I smell a rat--I don't want to, but there may be a couple of them

So I was sitting here Saturday afternoon, rubbing my sore belly and opening my mail when I noticed one from the Penna Dept of Revenue that was already opened.  Did the Post Office do that?  It has my address on it, but a different name at the top.

Inside was a letter from the state, indicating the check remitted for payment couldn't be cashed as the account owner neglected to sign it.  According to the address on the check, these people live at my address, my apartment.  Here's the letter and unsigned check below.  (I blurred out their bank account information).

Stephanie & Paulson D. even went to the trouble of adding their phone number on the Memo line below PNC BANK.  (I blurred that out too.)  

Oh good, it would be easy enough to contact them and let them know about the check.  Maybe they lived in my apartment years ago, and used an old check to make this payment.  No... these are new checks, issued in 2026.  

I call the phone number, I get Stephanie's voicemail.  I kindly let her know a payment she made to the state was rejected as she didn't sign her check, and it was returned to me as she used my address as her mailing address.  And my address is printed on her check too.

I wait a couple hours, she doesn't get back to me.  I repeat this information and text it to her.  I get those text indicators showing she received & read it.  No response.  What's going on?

So who are Paulson & Stephanie D anyway?  Thanks to social media, I locate the couple right away in nearby Wexford.

According to Facebook, they describe themselves as a happy Christian couple.  A happy Christian couple who are using MY home address instead of their own, on their own checks no less.  Maybe they have several checking accounts.

And they won't respond to my call or text, even when I said "I have one of your personal checks here..."   I think something criminal is going on.  What to do, what to do.... I think if I don't hear from one of these so-called Christians today, I'm calling their bank's fraud department first thing Monday morning. 

UPDATE:  I did speak to someone at PNC Banks Fraud Line, which is open 7 days a week.  They were able to access this account, and said they were handing it over to legal.  

I also contacted my local police dept, but was unable to talk to anyone until tomorrow.  They only take 911 calls over the weekend.

I have Frankenstein's stomach, other weirdness and for 19 things there is a first time

Wednesday morning I got a call from someone named Colleen, my "case manager" at UPMC.  I almost didn't take the call but I'm glad I did, she was knowledgeable and honest.

She had a pretty good understanding of my week in the hospital, and asked what my stomach was looking like.  I said it looked like Frankenstein's stomach, with red slashes and covered in green, blue and brown bruises.  

I said it was also tender to the touch and EXTREMELY swollen. I've eaten so much less since this whole thing began yet my stomach feels and looks like I was 9 months pregnant.

I'm not making this up--I came very close to sharing a photo of my monster belly here but was too embarrassed.

She told me the average patient gains between 10-15 pounds following surgery and a stay in the hospital (from being sedentary and receiving IV bags of various nutrients 24 hours a day).  As for all the swelling and soreness, I have a lot of enflamed organs right now. 

I told Colleen that I was just concerned why I'm not feeling lots better.  A few people have sent me articles or videos on what to expect following gall bladder surgery, people often go home the same day or the next morning, not a week later.  She said "Yours was emergency surgery, not elective.  Plus you underwent two surgeries two days in a row.  And then you got those infections and the pneumonia, so your outcome was different."

I asked her how soon I can begin doing some light exercising again (I always liked to do arm & leg stuff while watching tv) and she said "Nope, none of that.  You can start taking some light walks in 2-3 weeks."   Oh well, I'm still being forced to sleep upright because of breathing problems.

Colleen said I also run the risk of getting a hernia right now, and to avoid picking up anything heavier than a gallon of milk for another 3 weeks.  Easier said than done.

The surgeon wants to do a follow-up with me on June 25.  I hope I'm well enough to go, my dear friend Kim has graciously agreed to go with me.  

As long as I'm doing a health update here, I'm still wrestling with these long covid symptoms.  The left eye and temple inflammation have been subdued for over a week now, but still lots of soreness and weirdness inside my mouth, tongue & gums.  Things like chocolate, salt, tomato sauce are like eating red pepper.  It sucks, but could be worse.

And finally, something I never thought I'd do--I bought groceries online today from Walmart.com.  There was an extra $15.00 added to my bill for delivery & driver's tip, but all the items I requested showed up at my doorstep.  (And no broken eggs.)  A nice convenience but I like my walks to Kuhns.

This past week has been a thing

Before I say anything else, I wanted to thank everyone who expressed concern at my vacancy from these parts.  It meant a lot to see your comments appear on my recent blog post, and to get personal emails from ones like Margaret, Sharon, Robin, Siobhan, Tom... Thanks again everyone.

By Thursday I was showing some real whiskers

Last Sunday (June 7) I'd just finished washing up my dinner dishes, and was here in my living room on my laptop, putting the finishing touches on my next blog.

