My Brother is Sick, the Doctors Don't Know What's Wrong, and my Brother Needs Donations

   Yeah, I know I haven't posted in a few months, as is usual. As anyone who can read further down my blog would know that I usually either review bad book/movies or talk about LGBT issues. This post is going to be different. This post is about someone really close to me. I'm putting a lot of hope in this that this will work.

   As the title states, my brother is sick and is in need of donations. I have a page to the top right of my blog that will give a brief summary about my brother's condition as well as the link to give donations. That page will stay there as long as my sister-in-law has the funding going on.

Peter (my brother), his wife, and their daughter

   Now a little bit about my brother. My brother, Peter, just turned 27 in May. He married his wife about 6 years ago, and has a five year old daughter (who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 3).

   The word I would use to describe my brother would be smart. He was the smartest out of all of my siblings. He was able to ace the GED exam without studying for it. He has been able to build computers for a few year. Before my brother got married and moved out, my parents would go to my brother with any of their computer problems. My parents would still go to him whenever they have a computer problem that I can't solve. He was going to a local community college for accounting, though he hasn't gone the last couple of semesters.

   The second thing I would describe about Peter is that he loves technology. He would look for the latest phone, tablet, and gaming console. There would be no doubt if there's a new Samsung phone, he's looked into it, tried it out, and will give you his full opinion about the device. I could always trust his opinion if I were needing to buy pretty much anything that has to do with technology.

  The third, and most important, thing I would describe about Peter is that he is loving and well loved. He absolutely loves and adores his wife and daughter. He would do anything for them. Hell, he would give them the world if it was possible. He would protect anyone in his family no matter the cost, and we would do the same thing for him. Our family is very close to each other. We try to keep in contact with each other no matter how far away we live from each other. If something happens to one of us, the rest of us will feel the pain. We want to help each other, and this is my way of helping right now.

   I received a call from my mom around April telling me that Peter was in the hospital because they thought he was having a stroke. My brother had really high blood pressure, numbness in his hands and feet, and had slurred speech. The doctor at the ER didn't find anything on the tests. They told him he was just having a panic attack and sent him on his way without figuring out what was wrong with him. He went to the hospital two other times with the doctors telling him that it was just a panic attack and sending him on his way. One of the doctors even had the audacity to tell my brother that perfectly fine to have a fast heart rate because he was young.

   My brother's condition has continued to become worse in the last few months. My sister-in-law told my mom just yesterday that Peter has a hard time walking or speaking. My brother has been to several doctors, and had several blood tests and MRIs done within the last few months. The doctors agree that he wasn't having a panic attack, but the tests that were done would show up as normal. The general consensus from the doctors seem to be they don't know what's wrong.

   The medical bills have been increasing with each doctor visit and each test. Because of his condition, he is unable to work. He is unable to get disabilities because there is no definite diagnosis, and he is unable to get unemployment because his job still has him as working there even though he hasn't worked in several months. I think he got health insurance when his health got worse. With him not able to work, his family has been running out of money to pay for their regular bills as well as Peter's medical bills. My sister-in-law is unable to work since their daughter has diabetes, and needs multiple injections of insulin each day.

   I wish I could do so much more. I wish I could give all of my money to my brother, but I have no money. My parents are also poor. We've never had a whole lot of money. My parents will try to give a part of their paychecks to my brother whenever they can. I won't have money until sometime after school starts (which is a month away).

   My family is trying to figure out ways to help raise money. We've been thinking about getting help from my parents' church and possibly having a bake sale locally. I was thinking about having a bake sale at my school when the fall semester starts. Right now, this post, my blog, is my way of helping.

http://www.gofundme.com/b8je9s

   The link above goes to the fundraising site my sister-in-law started to help with the bills. If they can get the funds to help with their bill, they could focus on finding out what is happening to Peter. Please donate some money to this. Even something as little as $10 can help. Even if you can't donate any money, just share the link on Facebook, Twitter, and your own blogs or websites. Maybe if enough people see the link and donate some money, my brother's family can reach their goal.

   I'll try to write more on my blog. I'll update about Peter's condition as well as write more about LGBT issues and reviewing bad books/movies. Maybe I'll set a goal that if the donations reach the stated goal of $10,000 I'll review whatever people think is the worst movie or book of all times. It's not much, but it's what I can do right now. This is for my family. I love my family, and will do what I can to help, and I hope others will help as well. Thank you.

~Morey Bibliophage~

Seriously, how long does it take me to update this thing?

Yeah, it's been over a year since I last posted something here. A lot has happened in my own life as well as the world in that time period.

First thing: I have graduated from my community college and am currently going to a state college. The college is definitely nice. I'm majoring in creative writing. I do have to have a second major or a minor with it. I'm indecisive over what I want to get. There is a major downside to being an English major. There are a ton of textbooks. I had 15 books last semester, and I'm going to have 18 textbooks this next semester. Fortunately, they're fairly inexpensive, so it won't cost a ton to get them.

There is an LGBTQ club at the school. I went to the meetings this past semester, and it was pretty neat. I'm also living in the dorms at school, so it's easier to go to the club meetings.

