I went back to Dr. Pain today. I only dealt with her assistant Igor. We talked about 20 minutes. We decided that my left leg is in reasonable shape, but that a more pressing issue is the random, sharp pain I’ve been getting across my lower back. So rather than get another set of injections for my left leg, I am getting a different kind of injection for the lower back pain. Igor assured me that this injection will be significantly less painful.
The process has three steps. I get an injection next Monday. Wait a couple of weeks and, if it helps, I get another. Then if that works I get one final injection.
There is no guarantee if any of these injections will work or, if they do, how long the relief will last.
(Note: I am totally kidding about Igor in the sense that my doctor’s assistant is not some deformed man who says things like “Yes, master” and “Brains!” Igor is in fact a not-at-all deformed woman in her early 30s (a guess). She’s smart, conscientious, and considerably better looking than Dr. Frankenstein’s assistant. )
After the appointment I jumped on The Mule to enjoy the 70-degree weather we had today. I rode to the Congressional Cemetery on the east side of Capitol Hill. It’s an old cemetery that is still accepting new permanent guests, so to speak. It also is a bit of an oasis for Hill East residents who jog, take a stroll, or walk their dogs there.
I wandered around for about a half hour. One thing that struck me is that no matter how important you may have thought you were in life, in death you end up in the same place as a clerk at the 7-11, pushing up daisies. You likely will be forgotten no matter how ostentatious your grave is. That said, here are a few pictures.
A Few Spokes Shy of a Wheel 