I know my blogging has been very sporadic lately. Tracy still has the liver infection, and the last two months have been filled with side effects from the drugs he is taking. He’s in D. C. right now for tests. They think one of the problems might be a blockage in the liver, which can happen with infections. They ran one test, but it was inconclusive, so they will run another one on Monday. The good news is the CT Scan showed that the infection is smaller. Yeah!

Both my sleeping and working schedules are way off. Neither of us have really had a schedule for the last couple of months because of the flexibility one must have when a spouse has a liver infection. Right now I am trying to getting back into a regular sleeping schedule of going to bed between and 11:00 and 11:30 p.m., and actually getting sleep within an hour instead of laying in bed until 2:00 or 3:00 a.m. My goal right now is to get up at 8:00 a.m. and eventually move it to 7:00-7:30 a.m. This week has had mixed results. I think part of the reason is that Tracy left Wednesday, so I had to adjust to sleeping alone. Since part of the week I slept well and got up when I needed to, I’m hoping this next week will start to even out. I want my work hours to be 10:00 a.m.–11:30 a.m. and 1:00–6:00 p.m. I have found if I don’t have regular office hours, I tend to work off and on day and night and feel guilty about doing personal things like shopping, cooking, sewing, etc. I need to know when I’m working, so I know when I can do other things.

I’ve talked to our District Superintendent, and the District is creating an umbrella organization for all the different neighborhood fellowships to be a part of. That way we will have our non-profit status and can open bank accounts, and the District doesn’t have to do all this paperwork and legal stuff for each little group. I think it is a good plan. I am renaming the South Loop Nazarene Church to a fellowship, since we are going to meet in my home and be a home church, and because that is the way it seems the other groups are going. All of us starting new Nazarene ministries in the city are getting together tomorrow to worship and make some plans as to structure, names, and keeping in communication with each other. I didn’t know that half the people I’ve been emailing about the South Loop ministry had started a group in Hyde Park, so it will be nice to know of what other people are doing and to support each other. After that meeting I will settle on a final name and start putting up flyers in the neighborhood. Yes, Laine, the flyers are going to happen (and I need to email you–how was your vacation?). Laine works in the West Loop and has graciously offered to hang flyers there.

Yes, I am behind on emails as well as reading other blogs and commenting. Right now my two priorities are Tracy and getting ready for services to start in our home. I’m also not writing much right now, which is obvious from my lack of blogging. Hopefully, after the first of the year, I will get back to making the rounds and getting back into what everyone is doing. I miss all of you, but right now I don’t have the time and energy to keep up with everything.

It is amazing how tired you become during the long term illness of a spouse. I had no idea it was possible to worry about someone this much. The last couple of months have been exhausting and frustrating for both of us (him more than me needless to say), mainly due to the side effects. Hopefully, this visit to NIH will be the turn around the bend, and he’ll start feeling better and making some marked improvements.