RECOVERY May I have a lot of free time — outside of the dialysis sessions. Amasa is paying me a small stipend to be part of their ‘hemodialysis program’, and it is sufficient when combined with my wife’s income for our monthly expenses, even in Silicon Valley where the rents are exorbitant (see accounts like ‘The Slums of Palo Alto’ for details on that). I am allowed to work, teach, play, or do anything I want — as long as it does not blow my cover. I enjoyed the work I did before becoming sick, but since recovery it is very hard for me to focus on it. I can’t seem to sit still without dozing off. Watching TV makes me fall asleep, and then I wake up at midnight ready for a new day. I guess that would be within character, but I prefer to take advantage of daylight as much as possible, so my hours become quite regular: I go to ‘second-bed’ at about 10 p.m. and wake at 4 a.m.. That combined with the draining rest from the four hours of dialysis seems to be enough for my body and mind. So I begin down very new paths for me: over time I learn about building houses, politics, professional driving, farming, and more. These are part of my normal life, and are known to all my friends and acquaintances. I also have a large collection of ‘hobbies’ that I don’t speak of normally. My hobbies help make The Gods ecstatic when they want a ‘quid’.
As the weeks and months — go by, I more than recover. My sessions with Dr. A. occur every other week in the guise of a blood draw test. They are short, but can be insightful. “How are you doing this week Mark?” “Good. I still carry a cane in case I need it, but I put all the walkers into storage. I walked about a mile around Lake Elizabeth with my sister. It was slow, but I only took a few breaks.” - 37 -
