First of all, the Collar Countdown Clock is getting to be something of an embarrassment. It must be reset once again as Tanja reached out to schedule the crucial appointment today and, after all the various moving parts (in the schedule, not in Tanja) were accounted for, the new “go/no go” date is May 23. That makes the magic number 28. So we have dutifully donned our lead-lined jumpsuit, we’ve gone in and recalibrated the atomic clock that will track the countdown from here. For those of you satisfied with more approximate measurement, you will note that 28 days is roughly equivalent to four earth weeks. So, not next Tuesday, nor the one after that, nor even the following one, but then, yes, that next one will be the day.

And if you think too much is being made of the countdown, let it just be said that as Tanja improves–her legs strengthen, her arms regain range of motion, the sensation in her skin oscillates less drastically between extreme sensitivity and worrisome nothingness–as all these ameliorations gradually invest themselves in her, the one unchanging element is that goddamn neck brace. To be clear, she has never liked it, but these days it is as if her body were an orchestra, used to working together in diligently rehearsed movements, now thrown into disarray, each instrument desperately rehearsing its part before the piece begins, and as they one by one start to compose themselves and quiet, you can help but notice the one guy on the slide trombone who is still going at it as hard as ever. That’s what the collar is like. Unchanging. Unyeilding. Uncomfortable.

We are not fans.

Elsewhere, Tanja loaded the dishwasher today. Very difficult for her because of, you guessed it, the collar. Hard to look down. Hard to look up. But she did it. One wonders when the last time she went 7 weeks without loading a dishwasher was. And one shudders to imagine when the next time might be. But for now, never was a person happier to have accomplished such a mundane task.

There’s more to share about today–there’s always more–but I have to save something for tomorrow:)