Tunnels and spaceships

Yesterday was treatment day at Barnes. Honestly, it’s an easy drive, easy to get to the Cancer Center, easy, albeit somewhat intense, valet parking, short walk to the elevators, Ernie usually gets in quickly and the treatment doesn’t take too long. So in reality, not a damn thing to complain about. Nevertheless we always are at a somewhat heightened level of anxiety all day and the whole thing always feels a bit surreal. Roughly three hours of a very quiet drive then you burst into the loud, exhaust filled valet parking area. Then we get into the elevator and all becomes quiet and pretty much stays that way in the waiting room. The worst thing is that I can’t go back there with him. So I sit in the waiting room, sip some water (water cooler in the waiting room—yay Barnes!) and scroll aimlessly on my phone. Then, an hour or so later we plunge back into the valet parking and exhaust, get in our car and in two shakes of a lamb’s tail (I have no idea why that phrase just came to me) we are back on our highway. It’s like being in a tunnel for 8 or 9 hours with occasional flashes of light. Not bad, just tiring.

Yesterday I got excited when they took him back about 20 minutes early. However evidently they had problems with the IV in his arm and had to switch to his port and it somehow took much longer than usual. We finally hopped in the car and headed out of the city. We did make two stops on the way home and getting out of that tunnel for a moment felt good.

I’d never stopped to see this sign but I was glad we finally did. Look at that tiny little lobster on there. ❤️ The longtime trope was that if the neon cherry was lit then female entertainment was available. However, reportedly there was never a mechanism to light the cherry separately… It also reportedly was a hangout for Al Capone but good lord the man would have been busy if he actually hung out at all the places that say that. A delightful sign and a John Margolies blue sky day. You can’t get much better than that.

As we drove back to the interstate we came across two motel signs as an added bonus.

Unfortunately the Apple Valley Motel burned down a few years back but the sign remains. That little semi-shaped sign that says ‘circle drive turn around’ is just wonderful.

We settled into I-55 but could not resist getting off to take a picture of a Futuro spaceship.

We drove on, so anxious to be home. We finally arrived and it felt like we’d been gone a week. Our beautiful neighbor Barb brought us dinner, we watched some mindless tv and collapsed. We’re not supposed to sleep next to each other for a few days so I slept on the couch and I didn’t mind as I didn’t have to go up the stairs.

Glad to have the day over. Only two more to go.

Onward.