Griffin Family : July 2017

Sunday, July 23, 2017

07/23/17 Recovery & Partying in Tijuana

Eating in authentic Mexican Restaurant
I got chicken tacos, Andy had tomato potato cheese broth

OK so I'm writing this email for a couple reasons: number one we haven't been able to talk to you all at the same time, and number two mom wants me to kind of record a journal of what's been going on with my operation and everything so that she can put it in our book of remembrance or whatever blog I don't know.

Police Car - heard tons of sirens while we were there
Noisy city!

There was a lot of graffiti

Daryl owns AJ Patrol...loved the hat and shirts!

So I'll start with yesterday morning. So Saturday is the day they let me out of the hospital. But I had some real problems with my IV which I think I put in my previous email and we had to wait for them to let us take that IV out on Saturday morning so we got up really early like we had any choice you know and they finally about not enough 630 or so they took my IV out and we packed up and got ready to be released from the hospital and when I say released from the hospital there was no paperwork really or anything like that we just kind of went down to a room and waited for a driver to show up and of course being Mexico standard time he was about an hour late so by about a little after eight, we finally got in the van and they hold us over to the hotel and took us to their little locker room which is kind of a big ol office would like the couches.

Like 7-11 in Mexico xoxo are all over

Want to get one of these for AJ!!!

Bought turtles from this group of children

Bus of sleeve brothers and sisters and their companions
touring Tijuana

Eating in the Mexica restaurant

When we got there one of the guys that gave us a little spiel little speech after by the way another hours later whatever and told us about his experience he was a Mexican guy but he had been working for the company and got the surgery himself and lost something like 140 pounds in each later on showed us a picture himself and he really was a very large guy but he was a skinny guy and he said he was dating a 23-year-old girl when he was forty years old and he was a hot whatever word in Mexico Romeo or whatever of it and he was really proud of himself.

Touring the city

So after he was done he started handing out everybody's room keys, which was great for everyone except us because our room wasn't ready so we got to sit through another I would say half hour to an hour waiting for them to get her room clean and ready. So anyway am we finally got our room but we were there so long the next group is actually in there but anyway can I get a room directly end up being the same room that we had a few nights earlier but I've been we stayed for the first night so I was kind of nice because at least we were in familiar territory.

Painted donkey is very popular there

Want to go to room we were told that we have to be back at 11 AM for a meeting and then they were gonna take us on a tour no normally the tour is the second day after you're back into the hotel but because they don't do tours on Sundays we had to go the first day after we were back in the hotel so we got pretty much told we were going on the tour or there wouldn't be one. So we are piled into their little bus and they started driving us around Tijuana and that one of the first places we start with the pharmacy or pharmacy and there was this dude a Mexican guy who owned the pharmacy with a microphone on his head like those guys that do those infomercials or demonstrations. and he basically proceeded to tell us about all the things that we needed to buy from his pharmacy that would make it so life would be good for us after we get back home the whole thing really sound like a big scam to me and I'm sure there was some kickbacks and I'll kind of figured being done for each other and I did not have a good feeling about that place at all.

Dani and her companion modeling their treasures:
masks!

One of the things that was kind of funny but also kind of gross about the pharmacy was the pharmacist was offering free B 12 shots to everyone well that shot goes in your butt not your arm. So he asked for a volunteer to get a shot and I want to do like all do it and then when he told it was in the butt like I'm not doing that for nobody else saw another lady stepped up and now we're talking about some big ladies here. So right in the middle of the room the lady pulled down her pants and expose her right butt cheek and the guy stabbed her right in the butt with a B 12 shot didn't even put a Band-Aid on or anything and they proceeded to do that with anybody that wanted one I declined thank you, and so we saw actually so we saw a lot of naked butts on Saturday none of which were really very pleasing to look at if you know what I'm saying. One poor lady got got poked in the butt and because they didn't put any Band-Aids and she bled through her white pants well her underwear her white pants and her green and white blouse and had a nasty bloodstain on about the whole rest of their remember this was our first stop. Some of the other places we went to were in authentic Mexican restaurant where they serve me some soup that made my tummy sick and gave mom some pretty yummy looking chicken tacos and stuff and we went to a couple souvenir shop they told us we can only go to these two that all the rest were too far away and would take too long then of course they were probably kickbacks and commissions and things being made there as well.

