Day 336 – Another Fingernail Bites the Dust

We have been giving some thought as to how to celebrate Jeff’s first birthday.  We haven’t settled on a menu but we will definitely have chocolate cake.   We’ll invite family and friends for a birthday bash!  The Big Day is just one month away!

In the meantime, Jeff is dealing with some nasty side effects that are most likely attributable to his immunosuppressant, Mycophenolate.   He bruises and bleeds easily, has lower back pain that causes him to rock to one side when he walks, experiences blurred vision frequently, and he seems to cough a lot especially when he tries to sing. 

Some of his side effects – hand tremors and the swelling in the balls of his feet - may be caused by more than one of his medications.  And, he lost another fingernail.  He continues to joke that now that he has his new bone marrow, he just needs a new body.  For all that, he is spending his days productively.   Jeff’s next appointment with Dr. Porter is Wednesday.  We have a lot to report.

The spring term has come to a close and I finished my Speech Communication class with a commemorative speech about Jeff.  The assignment was to commemorate someone you know – or had known – from a prepared manuscript.  Throughout the course, we students had gotten to know each other pretty well through our speeches and classroom exercises.  We had developed a warm camaraderie.  When I wrote my speech, I was afraid that I had not captured Jeff’s essence.  However, after delivering my speech, my classmates were especially nice to me.  Their critiques were kind and favorable.  In the hallway during our break, several of my classmates gushed about how they felt they really got to know Jeff.  So I did capture Jeff well!  When I got home, I told Jeff that my classmates liked me more for having introduced him to them!

Here is the opening paragraph of my speech.  I am debating posting the rest of the manuscript.  What do you think?

Joy Island

There is no one I would rather be stranded on a deserted island with than my husband, Jeff.  I have always said this about Jeff, and for good reason.  He is pleasant under almost any circumstance, is a world-class problem solver, can engineer anything, loves a good challenge, AND maintains his good sense of humor always.  His McGyver-like skills would ensure we would eat on that deserted island and I know we would have more than adequate shelter.  He would keep us laughing even as we faced danger.