h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hello, I thought I'd come and find out a bit about you as you dropped me a line on my 'how dull am I?' journal following my bon anniversaire message to Chan-Mick. I thought it sounded as if we had a fair bit in common (i.e. both vegetarians with musos, and a cat) so I popped by for a chat

I'm with you on the need for an author smiley - although my chosen signature is the artist (I trained as a graphic designer) my NUJ membership has me down as a book editor so...

Another reason for saying hello is the need for us artstic types that work from home sticking together - we know it's bloomin' hard work. I've been stuck on a certain section of a short story I am writing for days now, with no real idea where to go next - maybe I'l start the illustrations and see if that helps.

Anyway, if you want a chat, get in touch and if not well never mind it was nice to hear from you anyway

Guess what? there's something else we have in common - our spinal cords are not quite as healthy as they should be... I saw a thread on demyelination on your page and saw your entry.

I have an inflammatory spinal cord disease, still undergoing lots of tests but the likely cause is MS (fortunately it looks as if it may be the benign form so fingers crossed) basically I have bits that go numb and I fall over from time to time but it is not continual and when I am OK, I am back to normal. I see the consultant on Monday to find out what they have found with all their vile tests (MRI, Lumbar Punctures, bloods etc). I don't really speak about this on hootoo, one friend asked why I hadn't posted for some time and I gave a brief explanation but other than that there is nothing in my journals or on my space.

I hope you don't mind me telling you, it's just good to talk to other people out there who's lives are similar to mine in some ways.

WOW! It's definitely isn't it, we really do seem to have lots in common! I went straight to the De Myelin Nation bit today as I'd had a long chat with Abbi last night, but you were at the back of my mind as well, & I couldn't remember which conversation it was in so when I saw you appear on there I couldn't believe it!!
I love the name Abbi came up with, I reckon she's probably American, whereas I think you're probably English, these are gross assumptions in both cases & illustrate the beauty of using something like h2g2 to communicate where geography, age, sex, race, "ability", etc. aren't the initial factors in deciding who you might like to talk to; it's the brain content that counts!
Having said that, & back to that name I've been driving M mad by giggling hysterically & saying "yeaah, man, I'm in De Myelin Nation!" in my best Rastaman accent! (I mean absolutely NO offence to Rasta's anywhere, I've had several good mates who were genuine Rasta's, & they'd definitely see the joke! (vegetarian too) can you put brackets within brackets(assuming you close them) & what's the(current) record for the most brackets within a sentence?
As you may have deduced, the body might be falling apart at the seams, but the brain is racing faster than ever (maybe THAT's where all the myelin went!); my problem as always is editing out the rubbish, probably the sort of thing you're good at, pass on the tips please!
I'd love to know more about your writing & art work. One of the excuses I used to myself to justify joining h2g2 was that I'd FINALLY get the writing together, but "quelle surprise!"; I'm using it as a "chat room" like 90% of everyone else. I have promised to do a Book Review for the Bookworms Club, but not of course got round to it yet as the deadline is entirely self imposed.
One of the things that really DOES piss me off (only 1 "myelinrant" allowed per communication I reckon?) is that I can't curl up with a good book any more,since I can't curl up full stop! Unless I want to stay curled up until some kind soul unfolds me. ( mad visions of deliberately parking myself somewhere inconvenient & having to be shifted around like a redundant museum statue by increasingly grumpy "able-bodied" people!)tee-hee
If you're interested in the sort of "art" I do , have a look at the "cheese boxes" conversation. At the moment everything has gone into Xmas mode, desperately making cards & pressies,especially the latter for M's b'day on Dec 21st ( if you'd like to say happy birthday to him, the link is at F19585?thread=226748 )Please pass this on to anyone else who might do likewise.
Oh yes, in my usual stupidity I think I've put his hootoo name as "Mick-Chan" whereas in fact it's "Chan-Mick"(le Frog)
As you also live with a muso do you have to cope with bloody stage names etc. too? What sort of music is he into? Is he supportive about the myelin thing etc?
Must go, time to get on with "Real Life"; tonights excitement is watching Star Academy in French, missed last weeks as we were doing the real life version, much more nerve-racking ( 1st biggish gig with the new band) The recording's finished too, so perhaps life might start returning to some sort of "normality"?? We live in hope!
Hope to speak to you soon,
Stay Terri.

Blimey, lots of questions (and brackets)!

