May 1 Biopsy over

Happy May Day! I forgot what day it was until I had to put a date on something this evening and finally wrote out May instead of 5-1-08!
Radiology Ltd. called me immediately after the Dr. sent them the fax ordering the biopsy and they were able to get me in almost immediately!!! None of this 5 weeks of waiting stuff like the last one.
I was at Radiology Limited this morning at 10:00, and got back out to my car at 12:40pm. I have been a very nervous person for the past few days, and very much so this morning, so I am very glad this part is over.
As soon as I left the building, I felt the weight off my shoulders and was much more relaxed, so I guess I was just dreading the procedure lots more than I thought.
I filled out paperwork (same questions and answers as a week ago - Hello!) Then sat and waited to be called back in. I heard a husband and wife grousing at each other about "...nothing to read - look at all these people and there are only three magazines" "You know it's like this, why don't you ever learn?" I held up my book of Sudoku puzzles, and offered it to him. He said no, he didn't like them, and I said me neither at first when my daughter tried to get me to do them. I finally learned how and I'm addicted to them (just the easy ones).
He said he couldn't figure out how to do them - he was an engineer and knew math but he just couldn't figure them out. I was so proud to show him how (he accepted my offer) and listened to my hints, and thanked me for explaining it. He had always tried just filling in one box at a time. Poor guy, no one ever told him how, and he didn't have Sara's handy tutorial that she wrote up for Granddad, when she was trying to teach us how to do the puzzles.
So.. they called me back in - change into gowns (first one open in the front and second one open in the back, and took me back to the first little waiting room, where the nurse started the IV line, then another tech came in to ask ?s and take my blood pressure. Whoops! The IV was in the right arm and I'm not to have blood pressure checked in the left one because of the lymph nodes. (I only had one node taken out - shouldn't be that big of a deal - I would think.) (My medical training will be over soon, and I'll be getting my diploma then.)
Any way, she had to go ask about what to do, and came back, saying - they want me to take the pressure on the right arm - "you hold the IV in". Oh yay! So, I held down on the puncture site and held in on the end of the butterfly do-hickey. I didn't want it flying across the room when she turned on the automatic BP machine. ; ) It did squeeze pretty tight, too. My arm is a little extra swollen just below the elbow tonight, I think probably because I left the Coban wrap on till about 6:30 tonight, and it was a little tight! Squoze me up a little too long and too tightly.
The Radiologist from Australia came in and explained what all was going to go on, and then -- off to the MRI room, more explanations etc., and me begging for an extra pad for my non-sticky-outie-rib side. I discovered an anomaly with my ribs, and it became very painful when they did the first MRI here.
I asked for something different to be done so it wouldn't hurt so much - and they already had it cushioned for me! Plus, enough other people had complained about the 'discomfort' (a medical term meaning extreme pain) that they were trying different and extra padding to make it more comfortable.
They had to take pictures, then take more pictures with the contrast injected through the IV, pull me out, the Radiologist (guy from Australia) placed the 'locater' 'wire', put me back in for more pictures to see if that was in the correct place, back out for the biopsy. Don't move a muscle during all of this, please.
Now -the placement of the marker 'wire' was fun. First a tiny mark on the skin after he had made his calculations from the pictures. Then cleansing, the lidocaine (? or something like that) injected at the skin, in a little further and then on in even deeper. Ow, ow, ow.
The locater 'wire' was hollow, then he inserted the Dremel, or the hand blender, or the dentist drill, or the mixer - all the things everyone thought was the sound it made. The Dr. said an electric knife.
I didn't look quickly enough before they disposed of it, but one of the nurses said it looks like a Braun hand blender and the Dr. holds it sideways against the skin. It has a long 'screwdriver-looking' bit on the end that has an auger (!) on it and it just scoops out a section and suctions it in a little to hold it, then that is what they sent off.
They told me it would take 5 days to get the results - I hope not! The last biopsy I learned the next afternoon. Maybe next time I'll learn not to have things done on Thursdays! Too close to the weekend.
I've had ice on it off and on all the rest of the day. Went for my choir extra rehearsal and we sound so good with our Latin piece. We are working really hard and I hope lots of you can come to the concert!
Again - Saturday, May 10, 7:30 pm (!) (not 7:00 as I had previously erroneously stated!) at Christ Church United Methodist, 655 N. Craycroft.
I'm in need of sleep, so I'll stop here - any questions - post them in the comment section - the guest book doesn't work anymore - sorry if you've put something up there - I don't get anything anymore.
Love and hugs and kisses and thanks for all your well wishes. I got several notices of bad e-mail addresses - most of which I know are correct, so, I'll try those again - but if someone in your family feels left out - sorry - I'm going to try to re-send them. Maybe it was just too large of an address line.
Peace out. Patty OXOX : )