We took a short ski-vacation in Park City with Bayley. This is the 3rd time we've traveled there with her.

Friday, I ended up working all day due to a work emergency. This carried over a little bit into Saturday & Sunday.

We have skiied/boarded at Park City three times. I enjoy snowboarding there. It has great hills. It's also easy for both Bayley and us to get there. 

Now Park City is *very* expensive. I think Bayle loves that. Shopping at the boutiques. Eating at great restaurants. The high cost of living high.

The husband suggested we book next years trip somewhere else and then invite Bayley along. 

And so I am looking.

 

C2 and I had good conversation over dinner.

We discussed a recent Saturday night of his. A friend of his was gooning, had taken drugs but then developed a priapism. I had to ask what goonging was. Apparently I am behind the times on current gay sex lingo.

The friend managed to get a prescription to treat the priapism, but didn't want to drive to pick it up because, well, he was on drugs. 

Rather than being upfront with C2, the friend invited C2 over to hang out. C2 has a crush on this man, so he said yes. 

After C2 arrived, the friend told him about his predicament and asked for a drive to a late night pharmacy. C2, being the softie that he is, went along with this. The first two pharmacies did not have the proper medication. They ended up driving to the other side of the city before they found one. All of this took hours.

Lately, I've been examining my life, trying to figure out what want, what the next phase will be. To inspire this, I've been contemplating the life goals of those around me. This story was my second reminder that many gay men are into partying, sex and drugs. It's an easy life

We've had a few days of snow here. It's melted away now. I'm hoping this is winter's last hurrah. It's March now, and March is the start of spring, Right? 

At work, the new org is settling in. I'm getting to know everyone. I'm trying to understand their goals and how they intend to achieve them. We are taking baby steps towards working together.

Sunday, Clem and Bates hosted a small Carnival party. We had a good time. I know Clem and Bates because I used to be their neighbors. Most of the guests were-- how do I say this-- Clem and Bates are very sex positive. Most of their guests were former, or current, fuck buddies. 

One of the couples discussed their glory hole and the websites they advertise on. It's a seasonal glory hole. It's outside and not insulated so they shut it down in the winter. 

All but one of the guests was over 50. A few were retired. One of the discussions was about the complications of being an aging slut. When you are over 60, everyone wants you to be the daddy. When one of you is 60, and the other 55, do you really want to role play daddy-boy? 

Afterwards the husband and I confirmed that we are happy with our closed relationship.

I'm having dinner with C2 tonight. I worry about him. He wants a boyfriend so bad, yet he seems to be going about that in all the wrong ways. I refrain from giving him advice-- he will ignore that. He enjoys discussing technical and scientific things. I enjoy his company. 

It's been sunny and cold here in the Pacific North West. A coworker who moved to Seattle for the mild winters joked that he feels ripped off.

JM has passed away. I met JM when I first moved to Seattle. We had both moved to Seattle from the same area of Canada and ended up on the same hockey team.

We kept in touch even after I stopped playing hockey.

The husband met JM in the rooms of AA and briefly sponsored him. JM eventually decided that AA was not for him. 

That brief story tells so much about JM. 

JM died of some sort of respiratory failure, though we don't now the specifics. An autopsy is forthcoming. I'm not going to speculate until I learn back about that.

We've had a long weekend here. I've been using the time to clean up, catchup and chill. The weather here in the PNW is cool and rainy. Not conducive to hiking.

The husband and I have much travel scheduled over the next few months. Between now and July, I'll be away from home for five weeks-- working remote for some of it. Actual vacation for others. 

Work is busy. I have finished my part in our annual promotions and bonus process. It's always frustrating. There is never enough money to give everyone what they deserve. 

Perhaps my travel diarrhea is gone. Sometime this afternoon I noticed that I felt lighter and a little more energetic. The burn in my belly is gone. We shall see if I have any sudden compulsions to run to the bathroom.

I often claim that I need more down time. I'm trying to apply a little more discipline to what little downtime I have. It's easy to get sucked into social media, to play games or to watch some crap TV. I want to use my down time a little more intentionally. A little more journaling, reading and writing. A little more pondering, reflection and meditation.

I seem to have developed a bad habit of glancing at my phone when I experience five seconds of silence. 

So tonight I've turned on the music. A pad and pen are next to me. Let's see what happens. 

Damn it's hard to stay away from my phone.

We are back home. I am on the mend. A little tired, but I don't have the runs like the past few days. Our other sick travel companion is also recovering. 

There are a few good conversations the husband and I must have as a result of our trip.

First-- how do we do big group trips without all the organizing. It's easy to fall into a "the group does everything altogether" trap. Then one person has to drive the planning... "What time do we want lunch? Where?" That one person is usually my husband. He can be organized to a fault. And it exhausts him after a while.

Second-- I need to schedule more downtime for myself. As fun as PV, I was feeling overloaded towards the end. And that was before I got travel diarrhea. I don't want to go on nice trips, then return home overloaded and tired. I must master the art of saying no to group activities without sounding like I'm going to snub the group. 

