how to leave comments

click at the bottom of a post (any post) where it says "COMMENTS"; a window will open with a box that says "Leave your comment"; type your comment into the box (be sure to include your name in the comment) and then click on the "PUBLISH YOUR COMMENT" button. that's it!

note: your comment will not show up on your own screen until you hit the refresh button on your browser. it's there, though, so you don't need to enter it again.

from the horse's mouth

i got to speak with janet this morning. she is probably going home on friday, so saturday morning and afternoon coverage is definitely needed. send email to janet@veloma.com (which is sarah's email address), OR leave a comment here on the blog, if you can help out.

also: please no drop-in visitors for now. my report from last night was in error, and janet is not up to receiving visitors. i will post here on the blog when janet is up to receiving that sort of company.

evening update

Janet is doing well, and sends the following report via Pat.

She will see the doctor tomorrow morning, and so will know more then about when she can leave the hospital.

Warning to Strong Women: she may be home as soon as Thursday, and so we may need to think about Friday and Saturday coverage.

Please no phone calls or visits just yet, because her voice is scratchy from the anesthesia. Also please don't bring flowers either to the hospital or to her home -- just bring your smiling face!

Pat reports that Janet is already feeling hungry, which is a good sign and indicates swift healing. She also says that Janet is looking good, is coherent and alert, and is advocating for herself and telling people what to do ;-) That's our Janet!

More tomorrow -
Sarah

un-fused and not con-fused

pat just called with the news that janet has been wheeled into her room from recovery. she is awake and coherent. the doctor did not have to do a spinal fusion, which probably means a shorter recovery time.

i will post updates as they come to me.
- sarah

surgery tomorrow morning

janet got a call, and is supposed to be at the hospital tomorrow at 6:00 am. this probably means that the surgery will begin at 8:00 am. more information will be posted as soon as we get it.

here's how to sign up to help

sarah has posted the schedule of helpers at the bottom of this page. she will repost it whenever it gets updated.

to help, just leave a comment on the post that contains the schedule. your comment should include:

- your name
- your phone number (NOT email address, or else you will be inundated with spam)
- what you want to offer to do, and
- what days you're committing to.

to leave a comment on any post, move your cursor to the word "COMMENTS" at the bottom of the post, and click; a little window should pop up where you can say whatever you want. if you have any questions about how to leave comments, you can call sarah at 510-872-0716 or email her at janet@veloma.com.

notes from Lynne on how to help

Things may change. We don’t know when Janet will be coming home from the hospital or what kind of home care she’ll be getting through Kaiser.

Until she feels better, the dogs will not be home (probably for a couple of weeks after the surgery). Once they’re home, she’ll need someone to help walk and clean up after them. She may also need people to do some shopping, dishes, laundry or running errands for her.

There are lots of places to sign up to help. Please don’t feel you need to help more than once a week (of course you can if you want to).

If you sign up for a date and time, please be there or arrange for someone to take your place.

Each day there should be two people signed up to help (one in the morning – after 8 AM – and one in the late afternoon). There are also two extra weekly signup spaces. Once a week she may need someone to water her outside plants and someone else to go to the library to exchange books.

Lynne

hospital info

Janet will be having surgery on Tuesday the 30th at Alameda Hospital. She says:

"I'll be on the 3rd floor west, but they don't give out the number! And they won't release info except to one or two designated persons. Not a good idea to call me until I let the web site know I'm ready."

I will keep y'all posted as to when Janet is ready to receive phone calls, and will put up the phone number at that time.

this is the place

welcome! sarah (aka "pq") will be posting bulletins from janet as she goes through spine surgery and recovery. we thought it would be smart to set up this site so that all the people who love her can be kept updated (without her needing to answer a gazillion calls or emails).