I was back at home in Ireland last week for a few days. Traveling overseas during Thanksgiving is fairly easy and it's a good time to see Ireland. The weather is generally nicer than the Northeastern US, and in Ireland everyone is getting ready for Christmas.
This time I was able to borrow some family slides and I've started scanning them in. I thought I'd share a two of me as a child. I'm surprised how well they've held up despite the lack of special attention to them.
For now I'm going to try and scan them in using a printer/scanner combo we have at home. I did find a company called ScanCafe that will scan slides for $0.24 per slide. But it takes 4-6 weeks and the photos are sent overseas for processing. Let me know if you have any experience with these folks.
Our presidential candidates
Even though the US presidential election is almost a year away, things are starting to heat up over here. Mostly because of the early primaries and caucus races in January (yes, that's only about 5 weeks away).
Have any of looked at what our candidates are saying about healthcare? Does any of this sound like they've even thought about chronic illnesses and how to take care of these? Do let me know what you're thinking about the current field.
Right now I'm favoring Mike Huckabee slightly for two reasons. First he knows about Type 2 diabetes personally and has worked hard to overcome it. Secondly this recent advert of his really gave me a good laugh. And any candidate who can take shots at himself is worth considering to some extent.
Last night we had a picnic at a local park with a lot of friends from Families with Children from China New England. We shared stories about our visits to China, admired all our collective children and ate some delicious moon cakes.
Then it was off to the nearby pond where we listened to the story of Houyi and his wife Chang Er who became the moon goddess.
And then the children got to light some small candles and set them afloat in the lake. We watched them and the beautiful full moon rising over the lake.
Apparently there's a photo project currently underway. It runs from September 17th through September 23rd and it's organized by the same people who brought you the best-selling A Day in the Life and America 24/7 books.
It's actually called America at Home. But I thought, why not make part of it be Diabetes at Home?
After all there are a lot of Americans living 24 by 7 with diabetes. And it impacts our lives from the moment we get up in the morning till after we fall asleep at night.
Thursday is Dinner Time. Maybe you can cover how you test your blood sugar and bolus before dinner to cover the meal.
And this Sunday is Bedtime Rituals. How about set changes, or making sure you can hear the CGM alarm if it goes off at night for one of your children, or night-time testing while your kids are asleep?
Also, any day you like you can just submit general photos. Maybe show how we all live normal lives despite what we drag along with us because of diabetes. And I'm not just talking about supplies here.
Please submit quality photographs that are likely to be considered for the book. I've also created a Flickr group, Diabetes at Home, where you can also upload your entries for all to see.
Maybe we'll have a real competition there, let me know what you think about that idea.
Sorry for not noticing this sooner. What are you waiting for? Get shooting.
This is only partially diabetes-related, but I'm sure you'll forgive me.
My wife has just started to blog about how she's working on getting back to software engineering. She's the love of my life and I'll bet her blog will be of interest to some of you.
We've been together since the early 1990's, so she's also seen me transition from shots to an insulin pump and from blood glucose meters to a continuous glucose monitor. And she's stood by my during various diabetes advocacy issues and even my current crazy bike ride.
So we have a good friend that we affectionately call Uncle Roger. And this last Christmas, Roger came round and gave us an innocuous looking game called Blokus.
Wisely, we didn't open it for a few days. Then a few days before Christmas itself, we opened this Pandora's box of a game.
Since then, we've played this game too many times to mention. We had family staying with us over the New Year. We played all evening until around 11:30 PM. Then we stopped to cheer in the arrival of 2007. Off to bed and we were around the table playing again by 10 AM the next morning.
We ate breakfast while playing Blokus. Ate leftover lunch and played. Different people came to the table (it's a 4-player game) and played. Different teams paired up and played. Our girls both hold their own when playing against their geeky parents.
So...
If you're looking for something to while away those long winter nights. And you enjoy board games with really simple rules. And you don't mind being frustrated. Then this is the game for you.
And if you're interested, here's a picture from this evenings game.
The Diabetes Technology Blog is focused on using technology to life better with diabetes. I review: blood glucose monitors; continuous glucose monitor; blood sugar meters; diabetes software and living with diabetes.
About Me
Name: Bernard Farrell
Location: Massachusetts, United States
I was born in Ireland and now live in the US.
I have had Type 1 diabetes for over 35 years. I struggle with my blood sugar, the same as most people with diabetes.
I wear a Cozmo 1800 insulin pump and a Dexcom SEVEN CGM to track my blood glucose levels. I also take Symlin to help control my post-meal blood sugars.
I'm blessed by God, and every day brings the possibility of a cure.
