The Price Family Home Companion

Just Men

My grandpa passed away on Thursday. He was a good man and we miss him dearly. He was sick with cancer for a long time now, so it's not without some relief that his suffering has come to an end. Also, we can rejoice knowing he is where "the spirits of just men are made perfect."

Salem on Birthdays

Salem, 2, believes that her birthday will bring forth untold treasures and newfound freedoms. Not only has she told us that she's turning 4, but that she expects a Hello Kitty bra (despite the obvious lack of boods), Hello Kitty scissors, and a knife (you know... for peanut butter).

Corneal Ulcer

It's day 12 and I'm still dealing with an ulcer in my left eye. If it sounds painful, it's because it is. It was pretty much gone this past weekend, but flared up again once I stopped taking the drops (at the direction of my optometrist).

So, I've been referred to a specialist (cha-ching). It appears to be getting better again, but is so aggressive I have to go to the doctor often (I've been 10 times in the past 2 weeks).

Yeah, not fun...

2 Feb 2005: Salem says "Daddy has a pink eye and a white eye. I have two white eyes. When Daddy's eye gets better, he'll have two white eyes too."

Also, when the girls picked me up at the office, Chantell mocked my pain by leaving this sketch (left) of my plight on my white board. It was nice to have some relief, even if it was only the comic variety.

3 Feb 2005: Went to the doctor again this morning. She gave me a nice scare by saying that if the ulcer gets worse it could "eat through the cornea and take the whole eye." Fortunately, the ulcer is improving, but she said that they need to monitor it closely and recommended I see the doctor again tomorrow! Despite the complete depletion of our Health Savings Account from this and other recent health issues, I believe I'll be following her advice. The thought of eye-eating ulcers kinda freaks me out.

4 Feb 2005: Another day, another visit to the doctor. This time with the head corneologist (yeah, I made that word up) and specialist in infectious diseases of the eye. I found him quite abrupt and impersonal. I think he may have spent a whole 5 minutes on me.

5 Feb 2005: Back again... except they charged me extra because it was a weekend (as if I wanted to be there). They generously gave me tomorrow off... When will the madness end though?

On the bright side, it looks like we may be hitting our sky-high deductible after all this year. That will certainly come in "handy."