Where To Begin…

I guess where I left off would be a good spot. Since I don’t have a photographic memory, I’ll have to just give bullet points of what happened since then….I may even give some details….

Thanksgiving was ok. Dinner got eatten and all had a good time.
Christmas came and went. Don’t remember much from it so it must not have been too bad.
In February, Joe and I had our 9 year anniversary. I told him to start saving up because for our 10th, I wanted to go on a cruise. So far….he hasn’t saved a dime….
March through May included difficult times at work. At the end of May, the office manager up and quit with no notice. The regional manager called and told me that I would have to cover for her until they could find someone to fill the position. I told them that they could just give me the position since I knew all the work and could do it for them. But they said no….so I quit on the spot. Shortly after, I cashed in my IRA and lived off my savings for a wonderful 2 month vacation.
When the money started running low, I started looking for jobs. My friend Shelby worked for the state up in Austin and she suggested I do the same. When I told Joe that I was thinking about it and wanted to know what he though, his response to me was that it was my life and he couldn’t tell me how to live it, but I shouldn’t expect him to be moving to Austin if I went.
On July 30, I got a job with the state of Texas in the DPS office and moved in with Shelby. Joe stayed behind.
Three weeks ago, Joe’s stepdad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. They gave him 6 months with chemo or 3 weeks without . He decided to try and fight it and started the chemo right away. A few treatments later, the doctors said that it wasn’t working and he decided to check in to a hospice. He spent a lot of time in pain, so the doctors there kept him pumped up on morphine. After a couple of days, the drugs weren’t working any more and he was in almost constant pain. Not too long after, he passed away. I wish he could have gone without all the suffering, but I’m glad he didn’t have to endure it long. Joe’s been taking it really well. He’s been really strong for his mom and the rest of the family.
After visiting with his stepdad in the hospice, his mom got pneumonia and was hospitalized for over a week with breathing tubes down her throat. She finally got over it and went home. Two days after being home alone, she got her air hose (she’s on oxygen) wrapped around a chair and caused herself to fall when she was on her way to the bathroom. She got a nasty bump on the head and a bloody nose. She ok now, but now Joe is worried about leaving her home alone.
This Saturday, I’ll be moving into my own apartment and moving all my stuff up from Houston…including the dogs. Joe says that we will still be ok in a long distance relationship, but I’m less optimistic. Don’t get me wrong….I really do hope we make it, but I just don’t see how.

So now you’re all caught up. I can’t promise that I’ll update this thing all the time, but I will promise to make a real effort to write at least once a week.