Sorry for the very long delay since my last entry but, I’m tired these days what with one thing and another. Work, new condo, renovations, physio and to top it off, I can’t do something that would help, namely bike to work. After doing my physio exercises during my lunch hour today, I was lying on a staff room sofa pondering life, the Universe and everything, when I was struck by just how much I missed the daily two half-hours of exercise that I didn’t have to make time for. Now, by the end of the day, I find myself puffing by the time I get to the top of my inside staircase. The revelation was made all the more irritating as after physio this afternoon, I went up to the stationary bicycles at the gym to put in a half-hour of pedalling. As if to taunt me, one of the sports channels playing on the TVs in front of me was showing highlights of this year’s Montreal Cycling GP, complete with scenes of professional cyclists cranking along Park Avenue and up the Camillien Houde Parkway.
In other news, several months ago, I donated a substantial amount of money to St-Joseph’s Oratory as a way of thanking St-Michael, the Holy Mole. (In some ways, I’m glad I don’t have to tell Margo, as she would likely get her nose out of joint because of it. Mind you, I wish she were here to be able to tell me off.) The fact of the matter is that Michael is a devout catholic and is very attached to the Congregation of Holy Cross which runs the Oratory, hence my choice. Interestingly and very appropriately, my donation was used to help fund a new chapel dedicated to caregivers. Michael and I were invited to attend the dedication. This was the first time I had been to the Oratory since some major renovations which included some very welcome escalators and elevators. It was also the first time I attended a service at the Oratory. After Sunday mass, there was a short dedication ceremony, the audience for which included a significant number of women who had the look of professional caregivers such as nurses, nurses’ aids, etc. The majority of them were from visible minorities and at some point a section of the crowd broke into a hymn which I couldn’t follow, but it seemed to have African or Caribbean rhythms to it.
Afterwards, Michael and I were invited to eat with some of the members of the Congregation of Holy Cross in their living quarters which are attached to the Oratory via a small maze of corridors and an elevator. Michael said I made a good impression on them. Now they want to give me a religious medal.
My condo renovations have progressed to the point that I need to get packing. They consisted of three major items. The most important was getting a new, deeper bathtub. The old one was the small as the one in my current condo. I find it very shallow, particularly with my bad leg. The installation process meant ripping out some of the tiles and replacing them with new ones. Thankfully, Griffin the contractor was very helpful in that regard. He also arranged another major item, namely repainting the new condo to my satisfaction. The third item was replacing the doors to both condos as they both needed it. I found it took surprising amount of time for that to come together. Thankfully, it was done before the cold weather came in earnest.
Rather oddly, my final bit to this entry involves the other Griffin in my life, namely Griffin the son of James. He had the bad luck to break one of his tibias in a rugby game at the end of August, just before starting at a new school. I offered the use of my wheelchair, even though it was likely a bit big for him. Well, it made a huge improvement to his quality of life. It helped him make friends at his new school and strengthen his bonds with his big sister, at least, according to James. I also suspect it helped James’ family by enabling Griffin to get out from under foot in their relatively cramped house.
Now that I think of it, I should also mention that the purchase of the new condo also helped James and family as they were the recipients of some of the things that came with it, namely a washer and dryer and two large beds. I had expected the former to be left behind but the beds weren’t in the contract. However, it all turned out for the best.
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