I have history of painless enlarged lymph nodes 3.2 cm, fna neg non-hodgkin 's (7/09). past week i've had painful thyroid/local area. any correlation?

Possibly: Where was your enlarged node? 3.2 cm is quite large and concerns me. I know the fna was negative but i would suggest seeing a surgeon and removing the node, provided its easy to get to it. If its deep and difficult to reach i would suggest a ct guided core needle biopsy performed by an interventional radiologist. No idea if this node has any relation to your thyroid.