Many of you may or may not know that I’m in Minnesota. More specifically in the city of Minneapolis. You know, the one that people always pronounce “MinneaNApolis” (No – this is not INDIANAPOLIS, thank you).

I have many PWD’s around my area that I’m friends with. I’ve been attending a monthly support group for insulin pumps for somewhere around 10 years. In fact, I went to this group before I started pumping, and have been hooked ever since. One member once said that if he were forced to give up one item, either his car or his pump, he would choose his car in a heartbeat.

Now that says something!! In the winter, it gets COLD here. And to be willing to brave the extremes and use public transport, rather than give up his insulin pump, that’s something.

However, my monthly support group is different than my daily online support group – otherwise known as the “OC”, or DOC (Diabetic Online Community, not to be confused with the rapper…). The OC is something that is communicating with me at every hour of every day. The support, the connections, the partnerships, the struggles, the successes, all of it all the time. It’s the best thing I’ve found. Ever.

I was even more excited the first time I received a comment from a reader who clearly also lived in Minnesota! Minnesota Nice first commented back in mid June, on my Bloodsugars and Moods post. I’ve been hooked ever since.

I saw that she had set up a blogger profile, but the URL for her blog was not yet working. Drat. I checked back again today, following a great comment she had left somewhere, and was SO EXCITED to see that her blog was up and running!!!

Please, go give a warm welcome to my friend and fellow Minnesotan, over at her blog PurpleHaze.

Keep an eye on this one ladies and gentlemen. Some of the comments she has graced my blog with were really big deals. I mean, stuff that sticks with you, and has you reflecting on it for many days – all in a really good way. I am just delighted that we will all be able to share her story now.

I would like to highlight a couple of comments that really made me think:

On a post I did called Operating Under Pressure:

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Scott,
I try to identify my baby steps each night in a journal – writing down specific decisions and actions I took that were health empowering. Then, I get one Leggo block for each thing and build a complex tower in the corner of my living room. When the blocks are used up I take a picture of it and start over. It’s a tangible reminder of my efforts. (Although hard to tell any little tykes that visit that the tower is NOT A PLAYTHING) Today my acknowledgment was taking 3 bites outta a luscious chocolate Dairy Queen cone and chucking the rest in the trash. I have moral and ethical issues about wasting food (and anything, for that matter), but after dealing with some big health issues in the past three years, conclude that taking care of oneself is the ultimate responsibility.
Have a great week ahead. Go Twins!
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Wow. That comment was also highlighted in one of my other favorite blogs, aiming for grace.

Another comment, related to the whole Lego thing:

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Glad you liked the idea. One of my friends suggested that I “take pieces” away for unwise choices, but no, there is no way that even a small positive act can be erased – build on the victories.
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Build on the victories!

Another, with a funny story about a therapist she tried:

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Scott,I recently thought I’d try a therapist who didn’t specialize in diabetes per se, but rather eating disorders. When we met I told her that I took 4-6 injections per day and she replied “ok, 46 injections – that makes about 2 per hour” and proceeded to document it in the chart. Then she asked me to spell “insulin” and said “that’s an amino acid, right”……….??????????? I don’t know what planet this lady was from, but the aliens are among us.
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And lastly, on my last post, But what good comes from that?:

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Oh my, Scott. I guess the only thing I can say is that I was in such a high blood sugar fog for so many years, I mostly still don’t have a clearcut definition of just what I am feeling. It’s kind of a day by day distilling process, observing what floats to the surface and can be identified. One therapist told me that my depression was “anger turned inward” – maybe so. However………I am pretty confident that I can spot joy, tranquility, fulfillment and even bliss, because their brilliance cannot be denied. Diabetes may have put up a big wall to keep them out, but, it’s getting a bit rickety in places and some of the good stuff is jumpin’ the fence.
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Now, I don’t know about you guys, but I just love her approach to some of these things. Her way of delivering messages, even in these short comments, touches me in a very helpful way.

So, Minnesota Nice – here’s to you! You are fabulous! Thank you for everything you have already contributed to the DOC, and I’m sure that we will all enjoy this process of getting to know you better. I am certainly looking forward to it. And please, let’s do meet in real life sometime, if you’re Ok with that. Have your people call my people…

and some time later…