Hello friends, it’s been a while.
The good news is that after a few days after the previous post, the bone scan proved negative for any type of anomalies and they do not think I have leukemia. I cannot even begin to tell you the horror of those weeks where I did not know how long I had on this plane of existence; how I would have to tell my children that I was very ill; and all the other things that run through your mind when you are confronted by your own mortality. In my case, it happens much to frequently; which leads me to believe that I still have a purpose here on this world. I have a pretty good idea of what I have to do (write about my experiences from the past 8 years and what I have learned and what perhaps has been passed on to me); I’m just starting to get my feet under me again after that little health scare and I’m finally back at the Mac typing away at the novel.
We also had another scare in this time frame: our youngest cat, Gryphon, managed to swallow a piece of my youngest daughter’s school diorama; and he clogged his intestines so badly they had to do exploratory surgery and pull out all of the offending material. I am blessed with the fact that my wife has access to a credit line that can be used specifically for veterinary purposes, and we were able to get the necessary work done to save our little boy. He’s doing well now, as a matter of fact; yesterday was the first day he was allowed to run around free in the house again after having his stitches (actually they were surgical staples) removed. He was isolated in my oldest daughter’s room for two weeks as they didn’t want him in contact with the other two cats where they could be playing and rip out the delicate work that was done on poor Gryphon…so naturally that drove both my daughter and the cat to climb the walls…literally! He’s back in the fold of his two older “brothers” (who are actually brothers themselves from the same litter) and resting comfortably on the comforter on my bed with them as the snow falls outside.
Back East, we are in the midst of 5 days of snow, digging out, and more snow. Today is even worse than over this past weekend as we now have blizzard conditions outside…but it’s warm in the house (for now, and as long as Jersey Central Power and Light holds up their end of things) and outside of my back hurting like all hell, I am very thankful to be here. Yes, my kids are home and my wife and I have the usual martial bickering going on (which usually happens in the winter when two people who’ve been together for 19 years start getting cabin fever). Tess’ birthday is this weekend, and I plan on making it a much better one than I did last year (which I’d rather not talk about, but you can read about in the archives). The funniest “gift” I have ever given her will be a visit to the tax assessor’s office on Saturday (where we can hopefully get our property taxes reduced), followed by a nice family dinner and a visit to a movie for just the two of us (the new “Wolfman” remake, which looks damned good) later on. Of course, as long as we have no more snow that decides to pop out of nowhere that is!
So it looks like the kids will be home again tomorrow (I decided I’m keeping them home regardless of what the school district says; based on what I’m seeing out there right now, there is no way in hell I am sending one of my daughters on a bus on these roads, and walking the other one through what should be a normally 8 minute stroll into a 30 minute ordeal is out of the question…for both my daughter’s safety and my back, which would NOT respond well). Tess will have to go to work (but we have a couple of guys digging us out later tonight when this is supposed to stop, although they keep moving that later and later)…but I will be more than happy to be alive, and well, and snowed in.
It was much better than the alternative was a few short weeks ago.
“Peace is not the absence of conflict, but the ability to cope with it” – Anonymous
BLOG NOTE: I have a lot of political thoughts I’ve been keeping a journal on and bottled up over the past few weeks, so be forewarned…lots of opinions coming up in the next few posts. As much as I am a Democrat and left-leaning, it is time that this President recognizes a few things from an average Joe like me…someone who was a supporter, and who is now sitting on the fence on whether or not a Primary Challenge is warranted. We wanted certain things, were promised things, and while I have patience for their delivery…I have no patience for compromise that will destroy the promise itself and turn it into meaningless legislation. Trust me, stay tuned…
Intersections In Real Time 