The Best of Abby the Black Lab

Posted on September 9, 2019 by Laddie

Last Friday my beloved Abby the Black Lab passed away. She was 13-1/2 years old and had severe arthritis and many other health problems. I sit here today mired in guilt as though I could have made her young and healthy again. She was the perfect dog and I miss her so much. We are not going to get another dog in the near future (or ever?) and I think it is going to take me a while to come to terms with my sadness.

Although she had slacked off in recent years, Abby the Black lab was a popular author on my blog. She did not have diabetes nor did she ever notice any of my high or low blood sugars. But she was a wise dog and not shy about sharing her wisdom about life and blood sugar dysfunction.

Abby the Black Lab Discusses DSMA Live

Abby made her blogging debut in 2013. Those of us who have lived in the Diabetes Online Community for a long time will remember the Cherise-Scott-George podcast which introduced me and many others to the movers and shakers in the DOC. More importantly Abby introduced herself as a diabetes fashionista of sunglasses and hats.

Abby the Black Lab Discusses Nutrition

Abby confirmed her status as an expert in fashion and food in this post.

For sure she knew that despite what your vet and diabetes educators tell you, dog food and vegetables do not taste nearly as good as donuts and potato chips. And sometimes a girl just doesn’t want to measure her food.

The Great Divide in the DOC

This is probably the best post ever published on my blog. Abby had incredible wisdom to state that we need to stop the arguments between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes and unify into a powerful advocacy bloc.

“Although you seemingly-civilized people with Type 1 diabetes sometimes argue with those who have Type 2 diabetes, you pancreatically-challenged doofuses should remember that you are stronger together than apart. Diabetes in all of its evil forms is the enemy and you should join hands and conquer it together.”

But Abby was a dog and she knew that there was a much more important battle than diabetes for dogs and cats.

“More importantly, we dogs and cats should toss aside our petty differences and stop the harassing hisses and barks. With a united army of canines and felines, we can fight a cosmic battle against our common enemy. A enemy who taunts and teases us in our own yards and through our own windows. An adversary who seems to think that dominance is achieved through water-skiing videos. We have seen the enemy and the enemy is……..SQUIRRELS!”

Abby the Black Lab Discusses Community

I loved this blogpost and the magic mailbox is still a popular fixture in my Arizona community. Abby had been slacking off for a while but was prompted to write saying:

“Although I am overworked protecting my home from coyotes, rattlesnakes, and FedEx drivers, I suppose I can take a minute to discuss dog biscuits, mailboxes, and people with diabetes.”

Abby reminded us that community is important, maybe the most important part of the DOC:

“By dispensing magical treasures every day, this mailbox helps build a bond of community in the neighborhood. Community. That’s important…. I like to think that blog comments, tweets, and Facebook remarks are dog treats where you touch base with people and remind them that they are appreciated and that the diabetes community is important.”

Some of my readers will remember #dblogcheck day and most of you won’t. But viewing the diabetes online community, Abby summed it up fabulously:

“No one has ever complained about too much love, respect, and validation.”

That’s what the diabetes online community gives us:

Love.

Respect.

Validation.

Thank-you, Abby. ❤️

Blogposts by Abby the Black Lab. May She RIP.

https://testguessandgo.com/2013/05/29/abby-the-black-lab-discusses-dsma-live/

https://testguessandgo.com/2013/07/15/abby-the-black-lab-discusses-nutrition-2/

https://testguessandgo.com/2013/09/19/the-great-divide-in-the-doc/

https://testguessandgo.com/2014/05/13/a-diabetes-poem/

https://testguessandgo.com/2015/03/10/abby-community/

Moving into 2019: Diabetes and Not Diabetes

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Laddie

We’re ten days into 2019 and life is the same. But not really the same. Oh yeah, it’s probably the same but it’s nice to use the reset of a new year to check out where I am. With things related to diabetes. And things not related to diabetes.

Geographical change:

I abandon the cold of Minnesota every year after Christmas and snowbird my way to Arizona for 4 months. I have been here about two weeks and we are finally warming up after super cold temperatures and snow in the mountains. We have had a couple of rainy days but mostly the sun shines and my spirits soar. I don’t have to worry about slipping on the Minnesota ice.

