Normally I am doing a podcast for Rambling At Random. After the last few days we’ve had, I never recorded the podcast part 1 or 2 like I had planned. So I decided to just write it out this morning.
This week I would like to mark “The week from hell of all weeks”. The doctors for the wife seem not to listen when you tell them that they can’t just make an appointment without talking to us first. The reason why is due to the fact that not only the wife, but I as well have a full time job! If I take a last minute day out, I tend to lose overtime. Almost $335 to be exact in that overtime. If I use a personal day, I only get 8 hours at time, and not time and a half. when you have looming bills, that right there hurts too much! The doctors see her condition as a priority, and I completely understand that but, don’t act as if you think we make 300k a year together, and have a fall back plan because, we don’t! You can blame that on our geriatric leader of chocolate chip ice cream, and sniffing the heads of little girls for that… Ever since the fuel prices sky rocketing, inflation of food, taxes now being owed to pay for what he believes is right, and the like. Its hard to hold onto money. Hell we even went into debt consolidation on 28 credit cards! Did it make life any easier?! HELL NO! Its almost like we have all of them! Bi-weekly Payments of $233 on top of all the other bills!
The week of all of this going on, and something kinda unexpected happens. Not only did Santa Claus come to town, and we couldn’t afford to celebrate it, as well as not being in the mood to celebrate it due to the last 2 months of hell with my wife getting diagnosed with localized rectal cancer, but MURPHY came to town. Who is Murphy might you ask? Murphy’s Law. When you are down in your dumps, Murphy comes to visit to pour down some more bullshit on your life because it entertains him, while at the same time makes our lives harder. The wife comes home from work, and states her car is making a funny noise. She wants me to get into the car, and drive it to see what it might be. Being the tow guy, and the auto guy, I agree with this, and do just that. As I am driving around, I hear something but, I don’t hear it until I pass a parked car to bounce the sound back through the window. It almost sounded as if the rotor protection plate was scraping on the rotor while the vehicle was in motion. For a rotor protection plate to bend is almost impossible but, she did just get 4 brand new tires for her car at the tune of $430 so, you just never know. I came back to the house, and parked the car to take a look at the calipers in between the rims to check the plate, and the brakes. They didn’t seem to be low on the exposed side but, on the back side which I was unable to see, it didn’t feel right. Something told me she needs brakes. Problem is this though, it’s 9:10pm. NOTHING is open. She has yet another doctors appointment tomorrow for a pregnancy test for the 3rd time, and blood needed to be drawn 24 hours before the Dostarliamab Clinical Trial begins on Thursday. On top of that she needs to be at work by 2pm which is 37 miles away in Bridgewater because she did not have anyone to cover for her any longer as all of her workers have been getting sick with colds. My options were very limited. We had spent money we needed for bills to drive 67 miles to one office, 81 miles to another office, 47 miles to yet ANOTHER office, replacing her tires a week prior with MORE bill money, and more! bleeding money would be an understatement! The only options I had was $58 in our account until Friday, and just thinking if its the front pads we could go to my co worker Eddie to have him put new pads on until we can get them done. Only problem with that was that he could only work on them after work which would have been after 5pm. The same day all the other stuff she had going on which could not be cancelled in any way. Now its not a small problem to be rectified, IT’S A HUGE PROBLEM!
The wife, the mother in law, and I sat trying to think of what the hell to do, and immediately thought maybe someone in the family could help. That unfortunately came to no avail. We then though of 1 person that would do anything for the wife as her own child, the only option we had. We immediately messaged her and thankfully said she would help. She was curious as to the price of the job which more or less would have been $600ish dollars. $300ish if it were just the front brakes. So we were under the impression this was going to be taken care of to pay her back in time. The next morning I told my wife to call her family member to make sure this was gonna happen because it was weird. She answered and said she would help, after we said the price she never said no but, fell offline and didn’t come back on. Nor did she see or read any of the messages the next morning which felt kinda weird. My wife called and got no answer. Her family member then I guess called her or messaged her to say she sent money to her son, and said that she hoped it was enough money. This is where confusion set in a bit because last we spoke, she said she was going to use her credit card but, her daughter was holding onto the card, and had to speak to her in the morning to get it. We had to contact the son in order to get everything taken care of, and we told him the whole story price and all. Once again we were under the impression this was going to get done…
The auto mechanic updated the both of us to find out that both front, and bake brakes were bad. The emergency brake was apparently locked on the rear rotors which he thought would have been a caliper problem but, later found out it was an issue with the emergency brake kinda stuck on, and had been driving like that till the rotor was down to 1/4th the size of a normal plate and was surprised it didn’t break which NEVER happens! The price ended up being with tax $650 which was around the price I was thinking anyway. I called the son to keep him abreast of what was going on. He tells me that he doesn’t think he gave her THAT much money which makes no sense because we told her what the price was around the night before, and had to call her. I get a callback shortly after, and her son tells me that $500 was all that she can send without rhyme or reason. I wish we would have known that BEFORE we went to have the brakes done because now we are screwed! The car is in the shop, all we have is $500 of the $650! If the wife can’t get the car then she delays the doctors appointments to get the treatment she needed Thursday, and she would not be able to get to work to cover her own store which now places her job in possible jeopardy! The son then goes to tell me that his mother has been almost running out of money for helping her own son and daughter all of the time, and more or less an “oh well”.
