Re: Idle Chatter

289
Amazing story:
http://newtownbee.com/News/News/2011/03 ... t+You+Give



A Local Teacher’s Living Donation—
Kidney Transplant Experience Proves You Get What You Give

By Nancy K. Crevier

Proves You Get What You Give


Living proof of the threefold law of return, Newtown High School math teacher Annette Choinilos is cured of renal cell cancer — a disease she did not know she had and which might have gone undiagnosed, had she not felt compelled to donate one of her kidneys to an old acquaintance.

"You have to be generous to teach," said Newtown High School math teacher Annette Chionilos. A giving nature is true of her colleagues, and true of herself, she added.
But last summer, Ms Chionilos took giving to a new level, donating one of her kidneys to a person she hardly knew, and receiving back the unexpected gift of life for herself.

It was nearly a year ago that the math instructor signed onto Facebook and reconnected with several of her friends from high school and college days. One of them was Sean Norton, a personal trainer at Bally's in West Hartford. In high school, they ran with different groups, but there was some overlap. After high school, the two Southington natives continued to cross paths. "We hung out some in our 20s, but were never dating or anything," said Ms Chionilos. Then, as so often happens, they lost touch for several years.

"We had a lot of mutual friends, and when I ran across his name on Facebook, I friended him," she said. She was shocked to hear that he was very ill with Goodpasture's syndrome, an autoimmune disease that affects the lungs and kidneys. By the time Mr Norton was diagnosed in 2008, his kidneys had already gone into failure.

Why she did what she did next remains a mystery, even to her. "I offered to donate one of my kidneys to him. I have no idea what brought me to the decision, but somewhere inside of me, I knew we would be a match. I had this certainty about my decision," recalled Ms Chionilos.

"I had a premonition earlier in 2008 that I was going to have health problems," said Mr Norton, Thursday, February 24, as he remembered the event. The usually fit health club instructor was finding it hard to keep up with his own classes, and was losing weight. He set up an appointment for a routine physical, and blood work and urinalysis indicated all was not well.

"I began to weaken, I wasn't eating, I was tired all the time and losing more weight," he said, all in a matter of weeks.

The diagnosis of Goodpasture's syndrome led to a series of interventions to clear his body of toxins that had built up. By 2009, he was cleared, and Yale New Haven Hospital was able to add him to the list of patients in need of a transplant.

He was one of more than 1,200 patients on a waiting list in Connecticut for a kidney transplant. Until that happened, his life was ruled by dialysis, a mechanical method of cleansing the blood of impurities when the kidneys no longer function.

Mr Norton had been disappointed by donor offers that had failed to materialize, due to the match not working out or other considerations that made the donor unacceptable. So when Ms Chionilos made her offer, just a couple of weeks following their reconnection on Facebook, his response was positive, but guarded.

Friendships Tested

"He asked me 'Are you sure?' and told me there would be a lot of testing," Ms Chionilos said. "But to me, it was like a fact, like I had no say. I never wavered," she said.

She was prepared to undergo the intensive medical and psychological testing that would qualify her as a kidney donor for Mr Norton. What she was not prepared for was the negative response she got from many of her friends.

"People constantly told me I was crazy. They couldn't understand why I would put my life at risk for someone I was not related to. I understand that in surgery you never know what's going to happen. But I never had a second thought, and I knew that while I am not related to Sean, he is someone's son, he is someone's family," Ms Chionilos said. The shock, she said, was the realization that most people would not do what she planned to do. "For me, this was a blip on the radar. But for someone on dialysis, [a transplant] is life-changing. Why wouldn't I help him?" she asked.

On May 1, 2010, Mr Norton picked up Ms Chionilos after her school day, for her first round of testing. "It wasn't awkward at all. We picked up right where we had left off," she recalled, even though it was the first time they had seen each other face-to-face in more than ten years. "Sean and his whole family were so accommodating through the whole thing. They wouldn't even let me pay for parking, and Sean would meet me at Yale-New Haven Hospital whenever I went for testing. Sean always had my interests at heart. We were definitely a team throughout this. He was very appreciative," she said.

"I had a 'wait and see' attitude, at this point," admitted Mr Norton. "I knew stuff could happen so that the transplant couldn't take place, so you don't get too excited," he said.

The testing regimen, including at least six blood draws, showed that not only was Ms Chionilos in the best of health, but that she was a near perfect match for the kidney donation. "I was not surprised, really. I don't know, maybe we'll find out one day that we are distantly related. People have even told us that we look alike," she laughed.

So far as Ms Chionilos knew when she woke up in the recovery room on July 1 following surgery, everything had gone smoothly. "They told me that my kidney took like a duck to water in Sean, that it had started right up," she said. She was pleased to see Sean up and about. "They told me it is a more difficult recovery for the donor, and I can confirm that," said Ms Chionilos. "We are supposed to be walking after surgery, and Sean was head and shoulders ahead of me."

