From my other journal, dated September 26, 2002

Zoe started wheezing and having a lot of difficulty breathing last night so the pediatrician let me bring her in for a late walk-in. She needed two treatments with a nebulizer but her breathing calmed down a lot afterward and she didn't need more. She has never had any signs of asthma, but since I have it I wouldn't be surprised if she were diagnosed with it in the future.
Larry and I noticed that her breath smelled kind of bad too, so I thought she had a throat infection. Throat and mouth infections give a person some serious ass-breath.

It turned out to be strep.

Dammit.

I asked the doctor to test Trent last night since he was also sick, but she said that it might not show up right away since the incubation period is a few days, but told us to be looking for it. Strep is airborne and highly contagious. If someone who has it sneezes in an air-conditioned/heated area and you walk through it even a few minutes later the chance that you'll get it are pretty damn high. We figure Zoe was exposed to it while we were out last weekend.

Thanks to the meds she's on, Zoe did sleep better last night and finally ate something, which was a major relief since she had only eaten 3.5 oz. of food yesterday. At this point dehydration was becoming a major concern. I'm supposed to give her another treament with the nebulizer every four hours, which isn't easy because she doesn't like them and struggles so much. If it helps her sleep, it's worth a good wrestling match though.

The doctor wanted to check her again today to see if she was alright, and I asked if Trent could be seen at the same time. He had a horrible night. Most of it was spent sneezing and coughing. He was so congested and miserable he couldn't get to sleep, and once he got there, he couldn't stay there. His strep test was negative but he has a raging ear infection. The antibiotic Dr. H gave me for him will treat both the ear infection and strep. He had a quick culture done, but they're doing an overnight culture just to be sure.

I have to go get his RX in a few minutes.

I've been sleeping in the living room with Zoe since she's been sick because of the quick access to the kitchen and the meds (and also so she doesn't wake up her brother), and I must admit, it's weird to sleep away from Larry. I don't like it much.

Scratch that.

I don't like it at all.

But it is working out wonderfully well. Zoe gets what she needs at the first sign of a whimper and the rest of the house hardly stirs.

It's lonely though. I've been taking a bear Larry gave me in at night for company.

Yeah I do! And if anybody wants to give me any shit about it I'll snap 'em with my little pink blankie!!

LOL.

I'm such a dork.

Anyway...

We should be seeing some improvement in both babies within the next two or three days. I think I'll play Monsters, Inc. for them today. If I can keep their spirits up they'll probably feel better. If that doesn't work, Shrek most likely will. But Monsters, Inc. should do it. It seems fairly well aligned with the force.

Koyaanisqatsi is brilliant!! The music, the images, everything about it works beautifully and packs a strong emotional punch. Three Hopi prophesies were represented in the film, all of which have come to pass. They were explained after the end, which was really the only part that bothered me. It has to be seen to be understood.
The film tells the story of man's struggle to adapt his environment to his needs, rather than adapting himself. It begins with long, slowly panned camera shots of mountains, canyons, clouds and beautiful rock formations surrounded by water. Then we see explosions and dump trucks as man makes his first appearance, having a devastating effect on the environment. As the action begins to move with increasing speed we see cities going up, buildings coming down, the chaos of industrialization and it's effect on humanity as well as the world itself. There is an absolutely breathtaking shot of the moon rising, taken from behind a huge glassy building and shot so that it happens very quickly. I have learned since I started looking for these films that some of the camera techniques and editing work were pioneered by the director. Even though I didn't see the film until yesterday, the impact of his work is now so obvious to me. His influence is seen everywhere now, in movies, on tv and in commercials. It's truly visionary and very eclectic. I can't wait to see the other two films.

So Koyaanisqatsi was definitely worth the 19 year wait and gets three snaps, a twist and a kiss.

Another film I saw recently, Under Seige 2, gets the finger. Twice and with great and unbridled disgust.

And with that, here endeth Shann's movie reviews. Join her next week as she reviews Assault of the Killer Bimbos and it's riveting sequel, Bimbo Barbecue.

They're real movies.

I swear.

Oh, and MDs rocks my socks. I loved it. It's every bit as good as ER, even better in some ways. Both William Frichtner and John Hannah are wonderful. With the exception of possibly one woman, the hospital adminstration is a small tribe of quifs, though.
John Hannah's scottish brogue is musical. I love the sound of it. How nice that he was allowed to be himself and not made to "drop the accent" for the show. William Frichtner is every bit as amazing as I thought he'd be (OMG - I am so, so in LOVE!!).

The writing is great too. :o)

If this show stays on as long as ER I will be a happy girl indeed.