Dave Spriggs

I have been working on several projects this weekend. I will be ready to send my taxes to our tax preparer in a few days and it will be good to have that chore out of the way. I have also been working on a good backup solution to my data and that has taken time. I also spent time changing and updating some of the websites and communication services I use.

I am still convinced that I made the right decision to stop using the big social media companies. I have found it much more inconvenient to stay in touch with people, especially when sharing pictures and videos. I have tried using several different services and I think I have settled on blogging (using the WordPress platform). While it is not as easy to use as social media, it is much more flexible and does not have the inherent security and privacy risks.

My wife, Julie, will be having surgery and other treatments for breast cancer starting on 2/13/2024, so I have been more mindful of trying to stay in touch with people. Fortunately, her medical team has told us that the tumor is small and the prognosis is good. She is feeling good now. I will be taking some time off from work and our youngest daughter is going to stay with us to help take care of her while she recovers from surgery.

I am writing this post on the last Sunday of January 2024. The first month of this year has gone by quickly. Julie and I have been busy with work, household chores, and other important tasks.

At the same time, we are grateful that we have had time to slow down and also focus on what is important. We have enjoyed worshiping together at Kernersville Wesleyan Church. We have appreciated time with our daughters and extended family. Quiet evenings of watching a movie and spending time together have been helpful resting points.

We learned earlier this month that Julie has breast cancer. Her first oncology appointment was on 1/26/2024. We didn’t know what her prognosis would be until that appointment, which was only a few days ago. Her cancer was caught very early and the tumor is small. Julie has mammograms each year and preventative screening is what enabled early detection. She will have surgery on 2/13/2024. She will need about 2 weeks of recovery, and then she can gradually start driving and resuming routine tasks again.

The doctors are very optimistic that her treatment will go well. We won’t know if she will need radiation therapy or chemotherapy until after the surgery. It is likely that she will need radiation therapy, but will probably not need chemotherapy. Although the surgery will be painful and there are always risks, the oncology appointment went well, and it was good news considering the serious nature of her diagnosis.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Stay in touch.

I am writing this post on the last Sunday of January 2024. The first month of this year has gone by quickly. Julie and I have been busy with work, household chores, and other important tasks.

At the same time, we are grateful that we have had time to slow down and also focus on what is important. We have enjoyed worshiping together at Kernersville Wesleyan Church. We have appreciated time with our daughters and extended family. Quiet evenings of watching a movie and spending time together have been helpful resting points.

We learned earlier this month that Julie has breast cancer. Her first oncology appointment was on 1/26/2024. We didn’t know what her prognosis would be until that appointment, which was only a few days ago. Her cancer was caught very early and the tumor is small. Julie has mammograms each year and preventative screening is what enabled early detection. She will have surgery on 2/13/2024. She will need about 2 weeks of recovery, and then she can gradually start driving and resuming routine tasks again.

The doctors are very optimistic that her treatment will go well. We won’t know if she will need radiation therapy or chemotherapy until after the surgery. It is likely that she will need radiation therapy, but will probably not need chemotherapy. Although the surgery will be painful and there are always risks, the oncology appointment went well, and it was good news considering the serious nature of her diagnosis.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Stay in touch.

I am looking forward to spending some time with my family today. My parents and one of our daughters will be joining my wife and me for dinner. My other daughter won’t be able to come in person, but we will call her, so we can all have some time together today.

I went to my local public library today. I had not been in a long time. I will plan to go more often this year.

I asked the librarian for some specific books, and he helped me request them through interlibrary loan.

As a child, going to the library was something I looked forward to very much.

I enjoyed the movie "Death Hunt" yesterday. It is an action movie from 1981 with Charles Bronson and Lee Marvin. Here is my review:

[visual-link-preview encoded="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"]

Since April 2023, my schedule has changed to a compressed work week. I work Mon-Thu from 7:30am-6:00pm. It has been a good change for me.

I work in healthcare. I found that when I worked a traditional schedule, I would very often work past my scheduled shift. Working 10-hour days isn’t that much more difficult for me than working 8-hour days.

Having every Friday off has made a big difference. When I have a medical appointment or other business to do, I don’t need to take time off. I am able to spend more time relaxing.

I don’t think I would make any changes to my job (I love what I do), or my schedule at this point.

Since April 2023, my schedule has changed to a compressed work week. I work Mon-Thu from 7:30am-6:00pm. It has been a good change for me.

I work in healthcare. I found that when I worked a traditional schedule, I would very often work past my scheduled shift. Working 10-hour days isn’t that much more difficult for me than working 8-hour days.

Having every Friday off has made a big difference. When I have a medical appointment or other business to do, I don’t need to take time off. I am able to spend more time relaxing.

I don’t think I would make any changes to my job (I love what I do), or my schedule at this point.

I had a great time having lunch today with fellow psychologists from the NC Psychology Association. We serve on a committee together and generally only see each other virtually. We discussed committee business, but had a nice time together as well.