Long Weekend in New York

This past weekend, I drove back home to upstate New York to visit family, and to bring back my mother who will be reprising her role as caregiver this fall. I'm an hour or so away from leaving -- the only thing stopping me now is a little packing and some breakfast.

Once we get back in town, it will be a rush to get my apartment optimized for my recovery process. What's that, you say. Yup, this time I've decided not to move to Boston for my treatment.

When I got sick last year, I had moved from my apartment in Melrose (a suburb about 30 minutes north of Boston) into a temporary housing situation smack in the middle of Boston. This had some nice perks, such as separate apartments for my mother and I, easy access to Back Bay, the hospital and numerous other walker-friendly areas.

Although it was walker-friendly, it wasn't so wallet-friendly. After shelling $8,000 on rent for two months, and a couple thousand more on moving and storage, I decided that this time, I'll stick it out in Melrose. And besides -- I have moved four times in the last year, and I would be damned if I had to do it again.

Unfortunately, when I got my apartment back in April, I took a bet that I wouldn't need a second treatment. (Obviously, you can see that I am not a gambling man.) As a result, the apartment is, shall we say, not the most optimal for recovering from high-dose chemotherapy. The apartment is a loft, and the one bathroom that I have is on the top of a set of steep stairs. Ok, so I'm an idiot for getting it but it is nice in every other way!

Tomorrow is August 16th, the official admission day. A lot of fun for all parties involved, I'm sure. I'll be reporting the play-by-play as it happens.