Updates from the Homestead

so, i should be practicing my talk for the conference tomorrow (i ran through it a couple of times yesterday, and i finally got it down to 12-13 minutes), but instead i find myself doing laundry, contemplating my taxes, and of course blogging. i really need to do my taxes today. here's hoping chad and i don't owe $700 like last year.

anyway, my mom ended up driving to south carolina thursday morning because my aunt and uncle up there told her they were moving my granny's surgery up to friday. but the open heart surgery didn't happen friday, and apparently it is not going to happen. because my granny wouldn't make it through the operation. also, they found out that not only are three arteries in her heart blocked, but both her carotid arteries are blocked as well. so instead of risking the bypass surgery, they just put stents in her heart, but they're leaving the carotids alone for at least another two weeks to give her time to recover and regain some strength after the surgery to put the stents in. so right now, because of the blockages in her carotids, she's at high risk for a stroke, but they don't want to put her under anesthesia too many times or for too long because they're afraid she won't come out of it. i talked to mom last night, and she said that the doctors are planning on releasing my granny from the hospital in the next couple of days, even though they have no plans to move her out of intensive care. that seems really weird to me.

but anyway, the doctors in SC said my granny can come home and have the other surgery done down here in a couple of weeks, she can stay and have it done up there, or she can come home and then go back up there and have the other surgery done so that the same doctors will be working on her. i don't know what her plans are yet. my mom said she wasn't really talking that well because of the drugs they've got her on. my uncle is being really insensitive about the whole thing. he keeps on saying things to my mom like, "you need to take her back down with you because i don't want her dying on me." you'd think he'd be concerned about what's best for his mother and not thinking what an inconvenience it would be for him if she died. my mom's kind of pissed about it.

i feel sort of guilty about going to philadelphia in the midst of all of this, and i have to admit that i've thought things over the past couple of days that i'm ashamed of (for example, "i hope granny doesn't die this week because that would screw up my trip to philly." i'm such an ass sometimes.). but at the same time, i'm really excited about going, which makes the guilt worse. and then i find myself thinking about the money (the non-refundable money) we've spent on this trip already, and then i feel even guiltier. ugh.

so, chad and i should be on time for the pilots game tonight (he's working the booth for his company at the home and garden show downtown today), but we'll definitely be late tomorrow. like, arriving in the 2nd period late. see, i have that conference on dauphin island tomorrow, and i can't leave until at least 4:00, which means i'll get home around 5, so we won't get to the game until around 6:15-6:30.

ok, that's all i care to say right about now, so i'm outta here.