Los Angeles, California
What. A. Year. It started with the fires and evacuation. A few months later, Joel had surgery to repair a forty-year old injury which had broken his nose. The post-op and recuperation was tough. But he got better. And then, about three weeks after that, Joel had an accident at work and tore the rotator cuff in his shoulder. That injury is still not repaired and Joel has spent the last nine months wrangling with his Worker's Comp-provided treatment (or lack there of).
Over Memorial Day Weekend, we attended the Valley Greek Festival. It is something we do every year and we were joined by our friends, Connie and Curt. Connie is Greek, 100%, and I have learned a lot about Greek culture from her since we became friends while we were still in college. And I am in lust with the honey-soaked, yeasty Greek fritters called loukemades. And, I only get them once a year at this event.
In June, I purchased a new Tesla and a magnet for it which basically indicated no support for Elan Musk, in spite of buying his product. I thought long and hard about replacing my 2018 Tesla with a new one, and my friend and guru, Cathy, helped me work my way through this decision. Some of my friends were unloading their Teslas in protest of what havoc Musk was wreaking. But then, they were still shopping Amazon, which I frankly find reprehensible. They all say: Oh, but it's so convenient. Yeah, well it is also convenient to not have to go to gas stations. While the devils are different, it is still the same hell. So I continued my boycott of Amazon but bought a new 3. The newer model is sublime and I have had no guilt pangs over my decision.
July brought Joel's birthday and a mid-month visit from my friend, Karen, who flew in from Phoenix. We attended a screening of Ken Burn's new documentary at the Academy (of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) Museum. And, Ken Burns participated in a pre-film intro and post-film Q+A! I was ecstatic at attending this event, preceded by a lovely dinner at Fanny's, the restaurant at the Museum. Later that month Joel and I began dancing at the Autry Museum. It was part of their Sizzling Summer Nights series which they host every year. It was a great opportunity to see some longtime salsa friends and dance under the stars.
Around the middle of August, I woke up one morning and limped into the kitchen. No idea where that was coming from nor what to do to get remedy. I have a toolbox full of devices to use when something in my overused body is aching. I used them all; I got a massage; I underwent acupuncture. I tried everything, but nothing was working and I continued to limp. After a few weeks of this, my PC doc diagnosed this as iliapsoas tightness and demonstrated a physical therapy routine to help. It didn't help. Then Cathy determined that I was having a sciatic flare-up. This made sense as the pain was jumping around from hip to quad to shin. I had always thought sciatica was intense pain down the back of your leg. Not always, Cathy said. And she clarified that this wasn't sciatica, but rather a sciatic nerve flare-up which can manifest in a number of symptoms.
We attended a Dodgers game late that month, and Joel supported me while I limped into and out of the stadium. Luckily, we have our Dodgers routine down with parking just outside of our entrance, but it still felt like a long trek. Though not so long as on our travel to Santa Fe in early September. By the time we arrived in Santa Fe, Joel had received two cortisone injections for his torn rotator cuff and was once again pain-free. I, however, was hurting, though it was manageable with Advil. Still, we drove routes that should have been walked, and when we went to the A Prairie Home Companion show at Santa Fe Opera, I needed to ride the shuttle to the venue. Luckily, the show attracted a lot of seniors, so there were ample shuttles.
By October, I was no longer limping and by the time we arrived in Carmel to celebrate my birthday and the World Series, I was able to walk around town, though my flare-up was far from over. By November, we were finally both well enough to dance. It was lovely to share a dance floor once again with salsa friends.
And then it was Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Eve. Not a great year, but now behind us. I am much better, working out well and feeling grateful for a return to normal (more or less). Joel, not so much, and we recently took him for a second opinion as to why his shoulder continues to pain him, and more importantly, what it takes to get care after a work-related injury. Hopefully, this too shall pass. This is his year in Chinese astrology. It is the year of the Horse. Hopefully our horse and rabbit show can get back to salsa dancing in early 2026. Horse and rabbit show. Somehow I never thought I would coin that phrase, but I hope by year's end I can write that it was a very good show and year. For now I can only wish us all a very Happy New (and improved) Year! 🙏
