Off to the Hospital...and Maybe Off to Work

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My day unfolded not as I planned.

I was up early. Coffee. Dogs. Husband. Newspaper.

I had a business luncheon to attend at noon. I hoped to touch base again with a prospective employer who happens to be the chair of this particular group. But I am nervous. If they offer me a job....what do I do about our upcoming cycle? How will I explain that I will need one or two weeks of time off sometime during the next few months? I don't want to disclose the IF or FET or any of that. That was one reason why I had really hoped to do the transfer last week. The timing would have been perfect.

But, ah, of course, it is Murphy's IF Law. If anything can screw up a cycle, it will.

Anyway, while getting ready, a friend called. It was my friend whose husband had a brain tumor. He had surgery in December. Rounds of chemo and radiation. She was emotional and tearful on the phone. I asked if she wanted me to come. She did. Her husband was admitted to the hospital after having fallen at home, whacking his head on the night stand. I made my way to the hospital and spent the afternoon with them.

Dear God, I don't know how she does it. She is the most amazing person I know. Her husband was unrecognizable (to me). Not the slim, muscular, masculine, strong, athletic guy he used to be. The cancer, the medications, the treatments, the side effects....they have taken their toll. He is incredibly weak. His arms bruised from nurses poking him with needles. His head still bald because he likes his wife to shave it now. He is swollen and pale. But one blessing: he still has his wild, hysterical sense of humor. He had us doubled over laughing at times. He is at times confused, but the sense of humor is exactly who he is.

I was most taken with my friend's gentleness and patience with her husband. It was incredible to witness. She really is my hero. So I spent much of today grasping the reality of my friend's life. How virtually all normalcy has abandoned them. My heart, my prayers, my soul just go out to her. Why do bad things happen to good people?

While I was at the hospital, the prospective employer - the one whose luncheon I ditched to be there for my friend - called. She left a message on our machine offering me the position and saying I can start as soon as I want.

Uh oh. Now what? My DH thinks I should simply tell her that I will need time off in the next few months to take care of some personal business. That it could be as soon as the beginning of July, but we don't yet know. Let her decide whether that will be acceptable. Considering the current financial condition of California, perhaps she will be delighted to have me take time off without pay.

If you have any thoughts about a good way to handle this, I'd appreciate your input.
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