Nine Months

Tomorrow will mark 9 months since the stroke. I finished Growing Up Dead last night, I will just say "What a long, strange trip it's been." I think it will be strange a while longer also. So the reading list will be changing, I will be starting David Byrne's Bicycle Diaries next.

I survived a longer bike ride yesterday. Now I need to spend some time tweaking the bike to make it more comfortable. And getting some stamina back. Some of my problem goes beyond the stroke and comes from being married to a desk for 5 or more years before it. I always stayed "pretty active" and of course I always smoked. So in addition to what ever damage the stroke did, I have a lot of unhealthy living to make up for.

I can change things now and I am changing things. Again, as I try things I could do I realize more little things I have lost. I also notice polar problems, my right side definitely being weaker and less coordinated. Some of that may have always been the case, but now it is noticeable. When writing here or working with a CAD program, there are lots of little issues. I don't know how much compensation I had learned, I only know how much I am relearning.

But I can and do relearn, and do get stronger. It's a long strange trip.