TSA As A Diabetes Brain Trust? I THINK NOT!

Once again the Diabetes Brain Trust that is the TSA has made travel for PWDs (people with diabetes) less then pleasant and more dangerous than ever.

On Friday, January 27th TSA actually thought a woman with an insulin pump who'd gone through their advanced imaging technology thought her robot pancreas was a gun!

Apparently, TSA thought the woman's insulin pump resembled something in the firearms category.

At least that's how TSA Agent interpreted the 'image' on the screen.

REALLY???

According to the story, there was some confusion because she didn't hear the agents asking her to stop and step aside.

So TSA called the police, the woman's flight was delayed while they searched retrieved, and detained both the woman and her offending electronic pancreas.

Now we all know the mayhem that is makes up the airport security lines.

And we all know that airport security isn't exactly diabetes friendly

But even with all the confusion of security lines,searches and electronic devices - I don't know what planet you have to be from to confuse an insulin pump for a gun and or firearm!

So here's the Cliff Notes version that TSA might want to keep on file re: insulin pumps and what they look like.

Please keep in mind it's not a dissertation on insulin pumps, nor is it a chapter book.

It's more like a short series of pictures with short descriptive sentences - And you don't have to be a rocket scientist to see that "one of these things is not like the other," absolutely applies to this scenario.

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The above is an insulin pump is called the Medronic Paradigm Revel.

It acts as 24X7 robot pancreas to people living with diabetes and it saves lives by feeding us insulin subcutaneously.

It sort of resembles a beeper, circa 1990 (as do most insulin pumps,) and I'm OK with that.

It is powered by batteries and brain power.

It delivers us insulin.

We need insulin to live.

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This is Animas OneTouch Ping Insulin Pump and it saves lives.

It spends it's entire life acting as an electronic pancreas that a person with diabetes wears clipped to their person 24X7.

And it also looks a bit like beeper.

But once again, I'm OK with people thinking it's a beeper/I'm a surgeon thing. And if I get Doctors parking privileges, even better!

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This is an Accu-Chek Spirit Insulin Pump.

And not to sound like a broken record, but it is a battery operated pancreas; it saves lives.

It transfers insulin from it's reservoir subcutaneously through an infusion set site to a person with diabetes - And gives them what those of us with "the betes" call "the elixir of life," a.k.a., INSULIN.

Hence the reason it is called an insulin pump.

And once again, it is beeper like.

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Believe it or not, this above duo also acts as a life saving insulin pump/automaton like pancreas.

It is called the Omnipod.

And yes, it looks like a pod and has it's own PDM.

There is no tubing attached and it's more circular in shape than the other pumps.

With that being said, it still doesn't look like a gun.

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The above is not a picture of an iPhone and you cannot download your itunes library to it.

It is what those of us in the diabetes world call the Tandem Diabetes Care t:slim Insulin Pump.

It has a touch screen and as of this today, it's not out on the market, yet.

When it finally does hit the market, it will take it's place in the motion control pancreas world and save lives.

And finally.........

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This is 9m.m. Glock: IT IS A HANDGUN.

It eats bullets, not batteries, and in no way can it deliver insulin to you, or for you.

And it is very, very dangerous.

You actually have to have a license to carry gun- And I'm not just talking about a Glock,(now I'm just going to keep saying GLOCK for continuity purposes. Plus, now I can't just can't stop saying GLOCK,) I'm talking about all guns.

And even with a license, you still can't bring a gun on your physical person @ the airport, Glock or not.

Ironically, a few celebrities and the occasional Texan have tried, but even they get it trouble for doing that - Go ahead, GOOGLE it.

And speaking of Google, when you Google the terms: "Handgun for women, or gun that women prefer, or women and guns," just for shits and giggles, The 9m.m. Glock is one of the guns that comes up over and over, which is why I'm using it as an example.

Now I'm no expert on guns, but the 9m.m. Glock looks like all the other handguns on the Google, and once again not one of those guns looks like an insulin pump!

And just so we're clear, in no way does the 9.m.m. Glock, or any other handgun resemble an insulin pump, beeper, pod, PDM or iPhone.

They resemble GUNS.

And guess what a gun look like On TSA Body Scanners??

A FREAKING GUN.

