Hello World?
So, it's been a bit, hasn't it? Sorry. Life has gone from insane to beyond insane as of late. Went from not sure I've got a job come December to yes there is a job, but ask again next June when we re-up our grant with the state. We may lose everyone at that point. Yay?
I put in for a job that I easily qualified for, but was shot down (didn't even get an interview). At this point I'm not sure if I should keep putting in for other jobs or ride this one out until June, and see where it goes from there. Stress? Sure, I'll have a double-helping please.
Oddly enough, that hasn't been everything that's going on. One of my co-workers went in for a surgery that was supposed to be a week out of office, and turned out she'll be out until November. That just means more work for us at the office. Joy.
Another coworker (not in my work-group, but on the same floor) of mine passed away recently, and my wife and I went to the celebration of life last night. It seems so weird that he's gone. He wasn't much older than me, and his death was unexpected. I have my guesses, but I won't dishonor his memory here as to what I think happened. He went to the hospital, ended up on life support, then off of it, and then *poof* took a turn for the worse, and then he was gone. My wife pointed out to me something that I can't help but think is a bit funny with my morbid sense of humor. We lost another co-worker named James earlier this year in a freak accident at a parade (he got run over by a vehicle in the parade), and now we've lost another coworker whose name was Tiberius (he went by Ty). My wife pointed out that we're just very glad we don't have a Kirk in the building, or else they'd probably be pretty nervous.
My neck is still fubar'd from my vacation, but it's getting better. I can go several days now without it bothering me, but it still flares up. I'm going to a Physical Therapist, and a Chiropractor to get everything fixed. Luckily I've met my deductible, so I have at least that going for me.
I've also been hitting the gym pretty regularly. While I can't do most of the exercises that I want, I can hit the elliptical...which is what I've been doing. I average about 3 miles a day, and take one day off a week. I've also cut back on my calorie intake. My goal is to get into better shape. One day at a time, right? That's what I'm thinking. I can't expect miracles after two weeks. I have to think six months down the road.
All of this is a shadow of what happened the last couple days.
My dad went into the hospital Wednesday. My mother called me and told me that dad wasn't feeling well, and went from grey-looking to yellow-looking. My immediate thought was of course, jaundice. They did some scans, and a biopsy; turns out he's got like 7-10 malignant tumors on his liver. For those that don't know, my dad had a nasty case of lymphatic cancer many years ago. Back then he was given six months or so to live and his response was, and I quote, "F that." The biopsy they did yesterday said that the stuff on his liver is cancer, but they're not sure what type. They're sending it off to identify it, and we'll know more on Monday-ish.
At this point, since it is cancer, my dad will have to do chemo, and maybe radiation. Where is still up in the air. They're in Texas at the moment, and wherever my dad wants to go, that's where they'll go for treatment. The plus side is that I think they caught it early. My dad goes in for screenings/scans every year since the first time. Plus, he had gastric bypass in November, and lost a lot of weight. I weigh more than he does now. I would think that if something was visible, when they did the surgery for the gastric bypass they would have done something then.
Any how, as for me, I'm a bit out of it. The world is a little bit numb, and while I have faith that my father will once again kick the crap out of this cancer thing, I can't help but worry. He's my dad after all. A larger than life figure that has been someone to whom I respect and look up to; I can't even fathom the thought of him not being around. Which is why I won't. I know my father; he's not a quitter. So I'm not going to quit on him either.
Forgive me if I'm not around much...I've not felt the urge to do much online because of all this.