vicariously chris

Chris was a happy camper this morning when I went to visit him at the rehab centre. He had just been assessed by the staff and was just about to meet his Mom & Sister for Lunch in the cafeteria.

We went for a quick spin around the place and he seemed to be very pleased with his new surroundings. I suggested that he start racing his wheelchair against other patients down the huge stretch of hall on the Main floor...
to make a little cash on the side, he said, "set it up" :)



From what I understand the gameplan is for Chris to hit the ground running in a program that involves both Occupational and Physical Therapy that will build on his steady progress. He will have assigned professionals helping him to recover the skills that he'll need to take the next step.

This environment should have a more consistent feel than the hospital, although I was impressed by so many of the staff at the HSC who were really wonderful and made Chris feel important.

Hopefully Chris will get a phone by his bed within the next few days. If you would like to email me your number I can print out a call-list. Hopefully Chris will start making calls on his own which could mean that you might get one in the middle of the night :)

He gave me a quick call from his sister's cell last night..he acted all cool..
"Yeah hi it's Chris..what are ya doin? I moved today, yeah I'm out of the hospital..."
It was awesome.

If you would like to send Chris a message here is the email address (copy or click)
dlcvolunteers@deerlodge.mb.ca
Apparently the volunteers will print them up and hand deliver...at least that's what it said on the bulletin board.We'll get a folder for him to collect all of his messages and return addresses. Hope they have a good printer :)

Hopefully once he is ready,Chris will get on his laptop and start reciprocating. I have no doubt that he will feel his spirit soar once he discovers how many people he has pulling for him. Once he's back online with his blogmates, co-workers, family and friends, he'll feel re-connected.

We used to talk at length about how much intimacy and camaraderie you can actually extract from the cybersphere. For the past few years Chris has been ensconced in several venues of social networking on the Interwebs. He felt right at home teasing, discussing issues, exhorting and comforting others from all walks of life in different corners of the globe.

Chris has a natural effortless way of connecting with others. People sensed that he didn't have a huge bloated ego, a litany of complicated "issues", or a sketchy hidden agenda. He was quite discerning and selective, very loyal to those who earned it, he even withheld their secrets from moi!?..and yes I'm not proud of it but sometimes I'd prod and plead for the scoop but no way jose.

Chris made others feel safe...why am I telling you? You already know all of this.

So here he goes on to the next stage. We all fully expect Chris to surprise the experts again and make some impressive strides by Autumn. I am very hopeful that this stage of his recovery will be a very positive experience and that Chris will quickly regain his skills and strength...and so say all of us!