Arnold Chan – Member of Parliament

Posted on June 26, 2017 by dfolstad58

Okanagan Lake statuesSaturday, June 17, 2017 In the Globe & Mail newspaper I read an article written by Laura Stone.  If you want to read the short article – click here

I don’t as a rule find my blog inspirations from newspaper articles but this one about the Liberal MP Arnold Chan struck a chord.  It struck a chord because:

  • What he is doing,
  • What he is not doing,  and
  • His marvelous attitude

Arnold Chan is a member of parliament, and a lawyer.  He is also a man who is seriously ill with a cancer diagnosis.

What he is doing

He continues to go to work in the Commons, and he does this he says; because he still can. ” I have this privilege. I want to exercise it to the best of my ability, one should just continue to live one’s life, despite whatever challenges you happen to have. And that’s how I choose to deal with it.”

What he is not doing

Mr Chan is not complaining, he is not blaming, he is not whining and this is despite having a serious health circumstance. He is very aware of every day but his daily choice is to “carry on“.

His marvelous attitude

Life for Arnold Chan has difficult, battling cancer for two years, but he says ” Life will take me where life will take me, this thing that unfortunately I have, will take me where it will take me. That’s all.”

My thoughts after reading this is that so many people are rich in health, and future and yet they are oblivious and  complain. They grump, they swerve around cars and pedestrians in traffic, too discontent to look around and take in the moment, and oblivious of the treasure to be alive.

Some people are hoping to see another day, some others hope to leave their hospital bed and feel the wind on their cheek, and yet some people are irate because their drive took 30 seconds longer to get to a destination. I have no patience or understanding for drivers who think the road belongs to them.

I appreciate this article by Laura about Arnold Chan MP, a gentleman living his life the best he can despite illness and doing so with inspiring style. Visit Arnold Chan’s website here.

A person’s a person, no matter how small. – Dr. Seuss

Thanks as always for reading, and I always try to reply to any comments.

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Welcome to my world again

Posted on June 26, 2017 by dfolstad58

I thought it would be a good idea to move some pictures from my phone to my blog and voila, today’s post.

I bumped into a friend and he asked me what have I been up to, and this is it.

Mark Twain –

“Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful day of your life.”

An assortment of pictures from recent weeks.

Can you match them all up ?

  • Skaha Lake paddleboarding, the lake is so calm at 7 am and that’s my son and wife.
  • Africa the cat, absorbing some rubs while purring like indoor thunder
  • I don’t know plants, but this Cambria Lily bloomed today within two days of being adopted and brought home. Looks nice!
  • Looking down on the world, that’s my son waving through a hole in the leaves in our cherry time – and they look ready now!
  • A double selfie with #1 son in Manning Park, this spot had a roaring creek!
  • My Van Gogh son turning a river rock into a garden turtle 🙂
  • The historic Sicamous on Okanagan Lake, a parked paddlewheeler.
  • A view of the Okanagan lake, looking a lot higher right now.
  • Africa again, dreaming of the tango.
  • Another lily, this one’s a tiger!
Posted in okanagan related, travel | Tagged , , , , | 19 Comments

Kodachrome World

Posted on June 23, 2017 by dfolstad58

Yesterday the theme of my weekly Toastmasters Club meeting was Colour.

Grand Tetons2-67HDRThere is so much science about color, cultural perceptions about colour that are specific to different parts of the world. I also learned that color blindness is much more likely to happen to males than females.

Psychology of color – if you look around online you will quickly find that color choices in ads are carefully planned to reach target audiences.  A lot of research has been done to be able to predict how the public will respond to the commercial uses of color. It isn’t exactly behavior manipulation but still the right color choice affects how audiences respond, but the color choices could be totally different for a different culture.

Go to this link to find out What Colours Mean in Other Cultures.

I was wondering would you wear glasses that block colors for a week so that you could experience color for the first time like these people did?

Posted in health, Thinking Out loud | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Stand By Me – Marvin Gaye

Posted on June 19, 2017 by dfolstad58

http://wp.me/p19pY3-vu

Most posts I write now are read but in 2012 when I wrote this i probably didn’t have many readers, but I  still liked what I said.

Maybe you will also.

Enjoy the last days of spring this week. , ☺

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

So many shades of Green

Posted on June 12, 2017 by dfolstad58

Two decades ago I regularly spent long periods in the hospital, having surgery and moving forward hoping for success. Hoping to return to my own bed in my home, my own life, to working even.

No needs to remind a hospital patient about Mindfulness as defined as the quality or state of being conscious or aware of something.

In the hospital, the day started with a nurse checking how I slept, making notes, and of course temperatures and blood pressures 6 – 8 times per day.  After some toast and cereal which I would to make to be some event of my day – then there is usually some medications and blood work to follow.

