New Year Update

Ok, so my new year's hiatus lasted a bit longer than I intended... I started watching HBO's former series The Wire and, well, all I can tell you of the last month and a half is that I've learned to never trust a politician, news writer, police officer, lawyer, dock worker, or drug dealer. Great show!

Anyways, now that I've re-emerged into the real world, I have quite a few updates. I recently designed a logo for my parents and brother's newly formed real estate team:

So if you're looking to buy property in this beautiful state (and why wouldn't you? It's 75 degrees of gorgeous sunshine right now!) they're the team to call. Plus, they're great people.

I've also resumed my position as a mentor at Free Arts of Arizona. My partner Kyla and I are working with kids aged 5-11 and so far it's been a blast! I love this age group, they're still excited about playing with glitter and pipe cleaners and nothing is totally lame yet. Last week we made valentines, tissue paper flowers for Mom, and candy rings:

I've been busy at work at the Children's Museum, which I'm loving more and more each day - I even got to write a few grant requests this week! We've been preparing for months for a huge gala that is finally upon us! This Saturday night adults will take over the museum and play and explore like kids, and I'll get to partake in the festivities as a grateful volunteer. I'll post some pictures after the big event.

Speaking of work, I'm finally returning to work at Anthropologie this weekend and I'm very excited to be back on the job. While I really, really love all of the volunteering/interning I'm doing, I can't help but long for the ca-ching of a paycheck every now and then.

And lastly, I lost a great member of the family this week when we put down our beloved Wheaten Terrier, Bailey. Bays was my first great companion when we moved to Arizona, and I'll greatly miss our pool races and cuddle sessions. Unfortunately, age finally got the best of him and after fourteen great years we had to say goodbye. Unbelievably, I don't have a single picture of him on my computer (I lost them all in the great crash of '07), but here's a drawing I made of him a few summers ago:

RIP Bailey boy, I'm sure you're having a great time in doggy heaven with Rocky and Reggie.

So, that's my update for now. I'm trying to get back to work on some personal projects, one of which is staying on top of this blog so that I can keep my devoted readers entertained (that's you, Grandma Bebby). Hopefully I'll have some new artwork to post soon, and until then, enjoy one of my favorite hippo sketch studies:

Surgery!

I never would have imagined I could be so excited about having a surgery! As I mentioned before, my surgery has been set for December 21st and I have idly been counting down the days. My parents and I had the faint hope that maybe I could be squeezed in on the 14th or 15th (the doctor only operates on Mondays and Tuesdays), yet each time we called to check on my status, the scheduling ladies had the same response: "Sorry, no changes. If something opens up we'll let you know." Because I'm on blood thinners, I need at least 5 days notice before the surgery to tend to my medications, so as yesterday and today rolled by, I finally resigned myself to the fact that surgery could come no sooner than the 21st.

Until now.

The scheduling ladies just called and said Wednesday, December 16th is available and I'm on the schedule! FIVE DAYS sooner than expected! FIVE DAYS from today! And absolutely right on time. I know 5 days doesn't sound like much, and if I had to wait those extra 5 days I would, without complaint. But cutting 5 days from my sentence feels like adding a year onto my life right at this moment! I've been on my back for eight weeks - yes, EIGHT WEEKS! I can barely remember what it feels like to sit down at a table to eat a meal, let alone sleep comfortably on my stomach (or at all, for that matter) or stand up for longer than 10 minutes. I am ecstatic that my surgery and the rest of my life are only 5 days away.

And, as an added bonus, I'll be able to attend my brother's holiday party on the 19th in an upright position instead of chaining myself to the couch for the night. Oh happy day!

The Incredible Future of Technology

Hi Everyone! I know I haven't written in a while, but I've been home from the hospital since the day after my last post and I finally have a surgery date - December 21 - so I know when I'll finally be able to join the real world again!! I haven't been writing because I feel like I haven't had much to say - my pain is still pretty much the same as it's been for the past 6 weeks and I've been working on building a tolerance so that I can stand and walk for longer periods of time. Most of my time is still spent lying on my back, but now I get to go out on little field trips so I can go shopping for an hour or pick up my brother from the airport (riding in the backseat, lying down, of course). I've been busy knitting hats and scarves (pretty much all I know how to knit), watching lots of TV, and re-reading Harry Potter for the billionth time, so I'm keeping pretty positive and happy for the most part. However, the reason for this post was not to ramble on about myself, it was to share a very interesting video that I discovered about the future of technology.



