Hi Loopy Lupies!

Well, I've been terribly remiss in my communications here and
backchannel with folks from ASL.  And I've not updated the FAQ or my
pages in... too long.  I keep saying I'll do so and keep finding
reasons not to.  For example, at the moment, my 'net connection starts
flaking out in the heat of the day and chances I can post at any
particular moment become slim, none, and slim done left town. So this
little note is being composed off-line in the vain hope that the thing
will sort itself out soon.  Technician due on Saturday when we expect
unseasonably cool weather and therefore probably no 'net drop-out. :P

So.  I'm fine.  Overall, I'm doing very well.  I continue to have
eosinophilia for which there seems little if any explanation other
than "underlying inflammatory condition" but the levels in my blood
counts are not high enough to be dangerous at this time.  They got to
dangerous levels 2 years ago I think.  I've lost track.  Maybe 3.
Freaked everyone out, went to the oncologist who couldn't see anything
worth worrying about and then the cell population dropped to tolerable
levels.  (shrug - Lupus, ain't it great!)  So.  It's been a bit higher
lately but I'm going to go out on a limb and say most of the symptoms
I've experienced lately are due to me saying "**** it!  I'm going to
live life for a while."  Now, that said, I'm not being irresponsible
about this.  Still got my Solumbra get-ups, taking my meds, not
overdoing things *too much*. I have relatively little joint pain.  I
mean, I get it every day as I imagine most of us do. But it's like 2-3
on a scale of 1-10 most days.  Good days and bad of course but most
are good.  Except today but more on that later. :) All other organs
seem fine except my brain which is just the typical foggy lupie brain.
Or that's my excuse anyway.  I've taken up (read: become addicted to)
Sudoku and Crossword puzzles, reading all the authors' works I wanted
to read but never had time to (Carver, Chekov, James, etc.) and just
generally trying to keep my mind active if not necessarily sharp.
Still stitching my hardanger and cross-stitch like mad.

Hubby is well but overworked (hey, he's a civil servant now, it goes
with the territory) and daughter and her hubby are well and overworked
also. But happy.  My grand-kitties are all fine.

Some may recall that I adopted a rescue dog, Yao Ming (aka Mingster,
Big Dawg, Sweet Boy, Lover Boy*, and occasionally "D*** it Ming!").
He is a true blessing to me and here is where I have changed some of
my lifestyle for good and bad WRT symptoms.  We walk daily.  In cool/
cold weather (not a lot of it here) we walk at a high speed and for as
long as possible to wear him out.  In warm/hot weather (in abundance)
we walk at a high speed for about 5 blocks then we meander after a
training session in the park. :)  He is not a warm-weather dog.  The
walks have lowered my cholesterol and vastly improved my depression.
Plus, it's just plain fun to train a dog and it's very rewarding for
both of us (for him, the treats and hugs, for me the sense of
accomplishment and knowing he loves me enough to want treats and hugs
from me.)  He's doing beautifully on and off leash though because of
his blindness and youth (16.5 months) we only do off-leash when the
park is virtually empty and there are no other dogs present.  He
surprised me yesterday.  Was sitting patiently waiting at the door
while I locked up.  I took the lead and said "Okay, let's go."  Well,
it was in the 60s, cloudy, windy - perfect Ming weather - and he took
off!  So that's why the pain level isn't so great today.  I wrenched
something in my hip as he yanked me off the front porch. I didn't
fall, just flopped around like a ragdoll for a half a block. :)  It's
worth it to see him so happy.

The main drawback has been to my skin but that seems to have been
resolved. I was covered in Solumbra but have not been able to find a
sunblock that didn't burn me worse than the sun.  I had given up on
that.  I want to tout a product by DHC called "Q10 Moist Color Base,
30+SPF".  [Many DHC products are over-rated. Many are excellent for my
ultra-sensitive skin and other than Atopalm, they have the only
moisturizers I can use without causing inflammation/redness and they
are fragrance-free. Believe me, I tried many "all-natural" products to
no avail.]  Anyway, back to the above mentioned "color base". It is
marketed mostly as a product that balances skin tone and is worn under
foundation.  It comes in 5 shades for whatever your skin tone needs
are.  Well, because of the walks, my face was red and patchy and my
hands were a mess with a red, itchy rash. These were the only exposed
parts of my skin on the walks.  Everything else was under Solumbra.
DHC sends samples with their catalogs and I got a sample of the
"green" (for very red skin).  Tried it, it worked to hide the redness,
and after a few applications I saw no additional skin irritation so I
bought a bottle (not terribly expensive - a little goes a *long*
way).  Well, about a week later I needed to buy the next lighter shade
(yellow) because much of the redness was gone.  Then within a week or
so of using that... no redness.  Now I'm considering actually buying a
bottle of the product that has a slight rose tint to it!  It is not a
moisturizer - it is just called "moist" because it is a liquid and
does blend in well.  It is a sunblock with zinc oxide and titanium
dioxide so it does lighten your skin tone considerably as most zinc
oxides do though it is quite sheer.  I have no financial interests in
this company or this product. It's just been a blessing to me.

As for my hands - I used the green base on them. They took longer to
heal as they were in much worse condition but they are now fully
healed and while I still use the lotion, there is no need for it in
terms of color balance, only for the 30+ SPF.  So... one dog-walking
problem solved.

Here is a link to his "gallery" on dogforum.org.  I believe I've
posted it once before.

http://www.dogforum.org/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/500/ppuser/562

Here is a link to a few videos of him doing silly stuff.  One is of
him doing his "stay, come, sit" routine perfectly at the park. (I
think this will work - not sure)

http://s157.photobucket.com/albums/t67/kcattx/?action=view&current=pool2.flv

For those who may not know or recall, Ming is completely blind - sees
no shadow or light of any type. People often don't believe me because
he will "look" at you quite naturally.  But after some time with him
you'll start to see that his eyes roll quite a bit under most
circumstances, an indicator that he never had a visual reference to
begin with. While he was abused, it does not appear that this was the
cause of his blindness but that it was a condition either very early
after his eyes opened or before they opened and that it could have
been a congenital condition that may or may not have been treatable.

But he is a smart cookie and very well-behaved. Which brings me back
to "Lover Boy" - the ladies love him and he loves them (though he
can't do anything about it.) ;)  He has a little blonde girlfriend
(yellow lab) that he just adores, a buxom platinum blonde (Great
Pyrenees), and he "rescued" an escaped brunette (black Lab) a couple
of days ago.  He only lacks a redhead - but the only redhead in the
neighborhood is a male chocolate lab. They like to visit but it's just
not the same enthusiasm level for Ming. :)  And of course, he still
visits his "sissy" he spent a few months with early on and you can see
pics of them in the gallery.

He has bonded well with us and is getting more comfortable with other
people.  He still isn't too crazy about men though Daddy is the
exception of course.

let's see.  I guess that's about it.  I hope everyone is doing well
and I'll try to check in again sometime.

Take care all and my apologies for only dropping in now and then. I
think of you all often.