Diabetes Stuff:

In early December I wrote about going back to my Animas Vibe pump due to occlusion alarms and other frustrations with my Tandem X2 pump. I went back to the X2 for my endocrinologist appointment later in December because I want my medical records to show nothing other than Tandem use. Medicare Part B insulin and pump supplies require the serial number of my pump and I don’t want to risk coverage nor do I want to put my endocrinologist in a situation of having to fudge on what pump I am using. Then because I was traveling to Arizona, I wanted to wear my in-warranty pump so that if the second pump in my suitcase was lost because of shenanigans while I was being groped by TSA, it would be the old “worthless” pump.

But very quickly in Arizona, I got frustrated again with occlusion alarms on my Tandem pump. So I ditched it again and am back to my Animas pump. I called Tandem to report that I was having occlusion alarms and indicated that I just wanted that on my record not a pump replacement. Since I have had occlusion alarms with three different Tandem pumps, I am not optimistic that a new pump will make a difference and I don’t want to deal with it until I have access to the Dexcom G6 and Basal IQ. For Medicare users, that is expected to start happening in April. Until then I will continue with my workhorse Animas pump that delivers insulin and never has occlusion alarms or other intrusions into my life. As always, please note that I am a huge fan of Tandem and do not regret my t:slim X2 purchase. I just regret that I am one of the unfortunate souls who has occlusion alarms and struggles to succeed with this pump.

Diabetes, Arthritis, and Lifestyle:

I have previously mentioned that I am giving up extreme hikes of 12+ miles in the mountains to preserve the remaining cartilage in my painful arthritic feet. I don’t want to have foot surgery especially as I am finding that my August hand surgery solved some of my problems but not all of my problems. I have no confidence that foot surgery will turn me into a 25 year old athlete again….

I am finding new activities and am attending fitness classes three times a week. Plus I ride my bike to everything in my community and never use my car or golf cart. So far I have been keeping in touch with my hiking friends and right now for me the social connection is far more important than the athletic connection.

Kinda Broken:

A lot of things in my life kinda work but are kinda broken. This is definitely a #1stWorldProblem section.

The remote for our main TV does not turn on the tuner or cable box and we must do that manually. If you forget, button pushing randomly turns on some devices and turns off others. When the TV dies, it will require an expensive redo. Until then, we just figure it out and make it work.

My husband broke the battery compartment door of my golf laser gun. To get my distance on the golf course, I push up on the bottom of the gun, push the button, and hope to get the distance. Yeah, it works but is annoying and one more challenge for my arthritic hands. But I don’t play a huge amount of golf and don’t want to invest in a new laser gun. When this one works. Sorta.

The screen lock button on my iPad is stuck. I should get it fixed but right now I added an Accessibility Feature button that allows me to turn off the screen with a few clicks. Annoying but a cheap fix.

The garage door manual close button doesn’t work due to a lightening strike last year. So I have to enter the code which works fine but is an extra kinda-broke step.

My August hand surgery fixed one of the bad joints in my left hand. But it didn’t fix the joint that hurts when I play golf. And the bad elbow wasn’t even addressed. So a hand brace and an elbow strap make golf possible.

Totally Broken but Fixed:

When I flew into Arizona in late December and picked up my husband’s car at the airport lot, the car screamed brake failure and stranded me in a rocky industrial lot north of the airport. AAA, a loaner car, and an eventual warranty repair got me home in a few hours and the car back in our garage a few days later. Thanks heavens that the brakes failed before I got to the highway.

We have dealt with a quirky HP printer for several years where it always needs to have its network settings re-entered weekly just to print a crossword puzzle. Finally it got an unfixable error message and we now have a new Epson printer that promises to be more reliable. I hope. New printer=$90. Ink for new printer=$70. Argh!

Still Broken:

Yeah. My pancreas is still broken. But what’s new???

Abby the Black Lab is doing okay but is in pain due to arthritis and other health issues. She started laser treatments today and the prognosis is good for easing her symptoms. She is still happy and eats and drinks well. And she looks super cool in the doggie sunglasses required during her laser treatments. But she is an old dog and age is not fixable….

*******

Happy New Year to all of my readers and may 2019 be a good year for you and your family.

Happy Birthday, Abby the Black Lab!

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Laddie

Abby the Black Lab, who is wise about all things related to diabetes, is celebrating a birthday. Her blogposts are some of the most-read posts at Test Guess and Go. Someday I hope to have half as much wisdom as she does.