Happy New Year, Kinda

Has it really been that long?

I really meant to write, but my professional world got pretty crazy after my last post.

The Middle East war started, I was trying to hire a new staff person and there countless other mini dramas to contend with. All of that stressed me out more than I realized. More on that in a minute.

Hope continues to grow. While there are a number of things I wish she would make different choices about, I’m realizing those things will happen. The girl has got good values and cares about humanity. She’s a good person, which should always be the goal, right?

I did that.

And I know these other things I hope for her will come in time.

She’s working, paying her bills and embracing the balance of independence and reliance she has with me. I feel like we turned another corner.

I cook more these days to try to help her out. She loves to eat out and order food. I was falling back into cooking for myself after all these years. Paying bills and ordering food don’t necessarily go together long term. And I want some yummy but healthier options available.

Side note: she ate the breakfast hot pockets I made this weekend after saying she probably wouldn’t eat them a few days ago. I figured she would.

Anyhoo, she’s doing really well. It’s not going the way I planned it hoped, but do have a front row seat to watch.

As for me, I’ve been sick for a month. 🙄

I took off several weeks during the holidays to rest and refresh. Instead, I battled shingles in my face, eye and inner ear. Painful, scarring, and I also had a bit of facial palsy.

Ahhh, seems so quaint. On New Year’s I venture out of the house for our NYE dinner with a bit of foundation on my scars and pain meds for my ear. I would be out for another week to get my energy level up. Except somehow I had a fever again and the pain was back, so then I worked from home last week while I tried not to Google shingles complications

After a particularly bad night last week with much discomfort and little sleep I convinced myself that I had developed an encephalopathy associated with shingles because I felt like stepped on cow patties.

My PC was like, “It’s not a tumor.”

Instead, it was probably just a little viral bug, a cold, since my immune system just took a tumble.

Me: Cool, but I legit rarely leave the house. How did I catch a cold??

So, yeah that was last Thursday. I currently have an ear infection and pink eye. Oh and my sore throat is back but it’s a different kind of sore than it was this weekend.

Misery, thy name is ABM. A comedy of illness. At this rate I might still be on the sick and shut in list for my birthday. Not cool, universe, not cool at all.

I’m probably going to have to take another chunk of time off to properly recover. I know I’m replaceable, but I love my job and the people I work with. And I know that I’ll struggle all year if I don’t just take the necessary time now. I hate making these kinds of decisions. It’s not even a decision really. I also know that the only thing I can control at the moment is taking time to rest.

So yeah. All of that.

I told Hope that she’d better keep it together cause my breakdown will be completely unavoidable if she cuts up right now. 😂🙄

So we’re here. We’re good, well ok. Hope is good and I’m working on it.

Happy New Year peeps.