upgrade, implant #2 and a CI moment

it's been so long since i last wrote in here, i feel somewhat silly doing it now...


BUT!


a lot of new stuff is happening.  


i'm hoping to get an upgrade on my current (left) CI processor.  it's been over 7 years -- yes, SEVEN -- since i first got my CI.  the processor i have now (ESPrit 3G) is already on its last legs, so i'm way overdue for a new one.  the newest model -- the Nucleus 5 -- is amazing.  whether or not i get it all depends on insurance approval.  it's exciting stuff!


i am also hoping to get an implant in my right ear so that i have bilateral hearing.  again, this all depends on insurance coverage, audiological testing and the otolaryngologist's evaluation.  i'm keeping my fingers crossed it works out!


......


just last night, hubby and i were going for a walk around the neighborhood.  it was a windy night, so all sorts of sounds were whooshing around us.  at one point, i heard a soft, dainty tinkling sound.  i looked around and asked, "what is that?"  my husband pointed it out: WIND CHIMES!  there were three different kinds hanging from a neighbor's porch and all of them were playing a sweet melody.  oh, how lovely the sound was...  


hopefully, when i have an implant in my right ear, i'll be able to tell what direction the wind chimes are coming from...  can't wait!

Cat-napping

Sometimes I find it difficult to fall asleep for a nap because the clocks in the living room are ticking "too loudly."

It's a great CI moment, but the noise is SO hard to ignore: TICK - TICK - TICK - TICK - TICK...

Oh, well. :)

(The reasons why I sometimes don't take my CI processor off when I nap vary - i.e., I'm expecting a phone call.)

Sweet dreams...

As I'm laying in bed waiting for hubby to come home, I hear the front door open, the lights click on in the living room and his voice, "I'll be there in a few minutes...can you wait for me?"

I respond, "Of course I can...take your time."

What's so special about this exchange, you ask? Well, it's nice to be able to communicate like this across "long" distances -- an entire condo-length away!

<3

Patting myself on the back...

I had a great CI moment last night. Actually, it was more like an hour-and-a-half long CI moment...

I was watching an old Czechoslovakian movie w/ my hubby. The actors spoke Czech (obviously), but the only subtitles available were in English. Sooo since I speak Czech, I plugged my CI into the television to hear the dialogue AND I turned on the English subtitles *just in case* I didn't catch something.

It took some getting used to, but because I was able to hear the actors speaking, the reading of the subtitles (captioning, in a sense) flowed smoothly along.

Cool, huh?

:-D

[Side note: Hubby & I were born in the Czech Republic, therefore, we speak Czech fluently.]

Hiatus

I was away on vacation for a good part of June (and was super-busy @ work before I left), which is why my posts have been sparse...

I have some tid-bits to report & will do so as soon my head stops spinning!

A 'New' Sound

Hubby & I were driving yesterday evening in my car with the sun-roof open. As we're exiting our condo development, I hear a "whump-whump-whump" sound. I look up out of the roof, don't see anything, and start to worry that something is wrong with my car. (I'm a girl without a clue when it comes to car troubles.)

"What is that noise?" I ask my husband.

He looks up & says, "That's a helicopter."

It was quite a unique sound because it seemed muffled, but close by. Turns out it was a LOUD helicopter, FAR AWAY in the sky.

Cool!

:-D

I'm the Only One

Just recognized Melissa Etheridge on the radio...yes, her voice is well-known & easy to "spot" but it took *ME* -- with my CI -- a split-second to figure out who it was.

Yay, me!!!

:-D

Clarification

I wanted to clarify something for all you readers out there...

My CI processor is almost always set at the lowest volume possible and I have it switched to the "whisper" setting about 85% of the time. Hence the reason I hear all sorts of random sounds/noises all the time.

If my posts sound like I'm complaining, that is not my intention AT ALL. Just like a normal-hearing person, sometimes I notice different sounds on different days... and just like a normal-hearing person, sometimes the sounds "bother" me more.

Regardless, I am more than grateful that I have such a powerful CI and would not change a thing about it!

Grrr.

I wish my laptop fan wasn't running so loudly. Having to listen to that incessant hum gets really annoying after a while.

Yes, I'm in a bad mood, which isn't being helped by the fact that my CI works so well!

<sigh>

Sarah

I was driving home tonight & had the radio tuned to 102.7FM only because NPR stops broadcasting news at 7pm.

Well, it's a good thing I did this because it allowed me to have a lovely CI moment: I recognized Sarah McLachlan's "In the Arms of an Angel" within *SECONDS* of it first playing!