It wasn't anything too special--some family pics, some chili I'd made, and a radical idea my sister Shawn had passed along for treating my long covid.  Maybe I'll go ahead and post it anyway.

Around 6:20pm, I noticed I was taking quicker breaths.  I thought "Please God, don't let this be a gallstone."  It's usually the first symptom.  I've gotten them on occasion the last 4-5 years.  The pain is off the charts, you pace back and forth and breath hard, but it's usually over in 90 minutes.

So the pain did set in, and I shut off my computer, filled up my hot water bottle (to hold against my stomach, it helps) and basically just stood there as the tsunami started.  It gets so bad, you don't dare move a muscle.  Anyway--90 minutes later it felt even worse.  This had never happened before.  I told myself I'd call for an ambulance if it didn't improve by 11pm.

The view from my hospital bed this past week

I didn't make it to 11pm.  By 9pm the pain was so horrendous, I could barely gasp my name and location to 911.  They had a couple paramedics here in 5 minutes.  Several of my neighbors watched them strap me down on a stretcher while I cried out like a maniac, a couple even followed me and the paramedics outside.   

They couldn't have moved faster in the ER.  Pumped me full of drugs and asked if I had a history of kidney or gallstones.  Yes.  I spent the next 6-7 hours getting chest x-rays, CT-scans again & again, an ultrasound and then an MRI.

The resident physician said "It's gallstones alright, but you have a ruptured gall bladder.  You've got stones everywhere.  We're concerned about your bile duct as well.  You're looking at a couple surgeries here, and if we don't do them soon... those drugs in your system will only help so long."

They moved my bed to the Observation Deck, and Monday morning at 11am  Dr. Singh introduced himself and told me he'd be cleaning out and repairing my bile duct.  (He told me mine had several "scary large" ones.)   I don't want to spend a lot of time on this one.  When I came to, I was in my appointed hospital room, nauseated, dizzy and burning all over uncomfortable.   I pulled back my covers, and was literally soaked from the stomach down in urine and feces.  Boy did I cry out for a nurse, and a young man named Starling rushed in with a bucket of water and suds and assured me this happened all the time.  I later learned the doctor may have poked my intestines which caused the avalanche.  

This looks nice a nice view outside my bed, but I had to give this up and sleep in a chair a couple nights later

Tuesday morning, I was weak as hell (but cleaned up at least) when I met with the surgical team who would be removing my gall bladder.  They told me the procedure would be done laparoscopically.  Several inch long incisions would be made across my torso and belly (4 in total) then using cameras they'd go in and tug that monster out.

What they DON'T tell you is that they pump a ton of carbon dioxide gas into your belly to "swell you up", to have better access to things.  It is very painful and takes 2 months on average to return to normal.

My surgery was on Tuesday at 2pm.  They said it went well but I woke up in such horrendous pain I regretted having it.  They filled me up with IV bags of antibiotics and other solutions, I swallowed dozens of pills, but by Wednesday morning every inch of me hurt and I had a very high temperature, over 104F.  I was informed an infection had set in.

By Wednesday night, I felt like I was drowning.  I couldn't catch my breath.  A pulmonologist was brought in, ordered another CT-scan and said "You have post-op pneumonia."   She gave them new antibiotics to pump into me and said I'd have to sleep upright in a chair for awhile.  Here it is, 4 days later and I still cannot lie down.  

They wheeled in a special "hard seat" leather recliner, I sure could use one of those now.

Saturday afternoon, my surgeon came in my room and said "I know you're not in great shape and Pulmonology wants you to stay here awhile longer.  But I think you can heal faster at home.  We'll send you home with all the antibiotics and pain killers you need.  Do you have an upright recliner similar to this one for sleeping?"  I said I did not.  He said "I'm sure you'll figure something out. "

Mercy arranged for a cab to pick me up, and when it arrived I was still so weak a couple of orderlies had to lift me from my wheelchair and place me inside.  (That cab driver did not look happy.)  When I got home, I apologized profusely for the delay and took 10 minutes crawling out of his vehicle.  It took me nearly 20 minutes to get upstairs.

I shuffled into my apartment Saturday night, shocked how barren & plain everything looked.  I have some healthy savings, this place needs fixing up.  Anyway, I'd give anything in the world to lie down right now but when I do my chest gurgles and I can't breathe.  I sure hope this clears up soon.  I'm just glad I have plenty of groceries in the house (not that I have any appetite anyway).

They gave me a couple of breathing apparatus to exercise my lungs, and told me no baths and no lifting anything heavier than a gallon of milk for the next 2 months.  They also gave me a bag of blood thinners, water pills, antibiotics, Oxycodone.  I refuse to take any more of those opioids.

That's it for now.  Thanks for letting me share my story with you.  I am wiped out.