A Suspect Cyst

What the surgeons had not told her, and what she did not find out for nearly another two weeks, was that a 1.5-centimeter cyst they had noticed on her left kidney during the presurgery CAT scan — the kidney that Mr Norton received — had looked suspicious when they removed her kidney and got a better look at it. "Cysts on the kidneys are apparently very common, and they were not at all worried about it when it showed up. Nothing was ever said," she said.

The surgeons did a "quick, on-the-spot biopsy," she was later told. The test came back negative, so the surgeons excised the cyst and went forward with the transplant. "I know that they would never, never have done that had they suspected anything else," said Ms Chionilos.

On July 12, she received a call from Yale-New Haven. Further testing showed that the cyst was cancerous. She had had renal cell cancer, without ever knowing it. "The surgeon felt terrible. He kept repeating to me that I was cured, but my first thought was, 'What about Sean?'"

Recovery had been going as expected, so when Mr Norton received a call from Yale-New Haven asking him to come down and go over medication, he saw the postsurgery coordinator and, "I knew something was up."

On hearing about the cancerous cyst, his first thought was that he would lose the kidney. "But I figured this was just something else to deal with. I did know that kidney cancer is treatable, and the surgeons reassured me that I would be able to keep the kidney," said Mr Norton.

The diagnosis meant a second surgery for Mr Norton, to remove the margins of the cyst that remained, extending the recovery period.

Mr Norton's next thoughts were about his friend. "When things calmed down, I put it in perspective. I realized [that if we not gone through the transplant procedure] by the time they would have found Annette's cancer, it would have progressed a great deal," he said.

"I was told that had the cancer not been discovered, I eventually would have become very sick. Kidney cancer is hard to detect, and often goes undetected until it is in the later stages," Ms Chionilos said. Had she not followed her instincts and put forth the offer of one of her kidneys to Mr Norton, she may well have ended up in a life and death situation, herself.

"I don't think I am any more intuitive than the next person. It was divinely inspired, I guess," she said.

A Positive Experience

The experience has been extraordinarily positive, said Ms Chionilos. "I believe I am more positive. I believe that people are good, and that everything happens for a reason; and we don't need to know the reason why. People I don't even know have heard our story and have the kindest things to say. I have a lot more Facebook friends now," she said, "and I got a lot of good feedback."

She and Sean remain in touch. "We are friends. There is no romance, there never was. It feels more like a brother and sister thing, a special kind of bond. When I look at Sean, I'm so glad he's healthy. And I'm glad to be a part of that," said Ms Chionilos.

"I do think about what we went through," Mr Norton said, "but I don't dwell on it. She's part of the family now — whether she likes it or not."

"If I can put the word out there [about the need for donors], that would be enough. I did not expect anything in return when I offered Sean my kidney. But I got my life given to me. It's a happy ending," said Ms Chionilos.

According to the National Kidney Foundation, 26 million Americans have kidney disease and most do not know it. Of those diagnosed, 367,000 rely on dialysis to survive.

In the United States, 83,000 people are on the waiting list for kidney transplants. One person dies every two hours waiting for a suitable match.

Some 17,000 kidneys are donated each year, according to a Reuters report in March 2010, allowing recipients to lead normal lives. Ms Chionilos was one in approximately 6,000 people who each year become a living kidney donor.

The National Kidney Foundation notes that kidneys from a living donor are desirable, because they usually function immediately, making it easier to monitor.

A living donor can also be tested ahead of time for compatibility, and surgery can be conveniently scheduled.

To make a donation to support research, patient service activities, and education about chronic kidney disease, or to find out about becoming a living donor, visit http://www.kidney.org.











Back | Copyright © 1999-2011 Bee Publishing Company | Top

Re: Idle Chatter

291
Thanks, for that article, TF!! She was my kindergarten teacher, four of my siblings teacher and several of my nieces and nephews teacher! I had her in the fall of 1968 at Broad St. School. We moved to DeWitt in the middle of the year. I can still remember "Miss Grange" taking us outside to watch the wrecking ball knock down Broad St. I also knew thew Mancini family quite well. They had a brood of kids. Lived on 12th St. between Broad and Falls. Joyce has to have well over 20 years at DeWitt by now.

God bless Shirley Grange Burris!!

Re: Idle Chatter

292
No problem, Steve. I thought you said you had Miss Grange for kindergarten. I remember you once shared an elementary class photo here but couldn't remember if it was Miss Grange's class, or not.

My 6th grade class was the last one to complete a full year at Broad Street School. I had Mr. Tighe who ended up being a principal I believe. For several years I had a couple of the old bricks stashed at my parent's house in The Falls, but over the years they ended up intermingled with some others and I lost track. I do still have some of the powder blue and red lunch and milk tokens here that say "Broad Street School." And I still have the Safety Patrol Captain Badge. In the school year starting in the fall of 1961 Falls schools did not offer kindergarten. I went to Redeemer Lutheran for kindergarten, then started Broad Street School in September of 1962 with Mrs. Dunlevy for 1st grade. Mrs. Owings for 2nd, Mrs Gieling for 3rd, Miss Melcher for 4th, and Mrs. Stevens for 5th.


