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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide for Pecos Country
of West Texas
Opinion
Tuesday, September 18, 2001
Squarely Pegged
By Peggy McCracken
Doctor visits
I didn't wait for 9-1-1 Day to get my heart pains checked out. I did wait
nine months, and that's long enough to have a baby or die twice over of
a heart attack. The angina pains were real, and the doctor did find a heart
(much to the surprise of a lot of people).
The good news is that the arterial blockage is not quite critical yet,
and I have joined the pill-popping set.
I don't like to take pills. In fact, that is probably what got me to
the "stress test-angiogram" stage. Michelle Cser and Dr. Orville Cerna
both tried to get me to take pills to lower my sky-high cholesterol. They
made me sick and I quit taking them after about a week.
"I'll wait until the arteries are blocked, then have surgery to clean
them out," I thought. But do you know what? When I was lying prone, being
prepped for the angiogram, I decided pill-taking might not be so bad, after
all.
Having a husband who long ago endured bypass surgery and a brother who
has struggled with clogged arteries since his late 50's should have warned
me to watch my diet and my weight. Well, I have to some extent. You know
I eat lots of fruit and vegetables, walk twice a day, lift weights and
do stretching exercises. Not to mention lots of yard work.
Trouble is, with a husband who cooks delicious meals and encourages
me to enjoy them; a television that shows classic movies around the clock
and cold/hot/windy/rainy weather that makes the outdoors unpleasant at
times, it is easy to fall into that recliner and click the remote.
Last summer I learned to take a nap after work, waiting for the cool
of the evening to work outside. Then when winter came, I found the nap
habit hard to break, and did very little outside work. In the mornings,
it was just too cold to walk at 5 a.m. _ in fact too cold even to get out
of bed. So I gained 10 pounds and lost my stamina.
When I started walking/jogging to build back my stamina and take off
some weight, I started having angina. That's chest pains, for you who don't
read medical books. It's caused by slow-flowing arteries that can't carry
enough oxygen to the heart muscle. The pains stopped when I stopped jogging,
so I knew a heart attack was not imminent.
January is a busy month in the book-keeping business, so I put off a
stress test. February came and I still was busy with something. Despite
a sleepless night when I had some pain, nausea and weakness typical of
a heart attack in women, I still put off going to the doctor. In late March,
I attended a QuickBooks seminar, then went scuba diving and really had
chest pains along with other heart attack symptoms. I prayed that I wouldn't
die and put my instructor on the spot, because I hadn't told him about
my previous problems. I didn't die, and the next day snorkeled across the
pool. More heart pains that didn't stop when I stopped swimming.
Well, that turned out to be trapped air, and the pain subsided when
I burped like a baby. That weekend I went to the health fair and paid cash
for an EKG, which didn't show any sign of a heart attack. So again I put
off taking any action and began setting up a QuickBooks billing program
that required double work as I posted all the advertising transactions
twice.
May was again a double-posting month, so no chance there to visit a
cardiologist. In June I started packing to move into Smokey's office, and
in July made the move after taking some vacation time. August came, and
I leveled my big "Billie Sol Estes" desk (the same big desk I had as managing
editor 30 years ago), put a drape over the leaky back door to keep out
the cold and dirt; decorated the walls with some of my awards from 30 years
of reporting and installed a new laser printer to go with the new billing
program.
Since I have yet to get an OK from the corporate office to use the new
billing program, it begins to look like September will be uneventful. A
week of numb fingers and a left arm that feels like it is not getting much
circulation convince me that it may be time to have the heart taken care
of.
I pick Dr. Gadasalli out of the lineup of cardiologists that come monthly
to Reeves County Hospital, call his office and set up an appointment. Since
he wouldn't be back to Pecos until late September, the receptionist urged
me to go to Monahans, which I did that same week. Dr. G. didn't like what
he saw on those tests and asked me to go to Odessa the next day for a stress
test, which I flunked, in his words. He gave me a prescription for pills
to widen the arteries.
That was on Friday before Labor Day, so he set me up for an angiogram
on Tuesday. I worked all weekend closing out the books and making some
changes to our web site so we could sell subscriptions to the daily news
pages. The pills gave me a headache, and I felt better working than I would
have at home anyway.
