It started last year, when I was diagnosed with Barrett’s Esophagus, a pre-cancerous disease if left untreated. It killed my friend Phil. Then, my eyesight started changing, so I needed glasses to see anything further than 20 feet away from me. I needed oral surgery to replace three teeth on the bottom right of my mouth. The surgery exacerbated my tinnitus and I had to go into treatment for it because, while it isn’t fatal, it can be quite debilitating. Then I took a hearing test that stated in no uncertain terms that I had a hearing loss and required hearing aids.

Frankly, I didn’t expect things were going to turn out this way. I can practically hear my friend Sylvia screaming: “Shut up! So, you’re getting old, so what? It beats the alternative! Put on your glasses, put in your hearing aids and get on with it!”