Simple Minded wrote:How bout you Nap, any surprises? Is your Dad related to all his kids? Everyone in the family related?
I think my ancestry, (or is that incestry?) accounts for my supreme mental balance and well adjusted-ness. Not only are my ancestors murderous, villainous, genocidal scum, we are also the perennial victims of the same. I'm playing both sides of the game.
Smart move, cover all bases.
Though in the words of Mr. P, looks like you're triangulating even at the genetic level.
=============
Yeah, it turns out we have a Japanese ancestor approx. 300 years ago.
And that the all-seeing eye is still having trouble placing non-north western european genetic histories. According to them, my brother has a significant number of genes related to South Asia and Sardinia. And I am more Iraqi/Lebanese/Coptic/Armenian than I am Italian...but my closest genetic relatives are in Messina, Rome and Istanbul, so go figure.
The Messina and Rome part sounds about right, but considering how many times Sicily has been conquered and switched hands and Messina being a merchant port for time immemorial...we figured Arab, Spanish, Scandinavia/Franco-German...heck, maybe even Greek would show up but nope. None of those.
Maternal side is a little less complicated- a long line of Anglo/Hiberno-Norman+Ulster Protestants surnames pretty much plays out as expected. The amazing thing is centuries of living in Northern Ireland- no genetic trace of it according to the test.
Simple Minded wrote:How bout you Nap, any surprises? Is your Dad related to all his kids? Everyone in the family related?
I think my ancestry, (or is that incestry?) accounts for my supreme mental balance and well adjusted-ness. Not only are my ancestors murderous, villainous, genocidal scum, we are also the perennial victims of the same. I'm playing both sides of the game.
Smart move, cover all bases.
Though in the words of Mr. P, looks like you're triangulating even at the genetic level.
Knew the T word was coming out after that post.
Boinking both your friends and your enemies (might as well do relatives as well..... and farm animals while you're at it......) could be part of God's plan or Darwin's plan, but it is definitely not a bad way to go thru life.
Others choose to be imbalanced on both the mental and the genetic level.
NapLajoieonSteroids wrote:
Yeah, it turns out we have a Japanese ancestor approx. 300 years ago.
And that the all-seeing eye is still having trouble placing non-north western european genetic histories. According to them, my brother has a significant number of genes related to South Asia and Sardinia. And I am more Iraqi/Lebanese/Coptic/Armenian than I am Italian...but my closest genetic relatives are in Messina, Rome and Istanbul, so go figure.
The Messina and Rome part sounds about right, but considering how many times Sicily has been conquered and switched hands and Messina being a merchant port for time immemorial...we figured Arab, Spanish, Scandinavia/Franco-German...heck, maybe even Greek would show up but nope. None of those.
Maternal side is a little less complicated- a long line of Anglo/Hiberno-Norman+Ulster Protestants surnames pretty much plays out as expected. The amazing thing is centuries of living in Northern Ireland- no genetic trace of it according to the test.
I'm sure 23andme takes some poetic license in their "science." Makes for better stories and sharing. Even "scientists" know the value of "marketing." As you noted, many nations have switched hands thru out history. Regional gene detection makes sense, national gene detection, less so.
IIRC, we're all descended from some dude in Africa about 250,000 years ago. We're all African-blankians!
Simple Minded wrote:How bout you Nap, any surprises? Is your Dad related to all his kids? Everyone in the family related?
I think my ancestry, (or is that incestry?) accounts for my supreme mental balance and well adjusted-ness. Not only are my ancestors murderous, villainous, genocidal scum, we are also the perennial victims of the same. I'm playing both sides of the game.
Smart move, cover all bases.
Though in the words of Mr. P, looks like you're triangulating even at the genetic level.
Knew the T word was coming out after that post.
Boinking both your friends and your enemies (might as well do relatives as well..... and farm animals while you're at it......) could be part of God's plan or Darwin's plan, but it is definitely not a bad way to go thru life.
Others choose to be imbalanced on both the mental and the genetic level.
NapLajoieonSteroids wrote:
Yeah, it turns out we have a Japanese ancestor approx. 300 years ago.
