How I spent the Christmas holiday

I've been suffering a particularly painful bout of the gout (at least I hope it's gout) for over a week now. My foot has been too swollen to properly fit into my shoes, and the bone just below the base of my big toe is red and tender to the touch. I haven't been able to walk properly in almost a week, and when I finally tried to leave my house yesterday, I could only do so with the aid of a cane.

With that in mind, the Christmas holiday visiting season was quite compromised this year. The day before Christmas, my father-in-law and his wife visited us, as did my step-daughter and her husband, with their three kids. Also joining us for that evening were my brother- and sister-in-law. This day marked the official "coming out" party for the newest grandchild, at the age of one month old. He's such a tiny package, but it was still a joy to see everyone fussing over him so!

I was pretty much confined to the easy chair, since I couldn't stand without difficulty.

By Christmas day, my step-son had made it into town and we celebrated the traditional Christmas lunch and present opening with nearly everyone present. Only one of my step-daughters was missing - her work schedule called for her to be at work and she couldn't make it home until the 26th. With the hustle and bustle of little kids around, my foot was in danger of being prodded; and despite my best efforts, there were a couple of times when it was subjected to an accidental jolt that nearly sent me through the ceiling with pain. Although our entire family had been invited out to dinner at a different brother-in-law's house, I tried but failed to put on shoes, and elected to stay home.

Things were much the same on the 26th, and I spent the entire day indoors and off my feet. On the 27th, I felt like I was letting my discomfort rule my life, so I did what I could to force a pair of shoes on, and took the opportunity to visit my mother and sisters; along with a neice who was celebrating a birthday that day. Walking was tolerable with the cane, but I had to warn everyone that I would not remove my shoes (dirty or not) for fear of being unable to get them back on.

This morning, I can finally fit a slipper over my foot without too much discomfort, although if I snag my toe or heel on a carpet, or an edge of a piece of furniture, the pain is immediate and excruciating. I am able to slowly shuffle around the house without use of a cane, but I haven't been brave enough to venture up to the second floor.

This afternoon, I hope to install a new DVD dual-layer drive into my computer. I received it as a gift from my wife, and I'm anxious to see how well it works. Also, when my step-son arrives home, I have to put some effort into trying to install a new water valve in the laundry room that will allow the dogs to automatically replenish their water supply when it runs low. Up until now, my wife has had the job of refilling and lugging a 50-pound water jug on average twice a week to keep those thirsty labs happy.

Next week, I'm scheduled to attend classes meant to prepare me for running my own business, but to throw a wrench into the whole self-employment concept, I received a call today from one of my ex-employers saying they'd like to interview me for a newly available opening. As much as I would enjoy working with those people again, I have some lingering doubts about the long-term prospects. I'll have to give the whole thing some serious thought.