Seriously, TSA, how the f^ck can you confuse an insulin pump with a gun?

And just as importantly, why is OK that you you're employees mistake insulin pumps for guns, view cupcakes as contraband, steel insulin from pregnant ladies, give the elderly full cavity body searches, profile people because they look different and bust colostomy bags like water balloons?

And why are we the ones treated like criminals when you do?

Diabetes Doesn't Respect A Woman's Right To Change Her Mind.....

Diabetes doesn't respect a woman's right to change her mind, be it, clothing, shoes, lovers or Baked Lays.
I stand by those words 100% and I utter them often- though the Baked Lays part is interchangeable with various carbs, like past, rice, Chinese & Mexican cuisine.

The phrase also happen to be something I tweeted to my friend Kim over at Texting My Pancreas when she tweeted about bolusing for a Baked Lays and then changing her mind about eating them. I could totally relate, because lets face it: We've all been there, done that.

Diabetes doesn't respect or get the fact that I (and by I, I mean we) like cute boots and wedge heels - And I wear them.
And while I'm ranting, I'm going to say that shoe designers don't get (or won't admit too) the fact that just because you have a wide foot in the toe-box area, doesn't mean you want to wear some God awful, ugly ass shoes.

Shoe designers are actually afraid to make shoes available in a WIDE because they think women won't by them.

Forget the fact that majority of women are walking around in shoes that don't fit them properly - diabetes or not.

How about shoe manufacturers/ designers make their MEDIUM widths slightly more roomy so I (we) can be comfortable and consistantly fashionable and my diabetes doesn't blow a proverbial tire???
Diabetes doesn't get that some days I want to wear not so sensible shoes for more than a few hours at a time - it's not my fault I have high arches!

And you know what? I don't want to look like I have three boobs, specifically when I'm attempting to tuck my trusty insulin pump in my bra and thanks to my less than ample boobs, it never seems to look quite 'natural," when stashed there.
In my mind, I hear diabetes (like it was an actual person) say: Tough crap, Kel - DEAL WITH IT. And I DO.

And sometimes when I clip my insulin pump to my pump garter to wear a dress or skirt (and I will admit that it really does depend on the cloth's fabric and draping abilities, or lack there of,) I look like a Drag Queen who hasn't quite figured out the whole "tuck & hide" thing yet.

Yes, there are times when diabetes flips us the finger in the form of a high or low blood sugar and it could care less about the where and why of it all.
And other times, like my friend Kim - I bolus before I eat, and then realize I've changed my mind.

Yes, I could bolus post meal - But my friend Gary told me that I am ever so slightly slow when it comes to insulin absorption rates (basal testing is torture but the results are key - not to mention interesting!) and to bolus sooner as far as meals are concerned is a better option for me.

But here's the thing, I respect diabetes - whether it's being pissy with me or not. And while there are moments when diabetes wins a battle, be it about carbs , triple boobs, shoes or 175 things in between, diabetes WILL NOT WIN the war.

"Dog Pile On The Diabetes, Dog Pile On The Diabetes!!!"

Way back when I was first diagnosed with "the diabetes," Looney Tunes used to air really early on Saturday mornings and occasionally every now and then in the afternoons.

On Saturday mornings I'd get up super early and my oldest brother would usually be walking in the door from God knows where - and we'd watch tv together.

He loved the Looney Tunes and because he did, I did.

Plus, they were really funny!

And I specifically remember the above cartoon and laughing out loud.

I also remember that after I watched said cartoon, I got up and started dancing around the living room singing: Dog pile on the diabetes, dog pile on the diabetes, dog pile on the diabetes!

Yes, I was sort of a weird kid who was highly influenced by what she saw on television.

But here's the thing: Even today, during those moments when I'm kicking diabetes ass and to the curb and go from the diabetes underdog to the diabetes top dog, I still sing out loud:

Dog pile on the diabetes, dog pile on the diabetes!!!

And with any luck, you won't be able to get that phrase out of your head now either!!!

Are you singing it yet??? Are people looking at you at work like your crazy???

YES, My diabetesalicious plan is succeeding!!!

BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

Wordless Wednesday: "And We All Shine On....."

" And We All Shine On..."

