Well, I guess we are hitting the home stretch....


When I wake up tomorrow (okay, later today OFFICIALLY) I will be 1 WEEK from my 1 year anniversary.


I will have lived for a year after dying for two and one half minutes.
I am starting to ask myself again why I got to live; why did I get to be the one who "came back"?


Am I supposed to do something big? Am I supposed to save a life; prevent a crime?
Do I have a Guardian Angel named Clarence (movie reference anyone)?


If so, I f I AM supposed to be doing something special, how will I know if I have fulfilled such a lofty expectation?


Have I already? Is this insignificant little diary my "thing"? Did I somehow help someone enough for this to count? No...certainly THIS is not what I am to trade for getting my life back?


But if not this, then what? What am I supposed to do?


I was hoping to have it be something easy to notice; something like I would raise enough money for the EMS unit to buy some fancy new piece of equipment, or I would see someone ELSE have a heart attack and get them help "just in time". Somehow, I don't think it will be such a dramatic thing.


The money I have collected so far will not buy much more than lunch for the EMTs, forget some life saving new gadget.


I know I have not saved a life yet....there is no even trade here; no quid pro quo; no tit-for-tat.


So what, what am I supposed to do? Why did God do something as silly as let this plain, basic, middle aged man beat the "widow maker"?


I fear that long after this blog is closed down, I will still not feel like I have earned my extra time. I may never feel it. All I KNOW is that I am a very lucky man...I have a beautiful, talented, unbelievably caring and generous wife. I have 3 of the most wonderful kids a man could imagine. And....most of all, I get to be with them for at least a little while longer.


Oh, and I know one more thing......no matter WHAT I do, I will never be able to pay God back for even just this one year of that extra time.


Good night & God bless.

Veterans Day is here as I write this (since IS past midnight).  Thank you guys. Thank you all for putting yourselves in harms way for a bunch of folks who may not always act like we appreciate it.

I sent a message to one of the EMT'S who worked my call a eye area ago, and realized that they two seldom get the sense of appreciation they deserve.

So, in my own spin on this Veterans Day, let me thank ALL of our EMT/First Responder brothers and sisters for all of their incredible work and for putting THEMSELVES in harms way when need be (on a roadside for example). You guys literally save lives, and there is nothing more incredible than that.

Good night & God bless (to my readers, our Veterans and our first responders )

Interesting day today....
Lot's of opinions on both sides of the aisle....the election was good, the election was terrible.
My own opinion is not important, and there will be NO commentary in this blog. There, I made the obligatory comment on our "historic" election....

Yesterday was 2 weeks away from my "Re-birthday", or my "Other Birthday" and I
got caught up in watching the returns and missed my post yesterday. Sorry.

But...post or no post...I WAS thinking about the blog & I was wondering how I could tie in election day without making political commentary. I could incorporate a vote of my own.

Cliché, I know. But here we go.

I am not sure what to call November 22 each year from now on. I am looking for some snazzy little phrase to use for my "heart attack-adversary", but I just can't find anything better that "Re-birthday" and that one just doesn't QUITE do it.

This may seem to be a silly thing to worry about, but this is a PRETTY important day & it needs an appropriate name. I mean, we need to know what to put on my cake.

What do you all think? What should I call November 22 from now on? Drop me a comment with your suggestion.

To be honest, this may not be a TRUE election. In fact I may not put it out for a VOTE at all; mine may be the ONLY vote that counts. But hey, you all have an opportunity to chime in and maybe be the person whose word shows up on cakes for what I hope is years to come.

Good night & God bless.

Sorry...took the weekend off. The weekend was very busy & I didn't think I could do this blog justice with the time given. So, I missed a couple of days.

What makes tonight's post extra special is not that I am back after a break, it is that I get to give you some REALLY cool news.

After Ashley's post to Facebook the other day, her new friend from the Forsyth County EMS shared this blog. As a result of HTAT sharing my blog, one of the EMT's who work my call READ IT & was able to find me and friend me on Facebook.

