You know, I see a lot of people post on facebook, the things they are thankful for on a daily basis. Sometimes I wonder if I could do the same thing. Don't get me wrong. I am blessed, in my own way, but it's a matter of being able to count those blessings. It takes a special frame of mind to be able to spot the small things in your life that you are thankful for.
I'm not going to sugarcoat things here either. My regular readers should know that well enough. This has a shit storm of a year. It seems that not a damn thing has gone according to "plan". Just to recap, Amanda lost her job, we had Gracie, Amanda had gall bladder surgery, I lost my job, we started school, we both struggled with depression, and obviously, the aforementioned has caused quite a strain on the one thing that I thought was unwavering; my marriage. Things are slowly getting better. However, It will take a long time for things to be back to the way they were before we got to this point.
I think its important to not that I have had my own personal struggles as well, and during these times it was difficult to be the husband and father my children deserve. I don't think its appropriate at this time to go into details, but let's say that I am a better and healthier man for it.
I am thankful for my absolutely beautiful wife, and gorgeous daughter. For those of you that dont have the pleasure of knowing my wife. I promise you...she is someone that can change your life just by knowing her. She is loving, incredibly intelligent, and crafty. I am thankful for my daughter even though she is a handful. I am thankful for my son, and all his incredible talents, and as odd as it sounds, I'm thankful for his other family. He has a Mom that cares for him to the ends of the world, and a step dad that loves him like his own son, and thankfully shares Xander's love for sports. Lord knows, I know nothing about it,
I am thankful for my family's support through all these trials that my family has been through. They have never once judged me. They have simply supported me, and told me they loved me. They support me in more ways in one. My mom and dad and working together to make sure that I get the bariatric surgery that i so desperately need. I'm also thankful for my wife's family, and my job and co-workers. I'm sure there is someone I am forgetting, but I didn't intend for this to be a long blog entry.
I got my paperwork turned in at NEA Baptist Hospital to see if I qualify for charity care since we are still struggling financially, and hopefully I will get approved. I was able to get letters of medical necessity from my family doctor and chiropractor. I will be attending a seminar for the bariatric surgery as a first step on Dec 1st.
I will keep you guys updated. I am also thankful for hospitals like NEA Baptist that are willing to help those in need with these types of programs.
Ill try to update the blog after the seminar on the 1st!
Happy Thanksgiving BFL Readers!
**This blog is Deprecated and is no longer updated** Not just a weight loss blog!! The Times and Trials (and ramblings) of a fat, divorced Daddy of two, trying to keep it together, lose weight and make a living. P.S. This is an outpouring of my thoughts, so grammar and punctuation take a back seat to that. You have been warned!!!
The next step....a gastric sleeve
Well, I got my test results back. Everything was normal. I guess it's as good a time as any to let my readers know that I plan on undergoing bariatric surgery. Namely, a gastric sleeve. Regardless what some readers think, I have genuinely tried to lose weight, but unfortunately, back and hip problems have kept me from the ability to remain active. I have a pinched nerve in my back that makes my legs burn and tingle when I stand. I was also diagnosed with Lumbar Radiculopathy which is a fancy way of saying a herniated disc. Therefore I was able to obtain a letter of medical necessity and have begun the first stages of getting the surgery done.
I know this will controversial for some readers, as not everyone agrees with bariatric surgery, but I'm not doing this for my readers, I'm doing it for my family and myself.
Thankfully my father is helping with the red tape at the hospital while my mom helps financially. I am getting the surgery done at a non profit hospital so they will put me on a sliding scale for payments. Dr. Jones will do the surgery at NEA Baptist Memorial Hospital, and I am going to push to get it done by the end of this year, or early next year, as I already have all the paperwork done that needed to be done.
I will pick back up on blogging, although it certainly wont be daily, I will keep the blog up to date as I go into this journey. If anyone reading this has gotten the gastric sleeve, please post your experience.
For more information on the gastric sleeve click me.
I know this will controversial for some readers, as not everyone agrees with bariatric surgery, but I'm not doing this for my readers, I'm doing it for my family and myself.
Thankfully my father is helping with the red tape at the hospital while my mom helps financially. I am getting the surgery done at a non profit hospital so they will put me on a sliding scale for payments. Dr. Jones will do the surgery at NEA Baptist Memorial Hospital, and I am going to push to get it done by the end of this year, or early next year, as I already have all the paperwork done that needed to be done.
I will pick back up on blogging, although it certainly wont be daily, I will keep the blog up to date as I go into this journey. If anyone reading this has gotten the gastric sleeve, please post your experience.