Photo via my iPhone~

Diabetes Memories: Boil, Boil, Toil & Trouble - Of Boiled Insulin Needles & Other Diabetes Givens Growing Up~

So with three people with diabetes growing up in the house, (four if you count my oldest sister who got married when I was 4) things got pretty crazy, not to mention expensive.

And there were certain diabetes givens in the Kunik household

Like my dad kept his insulin in the butter compartment in the fridge in the utility room, while my sister and I kept our insulin in the fridge in the kitchen.

My dad used Lente as his long acting insulin and I used NPH - And I think my sister did too.

I remember my dad, Debbie and I always busting out needles before we ate our meals, right there at the table - no matter who was at the table. That was our diabetes reality and if you ate at the Kunik table, you were bound to see some hypodermics being injected before the main course.

I remember glasses of orange juice measured out perfectly to treat a lows and the the anxiousness in which we drank down the orange juices.

I remember Tab and Fresca and Diet Pineapple Fanta and diet Orange Shasta always being on hand - Same goes for Diet Pepsi.

I remember that when I was first diagnosed, I used Sweet N Low in my cereal, while my father used something called Sweeta - A liquid sweetner that I thought was heinous.

And those are just a few of the many diabetes memories that enter my clogged mind on a daily basis!

I also have these very vivid memories of my father (and my mother for that matter) boiling our insulin needles over the stove in a tiny little tan pot with a brown handle - which is something they started doing way before I came to be.

Because back in the Diabetes Dark Ages, needles were made of glass and required boiling and sterilization before each use. So my parents spent of time pre Kelly boiling needles over the kitchen stove.

By the time I was diagnosed, needles were disposable and came in boxes filled with at least a hundred. But my dad still boiled mine to make them last longer, which taught me a few diabetes lessons early on. Lessons like:

1. The numbers and lines on the needle started to become faint and difficult to read after it’s been boiled a few times
2. Much like “blunt lancets,” the more you use a needle (after you boil it, of course) the more blunt it gets!

My eight year old self would have major arguments with parents regarding boiled needles and how much they sucked.

And I remember my dad talking about the cost and then singing an intangible and entirely made up english version of O' Sole Mio in a mock yiddish accent while boiling the needles and waving the tongs around to make me laugh and get me off the subject.

Looking back now, I realize how much they had on their plate - And I’m still amazed at how they did it all.

And I’m reminded how far diabetes care has come - And how O' Sole Mio no longer applies~

Do you have any diabetes memories from growing up with diabetes?

Diabetes Skycam On A String

I wish diabetes had an instant replay capabilities - sort of like my own diabetes Skycam.
Maybe if I had a camera on a string hovering over me like the NFLers do, I could capture and replay all those little moments (and rare) that led me to my diabetes victories, both big and small.
You know, like when I get a carb count right for an insanely filled carb meal or when I cut my temporary basal rate pre workout whilst figuring out and ingesting the perfect snack for said pre-work out activity (because every workout activity requires a different snack and temporary basal rate) so I don't have to stop mid-workout to fuel up. And I'd really appreciate the diabetes camera on a string zipping around on a day when my numbers seem to achieve Blood Sugar Nirvana without much effort and I'm not really sure why.
It's not that I don't remember what I did, because I do.... to a degree.
But it's those little nuances (portion size or food combos; wholegrain verses non whole grain, infusion set location/ deadspot issues, stress factors, mental status, time of the month - ladies, you know what I'm talking about, activity level(s) or the moon' s gravitational pull for that matter,) that seem to make the difference - And I don't always remember them... or the order in which the occur.
Same goes for when my numbers are all screwy for no real reason except because diabetes feels like being bitchy - which happens a lot more than I'd like to admit.
On the other hand, the more I think about having a diabetes Skycam zipping around my world on a string, the more I think it wouldn't work. First, it would be super expensive, not to mention inconvenient and bulky. And second, Diabetes Skycam on a string would only capture my diabetes movements from exterior angles, not interior ones.
It wouldn't capture my diabetes inner workings or my brains for that matter- And as we know - that's a pretty big part of diabetes. Not to mention the fact that it's completely unrealistic - but a hell of a visual!
Plus, I'd have to hire an announcer for the they diabetes instant replays - And again, that would be ridiculous expensive, incredibly annoying - not to mention creepy~

Debbie - 21 Years Goes By Like THAT.

