Homecoming Blues

Yesterday was a tough day, at least for most of it. The morning wasn't too bad; I got up early, excited to be headed home. I figured that even if the elevator wasn't done, it should be sometime this week. I was ready for that. I was also expecting to get the parts for me wheelchair so it could be fixed. And finally, I would be home for a Trivia night. None of those things has worked out quite how I expected.

The elevator will take at least another three weeks. It seems that one of the core parts, the piston that lifts the elevator up and down, was the wrong size. Nobody measured it until they went to put it in. These parts are manufactured as needed, so the elevator company had to order a new one. It will not be in until this week at the earliest. After that they need to install it, finish the job, and get the elevator inspected. It all takes time.

Then there is the wheelchair fiasco. There are two small clips on my wheelchair which are broken. These clips hold the frame in place when the chair is folded up, and ensure the seat rails hit their holders when the chair is folded down. They are small, simply parts which have to be ordered from the manufacturer. When I left town, the service department at Medichair took pictures of the frame so they could order the clips. The manufacturer needed some additional pictures and information. Nobody thought to call me to ask for more pictures or information. It just waited until I got back.

There there is my Tuesday trivia night. The Unicorn Pub in downtown Calgary, a landmark in the city center, has lost its lease. This means Tuesday night trivia has had to relocate. The owner of the Unicorn is also the owner of the Libertine and the Below Deck Tavern. The venue at the Libertine is upstairs, with no elevator. The venue at the Below Deck Tavern is downstairs, with no elevator. In both cases, I am excluded. This will be a major blow to me. I will miss what over the last five years has been one of the regular highlights of my week. I will miss my friends. They will forget me; that's what I am afraid of. This is the biggest blow of all from yesterday.

Thanks to help from Katherine I am put up in the Holiday Inn Express for a week. Here I am almost home, at least home in Calgary. Here I can get in and out, do errands, go shopping. I am settled and she is with me; that makes a giant difference. After this week I will re-evaluate my location, perhaps spending the last two weeks in my apartment sans elevator. After all, I don't have Tuesday's with the gang anymore, and Katherine can walk up the stairs.