There are pictures of Brian’s Bachelor party up on the photo gallery… Let me know if you need a username to get onto the site, as it is password protected for the sake of those of us responsible for keeping children mostly uncorrupted for a living.

I will, however, get a choice sample of pictures and a blog post up about the party soon.  I’ll also be talking to Lucy about getting pictures from the bachelorette party onto the gallery, and writing a blog about the party too.  Who knows, could be her first blog entry!

Stay tuned …

In case you haven’t heard (though I can’t imagine you haven’t), Lucy’s family is coming from Mexico.  I mean like her whole freaking family.  And, Mexican families are big.  We’re talking, like 20 people…

What I am getting at is this:  We’d love to have some Gringos around to hang-out with.  So, if you get a chance, have a look at our calendar, and let us know if you would like to join us.  It’s pretty much going to be a party every day!  I know it’s all in Spanish, but I can help you with it… I’m also trying to get an English version up soon… I’ll let you know as soon as I post that.

That’s all for now… hope to see you all soon!

Today marked a milestone for Lucy.  With two marathons under her belt, she set out to make one more notch in the endurance sports wall—triathlon.  So with that end in mind, we set out very early in the morning to UC Irvine to the Zot Trot triathlon.  This sprint tri featured a 5k run, 10 mile bike, and 250 yd. swim.

When we arrived at UCI, it was dark.

After checking in, Lucy took her bike to the transition area.  That’s the place you stash all the stuff you aren’t using, since you obviously can’t do all three sports at once.  There, she received the true mark of a triathlete—body markings.  (You can see in the second picture the other true mark of a triathlete, the knee-scar from a bike accident.)

At that point, it was time to pin-on the race numbers.  But first, Lucy had a key observation to share with me: “I match!” The ladies will appreciate this one…

Luckily, it was starting to warm-up, and just in time.  Time to wander over for the start of what Lucy called a very soggy 5k through grass and mud.  But, she didn’t know that yet… she’s happy and excited!

Lucy was clearly having a great time despite all the crap she allegedly had to run through.

I was able to capture this image seconds before she realized that this wasn’t water, but Accelerade.

Lucy kept up that signature smile on the bike… I forgot to tell her that you should keep your mouth closed to keep the bugs out.

After three loops of the bike course, she was back in T2…

After a quick change, she was off to the pool for the final leg of the race.

Unfortunately, they wouldn’t let us into the pool area to take pictures, but trust me when I say that it was amazing to see the display of human will to survive.  Lucy did great… put her head down and swam straight through.  But, we could really see that some people were more in “survival” mode than race mode.  Their mantra: Don’t Drown.  Luckily, she swam over the weak, and triumphed!

After the race, Paola and Ejiro offered their congratulations on a job well done!

And, finally, I was able to tell her how proud I am of her!  You are a triathlete!  Although, as I always say, there was always a triathlete inside of you… today you let it out.

As with many of our best experiences in life, it started on a whim.  The plan was to have some sushi, maybe some noodles and just relax.  Well, what was once a very simple plan became much more complex once Jorge and I went to the market.  The plan slowly evolved to become somewhat of a Japanese inspired feast.

The shopping and planning continued over the next couple of hours.  During that time we managed to dream-up a plethora of great ideas, all of which turned out to be pretty damn delicious.  The menu was as follows:

• Sushi Rolls, including California Rolls, Hand Rolls, and Crunch Roll.
• Maguro (raw lean tuna)
• Ramen Noodles with broth made from scratch.
• Japanese Style Beef Gyoza (pot stickers) with a filling recipe dreamed up by me.
• Japanese Curry (Masterfully prepared by Steve)
• Vegetable and Shrimp Tempura

With the addition of some unfiltered Sake, we set out to create our feast…

First, Steve helped us make some great Japanese curry.  I didn’t even know that  curry was Japanese; either way, it was delicious!  So creamy and with the perfect amount of spice.

Meanwhile, Lucy and Paola were working up some fab. Veggie tempura for us.  I know it’s strange to see Lucy frying something, but it happened.

Jorge, on the other hand was confused as to exactly what he should be doing to help out.

So, I showed him how to make some sushi rolls…

I messed it up pretty bad the first time, but I think after a few tries one of us got it down well enough to make some food out of it.

There was also some maguro and delicious shrimp. (actually, I didn’t try the shrimp, but I was told it was delicious.)

Some other shots of the finished products:

As always, you can find higher resolution pics in the gallery at http://gallery.scottnlucy.com

So today, I had my final follow-up visit with the Orthopedic surgeon to talk about the results of my MRI.  I appreciate everyone who has prayed and followed this ordeal…

In any case, the results are kind of vague.  I have a class II indication in the anterior portion of my medial meniscus.  What does that mean, exactly?  Well, it’s complicated.  Essentially, there has been some degeneration (wearing away) of my meniscus, but not enough to warrant surgery.  In fact, removing any tissue would likely make things worse, because the tissue can not be replaced.  The tissue is slightly worn away on the inside of the meniscus, but there is no visible tearing on the outside of the meniscus.

So what does it mean for me?  Well, basically, I just have to take things easy, and try to slowly build myself back up to the point I was at before I started noticing the injury.  Ultimately, I would like to do another marathon; Lucy and I have our eyes on the San Diego Marathon again in June.  Before that, I hope to do at least one triathlon… Gotta test out that wetsuit!  The key is just going to be to take things easy and go slow with getting back into the running.