Debbie, Santa & Kelly

Debbie-

21 years goes by like THAT..... And there's still some much I remember.

Today, I choose to remember how you were on this day, how we both we're.

We were happy and we were laughing and we didn't have a care in the world.

I think about you everyday,Deb - And I miss you very much - And I wish I'd been more patient at times.

Today, diabetes is so much different and you wouldn't feel alone.

You'd feel more empowered and you'd be part of amazing diabetes on-line community that would just continue to amaze you everyday - TRUST ME.

I find comfort that Mom and you are together again, because she missed you so much!

Still, I'm jealous that she's with you because I really miss her!

But I remind myself how long you both waited to see one another again and I can only imagine the party that you and Dad had when she got to heaven.

Take care of her, and Daddy too.

Love,

Kelly~

My Take on MTV's True Life: "I Have Diabetes," Episode

Last night Mtv aired it’s True Life: I Have Diabetes, episode.

And I have to admit, I was ready to go in there swinging and with fists in the air for what I was prepared to view. I was ready for it to be dramatical, sensationalized and completely off base - And for the most part - I was wrong.

As I watched, I found myself wanting to jump through the television screen and wrap my arms around the three young people featured with diabetes. I wanted to protect them fiercely and bring into the Diabetes On-Line Community’s embrace!

And I wanted to smack some of the non PWDs (People With Diabetes) in the episode (and a few in the editing room) for many reasons - Including their lack of compassion.

During the episode, those of us watching in the Diabetes On-line community who were on the twitter were continually telling the @MTV folks to get us in touch with the PWDs featured on the episode!

Facebook status updates, (including my own) were filled with peoples thoughts and concerns! Conversations were generated and are still generated about the episode!

In the episode we were introduced to Kristyn, a 20 something type 1 who had close to $9000 worth of credit card debt - Almost all of it diabetes related.

She was working two jobs and moving back home in order to get her finances in order. Her insulin pump was on its last legs and she needed a new one - like yesterday!

Her mother made her sign a contract that covered everything from a clean neat room, to doing dishes, to keeping good glucose levels and giving up all fast-food and soft drinks.

I found her mother to be incredibly tough and judgmental at times and I think her behavior was a perfect example of how you can care and love someone, but sometimes it comes off as judging.

Her daughter was working two jobs (and literally around the clock,) to get out of debt and get a new pump (which would cost her $2200 out of pocket )and which she put on her credit card because out of necessity, and her mother was grilling her about EVERYTHING, including drinking diet soda? REALLY?

At one point Kristyn cried: I just wish she’d acknowledge when I make a little of progress!

And at that very moment all of us watching and tweeting about the episode felt the very same thing!!!

I was so proud of Kristyn for working so hard at her life & her diabetes - And I didn’t even know her! And quite frankly, I didn’t understand how her mother couldn’t be proud - Or at least not verbalize her pride.

It is so easy to tell some one what they should be doing with their life, and their life with diabetes. And sometimes we forget that a little acknowledgement and praise goes a hell of a long way!!

In the end, Kristyn got a new pump, and to paraphrase her own words: Decided to use her mother’s negativity and turn it into a positive - to get her out of debt.

The last shot of them together shows them working as team on a spread sheet re: Kristyn’s finances - And it looks as if their relationship had turned a really positive corner - And that makes me both relieved and happy for them both!

And then we had the opportunity to meet a college student named Matt, a type 1 since the age of 13.

By Matt’s own admission, back when he was first diagnosed, he was “the perfect diabetic” and had great numbers and control.

But since Matt entered college, not so much. His focus is on partying and having the same college experience he thought all his friends were having. And as person with type 1 who had diabetes in college - I get that, I do.

I think all of us who had no choice but to take our diabetes to college with us, had our moments of being Matt - though perhaps not to the degree he took it - At least according the the show’s editing of his drinking.

College equals freedom for many and diabetes is a constant - Matt knew it and so I - but in college, my diabetes wasn’t a priority. Its so hard to embrace your own normal in life, not to mention college, because you want to fit in and be like everyone else!

And let's face it, Diabetes Burnout happens regardless of your age!

