My 2022 Christmas Card

See all our previous digital Christmas Cards going back to 1997

I didn't do a Christmas card last year. I just wasn't up to it. I've hardly shot any photos this year, so there's not really anything to show. Without my Tom, there has been little interest in sightseeing or touring.

In early 2020, I got appendicitis and had and appendectomy. I now believe the infection was caused by a blockage of the appendix's drain tube resulting from early prostate cancer. By late summer of 2021, the cancer had progressed to the point that my urethra had swollen shut and I had to get several catheters installed, including one to drain my right kidney. I honestly thought I was going to be gone by spring of 2022. Due to AIDS and my weak immune system (T4 count at 240) surgery was not considered the best choice so I began treatment using the chemotherapy drug Lupron. Eventually that got the cancer under control, but as a side effect (or a function of) the drug, I have lost all my testosterone. At last check my PSA was at 0.02. I've lost 95% of my body hair and 50% of my facial and head hair. Not good for someone who identifies as a gay bear (a furry gay person). Needless to say, during the last Christmas season, I was in a great deal of pain, suffering a lot of depression and just not up to dealing with Christmas.

Over the last year I have developed diabetes, which has hit me particularly hard over the last month. I haven't lost any limbs yet but the nerves in my legs and feet have taken a serious hit. Many years ago, my dad told me that when I was a tiny baby, my mother would feed me Pepsi Cola in my baby bottle because she thought it was cute. I ended up with a massive sweet tooth which has been extremely difficult to deal with now that I have to control my sugar. In addition, I can't use most artificial sweeteners due to undesired side effects. I'm also developing cataracts which can't currently be fixed due to my diabetes. As a result, I can't drive at night. Hopefully I can get the diabetes under control so I can get my vision back.

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Earlier this year, I read a book by David Plummer called "Secrets of the Autistic Millionaire: Everything I know about Autism, ASD, and Asperger's that I wish I'd known back then...". Yes, he admits the title is clickbait. I'm not one to rely on one source as absolute truth, so after a great deal of further research, primarily on the NIH website, which is one site I do trust, I've come to the conclusion that so many of the problems I have had throughout life interfacing with people, are the result of high functioning autism, coupled with some ADHD and strong dyslexia. As Dave puts it, things I wish I had known back then, that would have helped me get through life easier.

As I am sure most of you are aware, the cost of living has gone up substantially over the last couple of years. After Tom passed away, my goal was to get a new trailer and travel the country going to as many of the rodeos as I could. Covid kind of messed that up for a while, then with my cancer, the cost of living going up, increased arthritis and getting old, I've come to the conclusion that that kind of travel is no longer completely feasible.

I was in the process of setting up home in the way of a concrete trailer pad and my own utilities at a friend's farm north of Denver. I had setup all my specialty doctors in the nearby town of Bolder when I was suddenly kicked out of the farm. This involved a bunch of issues which coming in the wake of the cancer, diabetes and everything else really hit hard. I don't want to get into that any further as I am trying my best to forget about it.

So, I began looking for a small piece of property to buy to setup as home. One of my requirements was access to fiber Internet which made the search difficult. To make this long part of the story short, I gave up trying to buy land and ended up making an agreement with a small family-owned campground in the tiny town of Seibert, Colorado (population 200). Seibert is on I-70, about half way between Limon, Colorado and the Kansas border. They have a section about two blocks away from the main campground which appears to have originally been a mobile home park and came with the campground when they bought it a few years ago. They have been unable to rent this area to most RVers due to lack of Internet that far from the main campground. My agreement is to install a concrete pad and my own electric service for my site. I've already installed a small 4x6 shed which now has fiber Internet and holds my web servers. I have also agreed to share my Internet with overnight campers so they can rent out the other 5 sites in that block when the main campground is full. I will pay for my own electric, Internet and pay the campground an annual lease with price agreed to by both parties. This will become my home base and I can still travel to rodeos whenever I can.

As I write this, (December 3) I am in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma having work done on the trailer. We are waiting for delivery of a new longer power cord for the trailer which should arrive Monday and hopefully I will be out of here by Tuesday afternoon heading home to Seibert.

That's my year in brief, leaving out a great deal of stuff best forgotten.

I wish all of you a good year to come and hope everyone can keep positive thoughts.

Frank Harrell
Cowboy Frank