Battery-Operated Humble Pie

Giving one's self over to the burden of carrying emotions and rational thoughts for two people is not my normal practice.

To split into two personalities, one representing myself and one representing my wife, during the intensity and height of a medical crisis, has [re]taught me the price of empathy, a price I've paid twice in the care of my mother in-law.  Suppressing a strong personality like mine is not easy but worth it for the sake of bettering overall family health.

I could not imagine having children who need similar or greater emotional support.

Instead, I'd rather use the strengths I have, demonstrating my skills here in this space called a blog in the public forum, in hopes of inspiring others who have the bottomless well of emotional strength from which they can easily nourish many others in their "friends and family" circles.

Just because I can construct an electronic parallel universe and carry a facsimile in my thoughts does not mean I am an empath.  Some parts of me are still closely connected to that knuckleheaded, short-tempered guy who hated to lose games as a kid and played football lineman for a while.

I'm one person who tries to see life through the eyes of seven billion individual people; however, I tend to trend our views so that I have an easier time seeing through the foggy lens of subcultural lifestyles.

This blog entry ends my current journey through the business/science of Hospital Land, a fascinating subculture all its own, nowhere close to the medical drama shows on the tellie (real life is much more interesting).

I have thanked many people along the way and have a few more to add to the list: HH courier service, Little Debbie, Starbucks, Sunchips, FedEx, Pepsi, Coke, Waste Management, Cory, Dionne, Hospira (Plum A+, latex IV bags), Stryker (Tru Fit table, iBed), Medline (portable toilet, wash pan), Philips TV, Hitachi VCR, Curad latex gloves, Trane room heater/cooler, Ingraham wall clock, 3M Avagard D hand sanitizer, Air King fan, LA-Z-Boy chair (style OLH114), Alinia, Lomotil, Thermoserv, Sanis by Cintas toilet paper holder, Kimberley-Clark paper towel dispenser, Stoko foam soap, Danny, Lance, Evelyn, KCI, HGA, EnovateIT, Dell, and the flower arrangement providers like Peggy's Log Cabin (more thanks to them after collating all the cards).

A special thanks to my friends, family and wife's work colleagues for their support, both to those who visited and those who called.  My niece was kind enough to sit with her uncle during her aunt's medical procedure - moments like that are irreplaceable, making me appreciate even more the emotion/time investment parents and caregivers put into raising children.

A nod to Bill Gates and Warren Buffett for promoting volunteer wealth distribution.  Whatever their reasons/motivations, they carry on the tradition of thousands of years of civilised people building a better tomorrow.

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As a small thank you to a very supportive friend and his wife (a former work colleague of mine), here's a note from him for those who have dull knives and such to sharpen:  "Rich Hosner will be sharpening on location at Design World in Madison, Alabama, on Hwy 72 just west of Hardee's - this Saturday - and every 3rd Saturday - from 1 to 5 p.m.  Hope you can go by and take him an item to sharpen.  Also - he will be doing weekly pick up and delivery in the Huntsville, AL, area, and can do mail delivery out of the HSV area - so if you can't go to Design World this Saturday - he can still help you.  Just call the number below to get on the schedule.  Hosner Sharpening Service  256-541-7843. IF YOU TAKE A PRINTOUT OF THIS BLOG AS A COUPON, HE WILL GIVE YOU $1 OFF - JUNE 19TH ONLY!"

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Now, back to your regularly scheduled satirical blog!

For starters, sorry, Celtics, but I'll never place bets on you again when the Book of the Future is put away.  Whoever's paying off the World Cup refs, I want to know 'cause some colleagues of mine are having a fire sale on cement shoes and I acquired a load that accidentally fell off the back of their truck.  Finally, I ask if whatever the CDC doesn't know won't kill you.

Too tired to reread and edit - hope this's legible.  G'night.  Sleep tight.  Don't let the bed bugs bite off more than they can chew in one swallow with their mouths and eyes open larger than their stomachs can churn butter the old-fashioned way, one digest at a time.