New site! erictapley.com

I've finally migrated to using real blog software and along the way setup my site at a new domain. I'll be moving this domain over eventually, but until then, check it out.

Love the Poison Ivy!

July 27, 2006 9:28pm EST

So, I've been back in the hospital. I know... It's a habit I'm trying to break. But this was for poison ivy, a particularly nasty allergy I have, not for my gut problems of the past.

A short summary:
On Saturday I woke up with itchy and slightly swollen eyes. By noon I had a small rash that was developing on my arms, and by evening it had spread to my abdomen and legs.

I went to the Fallon Clinic to get checked out and, while there, had problems with dizziness, lightheadedness, and trouble breathing. My throat was swelling and felt sore and thick. The doctors at the clinic were worried they wouldn't be able to deal with my breathing difficulties so I was rushed off (and admitted overnight) to the Worcester Medical Center.

Since Saturday I've been in and out of the hospital, ER, and seen a number of doctors and a dermatologist. They concluded that I have a bad case of poison ivy that began to spread into my throat (hence the breathing trouble). As of now I have it all over my hands, arms, chest, lower back, abdomen, upper and lower legs, but my breathing is back to normal.

Kate thinks I look like a burn victim. I don't think it's that bad, but damn does the itch get aggravating.

The cure?
It hasn't done much yet but I'm taking Prednisone, Benadryl, and using special creams every day to help get this under control. I have faith that over time this will bring the response under control and I'll feel better, but my body is reacting much slower than usual to these meds. I think this has to do with my long battle with Ulcerative Colitis and the long-term impact that has had on my immune system.

Silver lining.
As when I've been sick in the past I've learned that it's friends, family, and community that help see you through trouble like this. Kate has been tremendous this past week. I'm grateful for the guys at the office, especially Sam Costello and Ali Aslam, who've helped cart me around and take care of me (I'm not supposed to drive on some of these meds). And I've had a lot wonderful well-wishing from clients and associates.

Community and people matter a lot. I'm glad to have been reminded of that, and will keep it in the forefront of my mind as we work at 3000K to develop the new version of The Daily Jolt and other community sites.

Here's some of the poison ivy on my arm. It's like this everywhere. Ugh.

A message from Kate: Walk for Diabetes

July 25, 2006

Hey Everyone!

On September 17th, 2006, Baby Sam and I will be participating in the ADA's Walk for Diabetes in Worcester. I will be the only one of us actually walking. Sam will be riding in his stroller and flirting with ladies.

My goal is to raise $1,000. If you would like to sponsor me (which would be awesome), please send a check to:

Katharine Tapley
22 Wakefield St. #1
Worcester, MA 01605

Checks should be made out to The American Diabetes Association. All donations are tax deductible, and I will send you a receipt.

All sponsors will receive an "autographed" photo of the World's Cutest Baby!

If you can't support me financially, prayers and kind thoughts for myself and all the walkers would be greatly appreciated.

For more information, here's the site for the ADA: http://www.diabetes.org.

The site for the walk: Worcester Walk for Diabetes.

Or you can e-mail me at kate@etapley.com.

New photos of Sam!

July 1, 2006 7:44pm EST

So, here (finally) is a new gallery with photos of Sam. I know it's been ages, so I spent extra time picking the best of the photos we've taken over the last three months (including a few that made it into the NMH reunion gallery).

Sam is growing at a rapid pace, and many of the outfits he's wearing in these photos no longer fit. It's amazing and kind of bizarre at the same time, especially when just four or five days have passed but the outfit doesn't fit anymore.

We love our little baby and know how blessed we are, so it doesn't matter if he outgrows a few outfits. It's just an amazing reminder of how quickly things can change when you have a little one.

Baby Sam, 2-5 month gallery

NMH 10-year Reunion Photos

June 11, 2006 9:50pm EST

Kate, baby Sam, and I had a great time at my 10-year reunion on the Mount Hermon campus this weekend. I've posted approximately 60 photos of the weekend in a gallery. Email me with more if you'd like me to add to this!

Reunion photo gallery

NMH (Fall 2005) gallery

The Beechwood Forum's Success Series features... me!

April 20, 2006 6:55am EST

At 4:30pm today I'll be speaking at the Beechwood Forum about success in business. I have a lot of advice to give (all of it free and thus worthless) and will be available for questions and to chat afterwards.

D'oh! There's an admission fee, so I suppose it's *not* free. I'd better come up with something of value to say! ;)

Details and discounted online registration

New photos! (It only took a month.)

April 18, 2006 9:35pm EST

Hi, everyone! Sam wants you to forgive me (his dad) for not posting photos sooner. I've been busier playing with him than I have been uploading photos... even though we have a ton of them. I've been sorting through what we've taken and only posted the best. Hope you think he's as cute as we do!

Second Month Photo Gallery

Selections from the 4th week.

March 5, 2006 7:44pm EST

It's been a wild few days. I (Eric) was a little sick, nothing just serious but a cold/flu thing, so didn't get as many baby shots as usual. Even so we captured some great photos of Sam, even during his fussy time. He experienced his first party (at Michelle Currie's house), met his godfather, Mike DeMagistris, and really grew into his own and gave lots of great faces.

Fourth Week Photo Gallery

More baby photos! Weeks two and three.

February 19, 2006 10:12pm EST

During these past two weeks Sam has experienced his first Valentine's day, a lot of family visits, and a bunch of fussy faces. Everyone loves babytime!

Photo Gallery

Photos of Sam's First Week

February 7, 2006 9:40pm EST

I've uploaded a new photo gallery which included photos from Sam's first week, both in the hospital and later at home. He and Kate are both doing very well, albeit with a little less sleep than we may want. :)

Photo Gallery

Samuel David Tapley is Born!

Here are the first photos of baby Sam. He's a very big baby - 9.86 pounds, 23.75" long, and has a 14" circumference around his head! He was born around 11:04 pm on January 30th.

Click on the thumbnails in the gallery for larger photos.

Photo Gallery

Hiking and Photographing

August 18, 2005 8:55pm EST

Hi, everyone. Sorry I've been away for so long - I've been very busy. Here's a little of what I've been up to.

Hiking with Sam, Scott, Seth, and some of Seth's friends in purgatory chasm.