And that the all-seeing eye is still having trouble placing non-north western european genetic histories. According to them, my brother has a significant number of genes related to South Asia and Sardinia. And I am more Iraqi/Lebanese/Coptic/Armenian than I am Italian...but my closest genetic relatives are in Messina, Rome and Istanbul, so go figure.
The Messina and Rome part sounds about right, but considering how many times Sicily has been conquered and switched hands and Messina being a merchant port for time immemorial...we figured Arab, Spanish, Scandinavia/Franco-German...heck, maybe even Greek would show up but nope. None of those.
Maternal side is a little less complicated- a long line of Anglo/Hiberno-Norman+Ulster Protestants surnames pretty much plays out as expected. The amazing thing is centuries of living in Northern Ireland- no genetic trace of it according to the test.
I'm sure 23andme takes some poetic license in their "science." Makes for better stories and sharing. Even "scientists" know the value of "marketing." As you noted, many nations have switched hands thru out history. Regional gene detection makes sense, national gene detection, less so.
IIRC, we're all descended from some dude in Africa about 250,000 years ago. We're all African-blankians!
well, it's the least important bit. Having the raw data is neat. Or maybe it's that it's a good opening to reminisce about relatives who've passed.
This may not apply to those with secret children or complicated backgrounds; but my parents have had some success with filling out some blank spots connecting with relatives we've lost contact with.
Just the other day, my mother called me up to say that this woman sent her an e-mail asking if she was related to so-and-so, and that the last time they met so-and-so was as a very young girl in the 1940s and that she lost contact with her after the older generation passed. Now, we had this woman marked down in the family papers but that's a totally different thing to actually get confirmation that she's still out there.
NapLajoieonSteroids wrote:
well, it's the least important bit. Having the raw data is neat. Or maybe it's that it's a good opening to reminisce about relatives who've passed.
This may not apply to those with secret children or complicated backgrounds; but my parents have had some success with filling out some blank spots connecting with relatives we've lost contact with.
Just the other day, my mother called me up to say that this woman sent her an e-mail asking if she was related to so-and-so, and that the last time they met so-and-so was as a very young girl in the 1940s and that she lost contact with her after the older generation passed. Now, we had this woman marked down in the family papers but that's a totally different thing to actually get confirmation that she's still out there.
that's a pretty cool result. me, I like to leave the past in the past, so I try to avoid family members, near and far.
NapLajoieonSteroids wrote:
well, it's the least important bit. Having the raw data is neat. Or maybe it's that it's a good opening to reminisce about relatives who've passed.
This may not apply to those with secret children or complicated backgrounds; but my parents have had some success with filling out some blank spots connecting with relatives we've lost contact with.
Just the other day, my mother called me up to say that this woman sent her an e-mail asking if she was related to so-and-so, and that the last time they met so-and-so was as a very young girl in the 1940s and that she lost contact with her after the older generation passed. Now, we had this woman marked down in the family papers but that's a totally different thing to actually get confirmation that she's still out there.
that's a pretty cool result. me, I like to leave the past in the past, so I try to avoid family members, near and far.
I have something like 1,000 cousins if you get to off spring of great Aunts and Uncles. First cousins and their children number over 100. There is hardly any state in the US I can go where I don't have a relative. When I was a kid, at family get togethers, we didn't have enough kids to make a football team, we had enough to have a football league.
For the most part we have always had each other's back.
"I fancied myself as some kind of god....It is a sort of disease when you consider yourself some kind of god, the creator of everything, but I feel comfortable about it now since I began to live it out.” -- George Soros
Doc wrote:
I have something like 1,000 cousins if you get to off spring of great Aunts and Uncles. First cousins and their children number over 100. There is hardly any state in the US I can go where I don't have a relative. When I was a kid, at family get togethers, we didn't have enough kids to make a football team, we had enough to have a football league.
For the most part we have always had each other's back.
fascinating how families can vary. My paternal grandfather had 8 brothers. I've met a grand total of one person with the same last name who wasn't my father, mother, or one of my brothers. we had tons of relatives, but everyone pretty much minded their own business. family get togethers would have been a gathering of strangers.
