Didn’t Plan This One

It’s 2:30 a.m. and instead of being asleep in my tent on the side on a lake with nothing to listen to except total silence and the occasional loon call, get to listen to the hustle and business of a nurses station outside my hospital room door and oh ya my roommate is calling for the nurse, but I’m the only one that hears him, so I ring the bell for the nurse and she comes right away. So that’s why I’m awake at this late hour, which I hardly ever see. Every time I’m here I learn to re-appreciate the nurses and health care professionals who work these crazy type hours to help care for the sick.When I started to write this I was a little pissed off, this isn’t how I planned on spending my extra long weekend, getting a NG tube run down my nose and throat to my stomach or a catheter shoved, well you can picture wear that goes.

It’s always been hard for me to get some good sleep while here, most times the cocktail of hydro-morphine and gravel put you in a semi-type sleep. The pain med for the extreme abdominal discomfort that’s experienced during a bowel obstruction, the other for nausea that follows as well. The constant ringing of bells that comes from the nurses station is also very distracting, so I guess that I will sit up in bed and attempt to jot something down, so if my wording or punctuation is worse then usual, this time I have an excuse and oh ya I just received another pain med shot mixed with that anti-nausea so this make for an interesting read, If I don’t pass out. Odds are I won’t make it long.

So, like I said I should’ve made it to Frank Lake tonight, in Algonquin Park and was really looking forward to showing my trip log and pictures to explain the hard work and absolute beauty of a canoe camping trip, but this was not to be this weekend. Instead maybe I’ll write about how I prepare for a trip like this or at least a little insight. I had thought just about blasting away and venting again how this disease can really interrupt my life, but where would that get me. Only just more frustrated? There will be other times to go, I message my buddy, Ryan, who is waiting in the park to meet me today, already 3 days into his trip. Luckily, I had just bought a satellite communicator so I can relay the message I won’t be joining him. My friend(s) are understanding, as I like to think I’m a very reliable guy and it’s pretty serious when I don’t follow through with plans. He messages me back, to take care and get well. There will be other trips. I absolutely hate letting people down, even when it’s understandable.

I really start planning my trips 6 months in advance, Ontario parks reservations is where you go to get that done. Now quite soon, at the end of July our yearly guy’s trip will be moving from the well marked, mapped and maintained Algonquin Park to the more rugged Region of Temagami. There we plan on doing the same type canoe camping, just on crown land, so it’s free you just have to hope that not too many other people don’t have that same idea during those dates, as there is no reservations taken. It’s first come first serve, so always best to have a back up plan. Ok, back to planning, I always get out my important gear first, such as tent, sleeping bag, backcountry air mattress, water filtering system and folding saw. Do a once over to make sure there’s no holes damage and just to air it all out. Last year on our final trip of the season, in November a red squirrel decided to eat a hole through my tent to get to some nuts I had accidentally left in a pair of shorts. An easy repair, but if not done you will end up with a ton of bugs inside, not much fun to sleep in that. My backpack gets a good look over to make sure no rips or tares and that all the zippers still work well. Think I’ll finish this post in morning it’s almost 4 a.m. and the typing has moved to snail’s pace. One thought before I go, with how shitty this is again, at least I can replace my love for adventure for my love of writing when I’m laid up like this. Hence the motto I try and follow.

Ask yourself what you love to do and go do it, the world needs people who love what they do

Twelve hours later here I sit back at my computer from the hospital bed to finish this post, my fingers are moving across the keyboard much smoother now, at least better then at 4 a.m. I’m not even going back to see what I wrote, the beauty of my own blog, well it’s mine and some of the post will be just random thoughts, I try and put them together as best I can to at least make it entertaining. In the short time I’ve taken away from post a few things have improved my NG tube and catheter have been removed, what a relief! I have also been able to eat at lunch today, well at least drink. It’s a clear fluids diet and at least it’s something and my head doesn’t quite feel so foggy and jumbled. I hoping I’ll be out of here tomorrow to start my recovery at home, after this it takes about a week to feel totally normal again. I’m going to switch a few things around in my diet, going to add more smoothie type meals, and give homemade bone broth a try, suggested by one of my brothers.

Now back to a little more of how I prepare for my canoe trips, after checking my gear out the equipment that needs rain proofing gets a spray and is treated. As for the food I take, this year Tracy bought me a dehydrator, this way I can control what is in all my meals and make sure I still stick close to a diet that works for me. I will make a post about the meals separately, as there is a lot that goes into it. Now maybe as we get along here in summer and fall I can better show you all my equipment with pictures from my trips. There is one new piece of gear I’ll show you here today because it will become an important piece as I travel off grid. To ease Tracy’s and my family members concern’s about me when I’m out in the woods, we’ve bought a satellite communicator, that works bluetooth with my cell phone and allows me to check in with people when there’s no cell coverage. It also has a 3 day weather report on it to keep up on that, especially the winds is very helpful. Most important of all is a SOS button built in allowing for rescue to find me if I was unable to get out on my own or a medical emergency.

There’s my extra blog for the week. I’m feeling better and hope to be out of hospital soon.