Shop til he drops .... well, not quite

The one major problem as I foresaw it with surgery in January, was that, well, it was JANUARY. And we do not live in Florida, Arizona, or California. Although to be fair to those fine states, they've had some really really crappy early winter weather.  So coming home post-surgery was going to be to iffy weather likely and orders for the patient to walk much, often, short bursts, keep it moving, and all that. We do live on a cul-de-sac, so normally it's ideal and he could just do laps around and around and around. Like all the mommies and doggies.
Except, as noted, it's January and sending the new heart patient outside in potentially crappy, not to mention dangerous or lethal, weather is not a good NJFW thing to do. So, we find alternate locales. 

As Michael has noted today on his blog that means traveling to at least 3 different counties for different malls, shopping centers, places to run errands, buy stuff, look at stuff or whatever --  4 or 5 counties if we count our own and the one with the other shopping and errands we've done lately. Maybe we'll find ourselves in Center City soon and can add yet another county on the Michael Rehab World Tour.  My family and friends in other parts of the country will likely read this and shake their heads -- as they can not fathom driving, regularly, 45 min to and hour-plus for errands, restaurants, shopping, etc and traversing such distances or geographies. Growing up in KY if you were driving 45 miles people would really wonder what on earth you found so fascinating out in the middle of nowheresville Bullit County, or all the way in Frankfort, or worse -- somewhere else in between where there's nothing but cows or trees or whatever - probably not even a good truck stop. It's just different out here on the East Coast where it's one giant suburb from about Connecticut to Virginia.


And no, he has not bought things at every stop or every mall. He's much too good and disciplined for that. Me on the other hand, I have a book problem. It is practically physically impossible for me to walk into and out of a bookstore without purchasing something. Despite my latest and greatest toy and one of the damn fine niftiest [go away Apple! take your messiah tech complex with you -- and your sway over my husband and friends!] gifts ever -- a Kindle for Xmas -- I still have a paper published product problem. 


And a growing java problem. No no no no!!!  I have fallen so far, so fast, to the dark side of caffeine. Many days now, consecutively, or at least in near proximity, and even from multiple purveyors! Damn you lattes, damn you! 


But at least I'm finally sleeping a bit better -- waking up less, sleeping longer at one stretch, and sometimes almost normal people hours. Maybe eventually I'll be caught up. (HAH!) And maybe I'll eventually shake this perpetual, almost-not-quite-but-trying-to-be-a cold. The tickly throat, ever so slight cough, and general near malaise-ish feeling that's been around since we were in Cleveland persists but hopefully stays low-grade and can be beaten back with Advil. and hot tea. and maybe even the java?? 


Peace
Jenn