Winding Down

So, I am happy to say that for the past few days Mike has felt like his old healthy self. The cough and fever are gone, and the rash is almost gone. He had a good meeting with Dr. K. at Emory Thursday, and has resumed chemo, so far with no adverse effects. He is now working at the office Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings, and is back at the Berman Center on Fridays. However, he is facing up to the fact that it is time for him to close his practice. He started letting his patients know about a month ago that he is retiring. He is working on spending the summer winding down and transitioning his patents to other doctors. This is not easy for him or the patients, some of who have been with him for many years. They have real relationships, and tears have been shed. Mike is encouraging those who want to keep up with him to follow my blog. It has been 52 years since Mike graduated from medical school, and 48 years since he started his family practice. The family practice morphed into an addiction medicine practice 46 years ago. In a strangely timed event, Mike has just been honored to be named as a Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine. He will close his office on September 30, but stop seeing patients in the middle of the month.  He plans on continuing his work at the Berman Center. In the meeting with Dr. K. he learned that the bone marrow transplant, if it happens, won’t happen until at least November. I will let you know of any developments.

I just got back from the Donkles. I went over earlier today to visit, and to get my dish of cream. Richie let me in through the sliding patio door, but he didn’t seem to know that I wanted cream. Anyway, after my usual snooping, I realized no one else was home. I curled up on his bed and took a long nap, only to be awakened by a loud clap of thunder. It was pouring rain outside. Richard was home and I heard him talking on the phone when I wandered down to the kitchen.

“Hello, Mike,” he said. “This is Richard. Yes. Say, We are getting ready to go out, and Sambo is over here. It is raining too hard to let him out. Can Richie and I bring him over to your house? Yes, right away. No, it’s no trouble. No. I’ll be there shortly.”

The next thing I know Richie has scooped me up and we went to the garage where we got into the car. I don’t like riding in the car, but we were home in no time. Mike had opened the garage door, and Richie jumped out with me and brought me inside wrapped up in his jacket to keep me dry. Mike met us in the garage and opened the kitchen door for me to run inside.

“Would you like to stay for a few minutes?” he said to Richie. “I can make some fresh coffee, and Judy has made a delicious key lime pie.”

“We have to run,” Richie answered, “but it sounds like a plan. Maybe later.”

I don’t think Michelle is coming over this weekend. She met Mike and Judy for lunch at the Battery. This is a mixed-use development, shops, restaurants, and condos, the centerpiece of which is Sun Trust Stadium where the Atlanta Braves play. It was an enjoyable afternoon for them, and I’m glad they got home before the rain, so I didn’t have to be stuck at the Donkle’s all night. That of course would not be that terrible, but Mike and Judy would worry if I didn’t come home. And, also of course, it would be much better than being outside in a pouring rain with lightning all over the place. I don’t have much else to report today, so I will sign off. Enjoy the rest of your weekend, and stay dry. Farewell from Happy Meadows!

 

Author: Black Magic

Black Magic is a handsome, charming, and self-absorbed cat who lives with Mike and Judy Gordon in Marietta, Georgia. He is about 7 years old, and he will remind you at every opportunity that his grandfather was Black Jack, that famous cat who wrote his own autobiography. Black Magic has a great many opinions, and despite his natural feline arrogance, he seems to be genuinely spiritual. But the reader can decide for him/herself.

4 thoughts on “Winding Down”

  1. So happy to hear that you are feeling better.
    Congratulations on being named as Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine!
    Blessings
    Peggye

  2. Immensely enjoyed the last offerings on your blog. Especially the information you shared on Schrodinger’s cat. We spoke about that when we visited with one another recently. Much above my intellect but every little bit of this field interests me. I read Alan Lightman’s Looking for Stars on an Island in Maine and currently reading his A Sense of the Mysterious: Science and the Human Spirit. Find both somewhat on a level I can follow. Lightman looks for a spiritual connection.

    Happy you are feeling better now and continue with you in my prayers each day.
    Powell

Leave a Reply to Powell Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *