Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Aggie Bonfire

On November 18 at 2:42am ten years ago Bonfire at Texas A&M University fell killing 12 students and injuring 27. I wasn't here on campus then but Dave was here to experience the tragedy that is still very present on the minds of so many. The student newspaper, The Battalion, has done a great job in remembering this anniversary over the past two days and I don't think I could express or share in this blog what occurs with Bonfire. I think the memorial that opened 5 years ago is one of the most thoughtful memorials I have ever seen. If you have a few moments you may want to watch the video, read the deep meaning of the memorial, or about the 12 students who fell with Bonfire.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

If you think I look bad, you should see the doctor!

For the past few years I have had a small lump under my right eye. No one really notices unless I point it out to them. I guess in this case I should be grateful for my round face and chubby cheeks. I however notice it EVERYDAY! I had talked to my doctors and they all said it was probably a cyst or a build up of fatty tissue so I never worried about it. It didn't bother me enough to have it cut out! Well, over the years it kept growing and after watching a few too many TLC specials about weird things people grew, I decided to get it removed.

Since it was on my face and around my eye, I decided to visit a plastic surgeon and an eye surgeon to see who would be the best candidate to remove this thing. I settled on the plastic surgeon and about 2 weeks ago I went under the knife! Luckily, he was able to do a local anesthetic and do the procedure (I don't even call it a surgery) in the office. It took about 45 minutes and I was able to see the little critter. It was about the size of a really bloated Tylenol capsule or a small Mike and Ike (candy). I stayed home for two days mainly because I looked ridiculous and had a pretty good headache. Did I mention that we had the Livestrong banquet 3 days after this...I was pretty.

Honestly it didn't look that bad. Most people didn't notice it because my glasses hid it nicely and I wore a hat for a couple of days (the bright sunny skies of TX were not my friend that week). My doctor said that I would have a black eye and he wasn't kidding. Below you can see the picture a week after I had the procedure. I had the stitches removed the following day. I promise it looks much worse than it felt!

4 little stitches & a pretty black eye

I am healing quite well. Just a little bit of a black eye remains (but I can cover most of it with makeup) and the cut is still a little tender. The results of the biopsy showed that it was a benign tumor of the nerve tissue and the chances of it growing again are pretty slim. After thinking about it this is something I probably should have taken care of a while ago but I am glad it is finally done!