NK - Latest on Baron Cip

[Kevinkeary at aol.com]

Good news and bad news.
Since my last catch-up, Cip had surgery to clean out the dead graft.  Turns 
out enough lived from the first graft that the doc didn't prepare his left 
leg for a cross-leg graft, just did a second graft on the foot.  (The patch 
of lost hide on his right thigh is getting huge.)  The doc said that there 
was now very little chance he'd lose his foot, but he has lost 70% of the 
muscle on that foot, and will probably walk with a cane for the rest of his 
life.  They checked the second graft Tuesday, and while part of it was dying, 
Cip still hoped he'd be out by mid-week. (The DOCTOR always said Friday 
(today) to Monday, but Cip's going stir-crazy.)  But yesterday the doc 
decided he'd have to do surgery again Monday, possibly yet another, smaller 
graft, possibly just trim out the dead stuff and stretch the existing graft.  
Either way, Cip's going to be on bed rest for another 7-10 days, and will 
obviously miss wInterKingdom this weekend.  We already knew he couldn't teach 
the promised glassblowing class.  At the rate he's going, he's sorely afraid 
he'll be spending his 40'th birthday next month in his hospital bed, just 
like he did New Year's Eve.  After he gets out, there'll be an unspecified 
period of rehab before he's as fit as he'll get.  But he's still hoping to go 
to Gulf War!  We'll see.

Kevin