She first removed all of the bandages from my chest, revealing to me, for the first time, the scar from the incision site. My first impressions were “holy crap that is longer than I imagined!” We are talking a solid 10-12 inches! I was also beyond impressed at how well it was sutured together. It was sutured all internally, which left for minimal scaring! None of that Frankenstein, baseball stitching of yesteryear!

It was now recovery day one and things were beginning to move quickly! Shortly after I opened my eyes, the ICU nurses had me sitting up in bed and then had me attempt my first feat, getting out of bed and sitting up on a chair!

This was the first thing I remember as I began to wake up from my open-heart surgery to repair my Arterial Septal Defect (ASD) and my Partial Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return (PAPVR).

I nervously laughed and said “holy crap, how bad is it?” She replied that she has identified a 12mm hole in my heart and and right side ventricular enlargement and  that I could expect to experience heart failure in as little as 15-20 years… (unkindly long pause) … if left untreated!

“…a ballistic missile threat has been identified heading inbound to Hawaii. A missile would be expected to make landfall in approximately 15 minutes. This is not a drill.”

In my experience, American Express tends to go above and beyond in all instances, and for Nelli and I, they reimbursed us for approximately 10 years of annual fees as well as the accumulated interest we had paid on balances we had carried over from month to month. This led to Amex absolving approximately $14,000 of our balance.

In realizing that I was just shy of $100,000 in debt I felt sick to my stomach. I remember wondering “how the hell did I let this happen?” I was saddened, ashamed, and embarrassed by my ultimate failure in my ability to manage my own household. The worst feeling came when I even began to question how two adults who couldn’t even manage themselves, could raise a child.

With the increased income, we began to swipe that Amex a bit more as well. More eating out, more unnecessary odds and ends, last minute vacations, Christmas gifts… More of everything to be honest. Nelli and I were spending like we were members of Congress; we had a seemingly unlimited reserve with no apparent care for deficit.