# What Happened, Life?  I Thought We Were Friends?



## joshybo (Jan 28, 2015)

The past two days have been a struggle, to say the least.

First, my grandmother who is in her seventies fell yesterday afternoon and broke her arm.  Her and my mom were preparing a nursery for my new niece when she tripped over a gate which was being used to keep their dog out of the room.  She went to the hospital last night and the break was confirmed.  She was told to go to a certain doctor this morning, which she did at 11 a.m., only to be told there that the doctor would not be in until 3 p.m.  It was just a mess and we're still hoping that she heals up well, as she is still a very active individual.

Second, as mentioned above, my younger brother and his wife had their first child on January 19th.  While this would normally be a purely wonderful thing, his wife had some severe issues with preeclampsia which meant their daughter had to be delivered earlier via c-section.  She was delivered at 34 weeks, weighing just a little over four pounds.  The second day was possibly her worst day, but she made big improvements and was able to come home just a week later.  While none of us were sure that this sounded like a good idea, we're also not doctors and we were just happy to see that she had improved.  That was yesterday.

This morning her body temperature would not rise above 94 F and they had to take her to the E.R.  The doctors and nurses were able to get her temperature up, but she is having trouble with retaining fluid as well as difficulties eating and burping.  While at the E.R. they got a significant scare when the baby choked while feeding and stopped breathing.  Luckily, there was a nurse in the room who resuscitated her almost immediately.  They have to stay there for at least a 24-hour period for observation, but she can't be admitted to the NICU because she was just discharged from one on Tuesday and, as NICUs are sterile environments, re-admittance would be potentially dangerous for the other children.

And that's not all.

This morning, while on her way to work, my wife was involved in an automobile accident.  I'll skip all the details for now--as this post is already getting fairly long--but her x-rays thus far have came back negative for any broken bones.  She has multiple abrasions, a contusion on her chest, and a sprained neck accompanied by overall stiffness and soreness which is making it difficult for her to get around.  The front end of her car was demolished and the air bags deployed, so it will likely be totaled.  That said, she's alive and for that I am incredibly grateful.

Sorry to go on for so long, but it's helpful to just sit down and get this off of my mind in whatever format.  Thanks for reading this, if you have.  Sometimes I just need to vent.


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## Plasticweld (Jan 28, 2015)

Thanks for sharing I will keep your family in my prayers. 

 I am also amazed at technology, your wife being safe because of air bags, medical advances saved you niece and keeps your mom still mobile and functioning in her 70s.  Not to diminish your problems but all of them would have had far different outcomes just a few short years ago. 


I Hope all of your family heals up and gets healthy...Bob


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## TJ1985 (Jan 28, 2015)

Wow, talk about a rough couple days! 

Josh, I'll be thinking of you and your family. I suppose the only thing I can say to "help" would be to say what you already know: Things were bad, but each point could have been exponentially worse.


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## escorial (Jan 28, 2015)

tuff times man


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## joshybo (Jan 28, 2015)

> Thanks for sharing I will keep your family in my prayers.
> 
> I am also amazed at technology, your wife being safe because of air bags, medical advances saved you niece and keeps your mom still mobile and functioning in her 70s. Not to diminish your problems but all of them would have had far different outcomes just a few short years ago.
> 
> ...



You are exactly right, Bob.  We're very fortunate to have access to such wonderful technology and medicine in this day and age.  Hopefully, someday, the word "tragedy" will be a thing of the past!  We all very much appreciate your prayers and thank you for your kind words.



> Wow, talk about a rough couple days!
> 
> Josh, I'll be thinking of you and your family. I suppose the only thing I can say to "help" would be to say what you already know: Things were bad, but each point could have been exponentially worse.



That same thought has been ringing in my head all day, TJ.  We're just thankful that everyone is still here with us.  Thank you, as well, for keeping my family in your thoughts!  We fully appreciate any prayers/thoughts/positive vibes that anybody may send our way.



> tuff times man



Most definitely, escorial.  Most definitely!


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 28, 2015)

Sorry to hear things are going rough for you. Josh. Hope things get a bit better


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## joshybo (Jan 28, 2015)

> Sorry to hear things are going rough for you. Josh. Hope things get a bit better :smile:



Thank you, mustard.  Things are rough, but they could definitely be worse.  I'm attempting to maintain that perspective.


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## InstituteMan (Jan 28, 2015)

Man, that's a rough go. Hang in there. I've seen plenty of bad stuff in my life, but getting all the bad stuff at once is a lot to handle. 

It's apropos to nothing, but Bob's observation about technology brings to mind the ditty from Walt Disney World's Carousel of Progress, "There's a great big beautiful tomorrow, shining at the end of every day . . ." Here's hoping your tomorrow is great big and beautiful, Joshy.

[video=youtube;smONcs8kF0o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smONcs8kF0o[/video]


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## TKent (Jan 28, 2015)

Holy smokes, JBo. That all sucks big time. I am thinking about you bud. Positive vibes your way.


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## joshybo (Jan 28, 2015)

Thanks, IM and TK!  I appreciate both of you!


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## Firemajic (Jan 28, 2015)

Big cyber hug joshy, hang in there. Peace always...Jul


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## joshybo (Jan 28, 2015)

Thank you, Jules!  Much appreciated.


