A weighty decision

When I was first diagnosed with diabetes, I took one insulin injection a day: a little bit of Regular and a little bit of NPH mixed in a syringe before breakfast. That quickly shifted to twice a day: before breakfast and before dinner.

I had a glucose test kit that stayed in the school nurse’s office. In 1981 (1st grade, diagnosis), it was a urine test, in 1991 (11th-12th grade) it was a blood test. But it was there, not with me.

The only thing I carried around with me everywhere I went was a little box of Sun-Maid raisins, in case I felt low. Or maybe a roll of Life Savers, which always ended up permanently stuck to the paper wrapping (and each other) ensuring I had plenty of fiber with my low BG treatment.

At some point I switched to blood tests, first by holding the strip up to a  color chart, and later by using a big, clunky meter. I took it with me on family outings, but I don’t remember ever taking it to school. All I took was the box of stale raisins to treat lows; or maybe a roll of Life-Savers, inseparably stuck to the foil wrapping and each other.

I don’t ever remember carrying a meter with me in school. In 9th grade, I had a late lunch period and consistently went low during my biology lab period before. But I fought through it like a champ chump, traveling light.

I can’t remember if I carried a meter with me to class in college. Twelve years later after diagnosis, I was still on just two injections a day, each was a mix of Regular and NPH, taken before breakfast and dinner, with the Regular dose on a sliding scale that increased with my blood sugar. The scale matched the intervals on the old Chemstrip color chart: 180-240, add 1 unit. 240-300, add 2 units. 300-400, add 3 units, and so on.

Personal preference

The worst song of the 1990s is  has got to be “Barbie Girl” by Aqua. Weezer’s “Undone – The Sweater Song” is a close second.

The song “Blue” by Eiffel 65 is a close runner-up, but was redeemed by its potential to be used as a Blue Friday soundtrack.

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Diet Coke is a hundred times better than Diet Pepsi. But I’d choose either of those before drinking a Coke Zero.

I can tolerate Diet Pepsi from a can, but from a fountain, I find it repulsive.

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Dogs are awesome. I’m not particularly fond of cats.

My opinion was not at all influenced by this hysterical audition on AGT.

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I’d rather take an hour-long circuitous drive through Westchester and Rockland County than sit in traffic for twenty minutes on the Cross Bronx.

Even better, avoid driving in New York altogether.

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Boxers.

The DOC’s dying to know.

 

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There’s no reason to keep a straight face in a Drivers License photo. A smile will never go out of style.

But a mullet will.

 

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I’d prefer for you to leave a comment and tell me where my preferences may have gone astray.

But a simple Check! will suffice.