Lovely Day except that I had to Bring Parkinson's and Sciatica with me!

   
       Last night when Dan and I left the Vegas Hotel for the airport, we took a cab.

 When we got in the cab, the cabbie was all smiley telling us that he was so glad to have us in his cab because we looked normal! Dan is an engineer and I am a retired reading specialist so I guess we just look like your everyday people.  Then he goes on to tell us about his previous customers from the day  and evening before. He told us that a drunk woman put her hands down his pants and he had to call the cops. He chose to not press charges because she promised him a huge tip!  Then he told us about a guy in his cab who was drunk and hung his "equipment" out the window. I didn't know that was possible. What kind of position would a guy have to be in to be able to do that??  He was stopped by the cops and he said he didn't look in the back and had no idea that the guy was doing that,  The cop told the guy to put his "junk" back in his pants. He was hysterical!!  Once we got to the airport, I had to walk really far again but we stopped a few times to rest and to eat(always about the food!!). I kept thinking about the cabbie's stories and laughed inside, it also took my mind off of my pain.
      Today I went out to lunch with some of my favorite people. They are all bereaved moms and I love them all so much.  There is just something about being with people who really get you and we all get each other.  I could only stay for an hour because I had a worker coming to my house but the hour was wonderful.  Getting there was a bit difficult because all of that walking in Vegas really inflamed my sciatica, it is roaring and I can't subdue it!  It was so painful walking into the restaurant but the pain was so worth it. It was only 11:30 a m but we had wine!! Of course, while I was siting and chatting with them, I forgot about the pain.  At home I used my walker the rest of the day and I forgot how nice that is!
     My Parkinson's was also front and center most of the day.   I just forget that I have a movement disorder!! I mean "HELLO COLLEEN, you have had this for over a year, get it in your brain!!"  I get up and start walking and then I shuffle several times and think, "OK, you idiot, you have a movement disorder, stop expecting it to go away " I ran my Roomba and when it stopped in another room I bent over to pick it up and fell into the carpet. I hurt the side of my face because I wasn't fast enough to brace my fall!  Ok, once again "stupid" describes me perfectly. I mean, I have had this over a year so why oh why do I keep trying to do things normally???  Why don't I just take it easy and do things slowly and think about them first.  I think that because I taught for so long and worked in different buildings that I had to be overprepared and  I was always on the go. I was always thinking about my students and thinking about ways to be more effective for them. I would work on my lesson plans at night so that I could spend all of the other time working with my students.  I don't miss working but I do miss my students!  When you work one on one with kids and teach them 3 or 4 times per week for a few years, you really get attached to them! I am so glad that Parkinson's and Sciatica didn't emerge when I was working full time.
        Dan and I went out to eat.  I was upstairs packing again because we are going away for a few days. I came downstairs and Dan was heating food up in the microwave and I

told him that I was planning to go out to eat so he put his food away and we went out. (It is always about the food!!) Dan's birthday is on Sunday and he  wants us to go camping.

So Dan, Renee, Oliva and I are going with him tomorrow morning until Monday.  We will pick up Olya on Sunday to spend the day with us. There is a PSU game tomorrow and we want to avoid that traffic because it is CRAZY!! Our camper is heated so thankfully, we won't freeze!!  I don't think that Parkinson's and Sciatica are going to like this plan!!!!
      I am going to have lunch with my friend Deb G next week!  I am really excited becuase I haven't seen her for awhile and I can't wait to catch up and see how her girls are doing!  
      My friend Debbie and her husband and Dan and I are going to plan a trip to go away together!  We will have so much fun!  My friend Joni and her husband Lee and Dan and I are also going to plan a trip. At this point while I can still move around, I want to go anywhere!!!!