My beloved sponsor is in a big jam:

in Sept. she, with this older, very obese, not the healthiest guy started a Mushroom business....Yes, the delicious things you see in salads, on steaks, etc......they began this gig together....she sinking in so far nearly 20 grand on cost of goods sold, start up costs, hiring help to haul the mushrooms they would grow to the markets., etc....

this project seemed to be on the cusp of doing good things...they were the ONLY ones doing this in Las Vegas....and her partner was a whiz at this stuff...He was a mushroom guru.....knew these things, how to start them, nurture them into beautiful mushrooms and they would display their grown ones at markets.....various chefs in nice restaurants seemed interested....Sales began to increase as weeks went by....Maybe this was her final breakthrough....

then her partner, whose Nickname is Steve, got very sick...this awful cold....this hacking horrible cough that produced no mucus at all...., my sponsor and I worried about him sleeping in the warehouse, breathing in the spores of these mushrooms.....he finally went to VA hospital about 2 weeks ago, they treated him and released him.....they said he "may or may not have scarring on his lungs"....But they said he was "ok" as far as they could tell........they would have to test some more.....so it was like  "ok, back to work, and back to VA for more tests"

Sunday night, they, (my sponsor and Steve) are planning their Monday (yesterday) he would be up at 6am, as usual, get stuff ready adn they would drive over to Henderson to show off the mushrooms already grown and these  "starter kits" that Steve had thought up, its like sell them when they are immature and beginning to grow in these boxes, various sizes and let the customer have the fun of nurturing their "baby" to maturity and eventually enjoy it on their salad or sauteed in butter/garlic (my preference)

So...Its Monday morning...Sunny....Cold....Its 8am and sponsor gets up,  goes to warehouse at 9:30 am, and the overhead door is down...Side door is closed....Locked.....lights are not on in side....No sign of anyone around!!!

This queasy, uncomfortable feeling comes over her as she pulls up to the overhead door and lets herself in with her key.....she finds a light switch and turns on the lights.....The silence was "deafening"  her ears are beginning to ring and the chill of winter seemed that much colder.....she called out his name....."Steve!! where are you???"  No answer....She goes to the back where the bathroom is and to the right of that, in the back corner is his homemade bed.....he is in it....On his back.....not moving......she approaches him and hes as grey as a whale........Rigor mortis has set in, hes as stiff as a board, so no hope there is any life...He looked to be dead a good hour or two..........Poor sponsor's heart is in her throat by now, and she takes her cell out of her purse and calls the cops and tells them the horrific sight she is standing over.....They arrive,  coroner shows up so all morning she is answering questions from the police and the coroner.....

Finally they take his body away to the morgue and sponsor by this time, her head is spinning......It hits her!!!  Steve is the only one who can do this kind of work with her.....They both looked high and low for another "Steve" to help b/c of his coughing and health but NOBODY in Vegas can do this sort of thing....They are the only people in Vegas doing this gig......

She comes home and calls me on the phone....I am on with my handyman, but i felt this "icky" feeling when I heard her voice...so I ask her  "whats up??? U ok????"  she said  "NO"   then i am really uneasy b/c my sponsor is the original "iron woman"   strong....strong program....one of the strongest, program worker bees I ever saw in my life.....To bring me as far as she did you KNOW she is special, to take me on, us being such close friends,  separating sponsorship from our being sisters in our hearts takes a special relationship.......but she has done it.....She has survived some pretty bad stuff...She was a homicide detective out of Seattle, WA, her home town....her 2nd husband, a fellow cop was murdered, shot to death in his own car..She found him...Shot in the head by some doper he arrested and the guy got out of prison and wanted and got revenge.......She began drinking when she quit the force.....then she drug herself into AA and STAYED sober all these years, since late 1980's and suffered hardships and let downs and brutality of life, her 4th husband, her soul mate passed in 2008, when the crash hit and since then its been one life kick in the butt after another, but she would work the emotions, then work her program, always focusing on the solution,  such a great example of what a recovering alcoholic can do if she works her program....

This time, she said she was tired...Tired of all the "hits" one after another.....Last night we talked into the wee hours this am for me, and I drew up an ad for her to sell the business,  or do a partnership.....its open for discussion....also we did an ad for warehouse rent sharing , hopefully we can find someone to either take it over or share w/her to defray some of the costs, as she did co-sign for Steve when he rented the warehouse....

I just kept her focusing on  ok, this is a haymaker, but #1 she has the money to pay off the loan, lease and will have a good bit left over, AND , she can do the starter kits as she can handle those, and we either sell business or find a partner....till lease runs out, then its quietly doing starter kits out of her house on the quiet.....Time will tell and sometimes the waiting is agony!!!

She seemed ok....CAlled me this am, to get some good energy, she was headed to warehouse to build up some starter kits for to sell at a local market with this gal up the street who has a bigger vehicle to tote the boxes and the tent like thingy , so it seems she sounded "ok" as "ok" as one can be when her business may be over

All these years shes been there for me, now its my turn....I just reminded her "one step/day at a time"  and lets "keep this simple"   ads first....starter kits....pay rent for January.....focus on starter kits till we know what we are gonna do w/the rest......i reminded her as she taught me how to "break things off in chunks", i reminded her of that......and breaking it off in chunks....first things first...and on down the list as we wait to see where this is going to go...

I'm waiting for her to call me tonight to let me know how stuff went today re: starter kits and how the day went.......

She was Sooo down and defeated sounding last night, but after I told her I was "with her" as much as i can be....and I kinda worked some fast slogans with her, she seemed to be better...Also i did the ads, and gave her a game plan for the "first things first" phase...She did seem to calm down a bit, mind not racing so much........she said she had a zanax her friend up the street gave her for a good nights sleep......

Anyway, Just wanted to share this bc I hate being so powerless , i accept that I am, but I don't have to like it....I wish i could be there to help her.....i will do the year end books for this and her room rentals in the house,  do her income taxes, etc.,  i asked her to send me every piece of paper she has re: this business so i can look at whats up,  from what she read to me over phone, the licenses are in his name, everything, but she did co-sign on the warehouse lease...I told her that made her liable b/c Steve is now in "default" of his contractual obligation, as he cannot pay the rent....from what she read me that is the only thing i see, except her personal loans, which we know the balances/terms, etc.........

I will help her all I can.....I was a bit worried she might take that drink, but she did not....She took her zanax after we spoke and fell fast asleep.....

Today she did sound better.......I am so hoping we can get her out of this or get her a partner to keep it going....seems that is not going to happen anytime soon, if ever, so selling out seems to be the best option.......i told her what will be will be.....all we can do is just try to move forward......

I love this lady as my sister, my soul sister......I know I am doing all I can....I have to stay detached enough so as to take care of me, which i did....another workout w/back therapy and i am making progress....Haunted two Goodwills for some more books and I collect coffe mugs w/hearts n them, found two more, I have quite a collection...big ones, small ones.......re: my back, I see progress!!!!! It appears my range of motion is improving....that bad muscle seems to be stretching out a bit????  So yea,  no worries, I am taking care of me so I can be the sister she needs right now......

Thanks for letting me share.....