you experience any of them, call your doctor immediately:
* leg pain or swelling
* shortness of breath
* coughing up blood
* cough that doesn't go away
* blue-grey color or darkening around mouth or nails
* dizziness
* fainting
* blurred vision
* temporary confusion
* slow or difficult speech
* loss of memory or ability to concentrate
* hallucinating (seeing things or hearing voices that do not exist)
* extreme tiredness
* seizures
* weakness, numbness, heaviness, or tingling in arms or legs
* floppiness or loss of muscle tone
* lack of energy
* increased or rapid heart beat
* irregular heart beat
* chest pain or tightness
* excessive sweating
* fever, sore throat, chills, cough, and other signs of infection
* rash
* hives
* itching
* swelling of the face, throat, tongue, lips, eyes, hands, feet, or ankles
* wheezing
* difficulty breathing or swallowing
* hoarseness
- risk of cardiovascular problems, including death, especially in patients with heart disease. It is important for your doctor to check your hemoglobin while you are taking epoetin. If your hemoglobin rises too high or too fast while using epoetin, serious problems may occur, including
- edema (swelling of the hands, feet, ankles, or lower legs),
- heart attack or heart failure,
- high blood pressure, seizures, stroke,
- blood clots in your heart, legs, or lungs.
- high blood pressure, seizures
- other side effects.

Strattera
Brief Side Effects:
Jaundice, liver damage
Life-thretening if taken within 2 weeks of taking a MAO inhibitor.
* In children, the most common side effects wereupset stomach, decreased appetite, nausea orvomiting, tiredness, dizziness, and mood swings.  In adults, the most common side effects were constipation, dry mouth, nausea, decreased appetite, dizziness, problems sleeping, sexual side effects, problems urinating, and menstrual cramps. 

Valtrex
Brief Side Effects:
Headache, nausea, abdominal pain, constipation, allergic reaction, dizziness, tremors, compromised immune system, drug interactions
Viagra
Brief Side Effects:
Permanent, partial blindness
OFFICIAL:
- blood pressure to drop to an unsafe level.
- chest pain, nausea,
- erections lasting for more than four hours
- long-term loss of potency.
- headache, facial flushing,
- upset stomach.
- blurred vision, or being sensitive to light. 

Vioxx
Brief Side Effects:
Fatal heart attack, fatal stroke
* Heart attacks and similar serious events have been reported in patients taking VIOXX.
* Serious allergic reactions including swelling of the face, lips, tongue, and/or throat which may cause difficulty breathing or swallowing and wheezing occur rarely but may require treatment right away. Severe skin reactionshave also been reported.
* Serious kidney problems occur rarely, including acute kidney failure and worsening ofchronic kidney failure.
* Severe liver problems, including hepatitis, jaundice and liver failure, occur rarely in patients taking NSAIDs, including VIOXX. Tell your doctor if you develop symptoms of liver problems. These include nausea, tiredness, itching, tenderness in the right upper abdomen, and flu-like symptoms.
In addition, the following side effects have been reported: anxiety, blurred vision, colitis, confusion, decreased levels of sodium in the blood, depression, fluid in the lungs, hair loss, hallucinations, increased levels of potassium in the blood, insomnia, low blood cell counts, menstrual disorder, palpitations, pancreatitis, ringing in the ears, severe increase in blood pressure, tingling sensation, unusual headache with stiff neck (aseptic meningitis), vertigo, worsening of epilepsy.
More common, but less serious side effects reported with VIOXX have included the following:
Upper and/or lower respiratory infection and/or inflammation
Headache
Dizziness
Diarrhea
Nausea and/or vomiting
Heartburn, stomach pain and upset
Swelling of the legs and/or feet
High blood pressure
Back pain
Tiredness
Urinary tract infection.