Matt’s friends were certainly concerned and aware of Matt’s health issues. He’d had three diabetes related seiszures since going off to college - And that not only worried his friends and family, it worried all of us watching!

His friends checked in on him when they were out and it was obvious how much they cared for him. When his bg was 405 and he was getting sick, they were really there for him.

Matt’s a1c was 8.4 and I have to say - I appreciated Matt’s Endo and his listening abilities. He didn't start off by judging him, which allowed for an open dialogue between the two of them - and Matt actually going to see his endo. At least that's my opion.

At one point Matt utters: Would I rather my disease be better or my life be better?

And he chose his life. FYI: I'm not sure if this was a direct response to a Producer's question or something that he said off the cuff and entirely on his own.

Anyway, I wanted to tell him that 30 comes around the corner so quickly, (not to mention other numbers,) and that having good diabetes control does equal a good life. The two can go hand-in-hand and one does not have to exist without the other. Actually, one will exist because of the other.

But that’s a reality that the person with diabetes has to realize and come to terms with on their own.

In the end, we see Matt drinking Crystal Lite at his 21st birthday party and trying to get his numbers in check before he drinks. He promises to cut back on his drinking and focus more on his health.

Next we meet Jen, a 19 year old woman who is 5 months pregnant and had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at the same time she was diagnosed with being pregnant.

Personally, I thought the type 2 dx was more than a bit off! She was slender and I was thinking more along the lines of, type 1, LADA or gestational diabetes. It's a real shame her healthcare team didn't consider those types of diabetes.

The nurses continually used the possibility of using insulin as a scare tactic, and that really pissed me off! Obviously oral meds weren’t working and so many women w/gestational diabetes go on insulin to protect both the baby and themselves.

Jen was trying - but I really feel that she was lacking proper information and I was disappointed in her healthcare team.

She ended up going on insulin, having the baby induced early. Her son was whisked off to the NickU and suffered a "broad shouldered baby injury," a.k.a, Shoulder Dystocia. I'd never heard of it before or it’s direct link to diabetes and pregnancy before, so I was glad I learned something new

What really broke my heart was that Jen was obviously misdiagnosed. After she was able to bring her son home from the hospital, Jen was hospitalized 5 more times with high blood sugar and was re-diagnosed as a type 1. And MTV's explanation as to how and why that occurred was way off and the fact that she was misdiagnosed wasn't even brought up!

Because of her misdiagnoses, both Jen and her baby suffered tremendously and that pisses me off. Had no one in her healthcare professional circle ever heard of young adults being diagnosed with type 1 Or LADA for that matter?

For the most part, MTV did a good job, though I would have really appreciated a producer who had done their home work on type 1, type 1.5 and type 2. Which would have made their conclusion of Jen’s rediagnoses much easier to understand from a non-diabetes point of view.

Still, I was pleased with the episode as whole... FOR THE MOST PART. It showed very real issues associated with living and growing up with diabetes, but were there some things they could have done better?? ABSOLUTELY. Was "creative" editing an issue?? MAYBE.

UPDATE: MTV has updates on Kristyn, Matt & Jen and their lives since they filmed the episode! Click: http://remotecontrol.mtv.com/2012/01/18/true-life-check-in-matts-cut-back-on-his-drinking/#more-108653

Now, if @Mtv could just get those featured in the episode (and those not, but living with diabetes) introduced to the diabetes on-line community!

Speaking of, other great DOC posts regarding the episode can be found at:

http://countrygirldiabetic.blogspot.com/2012/01/mtv-true-life-i-have-diabetes.html

http://www.textingmypancreas.com/2012/01/mtv-true-life-i-have-diabetes.html

And if I've missed your post - Add it to the comments section so we can check it out!!

In Protest

As someone who has had her blog scraped word for word, picture for picture and time stamp, for time stamp - I'm absolutely against plagiarism! With that being said, I'm also absolutely against censorship of my words/work/and or website - Or anyone else's for that matter!

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To Learn More About Stopping SOPA, Click HERE.

And to quote the folks at Google: End Piracy, Not Liberty!

Paula Deen - If You Need Us, The Diabetes On-Line Community Has Your Back!

Others in the on-line community have written on this subject - And quite eloquently might I add~

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Diabetes ain't all about the cookin' either!