Yes, you are right in your assumption that I am english. I am also female as you could probably guess from my name (it comes from a Harry Enfield character, the old chap that says 'you don't wanna do that... you wanna do this...' rather a lot. He refers to his other half as Mrs The Wife). One of the key things in guessing where people come from here though is spelling and grammar. The americans spell everything in american, rather than english like what it should be wrote (and spoke)

I don't know if you have checked out my space, but I refer to my husband there. He can be found on lots of music and book threads. He was a semi-professional musician all the time that I've known him. Kept nearly making it, but never really hit the big time. One album and a couple EPs, if he had made it, you could have watched us on telly instead of the Osbournes He has had to knock the latest band on the head for now though as we have a 17 month old daughter and she is more than a handful

He too has a stage surname, and actually wanted to change it by deed poll, but I refused to go along with it as I could not possibly order theatre tickets, or a restaurant table as Mrs Maim (yes, as in mutillate) . My husband was (and in his heart still is) a punk. His musical taste is eclectic, as is mine. I've lifted a section from his space:

From superdogmonkey; Music I'm playing.
The pistols, clash, miles davis, hawkwind, joy division, monster magnet, jane's addiction, doors, hendrix, television, bowie, nin, nick cave, electric frankenstein, butthole surfers, pixies, neil young ( not the country stuff, I'm english and don't understand it ), cramps, velvet underground, frank zappa - 1970/1976 only, black flag, husker du, '60's ska, iggy, heavy dub, white stripes, the orb, damned, sabbath, hives, stooges, leftfield, mercury rev, ramones, chemical brothers, fugazi, killing joke, sonic youth, spaceman 3, MC 5.

Does that give you an idea of what I put up with? We both agree (however) that boy bands should be burnt at the stake and their musical offerings sent into a disused mine which is then sealed up!. He is incredibly supportive of my illness (whatever it is) and has been a total star through the whole thing. When I was pregnant I had "morning" sickness everyday, all day, for the whole nine months, and he sat rubbing my back, while my head was down the loo and still professes love!

Oh well, I'll sign off here as it's getting late (1am) I am knackered and still need to find out about cheese boxes! I'll talk about my writing and artwork next time if you like.

Bonjour,c'est moi again! The similarities are relly getting quite scary, my other half's stage name is Malevil & he's just looked at the music list & commented "not the sort of stuff I'm playing now, but the sort of stuff I like to listen to." He'd like me to point out he is a long-haired Punk; NOT a hippie, which people sometimes mistake him for!
Where can I find Mr Maim's home page, so that I can direct my little star in the making towards him, once he's rested enough that is,poor soul!
Abbi's been incredibly busy with the De Myelin Nation, it now has it's own space at A887565 if you get a chance to look at it. Oh yes, it's her birthday apparently, either today or yesterday depending on which bit of the States she lives in (trying to find out)
Good luck with your results tomorrow, I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you. Found a good website on MS last night, easy to navigate & just the right blend of straight talking & up-to date info; you've probably visited it but if not it's at www.mult.sclerosis.org
Got a good fun link through it to Captain Beefheart who's also got MS, the site's great, includes his paintings which look interesting,mostly abstract,need to look more closely before forming an opinion. Certainly like his attitude to art though; ie he does it for his own satisfaction, if the rest of the world doesn't like it,tough! If you're interested, he's at www.beefheart.com
Enough for now, back to frantic Xmas pressie making, doing Guatemalan worry dolls at the moment, dead simple, therapeutic & free using teenie-weenie bits of cloth etc. Trés ethnique, n'est pas?
Take care,stay cool,
Terri

Hi again, how are things? I hope you have had a good couple of days

Well, today I am in a tres bon mood (don't know how to do accents, sorry!). I saw the consultant earlier and my brain scans and lumbar puncture results show my brain is very healthy (no lesions - yippee!) and no dodgy results that indicate MS in the spinal fluid. They still won't discount it totally, but historically, my vitamin B12 levels have been very low and that can cause demylination in certain people - I could be one. If it is not still low, then back to the MS . The other good news is that the demylination is on the sensory parts of the spinal cord as opposed to the bits responsible for motor function which hopefully means that if all remains the same, although I'm numb, I'll still be able to move around normally. So, all in all, I'm quite chuffed. Hubby is taking it a bit more carefully and won't get too chuffed until the next lot of results come in (yet more bloodwork and the nerve tests previously mentioned) but all the same I am feeling a lot more positive

Tell Mick-Chan that my hubby's home page is at U193633 or type superdogmonkey in at the search H2G2 bit. They can send each other off into raptures about which strings are best to play with or who makes the best amps (yawn!)

I'll have a look at the Capt. Beefheart site, you have aroused my curiosity. Well, enjoy your pressie making (you are making me feel very uncreative on the pressie front BTW!) and look after yourself.

