The last 40 or so days!

I have a few people telling me things are going good. For me, I have to ask 'How bad could things get?' Why do I say that? With the festive season upon us, I have to say what has been going on with us. To give you a little understanding of what I (and the family) have had to deal with over the last 40 or so days, here is a quick list (in no particular order):

• I was injured at work by exposure to Hydrochloric Acid mist and liquid,
  • (I have lung damage, lost my sense of smell, and my vision is blurry)
• My wife (Bridget) had major surgery,
  • A bolt was installed in the right rear side of her skull to allow an external hearing aid that bypasses her hearing centers or ears for for the rest of us. Yes, it sticks out so she can clip a hearing aid directly to her skull. (long story. I will elaborate once it is all working),
• The family dog died,
  
• The roof sprung a leak in several places,
  • Of course it has been raining on and off for a week+ straight and you can't repair a roof when it is raining.
• My Mother was diagnosed with Colon Cancer,
  • She is in surgery right now (while I am typing this) so I'm wasting time while waiting for a call to tell me it is over.
• The sewage line from the house to the street clogged a couple of days ago and backed up into the basement,
  • when I augured the sewer line out, the machine broke twice and I had to take it back to get it fixed.
  • Then, no one was available to help me auger out the line or unload the machine from the truck. I fell out the back of the pickup when I slipped on some leaves. The whole auger machine (about 100+ pounds) came crashing down on top of me. The fall bruised my butt (tailbone) and lower back when it happened.
  • Lucky for me, it hit me in the stomach and side. Nothing groin related was hurt so that all still works (I guess),
  • My tailbone and such still hurts pretty bad and it was 24 hours ago when it happened. I guess it will feel better in a couple of days.
• The pickup truck stalled out and everything stopped working.
  • We had to take it to the dealership because it was under warranty (luckly) and cost us about $200 even after the warranty work was done (Counting the deductable, + Gasoline to and from the dealership to drop it off, + Gasoline to and from the dealership to pick it back up two days later).
• My daughter was rushed to the hospital last night with extreme stomach pains. We thought it might be an appendicitis but the doctors said it was probably kidney stones. For a 10 year old, she is kind of young for those but that is what they said.

All in all, not a good time this holiday season.

Plus, I have not been paid since the first week of November. The railroad does not have workmens compensation if you get hurt. Your pretty much on your own. There is some money you can get from the railroad retirement board, but that has to be paid back when you return to work (so what is the real use in that anyway?)

Bills are really bad this time of year for everyone and there is only a few dollars from my tiny Navy retirement. This will be a thin Christmas season this year. I hope we can keep the electric on until after the first of the year (or not have to sell the house).

You can't make stuff up like this. It is so bad, you have to laugh.

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