Day 21--Election Day!

Today's a great day--not just because it's the most exciting Election Day of our lifetimes but also because Torger got permission to skip his magnesium drip yesterday and reduce it today. Hoorah!! He had his regular appointment for bloodwork Monday morning, and both his potassium and magnesium were too high. He's had such a bad reaction to the magnesium infusion that this is a big relief. We understand Dr. Tse's concern about not getting too excited as Torger starts to feel healthier because that could put him at risk. But this is also a good reminder that Torger knows his own body better than anyone else, and he's had a pretty good track record so far of identifying what works for him and what doesn't. Without the magnesium, he had a good, restful day. He was able to eat, sleep, read and listen to music without feeling terrible.

We've had amazing support from family and friends throughout Torger's illness, which I'll write about in greater detail in a future post. Today, I'd just like to highlight the happy surprise we received yesterday from family friend Katie Hoh, a teacher in New Jersey. Her third graders sent us a package of handmade cards, each with a joke that truly did brighten our day. So, I'm pleased to share some of these with you now to brighten yours:

• From Hannah: "I heard the invisible man married the invisible woman. Heard their kids weren't much to look at."


• From Isaac: "How do you get a baby astronaut to go to sleep? You rock-et."


• From Cameron: "What do you call an unidentified flying cow? A MOO-f-o."


• From Lyndsay: "Why did the puppy jump into the river? He wanted to chase the catfish."


• From Nicole: "What did the prince think of Snow White? He thought she was a little flaky."


• From Dominic: "What do you call a pirate with a wooden leg? I don't know, I'm stumped."


• From Lauren: "Why did the little pig hide the soap? He heard the farmer yell, 'HOGWASH!' "


• From Guinnevere: "Knock Knock. Who's there? Emma. Emma who? Emma 'fraid of the dark!"


• From James: "What did the dirt say to the rain? 'If you keep this up, my name will be mud!' "


• Also from James: "What did the beaver say to the tree? 'It was nice gnawing you!' "


• Another from James: "What do skeletons say before they begin dining? 'Bone appetit!' "


• And still more from James (Go, James!) : "What did the rake say to the hoe? 'Hi, hoe!' "


• From Katie: "Why can't an elephant ride a bike? He doesn't have a thumb to ring the bell!"


• And another from Katie: "How do elephants earn extra money? They babysit for bluebirds on Saturday nights!" (I confess, I'm not entirely sure I get this one...but I like it.)


• From Stephanie: "What did the Invisible Man's mother say to him? 'We never see you anymore.' "


• From Storm: "Knock Knock. Who's there? Cameron. Cameron who? Cameron over here."


• From Jaclyn: "What is black and white and red all over? An angry zebra."


• From Lisa: "Knock Knock. Who's there? Howard. Howard who? Howard you like to hold the puppy?"

Now get out there and vote if you haven't already!

Day 20--Pancakes A-Plenty

We are becoming a little food-obsessed. Keeping Torger's weight up and getting food in him that will stay there is a constant challenge, and certain kinds of food are proving useful in helping him get his many pills down three times a day. For me, the obsession comes, in part, from trying to figure out creative ways to prepare healthy meals in our tiny little doll kitchen. (I've already had an unfortunate, charbroiled banana bread experience with the toaster oven.) Good old-fashioned pancakes are turning out to be one of our mainstays because 1) I can make them in one pan on the stovetop; 2) they provide enough heft to calm Torger's stomach for his morning meds; and 3) they're delicious! Here is my favorite wonderful pancake recipe for two--it makes three or four medium-sized pancakes each. If you have more than two people, just multiply. Torger just puts honey on his, but I like mine with butter and maple syrup.

