Anesthesia

Met my anesthesiologist (Dr. Lageix) today.

He gave me a full exam and went over my test results. He was very pleased with my test results and my answers to all of his health-related questions.

However he was not happy when I told him that the tumour was weighing down on my neck and that if I pushed on it my head would spin. He tried something no one else had tried. He took my blood pressure and while he was taking my blood pressure he pushed down on the tumour... the needle shot up. He then tried another reading using something that wrapped around my finger and my neck and got the same result.

He wasn't happy. So he called the surgeon and faxed him the results of this test. They talked and they now feel they may keep me in hospital through to Sunday for observation.

I told Dr. Lageix how I had been having a bottle of wine each night to relax my muscles and, especially, my mind. He said that wine is the best relaxant known to man with the best side-effects on the body and the substance the most easily digested. In moderation of course...

He just got back from the Rhône valley where he had spent summer holiday. We talked of the various wines of the region (Châteauneuf du Pape (ridiculously expensive -- I told him about CdP White which he had never tasted), Condrieu, Beaumes de Venise (he knows of a red that's delicious!), Cornas, Crozes-Hermitage, Hermitage, ...).

We then talked about the comparison between the New World wines (USA, South America, Australia, ...) and the Old World wines (Europe) and how France does not know how to compete in a market where wine is treated as grape juice.

Finally we parted ways and I headed off to do all of the paperwork for the hospital.

Home... dinner on the terrasse and another nice bottle of wine.