The life of a grape farmer, where torn trousers, sopping-wet work shirts, and "too much on the mind" are part of making good wine! Who has time for health? Read on….
le rein (rehn)
: kidney
néphrologue (m/f) = kidney specialist
les reins = the small of the back
avoir mal aux reins = to have a backache (in lower back)
Audio File & Example sentence by Chief Grape himself :
Download MP3 or Wave file
Au Centre Hospitalier d'Avignon on m'a fait une biopsy du rein.
At Avignon Hospital Center, they biopsied my kidney.
A Day in a French Life… by Kristin Espinasse
"How to Write a Blog Story"
1. Begin with a drama: "Jean-Marc returned home Friday morning in an ambulance…."
2. Change things up (don't keep talking about your new favorite pasttime (organic composting), try kidneys for a change): Jean-Marc returned home Friday in an ambulance. After having his kidney biopsy, he was required to stay the night at the hospital in Avignon.
3. Add a little humor to keep things light: Jean-Marc returned home Friday in an ambulance. After having his kidney biopsy, he was required to stay the night at the hospital in Avignon. Three lunatics greeted him, after the family fold fell apart in his absence.
4. Forget not French folklore: Jean-Marc returned home Friday in an ambulance. After his kidney biopsy, he was required to stay the night at the hospital in Avignon.Three lunatics greeted him, after the family fold fell apart in his absence. "C'est la faute à la pleine lune," Jean-Marc explained, of our batty behavior.
5. Include one line in French: Jean-Marc returned home Friday in an ambulance. After his kidney biopsy, he was required to stay the night at the hospital in Avignon.Three lunatics greeted him, after the family fold fell apart in his absence. "C'est la faute à la pleine lune," Jean-Marc explained, of our batty behaviour. "Ouf, je croyais que c'était moi! Phew, I thought it was me!"
6. No use adding a bunch of extraneous details (see below), no matter how important they seemed to you at the time:
Jean-Marc returned home Friday in an ambulance. After his kidney biopsy, he was required to stay the night at the hospital in Avignon.Three lunatics greeted him, after the family fold fell apart in his absence.
"C'est la faute à la pleine lune," It is the full moon, Jean-Marc explained, of our batty behaviour.
"Ouf, je croyais que c'était moi! Phew! I thought it was me!"
It so happened to be the day that the dogs ran off, our son had a tumultuous teenage moment, and the farm turned into Grand Central Terminal with the non-stop comings-and-goings.
7. Sum things up and remember: it's never about you, it's about that up-n-down thing called Life, in which every one of us can relate to what is most important: love and health:
Jean-Marc returned home Friday in an ambulance. After his kidney biopsy, he was required to stay the night at the hospital in Avignon.Three lunatics greeted him, when the family fold fell apart in his absence.
"C'est la faute à la pleine lune. It is the full moon," Jean-Marc explained, of our batty behavior.
"Ouf, je croyais que c'était moi! Phew! I thought it was me!" So happy you are home, mon amour. We missed you and we love you.
***
P.S.: I asked The Big Man Above to help me write today's post… and I had to shake my head in appreciation when He came up with this breezy "How To" style in which to relate a delicate subject (Jean-Marc's blood test gone awry).
Update: Chief Grape feels fine. He did not have any symptoms that led up to the testing; only, during a routine check-up, some of the results came back "hors norme" or "out of normal range". Les resultats will be ready in one week.
Regarding the ambulance ride home: it was covered by our mutuelle (French insurance plan); as Jean-Marc points out: we pay a lot for it, but there are some interesting and unusual benefits!
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Le Coin Commentaires
To leave a comment, click here. Do you have a kidney story to share? Any healthly tips? Thank you in advance!
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Archive photo (from the Frimousse or "Sweet Little Face" bilingual edition. Read it here!)
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Meantime in the Garden…
Sunflower seedlings! I wonder whether sunflower seeds are good for kidney health?…
This 3-day-old seedling is modeling a sunflower "hat" made of biodegradable materials for that futuristique fashion statement.
