Practicing Enjoying Life

I had my late-evening MRI last week, and it turned out to be pretty much late-night by the time I was done—I guess the whole day had been one urgency after another at the hospital, and even the people who were inpatients were getting scanned late. So instead of getting started at 8:00pm I got started after 8:30pm, and the scan was long—maybe 1 ½ hours. I never really remember how long a spinal cord scan is, but it naturally has to be long, because the spinal cord is long, as almost all of us can personally attest; at least, long compared to the brain. Anyway, Ian had driven me to the hospital in an act of very sweet moral support and, at my suggestion, stayed in the waiting room to put in some of his work while I put in some of mine—instead of driving another 5 minutes to his office. I had imagined that it wouldn't be worth his time, that I'd be in and out in just over an hour. Ha ha. Aside from running late, though, the night was pretty uneventful.

The next morning, Wednesday, Ian put in a call to Nurse Sarah to let her know the scan had taken place, and then Thursday morning we got up early and left for a fantastic wedding weekend on Orcas Island, where we didn't have cell coverage or internet and were forced, instead, to hang out with dear friends and have long walks and hikes and rock skipping (or just increasingly frustrating rock throwing, if you're me) sessions, drinks by fireplaces, dancing and barbecue and festal breakfasts, and Ian's second brilliantly performed marriage ceremony. Really, the man's a born secular minister. Keeping in mind my aftermaths from Austin, I didn't abuse myself quite so flagrantly with the Jack Daniels as I could've, and I still had a great time, and I came home tired but well. I thought about my MRI once, but never was I in any position to try and call home and see if messages had been left, and indeed, none had.

Nurse Sarah called yesterday with the news that my MRI looked A-OK. Which is to say, just like the last one, so some evidence of stuff in bones, but perfectly clear spinal cord fluid, so nothing in particular to watch out for whilst traveling in tropical paradises. And today, healthy me went rock climbing at Stone Gardens, and actually climbed a V-2, and it's only my 3^rd day (sort of) back!

Strong. Healthy. Well.