Friday night was nice. Randi and David Rosen came by for dinner. We played some music, and I did a fair bit of writing to be part of the conversation – I even used the ElevenLabs app, which has my voice on it.

Saturday started late as I planned on relaxing for the weekend. Amy headed out to see the grandkids and do some shopping. After she left, I started working out again and did the elliptical and weights. Going down the steps in the house is more difficult and slower. After I showered and went back to bed. Amy came home around two, and we had some lunch, and then I went back to bed. That evening, Mark & Robin Horowitz came by for dinner. They picked up Italian food, and I had my grilled cheese and Campbell’s Tomato Soup. It was another nice evening.

Sunday was another late start. I had my waffle breakfast and tried the Whistlepig syrup – it was kind of interesting, and I was hoping I would get drunk, but that did not happen. After, Amy decided to go to BJ’s to get more stuff we needed, and I went to our gym. I then showered and decided to shave. Well, that is now getting tougher as I needed both hands to stop my hands from shaking. Amy returned with a lot of stuff, and then we took a short trip to my parent’s house—I had not seen them for a long time. I had a personal pizza Amy made for me that night, and then I relaxed.

Sadly, I did not see those adorable grandkids this weekend. I needed time to relax.

I will say that coughing, gagging, saliva, and walking are getting tougher. The weakness in my left leg makes it more difficult to put on a sock and pants; even putting on a shoe on the left foot is difficult. And the laughing has not stopped … even though I am now taking three doses of Nuedexta every day. I no longer go out for dinner as I cough, gag, and need to cover my mouth when I eat something because some of it spills out during every meal; I do not think people at a restaurant would be happy hearing or seeing that.

On Monday I got up before 5 and took the Radicava. Then I went back to bed figuring I would get up by 6:30, take the next medication, work out, and get ready. Well, things did not go as planned. I got up after seven, grabbed my stuff, and went to the bathroom to get dressed. As I turned around, I fell and bruised my left elbow and hip. Because of a loud noise, Amy came to the door and asked if I had dropped something. All I could do was laugh and I guess she assumed that since I was laughing, I must have dropped something … I did, ME! I got up and went back to bed. I decided to not go into the city … Amy had things to do, so she went. I finally got up and ate my favorite breakfast – waffles – worked on the computer for a little bit and then went back to the bedroom and fell on the floor, bumping the left shoulder again (lifted the right leg to get into the bed, and the left leg failed). It seems that my left leg is getting very weak. I had some lunch and this time when I got into bed, I lifted the left foot first … a better result.

The next morning, I woke up pretty late (7 am) and took the Radicava. When I got back in bed, I realized I had a lot of pain in my arm and hip, so I stayed home again. I cannot think of the last time I did not go to the gallery during the week; this is so annoying. However, it was probably a good thing I stayed home because our next-door neighbor, who demoed the house he bought and is building a mini-mansion (something that has been going on for over a year and has caused some issues on our property) decided to create and install railings for us on the front steps of our house. He is a commercial contractor and has a metal factory. The charge, nothing! I will add that after I fell, Amy contacted two people to create and install railings, and the quotes were between $5,000 and $7,500. That morning, my daughter came to the house with little Bennett … they stayed until about 4 pm. Having that little grandkid was so much fun, as he was always laughing. Shortly after, Amy came home and spoke with the workers and the neighbor who came over to see how it was going (they still needed to do the painting). I did my breathing again and we had dinner (my favorite – grilled cheese and Campbell’s Tomato Soup – one of the easier thing to eat).

On a side note, my sister-in-law, who lives in Florida, injured her leg at some point and had some mobility scooter. She is giving it to me, and one of our truckers will pick it up next week. I was told it goes up to 7 MPH – a bit slower than my Z-06 (which I will probably have to sell), but at least I can use it!!

Wednesday was a workday … YES! I arrived in the city before noon, and Lance came down to help me – caring kids are the best! Amy also arranged to get me some helpful things: a Neofect Drop Foot Brace, and a Rollator (the latter is supposed to be delivered to the gallery tomorrow). Now I am feeling like a guy that is over 100 years of age.

Some additional medical news. On the 15th, I have another EMG, which tests the strength of the muscles (I am sure it is going to be pretty low). Amy also arranged for me to have a Feeding Tube installed on the 28th. I had been holding off on doing this, but since I am having a lot of trouble eating and drinking, this will hopefully rectify those issues. It will also stop me from eating a grilled cheese sandwich for over an hour! In addition, when she spoke with the people at Columbia, they suggested that I should try Atropine Sulfate Ophthalmic Solution to reduce the saliva. You need to dry out the area below the tongue, then put two drops in the area and wait at least 20 seconds before removing it. In case you are wondering, that medication is actually for your eyes!

Thursday was the same as Wednesday; the only difference is we got in about 1 hour earlier. During the afternoon, a couple of things came in for me … socks with small rubber pieces on the bottom to prevent me from sliding and my Rollator!

Friday was a typical day. We got in a little late because we had to stop by the conservator to pick up some paintings they had cleaned (it’s always nice to have paintings that just need cleaning). Got to the gallery and everyone came down to grab the paintings and Lance brought my Rollator. Tim Jahn stopped by to drop off a painting … always nice to see him. Around two o’clock, a package arrived, and Lance came to my office. He handed me a group of maple syrups that one of his followers sent for me. It is amazing how nice certain people are. I will be trying these over the weekend.