Tuesday morning at 5:30, Kim Ewing picked me up and drove me to Odessa,
because they warned me I wouldn't be able to drive after the test. I was
taken to a room in the Healthy Heart Center, given one of those backless
gowns and told to wait. Having gotten up earlier than I wanted to, I crawled
into the bed and took a little nap before the prep nurse came in. She told
me everything that would happen.
After she gave me a Mohawk and a sedative, the transportation crew took
me into the catherization lab and put me on a narrow table underneath a
big, round camera and other equipment. It was cold as a Panhandle norther
in there, but they covered me up with a warm blanket and kept me entertained
until the doctor arrived. Once he deadened my groin and made the incision,
I was on a fast track. He had me hold my breath a couple of times so he
could take a picture of my heart, then said, "That's it." I hardly remember
being moved onto a gurney and taken back to the room. The nurse propped
me up a little bit and said to keep that right leg still for two hours.
That wasn't hard to do, because I finished the nap I had started earlier.
Evidently the incision closed up properly, because they walked me down
the hall, then sat me in a chair for 30 minutes to make sure it didn't
start bleeding again. I alerted Kim by cell phone that it wouldn't be long,
and she soon showed up, ready to head back to Pecos. Thank God for friends
who take time out of their busy lives to lend a hand.
Two days later I was back in harness, working a full day despite the
headache, and grateful for a cool, quiet office to do it in. God knew when
he prompted Smokey to switch offices that I would need a quiet haven far
removed from the news room.
I picked this topic for a column after reading last Tuesday that the
American Heart Association had designated it 9-1-1 Day to get people to
seek emergency care as soon as they start having symptoms like those I
described. If the heart is deprived of oxygen for long, the muscle will
die. "Each minute you wait, more heart muscle is dying and never comes
back, ever," said Dr. David Faxon, AHA president.
Heavy chest pressure is not the only heart-attack symptom, he said.
Other symptoms are shortness of breath, sweating, indigestion and pain
in the neck or jaw. I knew that and didn't do anything about it. I could
have waited too late.
"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the
grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge
nor wisdom." Eccl. 9:10, NIV
EDITOR'S NOTE: Peggy McCracken can be e-mailed at: peg2@pecos.net
Your View
United we stand, divided we pay the price
Dear Editor:This morning, as I watched lower Manhattan wipe its
tears and the Statue of Liberty exchange her crown for a helmet, I could
not help notice how people were saying they simply did not understand how
such a disaster could take place.
I would like to offer an answer, fearing that soon the veil of ignorance
and apathy will close again.
As we huddled around our radios during the days of Desert Storm, the
airways were frequently punctuated with the sounds of a Bette Midler song
entitled, "From A Distance."
In part, the song resounds:
". . .From a distance I just cannot comprehend what all this fighting
is for."
I believe it is within the complacent and Utopian mindset of people
who could write such a song, or those who proclaim they do not understand
how such a tragedy could take place, that we find the very reason for it!
Anyone with a particle of knowledge concerning history, geography, religion,
world politics or human nature can comprehend EXACTLY what all the fighting
is for, has been for, and forever will be for. As veteran news commentator,
Paul Harvey, is prone to say, "it is not one world." The unsavory reality
is that there are potentates afoot who look upon the Unites States as "The
Great Satan," who have no concern for the sanctity of human life and who
will never stop attacking the civilized world until they no longer have
a capacity to do so. Thus, it should be the objective of everyone bold
enough to call themselves "American," to do all within his or her power
to hasten the bringing of that capacity to an end _ regardless of the means
and sacrifices required to do so or the number of well-meaning but irrational
citizens who must be offended in the process.
With the downing of the Berlin Wall, liberal idealists, and those who
draw their political strength from them, have stripped our armed forces
and intelligence gathering agencies of everything from funding to morale,
immovably secure in the belief that world would now forever be safe for
democracy. Yet, Americans with a lick of common sense, a slight knowledge
of history and a realistic understanding of the world's machinations, recognized
that our greatest threats were yet to be revealed. And for the sharing
of their insight and wisdom, they were laughed at and labeled "bigots,"
"war mongers," "Fascists" and worse.
