Still married…

[liv2ski]

Awesome tale Toadman. Thanks for sharing all that.

[SumJongGuy]

Met the misses in a country that doesn't exist any more, West Germany. Both studying international marketing at the University of Mannheim on a foreign exchange program. Me, just a schmuck from Anchorage, AK, studying at Oregon State. She, a big city girl, born and raised in NYC and attending Baruch. (Yes, the same Baruch that Santos did not attend.)

I was fortunate that the future Mrs. Toadman could ski. I had to verify this while she spent our 1st Christmas in AK and took her skiing in minus 20F temps at Alyeska. I figured if she could still force a smile in those conditions, she was worth hanging on to.

We were married at West Point over looking the Hudson. Her grandfather served in the South Pacific during WWII and suggested that venue. Props to him, as it was a great place for a wedding.

We moved to Seattle after 6 years in NJ, which was total hell on me. So, 2 more pluses for her moving away from the only place she had ever lived her whole life.

Two years later my wife became ill. A diagnose of a rare autoimmune disease that destroyed her liver, required a liver transplant to save her life. Fortunately, we had some of the best medical care and transplant expertise at the UWMC. She literally became the poster patient for the hospital. They called her their "One percenter", as very few people recover to the level of health that she obtained. She went on to win 6 gold medals and 2 silvers at two separate Transplant Olympics in track & field. Winning the 5k road race, 1,500 meters and 800 meters and silver in the 400m. See went on to repeat those same results 4 years later.

The one thing she said to me while laying in the hospital bed was that she wanted to get back on skis. The last time she had been on skis, we had gone skiing with friends at Stevens Pass. She apologized to me when she had to stop because she had become too tired to continue. The worst day was finding her on the floor, in our living room when I had returned from a short bike ride, with slurred words and with phone in hand. I thought she had been trying to call 911. I did the drive to the UWMC in very short order. Turned out she was bleeding internally in her esophagus from varicose veins that had developed from the cirrhosis of her liver.

A month later, while watching the final four - Syracuse against Kansas the phone on the counter started to ring. I almost didn't pick it up, but figured I better answer it just in case. Turned out it was our transplant coordinator telling us they had a match. 3.5 days in ICU, and another 3 days in the transplant wing and she was out. At that time it was the fastest release for a liver transplant. 12 weeks later she was back at work. 6 months later she ran the Seattle half marathon. And 7 months later she was on the slopes with me at Crystal Mountain. 20 years on, and we have had a few scares but she has given back to that anonymous donor family by doing fund raisers and raising awareness on organ donations. She has spoken to medical conferences, has been interviewed on the news and done social media, radio and print ad campaigns. At one point in time you could see her poster at the UofW Husky stadium, Harbor View, and UWMC.


Since that time, we have skied from Alyeska to Zermatt, and lots of places in between, including my 40th July birthday present in Valle Nevado and then on to Bariloche in Argentina. I would say I married out of my league, but then that would be a disservice to my amazing wife.

She travels around the world doing 9 figure deals for a globally recognized brand. I some times ride her coattails.

Our hearts are like puzzles, when you find that missing piece of your heart puzzle, that one in the middle of your heart that's called love that we are all looking for, you never want to let it go. And what makes real love so real, is that you have to find that partner that also has your heart puzzle piece. I have that, and feel blessed every day. More so, since I know what it feels like to have almost lost it.

Attachment 463820

^^^^LIKE BUTTON^^^^^^

Reminds me, Mrs Jong had a brain tumor in 2003. It was not malignant, it's gone and hasn't returned annual scans for life. She does now have a mild seizure disorder though..

[SumJongGuy]

Don't alcoholics need to drink all the time?

Nope, something else you're proving clueless about. Not all alcoholics/addicts are chronically physically addicted. Many go years without touching the stuff or only party once a month or weekends or whatever. It's not how often you use... it's what happens when you do that makes someone an addict/alcoholic.

[Meadow Skipper]

Nice, toadman, really nice.

[plugboots]

[CurtisBlow]

My

[gaijin]

Awesome, Toad! Thanks for sharing that awesome story.

[Toadman]

Toadman wow.
Absolutely inspirational.

If you haven't signed your donor card, please do.

And not just sign it but tell your loved ones your wishes to donate. Just signing the card doesn't make it a given that your organs will be donated after you are no longer in need of them. The social workers that are tasked with the horrible job of bringing up the topic of organ donation will still ask the family for permission to donate any organs of the deceased.

Unfortunately, a lot of people on the waiting list are waiting for such a long time, that their health deteriorates to a point where recovery is very difficult, and some don't make it.

