Tired, already and still

Wow, am I tired. I just got back from vacation and already I could use another one. In the couple of days I have been home, events have been going so fast & furious that I definitely know I’m not in Kansas (or California) anymore.

My brother’s diagnosis of Lupus has been met with his unrealistic expectation that he will get better. His condition will not improve, but according to the doctors, it is quite manageable. Unfortunately his home situation is causing stress that isn’t helping, but he refuses to stay anywhere else for a while to rest and get away from the tension. He’s an adult and has to make his own choices, but he’s making poor ones right now. It’s difficult as his family to not step in and take over and just start telling him what to do. He doesn’t seem capable of taking care of himself. I keep waiting for the mechanism to kick in that will make him realize he needs to smarten up and straighten his life out. He has made a couple of positive steps this week, so I am hoping that trend will continue, if he can just stay out of the hospital. My mother had to take him up to the hospital again last night because his blood pressure was dangerously high. The doctors were checking for risk of stroke from blood clots, but they did eventually send him home.

I got stuck in Montreal coming home from California on Monday night. While I was angry that they wouldn’t hold the plane for me, it did give me a chance to see my older brother and sister-in-law. I haven’t seen my SIL since April and my brother since my grandfather’s funeral in June. It was a quick visit but any visit is good with them.

My older brother and SIL have actually decided to come home for a visit this weekend, and it will give him a chance to talk to my younger brother in person. YB looks up to OB, and it will make YB feel better to have a visit with OB. They are flying down tomorrow and arriving in Fredericton, so I have to drive up there to pick them up. With the possibility of bad weather, I wrote to my Dad (who is on vacation) and asked to borrow his truck for tomorrow, in case I need it.

I have not been feeling very well since I got back. The mental stress with all of this family circus has been taking its toll already. I am also jetlagged and feel like a cold may be inevitable. I feel like I could sleep for a couple of days straight.

One positive thing that happened this week with regards to my brother’s health is that he was able to finally reach the clinic in Boston and make an appointment to go down the second week of January. They specialize in diabetes but also look at your overall health. He’ll get better attention and more doctors who know what they’re doing.

Other than family issues, not much else has been going on. I aim to try and decorate for Christmas this weekend, before things get any busier. John shipped me his old TiVo, which I have installed and it seems to be working quite well so far. I am feeling the usual bout of loneliness after having been with John for a week. Welcome back to reality, which contains cold weather and stress.