Well This is truly embarrassing because now she is stuck at the auto shop, this gent put 2 guys to work on the car so she could get out on time, and now this issue. We’re screwed! I only have $58 in the account till Friday which is still almost $100 shy of what is owed. I messaged and called her family member in a shit panic, I call the family member’s daughter and freaked out yet, she knew nothing about this whatsoever! She goes to tell me the wife’s family member is in the doctors office, and that the daughter was waiting outside for her to get out, and will have her call me when she does. This notion never came by the way. I ended up pulling a pay advance loan of $100, and used everything which left us all of $8 in our account till Friday which was 3 1/2 days away. If we God forbid needed fuel for the doctor runs, we would either be stuck or whatever like beggars. We called the son to utilize the $500, and got the wife in 1 1/4 hours late to the appointment, and to work. Now look… Its not like we are not thankful, WE ARE but here is the issue, don’t lead us to believe it would have been taken care of. At the very least, keep us in the loop as to what, where, how, and why so we would not gotten into such a stranglehold to begin with! We could have found a way to try to get away with it kinda cheaper like not replacing the front rotors, or whatever knowing what kind of money we were working with. Oh and by the way, we STILL have not received a message, nor a return call from either the family member, or the daughter as to what happened or as much as an apology.
So the wife is now on the run to make the late appointment hoping they rush so she can get to work on time. Then “Murphy” popped up again! The doctors at this hospital tell the wife that the trial needs to be done in Montvale, and not closer to our home which is now 67 miles away. Fear came upon us. $8 in the account, less than a half a tank of fuel, and she isn’t even at work yet which is 30 miles from the doctors office, then 37 miles home from work! We’re screwed, that’s it. Somehow between that time, and before she came home, someone tipped her $8 for an ear piecing, and I had $1 in my own pocket. Someone thankfully bought something I was selling on Facebook that leveled us a small amount of money so we could get to the clinical trial treatment facility 67 miles away.
Now its Thursday, and the tensions are HIGH! Reason why is: We have no idea what to expect from this thing they call immunotherapy, and what it does unlike chemo. We spoke to the doctor through telehealth while he was in China at 10pm at night his time. He was trying to boost our moods, and let us know that she was going to be a part of a medical break thru, and that he was so excited for her, and to keep positive! We shortly after left for the event. The wife was nervous as we talked all the way down there. Her mother stayed home because she has a cold. We get there and they get another round of blood vials, wee in a cup for another pregnancy test… Still aggravates me though because how would someone try to get pregnant knowing they have a mass in their rectum?! Seriously?! Just give us a form to sign saying I WILL NOT GET PREGNANT WITH THIS ALIEN IN ME, SIGNED: The Wife! Some people are sick if they are trying to get pregnant last minute while cancer is up in them. Just Sayin….
We get into the infusion room, and they seat her in a nice corner room. The nurses were nice, and explained everything. The only real side effects were diarrhea, bleeding, fatigue, and possibly a rash. Made the wife feel a little better. It took all of 34 minutes to administer the drug trial. Soon as they were done, we were allowed to leave. Well its done. Treatment 1 of 10. No noticeable changes as of yet. The treatment is every 3 weeks. Now starts the journey to the unknown. We are trying to stay positive, and this time in June we hope for the Cancer to be gone, and hopfully enjoy life down the shore, continuing in our mission to be happy again. Not like we aren’t happy now but, without this ailment in her. Please keep the wife in your prayers… Better yet, keep US in your prayers.
Thanks for reading. Till next time Guys & Gals!