UPDATE TO THE STORY/BLOG POST: ON January 17th, Paula Deen announced on The Today Show that she'd been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes three years ago. At the same time, she also announced her partnership with Novo Nordisk and introduced their new website: Diabetesinanewlight.com . Paula also stated that she is currently taking the NN drug drug, Victoza.

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So there was all sorts of rumblings (and twitterings) on the internetz this past weekend about the possibility of Paula Deen being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. Paula's people have yet to confirm the story and until they do, I won't say that Paula is a person living with diabetes, because I don't know.

But I will say that there was some pretty distasteful things being said on -line (and a few of those distasteful things being said by people with diabetes,) putting the diabetes blame on Paula, her cooking, and her love of butter.
And it pissed me off!
Here's the thing. I don't like it when somebody blames me for my type 1 diabetes - As a matter of fact, It makes me pretty damn mad! And I don't like it when somebody blames you for your diabetes - regardless of the type! That also makes me pretty damn mad because it's wrong on so many levels. NEWS FLASH: Diabetes diagnoses aren't all about the cooking!!!
And to say that somebody deserves type 2 diabetes because of that person's love and use of butter is asinine. Seriously, if that were true, than the whole country of France would have type 2 diabetes, and according to the research I've found, 3.8 % of France lives with type 2 diabetes, not 100%.
I like Paula's cooking enough to say out loud "Wow, that looks good," when I happen to catch her show on TV.
I can't say it's exactly my style - But I wasn't raised down south. But I can't say that I would turn down a meal at one of her many restaurants, because I wouldn't.
I respect Paula as a human, a television Chef/ Personality and a business woman who over came tremendous odds including debilitating agoraphobia to get where she is, and if she confirms that she has type 2 diabetes, then I will respect her as a person living with diabetes.

Others are blaming her for possibly considering a deal with Novartis and question the fact that she might actually make money of her presumed diabetes.

My thoughts: BFD. If Paula does indeed have diabetes,why shouldn't she make money off it? The drug companies certainly make money off diabetes, as do the heathcare professionals - so why shouldn't people living with diabetes make some money?? I respect companies more when they use a real person with diabetes in their advertising, not an actor playing a person with diabetes.
If Paula comes out as a person living with type 2 diabetes, I won't blame her, but I will welcome her into the diabetes on-line community with open arms!
Type 2 has a huge genetic link, and while diet certainly can be a factor in developing type 2, diet isn't not the be all end all reason for type 2 diabetes. And if that's the reason why you or your loved one has diabetes - That's OK, because I'm here to help you, not judge you.

Actually, the entire Diabetes On-Line Community is here to help you!
To blame someone for their diabetes not only prevents that person from seeking help with their diabetes (it's called a stigma people,) & actually perpetuates diabetes myths!
Blaming people for their diabetes also directly affects fundraising dollars for a diabetes cure. If the public perceives diabetes and all its forms as preventable, who will donate to raise funds for a cure?
The diabetes reality is that nobody, regardless of which type of diabetes they live with ( type 1, type 1.5, type 2, gestational, or type 3) wants to live with diabetes. Diabetes isn't a choice for the majority, it is a very real genetic reality. Just like having blue eyes.
I think it's our job FOR ALL OF US in the diabetes online community to show the public the real faces and realities of living with diabetes - regardless of the type.
It is our job to call out the media out when we see a diabetes media muck-up and it's our job to show the world that living with diabetes isn't a choice or a character flaw. It is a 24X7 reality that we never get a break from.

And it is our job as people living with diabetes to help (and be helped) by others living with diabetes, while educating others in the process.

After all, we are all in this together........ and there but for the grace of diabetes go I~

Sometimes, we just need to be reminded of that~

ONCE Makes Me Happy

Thanks to all types of technical difficulties, today's post is late - but the subject is truly fantastical none the less!

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To view the trailer in all its glory & without the annoying confines of my blog's design layout, click HERE.

I saw the production of ONCE, The Musical the day after Thanksgiving and the multi-talented cast did an absolutely phenomenal job of bringing the movie & its music and it's story to the stage.

The show was brilliant and literally pulled the audience in. The set was beautiful and you felt the intimacy between the characters and as part of the audience - It was really just a fantastical experience all around!

