OT close call

[riverman]

Jack London's short story, "To Build a Fire," has always been one of my favorites.

Last Jack London I read was the Cruise of the Snark....great non fiction novel ...I like Steinbeck and Updike a lot for short stories...Raymond Carver as well..

 

[riverman]

I've had monitors with a recording device. I was instructed to phone in whenever I felt anything out of the ordinary. I think I wore each of these monitors for one month. Neither machine had a defibrillator in it although my heart beat would go beyond 160 bpm at least once a day. That was a resting rate.

I thought the heart beat monitor built into the treadmill I was using was registering a double beat. Not so.

During my failed quest for a transplant my heart was checked out every which way and at least twice each way. One way represented a radioactive tracer monitored for an hour by a device that looked similar to an MRI. This was done eight times.

Also had a tiny tube inserted into my heart to check the pressure of that chamber.

By the way, according to the VA cardiologists, the Portland VA has the best cardiologists in the Pacific North West. I'm going to presume this includes North Western Canada. Sadly, our best one left the Portland Hospital to do heart transplants in Denver, which I'm going to assume is outside the North West.

Having no cell service in my neck of the woods, the transmitter for my monitor have to be sent from a hotspot down the mountain...have to send them in every two days...my heart specialist is amazing...he keeps really close track of my situation and is really dedicated to helping me...like a great teammate..

 

[Hobbesarable]

Last Jack London I read was the Cruise of the Snark....great non fiction novel ...I like Steinbeck and Updike a lot for short stories...Raymond Carver as well..

As a sci-fi fan I highly recommend 2 books written by Isaac Asimov. The first, "The Caves of Steel," is a science fiction murder mystery novel about a human detective teaming with a humanoid robot in order to find and stop a killer. The second, "Robot Dreams," is an anthology of short stories about robots and multivac (a supercomputer).

I think you will enjoy as much as I do.

 

[Chris Craig]

I got my life monitor vest and training today and the transmitter and computer that check my heart 24 hours a day....it's got sensors and a built in defibrillator that will kick in if I'm in danger...the vest is like what I'd imagine wearing a bra that's too tight would be only backwards...these items have to be on my body for probably up to 4-6 months...will get my alternate in two days....it's official...I'm turning into R2D2 from Starwars now.

Sounds more like C3P0! I had to wear a heart monitor for a month last year. I had rare supraventricular and ventricular ectopys. My heart essentially beats an extra early and late beat. Sounds like your in good hands @riverman despite the comfort factor.

 

[jlprk]

Jack London's short story, "To Build a Fire," has always been one of my favorites.

We were assigned that in the 7th grade and I still think of it sometimes, like just a week ago. It's about a man facing death, so I wouldn't recommend it for you at this time, Riverman. Maybe sometime when you're longing to feel depressed.

This thread is a day old and I just saw it and skipped to the last page. Sorry I'm late, but Riverman, I think you'll survive better than most, due to your calm, Buddhist-like thinking style. Of all the excitable people, I'm less surprised that a calm person's heart was 25%. That's what made you calm. My father had low blood pressure and got a pacemaker in about 1980. It worked great.

Communicating with excitable people may be bad for your heart. Maybe you should go to a message board about flowers or cooking or bird-watching. Too bad everyone here can't be as professional and focused as me. If you ever need to talk to a happy old guy, just ask, uh, me. I'll find one for you if it's the last thing I do.

 

[Chris Craig]

Last Jack London I read was the Cruise of the Snark....great non fiction novel ...I like Steinbeck and Updike a lot for short stories...Raymond Carver as well..

I can always get into a Jack London Book. Steinbeck is one if my favorite authors. The Wayward Bus is one of my favorites of his. Updike...I just read AANDP, good story. As for Carver, Cathedral is one of my favorite short stories.

 

[Hobbesarable]

We were assigned that in the 7th grade and I still think of it sometimes, like just a week ago. It's about a man facing death, so I wouldn't recommend it for you at this time, Riverman. Maybe sometime when you're longing to feel depressed.

