Sic Transit (Glorious Monday)

The company that administers Robb's insurance usually provides transportation to his medical and therapy appointments. All Robb has to do is call twenty four hours in advance. Today's therapy appointment was set up so quickly that Robb had to figure out his own transportation. Thankfully, the Bay Area has an excellent public transportation system. Robb walked to the bus stop, took a bus to the BART (subway) station, took the BART to the hospital shuttle, which never came, so Robb took a cab.

Before Robb could begin his course of aqua therapy, he had to have a "land" evaluation (which is the opposite of underwater). Robb found this evaluation somewhat odd, because it has been a very long time since he has had to tell anyone the entire story of his situation. The therapist took a lot of notes, and observed Robb walking with and without his ankle braces.

It turns out that the orthotist that made Robb's braces is considered a superhero among therapists and doctors in the Bay Area. During his assessment, Robb had to explain the odd situation of his feet. While everything assumes that Robb should have weak dorsi-flexion (toe lifting), he in fact he has weak plantar-flexion (toe pointing). Many people imagine that Rob has a condition called "drop foot," but he has the opposite. When Robb was telling today's therapist that his braces were the first adult sized-ones that his orthotist had ever made (apparently Robb's condition is quite common in children with spina bifida), the therapist got all misty eyed, and said "Oh, do you have Jesse?" Everyone is ga-ga for Jesse.

The journey home from the appointment was something of an ordeal. Robb took the shuttle bus bus, which eventually took him to the BART station. Robb was really tired from a night of insomnia, and somehow turned what should have been a one-station ride on the BART into what he described as "some disastrous hullabaloo." When I got home, Robb was resting, but still somewhat riled up from the rigamarole of his trip home. After telling me the entire story in confusing detail, he then spent quite some time talking through how he planned to travel to therapy in the future. Buses, trains, shuttles.....Robb was agonizing over all of this, when I asked him, "Why are you doing all this? Why not just have the insurance company send a cab?" His answer? "Because I'm a big dummy-head, who is really tired." Hmph!

But maybe all of this is moot, anyway.

Waiting for Robb when he arrived home was a notice that his driving test has finally been scheduled.