I know I mentioned this in my old journal, Blahthings, but I'm not sure if it's come up here. The world's two cutest calico cats run a service in my house. They will get up on your lap, get comfortable and then dare you to move. If you run at a constant state of exhaustion and/or insomnia like Melissa and I do, sitting still comfortably with at least 20 pounds of cat on your lap will put you to sleep. For months, I was evading Madeline who is the worst offender because I had no comfy chair. Whenever I got catnapped (that's our word for being forced to sleep), I would wake up with my body in some awful position and in terrible pain.
With the new chair in service, Madeline and Pippi catnapped me for the better part of 18 hours out of 24 yesterday. Meekers, the North American short haired pudge cat, is 20 pounds of cat on her own or so it seems. The scale at the vet's office is awfully kind to her. I had a list of "if I can't sleep, I'll be sure to..." things around me on the chair and Maddie moved in silently. Another running joke is that Maddie belongs on my lap so much that I hardly ever notice her arriving. I just find myself stroking my grey kitty and getting very sleepy.
Yesterday, I didn't even pretend to fight it. I got some water and my medicine for the day and got into the chair. My eyes closed and a couple of hours went by. If I insist, Maddie will let me up to use the bathroom but food and water are lesser concerns. During brief moments of being awake, Maddie let me do things like read my email or my electronic copy of Against All Things Ending, Book Three of Four in the Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. Book Four, The Last Dark, will arrive on my tablet in a week on the same day it hits bookstores and I can't wait! Pearl Jam will be playing the week after that and I have my tickets right here. We have seats 17 and 18 in row 15.
Pardon the sudden topic shift but I learned that it is possible to enjoy a good concert with Chiari and my other diagnoses. With the way I react to noise whether loud or not, I need to bring my big tub of earplugs. The light show would be crippling without my sunglasses and my seats off to the side of the stage. One of the worst things about being out in public is being jostled. It nearly ruined the first PJ show I saw because we got what amounted to floor seats in this big outdoor arena. I could see nothing over the tall people in front of me and the tall people behind me seemed constantly on the verge of climbing over me. There was one point in the show when I realized I couldn't see well enough to tell the band members apart so I sat down and let the music wash over me. The rest of the show was drift away heaven.
When we were getting ready to leave, Melissa acted as the perfectly patient partner that I need. We just sat and let the place empty around us until we ran into a real Pearl Jam fan. He saw I was having trouble with my cane and used his size to hold back the people behind him to let me merge. This helped for a while and then I swear the same guy helped me the same way again. When you suffer from chronic pain, you never forget it when someone helps you. Even small things matter so much.
The second time I saw them, it was indoors and we could see everything. I had chosen upper level seating on the side of the stage and we could see the band from above the entire time. The light show was aimed forward so my sunglasses handled the reflections and the occasional beam headed our way. The speakers seemed to be aimed forward as well so I wasn't hurt by the sheer intensity of the sound waves hitting me. There's usually a common sense solution that will get me through any special occasion.
Yesterday's special occasion was being catnapped by Maddie, Pippi and, occasionally, Meekers. They held very still and I slept waking up a few times but always getting pretty much right back to sleep. I tried to fret over things a few times but the cats were having none of that. I owed them nap time and they collected. I think I might just let them nap me again today. It's so much easier to handle pain when you're not awake to feel it.
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