Heart Health

My dad went in for a routine stress test on Wednesday before scheduled to get on a plane to Massachusetts on Saturday (some people will do anything to get out of coming to New England). He failed the test, then failed the angiogram on Friday and the doctor told him he wasn't getting on a plane. So they took him in for an emergency quad-by pass. Things went as expected. We brought him home late Monday night and he's been improving slowly ever since. He's adjusting to the 6 new medications and the pain. We're recording weight, pulse, blood pressure several times a day. He's supposed to hold an oversized heart pillow to cough, rest with his his leg up over his heart several times a day, and walk a little further each day. So far, we've achieved most of the instructions but are working on getting the contrary patient to follow others. He has a follow-up appointment next week and starts cardiac rehab the week after.

They said the problem was that he felt no pain--had no symptoms. Those are the kind that just drop dead. Since he has an acceptable cholesterol and hikes a lot--this summer in New Mexico at quite an elevation--he couldn't understand why this happened. Tomorrow he's missing the Beerfest in Boston with NotherFrog.

Dad just walked in (he should be in bed) and says I should say something nice about him on the blog. How about this: he's a pretty cool dad! . . . with an awfully big scar.