Category: Uncategorized (Page 2 of 68)

With each passing day, the site of insertion of the Spinal Cord Stimulator is becoming less and less bothersome. At this rate, in a week or so, I should be as good as new. Have a checkup in Fort Worth this Friday. During this visit, I’m certain they will look at the area on my back, ask if I have any questions, and send us on our way—no big deal.

When we visited my dialysis nurse to unplug my stopped-up catheter, which I previously reported on, she suggested getting our GP to issue a script for meds to increase my appetite. I was at a routine dental appointment yesterday and took the opportunity to go a couple of blocks up the street to our GP’s office, where I requested a call from him to discuss getting prescribed such a med. He is scheduled to call me at 4:40 PM on 9/22. We’ll see what he comes up with. This suggestion is because the IPN is NOT increasing my albumin, while a significant cost and inconvenience to us.

I quizzed Perplexity about such appetite-increasing drugs and received the following information:

Here is a table listing the most common drugs prescribed or used to increase appetite, ordered roughly by how widely they are used or recommended as of 2025:goodrx+7

Common Appetite Stimulant Drugs

• Megestrol acetate and dronabinol are the only appetite stimulant drugs approved by the FDA, especially for severe disease-related appetite loss.healthline+2
• Mirtazapine is increasingly used off-label because it reliably increases appetite and weight.buzzrx+2
• Cyproheptadine is often used for children/adolescents with appetite loss.droracle+2
• Oxandrolone is now uncommon in the US due to safety issues, but is still used elsewhere.goodrx+1
• Corticosteroids and most antipsychotics commonly cause increased appetite as a side effect, which is sometimes exploited clinically, but significant side effects may limit long-term use.webmd+2
• Appetite stimulants are primarily prescribed for disease-related appetite loss (cancer, HIV/AIDS, or cachexia) rather than general weight gain.

This table provides an up-to-date, ranked overview for clinicians and patients interested in medically supported appetite increase.rxlist+7

We started Tuesday with a call from a nurse at the surgical facility we will be going to tomorrow to have the permanent spinal cord stimulator installed. Everything was boilerplate until she mentioned the timing; we had previously been informed that the procedure was to take place at 1400. We were now told that we had to be there at 10:30 for the procedure at 11:30. My wife had set up our dog walker to take care of him in our absence, and we had worked out when we had to get up and leave for the drive to Eulis. Now, all of this planning, in one fell swoop, was out the window, and we had to regroup. Additionally, the nurse informed us that the doctor’s office had no idea when the surgery would be scheduled and just put a number in their computer as a placeholder. This folks is the epitome of medical curve balls that seem to happen frequently. As patients, we are merely objects for doctors and their schedulers to toss around at will. In this regard, we are, as patients, rarely, if ever, asked about scheduling but are told. At this point, there seems to be no recourse, but once the fat lady sings, it will be over. Have the follow-up on Friday, and we will be rid of this stage short of complications.

By my nature, I dig words. I have been an avid reader since, like forever, even as a small boy. In the news about the Kirk saga, I ran across the words “stochastic terrorist act,” which were new to me. I understand stochastic from my advanced statistics courses at Purdue University, and terrorist acts from my military course on terrorism. But putting them together is a new discourse for me, so I did some digging with the following results:

A “stochastic terrorist act” refers to an act of violence that is statistically predictable but individually unpredictable, incited indirectly by public rhetoric rather than explicit instructions or direct coordination. Unlike traditional terrorism, stochastic terrorism involves the use of mass communication or media to demonize or vilify a group or individual in such a way that it motivates random, lone actors to commit violence.

Definition and Characteristics

• Stochastic terrorism describes a process where influencers or leaders use hostile, inflammatory, or coded language in mass media to incite others to commit violent acts against targeted groups, but the specific acts, perpetrators, and timing remain unpredictable.
• The perpetrators—often “lone wolves” without formal links to terrorist groups—are inspired by repeated public rhetoric, not direct orders.
• The link between the rhetoric and the act is statistical: increased hostile campaigns raise the probability of violent incidents, even though no particular event can be predicted in advance.

Real-World Examples

• Instances such as the 2021 US Capitol attack or hate-motivated lone wolf assaults are often analyzed as likely outcomes of stochastic terrorism: the rhetoric by influential figures creates an environment where violence is statistically probable, though each specific act is random.
• The term is frequently used in contexts involving demonization and dehumanization on social or traditional media, where “virtual incitement” is intended to provoke action, creating legal and ethical dilemmas for free speech and accountability.

Key Points

• A stochastic terrorist act is triggered not by direct command, but by the public environment of hatred and suggestion, which statistically increases the odds of violence.
• Actions can range from threats and harassment to physical violence, all provoked without explicit incitement, making perpetrators and instigators legally disconnected but causally related.

In summary, stochastic terrorism describes how public demonization or coded rhetoric by influential figures can lead to unpredictable but statistically probable acts of violence, offering the instigator plausible deniability while fostering real-world terrorism.

So now you too know what stochastic terrorism means. Hot dog!

While in the US Navy, I was deployed to somewhere involved in the Vietnam Conflict. Twice, it was on a spot in the Gulf of Tonkin named PIRAZ (Positive Radar Advisory Zone), and the last was a tour in-country as Ordnance Advisor to the Brown Water Navy. We often had time on our hands to think about what was going on back home.