I heard a guy on the radio the other day saying he would never send his DNA to one of these services because he has three cousins who he knows have murdered people, and to date, only one of the cousins has been arrested. smart man.
Doc wrote:
I have something like 1,000 cousins if you get to off spring of great Aunts and Uncles. First cousins and their children number over 100. There is hardly any state in the US I can go where I don't have a relative. When I was a kid, at family get togethers, we didn't have enough kids to make a football team, we had enough to have a football league.
For the most part we have always had each other's back.
fascinating how families can vary. My paternal grandfather had 8 brothers. I've met a grand total of one person with the same last name who wasn't my father, mother, or one of my brothers. we had tons of relatives, but everyone pretty much minded their own business. family get togethers would have been a gathering of strangers.
I heard a guy on the radio the other day saying he would never send his DNA to one of these services because he has three cousins who he knows have murdered people, and to date, only one of the cousins has been arrested. smart man.
I must say I have never met anyone with the last name of Simpleminded. But you don't know what you are missing in not going to family reunions. For example let me tell you story from one of my family re-unions. My baby sister was dating this guy that I thought was pretty much a big Zero Had Obama had a son this guy would have been him.
Anyway he came to me in the middle of the reunion and said "You really have a big family" "I don't know how I am going to impress all these people"
I told him: " You don't have to impress all of these people"
He said: " I don't?"
I said: "No you don't. The only person you have to impress here is me"
"I fancied myself as some kind of god....It is a sort of disease when you consider yourself some kind of god, the creator of everything, but I feel comfortable about it now since I began to live it out.” -- George Soros
Doc wrote:Anyway he came to me in the middle of the reunion and said "You really have a big family" "I don't know how I am going to impress all these people"
I told him: " You don't have to impress all of these people"
He said: " I don't?"
I said: "No you don't. The only person you have to impress here is me"
Doc wrote:Anyway he came to me in the middle of the reunion and said "You really have a big family" "I don't know how I am going to impress all these people"
I told him: " You don't have to impress all of these people"
He said: " I don't?"
I said: "No you don't. The only person you have to impress here is me"
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"I fancied myself as some kind of god....It is a sort of disease when you consider yourself some kind of god, the creator of everything, but I feel comfortable about it now since I began to live it out.” -- George Soros
I suspect he has gone out to look for his mind. If it should return while he is gone please ask it to stay until he comes back.
"I fancied myself as some kind of god....It is a sort of disease when you consider yourself some kind of god, the creator of everything, but I feel comfortable about it now since I began to live it out.” -- George Soros
Glad to know that you're able to contribute again.
CS
You are more than welcome. We ain't nothing if we ain't both ethnically conscience and ethnically conscious.
The Vapor's song always reminds me of visiting my buddy, who was almost an Olympic caliber track star at college. After watching a mind blowingly hot chick dancing at close to light speed for at least 10 minutes he said "Watch me blow her out of the water!" and went up to dance with her as "I'm turning Japanese" was starting to play. She smoked him. He comes back and said "No way a human can do that without being on some kind of speed!" She then continued to dance for another half hour.
Got my right hip replaced today. Pice of cake so far.
Arrived at 6:30, went in for prep at 6:45, went in to surgery at 7:30, at 9:05 the surgeon came out and told me wife everything went great, I woke up at 10:30, arrived back home at 11:30. So far virtually no pain at all, but my right thigh feels like I did a bit too much physical labor.
When one is one pain meds, OTNOT'ers seem even more brilliant.
noddy wrote: ↑Wed Nov 20, 2019 2:45 am
Sounds good - you needed to be more hip.
Did they let you keep the old one, or do they have joint custody ?
They never asked if I wanted it. I suspect Big Somebody might use my bone marrow or DNA to start cloning the next generation of superior humanoids. Homo SimpeMindedians. As long as I don't get stuck paying child support, I'm cool with that.
Seeing how god has given up on evolution, someone has to step in and pick up the slack.
Soon as we achieve sufficient numbers, we're gonna take out the Woke Herd, unless all of them have already eaten each other in the name of the common good by then.
If they milked me while I was out to get my semen, the jokes on them. I got a vasectomy years ago.
