Minnesota Update

Hello all!

A few updates:

*I head to Houston on 9/5 to spend a few days with Lee and Q before heading to the Black & Latino Playwrights' Conference at Texas State University, where I'll be workshopping my play SWEET.

*9/26-10/1, I'm in New York to workshop my play AND SHE WOULD STAND LIKE THIS and to catch my musical collaborators, Lyons & Pakchar perform songs from our brand new musical FIVE POINTS at Lincoln Center.

*On 10/9, AND SHE WOULD STAND LIKE THIS will be presented at CUNY (the City of New York's Graduate Center) as part of PRELUDE 2014, a festival dedicated to artists at the forefront of contemporary NYC theatre, dance, interdisciplinary and mediatized performance.

Minnesota is good.
Quiet.
Restful.
I can hear myself think.
The summer weather has been BEAUTIFUL.

I hope that this post finds everyone well.

Much love,
H

Update on Sleep Testing

Dad survived the night! He felt a bit groggy this morning but refreshed. Pretty early in the test the technician put on a mask for Dad to breathe through. After he placed the mask on Dad, his sleep was much much better! He noted that Dad had 24 occurrences of changes in his breathing per hour!

Here is a definition of sleep apnea: Sleep apnea (or sleep apnoea in British English;/æpˈniːə/) is a type of sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing or instances of shallow or infrequent breathing during sleep. Each pause in breathing, called an apnea, can last from at least ten seconds to several minutes, and may occur 5 to 30 times or more an hour.^[1] Similarly, each abnormally shallow breathing event is called a hypopnea. Sleep apnea is classified as a dyssomnia, meaning abnormal behavior or psychological events occur during sleep.^[2] When breathing is paused, carbon dioxide is building up the bloodstream. Chemoreceptors in the blood stream note the high carbon dioxide levels. The brain is signaled to wake the person sleeping and breathe in air. Breathing normally will restore oxygen levels and the person will fall asleep again.^[3] Sleep apnea is often diagnosed with an overnight sleep test called apolysomnogram, or "sleep study".

We will schedule an appointment with the Dr after his tests are reviewed. I will keep you informed about new developments! Thanks for praying!

Sleep Testing

Dad has been having some issues with sleep for a while now. He seems to get really tired midmorning. Didn't really think too much about it until we were talking with Megan's Mom.

We looked into having a sleep test done. He talked to his doctor about it and got the okay.

Tonight's the night! Here is what Pops looks like just before he went to sleep.

Sleep Well!

Micro Update from Wichita!

Hey Family, just thought we'd share a quick update on things down here in Wichita! 

Orientation is in full swing for Ashley as she's been shuttling her international students everywhere; from the airport to the residence halls to Walmart to TB testing sites, it's been a whirlwind these last few weeks! 

We got new glasses! Hooray!

Also, I have been accepted into the MBA program at Friends! I'm all enrolled and start classes this Thursday, exciting and scary all at the same time!  

Your continual prayers and warm wishes are much appreciated and welcome! 

Love you all tons! 

Ashley and Jonathan 

Landon's Song