Hey-O!

I am so damn frustrated. "With what?" you ask? With this stupid white tubey hanging from my chest. As most of us are aware, summer is currently upon us. And with summer, especially in Chicago, comes heat. And, particularly in Chicago, with heat comes humidity. And where there is humidity, you had better believe that sweaty people are not far behind. Now, I may or may not be a naturally sweaty person. But when the heat index is above 100 degrees, as it was today, all natural tendencies can be ignored in the face of the reality that just about any physical activity outside will result in sweating.

Today I was given the task of delivering a letter to our post office. Our post office is maybe a little less than a mile from my house. I didn't have a vehicle today. The result: I walked to the post office, stopped briefly at Starbucks for an iced latte, and walked back to my house. The whole trip took me thirty-five minutes. And then I was back in my air-conditioned house. But I was ridiculously overheated. My head was especially hot. Whoever said cotton breathes is a liar. And here's the best part: the skin beneath the bandage covering my catheter site had perspired. Not a lot, but enough to loosen most of the bandage. The edges came up and probably helped compromise the sterility of my chest-hole. As a reminder, bacteria thrive in warm, moisture-rich environments. Bacteria are bad; bacteria are everywhere. My catheter site, which offers easy germ access to my insides, is a potential breeding ground for bacteria. I am trying to do everything I can to keep the site sterile and covered. Natural perspiration, and the accompanying ooze from within the hole itself, are not things I want to be dealing with right now. So I am frustrated.

Otherwise, I am finding out the hard way that you do not want to poke the hole in your thigh where you have just given yourself a shot. It is surprisingly painful. But I guess these things you learn through experience. Although it is quite possible that I am the only one stupid enough to do that... All very thought-provoking subjects. But I will end this on the happy note that the temperature is twenty degrees cooler since this afternoon, and my catheter seems to have ceased with its oozing, for now. Who knows what's going to happen tomorrow. Oh well. Peace.