I am alive!

Most of my drug-induced stupor is over with, so let me say that I’m alive, although I am sore as hell.

I still have only about 25% mobility (which is way less than I think I should have), so I’ve spent the bulk of my time sleeping or playing Age of Conan. The latter takes my mind off of the discomfort enough that I can sort of enjoy myself, while the former is happening way too much. At this point, there’s still no way I can drive, so I’m hoping to have some flexibility back by Monday. I’ve been trying to do some walks around the yard with my son and the dog to loosen up, but I’m not sure how much its helping. I am due back to work on Monday by what I told my HR folks (trying to avoid short term disability), but the doctor had told me it would be Wednesday or later before I would be ready. It looks as though the doctor might have been right. The surgery itself was less painful than my appendectomy, but the recovery (and the regrowth of the my muscle tissue around a polypropelene net) is proving to be not fun.

I also did some reading. I have to say that I would recommend avoiding Robert Conroy’s 1901. While his concept is brilliant, his execution is somewhat lacking. The prose is (unfortunately) barely readable, with some bizarre characterization of President McKinley during the opening pages. Elizabeth Moon’s Command Decision continues the popcorn fun of Kylara Vatta’s quest to rebuild her family fortunes. It’s been a good, light read that eases me into sleep and naps. I’ve put aside McDevitt’s Polaris, as it seemed a bit too deep for me to focus on while recovering from surgery. I’ll return to this one as soon as I feel as though I’m 100%.

(My “Now Reading” section seems to be broken, so I haven’t updated my library or my current selections. Give me a few days and I’ll see if I can get that working.)

There are some things I owe you guys over the next week or two:

1. A review of Red Seas Over Red Skies (by request from three peeps)
2. A commentary on what Obama’s nomination as the Democrat presidential candidate means for our constitutionally guaranteed freedoms (if you’re a fan of hopey-hope-hope-future-change-hope, you won’t like where his stance on issues take this country)
3. Continued podcasts of Loss of Innocence (I’m behind on the editing due to Alaska and surgery)
4. Several of you have requested my thoughts on BSG as we near the end of the ten episode mini-season. I’ll give them to you, but if you’re a fan of the direction the series has been going, you probably won’t like my viewpoint. Most of the feedback I’ve gotten reflects my own disappointment.