Then the drugs wore off

Yeah, I’m a little less verbose today. Something about the nerve block wearing off at 2 a.m. and the cumulative 16 hours of sleep I’ve had over 4 days has made today not quite as…shall we say….loopy and fun as yesterday.

My mom finally went to bed at midnight last night, leaving me on the couch with my leg elevated. I spent the next two hours downloading my entire Facebook history (who knew you could do that? First post Oct 20, 2007, from my 8th grade bud Courtney Cairns!) and pulling over the entire first Ironteam season blog. My first post was after I completed Wildflower Long Course for the first time, where I not only contemplated running away before the start, but also though I might die for the majority of the “race.” (I say “race” because I was just happy to finish! Though my finish pic did make it into my dad’s textbook..which is cool.)

At 4:30 my “drugs” alarm went off (time to take the Vicodin!) and I stupidly tried to hobble down the hall to the bathroom unsupervised, only to (of course) start to lose my balance. Shrieked for my mom, who ran down and steadied me. Slept 4 hrs total and then got up to start directing my poor mom around, who had the unenviable task of packing the rest of my stuff I need for two weeks and lugging it all to my car. My only contribution was making coffee and sifting through my stack of books to decide which ones to bring to my parents’ place.

We (heh) got everything packed and headed out about noon, but the 2:15 drive took us more like 3:30. I sat in the backseat so I could elevate my leg, but almost immediately felt car-sick.

Getting chauffered - first time sitting in my backseat!

Winter on 66 West - not much to see

We (heh) stopped to get coffee, and as my mom was inside I overheard my favorite conversation of the day – “well, I’ve got the gun, are we ready to go?” (Hunting. They were going hunting!). Also during the coffee stop – a mystery flower delivery! A florist called to tell me he was having trouble finding my apartment. I wasn’t expecting anything, and since I was already gone, asked if he could re-deliver it when I return. Turns out they were from Ray’s mom, which was the loveliest surprise, and I can’t wait to see them! (though she quipped, “I hope they don’t re-deliver that same bouquet in two weeks!” haha.) Tomorrow is the two-year anniversary of Ray’s death. I can’t believe that much time has passed, especially since I can still hear his voice calling me “Moooooo!” in my head. I hope that never fades.

I had to make ample use of my anti-nausea drugs. Halfway home we stopped again in Front Royal (aka home of the Salahis – and 60 miles from DC so really, they never had any business being on RHODC!) so I could move to the front seat – the sideways backseat was just not cutting it. Dr. Awesome Doc called to check on me while we were in the 7-11, just after I’d almost tipped over. (Being in the 7-11 also called into question my commitment to No Candy til Crutch Free…which is scary since it’s been about 36 hours. But I didn’t cave).

Finally made it home and faced Mt. Everest.

Mt Freaking Everest. Halfway up.

My parents’ house is three levels, which makes it slightly less convenient than my 1-step in, 600-sq foot apartment. My dad brought Turkey out to greet me, and being the smart intellectual she is, she immediately sensed something was wrong. Then he took her on a walk while I navigated the first mountain. I’d read that the best way to do stairs was to go backwards, like a crab. Dips! Most exercise I’ve had all day.

By the time I made it to the main level, I decided I was really, really tired, and wanted to go the rest of the way up to my bed. I made it (more dips!) and promptly passed out for three hours.

When I woke up I watched the rest of the amazing – AMAZING!!! Heart Harbaugh! – 49ers game, the pathetic, terrible Broncos game, ate some eggs, and used the magical ice machine.

Nurse Mama and the Magical Ice Machine

My furry friend helped. I wish she could help the pain, because between the beginning and end of this post, it’s suddenly accelerated, and I still have two more hours before I can take another pill.