Perhaps one of the hardest things about being in the hospital is the inability to get uninterrupted sleep. Between the chemo (q4 for one, + 2 others at different times), the nurses, the docs, blood drawing, and own self maintenance there isn’t much energy left over for anything else. George is watching some TV, working on his pile of non-fiction books and catching naps between interruptions.

This particular ward is one of two dedicated to Heme/Onc and the Bone Marrow Transplant/Stem Cell Transplant service. Obviously, all rooms are solo. An organizer of protective gear hangs on the outside of each door. Until his white count drops out of sight, I can bring him outside food. The critical question asked yesterday was whether lattes from the coffee shop inside the hospital counted as “inside food” or “outside food.” The little pleasures are to be held onto as long as possible. If you want to wear the hospital gowns, no problem. If you want your own clothes – that is completely all right. Practically speaking, soft t-shirts and sweatpants are the most comfortable. One of my contributions will be frequent laundry.

I stayed for a few hours in the morning, then met Alex (my son-in-law) at the As game. Getting there was the challenge. For that matter, getting to the hospital on a holiday weekend? Instead of the normal street car, it was the N Owl (night bus). BART to the game? One train headed across the Bay from SF. One. Change at 12th Street, change at 19th Street or chance at MacArthur depending on which of the other three lines you actually wanted. Sardines all the way in any case.

It was cool, it didn’t rain. The As finished sweeping the Mariners. Last year, they were a team hard to beat. This year, they are “rebuilding.”

Back to the hospital for a couple of hours before heading over to a friends to check on the cat, do a load of laundry and attempt to catch up on my sleep.