Lee — my husband — had carotid surgery Wednesday. It was more complicated than expected; the artery was 95% blocked. Since the other one is 100% blocked and inoperable – a side effect of the radiation therapy he had in 2000 for cancer at the base of his tongue – this was a scary thing. (Apparently radiation calcified any plaque in his carotids – another of the side effects they don’t tell you about.) He’s fine, was awake for the procedure (and could hear the scraping). All went well and he’s now home and recuperating.

It’s been a rough few days – a few weeks actually because we knew this was coming up but scheduling was a problem; fortunately we didn’t know how serious it was.

I came home from the hospital after his surgery, checked my email, and found a notice that someone had commented on my Caprice cover post. She liked the book, and had very nice things to say about my other books as well. I felt myself smiling. It was a perfect ending for a very stressful day.

Words matter. Sometimes very much.

Time now to sit back and take a few deep breaths.