A portion of our group from the tour

Daryl & Linda Jacks; Angie -- Louisiana friends

So anyway we figured out how the drivers were lining their pockets in there different with fevers that they were receiving probably family members or something all the shops that we took him to win we didn't spend much we bought a few souvenirs that we bought in the zero at the pharmacy and we just bought a little bit of food like less than $10 at the Mexican restaurant oh and two bucks for the ice cream guy that was kind of a funny story: they took what are the first places they took us to was this ice cream vendor guy with a bicycle pushcart thing and he had like 10 gallon buckets of homemade ice cream and the driver got up and said Dr. Ortiz has told us that it's OK for you to eat his ice cream as long as you warm it in your mouth first and so all the fat people who hadn't eaten for days and days and days jumped out of the van and went and got themselves a big cup of ice cream and I bought one but I bought it for mom and only had like two bites . So by the end of our tour is it got to be later in the afternoon quite a few of our am overweight friends did not make it to the end of the tour and I'm convinced it had a lot to do with the ice cream in a little bit to do with that soup that they gave us that was supposed to be clear broth but it was not clear broth and I swore that off after Sunday after Saturday. After about a five hour tour we were pretty exhausted and we came back to the hotel and I was pretty much done for and ready to just chill. So we didn't do much but we found out when we got to our room that there is a huge Mexi party going on in the pool that is just two stories below us that we could see in here and I mean really hear it was really really loud it was like we were in the party. So that went on until 1030 fortunately mom and I found something to keep her mind off of the very loud music and didn't mind it so much is festive the fact that they finally turned it off and we were able to then go to sleep.

Giant Flag over Tijuana

So we went to bed and I slept OK much better without an IV and that's for dang sure, and we got up Sunday morning and it was the kind of day where I kind a like are we really didn't have anything planned we didn't have to go anywhere or do anything we just got to kind of lay around and enjoy ourselves here at the hotel. Because it was Sunday we couldn't really go swimming or shopping or anything like that so we went on a few walks . I worked on making my stomach feel better by eating a little bit more the time I had actually had at like almost a whole bowl of soup and we really didn't do a whole lot we were able to watch the tab choir Father's Day special and just kind a relax and enjoy each other's company. There was another much quieter party going on at the pool below us but we just kind a watch that from a far and didn't participate we did go outside in the sunshine and sit and enjoy that and just really didn't do a whole lot which was really nice actually as I was trying to recover . We even took a nap in the middle of the afternoon on Sunday which was very very nice.

As evening came around we worked on getting some food in me not much that's for sure just broth and Popsicles and stuff like that mom got some dinner and we were able to talk to you kids through Skype and or FaceTime I guess it is technically and then we went on another walk and got some dinner and just chilled out we were able to talk to a few people that are in the program and most of them are going home tomorrow just like that just like us so that's good.

Sample menu for the next 7 days
About 300 calories a day

Now it's almost bedtime and we're just relaxing and looking forward to going home it kind of feels like we've been away a long long time and I'm really looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and being in my own house and everything. I have to be honest I gave to Tijuana to bad rap before I ever even had been here. I thought it was hot and dusty in crime ridden and disgusting and to be honest , it's been cool and kind of pleasant and I haven't seen any crime of any kind although I'm sure it's out there and it's kind of pretty were in a nicer part of town so I guess that's why and I don't know it just hasn't been too bad here .

Pharmacy info

We are so looking forward to going home. We saw some things that are unforgettable like the silver guy with the frying pan on his head in the black and white paint a donkey and the really really pushy vendors and little kids that were selling things for a dollar that climbed up into our bus and we're trying to make up my stuff and everything but will certainly be glad to go home even though it's 110° at home and only 75 here. We're told tomorrow could be kind of brutal getting across the border because there's it's Monday and it's really busy and we're gonna have like 10 of us on our little bus and they have to check all her things and make us walk across while they look at our back x-ray her bags and things and we're leaving at 10 our flights not till 330 in the afternoon so we're leaving 5 1/2 hours early but considering where we're going that we're headed home we're actually pretty happy about the whole deal as long as we can fit all her stuff and her two little backpacks. We made a few friends along the way but I'll be honest probably not gonna socialize much of these people ever again. We all root for each other and there were some really really big people that that needed help but probably more than me and there were a few people in our group that really didn't maybe need any help that they were fine but whatever they're here and they had it done and they're going through exactly what I'm going through.

Modeling new Tijuana Harley shirt

The key now as I have to stick to a clear liquid diet for another three days and then I get kind of what I want to call it cloudy liquid diet with protein shakes and stuff and then puréed and then a month out I finally get to start eating some actual food so if I can adhere to my diet I think that it's all gonna be really cool.

I'm gonna wrap this up just a reminder that I dictated this so there's all kinds of typos and messes and run on sentences but I don't really care at this point I'll let mom sort it all out for her blog.

I love you kids I appreciate you supporting me in this and hopefully it'll mean that I'm around a lot longer to be your daddy and your granddaddy to all your kids when you have them so thanks for loving me and hopefully we get to see you all really soon.

