In my inbox

I get lots of valuable information sent directly to my inbox. Thought I'd mention a few Dunwoody and Atlanta-centric ones in case you'd like to enjoy them, too!

Aha! Connection - Audra Anders has a ever-increasing distribution list where she passes on news items, opportunities, and community news to people in Dunwoody and Sandy Springs (and beyond). Recently, she's been a linchpin for a local family involved in a very scary boating accident in Florida (they're home safe and sound at last), shared postings from people looking for plumbers and nannies, advertised area garage sales, and shared a half-off coupon at our new Butcher Shoppe. Email her at ahaconnection@att.net to get added to the list. 

Groupon - This is so cool. You pay a little and get a lot.  Groupon sends email offers for huge discounts at restaurants, Paper Affaire, tourist attractions, and more, many with long expiration dates. For example, I used an offer with Paper Affaire to purchase $50 worth of thank you notes for just $20. Today's deal is $98 for an introductory helicopter flying lesson from Air Atlanta Helicopters, usually $220. No, I won't take the deal. But I know a few daring souls who will. The website keeps a counter of how many people take advantage of an offer. And each offer expires from the website fairly quickly.

Recipes - The older my kids get, the less time I have to indulge one of my favorite hobbies: cooking. So the recipes I get from Allrecipes and the Fresh Market are often exactly what we have for dinner. A few easy ingredients, a stop by Publix or Fresh Market, and . . . yum.

Atlanta Unfiltered - Since I no longer read a paper copy of the AJC, many interesting articles are buried in that website's rather disorganized filing system. So Jim Walls' Atlanta Unfiltered, straight-to-my-inbox news briefs are a wonderful bridge.  One of the more hilarious parts of his site is the salary policy page - how much various executives are paid. Wow - some nonprofits must have major operating budgets because their CEOs and Executive Directors make more than the entire Dunwoody Cluster of PTSO's, PTA's, and Executive Council volunteer budgets combined.

Atlanta on the Cheap - you can link to this website via the AJC, but it's ever more useful to get info directly from the source.  Atlanta on the Cheap does just that - helps you enjoy the metro by taking advantage of special deals on everything from tourist attractions and restaurants to goodies for the family. For Father's Day, you can enjoy: 

• Free Breakfast for Dads at IKEA on Father’s Day
• Free Fro-Yo for Dads at TCBY on Father’s Day
• Coupons for Sweet Tomatoes

There are more. Many, many more. But I've had to trim the list so my inbox doesn't make me feel like a slacker if I'm not doing something every single day.

Enjoy.

Remicade knitting

Today is A's eight-week Remicade infusion. We'll stop for a chicken biscuit at Chic Fil A then head for the lab for his 10:00 appointment. The good news is that today is a school holiday, so he isn't missing classes. (A does not consider that good news. He loves to miss classes.)

Remicade is coded by the insurance company like chemotherapy, and there are many similarities. Every eight weeks, he's hooked up to an IV for 3 hours of measured dosage. The infusion lab is staffed by GI Care for Kids (the pediatric gastroenterology practice) so it's set up for the primarily tween and teen patients' comfort. Recliners, a TV, a bunch of current DVD's, snack tray and two amazing nurses, plus half a dozen pediatric GIs right around the corner and Children's Healthcare/Scottish Rite across the street just in case . . . it's a fantastic arrangement.

Remicade has been a last-ditch measure to control Adam's severe Crohn's, and so far it's preventing the perforations and sepsis he's endured in the past. We're praying that the inevitable development of Remicade antibodies is far in the future because there isn't much in the research pipeline to go to next.

Meanwhile, we parents get to perch in a microscope waiting "room" that's anything but comfortable. Seven armless seats with the worst ergonomics I've ever seen in an airless anteroom that's about 8 feet wide by 12 feet long! I always try to angle for the corner seat because that way I'm not in the path of strollers headed to the lab that shares the infusion lab's space, nor will the door to the lab smack me in the knees. Otherwise, it's a constant dodge.

I truly do not mind the waiting room because I appreciate the space set aside for patients. I can get up and move around. The patients are tethered to their IVs.

Three hours of Remicade equates to really productive knitting. I hope to get to the heel of Jaywalker #2 and swatch a new project. Plus I have a J. D. Robb in case my hands get tired.