September was a bit of a mess. I had quite a few doctor’s appointments, including my annual scans to check for cancer recurrence. I’m always anxious when it is time for the scans, but I was a little more nervous than usual because I’ve been experiencing some worsening shortness of breath for the last few months. They did some other tests, and it turns out that my remaining lung is just struggling with asthma. So, I’m on some new medicine and remain cancer free, which is great news.

The second half of the month was dominated by my wife’s contract negotiation with her employer, which was such a frustrating process. For a while, we thought she might not be working after the end of September, which would mean losing our health insurance. It was all annoying and somewhat worrying, but my diligent savings the last few years meant we’d be okay either way for quite a while. In the end, they couldn’t come to an agreement on terms to renew her contract, but she has a year to find something else before they eliminate her position, which is a much better outcome than we’d expected.

All this to say, the anxiety derailed my reading plans a bit. It was still a solid month, though. I just didn’t make as much progress on my remaining annual goals as I’d have liked.