Yes, I get to be a Facebook friend with one of the people who ACTUALLY SAVED MY LIFE. Now, how many people do YOU know who will actually get to say that in the course of a lifetime?

The young lady (name withheld until I get approval) and I have traded messages and I hope to see her on the 22nd when I deliver the donations form the readers and me.

Next step is to get her to introduce me to the others on duty that day. I need to be able to thank them in person just as I have now been able to thank her.

Wow....I am still overwhelmed that I get to know at least one of the folks directly responsible for this blog. I can't wait to get a chance to meet her and the others and present them with what I hope is the first of many annual gifts.

I'll let you know how things go when I swing into the EMS unit on the 22nd.

Good night & God bless.

Special surprise author tonight.
Ashley had a special chance to remind the EMT's in Forsyth County that they have made huge impacts on our family.

Here is her post to Facebook about the encounter:

Tonight, I got to reconnect with someone who I met in July of 2015-- one of the paramedics who treated me after I fainted due to being septic after Seussical!  She was one of the paramedics covering the football game with me tonight!  I knew who she was as soon as she introduced herself AND I was so excited to get to tell her that what she did for me mattered!  We chatted about what had happened with me, our families, etc AND then, I got to tell her that her colleagues saved my husband's life (lots of tears happened here!)!  It was amazing to share his miraculous story and know just how blessed we have been!  So, here's to you, J.Ray, you and your colleagues make a difference and the Donahue family will forever be indebted to y'all!


Thanks Ashley.

The other night she also met an EMT who was not involved in my case, but who had HEARD about it and remembered it almost a year later. Apparently, I am a minor celebrity in the Forsyth County EMT corps.

Add to this, the time these folks came to take care of our son...and they deserve so much more than we could ever give.

There is still almost a month before I present my donation to them. If you'd like to contribute, send your donation to me at

5205 Smoky Ridge Ln.
Winston Salem, NC  27127

Make your check payable to Forsyth County EMS. I'll match everything up to $250.

Good night and God bless.

I am now within 3 weeks of being alive again for a whole year.
Less than a month. It just hit me really how close my rebirth day is; how close I am to the end of this blog (keep the cheers to a minimum).




I looked back over some of my posts. Some good, some pretty poor. They have definitely evolved over the year. I kind of got to thinking how I had evolved over the year.


I have lost 30 lbs.
I have gotten religious about running at least 3 times a day.
I have gotten used to taking pills for a living.
I have gotten VERY aware of my weight and how much I eat. I actually panic just a little if I gain any weight, or feel like I went over 1500 milligrams of sodium in a day.


As you might imagine, things have taken on a new priority in life. Missing events for my kids actually hurts now. I mean I always hated it, but I actually hurt a little this week when I had to miss the open house at the kids' school.


I am noticing my age more now too. I just realize that I have been around for a while. I am not "OLD" per say but I am actually old enough to be a grandparent without TOO much of a stretch.
(For those of you who doubt....47....48 for all intents and purposes....at 23 I could have had a son, 46 when he has a daughter, & there you go....my fictitious granddaughter would be 2 years old; a toddler)


I crossed over to where I don't feel invincible anymore. Sort of a sad thing, but maybe a good thing. I am taking better care of myself. I am working with the kids to make sure they take care of THEMSELVES as best I can while letting them still be kids.


This blog has grown and changed. I have changed and hope I have grown.
Three weeks to reach a year. I'm looking forward to it.


Good night & God bless.

In Atlanta tonight and having trouble dropping off to sleep.

I paid some more of my dad's bills today; leftover medical bills, the last power bill, etc.

With each one, I am getting closer to being done with the task of being executor. With each one, I am getting closer to having my dad's time here on earth end.

While this blog is not about dad, his situation often makes me reflect on my own. How long would it have taken for my Mark to disappear? How hard would Ashley have had to work to clean up the trail I left behind?

...and how much more work would someone have had to do if I were not here to be dad's executor?

...and WHY have we not updated our wills now that our family is complete?

Lesson? Pay attention to the paperwork. Have it in order.

Bigger lesson, leave your mark now, love your family now, decide who you are and be that person forever.