I’m in my hospital bed with a wireless Mac keyboard on my stomach.

It’s a balmy, lazy winter’s night in Texas. At 10 p.m. the temperature outside is still hovering at 74°, and Sam and I are in our favorite positions here in the family room … he’s asleep on the sofa, and me? I’m in my hospital bed with a wireless Mac keyboard on my stomach! The air-conditioning has been running since early this morning when I got so overheated I wanted to crawl out of my skin.

My neuropathy pain flares up when I’m hot. It’s a wretched feeling that makes me itch all over my body  … among other things.

---

I know I write a lot about my health challenges, my life as a bedridden invalid, chronic pain, day-to-day difficulties with an incurable urinary tract infection, and my one-woman opioid epidemic … but I do want to mention one monumental hoo-hah that I’m truly thankful for.

And this is because I haven’t been out of the house since 2012, except for:

1. Four 911 ambulance rides between October 2017 and May 2018.
2. Four subsequent hospital stays of varying lengths at Baylor Hospital.
3. Three VERY painful and difficult trips via Star Transit in 2013 to see my doctor at Baylor Family Medical Center in Mesquite.

For your possible interest, Star Transit is Mesquite’s free senior citizen shuttle bus service with an elevator lift that accommodates old people like yours truly who use wheelchairs. Unfortunately, Star Transit’s lifts couldn’t accommodate my wider bariatric chair, so I had to stand up on the lift and hold on for dear life. Also, the buses had really fucked-up shocks, so the ride felt like you were bouncing around in a cement mixer.

As long as I’m discussing pain, I want to resurrect a Howdygram feature that’s been missing for quite some time … ever since May 2018, when I was no longer able to stand, walk or get up out of bed and Accord Hospice took over my life and full-time medical care. It’s MARCY’S SHIT-O-METER. Being bedridden eliminated about 75% of my chronic pain at that time, which had focused mainly on trying to stand and walk on my miserable feet (gout, a recurring blood blister on the bottom of my right heel, neuropathy and plantar fasciitis) and arthritic knees, so I really didn’t need to report my daily problems any more or assign a “pain level.”

Today was different, however.

I’m having a serious issue right now with my skin, especially on my ribs and back, because it feels like somebody peeled off the top layer and left me with searing pain. Sam shmeared me with some barrier cream (it’s a topical anesthetic), but the cream is starting to wear off and I’m feeling uncomfortable again. Thank God my hospice L.V.N. will be here later today … maybe Leslie can figure out what the hell is going on. In the meantime, here’s my official pain report! (Please click here for a detailed explanation of the numerical pain levels.)

---

I have to leave you now. I want to say goodbye with my heathen shit-O-meter above and a nice, fresh glass of iced tea on my tray table. I love iced tea!

Thank you for reading this.