A venerable sunflower who lived here two years ago… She says to the stylish seedling, "Let your hair down, little one, as I have. Notice the golden curlicue on my forehead? Witness how a sunflower "of a certain age" has grace." What's new in your garden? Share a few of your garden "characters" with us in the comments box, here.
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It sounds like you are living some stressful moments. Take a deep breath, this too shall pass. Deux de mes beaux frères had two different kinds of kidney problems and they are both very fine now.
ps I’m sure you are not lunatics 🙂
Oh, j’espère que ça va aller mieux, gros bisous !
Dear Kristin, you write so well, so clever even abour this delicate little crise de la sante.
I hope that Chief Grape feels better and that life returns to “normal” whatever that is .
I know alot of men and some women with kidney stones. Very painful,
thinking of you –
Madelyn from Roslyn
Just saw Moonstruck and must say the power of la pleine lune must not be underestimated!
All our very best wishes to Jean-Marc and cheers to the family, rallying around him and feeling the vulnerability of our lives.
Kristin: Sending love and prayers to you all. Now breathe, and enjoy each other and the day.
Your story of ‘hors norme’ reminds me of a time when I was pregnant with our third child. I had been for the prescribed blood tests. I wasn’t expecting to hear the results until my next check up.
A few days later there came knock at the door and there on the step were not one but two midwives. OK, fine! Still unphased I let them in and sat down. Another blood test? Ok,I’ll book an appointment.
No! Now! Crikey, this must be urgent, or were these two vampires in clever disguise?
I was beginning to get really worried now, but the midwives could only tell me that some abnormality had been detected.
The next week was an anxious time awaiting fresh results. What was wrong? Was it the baby or was it me?
Several stressed phone calls later and it transpires that the department had got a new machine and it was throwing up anomolies with everyones tests. The machine was at fault, not me. Hmm…the joys of technology!
Oh my Kristin, what a day. I know you will keep us posted. Hope it all turns out well, including Jean-Marc, the dogs, and the teen-age angst.
I hope J-M’s tests come out OK. The only kidney stories I have are of kidney stones, having had them twice. It’s supposedly the closest a man will get to the pain of childbirth. (You’ve, no doubt, heard the joke that if a husband and wife alternated having children, the largest family would be three.) I was told not to eat chocolate and go easy on wine – well, I guess some things are worth the pain, but oh what pain! I had to have my second one extracted – and I’ll leave that to your imagination.
Salut Kristin,
Sorry to hear about Jean Marc, I hope everything is well. I’m sure he will be fine but these little dramas shake us into reality from time to time.
Two Saturdays ago I was admitted to hospital as an emergency in considerable pain (I hesitate to use the word agony, but it was pretty bad). I was operated upon for an intestinal blockage as soon as they had drained my stomach and (I presume) upper intestine. I’m fine now and my surgeon put it down to a poorly performed appendicitis operation 60 (yes 60) years ago. I can’t remember ever feeling so vulnerable in my adult life so, he may be putting a brave face on things but take care of him (I’m sure you do and will).
When my wife died she donated her internal organs to help others. Her kidneys helped two people to return to normal lives. It’s everyone’s duty to humanity to do the same. So if you don’t have an organ donor card get one today.
And as you wrote Kristin, thank goodness for Mutual.
Best wishes,
Mike
Kristin,
Please know that you and the Chief Grape are in our thoughts and in our prayers. We’re hoping to be able to help with the vendange this September
On vous aime tant et on pense à vous tout le temps.
Chère Kristin,
Please keep us posted on Jean-Marc’s test results.
I envy your French health care system. My overnight stay and surgery at the Clinique Saint-Roch in Cavaillon several years remains firmly entrenched in family lore. Where else would I be served a demi-bouteille of vin rouge with my lunch just 2 hours after surgery??
Kristin,
We’ll all be thinking of J-M and you, Max and Jackie and hoping the problems with les reins are RIEN! The part about greeting him is precious. My little family is the same way when one of us is gone, (even if Mom is gone for a few hours and even when Dad gets home from work). We are bombarded at the door with hugs, kisses, stories, crying, whatever the mood strikes, but something only a close family can appreciate as true love. I heard another Dad sum it up once and I will borrow his line simply stated…”we just love lovin’ each other” and that’s a beautiful thing!
