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First of all I want to say, I thought everyone on our staff really stepped up in my absence. I can't imagine how difficult it was to be "thrown to the wolves," to go from a normal routine to having tons of extra responsibility and being spread super thin.

Despite the challenges, the staff rose to the occasion and should be commended for their efforts.

In looking at the papers from the time I was gone, I saw them getting better week after week. I started to wonder if I had been off for another month or two if anyone would have noticed I was gone at all; well maybe they would have missed "Understanding Ogryski," but that would have probably been it.

As well as the staff was doing, I was still itching to come back. I saw a few areas we still needed to improve on and I wanted to get back into the office and make my mark again.

It may seem strange to say, but I don't know what was harder, changing my life (eating better, giving up fast food and Red Bull, etc.) or changing my work habits. As an admitted workaholic, I have set high standards for how things needed to be done and worked to achieve those goals no matter how many hours of work it meant.

But those days were behind me. The doctors warned me that cutting down on both my hours and my stress was a key to my recovery. It seemed simple enough on paper, but how do you cut back in those two areas without dumbing down your standards?

And than there was my pride... in 2007 I was one of eight recipients of a Rising Star award by my company in our yearly awards. I didn't want to go from an up-and-comer to being washed up in the eyes of my superiors. So obviously, I wanted to prove I was just as good as ever, maybe better and that I could do everything I used to and more.

But I couldn't. I was still tired and wasn't close to having my stamina back at that point. And at the same time (and more importantly), some new priorities were pulling me in a new direction.

While I was recovering, I got to do so many things that I didn't have time for or truthfully things I didn't make time for; the types of things that were truly important. I got to make dinner with my wife every night, help Kylie do her homework and just got to spend time with everyone I loved.

It wasn't enough for me to just be good at work anymore. I wanted to be as good at being a father and husband as I was at my job, maybe even better. I wanted the world... and it was within grasp!

But as I headed back into the office for my first day of work, the question was, how do I make that dream a reality?

To find out about my first day back to work, you'll have to tune in next week. But to close it out this week, I'll keep my promise from last week and talk a little but about my diet changes.

I'm on a low fat, low sodium and low cholesterol diet; at the same time, I've also said goodbye to caffeine, which used to be my best friend (next to Jill and P-Diddy).

What does that all mean? Well, it means getting real familiar with the labels on the food I'm eating. I've gone from chips and junk food to no fat and no salt pretzels. I've gone from regular ketchup to one carb ketchup, from Campbell's soup to Progresso low sodium. I love my wife's recipe for fries, which are basically cut up potatoes that are soaked in water, dabbed with a little olive oil and then cooked in the oven. I also realized that rice is delicious.

As far as the big dishes, I've cut out the fast food and the pizza and replaced it with an occasional sub from Sub Way; foot long roasted chicken on Italian with lettuce, nothing more... and definitely no cheese.

I've also learned to substitute beef, pork and steak with chicken and turkey. Most stores sell Jennie-O Extra Lean Turkey, which is packaged ground turkey. The extra lean variety has just 1.5 grams of fat per serving, which makes for a delicious and healthy meal (I replace beef with turkey in things like burgers, sloppy joes and goulash).

Another key to the diet has been my will power. The changes have helped the weight come off (I've lost at least 20 pounds, maybe even more), but my will power has helped keep it off. One of the things you hear when you are on a diet is, "It's okay," with "it" being whatever food isn't on your diet that everyone thinks its okay for you to indulge in "just this once."

Well, I'm pretty hardcore about it and won't give in to the temptation, although someday I'm sure I'll give myself one treat and truly live the "everything in moderation" motto I've heard so often. If that ever happens, you'll be amongst the first to know about it.

Look for my column to return in two weeks, as it will be rotating every other week with Paul W. Kerr's "Life's Too Short."