Nil Per Mouth

6/4/09
At work today one of the boys was scheduled for theatre. It was the older of the 2 boys who have been with us for the last 3 months. He has been to theatre several times and struggles with the “no eating” rule. Here in South Africa they say Nil Per Mouth (NPM). The last time this patient had theatre, he snuck some chocolate and they post-poned him 6 hours. Jamie and I each reiterated the reason for not eating before theatre. The doctors and sisters also talked with him. Apparently none of it really helped because he ate again this morning before his theatre. The sisters really came down on him and I did my best to intervene. His theatre was rescheduled for the following day.

NPM

DON'T FEED ME

I got my car today!!! When we got out at 1, Deon pulled up in a light blue VW Beetle. Annalise and I got in and he took us back to his place to take care of the admin. On the way, he showed me “the ways of the beetle”. I learned, during that ride, that beetles are distinctive cars, especially the old ones. After all the admin was out of the way, it was my turn to get behind the wheel and take us home. I only stalled out a few times.

After work I went to Mugged for a snack and proper internet. The display of muffins looked delicious, and I realized why Jamie made a point to add it to the bucket list. Since the one we had was the bran, I went for the chocolate. It was the best idea I’ve had…maybe ever! That muffin was absolutely mouthwatering, and as I type this right now, I wish I had one.

Pippa invited a bunch of us to boxing with her. She has been going pretty regularly and highly recommended it. Keeping up my streak of activity and trying new things, I joined her. It was a pretty intense workout. We started the class by skipping rope for 15 minutes. That was the worst part of the whole night. When did I ever think jumping rope was fun?! And why is it advertised as a toy?!! We then did a series of cardio; jumping medicine balls and an ab workout. Afterwards, the instructor pulled me into the ring and taught me how to Jab, One-Two, and One-Two-Hook. I learned how to stand, balance and protect myself. We then spent the remainder of the class on the bags. It felt surprisingly good to beat up the bag. In between bags, we did push ups and more abs. The workout was a really good one and a great release. I hope to return again.

Doug called earlier to invite me out with some of his friends. We hadn’t been in touch since the weekend and he was calling to make sure I was going “ok” on my own. I thought it was sweet of him and agreed to meet him out. I got in the beetle, and ventured out. I’m starting to really get the hang of driving her and I think she’s a fabulous car. Driving a beetle is a ton of fun! After meeting up at a Thai restaurant with two other of his friends and then hanging out at his place, he rode in the passenger seat and led me around the block for a mini lesson. He gave me some tips that really made my driving a lot smoother. He taught me how to start and pull away using the hand break (important for hills). It involves a lot of coordination and is an intense thought process at first, but by the 3rd or 4th try, I did a smooth pull away. He promised me that if I could drive this beetle, I could drive any car in the world. Doug lent me his GPS for navigating my way around. Doug has always had a way of making us feel safe. It’s nice to have that kind of company around when you are essentially alone in a big and sometimes scary city.