Good morning, Plainfield!

Many thanks to friend (and reader) Cubby, who brought
some gorgeous pink and orange tulips yesterday afteroon.

Well, we made the move from JFK yesterday afternoon, with Nat chauffeuring me and all the gear in his soccer-mom vehicle (note to the worrying occupational therapists at JFK -- transfers into and out of the Toyota were just fine, only a tad of a stretch more than a normal car and certainly no big deal).

The sunlight seemed blindingly bright (had I been living in a bat cave all these weeks?) and peaked as we pulled into the driveway of Norwood Terrace.

It is a warm and cozy feeling place, with a friendly staff, but Nat, TJ's mommy and other guests yesterday all raised their eyebrows at the thought that much therapeutic was going on here. Most of the guests seem quite elderly and more along the lines of continued care than therapy designed to get them functioning back in their normal everyday settings.

That was, until this morning.

After being skipped for breakfast, I was finally enjoying the scrambled eggs (how long until a dietitian takes those away?) when a transport aide told me he would pick me up for therapy in a few minutes.

We went downstairs to the main floor and entered a spacious, well-lit, neatly laid out and thoroughly equipped rehab gym. With only a handful of patients exercising, the weekend therapist put me through some paces, evaluating my upper body strength, walking and stair climbing abilities and then put me on the bicycle pedals to get some heart action going.

That was when I met Jim, also an amputee with a prosthesis, who happens to be from Roselle. He is in for some unrelated issues, but told me that he was up and walking on his new prosthesis 29 days after his amputation. He was working out on the rowing machine this morning and I didn't suspect he was an amputee until he volunteered the info.

We got so engrossed in his stories of adventures -- and misadventures -- with his prosthesis (as when it disengaged just as he backed his 800-pound Harley Davidson bike into the roadway), that my hour was soon up.

Tomorrow, the regular staff will be in place and I'll get an evaluation and on to the next phase, expecting to be here up to two weeks.

Visitor rules are even more relaxed than JFK, so if you're in the neighborhood after 4 PM or so, why not drop by and say 'hi'. 

Norwood Terrace is directly behind United Presbyterian Church, 525 East Front Street. Room number 224.

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-- Dan Damon [follow]

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