Today, I am pleased to welcome Rhani D'Chae as our guest blogger. Rhani is the author of SHADOW OF THE DRILL, the first book of the Drill Series, available now on Amazon. She also has a very interesting personal story to tell, which she has shared with us here. After you read her story, be sure to check out her book.
I was
diagnosed with Diabetic Retinopathy about six or seven years ago, which
was followed by cataracts and glaucoma. I've had over a dozen surgeries and
procedures since then and I consider them a success because I can still see.
This is how I measure everything that has been done; not by how much better my
sight is, but by how much worse it isn't. None of my doctors have given me much
hope that my eyes will significantly improve but I'm okay with that, as long as
I have enough sight to function. I think a lot of my animosity toward being
completely blind is because I have a flash drive with over sixty works in
progress and I have no idea of how to finish them without sight. I know, with
technology being what it is today, that there must be a way. I just don't know
what that way might be.
I have 20/400 vision in my left eye and not much
better in what I laughingly call my 'good' eye. When I type, I bump my font up
to 'theater marquee' and use an array of magnifying glasses in addition to my
bifocals. It's a slow process, accompanied by a great deal of pretty colorful
swearing and the occasional throwing of whatever is within reach. The cats have
learned to duck, and they're actually pretty good at it.
I occasionally get bleeds in my right eye and
they completely obscure the vision for up to six weeks until the bleed clears.
It's a frustrating time because the amount of sight in my left eye is enough to
keep me from walking into walls and that's about it. I generally break at least
one toe during a bleed and have broken my foot five or six times over the last
few years. I'm clumsy on a good day but take my eye and I'm downright dangerous!
If I bump my font to 48, I can still write during a bleed, but the text is fuzzy
and very hard to read. Fortunately I am a touch typist, and I can usually get my
seeing-eye son to help me as long as I dangle pizza in front of him. I thank God
for this kid, because I would be lost without him, especially during those times
when my sight is more obscured then usual. We get along fairly well, which is a
good thing since I'll probably be living on his couch once my sight is
completely gone. I learned long ago to never let fear dictate my life, but I do
think that once my eyes are gone, fear will be much harder to control, and at
that point, I'll need my son to help keep me from slitting my wrists with a
butter knife.
I currently get shots in my eyes twice a month, and though I
joke about the #eyeneedles, in reality they're anything but funny. And again, my
vision has not gotten better; I just don't know how much worse it would be if I
wasn't getting the shots.
The last year has seen my vision drastically decline but it
has also given me a much greater appreciation for what I used to take for
granted. I wake up each day, grateful for what I can see while trying not
to focus on what I can't. It's not an easy thing to do, and I have to constantly
remind myself that God doesn't afflict us with more than we can handle even
though it may seem so at the time. I know that there is a plan for every life,
and I just have to take it on faith that this is part of mine. My eyes will hold
until they don't, and in the meantime I will enjoy each moment of my sighted
life as best I can. And when my lights do go out, I ask only to be at my
computer, writing something amazing
Shadow of the Drill centers around a man whose
life was destroyed by violence, who then embraced violence as a means to a very
brutal end. It follows Decker and Rudy as they come face to face with their
oldest enemies and attempt to close that chapter of their lives. The book
contains graphic violence as well as sexual situations, and is not
intended for young or easily offended readers. Shadow of the
Drill is the first in the Drill series and the second book, Winter
of the Drill, will hopefully be completed in the next month or
two.
Thank you all so much for allowing me to
share a bit of my journey with you today. To follow the rest of my tour, please
visit
4WillsPublishing. Bruce, you were a great host and
thank you so much for having me!
BIO:
RHANI D'CHAE spent her teen
years bouncing between WA, OR, and OK, but has lived her adult life in Tacoma,
WA. She likes to read, though she doesn't read as much as she used to due to
diabetic vision loss, and is a fan of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Brian Lumley, and
James Clavell. She loves The Walking Dead, and any zombie film with a high body
count. Ms. D'Chae enjoys connecting with people on social networking sites, and
loves getting feedback from those who have read her work, so please don't leave
without sharing your comments.
Shadow Of The Drill by Rhani D'Chae -
"A brutal experience transformsan unproven young tough into a ruthless killing machine. For fifteen years he waited, building his body into an unstoppable weapon so that vengeance would be had through the strength of his will and the power of his hands.
On the bloodstained streets of a northwestern city the enforcer known as the Drill stalks his prey. Judge, jury, and executioner; he seeks out those who target the weak and the vulnerable, condemning them to the kind of justice that has made him a legend."
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