Darn, I finally realized that my watch battery was dead. I haven't had this watch but for a few months, so I could only guess how long it sat on the shelf. Well, I was already planning on going to Wal-Mart to pick up "Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers". I only saw that movie in the theatre oh maybe five or six times. Wal-Mart is the place to go the first week a new movie is released on DVD because they have a great discounted price, but after the first week, it goes to the standard $20-$25.

My cousin and her two girls hopefully arrived in Chicago by now. It was 117 the first day they arrived, 116 on the seccond, a couple of degrees cooler yesterday. Then at night the temperature was in the mid-90's (that is so wrong). Today in Tucson, we've had clouds and some sprinkles of rain with the promise of more....of course it happens on the day they leave. Now they'll tell everyone in Chicago about how hot it is in Phoenix and how much rain the area gets (none while they were here). It makes me appreciate the fact that it is almost 100 degrees in Tucson (99.9 as I post).

I saw the chiropractor for my back spasms that are slowly getting better. After he was done with the adjustments on my spine, it caused episodes of intense pain. Thankfully, it became manageable by the time I got to work. I also slept on a foam wedge that keeps you on an incline....not very comfortable but it seems to have helped my back and my head. One week from tomorrow, I see my pain doctor. I made this appointment months ago, and unless he deems it necessary, it'll be months before I see him again. Considering I want to get off my medications that may be causing my fatigue, I can't help but feel a bit abandoned. I am thanful for everything's he's done for me, but it seems as if he thinks I'm cured and can move on the next patient.

I am going to try and find a "Primary Care Physician". Since the PPO does not require a PCP, I can see a doctor specializing in Family Practice or General Medicine. There are three providers in General Medicine, but Family Practice has a much bigger list. So now begins the task of trying to find one that will work with me.

Since Wednesday is almost over, I will post a website that explains in great detail a procedure called Radiofrequency Rhizotomy (or simply Rf). I had that procedure done three different times, each time with different results. The first one had me pain free for about a month, but it took almost a week for the cheek muscles to heal enough to eat something other than soup. The second one stopped working after all the local anesthetic wore off. The third procedure targeted the sphenopalatine ganglion (instead of the trigeminal nerve) which greatly reduced the amount of pain for a couple of weeks. After my third Rf, my doctor decided that we were at the point of limited options because he was afraid of making things worse by repeating the Rf (or a block). That was when the process of meeting the neurosurgeon for my MCS.

Well, better get some work done before I fall asleep at my desk. Tomorrow's going to be a busy day!