Simple Minded wrote: ↑Wed Nov 20, 2019 12:55 am
Got my right hip replaced today. Pice of cake so far.
Arrived at 6:30, went in for prep at 6:45, went in to surgery at 7:30, at 9:05 the surgeon came out and told me wife everything went great, I woke up at 10:30, arrived back home at 11:30. So far virtually no pain at all, but my right thigh feels like I did a bit too much physical labor.
When one is one pain meds, OTNOT'ers seem even more brilliant.
Glad to hear it went well.
So now you're a born-again hipster.
May the gods preserve and defend me from self-righteous altruists; I can defend myself from my enemies and my friends.
Simple Minded wrote: ↑Wed Nov 20, 2019 12:55 am
Got my right hip replaced today. Pice of cake so far.
Arrived at 6:30, went in for prep at 6:45, went in to surgery at 7:30, at 9:05 the surgeon came out and told me wife everything went great, I woke up at 10:30, arrived back home at 11:30. So far virtually no pain at all, but my right thigh feels like I did a bit too much physical labor.
When one is one pain meds, OTNOT'ers seem even more brilliant.
Glad it went well today, hope it continues to do so. Hip arthroplasties can go really smoothly with the developments in minimally invasive surgical techniques and with hip joint prosthetics. While the surgeon's work is hopefully done, yours is just beginning, so do follow the recovery and rehab protocols you are given. The whole process will likely take several months. Be patient and diligent. All the best...
Simple Minded wrote: ↑Wed Nov 20, 2019 12:55 am
Got my right hip replaced today. Pice of cake so far.
Arrived at 6:30, went in for prep at 6:45, went in to surgery at 7:30, at 9:05 the surgeon came out and told me wife everything went great, I woke up at 10:30, arrived back home at 11:30. So far virtually no pain at all, but my right thigh feels like I did a bit too much physical labor.
When one is one pain meds, OTNOT'ers seem even more brilliant.
Glad it went well today, hope it continues to do so. Hip arthroplasties can go really smoothly with the developments in minimally invasive surgical techniques and with hip joint prosthetics. While the surgeon's work is hopefully done, yours is just beginning, so do follow the recovery and rehab protocols you are given. The whole process will likely take several months. Be patient and diligent. All the best...
Thanks kmich. I really appreciate the encouragement and professional advice. Patience is not my strong suit, so I think I will take a minimum amount of pain meds so I have the reminder of "that's why stupid is supposed to hurt."
I had the anterior procedure done. I know several people who have had the same surgeon preform the same procedure over the last 18 months, and they are all extremely happy about the results. Surgeon said I am super fit, so he expected it to go better than those who are 20 years older and obese. I couldn't help by think last night, "F**k me! I guess I'm officaily old now!"
During prep he walked in with a cup of coffee to introduce himself to my wife. I said "You brought me coffee prior to surgery? You must be the most considerate surgeon in the world!" He just smiled and said," I'll get you some coffee in an hour and a half!"
My younger sister had a 5-hour surgery on her intestines and bladder yesterday. It was a success- she wasn't sure she was going to make it through the surgery, she had become so frail over the last few months. Back in April, she started complaining about stomach pains and that set off a very aggravating series of doctor fights, which were so aggravating I rather not even think about them again.
But we finally got her under the knife and so far, so good. They have her on some strong opiates and nerve blockers but regardless, she feels absolutely lousy. They are hoping to release her from the hospital by Friday but her doctors are thinking next Monday is definitely possible.
My brother-in-law spent the whole day at the hospital and I went to home with my parents and her father-in-law to watch the toddler. The toddler was wonderful, it was the grandparents who were irritating.
Oh! It was also the first big ice/snow storm of the season for New England yesterday too. That made it more interesting. Hartford, CT was an absolute mess on the way home yesterday, cars were spinning out all over the place. I've never seen anything like it. Her father-in-law is located over the border of Massachusetts, There were so many stretches where even with all wheel drive I had no control over the vehicle.
Simple Minded wrote: ↑Wed Nov 20, 2019 12:55 am
Got my right hip replaced today. Pice of cake so far.
