Chapter 4: Tracking you down isn't easy….

May 20, 1999

Doug –

Sorry that I have taken so long to write back to you again, but things here got extremely busy. I got promoted at the hospital and I am now not only a pediatric attending but I am associate chief of pediatrics here. I was happy to be given the position but the job came with a lot more responsibilities than I thought it would. That and my dad got really sick last month so I've been trying to spend as much time with him as I can lately I had to reorganize my priorities, jobs come and go but you only get one family, and you only can have one real Dad..

Sorry to hear about Carter and his luck with med students that man can't seem to get the good ones. I'd ask you how he's doing but well Carol wrote me a few weeks ago and said that you had taken off for Seattle and that she was forwarding your new address to me so that I would have it. Man I can't believe that you went and left Chicago with out Carol. You are insane my dear man, totally and completely insane. I thought that I was nuts for leaving Carter, but you have been with Carol for forever and a day, thought that things were going really great with you. But then I think that I also told you to stay out of trouble, but I know that you did it for the good of your patient, that's part of what makes you such a good pediatrician. Wish I had the guts to stand up for a patient like that, but then I'm to afraid that I will lose my job, right now I kind of need it. Enough of that kind of talk however cause I did not write to cry on your shoulder. And I have nothing right now that would need a shoulder to cry on either. Things are still okay, they could be better but they are still okay, you know what I mean, no one's life is perfect and I don't expect mine to be perfect either.

Come to find out I won't be going to that conference after all, but I will be attending on in Huston Texas and then one in Boston later this month too. Seems that my boss has some better uses for my time and well he wanted to go to the one that was given at Northwestern so I got to stay and hold down the fort so to speak. I have to do all the parts of the job that he doesn't want to do or feels that he shouldn't have to do. Man what I wouldn't give at times to still be working under the staff at County rather than this tyrant. But those were and always will have to just be the good old days I guess FYI this guy makes Weaver look like the tooth fairy he carries this giant whip and has no fear of cracking it over some poor schmuck's head. He's a real jerk to the majority of the residents and expects way to much of them so I find that most of my time is spent trying to get the out from under his iron fist but it will all work out in the end, things always do.

Guess I should give you the good news too, Max and I are getting married. Yup, never thought that would happen but he asked about two weeks ago and well I didn't think of a good reason to tell him no. Although maybe I should have, but I think that's just me being scared. I mean a marriage proposal while it's a happy thing it's also a terrifying experience, here I am thinking about devoting my life to one person. I'll let you know when a date is set.

Take care of yourself

Anna

Doug was shocked when he got another letter from Anna, especially since he was in Seattle now. But then he guessed to it was kind of important to have friends. Since he had burned most of if not all of his bridges in Seattle, maybe having Anna as a friend wasn't so bad after all you could never have too many friends. Besides what could it hurt to carry on a letter conversation between two old colleagues who were both pediatricians, you never knew when the other person might be able to help with a case that stumped you.

May 31, 1999

Hey there miss Anna….

What can I say at times I feel like a complete fool for leaving Carol in Chicago but there was nothing there for me after the incident with Rickki and his folks, I was still pretty much in trouble for Josh at that point too, burned to many bridges. That's not to say that life in Seattle is all that bad… it's nice here and the weather is pretty good once you get used to the rain, and really it doesn't rain as much as people think it does here. I don't have to water my lawn that's for sure. And I get a fresh start at a new hospital that's not familiar with my antics and habit of breaking the rules every chance I get.

Although I think my days of rule breaking are over at least for this week. How many fresh starts are people allowed, there are 50 states I guess so I could start over a lot of I had to. Not that starting over 50 times is on my list of things to do. County and Carol were the two longest commitments that I had ever managed to make in my life and now, well now I guess it's time to try again. I don't know I would like to think that I haven't completely blown it with Carol. Time is the only thing that will tell with that. But hey that is enough of the sob story that has become my life.

It's good to hear from you, I was wondering how you were doing and if since I had upped and moved so fast if you'd be able to find me. Although it's not like I don't know where you are, hiding out in Philadelphia, you are so addicted to that city I don't think I'll ever hear that you have moved. The day you do move I will be in a state of complete and total shock. Ha, you move I still find that funny. The thought alone is enough to crack me up so that I can barely write. HAHA!

Sorry to hear that your dad is sick, hope he gets better here soon for you. I know that's got to be tough on you since you are so close with your family. I guess congrats are in order, I know you and Max will be good together, as long as he treats you well, if he doesn't well he'll have to deal with me. I know that you mentioned that he was still doing those studies for hospitals must be good work in that for him. Don't' hesitate to call and let me know if you are going to be up this way, we'll definitely have to get together and talk. I don't have many friends after all this and hearing from you has been the highlight of my rather long day. I'm glad that Carol wrote you and told you. I have to go now thought because I'm getting ready to pull a double shift covering for a coworker who needed the night off.

Doug

I got Doug's letter reading it brought a smile to my tired face. I had worked three shifts in a row and was worn completely out. Yet somehow that letter in the mailbox made my day seem not so bad. Doug seemed to be doing well and that was a high point. Maybe having to leave Chicago wasn't going to be a bad thing after all. I would have written him back that night but I was so tired I figured I'd get to it later. After all, how much of a difference could a day make?