Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2003
Eye am back at school, posted at 2:29 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com I'm back at school now, a week after the surgery. I just couldn't stand being out any more, and I'm pretty much ready anyway. I'm still sore, and not 100%, and the headaches I get are still scorchers, but I'm glad to be back. The kids have been nice and classes have run pretty smoothly, despite it being the week reports cards come out.Out of 140 students, 38 failed - acheived below a 70. It will be a shock to the system for many of them. Part of me feels bad - because of the alternating day schedule and Hurricane Isabel (by the way, what's the statute of limits for blaming things on Isabel? I've become adept at it) and my surgery and my Outward Bound trip - I've only really been with these students for about 20 class periods. I couldn't switch anything around though, and I'm not doing them any favors if I pass them for crap work. The first quarter of 9th grade year is often a wakeup call, anyway.
There is really nothing else new. With the surgery, I feel like my body is oozing unhealthiness, and I still can't go back to the gym. Things that usually are pretty easy are exhausting me, and I get these headaches like my head is in a vice. But I can also feel it getting better, and I actually was able to read something out of my right eye today when I put it about an inch from my nose. I can tell it's fixed; it's just recuperating. I can't believe I have to do it again in eight weeks, though. There's talk of moving the family Christmas down to Baltimore to accomondate my upcoming surgery, but we haven't been given a date yet so plans are on hold. That second surgery will be more debilitating than the first, because I will retain only 50-60% of my vision in my right eye, and my left eye (which is at 100% right now) will be at 0% for a bit until it heals. So, I'll be living at a quarter of my usual vision for 6-8 weeks, which will suck a great deal. I don't see how I'll be able to drive, even. It's tough to now, even though I've been given doctor's permission.