My name is Abbagale Winslow.  I live in Nashville, Tennessee, with me mum and pop and younger sister, Charlie (Charlotte, but we, the fam, call her Charlie for short).  I was born in Australia, came to the States when I was thirteen, and joined the Marines when I was eighteen.  Did really well until recently; was getting ready to retire last year when I was injured in a roadside bomb. 

Lost me legs.

Bitter?  Perhaps, especially since I've been in hospital since October of 2009, last year!!  I'm more'n ready to go home to me fam!!

Reason being I keep developing one complication after another.  If it isn't me screwy-lewy blood pressure (it keeps falling to dangerous levels when the therapists try to sit me up), the development of bone spurs in me stumps (which requires more in the way of surgery), or whatnot, then I don't know what to do or if I'm ever gonna get out of here again.  I've been very discouraged.

Me fam is as frustrated as I am, if not even more so.  Pop keeps telling the doctors and nurses if they can't get me better, then he's gonna take me out and take care of me himself.  Not that I would mind, but I need to conquer sitting up first.  It seems for every one step I make, I get knocked back two, and I'm right back to square one.  It's a never-ending battle!

One bright note in all this doom and gloom:  me second cousin, Tottie Ruth Brighton, and her husband, Bobbo, who live in Sydney, Australia, are expecting.  They will be having their first child, a boy, sometime in November.  They plan on naming him Trystan Robert.  So I will be getting a new relative.  I heard from her last week; still have yet to write her.  I'm horrible with writing back to people; I just don't feel like it, especially since I've been so depressed or unwell!

I am no longer in the Marines, obviously.  I got honorably discharged (medical reasons).  I will probably end up getting full disability pay once the case goes through.  That will take a while.  Until then, all I can do is try to get out of here and go back to me family, who will probably end up taking care of me.

I don't know what the future holds for me.  I am more than ready to give up on life; it's been horrible these past few years!  And I now have to live with the twin realities of losing both my legs and losing several buddies in that bomb blast (we were in our Humvee, me and four other people, when the bomb went off; I was the only one who survived).  I'm probably gonna end up needing much in the way of counseling and further physical/occupational therapies for the forseeable future.

Well, I was up all night (pain and nausea), so I am going to try to get some sleep.  Since today is Sunday, that means no therapy sessions, so I might as well take advantage of it.  Just as long as no goddamn doctor or nurse barge in, I'll be okay.  Until later, this is Abbagale Winslow saying so long!

~Abbagale.  :(