Many thanks to all of my well-wishers.  My semi-laminectomy/microdiscectomy was a success.  The surgeon said that he removed 3 cm of herniated disc, one of the largest discectomies that he’s ever performed.  I am narced up, but I can tell that the back pain, per se, is gone.  I have soreness, to be sure, but it is from the surgery.  And I still have foot drop in my left foot, but that should dissipate as the nerve recovers.