iHateGreenBeans

“My second and last tour of duty in Iraq is finally over. I am happy to be coming home. My family will have all of it’s sons out of this tragic country for the first time since the invasion in 2003. The 56th Stryker Brigade will be done with the various medical and administrative outprocessing later this month. After that, I am going to see the family for a couple of days, and then take a vacation out west with a friend. I especially want to thank the ladies who wrote in for Big Pimpin. It was my pleasure to get to know you all. Unfortunately, it did not work out with anybody in particular, so life goes on. Coming home to my family, and unhurt, is enough for me.”

Elliott sent several photos to friends and family the last few weeks in Iraq. At times, he would give his camera to one of the guys to take candid photos of the crew. One of them captured this moment and titled the photo “Relieved.” When I asked Elliott to tell me what was going on at that moment, he said that he had just finished his last mission and was grateful that everyone was going to be coming home in one piece.

I love this photo. I think it says so much. Of course he was relieved. He had a charge of men under him and each one will be hugging their families and loved ones soon. That’s why the photo is so incredible. And that’s why he is so incredible…because THAT is where his head and heart are…with his men. He did his job. He did it well. Everyone is safe.

God bless America!  And God bless YOU Elliott!

Why yes it has my favorite IHGB readers.  It’s been two years since I started a little website for my Bachelor followers.  And look how we’ve grown! 

I decided that I would take this time to revisit some of my more popular posts (using stat counters) and give you guys the opportunity to walk down memory lane. 

Behold –

I Hate Green Beans Greatest Hits, Volume 1

Does the phrase HUET training mean anything to you?

The guy holding the Vodka calls all the shots.

Three words:  Civil War Re-Enactment

Who could forget the Cat Whisperer?

Or the beauty of jazzercise?

Adventures in Petra involve oxygen tanks and camels.  Fun times.

And finally…how it all began.

You guys are too good to me.  Here’s to another year of wonderful randomness.

Love,

Lincee

Thanks to everyone emailing and Facebooking me with concern for my knee these past few months.  Before my Quoobah trip, I was finally able to get insurance, MRI film and scheduling worked out and visited my first doctor.

GOOD NEWS

As I suspected, my ACL is not torn.  Lord knows I know what that feels like, so no surprise there. 

MEH NEWS

He identified all my knee knots.  The one on the left is fluid build-up.  The one on the right is a hernia.  The one in the middle is a bone spur and the one on my knee cap has a fancy name that pretty much translates into “debris.” 

BAD NEWS

I have the knee of a 60-year-old.  That is not good.  When I lifted my skirt (sounds dirty, but I had shorts on) he cried out, “Geez!  What year did you have that surgery?”  He looked at my film and said it was a mess inside there.  My ACL is like a loose rubber band.  He thinks that it is being stretched out from the hernia and fluid. 

I have two solutions:

1.  He will go in and suck the fluid out.  This is a series of three appointments.  He sucks the fluid and replaces with some goo that is supposed to make me feel less pain.  If this treatment works on me, I come in every six months to a year for the procedure.  Probably for the most of my life he said. 

Or

2.  Surgery to repair my bone spur, remove the hernia, tighten the ACL and generally clean out the crap that’s floating around in there.  The bone spur removal will add a nice new scar down the front of my knee, so my dreams of being a leg model are out the door.  There will be a six-week period of wearing a straight leg brace (you know how I love those) and no driving.   

He told me to continue on the elliptical and swimming because “motion is lotion” and to not jump or run whatever I do. 

After dancing salsa with a rather cute island boy two weeks ago, I was forced to explore the shot option because I was in a lot of pain.  I called the doctor and he called in a prescription…for the shot.  Was I supposed to give it to myself?  No.  I just pick it up and deliver it to the office.  Even though I thought this was strange, I went ahead and took it to Walgreen’s.  The lady asked me if I realized that the shot was not covered by insurance.  I told her I didn’t know that and inquired how much said shot would be on the old pocketbook. 

$875.

I don’t think so.

I decided that maybe it was time to get a second opinion.  I visited another doctor.  The whole time I was chanting, out loud, “Please don’t be torn.  Please don’t be torn.  Please don’t be torn.”

He told me it was not torn and I shouted “YES!”  And then came the but.  “But your ACL is not functioning.  At all.  That is why you have the sensation that you need to pull up your knee cap.  It’s because there is nothing supporting your knee.  It’s just jiggling around in there.”

Perfect. 

Basically this means that I need surgery.  Unfortunately, it’s not smart to have surgery when you knee is swollen.  He put me on anti-inflammatory pills and I’m supposed to ice every night before bed for three weeks.  Then I go back in and if the swelling is down, we schedule surgery.  

That puts it around the end of September.  I have a church commitment at that time and the first weekend of October is the Civil War re-enactment at Hallsville Western Days.  Of course I will NOT be missing that crazy fun.  So I think it will be mid-October.

I’m looking at (worst case scenario) six week in a straight leg brace or (best case) three weeks.  My boss is pretty cool with the fact that I won’t be able to drive and he is willing to make my co-workers schlep me around.  It pays to have seniority at the firm!

I’m in pain but it is manageable.  I’m not supposed to do anything other than rest for the next three weeks.  It’s probably not smart that I danced tonight at a wedding, but there were moments when people circled around me and the guy. 

It was totally worth it. 

I’m sure my stories post-surgery will be highly entertaining.  The last time I had ACL reconstruction, they put me on Vicodin and I saw Care Bears. 

This should be fun for everyone!

Today is part II in getting to know more about Lincee. I asked two of the closest people to her, to write a little something to supplement the 18 questions.

Lincee’s sister, Jamie:

My sister…my friend

Yes, you could say I was one of “those” sisters—the big sister who tolerated the presence of her little sister at the “grown-up” slumber parties. And yes, I must admit that I used the wiles only a big sister would know to get snacks and drinks from the kitchen—I timed her! “Awww…not as fast as last time…maybe next time”. I know…I know…

But I also remember skating in the garage to “Funkytown”, talking to each other underwater, and of course there’s the Cats Café. Good times…good times.

Yes, we shared experiences, and somewhere along the way…that bond that only sisters understand turned into even more—a genuine friendship. Now I see my sister and I am full of affection and pride. She is beautiful—inside and out. She is smart. She is kind to others. She embodies the value of integrity. She shows respect to all. She is the best hugger I know. And above-all, she has unwavering faith in the Lord.

Lincee lights up any room she’s in, she’s adventurous, she’s hilarious, and I miss her when we are not together. I am blessed to have Lincee as a sister and a friend.

Lincee’s BFF, Jill:

I’ve known Lincee since our sophomore year at Baylor. I saw her doing a skit for our sorority and thought, “I want to be friends with that girl!” She has been one of my best friends ever since! In college I learned that she’s confident, fun, smart and loves an audience. After college we worked together at Disney. That’s when I learned that she’s a hard worker, a stickler for being on time, is endearingly child-like at heart, loves anything dipped in Rotel Velveeta with a wine cooler on the side, and loves Christmas A LOT. Seeing her in her married years showed me she’s fiercely loyal, trusting, and loves her family dearly. Her divorce and the time following that showed me she’s strong, faithful, patient, and teachable. The last couple years have been awesome to see that even she is seeing that she’s adventurous, successful, a writer, a wonderful friend, has a merciful heart, and is just downright SUPER! I love this girl. Now let’s get to pimpin’!

If you have a co-worker, neighbor, family member, or anyone else in your sphere of influence that would be perfect for this treasure, please let me know by submitting it to me. Whatever format you choose, please include at least one picture (the more the better) and Click Here to send them.