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## Pluralized (Jan 28, 2015)

Josh, hope everything straightens out soon. Sounds like one of those weeks that (hopefully) will make you appreciate when things are smooth and normal. Keep pushing up that hill man, and vent anytime you need to. 

*Looks around*

*Hugs*


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## joshybo (Jan 28, 2015)

> Josh, hope everything straightens out soon. Sounds like one of those weeks that (hopefully) will make you appreciate when things are smooth and normal. Keep pushing up that hill man, and vent anytime you need to.
> 
> *Looks around*
> 
> ...



*nods subtly, yet appreciative*

With the whole combination of different occurrences, I can definitely say that it's changed my outlook on lots of things, Plur.

I actually just found a few minutes ago that one of my close friends' father passed away today of a heart attack, completely unexpected.  Appreciate what time you get, my WF family.  It's an extremely precious and oftentimes over-looked gift.


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## Cran (Jan 28, 2015)

Wishing strength and healing to all, Josh.


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## Gumby (Jan 29, 2015)

That's just awful! Sending all good thoughts your way and I'm so glad that your wife wasn't hurt badly.


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## Guy Faukes (Jan 29, 2015)

Sorry about the horrid sequence of events! Survival rate for premature babies is high with the amount of supportive technology we have, but it can be stressful on all parties involved. Anyways, I hope everyone recovers to a clean bill of health. 

If it's any consellation, or if you require motivation, here is a speech that might help with any blues you may have with life.


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## PiP (Jan 29, 2015)

Wow, you are having a rough time, Josh. I'm not a doctor but I'm also surprised they discharged the baby that early from hospital. My twins were prems and were in SCBU for three weeks. Hugs to your sister-in-law and brother and prayers for the little one.  As I was reading your post I thought it could not get any worse and then for your poor wife to have an accident...


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## Mistique (Jan 29, 2015)

I know about the need to vent and how helpful that can be. I am sorry you are having such a rough time. I will be thinking about you and your family.


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## Firemajic (Jan 29, 2015)

joshy--brand new day! I truly hope things go better for you and your family today. You have a lot on your plate my friend, keep the faith...Peace always...Jul


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## jenthepen (Jan 29, 2015)

My thoughts are with you and your family too, josh. I hope you can tell us thing are improving soon.

jen.


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## joshybo (Jan 29, 2015)

Thanks to everyone for your support and kind words!  You truly do not know how much it means to me.

Updates for anybody interested:

My niece is back at home tonight and has been doing well.  It's still a long road ahead, but her condition has improved.

My grandmother is at home, healing and resting.  Her arm was set in a cast and with any luck she will not have to have surgery, but that is still up in the air right now.

My wife had a gauntlet of doctor's visits today and we're both exhausted.  No real improvement in her condition as the day after an accident is usually worse pain-wise, but we're getting her the best medical help we can around here.

Thanks to everyone again for any prayers/thoughts/support.  You guys are amazing!


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## Morkonan (Jan 30, 2015)

joshybo said:


> What Happened, Life?  I Thought We Were Friends?
> 
> The past two days have been a struggle, to say the least.... ...Sometimes I just need to vent.



Incoming "Glass Half Full" post..

It sounds like life is being friendly.  All of these things were situations that could have gotten a lot worse, but, somehow, life stepped in and made them a little bit better than they could have been. 

(Yeah, I know, "cheery commentary" can sometimes be a bit thick... But, I wish you well, all the same. Life's often uncaring, but people are often not.)


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## joshybo (Jan 30, 2015)

> Incoming "Glass Half Full" post..
> 
> It sounds like life is being friendly. :smile: All of these things were situations that could have gotten a lot worse, but, somehow, life stepped in and made them a little bit better than they could have been. :smile:
> 
> (Yeah, I know, "cheery commentary" can sometimes be a bit thick... But, I wish you well, all the same. Life's often uncaring, but people are often not.)



That's a fair point, Mork, and I am trying to keep as positive an attitude as I can about all of these goings-on.  Thank you for your support!


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## Schrody (Jan 31, 2015)

I'm so sorry to hear that Josh. Hope your grandmother, your niece and your wife recover soon! We're here for you. buddy.  :hug:


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## joshybo (Jan 31, 2015)

Thank you, Schrody!  The community here has always proven itself to be incredibly supporting and I'm very glad to be a part of it!


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## TKent (Jan 31, 2015)

umm...are those goal posts in your twitter header?


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## bookmasta (Jan 31, 2015)

I wish you the best. You are in my prayers. Hope things get better.


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## joshybo (Jan 31, 2015)

Thank you, bookmasta!

TK - Nope.  It's actually a very close up picture of a cross that I hadn't intended to be so zoomed in, however I ended up liking the way it looked after I set it up.


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## TKent (Jan 31, 2015)

Good. I would hate to think that you had gone that gaga over a silly game like football.  *runs and hides*


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## joshybo (Jan 31, 2015)

> Good. I would hate to think that you had gone that gaga over a silly game like football. *runs and hides*



It could be worse.  I could be a huge fan of tennis.


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## Deleted member 56686 (Jan 31, 2015)

TKent said:


> Good. I would hate to think that you had gone that gaga over a silly game like football.  *runs and hides*



Spoken like a true Falcons fan  :rugby:


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