Arrived at 6:30, went in for prep at 6:45, went in to surgery at 7:30, at 9:05 the surgeon came out and told me wife everything went great, I woke up at 10:30, arrived back home at 11:30. So far virtually no pain at all, but my right thigh feels like I did a bit too much physical labor.
When one is one pain meds, OTNOT'ers seem even more brilliant.
Glad to hear it went well. Not too happy to see everyone else beating me to the puns.
Last edited by NapLajoieonSteroids on Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:00 am, edited 1 time in total.
Last week and for the second time this year I underwent surgery.
One year ago I was diagnosed with ex-pleomorphic adenoma, which in its malignant form is an aggressive cancer of the salivary gland that develops in people with an overly developed sense of taste. Just joking, of course. No one knows what causes it.
The tumour was removed but in follow-up tests it was revealed that I had also developed a completely unrelated neuro-endocrine cancer. A double operation on the small bowel and liver cut those out last week.
The first surgery left an eight inch scar running from my ear to under my chin. It has since healed to the point where it is barely detectable even though subsequent radiation therapy singed off part of my beard. Much of that has grown back, so I was just beginning to look halfway human again when this second cancer was discovered.
Now I have a four inch gash running across my belly button, presently stapled together so that what's left of my innards will stay inside. I receive monthly hormone injections which are supposed to make it so that do don't have to go for a repeat performance.
All the many visits to medical professionals and facilities over the last year and more have reacquainted me with technology, procedures, and personnel, and given me some additional insights into the state of Canada's health care system, which I'll dare to comment on here.
I've been fortunate in that my (too many) experiences with it has been mostly positive.
One of the first complaints one usually hears from both American and Canadian critics of 'socialized' medicine relates to what might rightly be regarded as rationing, resulting in long wait times for tests and treatments. Indeed, the ultrasound which detected this first cancer was not performed until three months after it was ordered up by the doctor, long enough in a case like this that it might easily have reached the state of no return. However, once the test was performed and the results came back I was immediately bumped up the queue so that surgery followed shortly thereafter.
However, in my experience the oft repeated issue of long wait times for attention is for the most part not even wrong. Instead, at least in my view, the Canadian health care system suffers from problems that relate more to other questions.
The first is: How much concern and attention does a person have for their own health? Do they investigate problems or ignore them? All of us must know many people who absolutely refuse to even see a doctor until they end up in the emergency room.
The second is: Where do you live? In Bella Coola or in Vancouver? If you live in a remote part of the province the professionals you will be seeing are typically those who were not at the head of their class. Even though I live in a place that might just as well be Bella Coola (it's even smaller), I've always made a point of putting myself through the hassle and expense of going to the Big Smoke for any medical consultations, advice, procedures, and treatments. It's no surprise that large metropolitan areas have a larger pool of really outstanding medical professionals. And returning to point number one, don't just wait for them to give you a phone call. Engage. Prove you're interested by visiting them, armed with a long list of questions. If you've got a friend or partner who can go with you bring up the concerns you couldn't think of right at the moment, someone who also might have a better memory for details than you do and have a better memory for what the doctors tell you, so much the better.
A third question relates to the sustainability of medical care at its best in this country. Right now, Canada relies heavily on the importation of much expertise from other countries. Despite the astronomical cost of living in the Vancouver area, at least for now there seems to be a steady supply of highly trained professionals to do the necessary jobs. Also, this province is rich enough to be able to afford most of the outrageously expensive equipment used in diagnosis and treatment of medical problems.
Most of the tests, procedures, and treatments I've undergone over the last year have only recently become available. It's a little worrisome that no matter how many wonders of medical science we can now take advantage of, once you've solved one problem, there always seems to be another even more complicated and expensive adventure waiting for us afterwards.
Well, enough with science, economics, and politics. I also had some very special people praying for me. It didn't hurt. And not that I necessarily deserve it, but some of these people love me as much as I love them.
Now it looks like they're going to have to put up with my obsessions and idiosyncrasies for at least a few more years. I hope they'll come to think it was worth it.
Welcome back SM and Mr. P.
And happy belated American Thanksgiving to everyone!
