4/25-29 - On the Road Again

It's been two weeks since I've written a post, but that's mainly because there hasn't been much to say.   I've been in the strange waiting period where the leg is healing, but until I get the cast off and start physical therapy nothing much changes from day to day.  There's essentially no pain, and I've gotten very accustomed to the changes that stem from living with limited mobility.

The only major news of note was that after a month off, I had to head back out on the road for work this week...  Generally speaking I probably travel somewhere three weeks a month for work,  so to have done none of that for 4-5 weeks is a big deal.  Everyone at work has been very understanding, and I probably could have waited even longer if I wanted to.  But the reality is that this is what I do, and while I knew it wouldn't be a fun week, I needed to get back out there and know that I was earning my keep.

Unfortunately, I chose a hell of a week.  I wound up traveling somewhere i the neighborhood of 7,000 miles:
 - On Monday from San Francisco to San Diego
 - On Tuesday from San Diego to Edmonton (through Seattle)
 - On Wednesday from edmonton to Dallas (through San Francisco)
 - On Friday Dallas back home

So what did I learn?  Well,  primarily that when you're injured and traveling, people are very nice to you!  From wheelchair escorts to flight attendants, cab drivers, bell hops, my colleagues, and even complete strangers, I encountered nothing but people willing to help me get where I needed to be (with one unfortunate  exception).  Some of the highlights included:

• The lovely woman sitting next to me from San Diego to Edmonton who offered to switch seats so I could sit in the aisle and stretch my leg
• The staff at the United Red Carpet Club at SFO who arranged an extra wheelchair escort to take me through the food court (and even carried my tray) so I could have dinner in between flights to Dallas
• The United staff in Edmonton who walked over to Starbucks and got a drink for me 
• The woman at the ticket counter in Dallas who checked my bag for free
• My cab driver in Edmonton who went out of his way to find an open drive-through after midnight so I could have a bite to eat on the way to my hotel
• My driver back at home who brought my suitcase up to my apartment and then drove me to my medical appointment for no extra cost
• The bellhop in Dallas who got me ice, bottled water, and even offered to bring a sandwich up to my room when I checked in at 1:30 AM (yes, I got there very late) so I wouldn't have to go back down to the lobby on crutches more than once
• All my colleagues throughout the trip who picked me up, drove me around, carried my bags, and made my life as easy as possible - Thanks EVERYONE!

There are some downsides to traveling while injured too.  For example:

• While you go to the front of every security line when you're in a wheelchair, that also means you have to get the full manual pat down from security at every airport.  It takes forever, as they have to test not only your body, but the cast and the chair too
• If you have a long layover, you can't really spend any time wandering/shopping.  Your escort will take you from gate to gate, and stop at a Starbucks or the restroom, but once you get to the new gate you're pretty much stuck there until the next plane boards
• Customs agents find it very odd to see someone who can't walk traveling alone :)
• You spend a fortune in tips

Thankfully, while I will be traveling a few more times before I'm off the crutches for good, the rest of my trips should be much simpler.   Next week it's back to Dallas for a couple of days.    The week of the 16th I'll be headed to Atlanta for a night, and the week of the 23rd a quick trip out and back to Houston.  Then I'm on vacation for a bit in New York over Memorial Day.  Maybe someday I'll get to travel in my own time zone again....

More tomorrow about the actual recovery, as I am now officially cast-free!