Our friend who became sick, spent the night in the hospital. She is out now. On antibiotics and electrolytes.

I am also under the weather. I've slept all day. That helped. 

Everyone else is good. They went whale watching this morning and got some good pictures. 

It's Thursday already. The week is going well. I nice combination of activities and relaxing. 

One of our friends has Montezuma's revenge. The husband may take her to a doctor. She is up and around but must stay close to a toilet.

I wonder how she got her bug. We all have been eating the same things and she is the only one affected. It may just be one of those quirks of individual biology.

The wedding was wonderful. Evan and Allen held it on a terrace at the bottom of our villa. At the pronunciation of "I now pronounce you..." strangers all around us cheered... condos and a hotel are behind the terrace, offering many people a view. 

The husband did a great job officiating. The ceremony was very sentimental. 

We are in Puerto Vallarta for the week. Evan and Allen are getting married here The husband is officiating. 

Most of the guests are sober. They imbibe with coffee, good food & ice cream. 

One other guest drinks. We shall have fun together. 

We've decided that PV is "a sensible shoes city" The streets are cobblestone. The sidewalks have all sorts of trippers and odd steps. 

Having said that, I enjoy it here. The weather is pleasant. The people are friendly. The city is bustling. 

I recall a Dilbert cartoon... "Employees really are our most valuable asset. Our stock jumps every time we lay you off. It's like printing cash!"

We announced layoffs today. Our stock did jump. 

My teams were not affected. Everyone is more concerned for those that are gone. 

The husband is had a great week. He won two awards for work performance. The prizes are trips to Ireland and Switzerland. 

It was also his birthday on Sunday. Happy birthday sweetheart! Sunday, we had a few friends over to celebrate.

Pinched nerve news-- this morning was the first time I haven't felt pain since December. The tingle and numbness is still there. Overall, things are headed in the right direction.

80% of my therapy is proper posture. 20% are exercises to help muscles weakened after decades of slouching. Good posture is tiring, especially at the end of the day. I just want to chill and watch a little TV. No laying back or slouching for me. I sit like an alert student.

Work is going through a reorg, but in a good way. My org is growing. In addition to my existing teams I will pick up a team in Toronto as well as the team in Sydney Australia.

I am looking forward to visiting my Australia team.

In all honesty, one of my strengths is in dealing with geographically diverse teams. It helped that I travel to Toronto regularly for family. 

I'm more optimistic about my pinched nerve. The physiotherapist has also given me a few good exercises. I'm only prescribed to do them once a day. One of them feels so good  that I'm doing it four or five times.

The THC infused ointment helps. It's relief lasts five or six hours.

When I told the husband that I was taking the topical THC painkiller he made a joke about rubbing it all over his body.

With this I am back to a state where I can get mostly decent sleep.

Tommy writes.. 

usually the the block last 6 to 12 months sometimes longer depending on the person and the nerve. its an injection that some of my friends have had.

I hope it doesn't last that long. I have started with physiotherapy and go back to my regular doctor for more scans in about a month.

I have also bought a THC and CBD infused, topical pain relief ointment. It smells like menthol. I haven't told the husband that it's THC infused, but I don't think he would be concerned given that it's only topical. 

I am flashing back to all the times I've smelt menthol and eucalyptus on old people. I don't want this yet here I am.

The should pain, the pinched nerve, stays with me non-stop. Sometimes if I contort my body a certain way, then it will let up. However, one can only contort their body for so long. So far I've been to my regular doctor, a massage therapist and a chiropractor. No relief. Acetaminophen works ok.  A take a dose before I go to bed.

At work we are having a reorg. Oddly this is an easy time for me. We are not laying people off, though that comes to everyone's mind. It's my job to answer questions and to assure them of their future. 

Palm Springs was a pleasant weekend get-away. The weather was sunny and 65ish while we were there. The husband and I had a chat about moving to Palm Springs. We know many people who spend part of the year there.  It's a popular place for gay retirement. I can see why. The weather is pleasant in the winter and the homes are more affordable than Seattle.

It's also insanely hot in the summer. One couple said they spend over $1000.00 per month on AC during the hot times of the year. Neither the husband enjoy extreme heat.  

We are down in Palm Springs for a few days. It's Allen's birthday. He wanted to celebrate there and he invited us along.

I have a pinched nerve somewhere in my back or shoulder. I've had it for a two or three weeks. I'm not in great pain. just a constant ache with intermittent finger and arm tigles. I've gone to the doctor about it. In the short run there is not much that can be done--improve my posture, stretch regularly, exercise. While I have a pinched nerve, I don't have a loss of strength or coordination, so this may be something my body just has to work out. If the pain continues for a few more months, then we can start scans. 

And back to work today. 

Aside from my Uncle's death, the holidays were festive. We had friends and family over for dinner on Christmas and New Years eve. We attended the brother-in-law's birthday party. We ate too much, especially cookies and cake. 

I'm not going to weigh my self till ext week. Let's see what the damage is after a week of normal eating.