Progress, Life and Billing Update (August 2024)

Hi all! I hope August is treating everyone reasonable well. I want to give everyone an update on progress (work does continue and the next release is in sight).

Billing First

First, bottom line up front, while a release is possible (dare I say even likely) in the next 30 days, I'm still going to pause billing again for another 30 days. That means billing will be paused until September 29th. As a reminder, your billing date remains the same. So, if you are billed on the 15th of every month, your next charge for BBN won't be until October 15th (it will not move to September 29th).

Progress and Life Update

August has been an... interesting month for me. I made some good progress working on BBN the first week of August, then my family went for a planned vacation in Iceland for 10 days. While there, I learned my favorite aunt had passed away. I knew she was combatting a serious disease, but she had just moved to a new state with better health care and was beginning a treatment regime that should have given her another five years. Unfortunately, the treatment did not work and she slipped away. The loss is difficult. This aunt was the closest connection I had to my father (who I lost while I was in high school). She was an endless source of joy and light, and she was the first in my extended family to openly welcome my then-boyfriend (now husband) into her home and heart.

Upon returning home, we promptly fell ill with another round of Covid (apparently there is a new variant working through the world, so please take care of yourselves). Symptoms for us essentially amounted to a severe cold or moderate flu, but it has had me laid out and without any energy this past week. I did make some further progress on BBN on Friday when I just couldn't sleep any more and felt I had to do something, but I was hoping for some gang-busters progress this week after work and Covid threw those plans right out the window.

Now, as if that all weren't enough, we learned yesterday that my father-in-law, who has been in decline for some time, has not woken up in 3 days and his breathing has changed to the "death rattle" that presages the end. This means HusBear will likely need to fly home (perhaps to say goodbye, perhaps to help his mother) and I will be solo-parenting in the evenings while he's gone.

And, as cherry on the top... my birthday is this coming week. So, happy birthday to me, I guess.

That said, while I can't complain about the vacation (although I did nearly wind up in a fist-fight with a crazy bus driver), life has thrown a number of curve balls at me this month. If I can just catch a little bit of a break, the next release should be soon.

So, that's the update for now.

Cheers!