The Big 4-0: Way To Go!

It's day 40, and as Fujiyamamama noted in her recent blog comment, we're now more than a third of our way through our "life in a box." For me, the time has zipped by, but less so for Torger. I've actually been really enjoying being holed up here with my darling husband, but he's starting to go a little stir crazy. The difference is that I'm actually still working, e-mailing and talking on the phone to the office and trying to get in a full eight hours or more from our room as often as I can. I also have to pay attention to all his medical needs and make sure he gets his medicines at the right times. And since he has to avoid any potential sources of bacteria--which includes uncooked food, dirty dishes, and dirty clothes--I'm also in charge of all the cooking, clean-up, and laundry, which are actually welcome little tasks that give some rhythm and structure to my day. He, on the other hand, is having to create his own rhythm around things that involve receiving more than doing: eating, taking his medications, getting his infusions, going to the hospital for his appointments. It's frustrating for Torger, as someone who always has things he wants to do and has never been one to shirk his share of the household stuff. He doesn't have the energy to do art, but too many days spent reading and watching videos has already gotten old. He's feeling better and wants to get busy, but there's nothing for him to really get busy doing. He would so much rather be home cleaning out the gutters. But the truth is, he still doesn't have any stamina. He just has to wait it out while his immune system rebuilds. Before his transplant, we scouted a bunch of used CD stores, and he picked up a bunch of cheap disks. Now he's going through and listening to them, figuring out what he could play on his radio show with Randy once he's well enough--and that's been a helpful activity. We're also trying to be more systematic about exercise, and today we went out for a walk for a few blocks. It's the longest he's been able to go, and it really tired him out, but it was an accomplishment. Still, it's better than when he was in the hospital. He got so bored there at one point that I came in and found he had named a fly that was hanging out on his windowsill...Aloisus Delmar. It was half-dead when he found it, but he put down a little bite of food for it, and after that, it hung on for a little bit. But by the time I got there, it was ready for a "burial at sea" in the bathroom. Fortunately, the boredom hasn't gotten quite that bad here, and he's gradually trying to do more things for himself, which is good for both of us. He keeps hoping, though, that Dr. Tse will let us go home before the 100 days are up, and I just don't see that happening. They keep us close to the hospital for a reason.