My night with the Rocket Man (and other less important details....)

That was FUN!!!

Elton John, as seen from the stage in Tel Aviv

Elton John, 69 years old, still has it! He may have chickened out of using his upper range, or it may have betrayed him in his later years, but yes, he still has it. He can still rock! It was a great concert. He wore a blue sequined long dinner jacket, matching blue pants with sparkly stripes, and bright pink platform sneakers. Oh, and of course, sun glasses. Not the big plastic white, or red ones; no feathers or rhinestones, his glasses have mellowed over the years, but he's just as iconic as ever. Much of the concert was songs that I knew. Each piano introduction sparking immediate memories of the song coming. That was great. He has a lot of new stuff, too, and I am not familiar with that. His newer stuff is kinda bluesy, I loved it. When it came time for the encore, I yelled from the bandstand where we were sitting "Crocodile Rock!" I didn't want the evening to end till I heard that. He must have heard me... because he played it! I immediately jumped up and started grooving to the song, and even Robert joined me. It made my night!

Certainly puts a new feel to the holiday of Lag B'omer for me.

HUGE loving thank-yous go out to

Adina and Elli, Ari and Chaim, Bracha and Macky, Dov V, Emily and Andy, Gabi and Haggai, Idit and Gordon, Jodie and Ken, Judy and Joe, Linda and Cliff, Lisa and Moshe, Marne R, Miriam and Jeff , Peter Kashin, Rivka and Steven, Ruth and Moshe, Sharon and Asher, Sharon and Neil, Shlomit and David, Tom Kashin, Michael and Lisa, Hedva and Jonathan.

"I never had me a better time, and I guess I never will!" (...from Crocodile Rock)

And I learned something new...

...that blinking/flashing lights can trigger a migraine for me. This was never true until a few months ago, when my migraines were getting really bad. I had been suspicious that driving at night gave me headaches, but I had so many headaches all the time, I couldn't tell what was a trigger and what was a result of already having a headache. At the concert, just for one song (thankfully) they had flashing lights, and from that point on I had to wear my sun glasses. (OK, actually, honestly, I just wanted to be like Elton John and wear my sun glasses. This is all just a clever story designed to justify my bizarre new habit of wearing sun glasses occasionally inside and/or at night. )

Since I had seen my neurologist the same day as the concert, I was freshly equipped with the assurance that taking Excedrin (or any OTC analgesics), up to twice a week is OK. I showed him my log of headaches since the hospitalization, and we counted eight days (in three weeks) which were headache-free. Not a terrific track record, and in his Israeli accented words, he threw in the phrase "you're not yet out of da woods".

So, when I felt *it* coming on at the concert, I took Excedrin. I had brought it with me just in case. I see that stuff as if it's poison, though... like if you have had food poisoning for many months, and you get better, then someone makes you that same food that made you sick, but beautiful and freshly prepared, you just can't eat it, no matter what. It brings bad associations. But, I took it because Dr. Ezra (neurologist) said it'd be fine.

It didn't help anyway. :(
By the bus ride back I had a strong headache, and by the time I crawled into bed, a migraine. It's interesting to have a migraine *and* Elton John songs going on simultaneously in your head. Medicated myself to sleep. I tried to get up in the morning; we were supposed to go back to Tel Aviv to renew the children's American passports for our upcoming trip (July). To do that, you have to bring both parents and all the kids who need passports. I woke up still with the migraine- that is the worst. There was no way I was going anywhere. Robert took the chance and went anyway. It is not so simple for all our kids to be in the same place at the same time during the week (on Shabbat it happens a lot, but can't get any business done on Shabbat, of course). So, Robert took the four kids to the Embassy. (I have to go to Tel Aviv myself on Tuesday just to sign the forms so they can process the kids' passports. Bleh.)

So after they left, I thought I'd sleep till noon, headache would pass, and I'd be Tinkerbell making everything perfect and sparkly for a surprise when they came home. I thought I'd have Shabbat food prepared, house cleaned, table set up for Shabbat when they returned.
Ummmmm....

~~~~~~~NOT!~~~~~~~~

Slept all day. I don't even know when they came home, I was sleeping. I never even got out of bed. Didn't eat, drink, nothing.
Again, Robert was able to rise to the occasion, made some quick chicken and green beans, threw together a soup, and planned on using left-overs. Remember, he had only returned from the US two days beforehand. Again... my hero. Thank Gd.

Since then, I've had a low hum of a headache. It's almost always there, kinda hiding out, but peeking. I am not taking anything for it, I am honestly at a loss for what to take. I could try Advil. But that is bad for kidneys. But my kidney tests came out mostly normal(ish). Dr. Ezra said I could take anything I wanted, but not more than twice a week, and not two days in a row. Maybe regular Tylenol. Or maybe nothing, I am getting used to the low hum of the headache. (but it makes me irritable) I hate taking more stuff. I know my body doesn't want it.

Don't yell at me, but I forgot to ask him about doing an MRI. He didn't mention it, and I forgot to ask. There were so many things to deal with, I just forgot. It's usually impossible to see him, unless I again perch myself outside his door on Wed at a certain time, so I guess I'll have to do that again. My next appointment isn't until August. I feel I need the peace of mind to know that there is nothing structurally visibly wrong with my brain to cause these headaches. Can't believe I forgot.

He wants to raise two of my medicines. I wasn't happy about that. I thought we were going toward getting off all the meds except the Cannabis. He said that's not his goal. His goal is for me to be functioning at a level that I can start playing horn again. I was surprised to hear that. I mean, when I met him over two years ago, I told him about myself, but haven't talked about that ever since. He had it in his mind the whole time. He wants to raise my nerve pain medicine (which I have taken for 8 years already for the nerve pain in my leg from NF), as well as another one which also works on nerve pain. I reminded him that we tried that already and it didn't work, and he answered with saying that I was on opiates at that time (Fentanyl), my body will react differently now to it. OK. I guess. He says that medicine that works on nerve pain will help my headaches. Makes sense, it's all the nervous system, but I just have a dream to be medication free. I don't think that's going to happen. When I asked him about the sleeping pill issue, he said to be patient. It's not time for that.

Sometimes we have to amend our dreams. If I can be headache free, and free from daily pain, I will be a better "me". I would like very much to start playing again. Life is short.

I've decided to splurge on a series of 10 massages with my favorite masseuse. Doctor's orders.
First one is tomorrow. Can't wait.