I'm getting my Mancini's mixed up a bit in terms of who all the siblings and cousins were. I think I played ball with a Dave Mancini. I remember a Larry and Mike but can't place much more about them. Seems we had a Mancini from North Hill on intramural softball team at Akron U. Those were the days the Falls Schools were far more numerous and filled with students. Falls High had 3,100 as I recall in the 10th, 11th, and 12th grades in the fall of 1971.

Re: Idle Chatter

293
We just took my youngest daughter to SFO for her flight and post college move to Florida to start her first career related job. She and my wife wanted to go wine tasting in the Livermore Valley out here today for her last day. Seemed like an OK idea at the time, so I endorsed and participated. Not sure it was the best idea in retrospect as the airport trip ended up being a somewhat unexpected tear fest for both of them....

:-)

Re: Idle Chatter

295
I think I need to put some reviews out there for 1970's Cheyenne Social Club starring Jimmy Stewart.

I didn't read a single one that mentioned anything about "anytime a bell rings, an angel gets it's wings."


(the "girls" at the bordello are called to the door by the ringing of their bell signature)


The most accurate review I read was, "the movie was neither bad, nor good."

Most reviews note the movie received little real time critical acclaim. I will note that other 1970 movies included Patton, M*A*S*H and Tora, Tora, Tora

For me it was indeed worth the 100 minute investment of my time. And was a vehicle for the appreciated of the talents of Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart.....and Shirley Jones.

Re: Idle Chatter

296
It is POURING down rain here now in my part of California. I've been a resident and visitor of California for a quarter of a century.

It has NEVER rained here in mid-May in my time here, let alone with this intensity.

For those have never been here, our "rainy season" essentially means that outside of "rainy season" it does not rain a drop. Not a drop. It's a rare day that a drop of rain falls during any of regular season baseball, through the post-season.


But it's pouring and blowing like heck now.


(thank goodness the 1AM repeat of Lawrence Welk is airing to enjoy it by.....:-).......the dog is saying as she looks at her dog door with disdain....."enjoy??.....frick THAT!!)

Re: Idle Chatter

297
Well, it just rains here everyday. We have lived in this house for 34.5 yrs. and for the first time ever we had a little bit of water come up through a few cracks in the basement floor. Thankfully, it ran to the drains and floor dried out. We are thoroughly saturated around here.

Re: Idle Chatter

299
I've bit and have camped on a Comcast "cult classic" named The Wild Women of Wongo.

It's based on a conspiracy between Mother Nature and Father Time in which one tribe of less than beautiful women is paired with very good looking men. On the other side of the island, there is a tribe of beautiful women paired with some not so good looking men.

One day the tribes cross paths.

The Comcast teaser said the movie was so ridiculous it was actually profound. I can agree with that thus far.

The scenery looked very familiar to me so I checked the trusty imdb.com filming location guide.

Parrot Jungle in Miami FL, Homestead FL, and Silver Springs FL. Knew it!

Listing the cast, Wikipedia notes:

Adrienne Bourbeau (not to be confused with Adrienne Barbeau) as Wana


The best acting in the movie thus far is done by the parrot and the rubber alligator.

Re: Idle Chatter

300
I loved the below recipe, mostly because I had all the ingredients fresh in the house. The corn was cut off the cob, and I sprung 79 cents for a passel of parsley, and a buck for the Yukon potatoes.


I had an extra couple of cuts of top sirloin I had grilled and then refrigerated on Friday. I googled "steak soup recipes" and found the one to follow.

I followed the below closely, except I left out celery stuff besides my wife inexplicably hates the taste of celery.

Since the steak had already been grilled to medium rare (the recipe was written for raw), I did not toss the steak in the skillet until the last couple minutes after the (vidalia) onions were about to brown.

But the rest I followed to a "T," and I was told by my wife and in-laws this recipe hit it out of the park.

I'll keep this one for the next time I have any leftover grilled red meat:


Original Recipe Yield 8 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 1/2 pounds lean boneless beef round steak, cut into cubes
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 cups beef broth
2 cups water
4 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped celery leaves
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 1/2 cups peeled, diced Yukon Gold potatoes
1 1/2 cups sliced carrots
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained

Directions

Melt butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat until the foam disappears from the butter, and stir in the steak cubes and onion. Cook and stir until the meat and onion are browned, about 10 minutes. While beef is cooking, mix together flour, paprika, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Sprinkle the flour mixture over the browned meat, and stir to coat.


In a large soup pot, pour in the beef broth and water, and stir in the parsley, celery leaves, bay leaf, and marjoram. Stir in beef mixture, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender, about 45 minutes.


Mix in the potatoes, carrots, celery, tomato paste, and corn; bring the soup back to a simmer, and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender and the soup is thick, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove bay leaf and serve hot.



http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/steak-soup/Detail.aspx