Wow, I did it again...

Now its been over 2 years since I last posted here. So much has happened I don't know where to begin.

A few months after my last post Christine and I broke up. I didn't see it coming... I was so wrapped up with the loss of the leg I wasn't paying attention to what was important and the resentments she had built up has cause her to become distant. As I tried to reach out to her she withdrew more and finally let me know how she felt.

Leaving was very hard on me. I still miss the kids a lot, but I did get a visit with both of them a few days before Christmas year before last and I saw Breanna down in Southern California for lunch while she was with her Grandma. I am hoping I can get down to visit Johnnie sometime soon.

I moved up to Sonoma County, Rohnert Park specifically, and got back into working on race cars part time. It felt good to get up and be physical but my limitations became apparent very quickly. I started having problems with my left foot almost immediately. I would go on a race trip, get a blister and spend months healing up... or more accurately not healing up and eventually losing my big toe to an infection. After the next trip it was the same thing on the next toe, then the third but we managed to heal it. All it took was a customized shoe and sitting on my ass for 6 months.

So where am I now? The current battle is with a couple of pressure sores on the back of my knee on the stump leg. I have a new prosthetic leg (its tie-dye and looks awesome!) but I have started to have issues with it. I am hoping to get the bugs worked out and heal up so I can seriously work on losing weight. My left knee has arthritis and inflammation around the kneecap which have been causing me lots of pain. More exercise will help that too. I am also finally seeing a therapist to help me put perspective on my situation and find some happiness.

As far as work goes I am still technically unemployed but I am working on some projects. My Dad wrote a cookbook and developed some spice rubs for pellet grilling. I built his website http://www.unclebobssmokinhotbbq.com and will continue to help him try and grow his business. It's been very rewarding in so many ways, unfortunately not financially... yet!

I am going to try and post more... seriously :)

Has it been over a year?

I didn't realize it had been so long since I posted anything here. I guess a personal update is in order.

I moved to Santa Clara with my family (GF Christine and the kids, Breanna and John) to a 3br house from our 2br apartment in August. The change in attitudes was almost instantaneous. We are all much happier here. We are paying more now but we get so much for the extra money that its actually cheaper in the long run to live here. We are closer to Christines office so her commute was cut in half, and the kids schools are convienient for her to pick them up as well. She has also started heavy use of coupons and ad checking before grocery shopping and it has resulted in big savings for us. I will write more about the house at a later time.

As for my medical issues, the diabetes control is up and down these days. I am being treated at specialized clinic and they have been changing my regim a lot. It seems like im always chasing the numbers lately. But that could also be related to a foot wound I am battling at the moment as well.

I have had an open wound in the bottom of my foot for going on 10 weeks. On the outside its a small deep hole (I say small but its about 3/8" across) and inside it opens up to a large cavity that basically goes to the bone. I am being seen weekly at the wound care clinic but its not getting smaller. I have been waiting this whole time for approval for an MRI so we can move forward with either corrective surgery to attempt to save the foot or a below knee amputation which will put me out of commision for close to 9 months but in the end may be the better solution. It's been 4+ years of complications and I have living to do!!

I have made so many t-shirt designs in the last year that I don't know where to start... I guess I'll save them for another post.