Before my injury I couldn’t keep still. I always HAD to be doing something. I’d get twitchy if I watched TV. To me it was unproductive time ‘ wasted’. As the years went by that got more and more ingrained in me. It was a cause of marital strife that I wasn’t to be relied upon for watching TV serials, so would fall behind in episodes watched and then dare to query what was going on ( as I’d missed the last instalment because I was somewhere else in/on the house/garden/shed/canoe machine etc etc ) Eventually I just stopped being asked to join in with sedentary things, as I wasn’t interested. Hardly a reason for divorce, but it CAN grate more than I perhaps realised at the time.
Jump to being paralysed and being sedentary is how it is … except it’s not, because I don’t allow it. I’m still always doing something, but those things are different to before. That’s why I just ‘ feel the need ‘ to go to see bands and go to the theatre, and Lord knows what else. Yes I’m now sat down so you could argue that that makes everything sedentary, and maybe it is ?! But it’s the best I can do, so I kid myself that it’s activity, and my world keeps turning as I need it to.
Last week I saw Feeder in North London ( the Roundhouse ) and the Pretenders (9/10 )and Suede in Shepherds Bush. Chrissie Hynde hasn’t aged at all, vocally, Suede were ok ( fanatic audience 5/10 from me – just not a fan ) and Feeder (8/10 )is a proper rock band.
Would I go see them again? Yes to Pretenders and Feeder, definitely.
On a different note, be very careful if you are strolling along the towpath in Brentford. I discovered a new amusement. At night, as I can’t get up for a wee ( obviously!) my catheter which goes into my abdomen is connected to a ‘ night bag’. Wee drains into that all night. Pre injury if I got up for a pee, I’d imagine I would make about a pint and a half of pee and that was quite a lot… but now, as I take in so much fluid, the THREE LITRE sac can be totally full to almost bursting. Its essentially a polythene bag full of very dilute wee… and wow that makes THE BEST water bomb ! Ok actually a wee bomb. It’s not actually me that does the throwing, it’s Wendy of Waynetta or G. But it is funny!
But not if you happen to be walking past on the towpath in front and below my outside terrace!