Wednesday, February 07, 2007

Life of Craziness... Part 2: JR's Story



Most of you already know my dear friend JR Salzman was injured in Iraq. The explosion from an IED caused him to lose most of his right arm, and his left ring finger. After many painful surgeries, he is finally out of the hospital.

Although he has gotten the chance to meet many celebrities, and become a bit of a celebrity himself, I’m sure he would take back his arm any day. Luckily he has the support of his amazing wife (she really is just incredible) and family; not to mention that of the entire log rolling community.

If you are interested in helping out, but aren’t sure where to give, here is the address to send some money:
JR Salzman Fund
Associated Bank
PO Box 636
10526 Main
Hayward, WI 54843

JR also said he would welcome donations in his name to the following organizations: The Red Cross, Soldier’s Angels, and the Wounded Warrior Project.

He has been documenting his experiences before and after the injury on his weblog:
http://www.jrsalzman.com/weblog/default.asp

I would also like to make one point very clear. It is true that I am a “bleeding heart” liberal. The war disgusts me, and I was upset from day one about it. It makes me sick to my stomach how many lives (not just those of Americans) are affected by this. With the insanely high number of soldier injuries and deaths, almost everybody knows somebody who got the crappy end of the deal in this war. BUT I by no means do not support our troops. Just because I am against this war, does NOT mean I don’t think of those poor brave souls who risk their lives on a daily basis. And through JR, I got to learn how awful of a life it really is (and I’m sure he didn’t even tell me everything). So despite my strong beliefs, I still support JR and all of the other brave soldiers with all of my heart. Let’s stop this insanity.

Monday, February 05, 2007

Life of Craziness… Part 1: Ken is a DOCTOR!

To say life has been busy recently would be a major understatement. Days are filled with long hours at work ('tis the busy season at the health club!), tons of working out (keeps me sane), and endless other activities. But as usual, I'm loving life! Being busy is GREAT, although I really wouldn't mind a vacation.

The first bit of super awesome news… Ken passed his boards! He is now just a few short months away from being Doctor Goldrick DVM! No, we have no idea where we will end up. But if anybody has a wonderful mixed animal practice in the Madison area we are most definitely interested!

To be quite honest, I am scared to death. I've already hopped all over the country, and I am very happy with Madison. My entire life is here; my family, my perfect job, log rolling, and all of my dear friends. But I also can't be selfish and tell Ken he cannot take the job that would be ideal for him.

Anyway, I am very happy for him. 4 years of vet school is quite the stressful trip, not just for him, but me too! This is a wonderful feeling, and graduation will be even better!