Jimmy's condition worsened yesterday as the day wore on.  They had to keep increasing the oxygen, from 2 to 10 to 15 liters just to keep his oxygen level up. About 7, a team of pulmonologists came in and said they didn't have any options left, except to put him on a ventilator and they thought Jimmy's chances of surviving that were poor.  Jimmy was in and out of lucidity all this time, but I think he was clear-headed when he said no, he didn't want it.

After they left, we had a pretty clear conversation.  (At about this time, a nurse came in and asked him a sequence of questions, to establish how clearly he was thinking.  He got the questions about his name and his birth date right, but when the nurse asked him if he knew where he was, he indignantly replied," Of course I know where I am!  I'm in Nevada!")  We discussed our options, and he was emphatic about not wanting to be on life support.  At one point, though, he said," I can't die tonight! I have too many things to do tomorrow!"

We survived the night, but it was long and hard.  AT 11 PM  I called Jamey and Rosey and Pat to come back.  Jimmy was hallucinating badly, pulling the mask off, trying to pull the tubes out, and get out of bed.  He eventually had to be put in restraints and sedated.  It was like walking a tightwire, because on one hand they didn't want to over-medicate him and further supress his breathing, but on the other they needed to calm him down.

Late this morning, another doctor(from oncology) that Jimmy and I know and like came by and told me and the children that he thought Jimmy was fighting the infection and if he could hang on a little longer, we had a small chance at a survival with an acceptable quality of life for a little while.  We immediately and unanimously said, "YES!" All we needed was a teaspoonful of hope.  Jimmy is a fighter, and we all believe if he thought he had one more shot, he'd take it. Since I have his advance directives, I have been assured that we can pull the plug if need be.

Jimmy is now in a drug-induced coma and on a ventilator.  I went in the ICU room and kissed Jimmy and told him I love him.  Then I got my suitcase and our stuff, got our car out of valet parking, and drove to the Emory Conference Center hotel near the hospital and checked in. I have not had a bath or changed my clothes since Wednesday. I have hardly slept.
Now that I've taken a shower and changed my clothes, I'm headed back to ICU.  This is the longest Jimmy and I have been apart in months.