Love, ur big but shrinking daddy

Friday, July 21, 2017

07/21/17 Mi Doctor Hospital - I left my stomach in Tijuana

Hospital Mi Doctor, Mexico

Hola everyone from Tijuana Mexico. After a pretty sleepless night we are surviving here the weather is beautiful it's like 75 or I think I'm up to about 80 today and as we are right by the ocean and everything so it's nice.

So this is Dad and I've been pretty sore most the night mom was able to sleep in my bed with me for an hour or two and then she had to she couldn't take it anymore and she went and got in her own bed. Today's been mostly sitting around and waiting. they're going to do what they call a leak test where they'll see if they will make sure that they didn't have any leaks with my stomach operation and then tonight they're going to take out my drainage Port. The fun part so far today was that they gave me medicine at like midnight and then they came in at 5 AM and gave me medicine again so even when I am actually slept pretty good from 2 to 5 but that was kind of a rude awakening when he came in and said all good morning and mom and I both thought it was like seven or something but it was five-ish.

Hospital

I have been walking around a little bit with mom on my arm and unfortunately it's not real big here so I'm just kind of doing a lap around the halls couple times and that's about all I can do, but at least I can move. It's been kind a like camping because we brought so little stuff - had to kind of keep everything and try to keep them clean and tactually got to take off the silly hospital gown and I'm actually in my gym shorts and a T-shirt now so I'm not all the way dressed, but I'm feeling a lot better about things.

Pretty much everyone with A lighter me speaks really good English, but the nurses here at the hospital do not speak very good English at all so it's been kind of interesting and fun trying to communicate with some of them. Last night we set up and played some card games and that was really fun - mom let me win a couple times. I'm sure she had to of let me because you know how she is with cards.

Getting ready to go to surgery

Compression socks and slippers

The slab I slept on while Andy recovered.
Notice the iPad size TV on the wall.

ID on the arm

ID on the wall

View from our room

View from our room for two days

Ice Cream!!!!

3 p.m. Daily, Ice Cream man honks $1.25 a cup

I guess so our schedule today is lots of sitting and waiting so at some point soon they're going to do a leak test, once they do a leak test and it shows that I don't leak then I can start having at least my liquid diet because I haven't actually had in any food, not even the clear liquids - only had ice chips since Wednesday night so any kind of something with flavor would be really great right about now. And then we stay here again tonight hopefully will get a little more sleep and then tomorrow they take out my IV and then they will take us back to the motel hotel where I'll be able to have like broth and juice and even they have sugar-free popsicles that are not too bad.

Vitals every two hours

As you know your mom has been such a sweetheart and she always is taken care of me and looking after me and making sure everything's OK - she's so awesome!

So on Saturday when we're out of the hospice taI, think is that the day that we do a tour? They basically are going to show us around here a little bit and take us to like some of the markets and some of the landmarks - all of us who have recently had surgeries in the last couple days and then will head back to the hotel and I'm sure mom's gonna want to get some swim time in because he loves that and I'll probably be able to dangle my feet in the water or something.

Breathing treatments help to strengthen lungs and
get the gas out of the belly

We're still looking for a church on Sunday. We had heard there's one not too far away but it's only Spanish-speaking so we would go and not understand a word but we might be able to make it to that depending on how I'm feeling and then we get through Sunday night and will be on our way home on Monday so that's exciting .

We haven't broken any more elevators so far. I have this little blue thing that I have to blow into all the time to try to keep my lung strength up and by the way our Wi-Fi has been absolutely horrible here at the hospital. When we get back to the hotel I think it will be a lot better and will be able to maybe Skype call or send you some kind a call that way because it is been really bad here. I mean half the time Facebook and emails dont even work at all .

One of the weird things and pains I'm experiencing is my chest and stomach, but also the back of my shoulder back by the scapula/clavicle or whatever bone in his back there's been really painful and I asked the doctor about it this morning and he said oh that's from the gas and I'm like you must not be understanding English my shoulder hurts and he's like yeah I know you get that from gas and that's why you do the breathing thing in and walk around because that will make all the gas leave your body, but I've never had the back of my shoulder hurt because of gas - that's a new one on me.

Our Communication aid

I have to admit I expected Tijuana to be a big old slum, scummy and with drugs and whatever everywhere, but it's been decent, the hotel is right up in kind of a ritzy neighborhood and there's a golf course on it and some big houses up the hill and we're really close to the ocean, like within a mile or two of the ocean so it's actually been really pleasant and nice and of course the weather here is fantastic.

I'll try and keep you posted on everything that's going on. I think that tomorrow when we're back in the hotel things will be a little easier to communicate.

Our communication was sketchy

We love you guys so much and thank you for supporting us as we get through this and we will probably email tomorrow, but will see you on Monday night love you!!!

PS I dictated most of this instead of trying to type at all and so there's probably a few silly little errors but ...