And in my humble opinion, the show deserves to go to Broadway & every person in the much gifted cast will knock your socks off!

Did I mention that the actors also played instruments, danced AND danced with said instruments!!

FULL DISCLOSURE: "The Girl, played by Cristin Milioti" (She's the one in rust colored jacket,) is my niece - and has been since the day she came into this world.

I love her so much and am enormously proud of her accomplishments, both on stage and off!

I've shared all sorts of moments with you guys on the blog, including some moments that included Cristin.

And so many of you in the Diabetes On-Line Community have followed those moments and have continually asked about ONCE going to Broadway.

So when I saw the trailer for the musical yesterday, I knew I had to post it for your guys!

And as far as the diabetes connection, (because isn't there almost always one,) here it is.

Every time I watch the trailer for the play, (and I have watched it over, and over, and over again) I feel happy to the point I cry happy tears.

And feelings of happiness produce endorphins, lots of them! And endorphins help elevate our mood - which is common knowledge.

And good moods = good blood sugars - And vice versa.

So endorphins are VERY important in the blood sugar department!

And isn't a big part of diabetes all about blood sugars?

So if you think about it in the blood sugary diabetical sense of it all, why wouldn't you watch the trailer, not to mention the play??

And that my friends, is your 6 degrees of diabetes bacon right there!

In This Chapter: It Was A Dark & Stormy Night & Our Heroine Was Just About To Hit The Sack......

Because living with diabetes is never ending, but it's always an interesting story non the less~

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In the darkest of night with the alarm all set and the lights down low, the lady with the broken pancreas was looking forward to going to sleep. Her comforter was comfy and the rain outside was falling, hitting the roof at a steady pace & gently tapping at her bedroom window, lulling her to some much needed shut-eye.

She was tired and the fact that she was drifting off so easily was indeed a wonderful thing.

And just as she entered that phase sleep experts call Stage 1 and the rest of us call Snoozeville, she felt a strange little feeling in the pit of her belly.

IF you lived in the DOC, you knew the strange little feeling could either be a hunger pain or the beginnings of a dreaded low blood sugar. The lady with the broken pancreas was pissed because it just wasn't a good time to go low for her, not that there ever is a god time to go low mind you. But our heroine was tired and wanted to sleep - And she wanted to sleep right then and there.

She realized that her trusty bedroom juicebox stash was at ZERO, as was the bottle of glucotabs on her nightstand. And the lady had forgotten to bring a glass of juice to bed with her!

After all, even the smartest and snarkiest of ladies make mistakes, but she still felt pretty damn dumb!

So the lady set her insulin pump's temporary basal rate to 1/2 and for 60 minutes time. And she waited a few mintues.

She knew that if she got up, went to the kitchen and drank some juice, that strange little feeling in the pit of her stomach could be said and done with it, ASAP. And seriously, why the hell was she trying to bargain it away?

She knew the drill, she'd been around the diabetes block more than a time or two and she knew what had to be done.

The little feeling in her stomach was now moving up her abdomen and wasn't going away. "Enough of this," she said as she flipped on the nightstand lamp and squinted in the brightness, grabbed her meter and tested.

The lady had a #bgnow of 84 and she was now wide awake!

And even though The Diabetes Magic Eight Ball was no where to be found, she knew all signs pointed south.

So she got up, went to the fridge and grabbed the Apple & Eve's Sesame Street Elmo's Fruit Flavored Punch (one of her favorite juices/ Sesame Street characters) and poured some punch into a glass. She drank it with gusto and added a cheesestick as her side of protein.

And then she waited 10 minutes (which seemed like forever,) & tested again. She was 90. So she poured some more juice in the glass and headed back towards her bedroom. She drank a little more, waited and tested again. She was 95.

The lady with the broken pancreas felt better and the annoying feeling in her belly was almost gone. She put the glass of juice on the nightstand, rearranged the comforter and put her head on the pillow.

The rain continued to fall and tap gently on the window. Her temporary 1/2 mast basal rate still had 34 minutes to go and she felt good, not to mentioned relieved.

She was no longer feeling wide awake and the familiar feeling of sleepiness started to return. And the last thing the lady remembered thinking was that she needed to go out and buy juice boxes and glucose tabs the very next day.

