2015 was by far the worst year for my entire 31 years on this earth. You may remember that I fell off the planet and didn’t write for the majority of the entire year and that when I came back I promised that I’d explain it all, but the further we got into 2015 and the further we get away from it the less I want to go back through it all. So I’m not going to rehash it. I just decided. Like this second I decided that. However, I proclaimed to my Facebook friends a month or so ago that I would write a book. I wrote about a chapter and stopped because it got too hard to relive events of 2015. I hope that the further we get away from it, the more I can write, and deliver on this book that I’ve promised myself that I would write.
And now I promise you. I will write this book. You probably don’t care, lol. But I do and I feel like I just need to get this book out of my system. Life goal, bucket list, catharsis and D) all of the above. This book needs to be written.
So because this year was SO fucking terrible, I’m going to just focus on the good things that happened. Because some good things happened even though they were over shadowed by the suck. So here we go.
2015 Recap of ONLY good shit
- Roller Derby
- I FINALLY passed my roller derby skills assessment and tried out and MADE a team. Then when tryouts came along again this past November, I made the team AGAIN. This was a huge deal to me. I don’t think I wrote about it here but in 2014 I took the skills assessment test 2 times and failed both times. It was devastating. So to pass this year and make a team (twice) was huge. I played in 4 or 5 bouts with my team and I fucking loved it. Roller derby is my jam and it brings me so much happiness. My league has been a god send to me this past year and especially my derby wife, Snarky, who has been on this ride with me from the beginning. She’s become an amazing support on and off the track.
- Third Annual Girls With Guts retreat
- We hosted our third annual retreat in Oregon this year. I’d say hands down it was our best retreat. I will also say that due to the events of this year, I was not mentally 100% in this retreat. If you attended and I was a bit flaky or distant, I offer my sincerest apologies. Normally, I’m very engaged but this year, I just really wasn’t myself. Please come next year, it’s going to be the best yet. I’m very excited about our location!
- Working Full Time for Girls With Guts
- While I was still very thankful for the opportunity I was given for my career (that I’ve written about here), the past three years have taught me that big corporate life is not really my style. Through a lot of soul-searching, number crunching, and advice asking, I decided to quit my big cushy job, and become a poor non-profit employee…for GIRLS WITH GUTS!!! I started November 2nd working for GWG, which has been a labor of volunteer love until now. It’s such an amazing opportunity. It may only last year, but I’m doing it, and that’s more than most people can say.
- Self Love and Discovery
- I am adamantly working on myself. This is a journey I never expected to start, hell, it’s one that I didn’t know even existed frankly. It’s hard work and I don’t see the finish line just yet but I’m happy to be doing it.
- New and Old Friends
- When tragedy strikes you truly do find out who will stand by you and who doesn’t. I have some of the most amazing friends a lady could ask for. This year I’ve also found some new friends or strengthened some relationships. If you held my hand through this year in any way. Thank you. I literally could not have done it without you.
- Family
- I’ve learned more about my family in the past 12 months than I did in the past 31 years. The good, the bad and the heartbreaking. I’ve never been more thankful to call my family mine.
January 7, 2016 at 8:31 am
i just wanted to leave a note to say that you are awesome and i’m proud to be your [weird cyber stalker-ish] friend
February 24, 2016 at 2:53 pm
Hello,
My name is Sattin, and I work for The Henne Group(www.thehennegroup.com)
We are conducting a unique project that involves individuals with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis, that are on Entyvio. The Henne Group is collaborating with C Space, a trusted research agency, in building a private online advisory group, or online community, of 50 individuals living with various health ailments, in Australia, Canada, Germany, the US, and the UK. Participants will share their opinions and feedback with a well-respected pharmaceutical company, whose goal is to understand more about your journey as a patient and to help develop new therapies to improve patient care and treatment.
Patients who qualify and agree to participate will:
-Share their opinions and observations about their health experiences
-Interact with other individuals that have the same health ailments as they do
-Influence innovation at a pharmaceutical company
-Earn honoraria (Monthly electronic gift cards and payments) for market research participation
You can participate in this online community whenever and wherever it is convenient. You will be asked for your opinions and ideas in a variety of ways, including surveys, discussion boards, and brainstorming sessions. Members will typically spend about 5 to 15 minutes per week in the community. NO ATTEMPT WILL BE MADE TO SELL ANYTHING OR INFLUENCE MEMBERS’ THINKING AND ALL PARTICIPATION IS CONFIDENTIAL.
As a thank you for your time and contributions to the community, members have the opportunity to receive honoraria in the form of Amazon e-gift certificates along the way. The more they participate, the more they receive!
If you are interested in participating, please complete this short screener to see if you qualify.
http://surveys.thehennegroup.com/survey/intweb.dll/project/cawi/1539_CAWI
Thank you!
Sattin Bacus
June 6, 2017 at 5:59 pm
I do not have any of the above conditions but I do have a colostomy and have to self cath. I have cauda equine. I have had some nerve damage sometime in my life and a cyst on the nerve that controls the bladder and colon. Is this common or rare? I feel like the only person in the world with this. Still I count my blessings with supportive family and friends. I keep a positive attitude and read Jerimiah 1:9. It helps.
October 10, 2017 at 3:26 pm
Hi. My name is Sheila. I was diagnosed with UC about 9 years ago. I have tried all sorts of treatments and nothing really helped but the treatments did cause other problems ( TB, uterine cancer, shingles and many embarrassing moments). I was getting colonoscopys every year to have numerous polyps removed each time. All benign. My Gastro doctor wanted me to have my colon removed but I refused because none of the polyps were cancerous yet. So the doctor refused to treat me anymore. At this point I feel I am tempting fate and should probably deal with the situation. I have not had a colonoscopy now for 3 years and am scared to deal with the situation.
July 22, 2019 at 10:40 pm
I have a colostomy (ileostomy) because they took out my colon and my rectum for ulcerative colitis. No Colon no rectum. I hate the colostomy bitterly and want a reversal sometime prior to my death. When I had ulcerative colitis my wife divorced me because i was 100% incontinent. I would have shit flowing down to my feet 24 hours s day and it was impossible to control. Every couch and car seat my wife owned would be covered with my feces. Therefore my wife divorced me , while I was in the hospital getting a colostomy. Now that i have no woman to be continent for i hate my colostomy so much. No one will tell me if it’s temporary or permanent. Either way I’m going to have it reversed.
July 22, 2019 at 10:44 pm
If you have any information for me let me know
August 26, 2019 at 11:58 am
Dear Anonymous
Your ex wife is a horrible excuse for a human being who should be so lucky to have someone at all! She sounds like a self absorbed cold b**** who can’t handle other people’s issues. Did she forget her wedding vows? Like you asked for UC? It’s a devastating disease that robs us of our humility as well as living a normal life. I wish that your surgeon did not give you a permanent bag – keeping the rectum in tact would’ve helped you – giving you hope for the chance to get the bag off (it’s the WORST experience and just isn’t normal) to reverse to a JPouch. Granted the JPouch isn’t ideally perforce but you can go to the toilet the normal way. It is loose stools, cramping and sometimes incontience but it beats having UC 100%! I hope you can regain your life and find a decent partner. Hopefully your ex will be stricken with a horrible disease where she begins to poop her pants and realizes she was too quick to judge!