As Marguerite said, I'm leaving in the morning for St. Louis. The plan is to be admitted at 9:30 and have the heart cath procedure at noon. They will also run a carotid ultrasound to check that the arteries are clear. I suppose they'll find other reasons to poke and prod me as the afternoon progresses.
I assume I am the first case Tuesday morning, but I don't know that for sure.
The surgeon said he would visit with me Monday evening, and the decision will be made on the type of valve. I will be either mooing or oinking.
St. Louis is 100 miles from here, but friends and family have promised/threatened to be nearby. This is a good place to mention that our youngest son also has the same bicuspid aortic valve that I do, and he will be undergoing the same surgery one of these days. I have to be a good role model which is the main reason I haven't fallen apart yet (I'm waiting until I get to the hospital for that!
).
I think I've taken care of the important things. I've asked Karlynn to zing Ross as needed; I've asked Bonnie to post updates as needed; I've asked my daughter to check the forum and keep me informed as to what you all are doing, and I've asked the "mystery man"--no, it's NOT Deep Throat-- to take care of any communication issues. I have received official permission to swim the English channel via a Carribean gangsta, so that wraps up most loose ends! I don't intend to try and post until I get back home, so Hank will probably pick up bandwich space with my absence!
That's about all for now. You all mean the world to me, and I'm anxious to return and offer the same level of generous support you've given me for the past 14 months.
