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Post by obliv326 on Aug 17, 2005 6:52:22 GMT -5
a question, mike...did the anasthesia make you ill afterward? i wonder, b/c my one experience w/surgery i was put under, and when i woke up i got sick... a fun thing to do is try to think of a good quote to drop on the operating room doctors, just before you go under. that way, in case there is something horribly awry, and you dont, ahem, pull through, you have that famous last quote. mine was, as i felt the anasthesia taking effect... "thanks for coming everybody! try the veal..."...boom..out. i actually got sick after my surgery. i almost think they let me out too quickly. i was still really groggy, kept coming in and out of consciousness, and could barely stand. i made it back to the car, asked my mom to stop at wendy's and get me something (hadnt eaten for nearly 24 hours, at this point). i got a grilled chicken sandwich, took 2 bites, and promptly hurled into the ridiculously tiny platic thing theyd given me if that happened. why a small, shallow dish and not a bucket, or even a "motion discomfort bag", i dont know. what happened next is that my mom, for some reason, didnt realize she had to gently brake and not whip the car arpund as normal, and the content of the tray ended up largely on me...on the garment my mom, again, thought i would be wearing for the next month? i dont know...a disgusting if somewhat amusing story, i suppose...
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Post by Michael West on Aug 17, 2005 9:27:56 GMT -5
i actually got sick after my surgery. i almost think they let me out too quickly. i was still really groggy, kept coming in and out of consciousness, and could barely stand. i made it back to the car, asked my mom to stop at wendy's and get me something (hadnt eaten for nearly 24 hours, at this point). i got a grilled chicken sandwich, took 2 bites, and promptly hurled into the ridiculously tiny platic thing theyd given me if that happened. why a small, shallow dish and not a bucket, or even a "motion discomfort bag", i dont know. what happened next is that my mom, for some reason, didnt realize she had to gently brake and not whip the car arpund as normal, and the content of the tray ended up largely on me...on the garment my mom, again, thought i would be wearing for the next month? i dont know...a disgusting if somewhat amusing story, i suppose... Yes, they gave me a couple of little trays, but I also had a big bag that my clothes had been stored in while I was in surgery, so I could have used that if I needed to. Thankfully, I never had to. I was in quite a bit of discomfort while we were driving, so I think that took my mind off the nausea. I know I couldn't wait to get home and lay down. I ate like a whole tube of Pringles with my medication because they said I should take it with food. Plus, it had been almost 24 hours since I had eaten as well. The entire time we were waiting for surgery, I'm lying on that hospital bed watching X-Files on Sci-Fi channel and they keep showing all these fast food commercials! It was driving me insane with hunger. My wife kept saying, "How can you think about food? Aren't you nervous?" And...I guess I was. Perhaps I was using food to get my mind off of it. But I couldn't have anything by mouth, so I had not had a bite to eat or a drop to drink since the night before and I was STARVING!!
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Post by Michael West on Aug 31, 2005 12:17:57 GMT -5
Sometimes if feels like my house is falling apart around my ears. For years, I had problems with my roof. We finally found a roof guy who has fixed it up very nice and now I no longer cringe when it rains. I've also been working all year on the landscaping and the bathrooms, trying to get everything painted and fixed up and...well...liveable. Last night, the dishwasher would not drain. I had to wash all the dishes by hand and tonight I will have to try and fix it. Sometimes I just think it would be easier to start over with a new house rather than put any more blood, sweat, and tears into this one. "All this time I'm spending on this could be better spent writing," I tell myself.
Then there are times, like this morning, when I look at the news and I see all the destruction and devastation in New Orleans and Mississippi, that I feel guilty for my little gripes. I have a home. That's more than I can say for a whole helluva lot of people right now.
So tonight, I will clean and sweep and get under my sink and try to unclog and fix my dishwasher, and I will be very grateful for what I have.
