A Little Help from my Friends

More firsts and I'm still so excited and hopeful.

This past weekend Jerry and I were invited by our friends Kim and Dave to join them in the Finger Lakes. They have a vacation house up there, and this Saturday was the Saperavi Festival, featuring wines from Georgia and the Finger Lakes.

It went very well. The first challenge was getting into the plane with one arm, but it turned out to be easier than I had imagined.

I settled into my seat and began a library book that was almost due. Before I knew it, we were there.

Kim and Dave met us at the airport and we piled our stuff in, and on, their car. My wheelchair was lashed to the roof rack, and everything made it safely.

We did go to one winery that day, and it was delightful. While Jerry and I are primarily red drinkers, we had an aged reisling that was delicious, so we bought a couple bottles.

Saturday was the Saperavi Festival and it really exceeded expectations. And arriving with a person in a wheelchair can have its perks. We got primo parking and reserved seating at the meal.

The represented wineries were in a large tent, but the gravel was really too difficult terrain for the wheelchair, so Kim had this great idea. We would go around the back of each table and she would walk around the front to let them know we were there. It worked beautifully. We tasted great wine, and one Georgian producer even sent me home with a bottle.

I have gone to similar events and the part I was not really looking forward to was the meal. I assumed it would be buffet, which meant Jerry would have to stand in line twice to get food. I could not have been more wrong. Course after course was delivered to the tables, and the wine never stopped flowing. The food was fantastic. A Georgian restaurant from New York City catered, and everything was delicious once I picked out the ever-present cilantro.

We canceled dinner reservations for that evening. No way we would want a full meal. Instead, we went home and played a really fun game-- scattergories catergories. It was accompanied by many challenges of peoples' answers and lighthearted bickering. I loved it.

I could write more details about this weekend, but in reality, the best part was being with friends, and, once again, feeling "regular." At lunch at the event I took off my sling, sat in a regular chair, and felt like everybody else.

My guess is Kim made sure everywhere we were going to was accessible. The biggest challenges were at the festival, and we made it work.

I came home feeling happy and more empowered. And that came in handy because yesterday Jerry installed an 11-foot railing in the fourth floor hallway. I walked up and down it about a dozen times.

Today was physical therapy and I did some more walking. In addition, my therapist had me turn around without holding on to the railing. He then had me use a one-handed walker-- a hemi-walker-- mostly used by stroke patients.

I worked really hard today. After PT I went to OT and my arm range of motion is improving.

After having it on for five hours I just removed my prosthesis. My residual leg inside the socket was getting itchy and sweaty.

I am so thankful for friends like Kim and Dave who didn't think twice about including us in something that might have had some challenges. It did, in fact, have a few, but we quickly figured out how to deal with them.

I am sure I will be faced with more difficult situations, but right now, after several incredible days, I say, bring it on!