#205 - Pomegranate Back Pain

It was the youngest kiddo’s twentieth birthday today and he celebrated it in Halifax with his sister and her friends.

We hope he had a good day. At the very least, his sister bought him a chocolate Sarah Lee cake for the occasion.

Our day started with a train ride to the studio. The earlier train had been cancelled and the train we managed to get on was packed to the point of bursting. It was a stand all the way kind of ride for us. Robyn met a nice lady and talked all the way about furthering their educations and what the next chapter of their lives looked like. They got on so well that numbers were exchanged. Not the first time she has made a friend on the train.

Once we arrived, we decided to walk to the studio to get some fresh air and a little exercise. It pained me to pass the diner and not stop in for breakfast, but we had leftover Ruby Chicken in our bags to look forward to at lunch. And these days if I have breakfast, I usually skip lunch and vice versa.

My back is still very tender and gives me sharp twinges of pain now and then. The idea of sitting at my desk all day was not something I was looking forward to. The little wheel stops I bought did help with the chair rolling situation and that helped mitigate some of the back discomfort.

We started the day on a positive, as the direction for the look of the show was made more concrete. Then we had the task of assessing the damage, or the amount of individual paintings that would need to be fixed and what departments needed to be involved. The numbers were high as was expected, but having a solid direction felt better.

I had a great lunch and not just because of the Ruby Chicken, although it only tasted better after sitting in the fridge. Our fellow colleagues provided ample entertainment at lunch with their banter and stories that made the time fly by. After everyone else left, I head over to the couche area and played a short game of chess.

And this meant that I hadn’t written anything on the train or at lunch. I still had the chance to get some words in on the ride home though.

The rest of my day was in meetings and revising background paintings to match the new designs. My back got progressively worse as the day went on and even Robyn started to notice her own back hurting. Studio chairs are not the best things in the world.

I made sure that I got up out of my chair multiple times throughout the day just to give my spine a chance to be in another orientation. At day’s end, my back was still unhappy and twinged a few times on the walk back to the station.

A quick stop at the historic St. Lawrence Market to grab some pomegranate seeds.

We decided to eat in the city before heading home since their wasn;t anybody waiting for us there. We both enjoy different meals at a Caribbean restaurant called Roywood’s. And there just happens to be one on the York side of Union Station.

I got a BBQ chicken sandwich. The bread is naan-like but I believe is coconut bread.

Robyn loves her oxtail and plantain. Both of us were very pleased with ourselves for taking this small diversion. All we had to do afterwards was ride the escalator to the next floor and jump on a train. The only obstacle was that all the trains were halted due to an incident at Exhibition Place. This could be hours or minutes before the trains started running again.

Just our luck.

With full bellies and an ever-increasing flow of people milling about us we waited.

Luckily, it wasn’t long before they told us we could board our train. We even managed to get seats, although, not together, at least at first. It was an all stops train, but we were happy to be heading home.

I was in too much pain and lacked the energy to get my laptop out, so I read from my Kindle instead. After the first stop, most of the train exited and I was able to join Robyn. I continued to read even though I had plenty of space now to write. I continued to read instead, leaving the writing for my evening activity.

Back home, there was a package waiting for me. A new hair clipper to replace my dead one. With that in hand, I beelined it to the bedroom, ready to rest my weary back.

We watched an episode of John Oliver’s, “This Week Tonight,” followed by a new episode of “From.”

It had been a year or two since the last episode and even after the recap we struggled to remember some of the key plot points. But it was still a fun show to watch, and I am glad it got another season.

I’ve decided to sleep on the floor tonight with the hope that it will help my aching back. I;ve done it before and it worked like a charm. I’ve already laid some blankets and my pillow at the foot of the bed to make sure I actually carry through with it. Based on how tired I am and from past experience I think it will work just fine. I will work from him tomorrow as well to make sure I can do stretches and have a better sitting chair to ease the pain.

The Go Train seats also do a number on my back as well.

So, floor, home chair and no train seats should all help me get back on track.

At least that is the plan. And some muscle relaxants just for good measure.

Robyn was nice enough to make me a tea and serve me up the last slice of Tres Leche cake as well. And that kind of thing doesn’t cure sore backs, but it soothes the soul.

After charging up my new clippers for a few hours I gave them an inaugural test. The motor isn’t as hefty as the last model I had but it worked well enough. Hopefully, this one will last a little longer. I feel that if I want true longevity from this kind of product, I’d need to get a corded option instead of the rechargeable battery-operated models.

Well, as I stated earlier... I am exhausted.

Time to crawl on the floor and curl up like I am a seven-year-old.

Night all.

May all your backs be pain free.