May 2022 Color Tier Update (Patreon)

What a strange, painful month this has been...

So let's rewind to  the drive down to FWA a few weeks back. 14 hours like usual, a fairly uneventful drive, followed by a day with a red itchy patch on my back. Now...I've had a benign cyst in the middle of my upper back for decades. But...some reason the day after my long drive to Georgia for FWA I noticed it was starting to become red and swollen and slightly irritated. 

I messaged my regular doctor online, showed him pics, told him symptoms and he said it likely was a skin abscess from the rubbing of the lump on my back I've had for years against the seat for 14 hours and prescribed 2 antibiotic pills a day. WELL, con starts and I am now seeing it really bulge out, feel hot and look inflamed and spreading over the whole middle of my back as the weekend progressed. I could barely sleep...I think all con weekend I got MAYBE 2 hours of sleep a night mostly from exhaustion taking over the pain I'd feel in my back. Was great seeing people and chatting with everyone but gotta say that was a no fun owchy weekend for me.

Sunday night I just could not take it anymore and messaged  my friend who I was staying with before and after the con and just headed there that night than stay another in the hotel. Next morning I see it's now starting to break thru the surface...trust me you don't want to see pics...BUT it was getting grosser, hotter and larger. 

I hit an urgent care clinic that Monday morning and the doctor who saw me said she had not seen an abscess this large before. She TRIED to drain as much as she could but the area was still so inflamed and infected the locals she gave me didn't do much and sadly not much was coming out. But not to be too graphic the room looked like a horror movie after she was done trying to get "the soft material" out of the abscess it was so much. But sadly she could do nothing more and told me to see a dermatologist immediately.

LUCKILY my friend and I found one that could see me that day. Now remember this is a place that is used to seeing all kind of skin conditions and the words the nurse used when she saw my back was..."That's impressive!" So they instantly put me on 2 weeks worth of antibiotics of varying kind and super duper strength ibuprofen, total of 9 pills a day. I had a GREAT doctor and staff that took care of me over the several visits I made there over the past weeks.

Thankfully my friend and his family were doing everything they could to help treat, redress the area, do hot compresses, redress the area after showers, etc since I could not even see it on my back...felt very helpless and I hate that kind of feeling.

Fast forward 3 weeks past the con and many nights of no sleep and much burning pain that FINALLY all the meds started kicking in almost immediately and now today I am FINALLY ready to head back home. The dermatology office and staff were all SUPER awesome helping heal this crazy infected back of mine.

The culture they took showed no serious staph infections or such. Likely the benign cyst I had for years on my back burst on the car drive down and spread to the middle of my back just festering and getting more inflamed.

ANYWAYS...sorry to ramble on but this has greatly affected my output this month. Since most of it since the con was spent in pain sitting awkwardly, not much sleep and multiple trips to the dermatology office for drainings and follow-ups. BUT I managed to get some work done! Sadly I didn't get much shading done, just flats and lots of line work. Extended times at the art tablet have been uncomfy.

I have the rough design for my heavy metal themed comic main character worked out. I've named him Rad, he's a mutant dragon/bunny mutation/species called a Draggit. I'm also working out designs and story ideas for the Werewolves on Wheels folio/story that I'd like to have debut at Anthrocon but we shall see! Also this month are some fun busty, buff, sexy and hung guys and gals. Suka the long dong bear also got stuck in my head while recuperating and did lots of pics of him as well this month. 

So...sorry for being so long winded, I hope you enjoy what I did get done while healing here in Georgia. I hope to finally drive back home this week since my back has now healed up enough to handle the long drive back.

To add insult to injury the check engine light came on as well on the drive down. Needed a new downstream O2 sensor...so yah just more salt in the wound it feels. I just will ask if you can toss a few bucks my way to my Paypal, it really help, this month has been a pretty crappy financial drain for what was supposed to be a fun con and visit here, not a sleepless painful con and weeks of being attended to by my friends...tho I am SO grateful for their caring and help thru this crazy month. Here is my Paypal if you can toss something at it to help out, be much appreciated if you can. 

Paypal: gideonblade@yahoo.com

But as always thank you for your support and listening to this insanely long ramble. I hope you are all well and doing well, stay happy & healthy!