Well, I'll just come out and say it: I had surgery last Wednesday. It wasn't very serious at all, but it was necessary. I had what is referred to as a pilonidal cyst. Basically, a sinus that grows under your skin above your tailbone that has no good reason to be there. For folks that spend most of their working day sitting in front of a terminal, it's hell on your lower back.

That's actually one of the theories behind how these cysts develop: Sitting a lot. :) When I first found out what I had, I did a lot of research and was surprised to find out that there's a broad range of theories as to how these things develop. Bluntly put, lots of ideas (from birth defects/mutations to ingrown hairs) and not much convergence. At the same time this is a bit disconcerting and insanely funny when you look at how simple this condition is.

According to Emedicine.com, what I had was also known as Jeep rider's disease back in the 1940s. During World War II, over 80,000 US Army soldiers were hospitalized for the same thing. Actually, each soldier spent an average of 50 sick days in recovery. Ya know, I didn't think that one day I would be thankful for the results of military medicine and research: Thanks to that military documentation and also modern medicine, I'm going back to work on Monday (only 3 sick days plus when I get the stitches out) and have experienced very little pain post-surgery (haven't needed the pain killers I was prescribed).

Again, I have proven myself to be an exception to the generality of life: Only 23 out of every 100,000 Americans ever get one of these puppies. :)

Hmm, as I'm finishing this post, I'm watching the ABC coverage of the U.S. attacks on Afghanistan (or as George Carlin would plainly state through less verbage, "watching the war on TV"). Right now, Tony Blair is making a live statement. To end the post on a funny note, have you ever noticed how much Tony Blair looks like Dana Carvey the comedian?

Sincerely,

Jas