This thread is a day old and I just saw it and skipped to the last page. Sorry I'm late, but Riverman, I think you'll survive better than most, due to your calm, Buddhist-like thinking style. Of all the excitable people, I'm less surprised that a calm person's heart was 25%. That's what made you calm. My father had low blood pressure and got a pacemaker in about 1980. It worked great.

Communicating with excitable people may be bad for your heart. Maybe you should go to a message board about flowers or cooking or bird-watching. Too bad everyone here can't be as professional and focused as me. If you ever need to talk to a happy old guy, just ask, uh, me. I'll find one for you if it's the last thing I do.

Well, to be completely truthful, there are two versions of that story. The man lives in the first version and dies in the second.

1st version - 1902
http://london.sonoma.edu/Writings/Uncollected/tobuildafire.html

2nd version - 1908
http://london.sonoma.edu/writings/LostFace/fire.html

However, if you are looking for sunshine and roses this is not the story for you.

 

[MarAzul]

river had me read London's Voyage of the Snark
I did. But my take a way was, Man! What a fuck up!

 

[jlprk]

Well, to be completely truthful, there are two versions of that story. The man lives in the first version and dies in the second...However, if you are looking for sunshine and roses this is not the story for you.

I didn't know that. Back in the tough old days when tough nerds read tough books, he died. We 12-year-olds saw killings on TV cowboy and detective shows every night, so of course we were assigned the original version in which he dies.

So Riverman, read the version he's talking about. Actually, better for your blood pressure, read about flowers, cooking, or birds.

 

[riverman]

read about flowers,

I've read the Marijuana Growers Guide

 

[riverman]

cooking, or birds.

I cooked a bird for dinner

 

[riverman]

river had me read London's Voyage of the Snark
I did. But my take a way was, Man! What a fuck up!

I always thought any sailor would know you don't sail the Pacific by yourself without a first mate on board...that is a classic fuck up by most standards..London's writing about surfing, the leper colony on Molokai and all his views of Hawaii back in his day were beautifully written and inspired...it's not a technical manual...it's a journey...he was a rookie seaman but figured it out along the way. The biggest sailing fuckup would be sanding or applying sealants without a particulate filter mask...which I saw a picture of you doing long ago when you were building your vessel....but hey...it's your liver that will complain about that one day...good writing speaks for itself.

 

[Jade Falcon]

River, you mentioned that you like Science Fiction. Might I recommend the BattleTech/MechWarrior book series? I have about 70 books from that series, and I'm a huge fan. They've been out of print for about 10 years now, but the storylines are epic. I strongly recommend the "Legend Of The Jade Phoenix" series, which is a 3-book sub series of the BattleTech book series. Written by Robert Thurston, one of my all-time favorite authors. Him and author Blaine Lee Pardoe are legends of BattleTech and MechWarrior.

 

[riverman]

River, you mentioned that you like Science Fiction. Might I recommend the BattleTech/MechWarrior book series? I have about 70 books from that series, and I'm a huge fan. They've been out of print for about 10 years now, but the storylines are epic. I strongly recommend the "Legend Of The Jade Phoenix" series, which is a 3-book sub series of the BattleTech book series. Written by Robert Thurston, one of my all-time favorite authors. Him and author Blaine Lee Pardoe are legends of BattleTech and MechWarrior.

I'll have to check them out...never read them

 

[riverman]

I love the Patrick O'Brien novels ...the Master and Commander series especially

 

[Jade Falcon]

I'll have to check them out...never read them

There's about 100 b0oks total in the series. Many for sale on Amazon. Just look up "BattleTech Series" or "MechWarrior book series" on Amazon, or check out Powell's books if you can. That's where I got all of mine.

In fact, mentioning this sent me on a search of some books I've missed, and I'm ordering one right now. My younger years come back to life!

 

[BLAZINGGIANTS]

Get well soon, @riverman. Love you, big guy. Love having you around this board.

Hope folks understand the significance of why it’s important to be kind and deliver disagreements with each other in a kindly manner. This is a forum, after all. Life is too short. It’s not what you say, but how you say it. riverman is a gentleman and a vet of our country. Have opinions and takes but we’re all rooting for the same team.

