February 24th, 2018

Oh my goodness, today was such a good day. A long overdue relaxing day. It's too bad days like this can't happen more often and really makes me wish I could have a more regular schedule with the weekends off.

Hal picked me up early in the day, and then we headed over to Candace's to meet up with her and Max. And then since Hal's jeep was more practical for the four of us we took his car. We hit up the gym first just so we can say we earned the day. I haven't been able to run with Max in a while, that was nice. And it allowed us to go more at our own pace rather than me feeling like I need to keep up with Hal. Whereas Hal and Candace were really able to stretch their longer legs.

Afterward we went to the Botanic Gardens. And with all the snow we've had recently, the place was beautiful. It's not the lively green of the spring and summer months, but they make the gardens inviting during the winter and have fun with the snow. It was a real treat to be able to go. It also gave Hal a chance to try and check in on Melia Floros, something that we had talked about doing a month ago or so. Turns out, she doesn't work there any more. Probably just as well.

Today they were doing a "Bumblebee Jamboree", a concert aimed and families and kids. We got there late for that, but managed to see a bit of the end. It looked like it was a lot of fun. And all the kids dressed up in bee costumes, or with insect wings on their backs. It was the cutest thing.

Thing was, I was seeing more than just kids with wings. And I don't know if their costumes triggered it or what. But at first it was just a couple I saw sitting on the back of a bench. They were just sitting there, swinging their legs and watching all the people. They seemed to really enjoy the kids and were pointing the kids out to each other. It actually seemed rather normal. One was entirely green, even his spiked hair. He had like little baby's breath flowers arranged in like a crown around his head, and a bow rested over his shoulder and across his chest. Otherwise it didn't look like he was wearing anything. The other was darker skinned, like me, and she was wearing a skirt of petals that made me think of the Hawaiian grass skirts. Long flowing blue hair was all she had to cover her chest.

My first reaction was to do what I'd been doing all along. I asked Max, since she was right there, if she could see them. She thought I was pointing to a couple of kids nearby, I had to clarify that I was looking at fairies and that they were sitting on the bench. Max couldn't see them.

We moved on, and checked out as many of the gardens as we could. There's just so much to see. After that initial hallucination though, I stopped pointing the others out. And there were many, I was seeing fairies in each garden, at least one. The tropical garden had the most, off the top of my head I can remember three separate pairs and another group of three.

After all that I was feeling a little ragged. It's distressing enough to know I'm seeing things, but to see so many in such a short time. I don't know if it's a result of the stent, or the new medication, or a combination of the two. It was just a lot. And the others were noticing that I was struggling. When they started asking, Max admitted that I had hallucinated earlier, so they just assumed I was struggling and needed rest. Which isn't entirely wrong, it's just that I was struggling with what I was seeing.

But it was getting around lunch time, and we were getting hungry. So we headed out to Max's favorite restaurant, Casa Bonita. Candace couldn't remember ever having been before, so it was a real treat having her look wide eye'd at everything there is to see. Max had been texting Sam, and he joined us there to take a break from his commission. And then when it was time we all went and saw a midday showing of Black Panther.

That movie was so good! So well done in every way, definitely one of the MCU's best. Michael B. Jordan's Killmonger was such a relatable villain, not just one who's motivations we can understand, but someone we could so easily be. Boseman's T'Challa on the other hand was all about stepping into his role and defining it for himself. The struggle between tradition and whats right, his view of his father versus finding out what his father's done. It's a common storyline, the growth of the hero, but almost redefined or reforged in this movie. Personally I loved Letitia Wright's Q, I mean Shuri. She reminded me of Batel so much, but in her I could see my own admiration for my brother.

I could go on and on, everything about that movie is testament to the records it's breaking.

But I need to also mention what happened afterward. Sam had to get back to his stuff, and I was getting tired. So we stopped by the store on the way back to Candace's and grabbed groceries for to make dinner. By the time we were getting back to her place a news story interrupted Hal's station. There was a big fight happening right now between The Stag and the other cloaked individual he'd faced just the other day. Hal and Max rushed right into the house and turned on the TV to see the live coverage, leaving me to help Candace with the groceries.

