Day +63, Tuesday

Overall, today was lovely. I’ll be honest – any day that a tin of ginger snap cookies arrives at your door is going to be awesome, but today really was good. Sleeping in was necessary, especially after how late yesterday’s post was, so my alarm to take my 9AM meds felt early for my crusty eyes. Post-meds, I read in bed and enjoyed some tea before spending time with Mom.

Reading-wise, I’m just about finished with Book 1 of the All Shouls Trilogy, a cross between Harry Potter, Twilight and Elizabeth Kostova’s novel, The Historian. I’m still enjoying my English Breakfast tea with plenty of cream and sugar, and the tea provides a bit of caffeine which is oh-so-lovely. There are times that I miss coffee; but then I take a sip of tea and think….why?

Before too long, Mom and I headed out for a walk. As I had meetings with both my social worker and therapist today, I figured an earlier walk would be good. With temps in the mid 40s, and light winds, we had a great time following the Bethesda Trolley Trail in the neighborhoods surrounding the NIH. There weren’t a ton of people out, although we did meet two lovely dogs (with their owners, of course). Chestnut was a 10-week old chocolate lab who will likely be larger than my neighbor’s massive chocolate lab, Apollo. Later, we met Bruno, a beautiful German Shepard who was playing fetch with a red frisbee. It was fun to be around animals and made me grateful for my kitties. I miss them so.

After meeting with Jennifer and later Karen, it remained low key. I chatted with Andy for a bit, made pasta, read, drank more tea and ate ginger snaps. My body feels great after the walk and fresh air, so I can’t complain. I’m still dealing with acne-like bumps on my jaw line, and I’m guessing this is just something that my body will need to work through and figure out. In a bit I’ll Whack-a-Mole the red spots on my head and add my eye drops. Storing these drops in the fridge helps, as the Restasis stings. But if it helps prevent Graft vs Host of my eyes, well – I can manage. I think it also makes my eyes incredibly crusty and puffy in the morning – but that could also be my general level of inflammation in my body (which I’m sure is through the roof right about now).

Tomorrow, Mom and I have made tentative plans to visit Harper’s Ferry, WV – but for now, that’s all I’ve got. Except for the ginger snaps. They are just wonderful and I’ll have one or four more before bed. Thank you, thank you!