Well, here I sit, back in Liberia, fighting the good fight (not really, but that just sounds fucking cool). I had a horrible HORRIBLE R&R back in the States...
Well, it wasn't all horrible. I got back on July 12th at 10am, and then hopped a flight to Syracuse NY to visit a buddy of mine just back from Afghanistan. Had an AWESOME time with him. Had the BEST BBQ in the world in Upstate NY... If you are ever in Syracuse, you HAVE to go to Dinosaur's BBQ. It is friggin amazing!!!! Went to Brewfest, chilled on the Lake... Good few days.
I got back to Bloomington at around 0100 on the 20th, and fell asleep around 0130. My phone rings at around 0530:
"Hello"
"Hi Bryan, it's ******. I have some bad news for you. I'm drunk and I have a bottle of Xanax in one hand and razor blade in the other hand. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna take the Xanax cause I'm too scared to cut myself."
Quick background on this gal. She has been a good friend of mine since 03. She has struggled to overcome an abusive BF that put her in the ICU for 2 weeks when she refused to sleep with his friends anymore and be degraded (he would videotape them sodomizing her, slapping and choking her, punching her, double penetrating her, urinating on her and defecating on her), overcome finding her younger brother dead in a bathtub from a heroin OD, overcome another abusive BF, and was starting to get her life back on track. This was a total shock to me. I had been helping her along the way. I had an extra line on my cell plan from a previous relationship (never doing a cell family plan or having joint accounts EVER again... ), so I gave her the phone and paid the bill. I had my resume guy brush up and tweak her resume, I paid her utility bills occasionally so she'd have power and water, and basically was a shoulder for her to lean on and offer guidance and wisdom to. I did, on occasion, feel like I was enabling her, but I let that slide cause I felt like I was doing more good than harm... So, back to the story....
I was totally unprepared for this phone call. I spent 4 hours talking to her and getting her to dump the pills and throw away the razor blade. I then kept her on the line and went into paramedic mode. I called the Sheriff's Department and had her placed in protective custody and taken to a mental health facility. When she was safe and in custody, I called her mom and told her what was up. Her mom is also finally getting her life back on track and just started a new job. She couldn't go down to get her daughter... So, what did I do? Packed up the Trailblazer and headed down to Orlando from Indiana. I had spoken to my friend a few times on the phone and she was slated to get out on Thursday afternoon. Awesome. I'll be down there by like 1400, pick her up, go crash at a friend's house, then back up to Indiana, shit shower and change at my house, then take her up to Chicago to be with her Mom. I had plans for that weekend. I was going to go back up to Kenosha and spend the weekend with my best friends and their son (my godson) celebrating their 7 year anniversary and her 33rd birthday. This was on Saturday. I was gonna spend the weekend with them, then go down to Chicago and sit with Hannah Aitchison for my new ink (A memorial to my dad who passed on April 4th).
So cool, this was all going to work out. I leave Indiana at around 10pm and get to Orlando around 2pm, just as planned. Well. I call her, and, guess what... She's going to stay in till Monday. Okay fine. I'll miss the weekend in Kenosha and my tat appointment, but whatever, she's getting the help she needs. I made the best of it. I saw some friends I hadn't seen since I moved in 06, went to SeaWorld and got to see my Sea Lions. They are my therapy. I used to spend HOURS there watching them and feeding them. I don't know why, but they are so damn relaxing.
Sunday rolls around and I call her in the hospital. She tells me that she is going to stay in the hospital for "awhile" Okay, fine... Wasted trip, but she is "...on medications, going to group twice a day and seeing the Doctor every other day. I'm getting the help I need..." I try and tell her that I can not come back down and pick her up. Once I leave on Monday, that's it, I'm done. She says she understands and that's cool. I decide to call back one last time in the evening to see if i can persuade her to come home to Chicago. I call at 730pm. She's not there... She's checked out... WHAT?!?!?!?! I call her mom and she hasn't heard form her. I call her cell phone and it's on, but no one answers. I spend from 730pm till about 0140am driving all over Orlando and looking for her. I call the jails, call the Fire Department, go to the hospital I used to work at, call all 22 or so ER's in the greater Orlando area... She's gone... So I drive home.. What else can I do?
I still haven't heard from her, but she is using her phone... Well SOMEONE is using her phone... Ahhhhh... I hate being the good guy sometimes....
