I got up at 6:15am this Sunday morning. The first basketball game wasn’t until 9am but a) it’s at the Kroc Center which is on 119th St. down south and b) I had to catch the bus downtown in order to ride with Coach Trent along with all the equipment. It snowed several inches in Chicago this weekend. In fact it seems to snow continuously. That made for the usual sporadic shoveled sections of sidewalk on the way to the bus stop. As expected, the sidewalk next to the city park fields were covered in snow. Previously I’ve tried pushing my way through that - a slow process leaving me late for whatever meeting I’m headed and exhausted. Having learned my lesson, I decided to push down the oncoming lane on Montrose Ave.
Usually it’s very busy but it was early Sunday morning so the traffic wasn’t too bad. It’s both embarrassing and hilarious to see the looks on drivers’ faces as they pass. The funny part was when I saw the bus coming, still a block away. I cursed to myself and wondered when the next bus would arrive and how cold it would be to sit there and wait. Then I realized the bus wasn’t leaving yet. I pushed as fast as I could down the middle of the street hoping to catch the driver’s attention. The bus started driving away and I yelled and waved my arms. The bus stopped. I can’t imagine what it looked like in snowy Chicago to see a guy in a wheelchair flying down the street. The driver lowered the ramp in the middle of the intersection (he’s not supposed to do that but I’m thankful), causing the ramp to be fairly steep. I was going at a decent speed so I risked it and popped a wheelie onto the ramp, giving me enough momentum to make it far enough to grab the railing inside. ”You’re lucky I saw you!” He said with a laugh. I told him I was glad he did to which he replied, “You’re the man!” and laughed again.
As I write this, it’s snowing, yet again. The snow is making it really tough to get around. It might as well be raining sand. I can’t even jump in a taxi like I might have pre-injury thanks to the stupid wheelchair. Add to that my need to pee within 2-5 minutes (an improvement) of getting “that feeling”, and that creates a scenario where I am - about once a day - looking for a good secluded alley to relieve myself into a Gatorade bottle. Good times! The city is good about clearing the streets, but not-so-much the sidewalks. That equation results in me using the street on a regular basis to get around.
Basketball has been a learning experience, to say the least. It’s fun and a great workout, but I hate sucking and I hate losing. I feel like I’m in the 8th grade all over again getting cremated from my poor attempts at football. One time I was hit so hard I saw nothing but green for a day. I worked hard to get decent at sports over years. Now I have to start all over again. I am not a fan of that, but at the same time it gives me a reason to look at other things I haven’t in a long time.
I joined a local choir called Chicago Chamber Choir. My friends give me grief but it’s nice to sing with trained vocalists for the first time in years. I really enjoy it and they are very understanding of how slow I am getting around.
I am also getting involved with Dare2Tri, with the hope of doing some triathlons later this year. I have yet to swim thanks to this weather (the pool keeps closing on the days I try to go), but I’ve hand-cycled a couple times and it has gone well. Another good workout, too. I’m signed up for a 25k hand-cycle competition in Wisconsin the weekend after Derby in May. Should be cool.
All that and I’m very active with work at the moment, too. So I stay pretty busy and pretty tired.
Therapy progress: This past Friday was my 10 month anniversary. We did some balancing drills where I stood unassisted and tossed a 6 lb. ball back and forth with Tiffany. I am hoping when it warms up I’ll be ready to throw a football around, or even a baseball with glove if I get really good. I’ll keep the walker, close, of course. I’m not THAT good! :)
The best news about therapy was really two-fold:
We did the Pilates strength machine where you basically do leg presses. I was doing single leg presses. The last time I did this was maybe 6-8 weeks ago. Ralph was able to do the full resistance for a few reps and then many more at slightly lower resistance. Ralph did great as usual this time and showed that he was getting stronger. He was able to do as many reps as I wanted him to at the full resistance.
Louie was the reason I celebrated, though. Last time, he was able to do some reps at the lowest resistance: 1 blue spring. This time, Tiffany started adding springs until I finished with Louie. I was working my left leg out with 2 reds and 1 blue spring. That’s a huge improvement for Louie! Come on Louie! Catch up with Ralph!!!
My endurance standing is great now, too. Combined with better balance I’m able to do more and more. The last couple days I’ve been really testing it. In the kitchen, especially. I cooked a full meal - pan-seared chicken, couscous, and even chopped up some bell peppers to mix in. It took about 30 minutes and I did it all standing. While stuff was cooking I also did the dishes in the sink and loaded the dishwasher. This sounds simple but it was impossible just a few months ago.
The biggest thing to celebrate which I briefly mentioned is my peeing. In short, I no longer have to sprint to the bathroom. I haven’t cathed in weeks. This is GIGANTIC in terms of long-term benefits. Especially when traveling - not having to pack 6 caths/day for trips is going to be extremely helpful. I can’t wait.
Hopefully Rebecca and I take our honeymoon soon and get out of frigid Chicago. Rebecca’s still been running outside a fair amount. She even did a half marathon a couple weekends ago when it was 10 degrees and snowy outside. I don’t know how she did that. And she got 6th!
Well that’s really it. I’ll finish with a prayer.
Dear Lord, please don’t let me forget all the reasons I have to be thankful. With all that is complicated and difficult in this world, it is easy to forget and to dwell on stresses and worries. Please don’t let me do that. Give me a sense of purpose. Your purpose! Show me how to follow Your will in a way that will fully utilize the gifts You’ve given me and glorify You. Always to glorify You. I am nothing without You. Please make me a vessel for Your works. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Chip
