Won't Be Fooled Again!

April Fools Day 1978, I was a freshman in college. Jimmy and I spent the afternoon tubing down the New River in Blacksburg, Virginia. After a fun day on the river we left to go back to college. It is a narrow road. You had to find a spot to turn around on the mountain. For some reason Jim got out of the car and I hopped into the drivers seat (Saturday Night Fever was blaring on the radio). When Jim got back in the car I very slowly turned the 1976 Toyota Corolla around on the tracks but the tires got stuck in a pot hole in between the train tracks.

We got out of the car to change drivers but as we did a freight train honking its horn came barreling around the side of the mountain. No time to think, Jim backed up against the mountain and I jumped off the side of the hill. The train smashed into the car carrying it 1/4 of a mile down the road. Luckily the car stayed on the front of the cow catcher and didn't fly into the air after being hit. So that was April 1, 1978.

Today we met with Dr. Sauter (transplant doc) and the preliminary cultures so far showed a bacterial infection in Jim's underarm area. An infectious disease doctor examined him and the two agreed to start him on a strong antibiotic and reevaluate on Monday. If the area looks like it is responding to the medicine then he is scheduled to be admitted next Friday, April 8th. If it does not look like it is responding to the meds then he will probably have to have the area drained which could delay things further.

The silver lining in all this is it is a good thing this infection didn't rear its ugly head after Jim started the transplant process or else his body would not have an immune system to fight it. Always look for the silver lining. Sometimes things do happen for a reason.

We are in a better place emotionally than we were yesterday. If all the cultures come back saying it is an infection then that is easier to deal with.

After leaving the hospital we went back to the million dollar apartment. I joke about it but this is the nicest and cleanest place of them all. This is our 6th move since landing in New York. The apartment is so nice. It is 5 minutes from the hospital. I have lots of space for all of my stuff. I have a full functioning kitchen with a dishwasher. There is an elevator (good thing because I am on the 16th floor) and a 24/7 bellman. But I think one of the nicest perks is when you look out the windows you can see the sky. We are not just looking at another brick building. I can actually tell what the weather is like outside without going to my weather app on my phone or computer. Yes it is noisy. During the day beginning before 7 am we can hear the construction noise. There is a building going up within a block from here. After the workers go home in the afternoon you can begin to hear the honking traffic all night long and sometimes in the middle of the night. It's ok. It doesn't bother me.

The view from the window at night is really nice. There are high rises in every direction. I wonder who lives there? What is their life like? What are their hardships? What brings them joy? Maybe in the next 4-6 weeks I will meet some of these people and learn their story. Everyone has one.