When I was a kid I suffered a type of bone infection in my ear that went misdiagnosed for over 10 years. This eventually damaged my eardrum and left me practically deaf on one side. It’s something that has affected every aspect of my life and for a long time was ashamed of. It has only gotten worse over the years and I finally had to take it seriously only to find out my health insurance at work would not cover the surgical implant I would need. My only option was to seek out a high deductible private insurance. Fast forward to now: the implant is in my head and I am healing nicely, but even with the insurance I have it has left me with a bill that is beyond my current means. Honestly, I wish I was just posting jokes. Even now I think, “I could have just stayed deaf and I wouldn’t have to bother people with this nonsense”. However, I have a wife who believes otherwise.