“The Last Detail” - 3/30-4/5/26

Monday, March 30th

The doctor finally returned from vacation, and I got my catheter changed. Because I had started a new supplement routine, I haven’t felt the irritation I once did. The doctor now consistently pushes the new catheter in a little bit too far and then has to pull it out some. That didn't happen for the first two years he was changing it. Argh!

Because my neighbor was at the hospital, it was fabulously quiet all day and dark all night. Heaven! My sister keeps telling me, "You could have had this all the time if you‘d just switch rooms." She is forgetting that almost everyone has some kind of quirk about them. I am sticking with the devil I know and have made friends with. And I like my wall and window configuration. So I'm set.

It was Mom's turn to pick a movie, and she pulled out her list of movies from 1975. I forgot the other two movies she chose, but M and I unanimously picked this one. A 1974 film directed by the great Hal Ashby and starring Jack Nicholson, Otis Young, and a young, fresh-faced Randy Quaid. It also features Carole King and a glimpse of Gilda Radner at a Hare Krishna meeting. It's a wonderful slice-of-life movie, and I enjoyed it.

Tuesday, March 31st

It was a blissfully quiet day until the afternoon, when D1 came, and we blasted Barenaked Ladies while she massaged me. The roach stuff was delayed, so it had just arrived at my mom's place, and they hadn’t had a chance to put it around my area yet. I hoped that my neighbor would be at the hospital for a week or so until she recovered. I was crossing my fingers…

Wednesday, April 1st

Mom stopped by for lunch. My friend J was going to stop by, but he didn't feel well. Poop! He was going to bring me summer rolls from a Thai restaurant that I was going to eat for dinner. Bummer! I resisted the urge to ask Mom to get them for me because I really don't want to send her on too many missions. I feel very hypocritical, thinking she shouldn't be driving and then asking her to get me things.

Thursday, April 2nd

My sister called in the morning to say the essay I wrote that we submitted to Civil Beat on Sunday was in the latest issue that was published today! Wow! I was astonished at the quick turnaround! My sister sent me the link to the article, and I almost thought they had not changed anything when I first read it. Then I went back to the original and realized they had edited it, but retained the essence of what I wrote really well. I was very proud!

Dr R and Freddie stopped by, and because my neighbor wasn't here, he was really relaxed. The other sounds in the room make him nervous. I wish it could be like this every week. Unfortunately, my neighbor returned in the afternoon. And that was the end of the glorious silence in the room.

I had been forgetting to call the taxi to make a reservation for Sunday, as Mom was hosting a meal at her place that day. I initially made the reservation door-to-door, so they would pick me up and drop me off at the door to my floor. It costs a little more, but when I leave or come home during a meal, there are no spare people to take me down or bring me back up from the ground floor. Good! That's done.

When it came time to drift off into peaceful slumber, my mind would not shut off. I listened to podcasts that I usually fall asleep during, but no luck. I tried watching a show peeking out from under my sleep mask, but that didn't work either. I eventually dozed off around 4 AM, but since I get woken up at 5:30, I barely slept.

Friday, April 3rd

I was tired all day, so I was unproductive. Mom visited at lunch and picked out the outfit I would wear to her place on Sunday. I like to have that done ahead of time, as it makes getting dressed a lot quicker. I was hoping I would fall asleep easily, but I was so wired I ended up repeating my mostly sleepless night. Yikes! I hope that means I will be guaranteed to get a good sleep tonight. I hope.

Saturday, April 4th

I was very tired all day, as you can imagine. My sister came in the late afternoon, and I remembered to have her plug in the wheelchair so it could be fully charged for tomorrow. She also said that she would come to the hospital and ride with me in the taxi to Mom's! Fabulous! She deliberately chose a house near me so she could do things like this. Yay siblings!

Sunday, April 5th

It took about two hours for me and my brain to calm down, but I finally did go to sleep, and I woke up Sunday morning feeling rested for the first time in three days. Yippee! I got a good shower, got dressed, and got transferred to my wheelchair just as my sister showed up. She got me down to the taxi and to my mom‘s with all her stuff.

We had a nice meal with my mom, my sister, my aunt, and M. This week’s cover photo is a picture of all of us at the dinner. My mom made a pork roast and homemade chunky applesauce, my aunt made a cheesy broccoli dish, M made potatoes with onions, and my sister made her usual angel food cake for dessert. Yum! I took a container of leftovers to enjoy later on. I hope everyone had a great Easter, if you celebrate it, or at least a good Sunday!