- This board was supposed to help you stay anchored in the real world. It listed the day and date, as well as the name of your caregivers that day. However, sometimes it remained unchanged for a few days.
- Every day, I got to order breakfast, lunch, and dinner from a reasonably interesting menu that contained daily specials. I'd call the kitchen, who would answer "Room service..." and I'd always giggle, because I knew I wasn't in a hotel. However, the food was good and I enjoyed picking and choosing.
- The Devil in the White City, a nonfiction book about the Chicago Columbian Exposition, was a great choice for a hospital read.
- This knit afghan from home kept me cozy...the hospital was often chilly.
- One of the many cards that I received from friends. I asked people not to call, since calls tired me, but I encouraged cards, which arrived in droves and gave me great pleasure.
view from my bed
The wheelchair was not for me; it was to carry my chest tanks. For two
weeks, I was tethered to two large, heavy rectangular tanks, which
allowed air and fluids to leave my chest, yet allowed nothing to
enter. These suckers certainly were cumbersome. Long tubes ran from
them into my chest, and moving the tubes could be painful. Since I was
supposed to walk, I wondered how to accomplish this with these big
heavy tanks, but a doctor had the answer: rest the tanks on the seat
of a wheelchair. Then walk behind the chair, making sure not to jostle
the tubes. It worked beautifully.
Each morning and afternoon I said I was taking the twins out for a
walk. The twins sure were ugly, but they did their work well.
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