All that aside. As usual, we don't know what started the fight, how or really where. Reports are that they were already fighting by the time it was reported to the news stations. Helicopters and vans were sent to Cherry Creek state park, and they were able to broadcast live the last of the fight. Again, both cloaked figures were paired off, the deer mask versus the fur mantle and spear. This time though, the opponent was making The Stag look like an amateur. Not that I'm an expert, just that for all his strength, The Stag couldn't land a hit. His opponent seemed to deflect and counter all of The Stags attempts to strike him, as much as he could he avoided facing The Stag directly, he did. They were both fast, but the opponent was faster.

We're aware of how strong The Stag is, maybe not specifics, but being able to push an overturned car is evidence of his strength. His opponent didn't seem to be as strong, but no weakling, especially not while using that spear. When he'd hit The Stag, The Stag was sent reeling. It was apparent his blows were forceful. Even still, The Stag took the beating. And he would not stop, by the time I'd joined Hal and Max, both of them were saying the fight was over, and they were still going at it.

I think what impressed me was how well the opponent was using his spear. He struck The Stag with his feet, his hands, and the butt and haft of the spear, but never with the point. It kinda made me wonder why he was fighting with a spear to begin with, but he used it masterfully.

The Stag on the other hand, he was relying on his strength way too much. Like I said, it was clear to us that The Stag wasn't landing blows. But he just kept trying to overpower his opponent with his strength. Candace stopped by real quick to ask for help in the kitchen, and taking a quick look at the TV I heard her mutter, "no self control." I told her I'd join her, but as I was turning to leave the sound of sirens was starting to be heard on the TV. I knew whatever would happen, the fight would be over shortly. So I stopped to finish it out.

The Stag, despite all his impressive strength and stamina, was being worn down. Whoever his opponent was, had fought him almost to a stand still. But The Stag must have a stubborn streak, he charged one last time. And his opponent finally used his spear like a spear. Just planted the butt in the ground and let The Stag run right into it. Using the momentum of The Stags charge, and the leverage of the planted spear, he lifted the spear throwing The Stag over his head. And as The Stag passed by, he jerked the spear pulling its head free, bright fresh red blood covering it.

The news stations cut the feed almost immediately, apologizing for the graphic content. At that point Candace turned the TV off and again asked for help.

We didn't discuss what we'd seen. It wasn't until Sam joined us that we started talking again, mostly just talking about how much fun we'd had and the movie. If Sam was aware of the news, he didn't say.

While Hal was bringing me home, he turned his radio back on to the news hoping to find out what'd happened afterward. It seems the police showed up to the park finding evidence of their fight, but couldn't find either The Stag or his opponent. We don't know where they went, if they left together, if the opponent took The Stag, if The Stag was able to leave on his own, or if he's even still alive.

The Stag is no role model, he's brutal and has a tendency to make things worse. And I don't know what he was trying to do, or trying to achieve. But I find myself worried for him, worried what's happened to him and if he'll be okay. I just, I wish I knew.

February 23rd, 2018

Just got home from spending today doing a whole lot of nothing. Being observed is what I was doing. But unlike a mouse, I don't get a little wheel to run around in. It was bed rest for me all day. Which would normally drive me up a wall, but I was just feeling lethargic all day. I don't know if it's the recovery from the operation, or the new drugs in my system or what. I do know I'm starting to come down off that feeling and I want to stretch my legs a bit. But it's late now, and to be honest just getting from the car to my bed was a bit of a trial. Despite my body feeling sore, I'm mentally feeling wide awake, and I'm a little worried that I'm not going to get a lot of sleep tonight.

The operation went well, or so I'm told. Scans afterward confirmed that the stent was in place, but images have been taken to be shared with Dr. Laurie's college. When I go back next week for the check up they'll take more scans to see if the stent is having any effect. So I may not hear word back for another month if this was successful or not. Though they do know what to look for now, so hopefully it won't take that long.

Sam did show up after the operation with Max. They wanted to know how I was doing and for me to know they were there if I needed. Sam even brought me one of those toy trolls with the hair just to cheer me up. It worked, it's cute, and it's holding a sign that says "Get Well."

