Wow, this just gets curiouser and curiouser.

For the past four years or so, I've been trying to manage some recurrent abdominal "tightness" and discomfort, with varying degrees of success. At the same time, I'll get occasional episodes of unexplained rapid heartbeat, or sweating around the lips.

Initially, I went to an MD to figure this out. I was diagnosed with anxiety and acid reflux, and was promptly prescribed the respective wonder drugs du jour. I went through blood test after blood test that determined that I could be hypoglycemic, but otherwise stubbornly normal. So, I was not impressed, nor was I convinced that, after thirty-five years of decent health I was suddenly so defective.

So, I dropped the pharmaceutical routine and went with other methods that have been employed for centuries, using naturally-occurring substances without deleterious side effects. In other words, I went "alternative". Probiotic supplements and digestive enzymes have allowed me to enjoy ALL the foods and beverages that an "acid reflux" patient is never supposed to touch. Chiropractic and colonic hydrotherapy have dramatically reduced the abdominal discomfort.

Nevertheless, the abdominal symptoms do gradually re-emerge from time to time, and the rapid heartbeat and sweating pop up regularly, too.

Well, now things get interesting, because my eldest brother has been having some various symptoms of his own. And, through some blood tests that had never been ordered for me, and DNA testing, we have confirmed that an iron overload condition runs in our genes. Among the symptoms it causes in its carriers is all the stuff I've mentioned thus far.

"Oh, drat!" you say. How on earth shall we ever combat a raging iron overload in your bloodstream?! Does modern medicine offer a sophisticated and expensive answer? No. Is there a rare, distasteful herb growing on a Tibetan mountainside that will fix up our hero? No.

Turns out that this condition is corrected and managed by frequent blood donation. Iron levels will naturally stabilize, and I should expect to have a typical lifespan, and a normal life. I'm afraid that's as exciting as it gets, folks. Don't get me wrong - I'm greatly relieved that we finally have some hard data, and a straight answer after all this struggle. I just feel a bit "had" by BOTH the worlds of traditional and alternative medicine. There are clearly some great benefits to be obtained from both approaches. It's just that, initially, I saw a couple of MDs who completely misdiagnosed my condition and would have consigned me to a steady diet of useless drugs. Then, I gained a measure of relief from alternative practitioners, each of whom were also quite confident that they were on the right track.

Bottom line: Everybody was fabulously wrong!! All I need is a good bloodletting. The medieval barbers were right. Bring out the leeches.

So I go skipping around on the net a couple of weeks ago, and I find out that my old flame is now a married woman. Hmm. This was a gal I would have died for, whom I couldn't have been more wrong about and for whom I completely squandered a decade of hope. It's not that I don't love her, it's just that I strongly dislike her, and I shouldn't have even felt a moment's heaviness at the discovery of this news.

And yet, I moped around for a full week or so, before being delivered back into reality, and into the proper frame of mind. By that, I mean that this marriage deserves nothing but enthusiastic support and blessing.

Good on ya, Mr. & Mrs.Desjardins. May the road rise to meet you. Devote your most tenacious energies to making each other stunning successes in your endeavors.

And thanks, wise and gracious Father God. In the midst of all the bewilderment, thank you for the mercy of unanswered prayer.

Alrighty, race fans. I am now blogging for, like, the first time ever. What a rush. This is way more exciting than typing an e-mail.

Yesirree, I'm positively giddy with the prospect.