Ryan Moves to Ohio / Mystery Illness Continues / Baby's First Visit
Last week was a crazy week around here. Nicole and I finished up dog/house sitting for her friend and coworker but both of us came down with a cold so it was a rough beginning to the final week of October. Immediately after that, Ryan and his fiancé Kim hastily moved to Ohio from here in Portland.
Now, we knew this was coming. Ryan got laid off only five weeks ago back in September, then nearly immediately they announced plans to move to Ohio so all that was left was to wait out the final month of their apartment lease and then go. It was amazing just how fast they were suddenly gone. On a Monday morning, they rented a twenty-foot U-Haul truck and by the mid-afternoon, a small coalition of us had it completely loaded for them. It was absolutely stuffed. The next morning, they were on the road east. It happened in the blink of an eye, and now they're gone. Two months ago, if you would have told me my brother would be losing his job and moving to the east coast in a matter of weeks, I wouldn't believe it. It took them five days of driving to make it there and they've got friends who are putting them up for a few months. Hopefully the job market is better out there! We shall see! In the mean time, it's taken a toll on my mother, who is now actively trying to get my sister and I over more often. Can't blame her. Even though Ryan was kind of anti-social and never got out much to hang out, it's still going to be strange not having him just down the street.
In my last entry, I mentioned that I've caught this infection that I can't seem to heal from. Basically, back in July, these itchy red bumps began appearing and spreading all over my thighs and torso. My primary care doctor thought it was bacterial, but after two rounds of antibacterial drugs, there's been no change. I went to see a real dermatologist and they were very intrigued. So intrigued that all the office doctors and nurses were brought in to see the unique illness I have. They even took photos. I'm used to having strange infections. When I had an out-of-control fight with mononucleosis eleven-and-a-half years ago and a full-body purple rash developed before I became medicated, the doctors who saw me were amazed by the rash and used it as an opportunity to instruct the offices' other doctors and nurses. They were all brought in to inspect and view me while I was on the table suffering. So here we are again in 2013 and I've got another mystery on my hands. The dermatologist is taking a stronger approach than just assuming my current mystery illness is bacterial. They cut out two pieces of my flesh to biopsy at a lab and have put me on a steroid cream. So far, there've been no results, but time will tell...
Last week, we had a unique visitor to our humble apartment. Matt and Cassandra's five-month-old bouncing baby boy, Liam, came for a dinner and game night visit. I understand that it was one of the first times Liam has been away from home for an extended period of time, so I'm quite pleased that we were his destination. It was a fun evening with my college friends, whom I haven't seen since before Liam was born. Liam himself was quite mellow and comfortable, and they'd come completely prepared. Nicole and I tried our hand at a custom pizza for the adults, and we spent the evening catching up over a game of Apples to Apples. It was a relief to have had everything go off without a hitch and to finally meet the little guy. We have another game night scheduled for only a few weeks from now, so we shall continue the fun.
Now, we knew this was coming. Ryan got laid off only five weeks ago back in September, then nearly immediately they announced plans to move to Ohio so all that was left was to wait out the final month of their apartment lease and then go. It was amazing just how fast they were suddenly gone. On a Monday morning, they rented a twenty-foot U-Haul truck and by the mid-afternoon, a small coalition of us had it completely loaded for them. It was absolutely stuffed. The next morning, they were on the road east. It happened in the blink of an eye, and now they're gone. Two months ago, if you would have told me my brother would be losing his job and moving to the east coast in a matter of weeks, I wouldn't believe it. It took them five days of driving to make it there and they've got friends who are putting them up for a few months. Hopefully the job market is better out there! We shall see! In the mean time, it's taken a toll on my mother, who is now actively trying to get my sister and I over more often. Can't blame her. Even though Ryan was kind of anti-social and never got out much to hang out, it's still going to be strange not having him just down the street.
In my last entry, I mentioned that I've caught this infection that I can't seem to heal from. Basically, back in July, these itchy red bumps began appearing and spreading all over my thighs and torso. My primary care doctor thought it was bacterial, but after two rounds of antibacterial drugs, there's been no change. I went to see a real dermatologist and they were very intrigued. So intrigued that all the office doctors and nurses were brought in to see the unique illness I have. They even took photos. I'm used to having strange infections. When I had an out-of-control fight with mononucleosis eleven-and-a-half years ago and a full-body purple rash developed before I became medicated, the doctors who saw me were amazed by the rash and used it as an opportunity to instruct the offices' other doctors and nurses. They were all brought in to inspect and view me while I was on the table suffering. So here we are again in 2013 and I've got another mystery on my hands. The dermatologist is taking a stronger approach than just assuming my current mystery illness is bacterial. They cut out two pieces of my flesh to biopsy at a lab and have put me on a steroid cream. So far, there've been no results, but time will tell...
Last week, we had a unique visitor to our humble apartment. Matt and Cassandra's five-month-old bouncing baby boy, Liam, came for a dinner and game night visit. I understand that it was one of the first times Liam has been away from home for an extended period of time, so I'm quite pleased that we were his destination. It was a fun evening with my college friends, whom I haven't seen since before Liam was born. Liam himself was quite mellow and comfortable, and they'd come completely prepared. Nicole and I tried our hand at a custom pizza for the adults, and we spent the evening catching up over a game of Apples to Apples. It was a relief to have had everything go off without a hitch and to finally meet the little guy. We have another game night scheduled for only a few weeks from now, so we shall continue the fun.