Today, amid blood, horror and thousands of devastated families, we have
seen naught but the serpent's nose. America, awake and arise; your greatest
threat lies within! For years, we have been told that refusing to embrace
any lifestyle or philosophy to come down the pike as being as good as the
next is to be "close minded" or "mean spirited," regardless of how socially
damaging or perverted that lifestyle or philosophy might be. Yet, rather
than consider the source of these indictments, a source that is consistently
and knowingly over-amplified by the practitioners of yellow journalism,
we have chosen the easy way out _ intimidated out of standing up for our
convictions _ in our government, in our schools, in our businesses, in
our "tolerance" of all the mind numbing filth the entertainment world can
throw at us and, to some extent, in our own hearts. We have discarded our
national pride so as not offend the patriotically challenged and morally
bankrupt.
Somehow, we keep hoping that through our divesting of everything we
hold dear and know to be true, we will be accepted into one big happy _
but watered down _ American family.
Well, as one whose family members have fought and died for this country
since before it WAS a country, I declare unto you that it is integrity
and the ability to be honorably discriminating that separates the American
"melting pot" from a third-world septic tank. For 30 years we have drawn
the line of distinction ever farther to the left and without a new sense
of resolve to get America's stainless steel backbone out of mothballs,
no one in this country will ever be safe again.
So, let us go to war. Let our sons and daughters perish to bring victory.
But do not hold these terrorists fully accountable. They merely took
advantage of opportunities we gave them on a silver platter. For the first
200 years of our nation's history, we didn't lose a single war. Then, somewhere
down the line, we discovered that we no longer needed men with the convictions
and determination of MacArthur and Patton. Instead, we look to politicians
who are more interested in their popularity numbers than they are in doing
the right thing for America and to whom "conviction" is just a word in
someone else's dictionary or, by a different definition, something they
hope to avoid. Since that shift in thinking, we have not won a war!
What has changed, our might, or our minds?
We have spilled the blood of our youth, we have rattled our sabers,
and we have toed the line of political correctness while forking over billions
of dollars a year to nations that despise us - all in the delusional belief
that we can purchase friendship and that it is our role to financially
drain America to police nations that we know would nuke us if they had
half a chance.
Are we up for another 30 years of complacency and misguided "tolerance"?
Or, are we as White Americans, Black American, Jewish Americans, Asian
Americans, Hispanic Americans, and yes, Arab Americans ready to place more
emphasis on being one nation under God than embracing every divisive notion
on the way to our own little corner of some multi-cultural Utopia?
Winston Churchill once said that Americans could always be depended
upon to do the right thing….just as soon as all other options had been
exhausted. My fellow Americans, we love to have our cake and eat it too.
However, liberalism and patriotism cannot exist side by side without each
weakening the other. Is it now time to decide which one best serves the
interests of these United States?
WILLIAM J. COOK
Lake Stevens, Washington
Senior class seeks fairness in all aspects
Dear Editor:
This letter is in reaction to the events that have taken place at Pecos
High School during this year. As members of the senior class of 2002, we
feel that it is our right to let the public know of the concerns that we
have on pep rallies, unfair actions on certain groups or individuals on
campus, and not being listened to when we voice any concerns. We feel that
because our opinions have been voiced, and nothing has been done about
it, we have no other option, but to let the community know what is going
on.
Our first issue is the fact that we no longer have any say so, whatsoever,
at Pecos High School pep rallies. We feel that they are no longer spontaneous,
and they do not allow for students to show their school spirit. There have
been too many guidelines that the administration has put on us, that it
is no longer fun to cheer. We understand that pep rallies are for the football
players, but we believe that all sports or club/organizations that are
going on during this time should also be recognized. This is particularly
in response to Friday's pep rally. We believe they our volleyball team
works just as hard as the cheerleaders and football players, and they should
have been allowed to sit on the gym floor during the pep rally. We also
feel that since Mr. Rodriguez no longer allows us to have "Class Wars",
which have been held decades, the spirit of the entire student body has
diminished. Class Wars are a major part of the pep rally, and this alone
gets the team fired up on the game day. It seems that our senior class
has been the lone target and this is why we abstained from participation.
