Grace and Miles also left yesterday. Grace has a conference in Madison, but she is flying in and out of Minneapolis, where her best friend Claudia lives. Claudia will come to Madison and babysit Miles while Grace attends the conference. Grace and Miles are scheduled to return to Bellingham next Friday June 10.
Speaking of best friends, I was thinking about my relationship with Eric and how awesome it is to have close friendships that are not based on a romantic relationship or family ties - just a shared desire to be a part of each other's lives and a mutual enjoyment of each other's company and appreciation of their character. With Eric, I have always felt that I could call him in the middle of the night and say "I need you here; I can't explain now" and he would be on the next plane. And in fact he has been here for me since I've sick, so many times that I've lost count. And I know that he knows that I would do the same for him, if our roles were reversed. I hope my sons experience that kind of friendship in their lives.
It has been nice to have some quality time with my mom. Last night we watched the Miami-Dallas game, in which the Mavericks were getting "posterized" (Eric's latest addition to my son Seth's lexicon) by the Heat until making an amazing, improbable run in the last 5 minutes to steal Game 2 of the NBA Finals. My mom and I were whooping it up.
Speaking of sports and improbable finishes, Andy Bunn came over on Wednesday to watch Game 1 of the NHL Finals with me (thanks Andy!), in which the Vancouver Canucks scored the only goal of the game with less than 20 seconds left. I was disappointed for the Boston Bruins and their stalwart goalie Tim Thomas, but it was an exciting finish. On a much smaller stage, but no less dramatic, I played poker tonight with my poker buddies and won by going all-in on my last hand (last for me because my mom arrived to drive me home - I can't drive these days due to my drowsiness and spaciness).
Speaking of my condition, it has not been great lately. I am in constant pain which ranges from unpleasant but tolerable to excruciating and intolerable. The hospice folks gave me a new drug on Wednesday: Ketamine (or "Special K" as Andy reminded me that the club kids call it). It does take my mind off the pain, but it requires another pump that I have to carry around (in addition to the Dilaudid pump that I already had), as it is delivered intravenously. It also also gives me a "high" which is OK, but not when I'm trying to sleep. Last night I composed a magnum opus involving multiple streams of consciousness and the "many worlds" interpretation of quantum mechanics (I think Leo O'Brien was in there too). It seemed very profound at the time, but I will spare you the details. I am also quite physically disabled, which means that my mom has to take care of Seth during "my" time with him.
Speaking of Seth, he has been very kind to me lately, bringing me beautiful drawings (the latest was a detailed underwater scene featuring things we've seen while snorkelling together) and little origami creations. He refers to me as "Commander Awesomus Alphaman" and my pumps as my "jetpack." When I give myself a demand dose of Dilaudid, he asks if I am "firing up the jetpack" or giving myself a "turbo boost."
Speaking of kids, Grace found and scanned a picture of herself from early elementary school. I put it together with a picture of Miles and an early school picture of me:
What a coup that you were able to teach this semester. You're strength is incredible, dude. Flat out inspiring.
ReplyDeleteLove you on a Monday, Meredith
Hey there, Ethan - Thinking about you and sending good thoughts as I do every day. It was an absolute pleasure to spend a few days with Grace and Miles. What a wonderful little boy he is!
ReplyDeleteLove to you.