Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Among the living

I spent most of yesterday in bed after waking up with a headache that would not go away. I also had a scratchy throat, some discomfort in my right ear and just generally felt off, so it's probably better that I got a lot of extra rest.

Today I feel mostly back to normal, still a little tired. My head has the usual dull ache I get the day after a long-lasting headache but doesn't really hurt.

While getting ready for work this morning, I somehow managed to strain my left lower back. I was leaning close to the mirror and turned to the side when I felt/heard a "pop" just above the left side of my pelvis. It still hurts if I move certain ways. Yes, middle age is fast approaching. . . . or maybe it's just because I'm overweight and out of shape. Either could be a reasonable explanation for my injuring myself while performing a normal activity of daily living, I suppose. Unfortunately, I can't get in for a massage with my usual therapist until next week.

I spent last weekend in Albuquerque visiting an old friend, "H." I first met H when I was 18 and she was 14, through a youth organization in which we were both active. At the time we met, the age difference between us was pretty significant, but we have kept in touch over the years, and it has seemed less and less as time has passed. She went on, five years later, to hold the same state-wide office I held in the organization when we met, and that made an additional bond between us. I attended her wedding in March 2000 and have visited her several times over the years.

Anyway, H was finally divorced this past October after a two-year-plus legal battle. Long story short, her marriage had never been perfect, but really hit the skids when her husband had a psychotic break when their younger daughter was 6 weeks old (and their older daughter not quite 2) and was ultimately diagnosed with bi-polar disorder. H could have, and would have, lived with her ex-husband's mental illness, though it was difficult and far from ideal, but she would not live with his repeated infidelities. When she caught him soliciting sexual encounters on line (not for the first time), they separated. Ultimately he was the one who filed for divorce when H left the state where they had lived throughout their marriage and moved back to Albuquerque to be near her parents not long before their older daughter's 3rd birthday. Despite the fact that *he* filed for divorce, he did everything he could for two years to delay things and resist every attempt at settlement.

H looked fabulous, and she was the happiest I'd seen her in years. Her daughters--now aged 5 and 3--are thriving and very cute. She has a wonderful, loving boyfriend who I really liked. (Though to be fair, I liked her ex-husband, too, at one time.) We had a great time catching up and hanging out, though I nearly froze. I am NOT used to being where the daytime highs are in the 30s!

While I was visiting H, I also got to have lunch with a mutual friend of ours who I had not seen in over 15 years. That was a lot of fun, too!

The only downside of going away for a weekend trip is that none of my usual weekend chores get done. MM was good enough to take down our tree and decorations and the Christmas wreaths outside and do his usual weekend cleaning, but there are still holiday knick-knacks that need to be stored and the like. I also need to do my laundry, buy groceries, and clean the bathrooms. Not sure when I'll be getting to all this. . . . maybe next weekend.

Not much else new to report. I keep thinking about getting back in shape, and I actually made it to the gym once last week. Unfortunately, I don't get much past the thinking stage most days. Being gone all weekend, making a 7-hour round-trip drive for work (Monday) and not feeling well don't help.

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