Sunday, May 21
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Monday, May 22
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Tuesday, May 23
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Wednesday, May 24
When I arrived home, I found that the drip irrigation system had been
installed. I was so happy! Now I could be certain the garden could
take care of itself while we were gone. It seemed everything was
finally timing out right for our trip to Utah.
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Thursday, May 25
We arrived in Salt Lake a little after 4:00 PM, delayed in our take-off
by half an hour. Don was hungry, so even though we were going to meet
Nancy and Roseann for dinner at 7:00, he wanted to go into Salt Lake for
a bite to eat. He was now completely off Decadron (though I had packed
some away in my overnight bag, just in case), so I didn't understand
why he had such an appetite. But we found a nice place not far from
Temple Square and had some light Mexican fare.
The sky to the west was growing more and more threatening. As we finished
up and walked towards the car, I mentioned that if this weren't Salt
Lake City, I would be heading for the storm shelter. "That squall line
looks like it's dropping a wall cloud," I said. "That's the perfect spot
for a tornado. But they don't have tornadoes in Salt Lake City, do they?"
We got on the interstate just as the storm hit and headed east - the same
direction the storm was traveling. I could swear we had "punched the
core" based on the deluge of rain and hail we ran into. And of course,
since we were traveling with the storm, we got to stay in the fury all
the longer. I was glad we had rented a 4x4 Blazer at the airport. It's
ability to drive through what must have been half a foot of rainwater
in places earned it the title "Wasatch Cannonball."
We were both exhausted by the strain of the drive by the time we got
to Nancy and Roseann's house. They had left us a note inviting us to
the Sage Grill, their restaurant, for supper. After unwinding a bit,
we drove there and had a delicious meal.
Later that night, I saw on television that there had, in fact, been
a tornado just south of Salt Lake City that evening. It struck just
about the same time we got on the Interstate. So I had punched the
core after all. Weather Bob would be proud of me - or alarmed.
Probably disappointed that I hadn't taken any pictures!
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Just Before Utah
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Friday, May 26
Don slept most of the day. When I tried to get him dressed and
upstairs to go to the Sage Grill, he threw up. I was also having
difficulties with repeated bouts of diarrhea and a persistent
headache. We both put it down to altitude sickness. We'd gone
from nearly sea level to 7,500 feet in just a few hours yesterday,
and that change was exacerbated by the extremely low pressure
center from the storm. Now, we were paying for it.
Because we couldn't make it to the restaurant, Nancy brought some
of the restaurant to us: a delicious pork chop for me and a creme
brulee for Don. These women are gods.
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Saturday, May 27
I discover to my dismay this morning that Don has put the refridgerator
bag with the etoposide in it in the freezer. I explain to him that
the etoposide must be kept cold, but must not be frozen.
We have lunch at the Sage Grill: again, delicious. We are fed even
though the restaurant is not open. Nancy and Roseann make us feel
like family. Nancy says she thinks it'll take us about four or five
hours to get to Moab.
Five and a half hours later, we pull into Green River and decide to
spend the night there. We find an acceptable motel and bed down.
Don complains a bit about a dermatology problem he seems to be
having: small bumps on his forehead and upper cheeks. I think it's
sun damange. He also says it feels like one lens is missing
from his glasses. Changes in visual acuity are a definite
side-effect of etoposide. We'll have to check with Prados on
that.
After Don is asleep, I wander outside. The motel is beside a park
and there is some kind of dance going on there, under the lights.
I wander around, feeling dissociated. I sing "O Vos Omnes" softly
to the stars, then "Beautiful Dreamer." I decide I will ask Don
if he wants to cut the trip short tomorrow. It seems to be taking
a lot out of him.
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At the Sage Grill
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