But he needs a new one. He’s been on the transplant list since November, and he’s still waiting.

“It could come at any time, day or night,” he said optimistically, adding he would have a three-hour window. “It could come tomorrow.”

Bala, 64, has been living with a bad heart since New Year’s Day 2001, when he suffered a heart attack. He’s had a bunch of work done on it, so the only option now is a transplant.

“The bottom part has permanent damage. There’s nothing else they can do,” he said.

First a stint was put in. Then a defibrillator, which did not go off for about eight years. He received a second defibrillator, and it went off a few times, so a pacemaker was put in. In November a Left Ventrical Assistance Device was put in.

“It took over the pumping,” he said.

When connecting the wires from the battery pack to his heart surgeons perforated his stomach. So he ended up having three surgeries in 10 days and was at the University of Washington Medical Center for 1 1/2 months.

Bala said his wife, Ruqayya, has been “super” taking care of the restaurant and “looking after me.”

Bala, who said heart issues don’t run in his family, said he is starting to “bounce back and feel strong.” He works out at a gym two to three times a week, doing up to eight miles on cardiovascular machines like the treadmill and bicycle. He started off doing rehabilitation at Providence Regional Medical Center in Everett.

“They were simple exercises. I could do a lot more on my own at the gym,” he said.

Bala said one thing causing him issues is all the medicine he is on – 20 pills a day. His reaction to them led to his thyroid numbers going “out to lunch” so he was given a steroid. He said others are shocked by his health issues because he looks good.

“But I have a lot of scars, and nerves didn’t grow back right away so I have numbness. But doctors are happy with my progress.”

Even so, he doesn’t want to overdo it. But on Easter he managed the floor for more than 10 hours. He said he used to do that seven days a week.

“But I can’t do it anymore,” he said.

Bala came to the United States from Pakistan when he was 18 in 1970 with $60 in his pocket. He went to Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo. His dad had a restaurant in the Middle East, and he eventually wound up in the same business. He served American food when he settled in Lake Stevens in 1994, but added Pakistani dishes when coming to Marysville in 2006 to have a bigger restaurant. He is favor proud of Boondockers’ No. 3 rating on Trip Advisor out of 122 restaurants in the greater Marysville area. He’s also very proud of his children, a son who graduated from West Point and now works in Manhatten, and a daughter, who works in San Francisco and is getting married in August.

Bala made the transplant list at UW just in time, as they don’t accept anyone over 65. UW only does 35 heart transplants a year, and Bala is at the 1B level. Those at the 1A level are selected first as they have the most need. Blood type and body type are among the other factors.

Bala said if the 1A level gets clear, he could actually be moved into that category for up to 30 days, increasing his odds of finding a donor.

“There’s just a couple ahead of me,” he said.