Swaying Still.

Sunday, 06 July.

The sun went down and the wind picked up. She opened the front door to let the cool breeze roll through the house. I opened the kitchen door at the back of the house. We turned all the first floor lights off, didn't want to attract moths and other flying night bugs. The front door has a screen, the door at the back of the house did have a sliding screen door at one time. The dogs ran through it one day breaking not only the screen itself but the aluminium frame as well.

I stood by the open door as the rain began. She joined me there in the dark and cool kitchen. The only light we had came from the garden lights outside. The little kitchen radio was on like it always is. Nora Jones was singing something about "come away with me". We held on to each other. It was one of those moments you get every now and then. It was one of those very real moments.

We did not dance because we don't really dance. We just sort of swayed in that cool, dark, sweet rain driven summer breeze.



Hey Tommy. The goldfish died but me and the younger baby girl, we went and got another one. We named the new one Alphonse. We just call him Al.

Goldfish. And A Low White Cell Count.

We had this goldfish once. He was eleven years old and almost a foot long when he died. My wife got him when she was seventeen. We kept him in the freezer for a few months, after he passed away. We were going to have him mounted. We had no idea that taxidermy was so expensive.

A few months ago we decided to try again. We got a little fish bowl and a little feeder goldfish up at Wal-Mart. Two fish came and went. Our girls went up to Wal-Mart one day and picked the third one out. The fish they picked out jumped from the net when the guy went to scoop him out of the tank. After the fish was retrieved from the polished Wal-Mart floor our girls decided that he was the one.

He's only about an inch, maybe inch and a half long. My wife named him Wardley. He jumped out of the fish bowl onto the table one day. He jumped out of the fish bowl and landed behind the buffet after that. My wife noticed he was missing. No fish in the fish bowl. Our older daughter and my wife found him on the floor behind the buffet. He was dusty but still alive. She decided to name him Tank Wardley. We put aluminium foil with holes poked in it over the bowl, then we decided to buy a small aquarium. Tank Wardley is tough. Tank Wardley just might be the one.

We purchased a five gallon hexagonal shaped aquarium last weekend. It's up and running with it's integral in the lid filter complete with bio-wheel. Tank Wardley still didn't seem like he was doing as well as we had expected. Today I changed all the water out. I changed all the gravel and replaced the filter cartridge. I added an under gravel air stone hooked up to a little air pump that my wife purchased after her weekly labs and blood work this afternoon. I put Tank Wardley back in his new and improved aquatic environment. The water is properly treated to neutralize any chlorine and I let the system cycle for a couple hours before putting him back. He seems to be doing a little better. He has an obvious eye injury from his fall behind the buffet but he ate well. The bubbler seems to be good for him. He seems to be enjoying it.

The hospital called before my wife returned this afternoon. The hospital said her white cell count is very low. It's the chemo that does that. I asked them how low. They said like one point five. I asked them what it should be. They said like fifteen. They said they would treat her if her count was a five. I asked them how do they treat this. They said antibiotics, just in case. They said she should rest. They called in a prescription and I just now returned from picking it up.

Her hair is starting to fall out. A little at a time. She had a handful come out in the shower yesterday. She's noticing more hair than usual in the brush and on her shoulders. She has a nice wig and some other things like scarves and a halo that goes under the scarves or a hat. She's as ready as she can be. She's going to cry when it's time to use the clipper. I know she's going to cry because any woman would cry.

I've had lots of overtime lately. I had this past Monday off with pay because it was my birthday. The outfit I work for does that. They give you your birthday off with pay. I have tomorrow, the Fourth of July off with pay as well. I had a very easy trip today. I was done at 1100 hours. I punched my card and left. The overtime will more than cover the few hours lost. I was going to go to labs with my wife. She told me not to. She told me to take a nap because I needed it. I did need the nap. It was a good nap. She's going through all of this and she tells me to take a nap. My wife is the best.

Hey Tommy. I sure hope that goldfish makes it.