ink therapy

After far too long - we finished the right sleeve just before the pandemic – I'm indulging in ink therapy / creative refresh/refuel with my favorite tattoo artist this afternoon. Starting the left sleeve, a few things I want on there, the rest I'm going to let her improvise. Arm as canvas for a favorite artist with a buzzy needle – a much more pleasant way to spend my afternoon than fighting with "quick-lok" flooring in NuSanctum. Quick-lok my ass: I'd've rather dealt with nailing the shit directly to the subfloor. Still, the laminate hardwood is a far cheaper – and more robust – alternative, especially when I'll have dogchildren running in and out through their dog door throughout my working / making hours. Expecting the arrival of my new standing desk – sprung for one of the L-shaped Uplift desks since 1/2 of my efforts at making my own fell apart – in many boxes while my left arm is under the therapeutic hum of Jess's buzzy needle. Quick-lok battle resumes tomorrow.

the unfuckening, day 19

Slowly acclimating to the (latest) new normal or, rather, finding way to one: everyone – nursing, family, me – learning the ropes and riding the waves of the embarrassing and enraging state of rural healthcare, a situation where I'm both too far away and too close (in distance and) to make anything resembling a useful availability. Moments of presence have to be balanced with moments of trust – ignoring nurse's orders and doing your own thing and falling as a result not conducive to formation of the latter – and I'm learning both.

It's been so long since my own discharge from the hospital that I forgot the shock to the system of going from professional competence to surviving on your own (when I left, a newly-minted T1D, hospital docs had forgotten to prescribe needles for my Novolog pens which made my first dinner outside of the hospital more than a bit vexing). Not quite in that situation, but it is similar but at least I've learned how to flush and drain nephrostomy bags.

Cancelled ink therapy appointment as the situation remains too fluid (ha) and in a state of flux for me to sit in a chair for hours and revel in the reinvigoration of my brain via conversation with friendly tattoo genius but thenagain here I am writing, so it seems that notion one won out so as Carl said in Caddyshack, I've got that going for me, which is nice.

Oh, day ahead, what surprises do you have in store?