I was proud of myself, if I may say so.

:o}

Tick-tock whoosh bzzz

Things I've been hearing at an increasing rate:

1. The ticking of the clock on the wall...wow, it's loud.

2. Cars whizzing by outside...people don't get speed limits.

3. The fan in my computer...it keeps overheating, so maybe that's why I hear it so much.

It sure is a noisy world!

}:-O

Still Alive

In case anyone is wondering, I'll be posting some updates shortly.

Sorry for the lag in posts -- it's been SUPER hectic @ work the last few weeks...

Thanks for your patience!

Four Years Ago Today...

...my cochlear implant processor was first activated!

I can't *believe* it has already been four years... wow.

Granted, it feels like I've been hearing for decades now, but every single day I continue to hear something new... STILL.

For those of you who haven't been reading this blog from the very beginning, here is the post that started it all: (The Day After) Hook-Up Day

Thank you, Dr. Downey, for a surgery well-done...

...thank you, Judy, for your constant support over the years...

...and thank you, to all my friends and family, for your kindness and patience during my most trying (and exciting) times!

It's a Noisy World

Sometimes I think I hear too much.

Case in point: the humming of the refrigerator.

*OR* the dripping of water in the kitchen sink from overflowing dishes.

Ooooorrr the subtle chirp-chirping of our parakeets after they've had their breakfast.

There are sounds aplenty for me to hear, even if I'd rather get some peace-and-quiet sometimes!

Heh.

Panera Bread

I overheard a conversation while out to lunch w/ hubby today:

"Blah blah blah... something-something refrigerator... Blah blah blah... at the library... blah blah blah... something-something medical problems... blah blah blah..."

It made no sense whatsoever because I wasn't trying to listen in, but those are some of the words I recognized.

A CI Moment this "little" is actually *HUGE* for me because I normally have to concentrate & listen real hard if I actually want to eavesdrop.

But today? It just happened!

:-D

I found this really informative article online today...

It's on the web site "Interesting Thing of the Day" and I highly recommend it for people who have ANY questions about Cochlear Implants.

Enjoy!

Trickling...?

While perusing the Christmas Tree Shoppes last night (a *great* place, by the way), I heard what sounded like water trickling. When I looked around & didn't see anything, I figured I was having a CI moment in my head.

Then the sound started again -- like a slow stream of water, dribbling between pepples. I thought that maybe it was one of those doohickeys that people have in their offices. You know, that bowl of rocks that gets plugged in so the water drips around them.

But NOPE! That's not what it was.

The sound was starting to drive me batty, so I stood there all alert, waiting for the trickle again...

And then I saw the source: a shopping cart! The wheels of the cart on the store's tile floor were making the liquid dribbling sound.

It was the weirdest thing, but I felt better that I wasn't going crazy... not yet, anyway!

:-P

Vibrating Tea?

When I was making myself a cup of tea this weekend, I noticed that a strange buzzing sound was coming from the mug after I poured in the hot water. I didn't think anything of it (maybe that's the sound it's supposed to make?) & forgot about it.

Well, hubby just approached me with a freshly brewed cup of tea and said, "Listen to this!"

Before I even tilted my CI towards the mug, I asked, "Let me guess -- the tea is vibrating."

His eyes bulged & he said, "Yeah! What's up with that?!" I, of course, had NO idea & neither did hubby.

On the one hand, I was relieved that this buzzing/vibrating tea sound wasn't in my head, but on the other hand, I was confused because not even my perfect-hearing husband could figure it out.

Any suggestions out there?

I hope out tea cups aren't radioactive or anything!

Bubbly!

Hubby & I were having a glass of champagne to "celebrate" the end of a nice 4-day weekend.....

When I poured the fizzy drink into the glasses, the sound was so whimsical and delightful!

I stood there a few seconds longer just to hear the lovely sound the champagne was making as it bubbled towards the top of the glass.

"How cute!" I thought, before I gladly consumed said noisy beverage. Who knew alcohol could be so entertaining with a CI!

;-)

Sometimes...

...I wish I didn't hear so well.

There are noises I don't really *need* to hear:

- the fan blowing in my laptop as it cools off;
- my co-worker sniffling constantly not realizing she JUST. HAS. TO. BLOW. HER. NOSE!
- family members farting;
- my neighbor downstairs blasting her radio w/ Polka music.

But, then again, I guess these sounds aren't all that bad...

:)