Wellbutrin
Brief Side Effects:
Suicide
OFFICIAL:
"Side Effect Overview

- weight loss, loss of appetite,
dry mouth, skin rash, sweating,
ringing in the ears, shakiness,
stomach pain, agitation, anxiety,
dizziness, trouble sleeping,
muscle pain, nausea, fast heartbeat, s
ore throat, and urinating more often.
Seizures may occur
Zocor
Brief Side Effects:
Terrible leg pain
OFFICIAL:
"IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS
- liver problems. Unexplained muscle pain orweakness could be a sign of a rare but serious side effect
- interact with other medicines or certain foods,

Zyprexa
Brief Side Effects:
diabetes, hyperglycemia, ketoacidosis

OFFICIAL:
"Important Safety Information for Olanzapine

Increased Mortality in Elderly Patients with Dementia-Related Psychosis

Beauty in the skies

Compliments of the now famous Pinterest I wanted to share some of the awesome designs in hot air balloons that have caught my attention. Hope you all enjoy as much as I have.

Recognition at last for the Wooddiva

   I recently shared about supporting a local talent and I am happy to announce that Cheryl Tripp of Cheryl's Woodnwonders has been featured in "American Woodworker" for her floral design which is really beautiful.

   For a woodworker to appear in this publication must be a dream come true and I am so proud of Cheryl who must be walking at least a few inches off the ground about now. And here she is folks.

Support Local Talents

  I have always thought that you should support people in you community that are hard working and have a true talent for what they love to do.  In my community we have Cheryl Tripp of Cheryl's Woodn Wonders.  By day she works for the Agricultural Extension Service but after that she heads to her shed and scroll saw to create lovely works of art that cause you to wonder how in the world she did that. Maybe that is why she is also known as "Wooddiva".  Following is some of the examples of items that could be hanging on a wall in your home or office.

I am constantly amazed at the quality of detail in her work and take great joy in helping her to become know outside of Halifax County, NC. You can visit her Facebook page by going to http://www.facebook.com/cherylswoodnwonders/ There you can see all that she does and prices as well. I would be happy to assist if you would be more comfortable going through me.

February 23rd and eight months since my last post. This has been on my mind for a while now and with some encouragement from a couple of friends who have also restarted their blogs I decided to test the waters so to speak and see how it feels.

A lot has happened since my last post so this one is intended to kind of bring the events up to date. The first of July in 2013 I had a heart attack which was the first major health event in my then 66 years.  I really didn't know what was happening since it was all new to me. Extreme sweats and nausea were the major symptoms and I did not relate that to a heart condition so I waited to see if it would get better. The next day I had the same symptoms with the addition of some heaviness in my chest which prompted Linda and I to seek medical attention. 

This is where I must promote the greatness of a hospital system. Vidant Hospitals, no mater which one of their facilities you enter will change your opinion of how hospitals operate.  Instead of waiting in a waiting room for what seems like forever, they take you immediately and begin awesome care. Their level of care is unlike any I ever encountered. They actually care and everything they do is done with the most professional touch I had ever received. One thing I tell people is that just walking through their door into the hospital makes me feel better just knowing where I am.

They did determine I had some blockages but there was no significant damage done after running a lot of different tests during the week I was there. I was released and given Plavix to thin the blood and another medicine to help get my cholesterol to a better level. The only sad part is that while the recovery process took place I lost weight down to where I liked only to gain every bit of it back. I have proven in the past that I can drop weight easily with my strong will but eventually it always come back.

I did want to post a picture of the awesome medical center in Greenville, NC where I got such good care so here it is.

There may be people that see this post and think of our treasured pets Rocky and Soffie. They are doing well and here is a recent picture of both of them.

Rocky is where he stays a lot when I am home especially if I am on the computer. He likes to be in a chair so he can be next to me.

Soffie did get sick last year and lost down to almost the skin and bones she was when she arrived here homeless. She eats very well and has gained most of her weight back, however, she cannot jump and run like she used to and is weak in her hind legs.  So, instead of laying on the couch we make a place for her to rest and sleep on the floor and she seems quite happy with it.