Yearly Archives: 2010

Blizzcon 2010

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blizzcon 2010 This past weekend can be put in the “best moments of my life” pile. I went and got my geek on at Blizzcon 2010 in Anaheim, CA, going from “geek wannabe” to “full-on geek” and calling my self a raving World of Warcraft fan (heck, I’m a freaking Kingslayer!). I also fell in love with California, but most of all I got to spend time with awesome people and I even got an adopted family. Coming back to Chicago was hard, I miss all those palm trees!

I’m going to leave the technicalities of the convention to my husband and Daniel De Guia, but Blizzcon was an amazing experience for me. I’ve never seen so many people in line, and I never fully realized how Blizzard has brought all kinds of people together… it’s just wonderful! You’re there, standing in line, waiting for those doors to open, and you feel connected to thousands of complete strangers. You forget all about classes, race, economical status, disabilities… we’re just one big mass of human beings who love gaming and made it all the way there. Conversations are spontaneous and fun, you learn, you share, you exchange ideas and play strategies. People are happy, they don’t care about standing in line for hours or the huge crowd. It’s just happy time, geek time!

World of Warcraft is one of the things that took me a while to discover (mostly because I refused to play and spent too much time giving my husband wife aggro) but it’s become a big part of what I do during my free time. Yes, I’m addicted, I love it, my warlock rockz and rulez and there aren’t enough achievements in the game for me to get. But what I love the most about WoW is the social aspect; I have tons of fun in guild chat and talking to people over vent. I’ve made friends, great friends, and I got to meet a bunch of them in California. You think people are going to be different when you meet them in person, but I was actually amazed by the fact that personalities do show in game and every person I met is just like I imagined. Now I feel even more connected to my guildies and I’m looking forward to the next time we meet.

And last, but not least (actually the best part of it all), I finally got to meet Nathalie, my good online friend of 10 years. It was unreal, we screamed like teenagers. I just wish it wasn’t so crazy so we could spend more time together, so a trip to Calgary needs to happen. But that deserves a post of its own and I’ll work on it later.

So, who’s ready for Cataclysm? :-D

Diabetes Sisters October Spotlight

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This month I’m very honored to be the Sister Spotlight in the Diabetes Sisters Newsletter. Here I’m sharing the article that got published. Many thanks to Brandy Barnes and the DS team!

I guess I can say I’ve lived with diabetes all my life, even though I wasn’t born with it. I grew up learning that my father had diabetes. I also grew up under the discipline of a concerned and loving wife/mom. Despite the attention he gave to his condition, my father died of heart complications when I was 25 and recently married; his death split my life in two and I decided I wanted to advocate and create awareness. Two years after my father’s death I was diagnosed with type 2… It was a blessing in disguise; I knew I had a reason to work even harder for advocacy since it was my turn to be the patient.

One of the hardest things for me is to come to terms with the fact that I have a chronic condition that requires constant monitoring and discipline. I get lost in denial and my body gets used to hyper/hypo symptoms, so most of the time I’m oblivious to them. I go for my regular endo appointment and get happy with that 6.5% A1C, but I’m lying to myself. I know I somehow got lucky; I know I have to do better at this, poke my fingers, take my meds, etc. It gets me down sometimes and yes, I dislike myself for it.

But I’ve learned that every day is a new opportunity to reinvent and forgive myself. We’re not super-heroes and living with diabetes is not easy. It’s not only about taking our medication and checking our blood glucose levels; it’s also about taking care of our heart and mind. My goal these days is to work on mindfulness so I can be a happier, healthier person.

Diabetes has brought pain to my life, but it has also brought a sense of awareness about my needs and wonderful people to share with. I value and appreciate every single person who crosses my path and whose life is touched by diabetes. I feel we speak the same language, I know that I’m not alone; that is the power of community.

I’ve had the opportunity to meet many of my diabetes buddies in person. This year I was lucky to attend not only the Weekend for Women in Raleigh, but also the Roche Social Media Summit in Orlando; I had the pleasure to meet my DiabetesSister, Brandy Barnes, at both events. I am grateful for communities like DiabetesSisters where I can participate and feel like I’m not only working on myself, but helping others.

I’m always honored to be appointed as someone who gives back to the diabetes community. It humbles me and it makes me want to be better. For me, and for my loved ones.

So yes, to me, diabetes is a blessing in disguise.

Of Love and Loss

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Today’s post at TinyBuddha is about how to cope with the loss of a loved one. It’s never easy. Saying that last goodbye to someone you’ve loved dearly is one of the hardest things people can experience. I personally felt it like they were ripping my heart apart and I always knew those stolen pieces were to never be returned to me. The emptiness stays there forever, even though you learn to live in a world where your loved ones don’t anymore. The pain may recede, but it’s always there. Memories help you smile in the middle of that sadness, and then one day you look at it as part of life… people die.