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Post by Michael West on Sept 16, 2005 13:41:51 GMT -5
Okay, I've worked almost 100 hours these last two weeks. The good news: much overtime. ;D The bad news: little time to write. Tired as I am, I have a wonderful weekend ahead of me, and I hope I can finish a short story or plow through some more chapters of my new novel. We'll see what happens. Also received some fantastic news from the publisher of The Wide Game this week. Until now, it had been Print On Demand--which meant that a lot of bookstores would not stock it because it could not be returned if it did not sell. Starting October 1st, all of the publishers books will now be returnable. I hope this will make the novel much easier to find. ;D
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Post by Michael West on Sept 25, 2005 6:51:41 GMT -5
I attended the wedding of a very good friend yesterday. The church was a huge gothic structure complete with gargoyles hanging from the outer walls (for those of you who don't know...I LOVE gargoyles). The ceremony was a Catholic Mass, just as mine had been (people joked with me for months after that day about the length of my ceremony. "Mike, is your wedding over yet?"), and as my wife and I sat witness to the vows, it really brought back memories of our own wedding day. At the reception, I requested the song my wife and I had our first dance to, and she and I danced the afternoon away. Sometimes the hustle and blurr of daily life can make you feel far apart from one another. It's nice to have a few quiet moments every once in a while to just enjoy the company of your partner. I hope my friend will be as happy 13 years into her marriage as I am in mine. ;D
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Post by Michael West on Oct 22, 2005 8:35:48 GMT -5
It's Halloween time again. Normally my favorite time of the year. I find, however, that I'm just not into the spirit of the season. Perhaps it is because my personal life has been so busy as of late--working long hours during the week and then having many obligations on the weekend. Or perhaps it is that my family, who normally helps me greatly with West Manor (my annual haunted house), has deserted me this year. For a while, I thought about canceling it because there was no way I could do it all alone (we get 150-200 trick-or-treaters each year in a two hour period). But, I have some great friends who have now said they would be willing to help out. Halloween is saved! I will try to post some pictures in the coming weeks after the event. I'm also toying with the idea of creating a special forum on this board for Home Haunters. If anyone has any ideas, please feel free to PM me. Something else that has suddenly put me in the mood, Monsterfest starts on AMC tomorrow. A week and a day of wall-to-wall horror! Sure, some of the films they have picked are stinkers, but there are a few classics in the mix, and some I haven't seen in years! It's nice to know that I can turn on my TV any time until Halloween and find horror. And, last but not least, the Halloween Special Edition of Wicked Karnival magazine is out today. My story "The Bridge" is a nice little Halloween treat that I can't wait to share with all of you. Please see the "News" forum and the News Fader at the top of the board for links to the magazine. I will post them as soon as I have them. Also, our own Tom Moran did a fantastic illustration for the story and it is now featured on some items in my official store: www.cafepress.com/bymichaelwest . The old shop will be undergoing a big make-over over the next few weeks. I hope to offer a wider range of designs on items. More choice means more fun, right? Well, fun is what Halloween is all about. And now I'm really getting into it. Better late than never.
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Post by Michael West on Oct 29, 2005 13:13:16 GMT -5
Well...it's 2 days to Halloween and the haunted house is coming together nicely. Actually, I think this is the farthest along I've ever been at this point. The house has three rooms. I have the last two rooms done. Just need to work on the hollographic floating head illusion for the first one, put up the outside face of the place and put up my graveyard. I should be able to have all of that done by Monday night. It's nice that my kids are old enough now that they can help out. I don't feel like I'm doing it all alone. ;D
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Post by Michael West on Nov 4, 2005 20:02:14 GMT -5
Well...my vacation is at an end. It's been a fun week. The haunted house went very well. For more info on that, visit the new Home Haunters' forum or click on the link below: bymichaelwest.proboards49.com/index.cgi?board=manor&action=display&thread=1131137659Now all the decorations have been taken down and it's time to focus on something even more frightening: Christmas shopping! Hope everyone had a great Halloween! ;D
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Post by Michael West on Dec 9, 2005 9:18:54 GMT -5
Whoever came up with the song "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow..." needs to be shot! It took me four and a half hours to get home from work last night. I went outside to scrape off my car at 6:15 and did not walk in the door until 10:40pm! Ate "dinner" and went to bed. Got up at 5am and shoveled my drive. The TV said the kids still had school, so got them up and ready and loaded them in my car to take on my way to work. Get to the school and my wife calls to say that they just announced school was cancelled. So...had to drive the kids all the way back home before I could start off to work. At least this morning's drive was much, much better. Only took me an hour to get here today.
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Post by Michael West on Dec 21, 2005 9:22:41 GMT -5
Never go to Wal-Mart the week before Christmas if you want to make it out alive. Christmas gifts are all wrapped. My wife got her craft projects done. I'm off from my "day job" after tomorrow until next year.
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Post by Michael West on Feb 5, 2006 23:21:48 GMT -5
This has been a great weekend. ;D Got the official news of my P&E win, did some quality writing, and the wife and I got to have a little romantic get away. Only bad part about the weekend...it ends.
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Post by Michael West on Feb 11, 2006 11:11:36 GMT -5
Just finished a new story. ;D Looking for the right market, but hope to send it off soon.
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Post by Michael West on Feb 15, 2006 8:35:51 GMT -5
Someone, somewhere in the Indianapolis Police has my license number written down on a list that reads: "If you see this car, pull it over!" Normally, I will go years and never get a single ticket. Now, however, I have gotten three speeding tickets since September! Granted, I do have a bit of a lead foot, but I always have. It's not like I'm driving a red sports car or anything. I own a white sedan and a mini-van! At least this policeman was nice and told me that, since I always pay the tickets on time, I wouldn't loose my license. Still, not a great way to start the day!
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Post by Michael West on Feb 20, 2006 6:19:39 GMT -5
We moved our offices at my "day job." I'm now on the sixth floor of one of the tallest buildings in Indiana. My little office area has doubled and I have all my ALIEN and Predator figures in place. Better still...I never have to drive the stretch of road where I've been getting tickets again! ;D Only bad thing is that their internet policy appears to be a bit more strict, so I don't know how much time I can spend here during the day. Time will tell.
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Post by Michael West on Feb 25, 2006 14:55:31 GMT -5
Trying to finish my story for APEX magazine. Why is it that the weekend goes by so much faster than the week days?!?!
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