The Striped Fingernail

June 25

The next couple of weeks we will be working on the building.   So the blog will probably take a vacation for a week or so while I work on the curtains for the stage unless something terribly exciting happens or I just get bored and post something so random, like for instance....

The Saga of My Striped Fingernail.
(or Vainty, Vainty, thy name is manicure)

As you may recall, our story left off with the fact that our damsel in distress (namely me) had grown a little concerned that my fingernail was changing color so I got an appointment with a dermatologist.  He also felt that we needed to investigate further.  The lab test turned out negative and I thought I was home free. It turns out that apparently, it ruled out a fungus.  So, the next step is the biopsy.

A hole is drilled into the nail.
Little tweezers or scissors are used to pull up the skin underneath the nail
and then a piece is snipped off.
Ultraviolet light is then aimed at the opening.
The nail is then melted a little to seal off the gaping hole it now has!!!!

Here is a picture of my finger now!


Warning....
The image that you are about to see is graphic in nature.

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Oh, so OK it wasn't that graphic. 
I just wish I had been brave enough to actually watch the entire process. 
I stared at the wall instead
.
As it stands, I had to depend on my husband's eye witness account.
You can't even see the streak in this picture because of the glare, but it's still there.

I will get the results sometime next week. Like I mentioned before the Doctor does not think that it is serious, but he has to be sure and this is only way to do it. I too, would rather be safe than sorry. All in all, six doctor visits between three doctors, lab test, biopsy and medications together were very inexpensive compared to what I would of had to pay back home.  About a hundred dollars for everything.

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The exciting news is here!

We have a signed lease in our hands for a building for the Church!
Here is a picture of building as it is now.  It needs a couple of small walls, curtains, paint, a small amount of carpet and chairs.  Otherwise it is very clean with no major work to be done.  The most exciting thing is it even has a built-in stage!  There is a small kitchen to the side which will serve as a prayer/nursery room and there are two bathrooms.  It will very comfortably accomodate 60 chairs with plenty of altar space. I will post more pictures when all the work is complete.

Thank you to all those who have been keeping this in prayer.  This is a building that we looked at couple of months ago but we were told that they did not want a church to move in. 

About two weeks ago we got a phone call with the news that now they were willing to lease the building to us.

From this view you can see the entrance to the kitchen area on the right and the door to one of the bathrooms. The kitchen has a long counter space with double sinks and lower cabinets and a shelf on the wall over the counter.  The portable wall will be moved to make more space available for the nursery/prayer room and the counter can be moved to the back of the sanctuary for the sound equipment.  We also need a wall along the entry because it is next to the stage.

This is an outside view.  You can see the entrance doors and the windows to the left are right behind the stage.  It is on a main road and just about five minutes driving or walking distance is two maybe three miles.  The building has 24hr guards.  My husband never gave up on this location.  Even when the answer was no, he said that he felt we would still get in.

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Finally, some news on church....

Tonight instead of Bible Study, Pastor decides that we will try an actual church service and see how the new interperter works out. We moved things around and got some chairs squeezed in where we could. It turned out very well. We had 16 people in service.  Hopefully, we will have some more exciting news for the church very soon.

Pastor with Hermel interpeting

He's not waving here, just trying to make a point.

Altar Call....

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I depend on the internet for just about everything.  And yes I realize that I am  indeed very fortunate and I am grateful to have access to a good service.   If I need a recipe, I google!  Need a dictionary, need a translation,...etc.  google.

I sprained my ankle very badly yesterday just by walking and twisting my foot in a hole on the sidewalk.  I managed to hobble from the parking garage to the elevator to my apartment door.  My entire leg is beginning to swell up.  Now, I am not going to the doctor, cause I just came from there to have my finger looked at!

Google.....how to treat a sprained ankle.

Soak two minutes in very hot water and move it as much as possible, then rest two minutes in very cold water, repeat the process....etc.

It worked!!! 

Thank goodness, cause I have a lot to do tomorrow. 

We are having house church.

So last week I googled my finger....

I have this dark streak under my nail and have had it for almost a year now, but it is getting darker.

It said:

 Don't ignore markings on your nails like this:

hay chihuahua...that's MY nail...

I call the doctor and tell him and he gives me the number to a dermatologist.  It is amazing, the dermatologist tells me to come in the same day.  When I get there, I explain that I know that there is a possiblity of melanoma. (from googling of course)  He confirms that, and tells me yes, either that or Hutchinson's disease.
After the examination, he says that he doubts that it is cancerous.  The markings are usually much darker, but he is sending me to the hospital (called Mount Sinai, biblical name, that alone is encouraging) for a small test, so we can get it treated if it is a fungus regardless. This is great news for me, because I am quite fond of this finger.....
He says not to worry, they are going to take care of me.  
Doctors treat you like family here.  Actually, everyone treats you like family. 

The reason for sharing this is I would like everyone to be aware that

you can NOT ignore streaks on your nails!!!

(Unless of course, you painted them there or hit your hand with a hammer or something..)

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