Take care. I hope for your sanity, the results are back sooner, but one week from last Friday, is GOOD FRIDAY…perhaps the “Big Guy” has a plan to deliver good news.
Hugs,
Amber
Hope all is well with Jean-Marc and the entire family. Wishing you all well.
Debby
How to comment on the FWAD blag:
React first: You always make me laugh, even when describing a crisis.
Make it personal: I think I see a reality TV show in your future. And, I can’t believe Smokey ran away. Is that the first time since the accident?
Throw in some French learnin’: In the textbooks, I always see “mal aux dos” so thank you for the more focused word. And, what (if any) is the French expression for “fingers crossed”?
Send love and final words: I sure hope JM is OK. I always liked the British saying: “Keep calm and carry on” but your way is MUCH funnier.
(fingers crossed – for ALL of you)
oops, forgot to add a step: EDIT what you’ve written. blag=blog
S’il vous plaît dites Jean-Marc, «boire plus d’eau». Je suis entré dans une situation de rein, mais maintenant boire trois litres par jour. Le vin est le nectar de la terre, mais l’eau est la rivière de la vie.
Wonderful format for delivering not so wonderful news. Hope all is well and the biopsy is the result of his doctor taking extra precautions rather than discovering a problem. It will be a long week. I hope you can enjoy the Easter weekend.
I hope all will be well with Jean-Marc. Thank you for sharing such a harrowing day with your readers, Kristin.
And on a less mundane matter I would just like to say that I’m suffering from my own little bit of writer envy when I see — yet again — how adept you’ve become at playing with form in your work. Très divertissant!
Kristin,
My family has lived with Kidney disease for at least five generations. I am sorry Jean Marc is having to deal with this – even if a short term issue, which I hope is the case. For us, reducing sodium is most important, as is drinking lots of the right kinds of fluids. Kidney stones do not like acidity, so if stones are involved, strong lemondade is a good choice. Also, in general, walnuts are a particularly good nut for kidney patients because of vitamins and minerals. They are high in good fats, so small quantities. Here is a website for kidney friendly diet tips.
http://kidneydiettips.com/
Bon chance,
Pamela
I LOVE YOU KRISTI – YOU ARE SO FUNNY…
XOXO
MOM
J’espere que Jean-Marc s’en tire bien et que tout ce que vous eprouvez a l’heure actuelle ne soit qu’un mauvais reve.
Bonne chance!
The best to Chief Grape and to each in your family…I found out just after Christmas that I have Chronic Kidney Disease stage 3. I tell myself that I am blessed, it wasn’t stage 4, dialysis. A complete new diet with no salt and I hope to keep it at bay. The diet is good; I do not miss a thing. I’ve gained back energy and stamina and I do not let it worry me and you shouldn’t either, life goes on with hardly a bleep…so far so good! Chief Grape is strong and looks healthy he will overcome whatever in no time, it could be the tests are wrong would not be the first time….RaeDi
Trust Jean-Marc will be Ok, I know how hard He works, saw with my own eyes last Sept, thought and prayers are with you all.
Salut Kristin,
I like the new style for today’s story. I don’t like the subject matter. I do like to think the outcome will be positive. I do like Ambers comment that ‘hopefully the problems with les reins are RIEN!’
I had some biopsies when I had prostate cancer and they are not fun. I called them
“core samples”.
Except for kidney stones, apparently kidney problems don’t always have pain associated with them. I get blood tests every 4 months because the Doc says I have ’80 year old kidneys’ and they are marginal.
I guess the American word for “les reins” could be “renal” . . . relating to, or in the region of the kidneys.
À bientôt
I have been traveling around the US for the past 50 days, 8,262 miles in all and have missed reading your blog. I sure hope your husband will be okay. I think your (or his) formula for writing is great.
Home now, I can enjoy your writing again and hopefully start again myself.
