August 22, 2014

On this date 49 years ago, it was raining also when we got married that summer evening in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  It is raining again on us only now we are in Chad.  We got 3 in ches yesterday morning here.  The locals talk about how great this rain is for the rice.  Nothing special is planned for today. 

We have been blessed the past 49 years with 4 children (3 girls and 1 boy) and 9 grandchildren ages 1 yr to 21 yrs.  All the children and their spouses have at least a college degree or more and all are active in the church.  We are so proud of all of them.  Oh yes during the years we have had our differences of opinion. etc.  Dolores has been very tolerant of my crazy hours and other things but I am thankful for her.  We are still in good health other than passing things here in Chad.  What will we do to celebrate the big 50 mark next year?  Not sure yet.

I saw a man yesterday that had 14 wives and 41 children with 30 girls and 11 boys.  I suspect he does not remember any of the many anniversaries.  He had brought one of his wives in for a check up for an "ovarian cyst" that turned out today to be a bilateral pyosalphinx (pus in the tube).  His name was not Solomon. 

We had a boy with urinary obstruction but no stone visible in the bladder and unable to put in a Foley.  We did surgery and found a stone lodged in his proxiumal urethra which was a little difficult to get out but it finally popped out in h is bladder and we removed it.  We had another ovarian mass about 15 cm diameter.  A man had an ileostomy done somewhere else "for typhoid" but not sure what all the problems were.  We took down the ileostomy and reconnected the ileum to his transverse colon as the right colon seemed very scarred and adherent to surroundings.  He is doing well now.  We did a BKA leg amputation for a very large cancer of the foot.  Also did a 3rd finger and metacarpal amputation for osteomyelitis. 
Our emails are drbland@sbcglobal.net and  dfbland01@gmail.com.
Love    Rollin and Dolores