Living with MCL

Things have just not been going well lately.

Sylvia’s back in the hospital. She had trouble breathing Monday evening, and was unresponsive, so she was moved from the skilled nursing facility to the hospital. She then had to be put on a dopamine drip, as her blood pressure dropped to virtually zero during the night.

So now we’re just waiting, not knowing exactly what to do. I spent about an hour with her yesterday (I’m just not good in hospitals), but Edie spent most of the day with her, and will go back again today.

There is definitely nothing harder than watching someone deteriorate so rapidly, and unable to do anything. Especially someone who still has their wits about them.

On top of that, business is slowing down at work. The plant only worked Monday this week, and on only one order. Hardly worth the effort [and cost] to fire up the boiler.

But worst of all, it’s 41°F outside this morning. That’s the coldest it’s been in quite awhile, and just when I was getting used to the decent weather. I know it will be a little warmer along the coast, but that doesn’t make it any easier to get motivated for a bike ride, which seems to be about the only thing that helps take my mind of everything that is going on.

Oh well, what are you going to do?

Among the many news groups I belong to is one from the cycling club at the University of Pittsburgh. I’m not sure exactly why I belong to it, everyone on it is a third my age, but it is my alma mater, and I have the latest cycling kit, so I belong.

Mainly it’s because I enjoy reading the occasional post like the following one that just landed in my mail box a few moments ago.

Hey Everyone,

If there are any rides tomorrow please let me know.  If there aren’t and someone wants to go on a 2 hour ride I am gonna leave the union around 11. We can go where ever you want, as I am sick of being on the trainer and need to actually be outside.

Now some of you may be wondering, what makes that such interesting reading?

Well, it’s because the forecasted high for tomorrow in Pittsburgh is 34°F, and it reminds me of how lucky I am living here in southern California. Can you imagine how desperate he must be to brave those kind of temperatures. I’ve braved temperatures that low before here in soCal, and it wasn’t a lot of fun, but neither was it for very long. The difference being, here they’re the lows [and it's very rare], never the highs.

Except when it rains, there are very few reasons to ever having to resort to ride a trainer indoors to stay in shape.

when I cancel an appointment with my oncologist.

This was the view from our porch shortly before I would have had to leave to get to my doctor’s appointment. Sort of looks like something you might see in the mid west, or maybe New Orleans, but southern California. I thought this was a desert!

Fortunately I went for my blood test yesterday before all the rain, and my counts were all stable. Platelets and hemoglobin even up slightly. Plus I have an appointment with my VA oncologist tomorrow, so I’m okay with missing today’s appointment.

The problem is Thursday is supposed to be worse. But there’s supposed to be a break tomorrow, so hopefully I’ll be able to get I ride in the AM before it starts all over again.

While The Weather Channel says it’s 41°F outside, the thermometer at the house says it’s 38.8°F, and that’s just too freakin’ cold. And the sun hasn’t even come up yet, so it’s bound to get even a little colder.

40°F is typically the limit I’ve [arbitrarily] set for going out on a bike ride, but what’s a person addicted to cycling to do, when the weather seems to be stuck in this unusually frigid [for southern California] range.

I’ve only been on the bike once since last Sunday, and that was on Wednesday, when I went out for a short 30+ mile bike ride, but I didn’t leave until about 8:15 AM, when the temperature finally rose to about 45°F. I ended up having to ride by myself, since the club usually leaves at 7 AM during the week, that is assuming anyone else was stupid enough to go out that early.

I’ve actually had to resort to going to the gym on Tuesday and Thursday to ride the Expresso.net cycling machine, but that is hardly comparable or enjoyable.

You just can’t dress warm enough, and feel comfortable riding the bike at the same time in this cold weather, but I may just have to.

The alternative of being off the bike another day, even though it is Christmas, may be even worse, or….. maybe not.

I just hope everyone else is having a better Chrismas!