Kristin,
I’m so glad your new passion is organic compost! We starting composting two years ago at our cabin in Pinetop AZ and the product we produce is wonderful. I save all vegetable and fruit kitchen scraps, egg shells, grass, leaves, some newpaper shreds, and add some horse manure (we have stables down the road from us). My husband built compost bins which we cover with tarps. We make sure we stir and water it occasionally. Compost needs a certain amount of mass and heat to breakdown. Good luck with your composting.
I hope everything is fine with Jean-Marc and life returns to normal soon. Let us all know how things turn out because as can see from the comments there are many people thinking of you and sending prayers.
Dear Kristin,
I have been reading your wonderful stories for about a year now, but this is the first time I am posting a comment. I feel as if I have come to “know” you and your family and can empathize with your fear and anxiety over Jean-Marc’s health scare. I am sending you good thoughts and will be praying that all turns out well.
Take care,
Cassie
OMD!!! Gilda Radner was right: “It’s always somethin’ “. Our prayers and good thoughts are with Jean-Marc, you and your family. Your sense of humor is a big help to get through this crisis; but inside you must be in pain for your loved one. Please know that you and your family are loved and we are praying for good results.
Des prieres pour vous tous…..comme toujours! xoxo
Fresh parsley and cilantro/coriander are good for kidney health as well.
Keeping you in our thoughts! I can totally relate to the “teenage moment”, the dogs running off, and a health scare! Sounds like you are staying positive – we tend to make mountains out of mole-hills here! LOVE the sunflowers! Especially since it’s a balmy 44 degrees in Minnesota today! Best wishes for a relaxing day!
That was indeed a very trying day! The good news is that Jean-Marc was thoroughly examined and will have more results soon. The information is useful and good to have and it will most likely put your minds at ease. I wish all of you there a relaxing and stress free week and Easter weekend!
Oh Kristin, how scary for all of you! I do hope and pray that chief grape will be just fine (as well as young master grape). Just remember how much you are loved and all those prayers being lifted up on your behalf. And to Karen, what a lovely and entertaining post! And to Ron, I love your descriptions of wine and water. On a besoin de tous les deux, n’est-ce pas? 🙂
I hope all comes out well with the tests!!! The only thing I have to share is that I found out I had a kidney stone by accident after having a UTI that didn’t want to leave very easily. I dread when it starts moving since I have heard it is like giving birth, and we know that isn’t pleasant when it coms to the pain. I have had many calls on the ambulance with men having flank pain doubled over in the fetal position crying. I unfortunately have had many patients on dialysis which is sad to see. Withthat sad note…once again I hope all goes well. I also hope you are doing fine, and are enjoying Spring!
I’m so glad that, apparently, nothing serious happened to Jean-Marc (the ambulance ride had me worried), and I’ll hope for a good result.
When I was 8 years old, I had pain on my right side, and after about 12 hours, it had gotten worse. In those days doctors made house calls. So the doctor came to see me, and decided I should be hospitalized. She thought it might be appendicitis. It turned out to be a kidney infection, and I didn’t need surgery, but had to stay in the hospital for about 3 days, plus another 3 at home, with a totally liquid diet. I recovered without incident.
I thought health care in France was nationalized or some sort of single-payer system. Maybe we can hear more about that in another post sometime. Americans pay a bundle for their premiums. Do poorer people in France get help with health-care costs? I’m glad the ambulance fee was covered.
Bonne santé et bonne chance à “Chief Grape” et à toute la famille! (My wife is living with kidney disease, and I can say that today’s comments contain some very good advice!)
P.S.: Blood tests (and waiting for the results) are no fun, but preferable to having biopsies.
Hi Kristen, I will keep Jean-Marc in my prayers, I am sure that his biopsey will turn our fine though. Think positive, as I know you do!! But It is always scary anyway, just waiting to know.
As for kidneys, I do know it is very important to keep hydrated and drink alot of water to prevent dehydration, especially with all the hard work he does outside. DRINK WATER!! 🙂
Keep me posted!! xoxo Joy
Thank you so much all for your kind comments, care and Prayers.
