Until we meet again

Sweet dears, this post is to inform you that things are going to become quieter on the Chronically Vintage home front for the next little while. The reason behind this is because I’ll be going in for surgery on Wednesday (25th), for reasons pertaining to the (unexpected) hospital stay I encountered last May.



{Unlike the chipper young lad on the cover of this delightful 1950s children’s book (which can be found in etsy seller Ficklefrog’s shop), this week’s surgery won’t be my first hospital visit, but what he and I do share in common is that both of our mothers were/are going to be there to help make things more bearable. My wonderful mom is flying out from B.C. to help look after me while I recoup, which I know is going to make this experience infinitely easier to get through.}


I truly do not know at this stage how long my recovery period is going to be (my body is often ridiculously slow to heal, even for the most commonplace of things like minor cuts and bruises, and in the past I’ve recouped rather unhurriedly from other surgical procedures I’ve had), but I’ve been told (by my doctors) to expect at least three to six weeks.

It’s likely that I won’t be blogging again for at least a couple of weeks, and should the unexpected arise (i.e., I end up having to go back into the hospital after I’ve been discharged post-surgery), my darling husband will most likely write an update post informing everyone of what’s going on. In my absence (from blogging), he will also be approving all comments and fielding any incoming CV related emails.

I’m going to miss you all very much, and want you to know how much I truly appreciate your support and understanding regarding this situation.

Be well, precious friends, and know that you’re in my thoughts, as I send out oodles of wishes for a positively glorious, entirely enchanting last month of summer to each of you!

“Thank you” doesn’t even begin to cover my gratitude

My dearest friends, a month has passed since I last sat down to write a new entry for this blog. During that time – as many of you may know from the two posts my husband, Tony, kindly put up in my absence – I’ve been contenting with some serious health issues. One of which landed me, rather suddenly and unexpectedly, in the hospital during for a spell.

The outpouring of support, care and concern that we (Tony and I) received from has been nothing short of staggering. I’m at a loss for words when it comes to just how to express my profound thanks to each and every one of you who left comments on Tony’s posts and/or emailed us privately about my situation.

Each day when he came to visit me at the hospital, Tony would print off and bring all of your messages and comments, and when I returned home (but wasn’t yet well enough to use my computer), he would read them out to me from his laptop. I don’t think a single day passed that I wasn’t moved to the point of tears by the staggeringly beautiful care and friendship that shone through your words.

From the very bottom of my heart, thank you so much, everybody, for your support, companionship and concern during this rocky time. Your meaningful words lifted my spirits greatly and truly meant the world to me.

While this "elevated" medical situation is far from over still, I wanted to begin posting again – albeit on a considerably less frequent basis than usual (perhaps one or two posts a week, but we'll just see how things go as the coming weeks unfold). I miss you all – and blogging! – so much. Chronically Vintage is an integral part of my life, and going so long (especially when the hiatus was unplanned) without writing new posts has felt nothing short of alien.

Yesterday marked the summer solstice, the beginning of the warmest (if in you live in Northern Hemisphere, that is) season of the year, and one of my favourite annual events. I don’t know exactly what summer months have in store for me health-wise on a day-to-day basis, but as of the Monday before last (14th), I do at least know when I’ll be having (gallbladder removal) surgery: August 25th.


{I’m on strict doctor’s orders to take things super easy this summer, but on days when I can, I plan on blogging from my bed or the sofa. Now, if only I could look as gorgeous as this lovely vintage gal while doing so! :D Vintage image from Saltycotton’s Flickr stream.}


In the days leading up until the end of August, amidst and ongoing assortment of medical visits, and when my (pesky! ;D) health permits, I hope to be able to blog, to connect with you all, and to keep the spirit of Chronically Vintage going strong.

Sweetest dears, thank you again for your tremendously thoughtful comments and emails, knowing that you understand the situation and are there me has been an invaluable comfort.

With the utmost of appreciation and love, I wish you each a sublimely beautiful, highly memorable, and entirely enjoyable summer ahead!

An update on Jessica’s situation

Hi everyone,

Let me begin by expressing – on behalf of both Jessica and I – tons of thanks for all of your kind and understanding comments and emails. I’ve shared them all with Jess as they’ve come in and can tell you that they’ve truly meant a great deal to her.

I wanted to post to let you know where things are presently at. Initially when Jessica had gone into the hospital (for a severe gallstone attack – the second one that week) we’d been told by numerous doctors that they wanted to do an exploratory surgical procedure, and this opinion held for the first 2-3 days. However, instead of going that route it was decided to temporarily hold off, and to run a number of tests (ultrasound, CT scan, MRI, ongoing blood work, etc) over the coming days, while keeping Jess in the hospital (though her white blood cell count appeared normal, certain enzyme levels were elevated which made her doctors suspect she might be running an infection, so pretty much from the get-go they pumped her full of intravenously administered, heavy-duty antibiotics). They also just wanted to monitor her because of the severity of the attacks that’d she’d been having (I should mention, this issue relating to Jessica’s gallbladder popped up for the first time ever at the end of this past March).

Frighteningly, Jess experienced an immediate anaphylactic reaction to the dye (called “contrast dye”) that was used during the CT scan and suddenly became unable to breathe (her throat swelled shut within moments of the dye being administered). Fortunately however, they stopped giving her the dye and got her on oxygen quickly, so in the end she didn’t lose consciousness (or worse, though I shudder to think of such things). I’m happy to say that she made a complete recovery from this experience, but I think she very nearly dodged an unexpected bullet there.

All of the tests confirmed what prior ones (done before she was in the hospital) had already shown, and as Jess had had an appointment scheduled with a surgeon on June 14th (the appointment was made by her GP weeks ago) to discuss her gallbladder situation (we’ve been led to believe by the doctors at the hospital that this surgeon will make a decision as to when Jess will be having surgery, and what kind of surgery that will be), they sent her home from the hospital a few days after her enzyme levels dropped back down near normal levels, with instructions to rest and not overexert herself as much as possible.

Unfortunately, her time in the hospital paired with the around-the-clock antibiotics they gave her (while beneficial in certain regards) caused some of Jessica’s (pre-existing) chronic conditions to flare-up extremely badly, and she continues to battle with those flare-ups plus the ongoing gallbladder area pain that she’s experienced since her first attack back in March.

These things coupled with her orders to rest as much as possible, means that she’s not able to return to blogging on any sort of regular basis for the time being. I know that she misses Chronically Vintage and her blogging friends very much though, and that she’ll start posting again when her health permits.

In the meantime, please keep your fingers crossed that her appointment with the surgeon goes well on Monday and that it results in her getting closer to a solution this medical problem. (Either Jess or myself will continue to keep you updated in the near future.)


Thank you very much for your ongoing kindness and understanding,
Antonio Cangiano (acangiano@gmail.com)