Back in Business, Sort of!

currently reading

I'm pleased to say that I'm back and ready to get back into gear with the website, the reviews, and the freelance work.  It's been just over six weeks since everything went crazy, when a mass was discovered in my liver.  As of last week, it was removed at USC Hospital in Los Angeles, and I'm on the road to recovery.  They still don't know what it was as pathology is out still (sort of a scary thing to wait on!), but with the mass (the size of a loaf of bread) gone I already feel much, much better.

I know it's corny to say that my attitude is better in the face of fear and suffering, but it really is.  I'm so grateful for my family and friends and so much in life seems completely irrelevant in view of what happened.  I have to thank my friends for the cards, flowers, and the delicious meals that have been arriving nightly (and everyone so generous as to make sure my parents are fed as well!).  The phone calls that were so encouraging even when at times all I could do on my end was cry.  They know who they are-I can never thank you enough!

All that time in the hospital (17 nights at two different times) should have led to some great reading opportunities, but I read virtually nothing but the LA Times towards the end.  It hurt too much to hold up a book.  Now with recovery I'll have some time to play catch up.  My apologies to the publicists who were hoping for certain reviews by release dates-I'll try to catch up eventually.  I did have to drop a few print magazine assignments (BUMMER!) but I hope to recoup those eventually.

So I have a few meaningless observations to share:

• USC doctors all look like hair models, yet they are exceedingly kind
• the view of LA at night is possibly the most gorgeous thing in the world
• moms are great to have around to calm you when you start to panic
• Jello is unfairly maligned-on some days it was the only little thrill to be had
• even the homeless in LA have Blackberry's
• every single nurse was unimaginably nice-I felt like a princess!
• Ambulance drivers don't take tips!  Who knew?

Right now I'm reading Caribou Island by David Vann, and after that I'll have things back in gear.  For the Eastern European Reading Challenge I have Travels in Siberia next.