Yeastie Boys

At approximately 5:45 a.m. yesterday, just as I was stepping out of the shower, there was a loud BANG in our kitchen. Since I'd been hearing an odd hissing off and on, I dreaded finding out what made the noise. As I neared the kitchen (like it's all that far away), I smelled something a bit "off." Yeast. I instantly knew what caused the noise. Ned has a carboy of beer, wrapped in a large towel, brewing under the kitchen table. Sure enough, an ugly foam was bubbling from the airlock, which had blown its lid. Ned thought it was kind of funny and reassured me that it was a good thing, as far as the beer is concerned.

Now that Evan is out of the hospital, he is looking for acceptable projects to help fill his non-Clinic hours. Paul tells me that he wants to learn to bake bread and has received clearance to do so. More yeast. Probably a bit less volatile than the beer. Or at least we hope so. Of course, he could also set up a tidy little side business of selling his baked goods at the BMT Clinic. He could charge on an approximate scale to match the medical fees. Say, $1,000 per loaf. That would help defray some of his costs, give him a good hobby and provide healthy home baked goods for those busy medical professionals. But, since it's probably not very realistic, we will go ahead with the planned fundraiser to help Evan with the bills. Find out more about it at www.evanruesch.org (there's a link at the top right of the blog).

Each visit to the Clinic costs Evan the $30 out-of-pocket office visit fee not covered by his insurance. Add to that the parking fees and gas, and you can round up the daily clinic visits to about $40 over and above all the prescriptions and just plain living expenses. A day without an appointment is not only good news toward good health, it is also a big money saver. Today is to be one of those good days: Evan is doing so well, that he is able to skip a day today and stay away from the BMT Clinic. That's good news all around. Evan gets to save some money and Alyssa and Paul will probably find some fresh baked goods coming their way.