Monday, November 03, 2008

An Unwanted Journey: Day 1076 - Barely Better


After so much pain, a day with less pain and slightly more mobility is a welcome relief.


Tomorrow I see the urologist, but until then I'm relying on oxycodone to keep the monsters at bay. And it's doing a reasonably good job, good enough to allow me to clean up, shave, wash my hair, and so on. But as an example of how little energy I have left, as soon as I completed my clean up, I had to lie down on the bed for an hour to catch my breath and renew my strength. But doing even such a simple task would have been beyond consideration yesterday or the day before.


Watching HD TV was easier today. I'm getting close to finishing the HBO John Adams mini-series, something which I whole-heartedly recommend to anyone interested in American history. The acting is superb, and from what I've read of David McCullough's Pulitzer-prize-winning biography, reasonably close to the book. With tomorrow being the date of one of the most important presidential elections in recent history, watching this series helps set the stage. It clearly helps Canadians better understand just why Americans are so patriotic and so proud of their revolutionary past.


I try to find encouragement and inspiration where I can, even if the search is limited to what's available on TV. Watching the mini-series reminds me of the many faces of courage. Watching Dexter last night reminded me of how others face cancer and try to retain personal dignity. Watching documentaries and travelogues remind me of the beauty of the world and the evolutionary struggles of our ancestors. Both are strangely compelling and inspirational. And that makes for a barely better day.

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