.at 3am on wednesday the 3 may 2006, i awoke from sleep on a mattress on the floor of a peasant's house in haba village in northern yunnan province. i was in excruciating pain. something had happened to my hip! (the dedicated readers among you may even remember the very blog entry recounting the drama!) ... so began two years of debility, non-diagnosis, multiple rounds of imaging, and a distinct psychological downturn, that has, with any luck, just come to an end.
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i'm writing to you 24 hours after having had my left hip re-modelled. that's right! i've got a new hip - but this one is a super-deluxe version for a new ondrej. it's a new hip for a new beginning.
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for those who are interested - and i know you are - the surgeon took down the labrum, cut away part of the acetabulum, stuck the labrum back on, and then reshaped my neck of femur. in lay terms - i was sliced and diced! post-op highlights included shitting in the bed because i had had a spinal, and vomiting all night long from the GA. coming home highlights include having my very own blue-eyed, red-bearded nurse waiting on me hand and foot. that part is most particularly nice.
it is a year for new beginnings. gerard and i, both formerly ruggedly independent bachelors, have thrown ourselves down the slippery slope of domestic bliss to convert our conte de fees into a real life love affair. gerard is an unashamed hausfrau, and even i am starting the morph into a domestic goddess. soon i'll even be able to cook something.
we started renting a reconverted warehouse in the industrial part of richmond known as cremorne. we had a fun housewarming, and special thanks to all the trashy drags that turned up in style - in particular dad! the apartment itself is wonderful, and for those who haven't seen it and even those who have, open invitations exist to come over whenever you want and stay for as long as you want.
the apartment is a stone's throw from the botanic gardens, and we have been exercising our freedom to grab a blanket, cheese and wine on a sunny sunday afternoon and cuddle away the hours on the grass while trying to wish the park's children out of existence.
we're settling in for a comfortable year - gerard is working like a dog, and his business(es) are slowly but positively taking off, and i'm working part time in order to focus on getting my health back up to scratch and pursue some more language study. turns out you can do exactly what you want with your life and get away with it.
it's been great seeing everyone in melbourne and i hope to see lots more of all of you, and even some of you who are overseas and visiting this year!
