Is 2007 over yet?

So, originally, I was going to post happy stuff...I guess that will be next week.

My parents were out visiting us last weekend; we were having fun doing the "tourist thing" (which is kinda weird to do in one's hometown) when, while walking one block to our car (we were planning on taking a tour in DC), my dad started having shortness of breath and chest pain (I initially missed him mentioning the chest pain...it would have totally freaked me out). I also found out after the fact that my dad has been having shortness of breath, as well as some jaw pain (more on this later), for the last week to week and a half.

I'm sure some people have parents close in age to mine, and you realize that they are total idiots when it comes to their own obvious health problems. "Oh, I'm fine," and "He just needs to rest;" these comments that aren't too out of the ordinary for them. When his pain/panting subsided, knowing that I couldn't convince them differently, we continued on to Washington. While there my father was noticeably apprehensive about walking.
During our tour ("Monuments by Moonlight," which I would actually recommend), I snuck off and called my father-in-law. Unfortunately, he was unavailable at the time.
The next day, he returned my call. I explained to him what was going on and he said to get him to the hospital immediately, as it was likely that my dad either a). had had a small heart attack or b). was in imminent danger of one.
I told my parents, and neither of them were too keen on going straight to the hospital, so I put them on the phone with my father-in-law. Over the course of the conversation, I could see the color drain from my father's face and it was decided we were going to the ER.
We got there about 600 PM, checked in, and they promptly lost my dad's chart (NOT a good thing according to HIPAA laws). Thankfully, they found it...three hours later! He finally got to see a doctor at about 1100 PM and was admitted at about 600 AM.
While he didn't actually have a heart attack, he is apparently a ticking time bomb. So far, he has had a parade of doctors (26 was the last count, I believe) and nurses taking care of him. In addition to the heart murmur that I guess he's had since he was two, his risk factors include: his age, diet, weight, inactive lifestyle and diabetes. And just FYI: the jaw pain he was experiencing? Apparently that can be a sign of a "silent heart attack" in people with diabetes!!!
"So, is he ok? What's wrong with him?" Well, he as lucid and chatty as ever, but he does need surgery. As it turns out, he has something called Aortic Stenosis and needs his Aortic Valve replaced...in other words, open heart surgery. And he's having it this Friday. In Baltimore. Thankfully, his angiogram showed that he has almost no blockage in his arteries (the doctors originally thought he was showing signs of blockage, in which case they would also be performing a by-pass; due to little blockage, he doesn't need one).
So, mom and dad's little vacation is now turning into a rather long stay (possibly 2-3 weeks).
Oh, and the only funny thing about this whole situation is that, apparently, his surgeon, Dr. David Yuh, did the programming for the classic arcade game, "Space Invaders." For real. Check it out.


-N