Medical care for the ages (and aged)

I want to share two medical procedures I have recently had with the hope it may help those with similar problems to take positive action, i.e. consult with doctors (especially cardiologists) and spinal specialists. 

In June, I had a Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR) because the aortic valve in my heart (the most important) was not functioning properly. In layman's terms,  my doctor (an aortic surgeon) replaced the aortic valve with a minute wire cage inside which was a pig-skin valve. He did this through my groin. Prior to the procedure I was short of breath, tired easily, and sweat profusely during the slightest extended activity. e.g. carrying groceries, walking around the large building (South Bay @ Mt. Pleasant) where I live. Since this successful procedure I have more pep and energy and, for example, am able to ride a stationary bicycle for 30 minutes.

In August, the second procedure was the injection of steroids into my lower back on the right side. Three doctors assured me that x-rays did not show any problems with my hips.  For several months I suffered with continuous pain due to arthritis, had to use a cane and then a walker to get around. I limped daily and normal activities took double the time to complete. It has been three days since this injection and already I have relief from the aching in my right leg from my waist to my foot. The expectation is that in about 14 days time I may be able to dispense with the walker and only use the cane to help maintain my balance. 

Consult with your doctor.  You may be glad you did.

Send comments to: arch@archibald99.com

Going to the moon

Letter to the Editor

ThePost & Courier

Charleston, SC

Published: June 29, 2019  

Going to the moon

 On June 23, I watched the CNN special “Apollo 11”  which will be re-broadcast at 9 p.m. June 29 and at midnight June 30.   

From the beginning to the end, I was captivated by the telling of the story, using film seen fifty years ago and new, previously unseen, film.     I knew that the three men, Neil Armstrong,  Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins would return to earth safely, but the presentation was so effective, the apprehension felt was real when Armstrong and Aldrin left the lunar module and climbed down the ladder to walk on the moon.    

After the capsule re-entry, it made me proud to see the aircraft carrier Hornet standing around the drop site in the Pacific, and helicopters circling overhead.    

Nothing was spared in the effort to pluck these three brave men out of the water and onto the Hornet to the clapping and thunderous cheers of the crew and other officials.     

It was a fitting end to the presentation to see President John F. Kennedy at the podium at the University of Texas in September 1962 proclaim to the world, " We choose to go to the Moon...We choose to go to the Moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard; because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one we intend to win.” 

   
We have not seen such gravitas in the White House since.

(Send comments to arch@archibald99.com)

Truth, Censorship and the Government

The New York Times

Letter to theEditor

April 8,2019

Mark Fallon, a retired SpecialAgent with the Naval Investigative Service, wrote an Op-Ed (published in the Times, April 3, 2019) explaining his disagreement with the NIS requirement he submit any proposed publications for pre-approval. This is not an uncommon requirement for men and women throughout the government who served in national security agencies.  Fallon has joined two other retirees who object to review of their writings before publication

This is my letter:

“If Mark Fallon could be trusted to do sensitive work for 31 years, then he ought to be trusted not to reveal classified information now.

“Censorship is anathema, even when called “prepublication review.” “

Francis X. Archibald

Mount Pleasant, S.C.

A Letter to Dr. Tara Westover

Letter to Dr. Tara Westover,

A dear and precious friend gave me your spell-binding book, Educated - A Memoir, and I finished it a few minutes ago. I will be in her debt for doing so and yours for having the guts to recount your astonishing life’s story. My story is the opposite of yours and I cannot put it down on paper (despite a reasonably decent education - Master's in International Relations).  My father deserted my mother and their five children when I was nine or ten years old. I was born in 1931 and he was long gone when the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred. As he went out the door he said to me, “You are the man of the house now, take care of your mother.” 

I have often wondered what my life would have been like had my father carried on as most other fathers do: cherish their wife and guide their children with love. Absent this in your life, I feel your anguish.

Congratulations on finding the strength “to see one’s life through new eyes, and the will to change it” and for your outstanding achievements. 

Thank you for Educated - A Memoir.

Sincerely,

Francis 

Barbara Ann (Archibald) McKone

Barbara Ann (Archibald) McKone completed her beautiful, creative and adventurous life on January 2, 2019 while living in Saint Elizabeth’s Manor in Bristol, RI.  She was enfolded by family love as she slowly released her courageous, independent nature over a week and her spirit rose. She is well remembered and loved by many on the east and west coasts, as both were certainly her home.   

A daughter of the late Francis and the late Anne C. (Wynn) Archibald, she was born June 1, 1930 in Lexington, MA.  As a young child she surmounted the challenges of polio with a fascination and optimism for life which fueled all of her ways and all of her days.  As a teen she was most proud of being able to dance, go to the ocean, be a cheerleader, as well as, her academic successes at Keith Hall  in Lowell MA.  As a young woman she consciously raised strong and independent daughters, she began her degrees and traveled the world.  She most delighted in maintaining a dual citizenship with Ireland and her shamrock green car.  In mid-life she pursued a dream to become a “CA girl” making her home in Orange County, getting her PHD, working as a therapist in innovative women’s health, a perfect expression of her kind and giving nature. Semi-retired she worked for Edwards Theaters due to her lifelong passion for movies, walked the seawalls of Balboa Island and later dedicated her working energies to helping others through Oasis Senior Citizen’s Center near her home in Newport Beach. 

She is survived by her brothers: Francis X. Archibald of Mt Pleasant, SC, and Walter Archibald of Sewell, NJ; her 4 daughters: Ann Marie McKone of Kittery, ME; Susan McKeon & Wayne Jipsen of Saint George, UT; Patricia & John Mack of Bristol, RI; Kathleen & Scott Pihl of Sunriver, OR; and her 4 grandchildren: Nathan (&Kristi) Rendo of Waco, TX; Caitlin (&Stephen) Caldwell of Warren, RI; Katharine (&Andrew) Boynton of West Greenwich, RI; Ian Pihl of Seattle, WA;  her 6 great-grandchildren: Liam, Reid, Ryan, Keava, Brennan, Finn; as well as, dear nieces, nephews and so many friends, all whom she treasured. 

She was predeceased by: her brother, Charles Archibald; her sister, Carol E. Archibald; her nephew, Mark Archibald.  

By her request there will be a Funeral Mass in Lowell, MA on Monday June 17^th2019 at 10 AM St. Patrick Church 282 Suffolk, Street. The service will be followed by interment of ashes in a family plot at St Patrick’s Cemetery 1251 Gorham St.  

Memorials: Polio Global Eradication Initiative (PGEI) or Boston Children’s Hospital.