I started this blog in 2004 mostly as an outlet for my political rants but also just to talk about my life. But, as so often happens, life got busy and complicated and painful and I only wrote in fits and starts for several years. Frankly I'm surprised Google/Blogger didn't just delete it so someone else could have the title 'Blogging My Life.' But they didn't and I'm glad because now that I'm disabled and have some time on my hands, I've discovered that writing a journal has helped me work out in my mind some of the issues I deal with. I have Ankylosing's Spondylitis, which is an autoimmune disease that causes fusing of the spine and other joints as well as intensely painful inflammation elsewhere in the body. And I have peripheral neuropathy in my right leg as a result of a parachuting accident while in the army. I'm constantly in a good deal of pain and this chronic pain has caused me to lose many things: an active lifestyle, job, wife, among other things. Now I spend the vast majority of my time laying on my left side with a pillow between my knees just trying to be as comfortable as I can be at any given time. I promise that I'll not complain about my pain too much because I don't want that to be the focus of this blog. I don't want to be the 'Ankylosing's guy' who writes only to other A.S. sufferers. I don't want this blog to be the 'How to deal with A.S.' blog. To be honest I'm not sure I'm dealing with it any better than someone else so I don't feel like I'm in any position to give out advice on the subject. Anyhoo, I'm thinking that some of the things I would journal will make it to this blog, so, you've got that to look forward to.
I know...I know, its been far too long since my last post. But I'm here now and I'll catch you up on everything. So, since getting laid-off, I have been thinking about going back to school. The thing is, I've been thinking about going back for 10 years, but the thought of it always filled me with terror because I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do. Well, I decided to go to Seattle Central and get a certificate in computer networking. My thinking is this: get certified in something that leads to working smart instead of hard. Then, that job can take me back to school for something I really want to do. So anyway, there is a program through Unemployment Insurance called the Commissioner Approved Training Plan that allows one to go to school while still recieving one's unemployment benefits, without having to do the weekly job searches. The program doesn't pay for school, it just allows one to go to school and not have to work. Sounds like a great program, huh?...
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