Yesterday marked 23 years since the youngest of my brothers passed away. That was my first experience with death. I was 12, he was 17. One of the things that strikes me the most is the fact that sometimes I have to try really, really hard to remember his face. My brother became a stranger to me and I feel like I was robbed. You never think something like that will happen to you. After all, you’re a kid, your sibling is a kid, death is just impossible. And then they call to tell you about an accident; life stands still and you try to understand what’s going on. After 23 years, sometimes I still don’t understand what happened.

When you grow up in a big family and then you start seeing it disintegrate… it’s a hard blow. We were 5 kids, now we’re just 3 (another one of my brothers passed when I was 17, he was 26). My dad passed away in 2000. How do we deal with all this? Love… lots of it. We embrace the memories as we grieve. Like I said, the pain is always there somehow, we just learn to live with it. It doesn’t seem fair at times, but what can you do? No one escapes death.

I don’t mean to sound like a downer on this post. I’m just here thinking how capable we are to deal with loss, and it amazes me. At first you don’t think you can make it and then life proves your wrong.

Diabetes Meme

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Via Kerri: Finally, a blog meme just for those of us with wonky pancreases (and for the people who love us). If you’re in the mood for meme’ing today, have at it!

What type of diabetes do you have: Type 2.

When were you diagnosed: April 2002.

What’s your current blood sugar: I have no idea. No meter with me right now. It doesn’t feel OK, though. :-(

What kind of meter do you use: OneTouch Ultra 2.

How many times a day do you test your blood sugar: I don’t test daily. Endo said I could swing it a few times a week. And to be honest I’ve been very undisciplined lately. Ugh, ugh, ugh!

What’s a “high” number for you: Anything above 160 mg/dL.

What’s do you consider “low”: Anything under 70 mg/dL.

What’s your favorite low blood sugar reaction treatment: Orange juice.

Describe your dream endo: The one I have right now. He cares. And he gives me high-fives.

What’s your biggest diabetes achievement: Coming out and advocate.

What’s your biggest diabetes-related fear: Hrmmm… You’re asking me to pick one from heart disease, retinopathy, kidney disease, neuropathy, amputation, etc? I say all of them!

Who’s on your support team: My husband and my D-buddies.

Do you think there will be a cure in your lifetime: I don’t know. I don’t think so. But there will be one and I’m glad just thinking that future generations won’t have to live with this disease. We’re creating awareness now.

What is a “cure” to you: I guess it depends on what kind of Diabetes we’re talking about. For type 1 it would be a new pancreas (artificial, more successful transplants, etc), or a way to deal with auto-immunity. For type 2 a way to find a way to fight insulin resistance for good.

The most annoying thing people say to you about your diabetes is: “You can’t eat cake, but here… have some potatoes.”

What is the most common misconception about diabetes: It’s just about eating sweets.

If you could say one thing to your pancreas, what would it be: “You do a great job, dude. But tell your cell friends to work properly.”

Being Nice is SO Easy

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I’m a sap, nothing new… that new Oreo commercial with the kids in school makes me tear up. Mostly because it’s cute but also because it reminds me that there are still nice people in the world, that being nice to others gives you a great feeling of connection. In a society where everyone is running around all the time and we’re all in some kind of rat race, it’s always good to stop and think about what others do for us and we take for granted.

I thought about it this morning on my way to work. I usually leave home around 8:05 so I don’t get stuck in the 8:04 train, but it didn’t happen today so I had to wait. Traffic was particularly heavy and the line of cars waiting to cross the rail road was long. I was waiting for a chance to get on the main street when a lady stopped, smiled at me and let me get ahead of her. I had not driven 1 mile when a lady was trying to cross the street in a rush, so I stopped, smiled at her and let her cross. I know it wasn’t a big deal, but the nice gesture from the first lady kinda made me have one of my own. And I always try to do the good deed of the day, or pay it forward… whatever you want to call it.

Mind you, there are times when I really don’t feel like being nice. Especially to people who are either rude or have hurt me a great deal. But there’s a saying in Spanish that goes something like “You’re not less brave because you’re courteous.” This past weekend I had to make use of that statement, but it didn’t feel like an effort. It wasn’t about the other person, it was about the way I want to project myself to others. It doesn’t make me better than anybody else, but I like to try to be nice and avoid being an asshat because, at the end of the day I like to believe I made other people’s life easier somehow.

Being nice is easy, being thoughtful is easy. And it makes the world a better place.