Get well, riverman!

 

[Strenuus]

Riverman, you're one of my favorites. Glad to see you kick death in the face and tell it to kick rocks. You're a really good person from the things I've seen on here. Keep it up in recovery, enjoy retirement, and just take it one quarter at a time as you say!

 

[Lanny]

I like historical epics...autobiographies...science fiction..humor…. short story collections and novellas....I have a large library at home and a larger one just down the road...I like the spy stuff like Robert Ludlum as well ...really enjoy books that take me somewhere and paint a great landscape...traveling through literature...or going back or forward in time....good westerns like Cormack McCarthy are getting harder to find these days. I also like the poets...Bukowski...Snyder..etc..recently I've started reading Hemingway's short stories again and just read a few Jack London classics

Try Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad. I think at least a little of what's in the novel applies to all of us. A whole lot applied to me.

 

[riverman]

Try Lord Jim by Joseph Conrad. I think at least a little of what's in the novel applies to all of us. A whole lot applied to me.

I read that and all Conrad's novels I could get my hands on..Heart of Darkness is a favorite...the one Apocalypse Now was inspired by....also Graham Green and Thomas Mann....classic authors...good stuff

 

[riverman]

I've tended to chain read authors I like....once I find a good one...I try to read everything the library has by them before moving onto another author..

 

[riverman]

Do what you must man, get well, come visit on the river river.

One day I'd truly like to do that...on my bucket list Marz….thank you for the great post..much appreciated

 

[Hobbesarable]

I've tended to chain read authors I like....once I find a good one...I try to read everything the library has by them before moving onto another author..

Ron Chernow is one author you should read when you have time. He wrote biographies on Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, and Ulysses S. Grant. Start with the Alexander Hamilton bio if you decide to read his books. @Lanny and I thoroughly enjoyed his Alexander Hamilton Biography.

 

[Strenuus]

I've tended to chain read authors I like....once I find a good one...I try to read everything the library has by them before moving onto another author..

I do the same thing.

 

[Chris Craig]

I've tended to chain read authors I like....once I find a good one...I try to read everything the library has by them before moving onto another author..

I do the same thing.

 

[Lanny]

I read that and all Conrad's novels I could get my hands on..Heart of Darkness is a favorite...the one Apocalypse Now was inspired by....also Graham Green and Thomas Mann....classic authors...good stuff

I could only get half way through Heart of Darkness. I thought Apocalypse Now was not very good. Perhaps it's because I had trouble staying interested in the book that spawned the movie.

 

[riverman]

I could only get half way through Heart of Darkness. I thought Apocalypse Now was not very good. Perhaps it's because I had trouble staying interested in the book that spawned the movie.

I thought the book was way better than the movie...but it was depressing. I was probably in my 20s when I read it...sometimes I'll reread something and find out it isn't as good as I thought it was when I was younger.

 

[Lanny]

I thought the book was way better than the movie...but it was depressing. I was probably in my 20s when I read it...sometimes I'll reread something and find out it isn't as good as I thought it was when I was younger.

I think I was 21 when I read it.

Now, I'm blind in one eye and have difficulty seeing out the other so I only read bills and then have a lot of trouble. If it weren't for leaning forward and squinting I couldn't read or post here.

 

[riverman]

I think I was 21 when I read it.

Now, I'm blind in one eye and have difficulty seeing out the other so I only read bills and then have a lot of trouble. If it weren't for leaning forward and squinting I couldn't read or post here.

audio books are the ticket my friend...my mom was an avid reader all her life but in her last years couldn't read...she resisted audio books until I finally got her to try them...then she loved them

 

[riverman]

Ron Chernow is one author you should read when you have time. He wrote biographies on Alexander Hamilton, George Washington, and Ulysses S. Grant. Start with the Alexander Hamilton bio if you decide to read his books. @Lanny and I thoroughly enjoyed his Alexander Hamilton Biography.

I just read Stephen Ambrose "Undaunted Courage" about Lewis and Clark and Thomas Jefferson....great read....I'll check our Chernow...thanks