Prison Journal: Day 7,962
May 28, 2009
I began writing well this morning, but dizziness struck again around 5:30. When the guards unlocked the housing unit at 6:00 I went outside to run. I finished 10 miles, boosting my tally to 1,478 miles over the past 167 days.
At 9:15 I had an appointment with the nurse. She recorded my vital statistics. My blood pressure was 124 over 72. My pulse was 59. And my oxygen saturation, whatever that means was 96 percent. The nurse said my health statistics were fine. She used a scope to look in my ears and and she said my ear drum was swollen and that I had accumulated fluid. It was the fluid, she said, that was causing my dizziness. She prescribed a medication that I heard her identify as CTM, which the nurse said would dry the fluid in my ear.
I took a tablet at 9:30 this morning, another tablet at noon, and I will take a third tablet at 5:00 PM. The tablets cause drowsiness that blocks my creativity. Thus I was not successful inwriting much more on the manuscript. I’m on page 73, though I feel as if I should have reached page 80 by now.
The nurse has prescribed his medication for me for three days. If it clears up my dizziness, it will be worth the interruption to my writing progress.
Thursday, 28 May 2009
Prison Journal: Day 7,958
May 24, 2009
I knew that I could will myself back into good health. I slept early last night and I did not wake until 3:15. When I began writing it was 3:30, and I made excellent progress with the second chapter of this memoir I want to finish.
Ordinarily, I don’t continue writing the manuscript until I sign a publishing agreement. In this case, I really find the writing therapeutic. Now that my friend Justin is in the halfway house, I don’t have any close friends with whom I can share my work. It is just my writing and me, and this manuscript promises to carry me through several months.
I ran nine miles at six, though I did not follow with any strength training. My tally is now 1,442 miles over the past 163 days. The shorter distances may be giving my body the rest it needs to overcome whatever is causing the dizziness.
I spent the entire afternoon writing on the new chapter, and I feel good about the progress. I now am on page 60, which I estimate to translate into more than 15,000 words. This draft is advancing well, and by keeping up the progress, I feel confident that I can finish a draft before Thanksgiving. It comes with some sacrifice, however, as I’m not blogging as frequently, and my reading has fallen way behind.
Sunday, 24 May 2009
Prison Journal: Day 7,957
May 23, 2009
I have been blessed with excellent health throughout my imprisonment. That’s why I’m surprised to be suffering through intermittent dizziness here at Taft prison camp. My wife has some theories, and since she graduated first in her nursing class, I know that I should defer to her. Still, I am stubborn and I resist.
I wake each morning between 2:00 and 3:00 to begin my writing. At 6:00 I go outside for two hours of exercise. Then I return to my housing unit and work more on my writing, usually until 4:00 in the afternoon. I am in bed on most afternoons by 5:00, and always before 7:00. Thus as far as I’m concerned, I’m averaging more than eight hours of sleep each night. This abundance of rest seems sufficient to overcome the work schedule I impose upon myself. Yet the sensation of dizziness persists.
The dizziness does not manifest itself when I wake. I’m able to enjoy a few hours of productive work in solitude. It begins to bother me around 5:30 in the morning. The best case, I have found, has been exercise. Once I start running, I begin to feel better. She urges me to report to health services. I resist, however, as I have rarely requested assistance from health services. If this dizziness keeps up, though, I suppose I’ll have to go. I’m 45-years-old now, and although I feel both fit and strong, I must acknowledge that I’m well into middle age. We’ll see how I feel in the days to come. I still want to believe that I can will the feeling away.
Today I ran only five miles because I thought a rest might help. Tomorrow I’ll run a shorter distance, too. My tally stands at 1,433 miles over the past 162 days.
Saturday 23 May 2009
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