Travel

Inspirational song: Drive (The Cars)

I've done a pretty good job of keeping my closest circle of friends nearby during this rough summer. I haven't been completely alone. But it's undeniable that chemo is a lonely process. I couldn't go to a lot of places, and I missed out on seeing a lot of people whose company I would have enjoyed a whole lot. I didn't count, but I don't think I went to Rotary more than a half dozen times since this process started. I'm looking forward to finally being able to attend regularly again. And I stopped attending my monthly sales meetings at my brokerage after my surgery. It was just too much to keep up with, and invariably, I was feeling too ill to drive so far. I missed that group of people intensely.

I had done a few test drives over the last week. I made it to my rheumatology appointment under my own power, and when we went to a housewarming party, I drove two friends so that they could drink. I felt like it was a reasonable bet that I could make it to Fort Collins and back by myself. I was mostly right. I made it up there okay, although about five minutes late like I almost always am anyway. I was super happy to see everyone, and I hope I didn't overshare when they gave me an opportunity to provide an update after so many months away. (I have trouble finding that line, as most readers may have noticed.) I stayed through the whole meeting, and talked to some folks at the end. By the time I made it back to my car, I found myself having trouble catching my breath, and I definitely told the steering wheel how tired I was several times. I decided much of my fatigue must be because I had not yet eaten anything at that point, and promised myself to stop at McDonald's for some fries and a coke to perk me up. I was in the wrong lane for the first one I passed, so I kept going. I was in the correct lane for the second one, but as my tired brain processed the "lane ends" signs, I panicked and moved over, just in time to miss the turn into the parking lot. So I kept going, trying to remember where the next one was in Loveland. I stayed on highway 287 instead of cutting down the west side of Loveland, and somewhere south of Fort Collins, I began to get increasingly unfocused. It was more than a little scary, knowing how hard I had to struggle to keep my car going the correct speed, staying fully in my own lane. I had to talk myself through the whole trip, including turning a little early for the McDonald's, and meandering through the large parking lot, trying to figure out where exactly it was. I did pick up a little after getting some calories, especially some salt and sugar, but it started to wear off north of Longmont. I consider the whole trip successful, but also stressful and difficult. Still, totally worth it.

I didn't get as much done at home as I would have liked. I painted the primer on the underside of my table, out in the sun, and used up the absolute end of my available energy. I have been as still as possible ever since. After that, I had to content myself with cutting out the foam liners for the dice trays (in rainbow colors, because of course) while I watched NFL football over at T's. We shall see how soon I'm back in action, either accomplishing goals at home or traveling to social opportunities after a day like this.