Dear Media ReDEFined Fans,
WARNING: What you are about to read qualifies as an "overshare".
I want to apologize for not sending out the newsletter these past few days. Let me explain what happened.
I woke up one morning in early April to find that I had double vision. After a lot of doctors, MRIs and tests it seems to have been brought about by not controlling my Type 2 Diabetes. This caused, so the doctors say, nerve damage in my eye which caused Diplopia, or double vision.
It's been my own private hell. Walking around, watching TV, let alone curating has been rough. It won't heal for about another 3 months if at all. If not, I have to have surgery. I've learned some tricks and workarounds in the last 2 weeks which have helped. But my eyesight seems to jump all over the place daily. It's actually quite fascinating if it wasn't happening to me.
This will sound incredibly stupid... But, guess what? You need your eyesight! I suppose double vision would be great if I were on a nude beach full of supermodels. But that's not quite what I'm living right now. :-)
The newsletter resumes today. I know you depend on it and I apologize for missing a few days, the only ones I've missed in around 6+ years.
I've also codified a bit of how I do this each day and will soon be bringing some great staff on and launching some new content categories as I realize a product dream I've had for many years.
One important note, Media ReDEFined is available on Twitter at @MediaReDEF and Facebook here. In addition, beautiful visual app-based versions are available on Flipboard under "Cool Curators" and Pulse under "Technology". Those versions are updated hourly regardless of the newsletter send. Be forewarned that the volume of articles on those platforms are about 2-3x of what you see in the newsletter.
So, I f*cked my health up good. That's the last time it will happen. It truly scared me enough to pay attention and I am getting it under control. My blood sugar is almost back to normal and I've lost about 25 lbs.
I'm a so-called type-A person. Almost anything I have control over I will do well. But to paraphrase the great Tom Petty: "the waiting (for the eyesight) is the hardest part". That's all I can do.
The upside of all this is the reminder that I have good friends and family who have checked-in on me when I've been in a, let's say, irritable mood.
I'll save my newly formed thoughts on doctor bedside manner and the health insurance industry for another post.
Now back to the amazingly crazy and ever-changing world of media and technology. For those of you not subscribed to Media ReDEFined, you can do that here.
Thank you for your support and patience.
JH.