I'm traveling by myself this weekend for the first time in something like 8 years.Uhm yeah, its freaking me out big time, you remember I put the N in Neurotic? Yes, Now I'm going to put my ass in a wheelchair.
Yup, a really good friend of mine decided against my better judgement to move to Arizona and leave me behind (I told her I didn't accept it but dammit, she moved anyway). Every time I buy a plane ticket to go and see her disaster strikes (ok, so it's only happened once, the other time I was supposed to visit AZ with my parents and thankfully missed a horrible vacation...maybe that time worked to my advantage.)
Anyway, the last time I had to cancel I ended up in the hospital a couple months later. So you can imagine that I made these reservations with the thought in my head of "am I jinxing myself?" (Yes, I talk to myself, at least I hope the voices in my head are myself.)
So, slowly the days have been passing and I've been biting my nails, walking the floor (in my sleep, of course...a whole different blog post) and trying to work up the courage to actually fly to Arizona, because you know no one has managed to work that teleportation thing out yet. Beam me up, Karyn.
Traveling as an able bodied person is a total pain in the ass, so you can only imagine all the extra shit I'm dragging with. I'm pretty sure my 50 pounds of allotted weight will consist of supplements and prescription medication. The other 50 I will be dragging on will consist of aids...well, I am borrowing their wheelchair, so that's one less thing to worry about.
Packing has become a competitive sport. Can I fit my whole medicine cabinet in this suitcase, if I pack 8 ice packs and 2 heating pads will there be enough room for clothes. Would it be wrong if all I wore while I was there was boxers and tank tops (only if people can see)? And don't forget the fan I have to pack because the ringing in my ears is louder than a freight train running through my head. I have to bring smaller toiletries so I can actually pack clothes and I haven't even made it to the airport yet.
I'm pretty mobile still but there is pretty much no way I can walk an airport like O'Hare and then do a 4 hour flight without moaning in agony and making my seat neighbor want to bonk me over the head with my own cane. So I bucked up and asked for wheelchair assistance and after the world didn't stop spinning or fall off its axis (I might have fallen off my chair a bit).
I joke but this one is hard for me. My pride and ego are all wrapped up in my ability to be able to make my own way but when it stops me from seeing a good friend, I have to get over myself and make the effort to try anyway. If it's horrible, I won't have to do it ever again but if it's not, let the traveling being.
I'll be posting about my experiences and maybe a picture or two. I'm taking my fancy pink cane because if you can't do it big, you should just stay home.
Here's the most important thing...do you suppose my wheelchair handler will be cute? Damn, I should have remembered to put that on my request form....stay tuned!
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