But I still voted for Kamala Harris on the first day I was able to.
This year, I found out I have Krohn's Disease and Type II diabetes. I have been pooping blood and pissing sugar. I've had days where I had over a dozen separate bowel movements before I lost count. I lost 30 pounds in 2 months without trying. I've missed a month of work and I've been hospitalized twice.
It's a challenge to balance out diabetes and Krohn's. Diabetes calls for eating fiber and vegetables, while a Krohn's flare-up calls for me to eat LESS fiber. The normal treatment for Krohn's involves a steroid that boosts my blood sugar as a undesired side effect. A humble bowl of corn flakes in almond milk sent my glucose over 300.
I do have insurance and my employer has been very understanding. My family has been helping too. I think I'll be very okay if I can make it through the next six weeks. I just wish that this wasn't happening during the most important election ever.
So here are the issues I care about:
1. Healthcare. Duh. I need lots of it and I need it to be affordable. I need Kamala Harris to beat the guy who only has concepts of a healthcare plan.
2. Immigration. I am a middle aged white dude who was born in the US, but many of the doctors, nurses, and techs working to keep me alive are immigrants. I'm sure they're all legal, but I can't be sure that JD Vance would be sure too. I need these people to not have to worry about having their residency status challenged.
3. Economy. Yes, I plan on going back to work. I need a president who is not a criminal to make decisions that benefit everyone.
I'll do what I can over the next few weeks, but it won't be as much as I did in past elections. Thank you all for helping to pick up the slack.
To all my fellow divorced, middle-aged, middle-class white dudes, it helps to think of voting as a way to help make your own life better rather than a way to get back at other people. All that nonsense about rugged individualism falls right apart when you need healthcare. Whether it's family, friends, or community, you need other people in your life who care enough to nudge you into getting your symptoms checked out.