They took Candace home, and Dad had to leave 'cause he still had work in the morning. Mom stayed with me all night. Batel called too and we got to talk. It was nice hearing from her. She finally openly admitted that she and Jason were dating, probably only 'cause Dad wasn't there. Probably also because Jason was with her, so Mom and I got to meet him over the phone. He sounds nice.

I slept hard last night, ten hours or so. This morning was a lot of meeting with Dr. Laurie to see how I was feeling, to confirm how things went, and what our next steps will be. He said he'd work out of the hospital today, so if we needed anything to just holler. And he checked in periodically through the day, which was nice.

Hal made sure to sneak in a burger for me for lunch. He said that was the one thing he really craved while he was admitted in August, and the one thing they absolutely wouldn't let him have. Neither of us are big burger eaters, but I have to admit, it hit the spot.

When Hal came again after class, he brought Candace with him. She was apologetic that she couldn't get here earlier, but Sam had work and she wasn't sure about the bus route. I assured her it was okay. They helped Mom and I prepare to be discharged, and while we waited we made plans for tomorrow. I mentioned wanting to visit the botanic gardens, which Candace has never gone. So we're going to plan on that. Max will meet us there, and then we'll hit up an early showing of Black Panther. I keep hearing it's really good, so I'm looking forward to that. And then Sam will join us for dinner afterward, provided his commission lets him.

After we got home, Mom and Candace worked on making dinner while Hal, Dad, and I watched TV. Hal did make sure to offer to help, but Mom and Candace kicked him out. It was a nice evening, Sam even stopped by to pick Candace up and stayed long enough to grab a bite. And then after they left Hal helped me to my room before leaving. I am feeling a lot stronger now than I was even this morning. But like I said, I feel sore all over. They entered my leg and fed the stent all the way into my brain from there. Not overly invasive, but probably why I'm feeling so sore.

Anyway, it's early for my usual bedtime, and I'm not tired. So I'm going to read for a while and see if that can't calm me down enough to sleep.

February 22nd, 2018

Candace asked this morning if she could be with me for the operation. I don't think she understood that she wouldn't be allowed in the room. But Mom said she'd be welcome to stay with her while I was in. Since Hal was going to stop by this morning anyway I texted him and asked him to pick Candace up. And they were both able to join me when I was admitted to the hospital.

Hal couldn't stay long since he had class, but it was nice having him here. Candace looks like more of a wreck than Mom does. She's been great though, offering to get coffee or snacks or anything we need. I don't think Mom's let go of me since we got here. Even now her hand is resting on my leg.

I'm feeling stoic, I think would be the best word. I can feel my system altered without my meds, it's like I'm in a constant state of going into an attack. Not quite nauseous, more like I'm sitting in a boat on water. And to be honest, I haven't let go of Mom all day either. In many ways she's been holding me up. I know what's coming, and any fear or nervousness I should feel is gone. Now I'm just waiting for it to happen.

And that's what's happening now. It's still early in the day, we just had a small lunch. I'm just waiting for staff to come get me. So I decided to write in my journal a bit, I expect afterward I'm not going to want to do much.

Max couldn't be here, though she texted me saying she wished she could. She said she'll try to stop by later just to check in on me. Likewise, Dad has work. But he'll come over after he gets off.

Dr. Laurie just poked his head into the room to let us know they're coming.

February 21st, 2018

It didn't really hit me till today that I'd be going in for an operation tomorrow. I think if it had struck me yesterday, it might have made things feel surreal that I wouldn't be returning to work for a week. Even having Helene come down to assure me that all was well didn't strike me that I wasn't having a normal weekend. Besides dealing with my leave, this last week has felt mostly normal. It was talking about having an operation that felt surreal for some reason.

But today... Normally when Candace joins me, I'm helping her out. Reminding her that our stop is coming up, or asking if she wants to stop at the store. Today I was out of it. My head was swimming and Candace was the one reminding me that our stop was next. She was asking me if we needed to hit the bank today, or stop by the pharmacy.

