Saturday, May 24, 2014

Carnac the Magnificent


"Atom Bomb, Charles Manson, Hepatitis C"
Carnac the Magnificent says as he holds the envelope to the side of his head.

He lowers the envelope, carefully tears the envelope open at one end, blows into the envelope and removes the piece of paper nestled inside. He reads the following:
"What are 3 things that will kill you deader than hell?"

Dateline: 1971, Orlando Naval Training Center. Company 071. I was a Squad Leader. It was my responsibility to make sure my squad met all required appointments... including inoculations.

Now you have to remember, this was at the height of that nasty little war, the Vietnam Conflict, which was born from the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, a false flag incident initiated by our Gubmint. Soldiers and Sailors were considered nothing more than fodder for a meat wall.

But alas... I digress.

Ah... the Gubmint... thoughtful people. They used the shotgun inoculation type thingy. It looked something like this...

Photo: If you were in the military during the Vietnam Era, and your boot camp experience looked anything like this picture... PLEASE, do yourself a favor and get yourself tested for Hepatitis C Virus... the injection guns that were very popular back then, transferred dirty blood from one recruit to the next. And whatever you do, DO NOT let them convince you that HCV is from intravenous drug use... and if you don’t believe me, Google it.
The government is ever so slowly starting to turn around on this issue. So if you are a Veteran, please make sure you go through the V.A. so that it’s documented and treated… and yes… there are medications out there that, if you happen to be in the lucky 60%, you can actually get cured.

 
Here's how it works... you're the first person in line... you're fairly safe, depending on the efficiency of the sailor in charge of sterilization of the "gun.” However, if you are anywhere past the first person, you are subject to any blood born disease from every person before you.

Let me stop here and tell you a little story about my experience with the "Shot" gun method of inoculations.

Half way through boot camp, my entire Company was taken down to Sick Bay after it was announced that we had all been exposed to Contagious Hepatitis. It had not been identified as Hepatitis C yet.... just contagious Hepatitis.

After receiving a HUGE shot of something in my posterior (I could have said ass, but I'm not the kind of person to just throw out random four letter words.. I know...ass is a three letter word) we were dismissed, and it was never mentioned again.

My teens and twenties happened to fall in the 60's and 70's. It was a great time to be alive. The whole world changed. Did I experiment with Street Pharmacology? Why yes I did. Did I smoke shit? Yes I did. Did I put shit up my nose? Yes I did. Did I ever use a needle? Fuck no. Wait; let me rephrase that, FUCK NO!!!! I was young, and made stupid mistakes... but stick a needle in my arm? NO... FUCKING... WAY.

Ten years later, 1981, I came home from work, felt like total shit. I was tired, more tired than I should be. My pelvic affiliate at the time said, "You look like shit.” (I'm paraphrasing here... poetic license if you will). Of course I thanked her (at least I think I did... I'm pretty sure anyway). Off to the doctor I went. After relieving me of 3 or 4 gallons of blood, the results came back. The diagnosis was Hepatitis C.

Thirty-eight years later, 2009, I started Interferon treatment for Hep C. Forty-eight weeks of self-injected Interferon and a shit load of pills. Forty-eight weeks of pure fucking hell. My viral count went down so low, it was undetectable. Two months after the end of the treatment, my viral count went up higher than it was before the treatment.

Forty-two years later, 2013 I was diagnosed with Liver Cancer. Three tumors and the biggest one was 4.8 cm. My options are as follows: Option 1, get a new liver... a liver transplant and live another 15 or 20 years. Option 2, die. Because of the size of the biggest tumor, they said I would have about 5 years max... then its Tango Uniform... TU... Tits UP... in other words, a dirt nap. I’ve considered both options.

Forty-three years later, 2014 I am on the transplant list. I’ve been off and on the list since January, 2014. I’m hoping to actually get the transplant sometime in September or October... but it could be next year before it happens or even the year after that.
 
If you really want to learn more about this potential Veteran killer, clickety click here here.

OK America... that is all...

♫NWM♫

4 comments:

Jean said...

I hope the transplant comes sooner than you expect.
In the meantime, do everything you can to take care of yourself.

T. said...

Hey you!!! I'd ask how you're doing, but I think you already answered that. How are you feeling aside from all that shit? I miss the hell outta you! Why don't you email or talk any more??? Every time I hear Comfortably Numb I think of you, which is at least once a day. Please don't go away.

♫NWM♫ said...

Jean: I'm doing 97.5% of everything the4y ask... I hang on to that 2.5% for my own sanity. I'm hoping the transplant doesn't come until after September, sometime in October, November time frame. It'll be cooler, and better financially.

T: I have been totally out of it for the last 3 months... which I will try to explain in my next post... I apologize for not keeping in touch. Funny, when ever I hear "Here Comes The Sun" I think of you.

Jean said...

Would love to hear from you.