For more information on the gastric sleeve click me.
Chest Hair and Doctor Golden.....
Not ready to make the big announcement yet, but I went into the doctor today and a full, head to toe work up in preparation for a referral. My morning started with them running a complete (8 vials!) blood lab. Checking Cholesterol, Liver and kidney function, blood glucose, thyroid, and a whole host of other things. I should have the results from the blood tests tomorrow.
Now before I go into any further details, I need take the time to explain a momentary laps of judgement. The other night, in the attempt to draw a laugh, I decided (since no one sees my chest except Amanda) to shave a heart into my chest hair as a gag. I do not have alcohol to blame as I am 11 days sober!!! Unfortunately, it was just me being stupid. I woke up the next morning and suddenly it dawned on me.... I HAVE A FULL PHYSICAL TOMORROW! They are going to see the heart, and I am going to have to explain it.
The visit was almost over (i thought). They had done xrays, bloodwork, measurements, BMI...you name it. Well, I went to pee, and when I returned to the room I was greeted by 2 nurses and an EKG machine (SHIT!) I knew what was coming. "Mr Boling, we are going to do an EKG, please remove your shirt and lie on the bed." I immediately went on the defense. "OK....but before I take off my shirt, I need to explain something" (at this point, I think they were prepared for me to tell them I had a third nipple, or an alien baby growing from my abdomen, sans Total Recall). "I thought it would be cute to shave a heart into my chest hair, so when I remove my shirt, don't laugh, OK?" The nurses both acknowledge with smirks on their faces. No quicker did I have the shirt above my head, they were both laughing. "See this is what I DIDN'T want to happen. Don't be gossiping to the nurses!"
They hooked me up to the EKG and the shaved heart proved to be useful when attaching what felt like thousands of what I call "Diodes". Im not sure that's the technical term. They finally finished, and a few minutes later, my good, familiar, and favorite doctor was in the room (Dr. Golden). I have been seeing this man since before I had pubic hair. He explained to me that the EKG uncovered what is known as a "Bundle Branch Block" (sounds like a decent band name). If you are interested in reading more about this disorder (for lack of better word) you can learn about it by clicking here.
I was also put on blood pressure meds, and given a referral to a (currently) undisclosed Dr. Golden took a full physical (turn your head and cough please), and really put me through the ringer. I will post my blood test results tomorrow.
I will make a big announcement when/if things work out like I'm planning. I dont want to get ahead of myself.
Now before I go into any further details, I need take the time to explain a momentary laps of judgement. The other night, in the attempt to draw a laugh, I decided (since no one sees my chest except Amanda) to shave a heart into my chest hair as a gag. I do not have alcohol to blame as I am 11 days sober!!! Unfortunately, it was just me being stupid. I woke up the next morning and suddenly it dawned on me.... I HAVE A FULL PHYSICAL TOMORROW! They are going to see the heart, and I am going to have to explain it.
The visit was almost over (i thought). They had done xrays, bloodwork, measurements, BMI...you name it. Well, I went to pee, and when I returned to the room I was greeted by 2 nurses and an EKG machine (SHIT!) I knew what was coming. "Mr Boling, we are going to do an EKG, please remove your shirt and lie on the bed." I immediately went on the defense. "OK....but before I take off my shirt, I need to explain something" (at this point, I think they were prepared for me to tell them I had a third nipple, or an alien baby growing from my abdomen, sans Total Recall). "I thought it would be cute to shave a heart into my chest hair, so when I remove my shirt, don't laugh, OK?" The nurses both acknowledge with smirks on their faces. No quicker did I have the shirt above my head, they were both laughing. "See this is what I DIDN'T want to happen. Don't be gossiping to the nurses!"
They hooked me up to the EKG and the shaved heart proved to be useful when attaching what felt like thousands of what I call "Diodes". Im not sure that's the technical term. They finally finished, and a few minutes later, my good, familiar, and favorite doctor was in the room (Dr. Golden). I have been seeing this man since before I had pubic hair. He explained to me that the EKG uncovered what is known as a "Bundle Branch Block" (sounds like a decent band name). If you are interested in reading more about this disorder (for lack of better word) you can learn about it by clicking here.
I was also put on blood pressure meds, and given a referral to a (currently) undisclosed Dr. Golden took a full physical (turn your head and cough please), and really put me through the ringer. I will post my blood test results tomorrow.
I will make a big announcement when/if things work out like I'm planning. I dont want to get ahead of myself.
Big Fat Loser: In a Nutshell
Here is some older footage I had taken while my pc was down. I just threw it together. Hope you enjoy.