I don't want to hijack this thread but will just say I know what it is to be so fortunate and blessed to have Mrs. Toadman, and to have experienced all those wonderful things these past 20 years. I have looked into the eyes of a spouse who's loved one was failing and didn't make it. I have been to many funerals of the less fortunate.

As has been said many times, "Live each day like it's your last. Because you never know when it will be your last day."

[riser4]

My mom donated pretty much everything possible I got updates for a while until I moved too many times and didn't give them a new address. Some of the transplants were a success and some weren't. At least they tried.

[The AD]

Nope, something else you're proving clueless about.

What was the other thing?

[subtle plague]

Toadman takes the Wedding cake.

[subtle plague]

What was the other thing?

Tentacle sex robots.... but that happens to most of us.

[The AD]

Tentacle sex robots.... but that happens to most of us.

Truth.

[old goat]

Toadman--fantastic to read how well the missus is doing. I'm guessing the tranplant drugs have also controled the autoimmune disease?
Transplant Olympics--I don't think I want to qualify for that.

[Kenny Satch]

And not just sign it but tell your loved ones your wishes to donate. Just signing the card doesn't make it a given that your organs will be donated after you are no longer in need of them. The social workers that are tasked with the horrible job of bringing up the topic of organ donation will still ask the family for permission to donate any organs of the deceased.

Unfortunately, a lot of people on the waiting list are waiting for such a long time, that their health deteriorates to a point where recovery is very difficult, and some don't make it.

I don't want to hijack this thread but will just say I know what it is to be so fortunate and blessed to have Mrs. Toadman, and to have experienced all those wonderful things these past 20 years. I have looked into the eyes of a spouse who's loved one was failing and didn't make it. I have been to many funerals of the less fortunate.

As has been said many times, "Live each day like it's your last. Because you never know when it will be your last day."

Good point. I believe here in Ontario the documents I signed are enough but I guess I need to update my Will and or give my sisters (the executors of my estate) a letter for now to be clear on this. Now that I have P.O.A. with my wife I want to donate hers. Although her brain isn't well, her other organs are in great shape.
Can't think of a better way to honour her by giving life to another person when it's her time to go.

My mom donated pretty much everything possible I got updates for a while until I moved too many times and didn't give them a new address. Some of the transplants were a success and some weren't. At least they tried.

God bless her for that. Must be incredible knowing the ones that survived are alive because of her gift. Major Karma point in the afterlife as I see it.

[LHutz Esq]

Good point. I believe here in Ontario the documents I signed are enough but I guess I need to update my Will and or give my sisters (the executors of my estate) a letter for now to be clear on this. Now that I have P.O.A. with my wife I want to donate hers. Although her brain isn't well, her other organs are in great shape.
Can't think of a better way to honour her by giving life to another person when it's her time to go.



God bless her for that. Must be incredible knowing the ones that survived are alive because of her gift. Major Karma point in the afterlife as I see it.

Not sure about Ontario - but in BC the will isn't that effective when it comes to organ donation. Remember the "Big Picture" when the will is read - you are dead. The corollary is that you may have been dead for a bit before anyone digs out the old will from the bank (closed all weekends and holidays) or your dresser.

In BC, the power granted in a POA ends when you do, so it isn't really that helpful.

Here you can register to be an organ donor. You can also have a health care directive/representation agreement in place that allows someone to make those decisions on you behalf.

To register: http://www.transplant.bc.ca/Pages/Re...-Decision.aspx

In Ont: https://www.ontario.ca/page/organ-an...r-registration

A part of that is like you said - tell your family what you want as well.

/thread drift.

[Toadman]

Toadman--fantastic to read how well the missus is doing. I'm guessing the tranplant drugs have also controled the autoimmune disease?
Transplant Olympics--I don't think I want to qualify for that.

Thanks OG. Yes, two different drugs, but very low doses. Unfortunately, there haven't been much in the way of advancements on newer drugs for organ recipients over the past 2 decades. So, the longer someone is on the drugs the more damage it can end up doing to your kidneys and liver.

She has had just 1 rejection episode in the 20 years since her transplant. A very stressful time as it took about 3 months to get it under control. We lost a fellow transplant friend who had the same disease as Mrs. T. It was quite a shock to the both of us. His autoimmune disease, which was dormant for over 10 years came back. One of the things we try not to think about. But it's always in the back of my mind. I'm a glass half empty kind of person, which I came to realize through therapy. Luckily my wife is the glass half full in our relationship, so together we make a full glass and can accomplish anything we set our minds to!

[ghosthop]

Thank you for your posts Toadman, I passed them along to my wife. We have gone through hell this past year so that we can have a biologic child while my wife pursues her career, those are the stories that keep her going.

I don’t have much to add because we’re still early in the game. We am thrilled with the life we have been able to build so far and can’t wait for even more. It’s hard but it keeps getting better.