If I were going to be hospitalized or something for any length of time, my sister would come -- she has a much shorter trip to where I live now than she did when I was in for 5 weeks in Milwaukee. And I had plenty of friends there who came to visit (although I wasn't often coherent) -- probably a few coworkers here who would take pity on me. One of them is picking me up tomorrow, actually, so that'll save $30 on the cab fare, at least.

But yeah, not having a well-developed support system sucks when you're going through stuff like this.

BTW, this crap they make you drink is truly hideous. I think I'll follow your lead and wait 10 years for my next one.