Why can't it be easy?

Good Lord.

So Dad went in for surgery yesterday, and true to Lawler form, it turned out to be one hell of a disaster.  Though initial reports indicated that his gallbladder was inflamed, the doctors had hoped to be able to remove the organ laparoscopically, which is typically performed as a same-day procedure.  Unfortunately for Dad, not only was his gallbladder adhesed to his stomach and inflamed, but it was packed to the rim with gall stones.  His was the worst case of gall bladder disease the doctor had ever seen.  Performing the surgery laparoscopically would have been too risky given the state of his gall bladder, so the doctor opted for standard surgery, creating a six inch incision near is lower abdomen.  Six hours and one broken instrument later, the doctor was able to remove his gallbladder, but was unable to remove a stone lodged deep in the duct to his liver.  Dad will undergo a second procedure on Tuesday to remove the remaining stone.  It’s unlikely that his liver sustained any damage from the blockage. 

He’s now in recovery, and will stay in the hospital for the next few days for observation.  He’s doing well, though he’s been having difficulty oxygenating; they put him on two liters of oxygen to help facilitate his breathing.  They’ve also given him a morphine pump to help manage the pain, which, at the moment, is quite intense.  Diane is with him in Stillwater and will stay with him until he’s back on his feet.  (I'm stuck in Bangkok, but Erin may fly in next week to trade out with Diane.)  He’ll likely be out of commission for the next few weeks, but in the end, should fully recover.

Which leads me to ask this: why can’t it be easy?  Dad was looking forward to an easy surgery, and quick recovery.  He just started his new course at OSU a week ago, and will now miss at least a week of teaching.  He was already anxious about missing a few days, let alone a week or two.  His anxiety about further procedures and being away from the office is causing his blood pressure to elevate to unhealthy levels.  

All one can do is shake their heads and mutter good freaking Lord.  Fireworks just went off outside my little Bangkok coffee shop.  With our luck, I’m surprised the coffe shop didn’t just go up in flames.  Wait, I see smoke billowing outside..maybe there’s still time.  – J