Cut to the morning and the lady who's pancreas had been faulty since the age of 8 was blowing a blood sugar of 143. The lady was proud that she'd she'd dealt with her low blood sugar effectively, but was annoyed at herself none the less. Annoyed that she'd tried to bargain with the low blood sugar instead of doing what needed to be done in the first place.

Still, the lady learned a lesson or two from the experience - And isn't learning one of the reason we joined the Diabetes On-Line Community in the first place!

;)

32,865 Days Ago A Miracle Happened On Bloor Street ~

Welcomed indeed!

It was 90 years ago today that the "Miracle on Bloor Street" happened, and the world as we know it changed forever.

To be even more specific in terms of the time/space continuum, it was 32,865 days ago, which broken down into hours = 788,760. Break that number of hours down into minutes and it = 47,325,600 minutes. Take the number of minutes and break them down into seconds and = 2,830,536,000 seconds ago that a human being first received a shot of insulin. The insulin was brown and brackish in color and came from the pancreas of a piggy, and was administered to a 14 year old boy named Leonard Thompson.

The first shot caused Thompson to have an allergic reaction, but after fine tuning of the extracted insulin by the good doctors, a second shot was administered 2 weeks later.

Millions of lives were saved and family trees were able to develop new branches.

A Nobel Prize was won and many a diabetes business was launched.

My own Family Tree was able to flourish despite diabetes. My father and his two sisters were all diagnosed as type 1 (they were from a family of seven children,) and had 10 children between them, including my two sisters and I - Also type 1s. Not to mention my nephew and cousin also have type 1. And when you really think about it, he Diabetes On-Line Community is able to exist because of the discovery of insulin.

I'm so very grateful to insulin and my heart holds a special place for Doctors Banting & Best - I love them very much!

But I can't help wondering how many days, hours, minutes and seconds it will take to find a cure for diabetes.

Because isn't 32,865 days an awfully long time to wait between diabetes miracles?

Life With Diabetes: The Quest For Pancreas Perfection & Achieving Blood Sugar Nirvana

Iheartguts makes an honest to goodness "perfect pancreas, " and it only costs $16 bucks!

So in the Diabetes On-line community we are all working pancreases both by day, and by night - Continually on the quest for pancreas perfection and achieving Blood Sugar Nirvana.

We are litigious calculating carbs, experimenting with temporary basal rates, trying out carb combinations in all their many shapes in forms and every thing else diabetically speaking in between. We all try so hard to be the perfect definition of a what a working pancreas is. And lets face it, our health depends on our hard work and we are constantly reminded of that at every diabetes twist and turn.

And we are much harder on our ‘Working Pancreas” alter egos than we are on ourselves. I'd I'll be the first to admit, I’ve said the following, and much, much more:

Oh, Kelly you stupid pancreas, how could you not realize that forgetting to bolus for that third cup of coffee would create havoc with your numbers?

Nice job being Kelly’s pancreas, Kelly. Seriously, how could you let yourself go so low?

Really Kelly’s pancreas, REALLY. How the hell could you forget extra batteries for your pump professional - REAL PROFESSIONAL.

YES, I sound like Sybil - But at least I’m not alone!

And I know myself well enough to realize that I will continue to have these Sybil like conversations with myself.

And I'm smart enough to believe it's OK to vent - I'M ALL ABOUT VENTING.

And I'm damn glad I have people to vent with, who understand what I'm going through because they've gone through it themselves.

BUT As people LIVING with busted pancreases, we are critical of ourselves, as are parents working as full time pancreases for their children.

And sometimes (at least as far as my own quest for pancreas perfection and achieving Blood Sugar Nirvana is concerned,)

I can be so focused on the goal of perfection, that I (we) forget to remember all the lessons continually being learned on the road to perfection.

And I’ve come to realize as of late that nothing is perfect - in life or diabetes.

And if we stop learning, we stop appreciating all the knowledge that we’ve gained. And then we become stuck... and who the hell wants to be stuck - be it in dog shit or life?

Being stuck in life means that you don’t have the chance to move forward.

So I guess what trying to say is: LIVE AND LEARN, get unstuck and appreciate all those lessons you're learning.

And remember to give yourself some much needed credit for the difficult job that your doing 24X7 & 365 days a year - Because you deserve it~