Farewell 43

G'day all!

I am so glad to say goodbye to being 43. I hope the door hits you in the butt on the way out, 43!

42 was fantastic - we travelled a lot in the US, DH's job paid off a nice bit of mortgage, he took me to Europe for my first ever trip to there (fabulous! Would go again in a heartbeat if I had the option and would stay for as long as possible).



Then I turned 43. I thought it would be good. We were home, getting our visas for DH's job. The visas turned up 5 days after my birthday. Six days after my birthday, we got a phone call saying DH had been laid off.

Hooray and oh noes! It was both good and bad.

I was stressed out of my nut for the rest of the month - we had to fly back to the US, break our lease (costing us over $4K), organise to send stuff home (almost $3K), DH gave me a horrid cold that settled in my chest, giving me a swollen lymph node (or so I thought), then we said goodbye to the people and places we had become fond of and flew home. I was so excited to be going home, but I also had a sense of unfinished business.

It's funny, cos whilst I fell head over heels for Fort Collins in Colorado, California grew on me. I'll probably always have a soft spot for it. I would've liked to have seen more of it, and more of Oregon as well. Plus we actually made some good friends there.



Well within days of coming home, I've got a tentative diagnosis of breast cancer, followed by the bestest Christmas present ever: The tentative diagnosis was confirmed as an aggressive cancer. Merry Christmas, go and enjoy it and come back in nearly a month for us to decide what to do with you.

That wasn't the best Christmas I've had but it wasn't the worst either (that being the one after Mum died. The second worst was the one before Mum died).



DH couldn't find work. He's not the most stable person out there and things became very very difficult, between his unhappiness and my treatment.

Months of chemotherapy, months of it, from the start of February to the start of July. Then the slow recovery, halted rather by the operation to remove the remaining cancer, then more recovery (missing DH dreadfully cos he had a new job in Sydney), then radiotherapy.



I'd like to thank all of you, my readers, particularly those who have commented along the way for the support you have given me. Some of you I can even call my friends because we actually have an ongoing dialogue. (Remember, if you don't comment, I don't know you exist!) (I also admit to being a rather poor correspondent.)

Now I have to find the new normal. And welcome in 44. Here's to being 44, may it be a better year than when I was 43!

anon!

(PS - have gone through most of my sock yarn collection and culled the yarn that doesn't sing to me. It might to you though! I have some Socks that Rock amongst that yarn and a whole lot of other stuff. I hope to get pics tomorrow to post.)