Howdy. I'm in Grand Junction sitting in a hotel room.
I've been here for two weeks.

I often hesitate to write anything personal on the
internet that is not entirely about me (I guess you
can never write completely 'about me', but whatever).
In this case I am referring to my father and his
health.

My father went in for a 'routine' surgery two weeks
and one day ago. This particular surgery went well.
During his recovery an entirely different scenario
presented itself. He developed pancreatitis as a
result of a deteriorating gallbladder. A situation
that takes years to develop showed itself while my
father was actually in the hospital.

A second surgery was scheduled and he is now in a new
recovery phase after dealing with pain, fatigue, and
god-only-knows-how-much boredom. I have been trucking
over to the hospital mutiple times every day and I am
happy to report that yesterday was the best I have
seen him in this two week ordeal. He is weak, which is
a contradiction from his character, but he is doing
what he can to guarantee a safe and lasting recovery.

The doctors, PAs, and especially the nurses at the VA
hopsital in Grand Junction, Colorado have been
exceptional. However, my father's patience and
tenacity probably helped to generate such sympathy
(and in some cases empathy) from the hospital staff.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

As a result: No races in Memphis or Austin. Hardly
even worth mentioning given this situation, but I
thought I would point out the obvious anyways.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I have received a lot of emails and phone calls from
friends out there and I want everybody to know that I
genuinely appreciate every single one of them.

My father isn't out of the woods yet, but he certainly
seems closer.

-jd

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