Bama Redux

This weekend is the Florida vs. Alabama game. In some realms, The Game to Be Rewatched. In last year's SEC Championship, Bama played an amazing offense and I'm not sure if Florida showed up. It was a heartbreaking game that ended Tim Tebow's fascinating college career on a negative note and stopped Florida's shot at a back-to-back National Championship. So you all know where I'll be on Saturday night. And just to make things more interesting, my hosts for next weekend are Bama fans. We plan to keep things civil, no matter, which team wins. But wouldn't it be a wonderful game if #7 Florida beat #1 Alambama.

3 Years

This weekend marks the three year anniversary of my arrival in the Fort. Looking back, I'm amazed at the changes in my life. When I left Florida, I said farewell to an incredible job that launched my career, great friends, family, and my comfort zone. At the time, I was unsure if I was making a colossal mistake or a giant step forward in my life, but I knew I desperately needed a change in my life. Something within me was screaming for a change of scene, even if I might eventually regret the decision.

Three years later, I can say I do not regret moving to the Fort. Within my first week, I formed amazing friendships that have provided much support, humor, fond memories, and a family away from my family. My career is in a place I love and my life has drastically changed for the better. I enjoy experiencing the wonders of the seasons and feel my mood adjust with them. The world is open to me in ways it never was before. I felt claustrophobic in Florida, surrounded by people all the time, the heat, traffic, etc. I never had time to grow, whereas now, I can try new things and alter my life as my mood dictates. I have a sense of comfort and joy I've not had before.

Here's to 3 years in the Fort and hopefully many more.

How Far Would You Go

How far would you go for a loved one? This question has been raised in the past few weeks and I've been shocked and pleased by things I've heard from people.

My sister had a medical crisis the past few weeks. Everything is fine now, but one of my first thoughts was concerning my nieces. The custody situation involving both girls is complicated and should anything happen to my sister, my nieces would be split apart. They would be sent to live with their separate fathers, one of whom is extremely unfit. I raised the prospect to hubby that should anything happen, I would want to sue for custody of both girls, so they wouldn't be separated and to protect my one niece from her specific situation. This would be a life-altering decision for us, considering we don't want children of our own. But desperate times, call for desperate actions. In the past few months, we have agreed to be guardians for our in-laws who are adopting and are required to name guardians in the paperwork. We're keeping our fingers crossed, we'll never have to act on either situation.

Another individual, who I won't name in order to protect their privacy, found themselves facing the prospect of losing a sibling the past week. Their brother requires a kidney transplant. Immediately, my friend decided she would get tested to see if she was a donor. No qualm or question, just action.

So I ask you, how far would you go? Have you ever faced the question before and what was your final decision?

Some Good News

I had a mini-procedure this week, so the docs could humiliate me a little further, sorry, I mean, run seven tests at one time. Seriously, the tests were truly embarrassing. The doc sat Becky and I down to explain what they found and didn't find. The good news is the site of my injury during the last surgery looks beautiful. Everything has healed nicely, hence that is not causing my current symptoms.

The doc gave an ambiguous diagnosis. My "organ" is overly sensitive and overreacting from the trauma it suffered during the injury. They could actually see this on my test, but they feel it's rather minuscule. As someone who deals with it daily, I don't feel it's minuscule, but okay. The doc believes with time and natural healing, the organ will normal out. Of course, there is a surgery they can do to make everything better, but I would prefer not to go through it. Also, I can do stuff to help it along, like take meds everyday and remove caffeine from my diet.

What? Caffeine is my addiction that helps me through the everyday. I have given up caffeine products, like coffee and soda, before for Lent, but knowing 6 weeks was my goal didn't make the cravings stop. How can I do it for an indeterminate amount of time? I know it's not forever, but they don't know how long it will take for my symptoms to improve.

So far this week, I have not stopped for my morning coffee. Yes, I can feel it. I have kept my soda intake to two a day. Hopefully, I can cut one of those out this coming week. So, some good news and some bad news. And some seriously bad news for those who have to interact with me, sans caffeine.

Night with the Gals

The gals and I spent the evening enjoying sundaes (they were huge) and attending a concert with one of our favorite bands. The evening was quite entertaining considering our love of the band and music. Once again we received a shout out from the band. Actually, it was three times, which being girly fans pleased us to no end. Another memorable moment form the evening was winning a bet among some gentleman concerning the UNC vs. LSU game. All I can say is please do not bet against a girl who knows her SEC teams. And just for you Mich, here's a pic of Troy, who was kind enough to chat with me about my pal in Florida who crushed on him.