This video features the genius Pranav Mistry as he demos and discusses his latest invention, SixthSense technology. It is absolutely astounding! In my wildest dreams I never could have foreseen technology becoming this interactive and accessible. And, though I've always dreamed that I could capture a picture with just the blink of an eye, I never thought we'd come this close... Imagine how this technology could change the world!

Update Take 2: My Hospital Adventure

Wow, I didn't realize how long it had been since I last updated everyone on my condition! A LOT has changed, and not so much for the better, so let me get you caught up... After I last wrote, I got an MRI that night and learned that I have a HUGE herniation in my S1 disc - and I mean HUGE! All of the doctors who have looked at it agree that it is enormous and most recommended surgery to most successfully correct the problem. When I first heard this news, I was pretty upset, especially since I'm young, active, and have every intention of using my spinal cord and its discs for a long time to come! However, the next day I went to meet with the orthopedic surgeon and he explained to me (via a slew of comical metaphors) what exactly will take place in the procedure and how it will relieve my pain: It is a microscopic discectomy where they make a very small incision in my back, remove the part of the disc that is pressing on my nerves, and then sew a single internal stitch, leaving barely a mark on my skin. It's an outpatient surgery that takes only 45 minutes and the relief is said to be so instant that I can do backflips out of hospital! So, after hearing all of the details and weighing my options (wait for several more weeks, or maybe months, in extreme pain, and hope that the disc heals itself OR get this quick fix surgery) I opted for the surgery and scheduled it for Tuesday, November 10, 2 weeks from the date that I met with the surgeon. I would have scheduled the surgery for the day after I met the surgeon if I could have, but he was leaving town and couldn't fit me in that quickly, so I grudgingly accepted that I'd have to lie around for another 2 weeks (remember, I'd already been on my back for over a week at this point). In the meantime, I scheduled an epidural injection in an attempt to shrink the disc and hopefully find some relief, even if it was just temporary...

Wednesday, October 28, the day after I met with the surgeon, I had my epidural. I woke up that morning in a tremendous amount of pain. I couldn't stand long enough to put toothpaste on my toothbrush, and I was losing tolerance for the pain and my inactivity. I went into the procedure with high hopes that things would be different on the other end, but I was definitely not prepared for the injection. They sedated me as soon as I got on the table, so for about 30 seconds I was doing great, and then the shots started and I have never felt that much pain in my life. All of the pain I'd been feeling already was intensified as they were sticking needles right into my tender nerves and my body just freaked out. When they were done with the injections (I don't know how many shots there were, it felt like at least 5) I was shaking uncontrollably and hyperventilating and I was pretty much a wreck, but they gave me some more drugs and laid me down until I could recover from the shock of the pain and then, miraculously, I felt nothing! I could sit up straight and I could stand with no pain and I thought, maybe that was worth it after all! And then about an hour later the numbing medicine wore off and the pain meds wore off and I was in the same pain I'd been in when I woke up and my spirits sank. With epidural injections it can take up to 10 days for the steroids to have their full effect, and so I waited, still on my back, still unable to stand, sit or walk, hoping with each new day that the relief would come... and it never did. I could move around a little better than the days leading up to the procedure, but I still couldn't walk for more than 3 minutes and I still couldn't sit at the dinner table to eat my meals. However, my surgery was scheduled and I had a date to look forward to when I knew I'd feel relief.

Wednesday morning, with less than a week to go before surgery, I woke up with a strange pain in my right shoulder, chest, and ribs. I thought I had just slept funny and tried icing my shoulder, hoping the soreness would go away. Instead, as seems to be the trend with my body lately, it got progressively worse throughout the day. By Wednesday night when I was trying to go to bed, my chest felt constricted and I was having trouble taking deep breaths. I thought if I could just fall asleep, maybe I'd wake up and feel better, but I couldn't fall asleep. By 3am I was really starting to get aggravated and I had already had a fit of hyperventilating, so I woke my parents and told them I was worried about the new pains and the breathing issue. They tried to calm me down, thinking maybe it was just a panic attack and I was anxious about the upcoming surgery, but after another hour we finally decided it was time to go to the hospital, so at 4am on Thursday morning, I took a trip to the ER.