I graduated from high school in 1956, and in 1957, a duo named Johnnie & Joe recorded a hit named “Over the Mountain, Across the Sea.” This song got stuck in my mind, and while I could only recall the lead lyrics, when thoughts went to “back home,” to this day, those times (perhaps mild PTSD), places, and thoughts are still with me. So bear with me while I’m over the mountain and across the sea with my thoughts, thinking great things about my family, what they might be doing, and how, at that time, I missed them beyond description, and how grateful I am now to have a warm bed with my wife of 63 years by my side. See the song embedded below, please!

Going to be a somewhat busy week for us. Here’s what’s coming down:

Monday: Third estimated IRS tax payment due. I already made it. Have a 1315 audiologist appointment in Stevenville. Have these every quarter courtesy of the VA, wherein the doc checks out my VA-provided hearing aids and my ears to ensure all is proper. Worth the trip.

Tuesday: Pentec should make our weekly delivery of IPN supplies for the next seven days. This requires a fair amount of manual labor on the part of my wife to unpack the boxes, place the contents in the provided refrigerator, and set the boxes up for the next week’s trash.

Wednesday: 1400 travel to Eulis to have “permanent HFX device installed. That is the Spinal Cord Stimulator, after which I go on pain and antibiotics meds and am refrained from lifting over 6 lbs for some time, and am also restricted from taking a shower, during which my body can get a little r

Raunchy is embedded in the song below.

Thursday at this point is a free day.

Friday: 1100 follow-up with the doc who installed the spinal cord stimulator, this time on Pennsylvania Ave in Ft Worth.

We’ll see what else jumps out and is added to this schedule.

First up, results of yesterday’s dialysis team meeting. On all three lab results I previously commented about bringing up during this meeting, the results indicated in my blog are the same. That is to say, the results of Albumin going down to 3.2 from 3.5 while taking IPN are conflicting, and it was implicit that after a couple of more months with no improvement in this area, it is on the table to discontinue IPN. The second area, Kt/V going up resulted in an agreement that we would continue to watch this adequacy value for a couple more months and not move forward at this time with the installation of a fistula. The third and last lab area was my phosphorus being at the lower bound. It was agreed that I would cut the binder back to one pill vice two at breakfast.

With my background in the US Navy involving engaging all things with missiles, it is natural that I have an interest in drone warfare. I have been reading most of the available stories of how drones are being deployed, how Ukraine is assembling its own, and how we just dumped billions into this area through the Big Beautiful Bill. I decided it’s time to get off the sidelines and invest in US companies that are involved in one aspect or another of drones for the military.

Sitting here with a blank sheet of paper, I first ascertained the players in this basket of companies, then instructed Perplexity to rank order them with the following results:

Here is a ranked table of the cited drone sector companies, integrating “efficacy as an investment” for a private investor with $10,000. The ranking considers product significance for modern conflict, company momentum, and market standing (as of 2025), and exposure to pure-play versus diversified defense. A higher rank means a higher recommended portfolio weighting, although diversification helps lower risk.

I narrowed this list down to companies that appealed to me because of their product, market(s), and closeness to being a startup. For the four stocks shown below, less than a week ago, I bought 100 shares in each. Here’s where they stand now:

Since purchasing into the military drone market less than a week ago, here’s where I stand with the four stocks I bought:

1. AIRO up $99.22/5.28%

2. ONDS up $85.00/15.57%

3. RCAT up $234.01/26.73%

4. UMAC up $107.42/10.88%

Total gain in less than a week: $525.65. This is approaching something other than chump-change. (Nothing here is meant to be advice concerning investments. I’m just a guy with a computer and AI by my side. You, the public, are on your own in this regard.)

Yesterday was one of those days with lots going on.

It started with our dog walker taking our Golden Retriever, Dickens, for an hour-long walk. She found a job in Nashville in the music industry and will be leaving us at the end of September, so we’re in the market for a replacement. Yesterday was also order day for Fresensis supplies, so I put in an order online. Yesterday, the PenTec IPN supplies arrived a day late with no explanation of the lateness. These supplies are a real PITH to deal with! I had ordered new tires for my wife’s BMW 330xi and was informed they were in, so I had them installed. BTW, here 2023 XI only has 27+K on it. Seems early for new tires, but here old tires were down to the tread wear indicators. In the evening, I cleaned the rims on the BMW, took Dickens for a golf cart ride, and did a little weeding in our many flower beds. I also watered the two Roma tomato plants that went in the ground on Monday in an attempt to see if we can get another tomato crop here in North Texas. I bought four stocks to get into the exploding military drone game, and sold four others that were underperforming.

Thought I’d share some stats about blog traffic. Below are two screen grabs. The first indicated the top ten countries that have visited the site. The second shows traffic for September, with the peak being 77 page views and yesterday being 37.

Since I just paid the August 2025 bill from PenTec Health of their August 2025 billings, I thought it might be enlightening to share it with you. The actual bill is included as a PDF below with my Medicare credentials blotted out. You can see that our out-of-pocket cost for August on IPN was $1137.13. Let’s do a little math:

1. In August 25, there were four Tuesdays, the day we receive shipments.
2. Pentec delivered seven IPN treatments, each delivery, on average
3. Total IPNs August = 4×7-28
4. Our August billing/cost = $1137.13
5. Cost/IPN = 1137.13/28 = $40.61/bag.

For comparison, filet mignon is about $22.00 per pound. So we could almost buy two pounds of filet for daily consumption compared to what the daily IPN is costing us. What’s wrong with this picture?