THE START OF MY SECOND WEEK HOME BRINGS WEEKLY BLOOD LABS.........

For the next year, the Mayo Clinic Arizona requires that I complete a standing order of weekly fasting blood labs, so that they and Dr. Bhat can monitor my post transplant progress. Mayo Clinic specifically requests they be done at a LABCORP lab, not Quest, or any other lab. The nearest Labcorp location to Presentation is in the former American River hospital medical plaza. I have used that location repeatedly in my time here, yet it closed temporarily in January of this year and has not yet reopened. Fortunately, there are three other locations within five miles of Presentation, so I went at 8 am this morning to the Coyle Avenue Labcorp in the St. George Medical Plaza, across the street from my old hunting grounds, Mercy San Juan Hospital in Carmichael. Today's draw took about 45 minutes as there were three patients ahead of me and the lab tech had to process my standing order and put my information in their system's computer. She had me draw the urine sample and then took three vials of blood from my right arm. Mayo Clinic Arizona and Dr. Bhat, will have the results within a day or so, which is why they specified Labcorp, with whom they have a direct transmission agreement. The rest of the day has been chillaxing, but included conversations with the counters and had two pastoral counseling phone calls from persons with questions and other concerns. It is prime time and my major Monday challenge is that 'Dancing With the Stars' and 'Big Bang Theory' are on opposite one another. My solution not being video/tivo proficient, is to watch 1/2 to 2/3 of DWTS, and all of BBT...My e-mails today not only continue to celebrate my return home, but are lauding Victor, for being my kidney donor. My personal friends and parishioners are very appreciative to him for donating to me and that is so very true of me. To step up within moments of my diagnosis/prognosis and volunteer to be my living donor and to stick with me through the entire two and a half years of my dialysis and waiting for the transplant to occur, he never wavered, flinched, or backed away, from being focused on providing me with his kidney. We are now referring to my transplant as, "our kidney". I have assured Victor he has full visiting rights !!
More tomorrow, "same bat time, same bat channel".........Love + Prayers, Fr. Troy