Ben Folds live in Birmingham....
So this weekend was Amanda's birthday, and we had 3rd row tickets to see Ben Folds at the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center in Birmingham. Ben Folds holds a special place in both of our lives. His CD was playing on our first date when I picked her up, his song played at our wedding, we named our Daughter after one his songs... So it was a no brainer when ASPAC mentioned a special meet and greet opportunity with Ben Folds. We jumped right on it, and paid the extra fee to get to meet him. The gentleman described it as an intimate meet and greet in which we would be able to have dialogue with Ben and have him sign some items, and get a personal picture with him. Our plan was to get him to autograph a picture of Gracie for her to have when she gets older.
This will be me writing about the experience. First of all, we drove 5 1/2 hours for this concert. That is saying a lot considering gas prices and the fact that I was unemployed up until last week.We made the trip and had an extremely nice stay at Drury Inn on Grandview Parkway in Birmingham. This was honestly one of the nicest hotels we have had the experience of staying in.
We left early so we could get in line early for the meet in greet. We were then told by an event coordinator that he didn't know if Ben would be doing personalized autographs, but they did have signed posters for us. I was thinking well, hes just covering his ass. We went and stood in line for 40 minutes, then they started herding the group down through the hallways and made clear to us there was no photography allowed. I thought this was odd. Especially considering we paid a fee for the "VIP Meet and Greet". Ben is not one to not allow photos, or to try to dissociate himself from his fans. So 50 of us were put in the first three rows of a small concert hall. Amanda and I were in the first row. We were then told that Ben would come on stage, and they would take one row at a time up to the stage to meet Ben and pause for a brief photo. Im thinking "Cool" someone will take the pictures for us, then we can get him to sign the photo of Gracie. NOPE! Instead they herded us up 20 at a time, and made us take a group photo. Ben said he felt like the Teacher in a school photo. You could tell he obviously felt awkward about the weird "meet and greet". We then proceeded to be able to shake his hand and say "Nice to meet you" before being rushed off stage and handed these very unpersonalized autographed posters.
Dont get me wrong, It was a thrill to shake hands with Ben, and get a nice poster, but I felt completely cheated on the VIP "Meet and Greet". I put in a phone call to the ASPAC today and the guy expressed concerned, but it will be interesting to see where it leads on them taking care of us.
On a lighter note, Ben performed an AMAZING set. He played close to 15-20 songs, and had 2 encores. He performed an acapella version of Hiro's Song, and a balladesque version of Song for the Dumped. He was very funny and charming and had a lot of dialogue with the audience. We had 3rd row tickets, so we had an amazing view.
Here are a couple of Videos for you.
This will be me writing about the experience. First of all, we drove 5 1/2 hours for this concert. That is saying a lot considering gas prices and the fact that I was unemployed up until last week.We made the trip and had an extremely nice stay at Drury Inn on Grandview Parkway in Birmingham. This was honestly one of the nicest hotels we have had the experience of staying in.
We left early so we could get in line early for the meet in greet. We were then told by an event coordinator that he didn't know if Ben would be doing personalized autographs, but they did have signed posters for us. I was thinking well, hes just covering his ass. We went and stood in line for 40 minutes, then they started herding the group down through the hallways and made clear to us there was no photography allowed. I thought this was odd. Especially considering we paid a fee for the "VIP Meet and Greet". Ben is not one to not allow photos, or to try to dissociate himself from his fans. So 50 of us were put in the first three rows of a small concert hall. Amanda and I were in the first row. We were then told that Ben would come on stage, and they would take one row at a time up to the stage to meet Ben and pause for a brief photo. Im thinking "Cool" someone will take the pictures for us, then we can get him to sign the photo of Gracie. NOPE! Instead they herded us up 20 at a time, and made us take a group photo. Ben said he felt like the Teacher in a school photo. You could tell he obviously felt awkward about the weird "meet and greet". We then proceeded to be able to shake his hand and say "Nice to meet you" before being rushed off stage and handed these very unpersonalized autographed posters.
Dont get me wrong, It was a thrill to shake hands with Ben, and get a nice poster, but I felt completely cheated on the VIP "Meet and Greet". I put in a phone call to the ASPAC today and the guy expressed concerned, but it will be interesting to see where it leads on them taking care of us.
On a lighter note, Ben performed an AMAZING set. He played close to 15-20 songs, and had 2 encores. He performed an acapella version of Hiro's Song, and a balladesque version of Song for the Dumped. He was very funny and charming and had a lot of dialogue with the audience. We had 3rd row tickets, so we had an amazing view.
Here are a couple of Videos for you.