At the hospital they ran a bunch of tests and told me it was probably nothing, but I was still in pain and having trouble breathing. They tried giving me pain meds to make me comfortable but nothing was working. They gave me morphine three times and it had no effect on me! So we waited as they poked at me and scanned me and finally, they diagnosed me: I have several small blood clots all over my lungs - pulmonary embolisms! Now things are pretty serious. I was admitted to the hospital and they finally found a pain medicine that I react to. The first day they drew my blood every two hours to check its thickness, and now my right arm could embarrass a junkie. Since blood clots are much more serious than herniated discs, the surgery that I was so looking forward to has been pushed back at least 30 days. I'm on two blood thinners, benadryl (because the pain meds make me itch), and stool softener (because I haven't pooed since I've been in the hospital... in case you were curious). But really, after the initial shock of the diagnosis and learning that I'd need to stay in the hospital for almost a week, things are not so bad. Once we put the blood clots into perspective I realized how lucky it was that I came to the ER. Had I gone to surgery as planned, with no one knowing about the clots, there could have been terrible complications. Now I just need to treat one health problem at a time and keep trying to get back on my feet!

The hospital itself hasn't been so bad, either. I have a nice big private room and someone from my family is here almost all time. We hooked up our Wii to my TV and we've been playing everything from Family Feud and Trivial Pursuit to Mario Kart. My cousin decorated the room with pictures and I've gotten some beautiful flowers that brighten the room and all of the nurses comment on how great it smells in here! I've got my computer with me so I can watch movies and play games, and there's a whole staff of people waiting on me at the press of a button to bring me food or ice or medicine as I need it! Things could be worse! haha... I'm supposed to be discharged tomorrow, pending the results of a few more tests. Other than that, I'm back to taking this one day at a time...

So that's the update, sorry I couldn't give you happier news but I'm in good spirits so you shouldn't worry about me! Thanks for all the well wishes! I hope you're all happy and healthy!

The Beginning

The time has come for me to finally start my very own blog! I'll be updating as regularly as I can about things I'm working on and plans for my future.

So, let's start the update!

I'm currently working at Shemesh Day Camp again, but only for another week before all of the kiddies return to school. I'm the counselor for 25 soon-to-be first graders, and the last week has been full of lots of chaotic and hilarious moments, including six little boys peeing all over the backyard of the JCC - oops! The kids always keep me laughing but I'm totally exhausted by the end of the week!

I also just got hired (today!) for a part-time job at a children's clothing store called Peek... Aren't You Curious? The store is adorable and they do all of their own design and display work. The store is sorted out into themed sections like the Americana boys section, which is accessorized with cowboy books and firetrucks. So cute!

I'm also interning at a really great design studio called SeeSaw Designs. It's a really small studio set up by two girls who graduated from ASU's design program a few years ago and they specialize in letterpress work. I love their work and I love working with the girls, and it's a pretty unique experience since they allow me to give my input on new projects and brainstorm with them so that I can improve my own design skills.

Finally, I'm working on branding myself - creating a business name, a business card and a website. My top choice for a business name is 'The Artful Hippo' because it plays off The Artful Dodger character from Dickens' Oliver Twist, tying back to my literary roots, and, well, because I really love hippos. The website is on delay until I finalize the business name, but I do have my portfolio up at daynaadler.com. I'm working on the business card design and I'll post some preliminary ideas when I get a chance - suggestions and opinions are VERY welcome! (That goes for the business name, as well).

And now that I've written a small novel, I think I'll conclude my first post with some other exciting news: I qualified for the next round of phx layer tennis! PHX Layers is a design contest where designers volley an image back and forth for six 30-minute rounds (3 turns each) manipulating, adding and subtracting to each image. Check it out at http://www.phxlayers.com to learn more and see my qualifying round vs. Claudia Miranda.

Ok, I think that's enough for my first post! Thanks for reading!