Catching Up

Dear friends,

A note to check in with you all before we head north. We’ve been here at Jason’s much longer than we planned, mainly because I’ve developed Bell’s Palsy. On June 26 I woke up completely paralyzed on the left side of my face. Couldn’t close my eye, couldn’t open it either; droop and drool. Talked like a cartoon character and smiling made me look deranged. Felt like I couldn’t go out in public, but have to say a few days later we met Dave’s sister in Nashville – there was a Moose Convention and a meeting of little people in town – and no one noticed me.

We went to the ER to make sure my self diagnosis was right, and when the CT scan and labs came back okay we celebrated with a lunch. An hour later we were racing home trying to beat one of North Carolina’s epic thunderstorms. Too Late. Our big awning filled with rain & broke as we drove up. We never go anywhere and leave the awning out, but we were preoccupied that morning. The steel end tube cost $200, and $260 to ship it from Illinois. Dave & Jason fixed it last Saturday,

We had a special 32nd. wedding anniversary on July first. The Swan kids prepared and served us a special dinner, complete with candles and mood music; just the two of us in the specially decorated dining room. It was maybe our most memorable anniversary meal ever!

So . . . . we are getting ready to start our journey north. I am just starting to see improvement in my face; still can’t drink w/o a straw. Our insurance doesn’t cover health care in Canada so we want to start out feeling good. The plan is to drive straight through to New Brunswick, see Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, then go to Quebec City to see Cousin Andre and Louise Vachon. We hope to spend a month, around Sept. 10 to Oct.10 in New England and New York, then come back to North Carolina and work.

We’re still living in the heat and humidity, both running close to 100. Dave is comfortable most of the time; I’m just one large fierce looking rash.

Love to all,

Sam