the return

we arrived back in la this evening after a final marathon of close to 42 hours in the car.

rather than camping or motel rooms, i just let cristian sleep while i drove and i took cat naps as needed.

we covered half of iowa, nebraska, wyoming, utah, arizona, nevada and finally once again california.

once we passed salt lake city there were several areas we drove through with active brush fires. so my lungs began to feel it even before we hit a major city.

las vegas was a rude awakening after so much time spent on the backroads of america. the air was so thick with smog i could cut it with a knife. it was even worse than on the drive out. and after so much time spent in uncrowded places the mass of humanity occupying the freeway near drove me out of my skin.

i discovered that i had forgotten how to drive in the big city. politely leaving space between my car and the one in front of me only gave every semi the idea that it was reserved for them and that i would back off. i was being cut off so often that i am surprised that my car was still in one peace.

the final stretch from barstow to la was even worse because the air quality mixed with the humidiy left much to be desired.

being back is taking quite a bit adjustment.

everyone is too loud.

everything moves too fast.

there are too many people.

on the positive side i saw jessica my doctor upon my return and thirty seven days off of the paxeva contributed to a net weight loss of 18 pounds. i feel so much better without the meds. and i will move from this place before i return to them. if i can be anxiety free somewhere else than that is where i need to be.

on the negative side there was not as much improvement in my lungs as i had hoped. breathing was easier obviously away from the bad air but when she listened to my lungs they were still constricted and wheezy. so my inhaler and i must remain tight for now.

of course there are many tales from the road still to share and they will find there way into these pages sooner or later.