Good news, bad news

The good news is that my surgery went very well, my recuperation has been mostly smooth sailing, and I'm now back to work full time. I'm tired, and having a tough time getting used to the changes in my diet and energy, but all in all, I'm good.

The bad news is that my husband received his pink slip today. He's been on "temporary layoff" for three months now. We thought he'd be going back to work within the next couple of weeks, but he got the letter today terminating him. The company is closing the local plants and have terminated virtually everyone. We cried, we swore, we got really depressed. Now we move on.

Easier said than done, considering our income has been reduced and my husband is severely depressed. Our son is trying to raise enough money to go on the 3+ week trip to Germany in June, and not having very good luck. He even took a job as a dog walker to make some money. It's not easy for a 14-15 yr old to earn money in a city, especially with the current economy. He's been selling cookie dough, Tupperware, approaching local businesses to recruit sponsors. I'm proud of him, and really wish we could afford to send him on such a wonderful trip. Student exchange programs are very cool.

It's scary, no one is accepting applications anywhere in town. We have a small savings and will find a way to manage. My company will not be giving pay raises this year, and my part time work has been cut back.

On the bright side, I was able to do some painting while I was laid up, and turned out a few really nice works. Here are a couple of them. The fairy is a from a drawing a friend did - she's an amazing portrait artist, in pencil. I can't draw people to save my life. We've wanted to collaborate but never did anything about it. I think we should, don't you?

Well, that's all for now. I'll check back in again soon.