".......What a Week!!!"

First of All, I have to apologize in advance for the poor punctuation but I'm really not feeling so great so I'm just typing. (Humidity is one of the worst condition for my breathing and it's taking a toll on me) Anyway, I realize that Alli really does get around, and of course she insists I accompany her! It has been good for me because it gets me out socializing but as Mark says I have to be mindful of my limits. I assure him that I am mindful, it just always seems worth it to carry on and then pay for it later! So, it started with NEADS Summer Graduation on Sunday, the 6th of June........so I guess it's actually 2 weeks! I actually "posted" on the 7th, but this is how it went: Summer Grad. on the 6th, a day at a good friend's summer house in Pawcatuck on the 8th, a drive down to Norwalk to Scandia for our Swedish food on the 9th(of course we forgot that it's now summer days/hours so it wasn't open!!!), on the 10th we went to the graduation for the inmates who are involved in the NEADS training program at MCI Framingham(MA), a trip to NYC to see Rascal Flatts on the Today Show for Bethany's 27th b-day on Friday the 11th(yikes! Do I really have a daughter that old?!?), on Saturday the 12th Alli and I walked in the Greater Middletown American Cancer Society's "Relay For Life", ( we walked a little more on Sunday morning the 13th before the "Relay" ended), later in the day on the 13th Alli, Em, and I went to Mohegan Sun for the "James Taylor/Carole King" concert and stayed over as usual......but of course that meant more walking, on the 16th Em had an eye appointment in the morning and then I had an interview for a project on pain that I'm a part of(I'll explain more below), And then on Thursday the 17th a photographer followed Alli and I for the day as part of the same project...........and, finally, on Friday and Saturday Em, Alli and I did just a few errands early each day. WOW!!! It sounds like even more than I thought! I started to fade even before the concert but had to push through the week as always.......I always feel that I have to follow through on everything I set out to do! Needless to say I paid a pretty steep price.....and continue to do so!

Of course I have a reason for doing all of the above.....and it always makes sense to me. While we were in NYC for the concert at the Today Show, we took the time to go to the Central Park Zoo. I had never been there, and as you can see above, Alli absolutely loved it!(The picture is a bit blurry but the others were in the dark!) She just wanted to soak it all in. She especially liked the reptile/bird etc. house. She was wowed by the dark "bat cave" which reminded me of the tanks at the aquariums except there must have been at least one hundred bats continuously flying around. The above picture shows her looking at some birds in the "tropical" area. She was actually just about perfect the whole day except early on when we discovered she must not have been exposed to pigeons before. Oh, my, gosh! She surely wanted to bring one of those home!!! We walked in the "relay" in memory of my closest friend's brother Dan Woronick, also in memory of my mom(4/22/07). The picture shows Alli in the adult poncho that I tailored just for her! The meteorologists predicted rain so we came prepared! The poncho had a hood but not only did Alli not like it but when it was on it came all the way down to her nose totally blinding her!(She did look adorable in it! I don't normally like large dogs in clothing but boy did it thunder/lightening and POUR!!!! The concert is self explanatory.....at least to me! They are both among my favorites, especially James Taylor. I think it might very well be the best concert/show I've ever seen. They were amazing!

The "biggie" is the project I've been asked to participate in. It is sponsored by the CT Pain Foundation and is called the "INvisible Project". It highlights 15 individuals with various diseases/disorders.......(with me being the "unknown"), and how they live their daily lives coping with chronic pain. The cause of the pain is often "invisible" but that doesn't mean it isn't very real. I've been dealing with it for the better part of 5 years, with the pain steadily increasing over time. At the foundations' meeting in NYC in September of this year, there will be a photo array of each of the participants and we'll be introduced at the meeting.(There will be an additional mtng. in Connecticut shortly thereafter.) Then, the photos along with the interviews will be featured in the foundation magazine. The idea is to bring to light how there are many who are able to live their lives with chronic pain and hopefully help those who think it can't be done. It also helps others find the help they may need through support and networking. I think it is so worthwhile especially since Alli has been my #1 pain reliever since November......though I will soon be seeking medical advice and help to deal with the ever increasing pain in my limbs, back and head.

I'm sure there's more that I could be saying, but it is nearly 1:00 am on the 21st and I'm beat!! (I'm don't know why the posting time says it's nearly 41/2 hrs earlier, the time on my laptop says 12:56 am! And that's the right time!)
Until next time.........