Think They'll Let Me On The Plane Like This?

So, some of my good friends and old roommates decided to take this opportunity to email Lori some choice photographs of me taken in college. I can't say I look much different today, except there hasn't been an effort made to put the braids into the beard. In fact, there's a good chance I wore the same hat, super-ugly glasses, and sweatshirt in combination this winter. So much for embarrassment. Anyway, I promised to post some of them to help with the entertainment factor on this here blog.



Do not expect any pictures of my feet though. We've started taking pictures during wound care this week to give us a frame of reference to compare and look for progress. The thing is, they're pretty shocking, even to us. There's something about taking the foot out of context and shooting a picture that makes it look pretty rough. In addition, while we're seeing significant progress in terms of avoiding a skin graft, that doesn't mean they look pretty. We're still talking about pretty damaged feet. So, if you're one of those types who want to see that, let me know and I can email you pics. I just don't think they're appropriate or necessary to post here.



This week has been absolutely flying by! It's been so great to be home. Everything is more comfortable, I've got a therapy dog 24/7, and the food is to die for. Lori has been spoiling me with wonderful and tasty meals. I've also branched out on my beverages by adding herbal tea and water in the evenings to the gatorade that accounted for 100% of my fluid intake in the hospital. I was directed to get in as many calories as I could while in the hospital, so they discouraged drinking plain water. The notion was that I needed every bit of energy possible to regrow me some skin. Well, I think I'm still doing alright with that, but the warm tea is so nice in the mornings and evenings, and I was begging for cavities by drinking powerade at 3am. In any case, it just feels a bit more refined to imbibe more than one substance, which is an important feeling for a guy who can grow a 'stache like that.

It's also been a great week of work. My co-workers have been just fantastic through this whole ordeal. Not only were they on the front lines of finding a caretaker for the dog and house that I've been watching, but they've checked my mail for me and been incredibly understanding about my prolonged absence from the office. On the plus side, I was able to get in some decent hours last week and am looking at pulling a full-time week here. It's certainly not the same as being in the office, but it feels great to be able to get something done and feel like a part of the team again. One of the best things about moving out here is how happy and excited I am about going to work everyday. To be fair, I've had similar feelings at other jobs, including the firm I was working for before I left Minneapolis. But, there's something special about this crew of folks and the work that we're doing that puts a smile on my face just thinking about it.

Tomorrow afternoon I fly back down to Salt Lake. My brother is actually flying out as well so we'll meet up at the airport then hitch a ride into the city. My appointment isn't until Monday at 11am, but this was the only way to make the flight affordable. It should be great to hang out with Allen for a couple days though. My friend Cole Hanley is in town as well to do the Powder Keg rando race up at Alta, so it'll be great to see him. I don't know how he pulls that off coming from Ohio, but it's wicked impressive. And hopefully we'll get in touch with Andrew Cole again as well. Should be a good, confusing name weekend. I'm getting more optimistic all the time about avoiding the graft, but we'll see. If nothing else I'm excited to have good company to share the wait for that news with.