Bump, Bump

I'm sitting in a doctors office. We've been waiting for almost an hour, but I'm OK with that.

The doctor comes in and asks Veronica to lie down. She fiddles with a small device and after a few moments I hear a quick, repetitive sound. It reminds me of a car driving over a bridge - a "ba-bump, ba-bump."

It's the sound of our child, it's tiny heart beating 152 times per minute.

I can't wait to hear more.

My Diabetic Rebellion

Over the past few weeks, I read several accounts of the parents of children with diabetes going through what I like to refer to as "diabetic rebellion."

I haven't seen a lot of accounts of younger diabetics who actually went through this, though.

I would like to tell my story.

I was diagnosed when I was 7 years old.  My parents were very good at teaching me to be independent and how take care of myself.  I was giving myself shots very soon. I don't remember exactly when, but when I went to Camp Sweeney I was the only one in my age group that did not have to sign up for "giving myself shots" programs.

I want to make something very clear. My parents were are awesome. They got me supplies for years with no health insurance. They taught me how to take care of myself, and how important it was to stay on top of my diabetes. I can only hope that if I ever have to raise a diabetic child I can do half as good as they did.

I went to college, and about two years after moving out I just...wasn't staying on top of it.  I'd skip a blood sugar test. I'd wait for a while to take insulin, or skip it entirely. I was on Humalog so it was pretty easy to correct later, but it was also easy to just...not do it.  I could go to Wal-mart and buy a pint of Ben and Jerry's and eat it.  Sure, my friends would give me a hard time, but what did they know?  I'd bolus myself enough and it'd be OK.

It wasn't a sudden thing, it took time. I worked as a waiter and grazed on food (chips and salsa), but I was also busting my ass. I told myself that I'd get insulin later. I remember there were days where I probably only got about half what I needed.

Finally, I got very sick. I couldn't hold anything down. My blood sugar turned out to be around 600 mg/dL.

I had to ask my mom to come take me to the emergency room. When they released me, I was told my A1c was around 14%. It was one of the most humbling times in my life.

When I got out, it was an eye opener.  I had a lot of very good friends who were frank with me. They joked "they'll take your feet." But, they cared about me. My parents were worried. I had a girlfriend (at the time) who I didn't want to let down.

So, I shaped up.  Started seeing my endocrinologist again.  Taking care of myself.

I'm currently on the OmniPod insulin pump and my A1c levels are doing great.  Not quite as low as I'd like, but I'm working on it, like every other diabetic out there :).

This particular post has been written over the past several weeks, off and on.  Recently another diabetic, Scott Hanselman, has started a pledge drive at http://www.hanselman.com/blog/TeamHanselmanAndDiabetesWalk2010.aspx

Please donate. As hard as it is to write something like this, my hope is that someday, no one ever need deal with something like this again.

Thanks for reading.

DJ Z-Trip at the Granada

My wife and I went to see DJ Z-Trip at the Granada last night. It was one of the best shows I've ever been to.

Any time you can hear Led Zeppelin mixed with Jay-Z is definitely a good time.

Watching Z-Trip mix is a sight to behold. I've never seen anyone so into what they were doing. He looked absolutely thrilled to be doing what he was doing - the enthusiasm was infectious.

Aceyalone and Gift of Gab were fantastic, as well. I definitely need to check out Blackalicious.

The opener DJ, Tricky-T was pretty good as well. Not as good as Z-Trip, but definitely talented.

The drummer was great too. They gave him a good 10 minute set, with nothing but the drums.

My wife and I got a chance to meet Z-Trip, as well. Real nice guy, gave my wife a big hug like he'd known her for years. She had bought a shirt and he tagged the back of it.

If you have a chance to catch any of the remaining tour dates, I'd definitely recommend doing that.

Please sir, may I have another?

Between my wife and I, we own a PlayStation 2, Gamecube, Xbox, Dreamcast, Super Nintendo, and a Nintendo 64 and NES in storage.

We've also gotten into board games recently, and we own Settlers of Catan, Ticket to Ride, Louis XIV, and Risk Godstorm and Risk Star Wars (Original Trilogy, of course. Thanks Zach!). We like games.