Hello again, great to hear from you! Really plesed to hear the good news on your results(oops, sp. mistake,never mind!)
VITAMINS!!! My Dr, who is brilliant (honestly, if you get fed up, come & visit us --I MEAN IT --)as soon as I mentioned the numbness, weird feet bit IMMEDIATELY put me on mega-doses of Vit.B1 &B6; on the grounds of:
It can't do any harm
B vitamins are proved to improve nerve function
I'm a (fairly strict/almost vegan) vegetarian
As a recovering ex-alcoholic, my B vits. would be low anyway
He didn't send me for any horrible tests, on the grounds of:
I am the worlds most un-co-operative patient, particularly when it involves sticking nasty sharp things into my body
I was under enough stress as it was, adding tests to this would increase this & he felt any diagnosis would be unreliable until my stress level had reduced
He was more concerned about the fact that my liver had packed up completely, which WAS life-threatening; if any tests had to be done it should be non-invasive ones regarding this.
The apparent nerve damage was obviously not life-threatening, might clear up of it's own accord & could be therefore tackled at a later date (although I was seeing him at that stage every week; also had instant access via home no; & emergency services are faster than the speed of light; therefore no emergency envisaged)
I started on a combined B1/B6 (250mg/35mgrespectively) (Roche) initially 4 times a day. That's a lot, many UK doctors wouldn't prescribe it as there have been some studies that appeared to show high doses could CAUSE nerve damage; but he subscribes to the theory that the damage may have been present before taking the extra Vits. & in the meantime feels the positive evidence strongly outweighs the negative. I stayed on this level for at least 6 mths. The dodgy feet,legs etc; didn't go away but my hands returned to life, thank God. Whether due to the Vits. or packing up booze, eating better,liver getting back together, less stress, falling in love, passage of time or any combination of these, I don't know! But I do know one objective fact; if I forget to take my Vits. for a couple of days my legs start "twitching" again, before long I am in agony! This acts as a timely reminder, & within 48 hrs the twiching is back to a manageable level.
So, all in all, my advice is to DEFINITELY pursue the vitamins; ie. get Mr.Main to rush out NOW & get some, read up everything you can on it & find a Dr. with an attitude like mine. If the UK can't provide such beasts, I seriously repeat my offer of you coming over here, the Health Service is unbelievably good. We have a very small house, but as long as you don't mind sacrificing a bit of privacy & are prepared to put up with somewhat weird plumbing, you'd be welcome any time (MR MAIM too, as you say he & M would undoubtedly find a million things to talk about! M by the way speaks better English than me, just as well since he translates books as his day-job!)
Oh yes, I've tracked down the elusive Superdogmonkey & left a cryptic little message for him!!
I'm today, 'cos I suspect I've found a way of earning the proverbial "money for old rope"; at least for supermrsthewifes like us! How would £200 for 1 e-mail containing 3 short sentences appeal to you? No, I'm not talking about some get-rich quick scheme (been there, done that, didn't work!) but genuine freelance writing requiring only a bit of research & basic know-how of how editors like to be approached!
Hhmm... I'm only prepared to share this secret with you 'cos you seem like a nice person & a kindred spirit & you could do with a few lucky breaks too!
Keep in touch, I'd put my e-mail but I don't want heaps of junk from the rest of the world; if you can think of a way of doing this then deleting it, let me know ASAP!
I suppose I'd better go now, it's 6.30 am here! (did I forget to mention I'm an insomniac?
Take care, stay
Terri.

PS: Just re-read the above, nearly forgot Charlotte; of course she's welcome too, we have a small but magical garden,2 co-operative cats,all my "cheese-box" treasures & art stuff to play with & I'm an ex-teacher (Nursery/Infant mainly). Several available playmates around, including a 5 year old English girl who is desperate for a fellow English speaking playmate!
Terri.

Hi again,

Interesting stuff about the B6, I used to take a larger dose than I do now and lowered it on medical advice! My major problem is a lack of B12, and as a veggie that's a difficult one... most people get it from meat !

Have you had your B12 levels checked? I am a veggie with an intolerance to dairy foods, so instead have soya milk on cereal and only have cheeses once or twice a week so I am in the 'at risk' category when it comes to the levels being low. If you have not been checked, try and get it done as B12 is apparently the most important one for good neurological health. My problem may be that I don't ingest enough B12 or that I may not be able to absorb it properly, so injections are available... I may have to take that route if my results are that I am B12 defficient.

Hmmm, a sojourn en France, what a lovely idea. Your home sounds lovely! Sadly we have not attempted any kind of travel with Charlotte yet as she is still a bit wee and needs so much stuff carting around with her, we are in the process of buying a new car just to carry it all!

Your e-mail editorial scheme sounds very interesting, I'd love to know what it entails but don't know a way of passing e-mail addresses without telling the world!

Perhaps we could work out a code?

