[Bryn-gwlad] [Ansteorra-Chivalry] Where's Lyonel?

[Sir Giotto di Giovanni]

My dearest brother,

Since your return you have been inspirational to me.  Your strength,
talent, knowledge, kindness and ability to express yourself show you
for a knight.  As does the grace and caring you show for your
beautiful lady.  Your prowess and skills on the field are most
admirable but only a small part of why we value you and your company.

I hope for a speedy end to your pain and to see you soon.

As always, call on me if I can help,

Giotto

On Sun, Mar 23, 2008 at 2:08 AM, Sir Lyonel Oliver Grace
<sirlyonel at hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> Salut cozyns,
>
> Lucia's been asking me to do this for several weeks, but it just felt so...permanent...admitting to a problem, but I know the prognosis now. There's no stepping back and not much chance that anything will change. So, here's the wya things are:
>
> Six weeks ago, I was planning to go to Gulf Wars. It was my Big Plan for the first quarter of 2008. I was so nearly ready to go, cleaning up armor problems, fixing my garb, making reservations. I was in shape (so I thought), had been lifting weights, swimming a few miles each week, my rest heart rate was back down to 50, and I was trim and looking pretty good for 49 years old. In the last practice before the war, two weekends before the war, I was scrambling to get my gear put together in time to get in some practice--had already missed half the practice while Lucia finished tacking on my new points--when I made it out to play in a bridge battle. In my first sally, I tripped on my own big feet and took a glaive shot to the kidneys.
>
> Whoo. That hurts. Like a kick to the testicles. Nausea, dizziness, pain. Couldn't get off my knees for a few minutes after the battle. Finally, I got up, toughed it out through one more battle (in which I did nothing, could hardly move) and then collapsed on a park bench for half an hour. Two days later, I told myself that I had to get to a doctor, and I went to see an orthopedist. I had so much pain that I thought I'd possibly broken my left illial wing--even though I was sure the blow landed above that. Turns out the damage--the problem--was chronic. The glaive to the back just kicked things to a level that would have come up in another few months, regardless.
>
> Thirty years of weight-lifting and martial arts (to say nothing of a couple decades with a few pounds of armor on my back) have taken their toll. My lowest disk has degenerated, the spinal segments around it have become arthritic. In short, I have degeneratiive disk disease. I've spent the past month on opioids and in lots of pain. Ironically, the thing that causes me the most pain is the simple act of sitting down. Not a great situation for a software engineer.
>
> Three weeks ago I had an MRI. Two weeks ago I had my first epidural injection. It didn't help as much as I'd hoped. This Thursday, I get my second epidural injection. After that, I can start physical therapy. I'm not sure when I'll be able to swing a stick again.
>
> As proud as I am of our warriors, I'm sorry I was unable to support the barony in Gulf Wars. It will be a while.
>
> Weather permitting, I'll be at practice this coming Tuesday.
>
> I know this sounds cheesy, but I love you all.
>
> lo vostre per vos servir,
>
> En Lyonel
> _________________________________
> Impedimentum via est
> (The obstacle is the path)
>
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-- 
We are knights. We are professional killers constrained by a code of
conduct that turns murder into both art and service. -- Duke Cuán
MacDaige (Atlantia)