We also have had a launch Xbox 360. It finally decided to flash the dreaded Red Ring of Death 2 weeks ago, so I called to get it replaced.

I recieved the "new" one yesterday, and was very excited to try out Carcassonne (our first Euro-board game experience, shared with The Imes).

Instead, I'm treated to the console freezing. Constantly. Any notification will freeze the system within a second or two, forever letting me know that PoofyLake or BooleanFlag is now online. Playing a video is certain to cause the system to freeze before about 30 seconds have elapsed. And forget games. Oblivion locks up, GoW locks up, even Arcade titles.

So, I'm getting a "new" one again. I really hope they get it right this time, and I don't end up like this guy.

We'll see.

Oh, The Places You'll Go

Leaving a job is never easy, especially when you've been a part of moving the company forward.


Recently, I learned that a lot of the frustrations that I had with my previous position were being addressed directly

They are moving forward, implemented Scrum and a lot of the changes I was pushing for, and have turned the development team into a highly motivated, effecient team with a great sense of camraderie.


And that's awesome. I just wish I could be there to see it happen. It's a shame when the changes can only be brought about with a major catalyst, such as someone leaving the company.


Best of luck, team A.D.D. - I know this is going to be great for you all.

Team Hanselman Fights Diabetes

As I've mentionend before - I'm a Type 1 Diabetic.

And Scott Hanselman is as well. And he's raising money to fight it. Which is awesome.

Buy me a Pink Cadillac

Today is my last day at Ariamedia. I was recently offered a position developing software for Mary Kay, and I will start on April 30.

It's been a tough decision to leave. I enjoyed working at Ariamedia, and met a lot of awesome, very talented individuals. I'm sure I'll be hearing about all of them in the future. My team has been on a push to get the software development lifecycle more agile (Scrum specifically), and I'm very glad to have been a part of that. I was also a big part of getting our source control moved to Subversion. I'm definitely glad I was involved with that - I'll never go back to SourceUnSafe and now, I don't have to.

Choosing Mary Kay was a big decision for me. I've never worked in a corporate environment. I've never had to wear a tie to work. So, that will be interesting.

I'll be glad to be working with a good friend of mine, as well.

I also had another very enticing offer that, while I didn't accept, I was very flattered to have received, and I'm glad to know that avenue is open to me. However, after looking at the choices that I had, and where I'm at in life, I'm happy with my decision.

Leaving a job is difficult. I've made friends, learned new things, and done a lot of (I hope) good work. You always leave with projects unfinished, but I know that I'm leaving them in very capable hands.

So long, and thanks for all the fish.

Hello, my name is Nic. And I'm a Diabetic.

Yesterday, I did something I haven't done in quite some time. I went to an endocrinoligist, or what I like to think of as "the hormone doctor".

I'm a Type I Diabetic. Many who read this blog probably already knew that. If you are one of those who's been reading that I don't know personally - please leave a comment. I'd love to know how many people actually read this thing.

I've read a lot of articles and interviews with diabetics, and it seems like so many let the disease become the focus of their lives. I remember reading one where a woman refused to take a 2-week vacation because she couldn't get enough backup supplies to last for a month. In Las Vegas, which is technically in the middle of the desert, but I'm pretty sure they have pharmacies in Vegas.

I feel that having diabetes is part of who I am, but it doesn't define me. Yes, I have to watch what I eat. So should anyone trying to be healthy. I have to take shots before every meal - no big deal. It's over and done with in about 3 minutes. I take Gatorade (or Powerade, or Generic-Sports-Drink-Ade) when I work out in case my blood sugar gets low. Just like most people working out. I wear a medic-alert necklace that would let someone know of my condition, in the case of an emergency.

But that's about it. I don't let it run my life, or ruin my plans. I just have to make adjustments when they come up.

I hadn't gone to the doctor in a while, because I've been without medical insurance for the past 3 years. I finally got insurance and can afford to go to the doctor, and my insulin and supplies aren't going to cost a fortune. It's a good feeling. In fact, paying for my diabetic necessities is now relegated to a financial "annoyance" status, instead of a financial "oh crap I can't afford to fix my car because then I can't buy my insulin" situation. Which is just how I like it.