In a bowl, stir together:

1/2 cup white flour
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/8-1/4 tsp. salt (depending on how much you like)

In a separate bowl, whisk together:

1 egg
1/3 cup milk + 1/2 cup milk (I've never added the fractions to combine this into one number, and it's easy to remember because it's just like measuring out the flour. Also, I use skim milk, but I'm sure other kinds would work just fine.)
1 T. honey
2 T. canola oil
1/4 tsp. vanilla

Stir dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just blended. Batter will be lumpy. If it seems too thick and cushiony, just add more milk to thin it to your desired consistency.

Heat a skillet until a droplet of water will dance on the surface. I use a non-stick skillet with no oil, which works perfectly. Pour batter onto skillet. If you want to add in treats here (I like to add blueberries), this is the time to do it. Just dot them onto each each pancake. Batter should bubble, and when it just stops, flip 'em over and cook until they're done.

Day 19--Oh, the Magnesium!

Well, it turns out we don't actually have a home healthcare nurse coming in daily to administer Torger's IV magnesium infusion. The nurse came by Thursday morning and taught me how to hook Torger up and run the equipment, then left us with a fridge full of IV bags, some rubber gloves and a pump. Now it's one of my jobs to make sure he gets his 6 gram dose of magnesium every day, even though he really, really hates it. When he's not getting magnesium infused, he feels energetic and good. But when he's getting the infusion, all he can do is sit around and moan. I feel like I'm torturing him every time we have to administer it--he says it makes him feel like he's burning inside and he can hardly stand it. Friday's infusion was so painful for him that we called Dr. Tse yesterday to ask whether we could reduce the dosage, since 6 grams is an awful lot and Torger's levels were all good when we went in for his bloodwork on Friday. Dr. Tse let me slow down the pump so Torger gets the dosage over the course of six hours instead of three, which has helped some. But he also told me that I have to be the bad guy now and make Torger follow his medical regimen even when it's hard on him. He reminded me that we still have a long way to go in the treatment process, and even though Torger feels good, he's far from well. Apparently, Torger's body is just chewing up magnesium and potassium right now, and Dr. Tse said if the levels get too low, the complications could be life threatening because magnesium is necessary for heart and muscle function. So we're doing as we're told, and Torger's just suffering through it.

In addition to being on the magnesium pump for six hours every day, he has to take the following medications now:

At 8 a.m. --Pantoprazole, 40 mgs, to prevent ulcers; voriconazole, 200 mgs, to prevent fungal infections; tacrolimus, 1 mg., an immunosuppressant; ursodiol, 300 mgs., to protect his liver; acyclovir, 800 mgs., to prevent viral infections; amlodipine, 10 mgs., to treat high blood pressure (from all these other medications); potassium chloride, 40mEq., to treat low potassium; benzonatate, 100 mgs., to treat his persistent cough; metronidazole, 500 mgs., to prevent diarrhea; and a multivitamin.

At 2 p.m.--Another 300 mgs. of ursodiol for his liver; another 40 mEq. of potassium; another metronidazole; and more of the cough medicine.

At 8 p.m.--Yet another 300 mgs. of ursodiol for the liver; still 2 more of the potassium pills (which are huge and have remarkably sharp edges); another 200 mgs. of voriconazole, the anti-fungal; another 800 mgs. of acyclovir, the anti-viral, another 1 mg. tacrolimus; another metronidazole; and another cough pill.

Then twice a day on Mondays and Thursdays he gets Bactrim to prevent pneumonia.

It's quite a cocktail! And it's a big adjustment for Torger, who doesn't even like to take aspirin normally. Our days are pretty well structured around administering various medications, although he did manage to have some fun on Friday. The 11th floor BMT unit had a little Halloween party, so he put on the mask he's required to wear whenever he's out, we wrapped around the rest of his face with gauze, then he donned sunglasses, a suit, gloves and a fedora to be The Invisible Man. His voice his so hoarse that he did a nice Claude Raines imitation! The nurses and other patients got a laugh out of him showing up, although they wouldn't have been able to tell who he was if I hadn't been with him! I did try to take his picture for the blog, but it didn't turn out (because he was invisible).