(google cache)
August 11th, 2009
Well, I finally did it. I managed to walk head-first into a lamp post. Ouch. Number 1 comedy rule of blindness.
I was heading over to my parents’ for dinner. My dad was guiding me. He is quite good at that. But he thought I had seen the lamp post. Meanwhile I was staring down at the ground, at the curb. I can orient myself fairly well. But I have trouble with distances and heights. So the curbs are always a little tricky. It may be just a little step up or down. But your body doesn’t know that. All it knows is that suddenly the ground isn’t where it thought it was. For all it knows you may have just stepped out from the rooftop of a skyscraper. So even if it’s just a little step down it still feels like falling. But I didn’t fall. I just bumped into the lamp post. It hurt my pride more than my head, to be honest. It makes you feel rather silly. And annoyed at yourself. But what can you do. The dinner was nice at least. Fish.
Other than that there is not much new. I have started riding my exercise bike again. It’s a couple of weeks since the last surgery so it should be safe. I’m taking it slow to begin with. Slow and steady rythm. But three days in a row now. So that’s good. Feels good to sweat a little again. I have been spending a lot of time in bed. I used to sit up all night at the computer, but now that I can’t use the computer so much I usually go to bed fairly early. Around 9 or 10. Then I will listen to the radio hor a while before going to sleep. And because I go to bed so early I will often wake up around 6 or 7 in the morning. But what would be the point of getting up so early? With not much to do. So I usually go back to sleep. And then get up around 9 or 10. And then lie in bed for hours and listen to the radio. Listening to the radio does not require any eye activity. And not too much brain activity either. I usually go back to bed a couple of times a day and listen to the radio. It passes time and keeps thoughts away from bad places. But it’s not good to lie in bed all day of course. So I’m trying with the bike again. One of the next days I am planning to see if I can go to the playground on my own. I think I can. I will just have to watch out for treacherous lamp posts.
Ann T Krist requested that I write something about my brother. I am not going to do too much of that though. I have written about it in past times, and I can’t do too much computering at a time now. But I did want to mention that I have been worried about him. He has had a sore throat and been coughing a lot. When I was home after the first surgery I heard him like that and figured he’d had a cold or something. But then when I came back after the last surgery, he was still sounding like that. So I figured it couldn’t just be a normal cold or flu still. I asked my dad about it. And it turns out that my dad has practically had to force Peter, my brother, to go to the doctor and get it checked out. He has a dry cough and hoarse voice. And the thing is, he smokes like a chimney. Has been for many years. So it’s a little worrying like that. But apparently the doctor didn’t find anything wrong with his throat or lungs. He gave him some cough syrup I think. Which hasn’t worked. So he’ll be going back to see the doctor again. I just hope it’s nothing serious. I wish he would quit smoking. If this isn’t a warning sign then I don’t know what is. But I know it’s tough. This family has spent too much time in hospitals lately. Fingers crossed it will be okay.
Now it’s time to go listen to the radio and rest the eyes.
