.
I saw the neurosurgeon yesterday. We only talked,so there isn’t anything I can tell you at this point. He has ordered X-rays and an MRI of my back, so until he sees those, nothing to report.

He is located in El Paso, which is about a 45 minute drive. It is hard for me to sit in the car for a long time, which is why I’ve put off taking a jaunt up to Albuquerque to visit old friends. 45 minutes was not bad, but still, I’m not sure I want to try a longer trip. To Albuq. takes me at least 3 and a half hours, or more because I have to stop often. I was so hoping to visit friends in northern NM this summer, so am hoping for some pain relief before the nice weather ends up there. (They live at 8500 ft. altitude!)

This reflects my thinking on travel right now…………..

TRAVEL

I only travel in my mind,
leaving car and plane trips behind.

How lovely it would be to go
to places I’ve not been before.

But I can always go to play
in exotic places far away

when I join an author in Timbuktu
or learn of the Inca way down in Peru.

I read of the pearl fishing in Bahrain
and traditional celebrations in Spain.

My TV helps me travel too, you know,
to every place I would like to go.

Alas, I’m here in my old armchair
regretting that I cannot go anywhere.

But places I’ve been still beckon me
to revisit them often in memory