So there are many reasons I haven't been able to keep up with this as much as in the past, but finally those are behind me so I should be back up to my daily installments. First there was the trip to Florida and to see my parents that kept me from being able to write. Next I received the latest seasonal plague going around. I don't know if it was the flu or what, all I know is that night I went through all of the toilet paper in the house and then half of the Kleenex. Finally, I had spent a lot of time on the internet selling stuff on ebay to people desperate to buy their family member some crappy item from their past that they really wanted and luckily the person buying it didn't realize it was just a crappy item and paid me too much to sell it to them. Why was I selling stuff? Well, it's something I do every year at this time, it's mainly just to clean out the house from stuff I never use. However this time, I was saving up to buy an American made Paul Reed Smith with twenty four frets and double cutaways. It wasn't going to be a new one, or a nice one, just whatever one I could afford.
Two days ago, we all sat around the Christmas tree in Missouri and I finished opening my presents earlier than everyone else. I didn't think too much of it, except that I didn't get the tools my father said he spent a lot of money on. Then he came around the corner with an American made Paul Reed Smith with double cutaways and twenty four frets. I was hoping it was for me, because if someone else had asked for it too and they got one and I didn't I would be really ticked! It was for me though! It was a much nicer and newer one than I could afford, in fact it was a model that wasn't even on my radar because of how nice it was. I knew I wouldn't be able to afford this model selling twenty year old broken laptops and McDonald's Happy Meal toys on the internet.
Me and the new Paul Reed Smith have been spending a lot of time together since we got home. So much that I may have to cut today's entry short because my fingers are sore. My family chipped in to buy me this not only as a Christmas present, but as a symbol that all of this cancer stuff is over. And in some ways, I do feel like I am over all of it. But, I still haven't healed from surgery completely (well I really just keep re-injuring it) and I have years of tests. Part of going through chemo was having the peace of mind that I more than likely won't have anything to worry about, but cancer is a very scary word, and one you have had it, it is never completely out of your mind. However, I do know when I hold that Paul Reed Smith I am not thinking about cancer at all! I am thinking about how my family made a very big gesture and bought me a very nice present and how important it is to live your life and love your family and...OK, I will admit it, I am really just thinking, "Man this thing feels and sounds good!!!"
The ironic thing about all of this is that my father and I have had long conversations about which model I wanted and what I was looking for. I kept mentioning one model over and over again, not because it was my dream model, just because it was the only model I would be able to afford. I had described in depth the qualities of the model I had told myself was the only one within my reach. This was not the model they had already bought me. They had purchased a much nicer model with much nicer features. So, the weeks leading up to Christmas they are worried that I am not going to like the really nice guitar they bought me, because it isn't the cheapest American made PRS that I had planned on buying with my own money. It has taken much convincing that I am not disappointed in the least. The more I play it, the more I am glad they found this one for me and I didn't spend so much money for a lesser quality model.
Now, part of the deal with the gift was that I am supposed to shut up about wanting an American made Paul Reed Smith with twenty four frets and double cutaways. I have been trying to think of something else I can cancer-boy-look my way into getting, but I think I have already cashed in that card. And although it may not quite have the effect they were wanting of being an official end to all of this cancer stuff (since I still have years of testing), it certainly has a way of making me forget cancer, and the trials of the past few months, and my spouse, and food, and...you get the idea. Well, I should probably get off of here, I have been ignoring my new guitar for about 45 minutes now and she is probably wondering where I am.
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