Speaking of which, I've got my new meds. The plan was for them to replace my refill and take over from there. But that wouldn't have happened until next week going in to the new month. Since my operation is tomorrow, Dr. Laurie wanted me to let the old stuff clear out of my system. We would anyway, but this way after the operation I can start on the new meds from scratch. Come to think of it, that might actually be why I've been off today. I didn't take my usual dose this morning.

So yea, Hal had picked Candace up on the way to getting me and we all went to the gym. From there as usual Hal went to class and Candace and I hopped on the bus to run chores. Candace was great, very helpful and observant. I hadn't said anything about how I was feeling, but I think she noticed.

The roll reversal was complete, because even after getting home she was still helping me do my chores. And since I had that help to get things doen more easily, we then both stepped into the kitchen to help Mom. It was a lot of fun just us three.

Hal came by after class to pick Candace and I up. Mom made sure to send Candace home with some food, and we brought her home. Then Hal took me out to dinner. It was a quiet meal, which didn't help my nerves at all. Started to make it feel like it might be our last. So I asked Hal how his day went just to start conversation. That seemed to do the trick, and soon we were back to our usual selves.

Unfortunately our evening couldn't last. I need to be up early tomorrow. But Hal promised me he'd try and stop by after his lab.

February 20th, 2018

Today was one of those days where, if I were of the mind, I would have taken my dizzy spell to have been a warning sign. I had finished up Efe's letter last night before going to bed, so on my way to work I was able to drop it off to be delivered. Hal had some chore he needed to run and wasn't able to pick me up. But he still made it to the gym and was able to get me to work.

Work was smooth, and Helene stopped by to apologize for the mix up yesterday. She said she'd taken care of everything and my leave was approved. I didn't get any explanation as to what had been mixed up, or how, I was just happy that she was making sure I was taken care of.

We were busy enough for time to fly by and before I knew it Hal had brought me lunch. He remembered how much I liked Tocabe and brought some of their Fry Bread nuggets.

It was just before my last break that I had my attack. It wasn't a bad one today, I just had to steady myself against the counter for a moment in the middle of helping a guest. After I finished up with the guest I asked if I could take my break a little early and went outside for some fresh air.

Outside there were some kids who were pointing and laughing while their parents talked. Curious, I walked over just to take a look at what they were pointing at. There was a cat, who was being picked on by a couple of fairies. Of course the kids couldn't see the fairies, they were just laughing at the cat. Of course, cats being cats, my brain was probably just interpreting what it was doing. I didn't get to watch for long before one of the fairies tugged the cat's tail and then flew off as the cat chased after. The second fairy followed close behind.

So since I was already walking, I just made my way around the trees like I often do in warmer weather before heading in.

The big thing though was after I'd gotten home. During my bus ride there was another incident with The Stag. Now it seems that our "superhero" has a villain. Another guy in a cloak, though this one doesn't have a deer head mask. His cloak though seems to have a fur mantle, and he was carrying an ornately carved spear. I'm saying he again, considering the two sparred, but they kept their hood low enough that their face was never revealed. It may have still been masked, but at least from the angle of video the news station had picked up, we can't know. The footage itself was more cell phone video taken by a witness. Reports are that the two cloaked figures were already fighting as they entered the park. By the time the cell phone was recording, the two were facing off. The Stag charged his opponent, and body checked him. His opponent was sent flying more than a few feet, but he rolled and was up even as The Stag was charging again. He spun his spear around over his head real quick meeting The Stag's rush, the butt of his spear cleanly catching The Stag at the side of his face. The Stag reeled from the blow and stumbled to his knees. His opponent didn't wait, he turned and ran off. But the time The Stag was back on his feet, his opponent was almost out of the park, but already sirens could be heard approaching even by the cell phone. So The Stag ran the other way.

As usual, noone's sure what all this was about. Everyone seems to be assuming that the opponent is the "bad guy" while The Stag is the "good guy." All I know is that I still have reservations about The Stag being a good guy.

Max has been blowing up my phone about all this. She's convinced we've got The Stag's first rogue for his gallery. Personally I'm just glad this didn't take place anywhere near here. But Max did ask an important question, "Didn't The Stag get shot four or five days ago?" Or were the police mistaken about hitting him?

If he was shot, he's doing very well. He didn't look at all like he'd recently been shot.

