October 8, 2008
Last Thursday I was prepared to write a post about how we had completed the second day of the ninth week of the running program. This was significant partly because the last time we had progressed so far through the routine was nearly two years ago. In fact, it was this day of the routine that was canceled due to my unexpected stent placement, which lead to extended recovery and continued with several grave reactions to a heart medicine. Of course, we weren't able to get back on track until after we traveled around the world.
What took the wind from the sails of victory last week started with an abdominal pain I had after breakfast Thursday. (In truth, I had had a mild intermittent pain for the previous few weeks.) I spent all Thursday in bed moaning while waves of pain broke over me. By evening the pain localized in my lower right side. (If you're a doctor, or interested in medicine, you can probably guess what happened next.) The pain had not subsided by Friday morning, when I went to a local emergency room. An exam, confirmed with a CT scan, indicated a bad appendix. The surgery was later that day.
In the preoperative ward, I met the doctor, who started by saying, "appendixes are stupid little things." She went on to describe how they are just evolutionary hold-overs. Then, she described the laparoscopic surgery, including the titanium staples, one of which would remain inside to close the incision. (Another piece of metal in my body!) She finished by describing the weeks of recovery, to which I could look forward.
Afterward, I was told it took two hours to wrest my appendix away. Apparently, the bloated appendix was hiding behind a section of my colon. Of course, I think it's unclear if the appendix was actually hiding or if the colon was protecting it from being removed. I may never know. It is especially difficult to know because my gut organ syndicate has always been shrouded in darkness. But, I digress.
All of this is leading me to say, with great disappointment, that I have stopped running and can't start soon enough to not at least partly restart the program once I heal fully. Not all running news is bad, though, since Leah plans to continue.
Final thoughts: if you know me, then you know that my engineering thoughts never really quiet. Proof of this was while heading to the emergency room I calculated that after two years I had only gained one day on the program. Therefore, at the current rate of advancing one day between surgeries every two years, I should finish last 13 days of the running program in 26 years. So, at least, the plan ahead is clear.
