nm
That’s incredibly touching - thank you for sharing with us. sniff
Awww. That sucks. Hopefully the punctures will be over with soon and he’ll be back to headache free month. My best wishes for his recovery. A childhood friend had leukemia. I looked her up on facebook a while back and she’s still cancer free and thriving nearly 25 years after her diagnosis.
You’ve done everything right. Even though these have been painful changes for you to make, it’s clear you put your family’s well-being first. I hope this is the start of a new beginning for all of you.
She’s angry. She understands, or says she does, but she’s just angry at life right now. She thankfully doesn’t blame me or her mom, but she’s got a whole lot of world-hate going on right now, and we’re doing our best to defuse it however we can. Despite our cutbacks, we are trying to keep her active in her social activities with school - she’s in pep club and another group whose name slips my mind that has her working with little kids on school projects and such.
We haven’t told Riley yet - since he’s been pretty low feeling lately, we don’t want to add to his plate. And thankfully, my mom took in his favorite dog, so he will still get to visit her when he eventually gets better. Of the four, our eldest two are fine - upset, but understanding. Riley doesn’t know yet. And our youngest one…well, that’s the toughest part.
As I mentioned, he’s autistic and doesn’t handle change well…and he loves the dogs, especially Oz, more than just about anything. This is the kid who broke into sobbing hysterical tears while watching Marmaduke because he thought the CGI dog was going to die. 
He really connects with dogs. So far, we’ve just told him that they are going to go visit another house for a while, and since we’ve rehomed two of them with friends/family, that may help a lot. But we don’t have anyone volunteering for Oz, his favorite, so that may get a little hairy. We’ll have to wait and see.
Thanks again, all, for all your kind words and support. They really do help!
I sure wish your guys lived next door. I could at least bring you macaroni and cheese and maybe a nice loaf of banana bread. 
and your dog could just stay here, too.
I’m so glad that you’ve found a place to live, and hopefully things will stabilize financially. You seem to be keeping your focus on your family and on everyone’s well-being, and that’s what will bring your family through this tough time. Your ex will be mad for a while about the finances, but you did the right thing in having your support lowered, and it may spur her and her husband to more appropriate action in getting disability established, etc.
Do you know if your family is eligible for any support through your community? Here, we have great resources, even if you only look as far as the local food banks. I absolutely could feed my family just on what I could get from the local pantries–it takes time to research and manage, but it can be done. I don’t know what may be offered for you in your area, but it’s worth checking out–even $20 worth of free groceries frees up money to apply elsewhere.
I hope things even out for you a bit. I’ll be thinking of you and yours.
Woeg, I didn’t see this thread last month - been going through some family shit of my own which has cut into my obsessive lurking schedule. I really want to echo the suggestion above.
My mom still chokes up now, 15 years down the road, talking about the bags of groceries that moms she barely knew outside of her volunteer work bought for us when our family was in a world of shit, and the free legal help she got from a former colleague when the bank took the house. We had to re-home 2 dogs and a bunch of hamsters, and it hurt so bad at the time, but looking back I know they went to good places and those families were glad to help.
It wasn’t necessarily the closest friends or even family who helped when we needed it. It was folks who had something - a little money, expertise, room for a dog - at the moment they found out about the need. I’m sure you’ve been in a place in the past where you were the one who could step up to help anyone who happened to be in need, and I’m sure you will be again in the future. For now, let it be known that you need help.
OP: My experience as an administrative type with the military is that the federal government as an employer is extremely good at dunning paychecks for court orders such as child support and back payments for same.
Woeg, I’m so sorry that you’re having to deal with all this stuff all at once. Or even at all, for that matter.
I read your rant (and your updates), and I would be absolutely proud to call you my husband, my father, my neighbor, or my friend. You’re one of the good guys.
Keep fighting the good fight. It’s hard to do, and it’ll knock you down, sometimes. Just keep getting back up, and fighting, as you’re doing now. Kudos to you!
Woeg, are you in WR proper, out in Ft.Valley or all the way up in Macon? Robins was our last station and I spent the winter there in Centerville while **Tripler **was deployed. St. Francis in Macon has a lot of helpful resources. Check your PMs.
Hey all, another quick update - we found a home for Oz! One of my coworkers (who also took in my son’s rats) and her husband decided to give him a shot - they are really great people, and love animals. I dropped Oz off Saturday night, and though there was a rocky start (he spent the night sitting in front of the front door where I had left and growled at anyone who came near him), by Sunday morning he was his kind, lovable self, and this morning, she told me he is playful and happy again. That was a huge stresser, and I’m really glad she was able to take him in.
Excellent news!
Oh, good - dog + rats in one household. Does that mean your son can come visit his pets? Either way … glad things are looking a bit more positive.
Cross posting part of this from the MPSIMS thread, other parts are new to this thread:
Update time.
Just got off the phone with my ex - it looks like Riley might be having some liver problems. It is entirely possible that this is caused by a reaction to the blood he was transfused with yesterday - they pumped him up full, and this morning, he had quite a bit of blood in his urine. When they went in to get his chemo done today, his eyes were quite yellow, and sure enough, labs show his enzyme levels are fairly elevated.
For now, the docs want to ride it out. They plan to test him again on Thursday, and if his enzyme levels haven’t decreased, then it is likely that they are going to have to switch up some meds. The likely culprit, in this case, would be his oral medication. Unfortunately, they won’t know for sure how long it will take to get him back to treatable levels if this is the case - there is just no way of knowing at this point. They are also concerned that his hemoglobin levels may crash again.
Best case scenario, though, is that its just a reaction to all that blood (it had been some time since he needed such a heavy transfusion), and that his levels will drop below “concern” levels by Thursday.
Just want to keep y’all updated.
On the venting side, I feel foolish. I am crying here at work. The news isn’t bad, not yet anyway, and I know that. But part of me just keeps jumping to thoughts of my dad, who passed a year and half ago from cancer. He also got jaundiced and had high levels…and shortly after, his liver failed, and he died.
And even though I know that this is a totally different case, totally different circumstances (my dad’s cancer had matastisized (sp?) into his liver by then), I can’t stop the fucking tears.
UGH!
You have every right to cry and be emotional Woeg… don’t feel like there is anything wrong with you, that you aren’t thinking rationally, etc. I couldn’t even begin to imagine how I might handle such a situation… you’ve been placed in a very difficult situation and you are handling it extremely well.
Woeg: I’ve known better men than I that would’ve folded like a cheap suit with having to deal with even half of what’s on your plate.
Taking your OP at face value, you are a giant among men.
Hang tough, and wait for the wheel.
Aaaaaaaaaand fuck.
We aren’t getting the apartment. We’ll try a last ditch appeal, but our credit screws us again. Fuck, FUCK, FUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKK!!!
Riley is sedated at the hospital as I type. They are running an MRI, because the doctor has concerns that one of his meds may be causing neurological damage…the same med that the next phase of chemo is going to be the most intensive does.
I am trying, people. I’m trying. I won’t lie, though. The urge to get hit by a fucking bus is strong today.
No, I will not throw myself in front of a bus. But god, I am just so fucking tired…no, tired isn’t strong enough. Language fails me.
Fuck it.
Wow, that is so fucking shitty.
I’m sure you’re already exploring options, but is there anyone who might co-sign the lease with you? Perhaps a friend or co-worker with good credit they’d be willing to “gamble” on you? It’s a lot to ask, but someone might say yes…
Oh, man, **Woeg.**I don’t even know what to say. My sympathies, for what it’s worth.
Pulling for you here in southern Indiana, my friend. And thinking of your sweet little one.