My weekend is finally upon me. I've got all my chores to get to tomorrow, and since I'll be going to the hospital on Thursday Candace is planning on joining me all day tomorrow. I'm starting to get nervous realizing it's so close. Hal also wants to make sure to spend time with me after he gets out for the day. So I'm going to try and get my laundry done before I leave, then after running chores we'll head to his place to meet for dinner.

February 19th, 2018

Hal said last night was torture. Torture in that he was bored as hell while he and Tim waited in a parked car near the intersection with the tree. Tim never did tell Hal what he was hoping to see, and they never did see it. So Hal wasn't sure what the purpose was, other than possibly to test his patience.

Needless to say, he was happy to have my company tonight. Though it was spent working on his homework. I think I'm starting to get a hang of the things he's been working on, I even managed to ask a few questions he couldn't immediately answer. I think this next week while I've got leave, I'll take him up on sitting in on a few classes. Should be fun.

Speaking of leave though, I got a message from HR today asking me to postpone my leave or have it cancelled outright. So during my last break I stopped by to ask them when exactly it'd be convenient to them for me to prevent a stroke? Not in those words exactly, obviously, I would like to keep my job. It wasn't Helene in the office today though, she'd have been so much better to talk to. Instead it was another lady whose name I've never managed to catch. I don't often deal with her, and it's almost never pleasant when I do. She seemed to think this operation was cosmetic in nature. I had to explain to her, three times, that I was going to get a stent implanted in my brain to prevent a stroke.

It took her calling her manager to come out to talk to me before I finally was able to get an "Ohh, that's what this is for." He still asked if I could do it another time. "Sorry, no," I said, "the operation is already scheduled."

So they "allowed" me to have the leave so requested.

I love working at the museum, I really do. But I have to wonder if HR is like this everywhere, or if it's just here.

Anyway, Hal brought me home to find a letter from Efe, which I've just finished reading. He said he got together with some of the guys in his squad, and they were able to see the lunar eclipse. He hoped I had gotten the chance to as well, but he had heard how bad the cloud coverage was. He says he's got some leave coming up, and he'll be able to take pictures and let me know where he is at that time. But it won't last long. So I might get another letter from him before he receives mine. Good think I've got pictures printed off. Which was the other thing Hal and I were able to do before he got me home.

So I'll write a bit more responding to what Efe wrote, though actually I covered a few things he was asking about already. And then I'm going to need to get to bed. I should be able to send this out tomorrow though.

February 18th, 2018

Today was one of those increasingly rare days where not a whole lot happens. It was kinda nice, except Hal was off doing things with Tim. He did pick me up in the morning for our workout, and stopped by for lunch. It's been a little over two weeks since I sent Efe's letter. So a response from him should be arriving soon. Knowing that I asked Hal if he could get the pictures that we'd taken of everyone printed out so I'd have them ready to send. At lunch he let me know where he'd taken them and gave me the ticket to pick them up. So I did that on the way home.

Mom was a little worried that I'd gotten home a bit late, but having run that chore reminded me I needed to get pictures of her and Dad too. So we had a little fun with that, and at Dad's expense when he got home.

So I've got some more pictures to have printed, and I've just been working on the next letter to send him. With how all the weirdness has been hitting the news, I've decided to start filling him in on anything he can confirm. Assuming he hasn't already heard about it. The tree and the riots, The Stag, though I left out DIA because we're really not sure what happened there. I didn't go into all the stuff we've been talking about during our conspiracy dinners, just what's shown up in the major news articles.

Of course I had to mention the town of Albany, WY. Which I did some checking, they haven't found anyone else yet. Of course there's all the other missing persons cases, and the found persons cases. I haven't been mentioning them, but every day it seems there's more.

I also let Efe know what's been going on with my little death. I didn't tell him exactly why I'd gone to Dr. Laurie in the first place, just that we'd taken some more scans, what was found, and what's to be done.

Not wanting to dwell on the bad, I mentioned meeting Efe's parents. But the big thing was going to the open night with Max and Candace and how much fun we'd had there.

I now have a short story of a letter to send, and I haven't even gotten a letter from him to respond to. At least I'm prepared this time.