First Entry - T Minus 2

Today, Wednesday February 22, 2005, is our last full day in the States before we fly for Europe. The series of events leading up to our forthcoming departure is worthy of a few words here. What has happened over the past few weeks could be taken to be quite foreboding, and if I were a more superstitious person, I could be quite nervous about what lies ahead. But I am not. And I am not one to dwell on things past, nor am I one who chooses to see the proverbial glass half-empty. The process of thinking about what has happened, and documenting them in the list below, will help clean the slate and open the door through which more positive energy will flow. By no means am I equating each item in the following list with every other item in the list, but for simplicity, I will list them somewhat chronologically:

- On our 5 year wedding anniversary, our only car “Monty” (a 1999 Mitsubishi Montero with 100k miles) is broken into at the train station 3 blocks from our home. The driver-side windows is shattered, the dashboard is shredded and the stereo head unit is stolen.
- The next day, my father’s best friend, Sen. Bob Thompson, tragically passes away, without expectation.
- In preparation for our trip, our visits to the dentist reveal the urgent need for Vee to have a root canal, a wisdom tooth extraction, and follow-up oral surgery. All done within a week.
- Late in the night following her oral surgery, Vee wakes up with horrible stomach pains, stumbles into a wall, goes unconscious for 4-5 minutes, freaks me out, and we both end up riding the ambulance to the Emergency Room. After a few hours of IV, meds, and nausea and vomiting, Vee is released. It takes about 1 ½ hours for the taxi to arrive and take us home.
- The next morning, I learn that my Dad was up late the same night with horrible stomach issues while at the same time my Mom ends up taking my sister to the Emergency Room for what turns out to be a failing gall bladder. My sister has surgery to remove her gall bladder the next day.
- The following morning, my parents beloved dog, Gigi, a standard poodle, passes away, after collapsing with twisted bowels.
- Yesterday, I end up in the Emergency Room with deep chest pain and coughing to find out that I have Bronchitis. As I write this, I am pumped full of Z-Pack, and a bunch of over the counter medications, soaked through the sheets, with hardly a few hours sleep.
- And the body shop still has the car.

There, done. Now, onward and upward. Let the good times roll………..