Alan has just told me that he would only consider a procedure called an endoscopic dichectomy. It's very non invasive and can only be done in certain circumstances. I have no idea if Alan meets these circumstances.

He told me "if anybody tells me I need a fusion, well, forget that, I'll just say "okay, no more", and I'll continue to go to my chiro-neurologist and do whatever I can do at the gym"

So he's not gung ho for any big time surgery.

You would not believe this guy had a spinal tap yesterday. No puncture mark on his back, no headache (thank God for that).

He took some naps and he's good to go. The whole thing hit me last night while watching American Idol (It must have been 8:45 p.m.) I just rolled over and went to sleep (without taking my pill, believe it or not). and woke up this morning at 7:45 a.m. This, I rarely do. I think all the anticipation of the spinal tap, etc. did me in.

Right now, it's so cold in my apartment, (all day). Heat comes up in the morning and the old lady who lives downstairs is always hot so she shuts off the boiler at 10 a.m. AND SHE OPENS HER BASEMENT WINDOWS!! Can you imagine??? So I freeze. It measured 60 degrees and the thermostat is set at 70. I had my landlord come in (he's 80 and healthy as a horse and smokes at least 4 packs a day) he lives next door and owns the two homes. And the first thing out of his mouth is "how can you be cold, this apartment is warm?)" Seems SOMEONE turned on the boiler downstars 5 minutes before my landlord came in. Some co-incidence. I marched him over to my thermostat and said "look, what does this say?". He said "oh it says 60, but it can't be 60, because it's really warm". I made him feel my hands and he said "I don't know why you are cold". Once the heat began coming up, of course I warmed up. I HATE THE WINTER, MY ARTHRITIS HATES THE WINTER. UGH.!!!!

I cannot wait until April.

melody