Dan has had a rough couple of weeks. It all started with some stomach pain which took him to the ER a couple of weeks ago. They sent him home with some laxatives and told him he was constipated. That seemed a little strange since Dan is not the type of guy to go to the ER with some gassy cramps. I thought maybe they had missed the mark He ended up going back to the ER a couple of times and they finally figured out that there was something actually wrong. Monday in the wee hours of the morning they admitted him thinking he probably had gall stones. Monday morning my dad called to let me know what was going on with Dan. I texted Dave to tell him and he responded by calling and asking if I wanted to go up to Rexburg to spend a few days with dan while he was having gall bladder surgery. Dave said he could be home that day and watch the kids until Th when he needed to go back to work. I jumped on the opportunity*, booked a flight and hurried to the airport.
San Diego from the airplane! Gorgeous!
It was a long day of travel. I booked on southwest since it was a great deal ($100/each way), so I had to make a connecting flight in Phoenix. I got to SLC around 7pm. Shauna and Robin met me at the airport with Grandmas car and I drove up to rexburg abut 3 hours away. I downloaded Jim Gaffigan's Food book to keep me company for the drive.
I got to Rexburg hospital about 11pm. When I stepped into Dan's room there were 10 college kids in there chatting, laughing and having a good time. Only Dan! So funny. They were a really nice group of kids and I was really happy to meet them. Dan was in good spirits and feeling pretty well since he had been on a delotid drop most of the day.
I spent the night at a house of one of dan's friends Taylor and his wife Hannah, they are housesitting for his grandma. The house is good size and about 20 min from Rexburg (on a side country road).
Tues I spent the day at the hospital. Dan's surgery was around noon. I think by now Dan was on a morphine drip while awaiting surgery. He played video games on the computer and I read my book, "The Emperor of All Maladies:A biography of Cancer." It is an amazing read.
Dan's surgery was about an hour. When they brought him back they left his gall stones for him to keep! Dan was pretty sleepy for a couple hours after surgery. At one point he told me how comfortable it was to wear a dress and that he was never wearing underwear again! (He did not recall this a couple hours later when he came out of the fog and said "where are my shorts?" I replied, "I thought you said you were only wearing dresses from now on?" and he said, "What?" No memory of the previous statement about hospital fashion.)
huge living room in Taylor and Hannah's house
In the morning Taylors grandma, Nancy stopped by. She had a couple of hours to wait before a dr. appointment so she sat down and chatted with us while doing some sewing. She is an awesome lady. It was great to meet her. In the course of conversation she said to me, "why don't you go do a session while you are here?" I didn't pack anything even close to church clothes so she offered to lend me some. I put on a dress and borrowed some shoes as well and headed up to the Rexburg temple. By this time Dan was doing fine, just needed to rest, but I really didn't need to sit and watch him every minute. So, I had the chance to go to the Rexburg temple which was really nice.
Rexburg temple up on a hill and very beautiful.
While I was in Rexburg I stopped to get some pizza at Papa Murphys for Dan to have for dinner that night, some snacks for Dan and a few other little items. Then I picked up lunch at Big Juds hamburger joint and headed home. By then Dan was feeling good so I decided to go back to SLC that afternoon so I could see Gma Joyce and Pat before I flew home. Dan and I watched a little Coach Carter and then I drove to SLC from about 4-7pm. I listened to "In the Heart of the Sea" for most of the drive.
Wed evening I spent with Grandma and Shauna's family. Th morning I met Pat Wickman for breakfast and then she took me shopping for a new outfit. She spent way more than I would have ever thought a decent amount to spend on clothes but she is a dear and she loves to shop. It was great to see two of my favorite women.
I had a great little getaway. It was great to see Dan and have lots of one on one time with him, visit Rexburg, meet Dan's friends, go to the temple, miss my kids, be thankful for Dave, visit grandma, lunch with Pat. Just what a needed for a fresh start.
Leaving home I got a break from the day to day chores, but I also realized that it is the day to day chores that are so sweet in my life and what I am happy to come home to.
The night I returned Dave told me he got a chance to see what my life is like. He said his "days were very full and yet I did not do laundry, cooking, shopping, cleaning or walking the dog, and it was still full."
My flight on the way home had a connection in Oakland. I always try not to fly through oakland because the weather is terrible, planes are always delayed or fogged in. And, true to form, my flight out of oakland was delayed 40 minutes, sitting on the runway, then we had the bumpiest flight through all the fog and clouds! I was sitting next to a southwest pilot who was a passenger, just getting routed to his next flight. At one point I had to ask him if it was a bumpy flight and he said, "no, this is about to rock me to sleep. You aren't scared, are you?" Yes, actually I was scared! I never used to be scared of flying because I was more used to it. I flew to and from San Diego a few times a year when I was in college, but now that I'm not used to flying the bumps bother me a little more. the pilot recommended two good books. "Fearless" about a Navy Seal's journey and "With Winning in Mind" and what it takes mentally to excel.
That sounds like a great recharge!
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