My back spasms have finally subsided. Three nights into my weekly shift, I felt that dreaded "twing" in some lumbar joint. Bastard back returns.
Having felt it several times over the years, I immediately knew its ultimate result. Without benefit of excess sick leave after a year of COVID which saw me leave the job three times in the fear my body's incredible immune defense had failed, I knew it was time to just "suck up" and bear it.
On my Friday night, I eased myself into the low-body Elantra, immediately summoning its electronics to heat my seat on full-high. Allowing her to envelop me, I sighed as the heat reached me. Eyes closed, breathing regulated to bring full relaxation. Slipped the tranny into gear and rolled homeward. Once safely in the garage, the next challenge was to extend my 6'2" up and out. It took a full minute of straining, pushing and ignoring the pain. Finding my dinner and gathering everything I needed for an extended couch surf, I eased into the heating pad. The sweet relief of this destination enveloped me in cozy warmth and thankfulness for signing the red book for a three-day weekend.
I slept a full eight hours the first time in a week. The next day found me glued to first my bed, then the couch. Binge-watching meaningless television, I only moved to pee and then return. My "to do list" was laid to waste as my body recovered via Ibuprofen and heat. Last night, I slept 11 hours, then lounged again on the couch, repeating the previous day's non-activity.
During this 48-hour stretch, I learned my daughter plans to wed her long-time beau this coming April. Her son graduates high school on May 25. Same day I did in 1978. This means I have to make two trips to Arizona within 30 days of each date. As if on cue, my back once again erupted into spasms. There is no way to miss either date. My sweet lass, the apple of Daddy's crossed eyes, could not gain the matrimonial altar without me. Nor could I allow her to.
Given my transit agency's cruel decision to disallow operators who missed "too much" work this past year of pandemic, ice storms, record-breaking heat and horrific firestorm the luxury of "holding back" two weeks of vacation to use as needed, it will take a great deal of planning to allow these trips. Just the thought of what lies ahead exhausted my already-depleted reserves. I promptly fell asleep again for two hours.
Afterwards, I stood up in need of a bathroom visit. Finally, I didn't need two or more attempts to accomplish an upright posture. While the pain stubbornly persists, it is no longer excruciating. One more day of rest, and it's back to work for four days.
I will regain the seat in a day. It may not be a comforting thought. But it pays the bills. At least I get an extra day to recover from last week's stress. On Friday, another meeting with management regarding Operator Safety. Whatever they think that means. We'll see. So far, the jury is still out.
We don't have the luxury of hold back vacation here. It's all picked in North the year before. Timekeepers will generally allow a switch of a couple of weeks every few years, but that's not likely now with our manpower shortage.
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