Tuesday, May 3
My right calf was much stronger and pain-free for the first hour after rising, but by the time we reached the sagrato, it was tired and achy. After lunch I slept for three hours. The evening walk around Torre del Moro was magical; filled with friends and well-wishing. Then on the way to Blue Bar, and just past the Torre, it showered while sun lit the raindrops. We stopped at the gelateria and watched, stunned by the beauty of it all. It was a very local rain, just between La Torre and Piazza della Repubblica, which only added to its magic. An hour at Blue Bar with very special friends and home.
Who cares about an aching leg when surrounded by such beauty? Oh, by the way, my doctor came over this morning and gave me stuff for the leg, then we ran into him three times on the street, each time treated like we’d not seen each other for weeks. I slept a lot.
Wednesday, May 4
Leg quite sore, walking a real challenge. I slept a lot. Friend teased and prodded me all day, which kept me out of dark moods.
Thursday, May 5
The cough provoked by trying to speak was persistent all day – very annoying. The leg ached at rest and was very painful when first standing, but by evening it became rather benign. I was able to attend Kansas State’s student architecture exhibit on my own feet with the wheelchair parked outside the main space. It was hard but not so much as to be an impediment. The cough was far more bothersome, and interrupted not only speech itself but word choice as well. My arms were loose much of the day, tightening only when faced with possible pain or physical challenge in some other body parts. I slept a lot.
Friday, May 6
The cough was brought significantly under control by being more regular with using an inhaler my doctor prescribed for the same cough last summer. I walked about half our perambulations in the garage on my own. Even though the right leg still hurt and was a bit swollen, walking was much more fluid than it has been. Katrin, my physical therapist, gave me a late afternoon stretch that was remarkably relaxing, but there was no time afterwards for an evening walk. I slept a lot.
Saturday, May 7
Thirty-four years since my father died – half a lifetime and more.
This morning I woke at 05:30 and padded to the kitchen for some water. I was already back in bed when I realized that my walk was solid, fluid, and involved appropriate upper body movement. So, I got up and paced the hall, enjoying the normalness of it all. The gait was not perfect, but the arms swung in a way I’d forgotten they could, and turning was easy. I went back to sleep confident I could return to that gait during the morning walk. Not quite so simple as all that. Our pacing of the sagrato was better than it has been lately, and I did half of it on my own, but the coordinated magic of my morning trip to the kitchen was barely represented.
Fast forward to evening. Just getting up from my desk I knew things were different. We wheeled to La Torre del Moro to do a circuit around the block, and as soon as we had begun the early morning gait returned. I ended up walking three-quarters of it on my own.
Otherwise, I slept a lot.
Sunday, May 8
We did two circuits of the Torre del Moro this morning, and I walked most of that unassisted. It wasn’t pretty, but to be fair, it wasn’t a shambles, either. But we did eight evening circuits in the garage, all of it unassisted! My sense of balance is stronger which makes walking easier. Upper body response today was not as engaged as yesterday, but movement in general was more solid. Otherwise, I slept a lot.
Monday, May 9
I was hoping to end this week’s report on a triumphant note, after all there was a good setup for it, but instead the day is one step back. In the long view I’m doing okay, but walks today were more or less equal to yesterday with the shine knocked off, my voice was hoarse, and connection with others was labored. I wanted to sleep a lot but couldn’t.