I better get on this. I have to get out and see the psychiatrist today. I did something different, I ate breakfast before writing. Let’s see how I do with a tummy full of bacon.
I was born and lived most of my life in Queens. I now live in the Bronx. My dream was always to live in Manhattan. Yet in my mind Brooklyn is home. I only lived there five years but the reason I moved there was that was where my friends lived and in the end that’s what makes home. I was there on Saturday to see Sasha Papernik play and was back again yesterday for Katherine’s and Deb’s birthday party. This is an annual event held in Brooklyn Bridge Park
I was smart and researched the trip first as none of trains were running on their usual routes. I got there a little later than I planned but it’s a party so no big deal. Katherine and I have many mutual friends and there were others that I knew there just from other parties. My independent of Katherine friends were Mark & Beth, Elisa & John, Carolann, Mark, & the boy. Then there were Katherine’s bandmates from Bobtown that I know well, Karen, Jen, and Alan. There are also people I know from the parties, Dot, Howard, lovely women I have fun talking to whose name escapes me, and those that I don’t even remember that I forgot their names.
There are many musicians and always jamming. I partook in less of that than usual. I did play Frisbee, and played photographer. You won’t see those pics for a while. The best part is the weird and varied conversations. We of course talked music but there was also the religious aspects of going to Fenway Park, politics, the Geographic solution, John Platt’s health, 45 collections, that there is no simple name for the 45 adapters you insert in the records to play them on a standard spindle, the mystery of the York St. Station design, Waterfront Parks, and wapatulli, the Iowa version of kick-a-poo joy juice. This is what happens when you bring a lot of intelligent, curious, creative, and weird people together. As I’m an intelligent, curious, creative, and weird person, it’s my natural habitat.
I had a lot of fun for a person who thinks of himself as not liking parties. The truth is, that’s like me saying I don’t like music. I don’t like most music and I don’t like most parties; the trick is to only experience the good stuff.
Prozac helps quite a bit. Unmedicated me would have at least a few moments of depression and self-doubt in any social setting. That’s the clearest place where the Prozac and before that the Zoloft make a difference.
I’m seeing the psychiatrist as I’m having one disturbing symptom which might be a side effect. The last three nights I’ve woken up in the middle of the night with terrible general anxiety. It’s the kind that causes physical pain. Most people say it feels like you’re having a heart attack. To me it feels like someone is trying to pull my rib cage out of my body by the sternum. It requires me taking immediate actions. Luckily Buddha breathing and heavy duty meditation/clearing the mind works quickly. I’ve been much happier since switching to Prozac but I don’t want to have to go through that every night.
The trip home would have been easy if I didn’t immediately fall asleep on the A train and only wake up when I was past 125th street, half an hour away, where I switch to the D. I can’t honestly say that I never miss my stop because I fall asleep anymore. It’s been happening of late. I’ll blame the meds. That cost a lot of time as I had a long wait for the A heading back downtown. Still not much lost and I got some much-needed sleep. It meant a late dinner but I made sure to cook. I had one of my specially prepared burgers and perfectly seasoned roasted potatoes. One of the important discoveries I made is that there is a lot of leeway in “perfectly seasoned.” I put in a combination of garlic salt, msg, black pepper, and jerk seasoning. I forgot the parmesan and it still came out perfect.
Now I better get ready, I don’t want to miss the train that connects with the bus that goes to the hospital my psychiatrist is at. Tomorrow I see the orthopedist, that’s a ten-minute walk from home, much easier. That reminds me that I was able to play frisbee yesterday. I don’t think I could have any other day in the last 6 weeks. The only part of me that hurt was my left elbow and I am right handed. By the time I left the party my back was hurting again. Bending down was difficult; I hope the orthopedist can help. I’ve been sitting with a heating pad on my back for several weeks now.
Next time you hear from me I’ll have been to two doctors, one for my brain and one for my bones. I will have to work bonehead into the title.
Wise Madness 