The second issue is based on certain people in the school being judged
differently than others. We would first like to thank the P-B-T School
Board for changing the dress code policy, but we still have some students
who are picked on for what they are wearing, when others are not. "Is it
who you are that really counts?' From what many of us have seen, it seems
to be, and we demand that this change.
Lastly, we feel that whenever we have approached the administration
about our issues, we are ignored. We come to school to be productive citizens
and to learn from some of the best teachers here in Pecos, yet when we
have issues that are important to us, we are never dealt with. We feel
that we have gone through proper channels, but are tired of being neglected.
Yes, we were immature and just "learning the ropes", but we have matured
and we want to be heard on issues that are important to us.
Our school traditions have been altered and we feel that a part of PHS
that many remember is gone. The intent of this letter is not to humiliate
or take anything away from our spirit group or teams. We only seek fairness
in all aspects. We have been taught by our teachers to stand up for how
we feel and for what is important to us, we thank you all for teaching
us. Please, hear us out, and help our senior class make our last year one
that we will remember, instead of one that we will look back at with despondency.
Concerned Students,
DELIA SOTO
LUPITA GONZALEZ
BRENDA FUENTES
AND MANY MORE MEMBERS OF THE SENIOR CLASS OF 2002
Let's stand united for America
Dear Editor:
We can only hope our national loyalty will be foremost in our hearts,
after this act of war that was inflicted on the American people on Tuesday,
Sept. 11, 2001.
We must remember that we are a part of a rich and powerful nation founded
under God. We need to pull together, not refering to ourselves as Mexican/American,
Arab/American, etc. I am a native of Brazil, but I do not consider or refer
myself as a Brazilian/American. I know a number of different native Americans
who live in America and act like Americans. We are only here by the grace
of God. We need to live in America and love our freedom or return to our
homeland. America needs our LOYALTY. We should not separate ourselves as
to our national origin.
True we are and should be proud of our heritage but we need to be an
American first and get back to God as He is the true creator of us all.
Let's stand united for America.
May God bless America,
JURACY RAY
Take action against all terrorist factions
Dear Editor:
The U.S. is us, we the people make the United States the great nation
that it is. I feel as if I have been personally attacked. Furthermore,
if we are truly a "shining beacon of freedom," it doesn't matter which
terrorist group attacked the U.S., we must take action against all terrorist
factions.
PAULA HOWARD
Guest Column
By SAM RICHARDSON
Editor of The Lajitas Sun
Now we know
Now we know how America felt Dec. 7, 1941. To my generation which was too
young to remember, to younger generations who were not born yet, Pearl
Harbor has just been a movie ... until now. Now we know how our parent's
generation felt.
And now we know how the Japanese felt after Hiroshima and Nagasaki when
the final payback came.
Now we know what the British felt when the Germans were bombing London
in WWII. And now we know what the Germans felt when the allies bombed Dresden
and Berlin.
Now we know what citizens of the Big Bend felt when Glenn Springs, the
Brite Ranch, and the Nevil Ranch were attacked by raiders from Mexico in
1916 and 1917. Americans citizens were killed. Innocent civilians.
And now we know how Mexicans living on both sides of the border felt
a short time later when Texas Rangers massacred the villagers of Porvenir
on the U.S. side and Federal troops attacked Pilares on the Mexican side.
Mexican citizens and Mexican/Americans were killed. Innocent civilians.
Now we know how the Kuwaitis felt when they were violated by Iraq.
And now we know what Iraqis felt when the anvil of allied wrath was
dropped on them.
To paraphrase what Will Durant wrote in "The Lessons of History," there
has been little change in man's nature since historical times. Technology
is simply a new way of achieving old ends, which includes the fighting
of wars. We enlarge our instruments without improving our purpose.
Now as Big Benders and Texans and Americans we share the communion of
grief that peoples have suffered from the beginning of time. People who've
suffered massacres and holocausts and horrors we could only imagine.
We no longer have to use our imaginations.
Now we know.
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Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
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