Matty's March Mayhem

I asked my sister to prepare a few things for me for tonight when no one else would be around.

I was pleasantly surprised when recounting them to her, I realized they were T-U-V.

I asked her to put the Keurig near the edge of the counter so I could make tea. I wanted my urinal near my chaise to prevent any urgency issues. And I needed my pill holder filled with vitamins.

When I got home, I remembered something else I should have requested, and I was really mad because it was a W. I wanted my window opened.

I felt the window was pretty important because it was warm today and I had to wheel home from the subway. Mom and Dad were away, too.

It is also important to consider that I may have been feeling a mite cocky. I didn't just wheel home; I wheeled home over the really steep hill that I really shouldn't have gone up. I wheeled backward most of the way up, which made me feel safe balance-wise, but driving backward up a hill without a rear-view mirror is a little sketchy.

But  I am sick to death of accommodating my Friedreich's ataxia, which may explain the evening's exercise.

I really wanted a window open.

Two of the windows in my room are casement windows, which crank. Only one is reachable. When we planned the room, my sister told me the two windows on the end would be casement. It wasn't till after they were in that I realized the two on the end meant the two on the width of the bump-out of my room. I thought it meant the two on the end of the length. Oh well.

I reached for the casement window. The crank was there on the sill but not attached. All I managed to do was knock over Goat Boy from Where the Wild Things Are.

Then I turned my sights to a regular window. I could get it, I told myself. So I moved Claren's bed and managed to unlock the window. But try as I might I could not budge it.

My pants were falling down from the repeated standing by this point, so I left off and went back to the casement window. I saw where the crank needed to go so I tried to sit down and access it. That failed, and I managed   to drag my boxer shorts down, too.

That was the last straw because my wheelchair has some sharpish bits that do not feel good on my delicate tushy.

I got back in my chair, pulled my pants up and went outside to see if I saw a neighbor. Kids often play in our yard and parents are usually nearby. Alas, no luck. Everyone must have been at the Falls Church School's March Mayhem event. It is a basketball game, even though mayhem is really not an appropriate synonym for madness.

I even considered posting on Faccebook "Anyone want to come over and open a window?" But I couldn't decide what would make me feel worse: No response, people who live far away saying they'd do it if ..., or if someone really came over and opened my window.

Instead, I headed back in and took another look at the window locks I undid. I was sure it was open, so I again convinced myself I could open it. Bad call.

As I was bending up after putting up my foot plate, I banged my head on the sill. I cursed God then. Loudly. I stood then but could still not budge the window. And this time I fell.

I was fine but getting off the floor is never easy. I finally made it to my chair and gave up. Now, I was really hot, but I just went and had dinner outside.