Annnnd it's 2023...

Hmmm, looks like I missed a year or two. Considering the catastrophe of my life, that's probably for the best. Still living in the apartment with Mom & the Boo Thang and missing my peaceful little house. What's changed? My job, for a start. I decided 17 years in the Property Room was MORE than enough and applied for a transfer in October 2021. Got a position in the Records Dept almost immediately, but didn't get to start until February 2022. Why? They literally held me hostage. "We'll be too shorthanded if you leave!" Not my problem, and you should probably look more closely at the issues in the place when the *3* senior clerks all quit. They tried to fuck around and they found out. I applied for jobs outside LMG and had several great interviews. Then I found out that HR was sandbagging me by not returning requests for reference calls. I called the union at that point and received my transfer within the week. Without the pay cut I was supposed to take. It would have been worth it just to get out of there. So Records is... interesting. I'm an Information Processing Technician, or to put it simply, I do data entry. The main part of my job is entering paper citations (yeah, we still have officers that use those) & updating electronic citations in the computer system. I also enter a crap ton of Domestic Violence reports. I have to work the public window 1-2 days a week where I give out incident & accident reports. What was a shock to the system was working a day shift after 20+ years of evenings & overnights. I literally left the PR at 6:30 Saturday morning and started at Records at 8 a.m. the following Monday. The job is MUCH slower paced, MUCH less stressful, and in a very nice CLEAN building with adequate parking. It's not perfect, no job is, but it's a good place to ride out my last few years until I can retire. Now for the health update: My constant headaches & sinus infections have gone away since I changed offices. My right knee finally gave out after causing numerous falls and had to be replaced in July 2022. Poor Dr M was horrified to see how bad it was (compared to the x-rays) when he went in. Just before the surgery, I wound up in the ER twice due to agonizing back pain. (turns out being forced to limp around for so long totally threw my back out) I was sent to a spinal specialist. He looked at my x-ray, took 3 more, and then asked when I'd broken my back. WTF?!? He said there are visible healed fractures along my spine. So yeah, not fun. It was decided to fix my knee first, because a lot of the post-op physical therapy would incorporate the the back treatment. It seems to have worked. I've lost 40 lbs, my blood pressure has gone down considerably, and it's really weird to not be in pain all the time. Still have fatigue issues. Dr B finally gave in & sent me to a hematologist/oncologist. Dr H had to fight the insurance company for a few tests, but after umpteen years, I FINALLY got a diagnosis! (and got to say "I TOLD YOU SOMETHING WAS WRONG!!!" to Dr B) I have Alpha Thalassemia, more specifically this version: Hemoglobin H disease. This type causes moderate to severe symptoms. These include lack of energy (fatigue) and exercise intolerance. You may also have an enlarged liver or spleen, yellowish skin, and leg ulcers. You have a greater risk of having a child with the most severe type, alpha thalassemia major. (from the Johns Hopkins website) Good thing I never planned on having kids! Dr H says it actually looks like I have the major version, but I shouldn't have survived infancy. My kids wouldn't have had a chance, especially if the hypothetical father was a silent carrier. So, here we are. A new year, a changed life, and the same warped world view. You're welcome to come along for the ride, just be sure to buckle up! Things could get bumpy...