Second thing: I did have a really horrible teacher my last semester at my community college. I mean, the tests are easy and I got a B in the class, however her lessons are shitty. She lives in an opposite world where it is the straight, white, Christian man who is discriminated against and not anyone else. Hell, during one of her lessons, she claimed that it was straight people who were really discriminated against. Her proof of this discrimination? people in the military can march in pride parade and gay partners of military members can live on the bases. Yes, that is all she gave. Most countries have laws making being gay illegal, but it's the straight people who are discriminated against. thousands of LGBT people are beaten or killed every year, but it's the straight people who are discriminated against. Most state have laws banning same sex couples from getting married, but it's really the straight people who face discrimination. People can be fired for being gay in most states (including where I live), but it's the straight people facing discrimination. This woman is so full of shit. I'll have to talk more about her at a different time.

I haven't really read or watched anything bad this passed year. I've read some boring or mediocre books, but nothing very horrendous. My brother did buy Man of Steel (which we watched). I could write about that. I'm thinking about writing about the anime; Loveless. It's mainly because everything is confusing as well as the fact that a college student is kissing a 12 year old kid. It seems like the manga is pretty popular, so I'll probably check out that manga and see how it is compared to the anime.

I don't have any books finished. I think I have began a few more books since the last time I've written here. It seems like begin books more than I finish. I have a week before school starts, so hopefully I'll get some more written during that time.

Now about what's going on around the US and the world...

I guess I haven't said this, but I absolutely love Skyrim. I play it as often as I can. I'm also playing Oblivion and Morrowind. For those interested in the game series, there is a mod (or DLC depending on what you prefer) being made by the fans called Skywind. It is a mod where you can play Morrowind with Skyrim graphics. You are able to play it even though it's not finished. You will need Skyrim as well as Morrowind with its DLCs. I have played a bit of it. It has crashed on me a few times, though it's probably my fault. You do have to download the voices separately, though not all of the voices are there. Most of the NPC don't have clothes on them. The characters in the caves also tend to attack each other, as well. Other than that and a few others, the mod is pretty good.

Many of you probably know about Russia's "gay propaganda" law. It is a homophobic law that bans "propaganda" to minors. Russian can be arrested under this law while those who aren't Russian can be deported. Putin claims that he isn't homophobic and that the law isn't homophobic. Apparently he doesn't understand what homophobia means. this is a law that directly targets a group of people for being gay and no other group. People are kidnapping and torturing gays for being gay. Gay bars are being targeted and vandalized. These are acts of homophobia.

A question that has been popping up for the past few months is what's going to happen with the Sochi Olympics. What's going to happen with the gay athletes as well as LGBT members of the audience? I don't know. It's all confusing. The second question is whether we should boycott the Olympics or not. I would be in the dorms for much of the Olympics. If you don't want to watch it in protest, great. If you want to watch, but still want to protest, you could try watching it on Youtube or recording it. If you really want to watch the Olympics, you could do something for the LGBT community. Some thing you can do are donate to LGBT groups, specifically those for the Russian LGBT community. You could also do some activities at your schools or work, like a gay Olympic games. Probably the best thing to do would be bringing attention to the propaganda laws, like talking to friends, family, and coworkers about what's going on in Russia. I'm planning on wearing my gay pride clothing an jewelry.

Another thing that has happened is that Nigeria and Uganda are in the process of making laws making homosexuality illegal. What's happening in Nigeria is that it's banning marriage between same sex couples. These bans have hefty jail sentences. They don't just affect gay couples, but also anyone associated with the wedding. It also bans LGBT organizations and anyone who expresses their sexuality in public. Uganda has also passed a ban on homosexuality. Although there is no death sentence, there is life in prison sentence.

Another thing that a lot of you have probably heard is about the Duck Dynasty fiasco. For those who don't know, the main guy from a shitty TV show said some homophobic and racist things. A&E suspended him, which caused other homophobes to throw a fit. A bit over a week later, A&E lifted the suspension claiming they have to be "tolerant". People have claimed that it was an infringement on the freedom of speech to have him suspended. For the first part, he was not arrested, thus his freedom of speech hadn't been infringed. Another thing: freedom of speech does not mean freedom from the consequences of that speech. If you say hateful things about the gay community, people aren't going to be all "oh it's what you believe so go ahead and beat me with your bible". People have every right to boycott your shit. A&E's actions also show they just care about money. All they have done was slap the guy's had and say don't do that again. All this has done is make me want to watch the show even less than I did.

Now, not everything is all bad. Several states have legalized marriage equality. The two most recent states are New Mexico and Utah. Now Utah is a bit complex. A judge has rule Utah's ban unconstitutional. The judge did give some great reasons why it was unconstitutional. If you haven't read his ruling, be sure to do so. It can be found just about anywhere. Utah is appealing the case, so it'll be a while before a definite yes or no for Utah. For now, same sex couples are able to legally marry in Utah. Right now, one-third of the US allow same sex couples to get married.

Hopefully more state will let us get married this year. There are other thing we will need to work to get. Just a couple of things are non-discrimination laws and adoption. We also need work more against bullying.

There's not much else to talk about that is recent. There is a snow storm that has frigid temperatures that's going to hit the Midwest pretty soon. I won't be getting too much of the severe stuff here, though it still going to be below freezing temperatures. That'll be a bunch of fun. Fortunately I won't have to go outside during that time. For those who have to deal with the cold, be sure to bundle up and stay warm.

I'll try to post more. Though by my previous posts, it will be a while. I'm Morey Bibliophage. Be sure to stay warm and have a great year.