Effington
Steven's Last Night in Town
Kate
Song for the Dumped
"Surrounded/Rock This Bitch"
He truly does put on a fantastic concert. Ill put up our "Class Picture" with him as soon as UAB uploads it to their Flickr account. Hopefully they will make a conscious effort to make things right.
A New Chapter...
Well, I would be lying if I said the past 5 months haven't been difficult for everyone. Between my attitude and incessant whining, I'm surprised Amanda has let me live to talk about it. We are both enrolled in school now. Amanda is seeking her degree in Funeral Sciences, and I am seeking mine in Music Education (Choir/Vocal).
Amanda is attending ASU, and I am attending Black River Technical College. School starts next week.
I have also finally managed to nab a job at Radio Shack. I will be working as an MIT for an undisclosed amount of time, and hopefully, eventually get my own store. Then the decision will need to made whether or not to continue my Education into Music. For now, I will work on my Associate of Arts degree, which basically means I have 2 years to decide on my major before transferring to a 4 year school. Radio Shack is a very ambitious company, and I like that. The Management so far has been fantastic. The District Manager is a no nonsense type, and very friendly, and easy to talk to. The store manager is also a great guy, and very approachable. He is the type isn't afraid to get his hands dirty and help his associates. He is constantly on the sales floor helping customers. That's more than you can say about most managers.
To Celebrate, I even had a fellow dev make me a custom Lock Ring for my Evo.
On top of all that, Gracie decided she wanted to start walking. She went from crawling to walking in about 1 month! That's pretty damn quick. I would love to post a video, but Cyberlink Power director is being a nuisance right now. I'm just going to have to post it sideways unfortunately.
You get the idea....
I get to go on a trip Wednesday to Memphis with a fellow MIT from Radio that is a recent graduate and is getting her own store. I'm looking forward to getting to know one of my coworkers. That's always one of the most difficult tasks in starting a new job.
Jonathan, one of his friends Damien, and myself have decided to start going to the gym together, we are all roughly in the same shape. I could just never connect with the people over at Fitness Boot Camp, so we are going to try a different approach. We will be doing video blogs with weekly weigh ins and myfitnesspal food diaries. I'm thinking with me being on my feet again in a retail environment it should be good for me. At least much better than sitting on my fat ass playing Halo.
I will start uploading videos again when I get my new PC in a couple of weeks. So stay Tuned. I will also be making Jonathan and possibly Damien Admins on blog so they can help out on the weight loss blogging.
We still have to work out the details.
Thanks to all my faithful readers, and sorry for the MIA's here lately on the blog. Things will get back into rhythm soon.
Amanda is attending ASU, and I am attending Black River Technical College. School starts next week.
I have also finally managed to nab a job at Radio Shack. I will be working as an MIT for an undisclosed amount of time, and hopefully, eventually get my own store. Then the decision will need to made whether or not to continue my Education into Music. For now, I will work on my Associate of Arts degree, which basically means I have 2 years to decide on my major before transferring to a 4 year school. Radio Shack is a very ambitious company, and I like that. The Management so far has been fantastic. The District Manager is a no nonsense type, and very friendly, and easy to talk to. The store manager is also a great guy, and very approachable. He is the type isn't afraid to get his hands dirty and help his associates. He is constantly on the sales floor helping customers. That's more than you can say about most managers.
To Celebrate, I even had a fellow dev make me a custom Lock Ring for my Evo.
On top of all that, Gracie decided she wanted to start walking. She went from crawling to walking in about 1 month! That's pretty damn quick. I would love to post a video, but Cyberlink Power director is being a nuisance right now. I'm just going to have to post it sideways unfortunately.
You get the idea....
I get to go on a trip Wednesday to Memphis with a fellow MIT from Radio that is a recent graduate and is getting her own store. I'm looking forward to getting to know one of my coworkers. That's always one of the most difficult tasks in starting a new job.
Jonathan, one of his friends Damien, and myself have decided to start going to the gym together, we are all roughly in the same shape. I could just never connect with the people over at Fitness Boot Camp, so we are going to try a different approach. We will be doing video blogs with weekly weigh ins and myfitnesspal food diaries. I'm thinking with me being on my feet again in a retail environment it should be good for me. At least much better than sitting on my fat ass playing Halo.
I will start uploading videos again when I get my new PC in a couple of weeks. So stay Tuned. I will also be making Jonathan and possibly Damien Admins on blog so they can help out on the weight loss blogging.
We still have to work out the details.
Thanks to all my faithful readers, and sorry for the MIA's here lately on the blog. Things will get back into rhythm soon.
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