Happy New Year MoFos – Wrapping up 2012 – Welcoming 2013

2012 was an interesting year for me, to say the least.

I really took a beating health wise.

But it wasn’t all bad.

Let’s recap.

Shall we?

In January, my dearest friend “Melody” was forced to climb Broke Box Mountain. And quite frankly, I hope she never has to climb that mountain, ever again. *shudder*

February was fairly quiet. My father spoke to the internet and shared one of his favorite stories with y’all. And I wrote a letter to Medicare, which spawned the term BYOBM [Bring Your Own Boner Meds].

March was a pretty busy month. I expressed why I believe Dr. Oz is the devil and how my father tortured me with the ticking of a clock, while working very hard on my novel. And we also discovered that I am Opposite Girl.

In April, I participated in a blogging challenge, 30 Days Of Photography, and I had an absolute blast.

The month of May arrived and completely kicked my ass. First, I couldn’t find my words. Then, we enjoyed several family celebrations:  Justin’s 16th Birthday, and Mother’s Day, and, My Mother’s 64th Birthday. And if that wasn’t enough, I had an interesting experience with a Hula Hoop when my brother took me to Walmart for the very first time in my life. Also, I sustained an injury while trying to remove excessive facial hair.

When June rolled around, I met up with some of my favorite bloggers, in real life. But I still couldn’t find my words. Then my family celebrated Father’s Day. And something as simple as new bedding CHANGED MY LIFE.

In July, two events happened that are worth mentioning. My son started driving and my blog turned six years old. The rest of the month was spent eating too much, drinking too much, and laughing too much, with my girlfriends.

August was totally uneventful. Except for that five-day stretch when we didn’t have any air conditioning and I thought I was going to die.

In September, I decided to buckle down. I spent the whole month dedicated to writing my novel. I didn’t leave the house or shower very often. And I certainly didn’t socialize very much. But, I smoked a lot of cigarettes, I drank a lot of coffee, and I made excellent progress with character developments and plot twists. I stayed up all night, every night, typing away. And it was wonderful.

Sadly, October proved to be a very hectic and very stressful month. I participated in yet another 30 Days Of Photography, which was awesome. However, that’s also when my health took a turn for the worst. And after a million tests, and a million doctors appointments, with a million different specialists, like Endocrinologists, Rheumatologists, and Neurologists – I was diagnosed with some new and scary autoimmune diseases in addition to my existing annoying medical conditions. Oh, and I turned 38 years old.

Things continued to be very hectic and very stressful in the month of November. I survived Hurricane Sandy, while simultaneously participating in two separate writing challenges: NaBloPoMo + NaNoWriMo both of which I completed. I learned how to say, “NO!” And I temporarily became day person, on accident. But once again, some more health issues came into question when I received some terrifying test results. And subsequently, I had to undergo yet another totally super scary procedure. Oh, and I might need a hearing aid.  As the month dragged on, I had to teach my cleaning lady the rule about trying to talk to me, before having my morning coffee.  I shared my religious family history with you. I made a list of gratitude. And I created our annual Thanksgiving Family Video.

And that’s why in December, I really needed take the month of off from blogging. I planned on staying home, staying up all night, and just working on my novel. But that’s not exactly what happened. Instead, I fell into a bit of a funk. I was really tired and extremely unmotivated. In fact, I think it’s safe to say I had a terrible case of the blues. Or a mean case of the reds.

Either way, I wasn’t writing very much. I wasn’t sleeping very well. And I didn’t do much of anything, other than stare blankly at the television. Seriously, people. I watched all 32 episodes of the TV series Life, back to back, marathon style. Then I watched all 25 episodes of the TV series Suits, back to back, marathon style. Followed by watching 59 out of 93 episodes of the TV series Rescue Me, back to back, marathon style. And then, there were several days when I couldn’t even find the strength to get out of bed.

Only there was NOTHING for me to be sad or depressed about. Which was even more frustrating. Mostly because if I could have figured out why I was feeling that way, maybe I would have been able to fix it. I tried everything to attempt to bust through my funkiness, including “forcing myself” to get up, “forcing myself” to get dressed, “forcing myself” to leave the house, and “forcing myself” to do shit. I “forced myself” to write. I “forced myself” to listen to music. I “forced myself” to sign up for BlogDash. And I “forced myself” to put one foot in front of the other.

But nothing really worked.

The entire month was spent robotically and resentfully going through the motions of life.

And just when I thought the month couldn’t get any worse?

It did.

I spent three days inside of a hospital, while strapped to a gurney, and an IV pole, because of a severe Crohn’s/Colitis Attack. But I will spare you those gory details. The day after I came home from the hospital, I had an anaphylaxis allergic reaction to one of the medications they prescribed and was rushed to Urgent Care for prednisone and benadryl injections. And I am currently taking all of these medications [3x’s a day, every day] to reduce the pain, the anxiety, the bleeding, and the swelling and inflammation in my intestines, colon, hands, feet and face. Also my doctor has NOT lifted the clear liquid diet rule, just yet. Even though it’s been a week. And that’s why my Christmas Dinner plate, looked like this. But hey, at least I was HOME for Christmas. And NOT in the hospital.

Basically?

The month of December REALLY sucked.

And then it sucked even more.

That is, until My Father’s 64th Birthday.

Apparently, I really needed one incredible day, with the people I love the most in this world. It was absolutely wonderful to spend time with both of my brothers, their significant others, and all of their kids. Along with the rest of my funny family and friends.

I am happy to report that I am feeling much better. And possibly even optimistic.

And that’s a wrap, people!

I am very much looking forward to a Happy and hopefully Healthy NEW YEAR!

Hello, 2013.
Please don’t suck.