Sorry for rambling... Not that anyone reads this. Feels good to write it down though... Hope everyone has a great week!
Well, it wasn't all horrible. I got back on July 12th at 10am, and then hopped a flight to Syracuse NY to visit a buddy of mine just back from Afghanistan. Had an AWESOME time with him. Had the BEST BBQ in the world in Upstate NY... If you are ever in Syracuse, you HAVE to go to Dinosaur's BBQ. It is friggin amazing!!!! Went to Brewfest, chilled on the Lake... Good few days.
I got back to Bloomington at around 0100 on the 20th, and fell asleep around 0130. My phone rings at around 0530:
"Hello"
"Hi Bryan, it's ******. I have some bad news for you. I'm drunk and I have a bottle of Xanax in one hand and razor blade in the other hand. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna take the Xanax cause I'm too scared to cut myself."
Quick background on this gal. She has been a good friend of mine since 03. She has struggled to overcome an abusive BF that put her in the ICU for 2 weeks when she refused to sleep with his friends anymore and be degraded (he would videotape them sodomizing her, slapping and choking her, punching her, double penetrating her, urinating on her and defecating on her), overcome finding her younger brother dead in a bathtub from a heroin OD, overcome another abusive BF, and was starting to get her life back on track. This was a total shock to me. I had been helping her along the way. I had an extra line on my cell plan from a previous relationship (never doing a cell family plan or having joint accounts EVER again... ), so I gave her the phone and paid the bill. I had my resume guy brush up and tweak her resume, I paid her utility bills occasionally so she'd have power and water, and basically was a shoulder for her to lean on and offer guidance and wisdom to. I did, on occasion, feel like I was enabling her, but I let that slide cause I felt like I was doing more good than harm... So, back to the story....
I was totally unprepared for this phone call. I spent 4 hours talking to her and getting her to dump the pills and throw away the razor blade. I then kept her on the line and went into paramedic mode. I called the Sheriff's Department and had her placed in protective custody and taken to a mental health facility. When she was safe and in custody, I called her mom and told her what was up. Her mom is also finally getting her life back on track and just started a new job. She couldn't go down to get her daughter... So, what did I do? Packed up the Trailblazer and headed down to Orlando from Indiana. I had spoken to my friend a few times on the phone and she was slated to get out on Thursday afternoon. Awesome. I'll be down there by like 1400, pick her up, go crash at a friend's house, then back up to Indiana, shit shower and change at my house, then take her up to Chicago to be with her Mom. I had plans for that weekend. I was going to go back up to Kenosha and spend the weekend with my best friends and their son (my godson) celebrating their 7 year anniversary and her 33rd birthday. This was on Saturday. I was gonna spend the weekend with them, then go down to Chicago and sit with Hannah Aitchison for my new ink (A memorial to my dad who passed on April 4th).
So cool, this was all going to work out. I leave Indiana at around 10pm and get to Orlando around 2pm, just as planned. Well. I call her, and, guess what... She's going to stay in till Monday. Okay fine. I'll miss the weekend in Kenosha and my tat appointment, but whatever, she's getting the help she needs. I made the best of it. I saw some friends I hadn't seen since I moved in 06, went to SeaWorld and got to see my Sea Lions. They are my therapy. I used to spend HOURS there watching them and feeding them. I don't know why, but they are so damn relaxing.
Sunday rolls around and I call her in the hospital. She tells me that she is going to stay in the hospital for "awhile" Okay, fine... Wasted trip, but she is "...on medications, going to group twice a day and seeing the Doctor every other day. I'm getting the help I need..." I try and tell her that I can not come back down and pick her up. Once I leave on Monday, that's it, I'm done. She says she understands and that's cool. I decide to call back one last time in the evening to see if i can persuade her to come home to Chicago. I call at 730pm. She's not there... She's checked out... WHAT?!?!?!?! I call her mom and she hasn't heard form her. I call her cell phone and it's on, but no one answers. I spend from 730pm till about 0140am driving all over Orlando and looking for her. I call the jails, call the Fire Department, go to the hospital I used to work at, call all 22 or so ER's in the greater Orlando area... She's gone... So I drive home.. What else can I do?
I still haven't heard from her, but she is using her phone... Well SOMEONE is using her phone... Ahhhhh... I hate being the good guy sometimes....
Sorry for rambling... Not that anyone reads this. Feels good to write it down though... Hope everyone has a great week!