Friday – 3/18/2011

“Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting… it seems like years since it’s been clear… here comes the sun.”

I’ve been in my own place now for almost 2 weeks and certainly enjoying it! While much of the routine remains the same, the relaxed atmosphere, fresh air and cozy surroundings are a welcomed change. My apartment actually feels like a home and has further helped fuel a renewed sense of independence.

My new wheelchair arrived on Tuesday. I am really pleased with it compared to the old clunker I had. It is much smaller and sleeker looking, and has more features to keep me comfortable. Plus, with its solid color, it looks much more appealing than the mismatched chair I used to have. The only downside is that I don’t have a lot of room to wheel around. That will all change, though, once the warmer weather gets here and most of my time will be spent outside.

Speaking of warmer weather, these past few days have been beautiful as blue skies have replaced the “March grey” that we have unfortunately become accustomed to in Cleveland. I’ve had the windows open for most of the days enjoying the early spring breeze. Warmer weather is right around the corner! I have found that my body is much more comfortable in warmer climates. The cold weather often causes my spasms to act up more and makes it a bit more challenging to get around and travel. More preparation is needed to get dressed and bundled up during the colder months. My body usually heats up pretty quickly and then becomes overheated in a relatively short time. Thus, I can never really get comfortable when I am layered up with clothes during the chillier times of the year. Unfortunately, I am in the wrong part of the country when it comes to enjoying warmer weather. I think my body would prefer a relocation to a more southern and predictable climate. Not to mention, my affinity for key lime pie and grits makes me a southerner at heart. However, I don’t think I could ever stoop as low as rooting for the SEC over my beloved Big Ten!

Speaking of the Big Ten, March Madness is upon us and I have spent the past day and a half watching parts of almost every single game. There have been some very exciting games which make for fantastic finishes, but lousy results in my brackets. I’m willing to bet that most of you reading this were just as surprised as I was to see Louisville bow out early. Ohio State plays Friday and most likely on Sunday as well in downtown Cleveland. I am excited to watch the Buckeyes make a run at a National Title… Columbus could use some positive sports news following the latest events surrounding football head coach, Jim Tressel.

I received a lot of great comments, many in the form of private e-mails, regarding my last post detailing my recollection of my injury and subsequent drowning. I plan to continue writing when the time is right. There are a lot of other events that happened to me while in the hospital that Kristy and my family never wrote about. Some of these involve “out of body” experiences as well as my coming to grips with dying. There are some pretty powerful things that transpired that I plan to discuss at a future date.

I hope everyone was able to enjoy St. Patrick’s Day!  I certainly had my full share of Guinness and Great Lakes Irish Stout… not to mention corned beef and cabbage. Kristy set out a crockpot of corned beef and onions soaked in a marmalade of Guinness early morning to slow roast throughout the day. The smell of corned beef wafted throughout the air all day long, filling the apartment with its aroma. We added some boiled potatoes, carrots and cabbage to the mix in the evening and enjoyed an Irish feast — even though corned beef and cabbage is not a traditional dish in Ireland. Kind of like chicken and broccoli don’t exist in China. I discovered both of these facts firsthand while living in each of these countries. I will spare you the details of discussing some of the dishes I encountered while living in China!

I continue to look forward to receiving therapy and eventually getting back to standing on a regular basis. It’s been a while since I’ve stood, so I will need to slowly ease into it. However, I felt great when I was standing and expect to feel just as recharged when I resume. I am still scheduled to head to Baltimore the end of April, and I’m also looking into other therapy facilities.

I have some friends stopping over this evening to enjoy some adult beverages and craic (the Irish word for entertainment and conversation)! Next week I have my first LEAP board meeting as well as a few other meetings regarding some projects I’m working on. I am keeping myself busy but also making sure to enjoy my downtime as well. Again, really looking forward to the warmer weather and spending most of my time outside.

As always, I want to thank everyone of you for your prayers and support!

Scott