Sunday Afternoon

The temperature in Manhattan got up into the mid 50s today, a sneak peek of spring. Mick woke up feeling strong and happy. Late morning, we walked toward the little park by the river. On the way we ran into someone Mick greeted enthusiastically—it was the cardiologist from Beth Israel who performed the post-op EKGs and who became his pal. It turns out his office is just a block east of us. This encounter elevated Mick’s already high spirits. We went to Sutton Place Park, the little brick-paved square paved at the east end of 57th Street, overlooking the river. It was a beautiful day. Mick tried sitting on one of the benches. While they are classic and decorative, they are not designed with recovering back surgery patients in mind, so instead of tarrying, we headed south on Sutton Place. Mick gave a spirited commentary about who he knew who lived or had lived in each building we passed.





We walked all the way to 54th, where there’s an even smaller “park,” flush with the roar of the FDR Drive. Then we headed home.

Tomorrow is the first post-op visit to the surgeon. While this blog has recounted Mick’s surgery experience in probably too much detail, your blogger must say here that the patient has from the beginning referred the procedure as a kind of miracle. Yes, there is ongoing pain and discomfort and inconvenience, but Mick knows all that is temporary. The pain that caused him to have the surgery in the first place was gone more or less immediately afterward. He says he almost can’t remember it now. That’s a good thing.