Diary of a Mad Scientist

Really, really, really, really, really looking forward to the return of my interesting life after the New Year.

I’m getting better just in time, which is nice- I am still having some sporadic problems with breathing, pain, heartbeat issues, and fatigue, and I haven’t tried any physical work in a while, but my concentration and word-finding and other cognitive and ‘energy’ stuff is far better just in the last 10 days or so.

I can read again, which was a big issue for several months. Greg and I ordered older editions of a chemistry textbook for $4 each, and are going to wade through some of the online free MIT ‘opencourseware’ chemistry courses. I am grateful for the modern world and it’s conveniences, let me tell you.

The improvement is coming just in the nick of time (I did raise my medication dosage), just two-three weeks ago I was really starting to wonder if it was ever going to get better and starting to have serious logistical problems that required me to have real money again (like paying for the next immensely expensive round of medical testing, finding myself unable to afford my current lifesaving medication some weeks, moving my crap crosscountry finally, etc). I feel lucky that many people helped- people I know, and Greg, and people whom I don’t know at all, all came out of the woodwork and took care of enough of my needs that I didn’t flounder completely. I’m tearing up just thinking about the support I’ve received and the kindness of a couple of strangers.

I feel really lucky that I came out of this disabling state- and there was work, without my having to go looking for it. It’s exciting and interesting work, exactly what I want to be doing, I have a 2-year plan involving a proposed international project, and a 10-year plan involving something entirely unrelated, and I’m looking forward to life again.

My really exciting new research project job is starting to take shape, I’m headed to California tomorrow to deal with projects that were orphaned at the beginning of this illness in May, and everything is just fabulous. Sometime this winter I should be moving to Asheville to go work on process optimization for Blue Ridge Biofuels, exactly what I want to do for a job at the moment, I’ve got awesome research projects lined up for a couple of clients, I’ll be picking up my gas chromatograph in California, which is all set up and ready to go for ASTM 6584 (I was on the 3-year plan for that- started putting it together this time 3 years ago!),.

I just immersed myself in 48 hours of reading some industrial chemistry relevant to what I’m trying to research, and life is just plain good. About the only thing I still hope for is that with my work and project schedules, I get to be here in Pittsboro long enough to enjoy it again- I spent 4 whole months barely able to leave the house and it’s been really isolating. I’m not in a hurry to leave now that I have perfect roommates and friends in town and am actuallly mobile again.

Considering how indescribably horrible the last few months have been- in September and October I was so sick that I thought there was a distinct possibility that the disease would kill me, and the remaining months haven’t been much better- I think I am long overdue for things being fabulous.

Happy new year everyone..