I have to shoot off now, it's getting late and Charlotte and I have to be up early tomorrow as I have a physiotherapy appointment in the morning (the torture keeps me mobile)

Speak soon

Hello again! It's 4am here, so I guess it's 3am there (where are you by the way?) & the eyes say you're still on line, so either you're an insomniac like me or Charlottes keeping you awake or you aren't feeling too good & can't sleep, hope this isn't the case.
Yes, the B12 has occurred to me too, I've been veggie most of my life (apparently even as a baby would refuse meat!) I eat cheese a lot (France is bliss for this!) but don't drink milk, eat eggs very rarely(except when I kept my own chickens) & don't eat fish. I might investigate the stats. on a correlation between demyelination & veggies I think, in the meantime I will add it & see what happens.
As far as the e-mail goes, what might work is if we start a new message, say in our journal space, with a pre-arranged subject title, note down the number & then unsubscribe immediately, then return to this thread & confirm we've both got it. If you want to do this, check to see I'm on-line & give me the word & we'll go for it (god, this is like a spy film!!)
If I don't get a new message on this (bonjour) thread after about half an hour, I'll speak to you tomorrow!

Terri.

Good thinking batman!
I think the best thing to do is to be online at the same time... perhaps we could arrange a time on this thread? I am usually here at 12.00 midnight GMT, monday to friday, as I have got Charlotte tucked up by then. Then, if we edit our journal entries to include e-mail addresses, we can take e-mail addresses down, then re-edit the journals minus the addresses. That way there is not even a thread for anyone to tie in to... James Bond has got nothing on us has he?

I'm glad you are giving the B12 some thought, my neurologist has told me that the demylination that a B12 deficit causes looks exactly the same as that of MS, so it must be pretty bad! and lets face it, it can't do any harm

I have to say I am a little peturbed at the moment. I had subscribed to a thread which is basically people throwing insults at each other but in a jokey way (on Ask H2G2: Whats wrong with H2G2 researchers?) and I have received such an vile, obscene and quite frankly hate ridden reply that I am shaking. I know it is a thread for insults but this really does go beyond that. I have used the yikes button and called in the moderators. This guy is disgusting. Oh well, back to better things, drop me a message on this thread (bonjour) and we can arrange our petit rendevouz



Sorry, I had to write this as I have to say I am actually upset.

I'm busy investigating the above; WHICH HAS TO BE STOPPED for the good of the entire h2g2 community.
I've alerted the moderators too, twice. An unfortunate "newbie" is involved, I've contacted him & suggested he goes to De My Nat, but no-one there right now, please go there if you're stillon-line.
Off now to try & find an Ace.
T

Phew, I'm exhausted! In a nutshell, got it yiked finally stoppedthe whole thing (I'll expect hate-mail tomorrow!)
Found the only on-line Ace at 5am! But by the time she'd got there, it had all been stopped, so I think she thinks I was over-reacting!
She got back to me straight after (good for her!) if you read the "Hi Terri" conversation you can find out more.
I just hope this wasn't some sort of test as I'm trying to become an Ace at the moment; I couldn't cope with this sort of thing every night!
I've added the newbie to my friends list; but if they ever return after such a "welcome" I'll be surprised!
I'm really sorry you had to be the target of all this, try & stay &, reckon a mega-dose of BVITS is in order --
Speak to you soon.
Terri

Hi Terri

Blimey, we are both online at the same time!!!! It must be a first as neither of us are keeping our eyelids propped up with matches as we may be later in the day

I've had a chat with Mina and asked her advice on dealing with this unpleasant little man (I presume it is a man - can women be such idiots? ) and she says I'm better off steering well clear. It does stick in my craw however that the idiot is still posting in a sort of crowing manner that I am incapable of standing up to him. It is not that, (obviously). It is more that I don't see the point of carrying on talking to him. It would be as pointless as trying to persuade Justin the Preacher that anyone (other than him) is likely not to burn in hell for all eternity!

Oh well... Thank you so much for your support, it really does mean a lot. You obviously read his message to have yikesed it - As I said before, insults are one thing but that was something else entirely. Still, never mind he is one prat in a sea of decent people on this site, so I shall continue to come on line.

If you see this, post back ASAP and we could try to make contact via our journals?

I know what you mean about the matchsticks; didn't sleep AT ALL last night trying to do my best to help the situation & probably ended up making it worse!

Anyway, at least it's started up a "healthy"ish debate via the "Hi Terri" convo on my page, I'm happy for it to stay there for the time being. Just added a bit more in fact,so no-one can say I'm not airing my own personal view, whilst at the same time listening to other peoples.

Yes, the journals space sounds like a good idea; though as superdog found out,they do get read at times!This is where Abbi & I managed to execute our e-mail plot; though I was a bit perturbed to find out "you can't unsubscribe to your own journal"!!(not like that in RealLife, plenty have ended up in bins or on bonfires!)(ooh look, I closed a bracket for once) & again; I'll head our new conversation home accordingly so you know where to go. I've got you on my "Friends" list, so I can go direct to your Space, if you put me on yours it'll be quicker for both of us.

Thought of the day: French for bin is "poubelle"; what a lovely word!
Do you have any favourite words from other languages?

All for now, do you like my new signiature, designed to put the amongst thes?
Terri.