At the Closing of the Year

I can honestly say that 2004 has been the most tumultuous year of my life. I changed jobs, moved, got married, and dealt with many crises and stressful events. But then, we all do.

But truthfully, the last thing I want to talk about is myself. The events of faraway take center stage now, a tragedy worth being depressed about. It's far more disastrous, possibly more horrific, than 9/11...and it's just a fluke of nature, a casualty of existence that struck indiscriminately. Though life isn't a chance, living is. And having it swept away or not is a roll of the bones. I've never said otherwise, despite my faith.

So I'm not going to look back much on this year and get introspective. It was a crazy year, and had a lot of fun and a lot of happiness even amidst the sadness and uncertainty. I won't even begin to speculate about 2005. We can only take what it is as it comes. More obvious words were never spoken.

Vicissitude

That's the word of the day, then.

This Christmas was not the usual fair. I had my own personal, brief Christmas with my wife on Saturday morning, and so I am content. But it wasn't the relaxing weekend I'd have liked it to be. We spent three consecutive days in the emergency room for 6+ hours each time. Marisa's mother, Lidia, got a very, very serious bacterial ear infection (a variant of meningitus), which spread to her brain and spinal column. She's being treated, and with some lasting difficulties, she should recover in a week or so. The doctors said it was a close call, though. Had we heeded the advise of the EMS people who showed up when we called 911, she would most certainly be dead now. They just barely caught this one.

Lidia is a tough old Italian lady (more Hobbit than human, I say), and well-loved indeed by her three children. I saw a lot of that family unity over the weekend—this new family that I'm a part of. I'm proud to be counted among them now, even though I sometimes still feel like an outsider. Yet they have accepted me in full, I know that.

The real trouble lay in the not knowing, the waiting, the worrying. We didn't know how serious it all was, were beginning to fear the worst, but at least things are stable right now.

So that's that so far.

Christmas

I don't feel too bad. A lot of other weblogs out there are badly outdated. This is a busy time for everyone, for all different reasons.

While I'm still learning to adapt to my new work schedule (normal human hours), I've been otherwise enjoying lots of Firsts (first Christmas tree, for example) as a married man—but mostly just hoping that everyone gets through the holidays in good health. It's going to be a fast Christmas this year, I think.

Procrastination and countless errands have stalled my writing endeavors. Figures. I owe Poison Clan Press a story submission and hope to have that finished soon; it's already overdue and I hate being late about anything.

Have a good Christmas, to those of you who enjoy it like me. To those of you who don't, hold on tight and you'll weather this yuletide monsoon. It's almost over!

Word of the Month

Santa Claus commits the greatest act of solecism each year—breaking into millions of homes in the dead of night—but we forgive him anyway.