I’ll post up the best-of the MRI images when I get a chance… Doug has noticed that the old place isn’t working anymore, and he’s right.  That’s because I have to move the folder (I upgraded the blogging software, which does funny things with the files on the server) back to its original location.  However, I can’t do that right now because I am in Biology class, so I will Edit the post soon.

Thanks again for everyone who has supported and prayed for me… I would have gone crazy without you…

Ok, well, an update in the never-ending saga of my stupid left knee…

I am scheduled to have an MRI done on Thursday to see if there are any problems.  Overall, I am feeling good about it, but I am a bit apprehensive knowing that there is a chance that things could be going wacky.

For now, I’ll just have to wait and hope that the Doctor doesn’t decide to cancel on me as seems to be the ‘in’ thing to do when you they are treating me.

I promise to upload scans of any sort of images that they give me.

So, I was going over my old blog, and I came across this post that I wrote about my experience at the Anaheim Gateway 24 Hour Fitness….  I’m reposting it here in its entirety.  Enjoy!

The smell of urine. Wet paper towels on the floor. More random debris than the aftermath of a frat party. No… I am not describing a gas station bathroom, or a rest stop 300 miles out of town. I am describing the locker room I pay a monthly fee to have access to. Each night when I walk into the 24-Hour Fitness in Anaheim, California I am confronted with a level of cleanliness on-par with such fine establishments as Arco, and Valero. I carefully weave my way past the abandoned paper products, and try desparately to find a dry spot where I can change my clothes. I dare not let my feet touch the floor because, while I am pretty sure it’s not urine…. well, let’s just say that with the smell in there, you’d never know one way or the other. On most nights, I will stay as far away from the bathroom as possible, simply changing and heading for the treadmill. I’ll then spend the next 30-50 minutes ponder what kinds of diseases one can contract from poor hygiene. Did I get ringworm? Psoriasis? Athletes foot? So far, no, but I’m crossing my fingers next time. I’m hoping for impetigo.

Some nights, I opt out of the run, and go for a swim instead. In that case, I get into my shorts (although a Hazmat suit would seem more appropriate) and head for the pool. Towel and goggles in-hand, I carefully thread my way past the wet toilet paper, lint, and unidentifiable muck of the shower area. I crazily twist and contort my feet in a futile attempt to make as little contact with the floor as possible. If I survive the sludge, I make it to the prize! My prize is the single shower required for pre-swim washing. I don’t know why I rinse off before I get into the pool, as clearly I am the only one. After rinsing-off whatever I might have contracted in the locker room, I get in to the wonderful, cold salt-water pool. What’s that? It’s not salt water? Chlorine, you say? Oh…. Well, it tastes like salt. I mean… shit. So… that must be other people’s sweat then. Great.

And with that, I head home. I would take a shower, but I am pretty sure that I wouldn’t walk out of the shower any “cleaner” than I walked into it. Besides, I am pretty sure that the burning sensation I am feeling is completely normal.

After all this, I get a call today informing me that “The Doctor won’t be coming into the office today”.  This, an hour before my appointment.  Really?  And the next available is, when?  Next Monday?  Really?  No priority for prior appointments, no attempt to re-schedule me sooner…  Thanks, Doc.

I’ll stick with my original appointment with Dr. Katzman (thankfully I hadn’t cancelled it yet).  It’s on the 15th.  Geez.  To think I went through all this work to get an appointment sooner, and now we’re back to square one.

American Healthcare System 1, Scott 0.

Well, the “Scott” section of the website, that is…

To check out the official Blog of Scott, and his (mis)adventures in life, click on Scott in the Menu bar.  Don’t worry… Even though Scott talks in the third person for this blog, he doesn’t under the Scott section.  That’s why it’s his blog.  In any case, please check it out!

Peace!

So, today, a week and a half after my original visit with the doctor I got a call.  And, a very disturbing one, at that.  Now, it wasn’t disturbing because of anything bad, but it was disturbing because of how horribly irrelevant it was.

You see, I went to see the Physician’s Assistant for what I fear may be a torn medial meniscus in my left knee.  Not a good thing… So, they referred me to an orthopedic surgeon and ordered x-rays.  I went that same day to get the x-rays done.

Now, much later a nurse gave me a call to inform me of some very obvious, and strange news.  “The results of your X-Rays are IN, and we want to let you know the good news that your knee is not broken or dislocated.” Oh gee, thanks!  Because, I was wondering when I was walking into the gym this morning to go swimming if my leg might be BROKEN OR DISLOCATED!  WTF?

Did I mention that I left THREE messages asking them to call me back about my referral?  Still no word from them on that (thankfully, I was able to talk to the orthopedist who is MUCH more helpful) but at least I know my leg is not broken.

Thanks A LOT, Dr. Morinishi.

UPDATE: I got a call this afternoon (around 3pm) from Dr. Morinishi’s office, “Hi, I was just calling to let you know that your referral was sent to the Orthopedist on the 31st.”  Ok, first of all, BULLSHIT, because I called them on the 31st, and they said they hadn’t received it.  And, I called on the 2nd, and they hadn’t received it.  Second of all, thanks for taking 3 business days (I’m not counting holidays) to even return my call!  3 DAYS TO RETURN MY CALL!  Did I mention that there is supposedly an ENTIRE DEPARTMENT at this Doctor’s office to deal with referrals?  I said; “Yeah, I figured as much, since I have an appointment with them tomorrow.”  AWKWARD SILENCE… “Ok, well we just wanted to let you know… Thought you would be wondering about that…” To which I replied, “Yeah, I was wondering about that 8 days ago… not anymore, thanks.”