Cyanide and Happiness is a campy little online comic that I love. It's bitter and sarcastic, abut darkly funny all at the same time. Today's comic: a dark look at transplant.

The Six-Word Memoirs website is going viral. And, really, why shouldn't it?

I took a cue from the comments on "I'm Not Contagious (You Are!)" and had a little fun with my on-board/in-flight face mask...

I read The Story on BlogHer and then started thinking about my own scars.

The ones you can see and the ones you can't. The scars you can't see are probably more important, but I like talking about them even less than I like admitting I have physical scars. I suppose that's another post I'll save for another day...

The ones you can see on my body are really obvious. Mainly because my body maybe hates me (up for keloid scarring, anyone?) and wants me to wear my scars for everyone to see so they'll ask me to tell my story.

...at least that's the only reason I can come up with as to why my scars need to be so obvious...

My scars are so out there that I often wonder if there will ever be a time when complete strangers don't stop me and say "what happened to your arm?!" (one of but many examples in this blog...)

And, there probably won't be a time in the near future that I feel comfortable wearing a bikini, either:

I will tell you that while I don't think this scar is pretty, I think the reason for it to be there is beautiful. What it covers up and protects is an amazing feat of science, nature and love - and it changed my life.

So, if I have to have this scar for what I got in exchange, then I accept it. Wholeheartedly.

I'm the person who can find humor in every situation, even in the most dire "you might have cancer in your hoo-hoo" situation.

Upon reviewing my own MRI (taken to help diagnose my ongoing hoo-hoo problems) I discovered something funny, or rather, I saw someone funny.

While other people find images of the Virgin Mary on their morning toast, or the late Pope John Paul II in the flames of a campfire, or Our Savior, Jesus himself revealed on a potato chip, who would you guess would mysteriously appear on a picture of my hoo-hoo?

Appropriately (or maybe, not so appropriately?) the image of a legend, the porn star extraordinaire from the 1970's and 80's - Mr. Ron Jeremy - and he picked my hoo-hoo to appear in! Should I feel honored or horrified?

Oooh, I feel dirty, now. I think I need a shower (and a wire coat hanger...)

Welcome, My Kidney Blog Readers, to NaBloPoMo! NaBloPoMo 2007 is National Blog Posting Month and a twist on the marathon that inspired it: National Novel Writing Month. Essentially, its an excuse for me to flood your RSS reader with posts on every single day of the week, instead of just when I feel like it.

What would you like to read about? What topics shall I discuss? I'll take suggestions - otherwise you're stuck reading what I choose to write about :)

If you're writing a blog, please let me extend the invitation to join the NaPoBloMo website (its free!) And, if you do, let me know what your blog's URL or feed is, so I can keep up with you, too.

Today's Kidney Education: Did you know that according to WebMD, 68 Americans receive life-saving transplants every day, but another 18 die while on the waiting list? Now, watch the WebMD video "Less Invasive Surgery Makes Kidney Donation Easier".

If you've been keeping up with my hoo-hoo posts, maybe you'll be happy to know that I've decided to move all topics relating to my hoo-hoo over to my Krississippi (dot) com blog. It seems to be a little more appropriate to spare my readers here from reading about "MyHoo-Hoo" which really has nothing to do with "MyKidney"!

In the meantime, maybe you'll enjoy this. While at the hoo-hoo doctor I got an ultrasound of my womanly parts, but I talked the ultrasound tech into taking a picture of my transplanted kidney! I'm pretty sure she thought I was nuts, (maybe because I was getting all excited about having a picture of a kidney and not so much interested in looking at hoo-hoos or babies) but I got my little picture. She didn't take the best picture, but then again I suppose she's used to looking at things that look less like kidneys are more like babies.

Here's my bouncing baby kidney. Isn't it so cute?

It started with the "normal" diet thing:

So, what you mean, Mr. Doctor, when you say I can "eat normally" is that I can eat what, exactly? Exactly how does someone who has been on one renal diet (first low protein pre-ESRD, and then high protein during ESRD) or another for more than half her life eat normally?!

Is there a list of foods I can have?

What? I can eat what I want? Is there someone who can tell me what I want... 'cause someone's been telling me what I wanted to eat for the last 15 years. Is there a list, possibly? WHERE IS MY DIETITIAN WHEN I NEED HER!

I still struggle with the "normal" aspect of my newly found health, and Falling into Healthy Eating isn't as easy as it might seem (NOTE: I'm totally going to be making that recipe as it contains three main ingredients that I've not been "allowed" to eat for a very VERY long time!!!) Doing things 'normally' was the last thing I thought I'd be worried about! Truly, I have no idea what 'normal' is - but, right now I'm thinking my daily "normal" is probably not... i.e. eating Campbell's Select Healthy Request Savory Chicken and Long Grain Rice Soup every night (with crushed up Classic Fritos Corn Chips Mmmm) and a Starbucks Espresso Frappuccino with EXTRA WHIPPED CREAM every day - the Starbucks addiction is the worst, no?

And I'm normal in other ways? How can this be? I've never been 'normal' so maybe I'm just having an abnormal moment when you just think I'm normal. Yes, surely that must be it.

I keep wondering how long this 'normal' stuff will last. I sure hope it lasts a long time, although it does take some getting used to. Not living my life around medications, doctors appointments, dialysis treatments and daily exhaustion is strange. What should I be doing with all my time? What do NORMAL PEOPLE do with all their time?

I'm still trying to figure out 'normal'... which seems to be the most 'normal' thing I've done all day.

Goodness, has it really been since the 15th of September that I've blogged here? Boy I need to change that trend and write more often!

Life has been busy - In-between all the usual stuff (parenting, traveling, blog-reading and a mishmash of general daily living) I've managed to get a few things done... around the house, but apparently not around the blog. I still need a Drupal expert to help out! Its coming down to the fact that I'm just not taking (making?) the time to learn what I need to in order to get the site back to its usual pretty self.

As far as the kidney goes - Its A-OK. I had my last LifeLink appointment until December 11th yesterday and all my labs are 100% normal. The only two things in the 'abnormal' column was the MCH (high by one point) and the MPV (low by three-tenths of a point) I suppose I should look up what those values mean?

Its strange to see that (clinically) I'm so "normal"... Sometimes I think my eyes must be tricking me or the printout must surely be wrong - but, nope! That's me - the "normal" one!

A good side note - I've met a lot of people in the last couple of weeks who's lives have recently become entangled by kidney problems. It's almost surreal how life brings us together with so many with whom we share common ground. I feel as though I've been handing out MyKidney.com calling cards left and right (and not so much because I just got some new ones, either!) I hope my newest friends will enjoy the blog (albeit its current disorganization) and find comfort in knowing that there are others out here who understand.

I'll aim for a more interesting update by the end of the week - and, as always, suggested topics are always welcome!

This picture is a mosaic of 1. Pills - Before, 2. Pills - After. The first picture was taken in August 2006, a little over a year before my transplant. The second was taken three months post-kidney transplant. Both pictures represent the number of daily prescription medications I previously needed (prior to the transplant / on dialysis) and the medications I now take on a each day.

What a difference!!