My doctor says it should not be a big deal… There is definitely something wrong and we should be able to fix it with the right medication once we find out what is wrong and the biopsy should reveal this.
Best,
Let’s hope it’s a false alarm, Kristin.
adding my voice to the chorus of your countless friends holding you in our thoughts and adding to our constant affection for you and your family a special prayer for Jean Marc’s health….
Hi Kristin,
My brother had surgery on one of his kidneys years ago and was able to save most of it. The doctors told him to drink a lot of cranberry juice (100% real cranberry juice, not cranberry/apple or some other mixture). It is supposed to be amazing for the health of your kidneys. I hope everything will turn out OK for Jean-Marc.
Hugs to you all!
I’m coming back to post again because I just scrolled down farther and saw your sunflower photos. Oh how I envy you. Last year before I left for France I planted seeds for giant Russian sunflowers. They were about 6 ft. tall when I left, but not ready to bloom. When I returned a month later, they were 10 ft. tall but squirrels had climbed up the stalks and completely devoured the giant seed heads. Beaucoup dommage! The blooms would have been 12 inches or more wide if they had survived the squirrels. One day I WILL have sunflowers.
Thank you very much for these caring messages! And to those of you who have been through health scares (Bill, Mike, Buffy, Bob’s wife, and others), good to read about your positive outcomes (so sorry to hear about the pain!)
Mike, thanks for bringing up organ donation. The French do not have this option on their driver’s license, Jean-Marc tells me (he thought that was a very good idea that we have in the States and surely in other places…?)
To my French cousin, Audrey: so touched to see your note!
Amber, love your rein/rien play on words!
Karen, your clever comment (and the added “step” really put a smile on my face!
Ron, Candy, and Joy – thanks for mentioning water! Chief Grape could drink more of it!
Julie F, I suffer from writer envy too! Thanks for coming out! I’ll bet your recent post and style subconsciously inspired today’s blog:
http://www.traveling-through.com/2011/04/4-lessons-in-kayaking-paddling-through.html
Pamela, thanks for the kidney diet tips link!
Mom, I love you too!
RaeDi, your positive attitude regarding your Chronic Kidney Disease is inspiring. Best to you.
Herm, thank you for “renal” which I need to add to the definition. And you, too, are an inspiration!
Cassie, so happy you commented for the first time – keep in touch!
Terese, Thanks for the tip: “parsley and cilantro/coriander”
Julie F, the image of squirrels climbing up those sunflowers – wow! Just the right image for my mind to settle on after closing down this computer for the day: the miracles all around.
Thanks again, everyone, for your affectionate words and prayers. Sending positive thoughts “right back at ya’ ” as so many are going through similar situations, in health and beyond.
May strength of family and love bring healing power to Jean Marc.
Bonjour Kristin,
I’ll be keeping you all in my thoughts, and hoping all goes well with Chef Grape’s test results.
Nearly 8 yrs. ago Baby Girl’s test results came back “hors norme” which required me to take her back to the Dr who had her do an all day test which also came back “hors norme”. She has some pretty serious Kidney issues. She also showed no signs of the problem. Thank heaven the Dr. does this test at least once while the patient is with her care. She was our family pediatrician. Sadly, we’ve outgrown her now. Baby Girl required surgery, and she has to drink a lot of water to keep the kidneys clean, have tests 2 times a year, MRI’s every 5, be careful of activities that could cause a fall or injury to the kidney area, but lives a very full life.
I hope the same for Jean-Marc!
Bon chance,
Deborah
Keep us updated Kristin. I love the way you managed to add humor to an obviously stress filled few days. Hopefully not kidney stones, George just had one and it is not fun.
We’re thinking about you all.
Love,
DianeD
Mansfield, MA
Feel better J-M!!! Thanks for sharing, K!
After my husband’s 4th kidney stone episode, he found a new urologist who told him simply, “drink lots of water, all the time” and it really has made a difference. All we drink is water and wine!
Loving prayers are with you.