Sometimes I had to be wheeled to another part of the hospital for another test, at least it was a change in my routine.

No my readers, I feel confident based on experience to say hospital inmates like myself are very mindful.

I won’t be tedious talking about the rest of the hospital day suffice to say after a few weeks or moments you dream of your couch at home like a fish in the desert dreams of the open ocean.

view from cape foul weather I think

Oregon Coast, one of hundreds of wonderful beaches from a holiday

 

Mindfulness is something I try to use another way now though. I like to go outside and not read or study, or anything. I look around and try to absorb the breeze. A breeze is wonderful kiss from the earth when you have been inside a ward on an IV for a long time. I remind myself how sweet a breeze can feel when you miss it.

I open my eyes and I look at the trees, the grass,  all the plants and I consciously try to see all the shades of green and inhale to detect if the lawn was freshly mown.

I don’t want to take any of it for granted, I want to be mindful of my gift of health.

Life is an incredible gift, and in a blink of an eye it can all change. Forget the phone and computer screens for an hour and sit on a bench along a channel, or listen outside for a bird’s song and be mindful of what you and I are given,.. by being alive.

2014-09-11 17.38.11

On a bike ride I took this of a park, long shadows at end of the day

It changes my perspective, by being mindful. How about you?

I sat down today to write a post and this popped out. It is a sunny day here and I just had a bike ride for 45 minutes, I’m feeling appreciative of the privilege. I hope you had a great day, thanks for reading & for your ideas and/or comments.

Humorous thought – I remember the first time I saw a universal remote control – I thought to myself – Wow! This changes everything.

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The answer to “What is the Process?”

Posted on June 9, 2017 by dfolstad58

I find it strange almost everyone would accept a organ transplant if they needed one, but the majority of people have not taken 5 minutes to confirm being a organ donor.  I understand some racial groups are especially notorious for this.  This is confusing.  I think everyone should be automatically a donor, but they can opt out if they want to. living donor 1

My post today is to share information about the Living Donor Process.  Since I live in British Columbia, I will refer to Vancouver General Hospital.

Perhaps you have become aware that living donor transplants are being done more and more frequently. This is because of the huge improvements in surgery and the absolutely huge amount of precaution beforehand to ensure the donor is a good match and will remain healthy after the surgery.  The health of both the donor and the patient are of high priority concern to the transplant team.

 

living donor 2Why a Living Donor?

A Living Donor transplant enables a kidney patient to go straight to transplant, and the recipient’s health is better by avoiding dialysis.

 

 

Donor Criteria

  • Donors can live normal healthy lives with one kidney.
  • Donors must step forward to donate voluntarily.
  • Donors are carefully screened to ensure they are in good physical and emotional health and able to give informed consent to the transplant process.
  • Donors in BC must be at least 19 and there is NO UPPER LIMIT of age.
  • Donors are reminded that anytime, anytime they can choose not to proceed and they will never be pressured to donate.

Don’t Donors have to be related to the patient?

Often living donors are related, but they don’t have to be. A living donor can be a sibling, parent, child or a relative. A donor can be a friend, or a relative through marriage, a co-worker or just a member of the community.

What are the Steps? 

Step 1 : Pre- Screen.  You can begin the process by calling Pre-Transplant Services at Vancouver General Hospital – toll free 1-800-663-6189. The pre-screening is done by filling out a medical and social history questionnaire. If no concerns, the nurse coordinator will arrange for a blood type and cross match test to check for compatibility.

Step 2:  Everything going well so far, next you will need to do a number of tests to ensure it is SAFE for you to donate. This might involve your family doctor.

Step 3: Everything still smooth, the laboratory and diagnostic tests confirm it is safe for you and if you still want to proceed then the next step is to meet the members of the Transplant team at Vancouver General Hospital.  This actually takes place over TWO days  as there are different parts of the team to meet, some procedures to be performed. This step results in all your questions being dealt with and the team is confirmed of your ability to provide informed consent.  I think another result is confidence because you see the depth of the experience and the knowledge of the team who are there to ensure you remain healthy and not just for the patient. Everything is strictly confidential, and are not shared with the patient.

Step 4: Surgery and Recovery.  Donors usually spend as little as 2 nights in the hospital after surgery and as long as 4 nights. Total recovery requires between 4 – 12 weeks of time. Surgery is done using advanced minimally invasive laparoscopic surgery which is safe and results in faster recovery time.  It is still a surgery of course, so there is possibility of problems as with any surgery but the risk of dying from donating a kidney is 0.03%.  The risk of serious complications is about 1-2%.

If you want to know more –

Or just call the VGH Living Donor Program – tel: 604-875-5182 or toll free 1-855-875-5182

Thanks for reading, and the international online friendship you provide. God Bless you all.

 

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