Julian Field in hospital

[Jeff A. Earickson]

On Wed, 28 Feb 2007, Tim Chown wrote:

> On Wed, Feb 28, 2007 at 01:22:30PM +0100, Glenn Steen wrote:
>>
>> Tim has promised to keep us posted, and he/they will bring this thread
>> (more or less) to him when he is in a state to appreciate it
>> (hardcopy, of course).
>> As to what ails Jules, we really don't know ... He has described his
>> medical condition in this thread:
>> http://comments.gmane.org/gmane.mail.virus.mailscanner/47823 ... But
>> what exactly the current problems stem from (of all the serious
>> problems he has), we can only guess.
>> I'm full of trust that he is receiving the best possible medical care
>> and attention, and hope he will be able to make as full a recovery as
>> possible.
>
> Hi all,
>
> I suspect Jules has deliberately played down his health issues because
> that's the sort of person he is.   He'll do a fantastic job for everyone
> he works with and not complain.
>
> It's a long term condition of 10 years now, and one which has no name.
> The doctors can't just look it up in a text book.    The thread above
> gives more detail than I ever could.
>
> On Thursday he was helped home feeling unwell.   He came in Friday but
> again felt unwell so went home.   He was then found by his cleaner
> who called the ambulance.    I understand he had collapsed having
> suffered internal bleeding.
>
> Based on my visit yesterday, he'd had no new bleeding for 24 hours, and
> had made a very small improvement in that his drug level had been turned
> down, but he is being kept unconscious by the drugs.   He's receiving
> the best possible care in the ICU.
>
> Regarding cards/gifts etc, let's please wait a little before doing
> anything.   I'll make sure his very closest friends here discuss this with
> his parents to see what they would like, and I'll then pass that on to
> the list.
>
> And again, I will make sure that every message is passed on.   They will
> mean a lot.

Boy was I depressed when I read the gmane thread.  I've always thought
that Jules was a hero for writing MailScanner, but he has moved into
superhero status now -- doing amazing things in impossible circumstances.
The rest of us would be happy just to tie our shoes if we had to put
up with such pain and massive painkiller pills.  How does Jules write
such great code?

My hat is off to you and my prayers are with you.

Jeff Earickson
Colby College