“A Day Off From ALS” Chapter 115

Nobody can be “ON” every day. Most people work 40 hour weeks and many work more than 40. Before joining the Army, I worked with my dad as a general contractor, and we worked around 50 hours a week. In the Army I worked way more than 50 hours, and it was only when I retired and started working as a Government Service Civilian employee that I started to work a 40 hour week.

On the days we are off work, most of us are working around the house cleaning, taking care of others, or even managing side hustles. Do we ever get time for a day off?  Maybe we can follow Bernie Sanders' suggestion to implement a 32 hour work week to get time off to relax?

Regardless of how you are able to get a break from work, we all must take time to ourselves.

Last Christmas my daughter Chantelle and her girlfriend Gabi gave me a foot bath so I could get a “Pedi.”  “Oh, thank you, that's very nice?” I thought to myself as my Eye Gaze betrayed me and said, “Thank you, I love it.” Because you can’t type the first thing out of your mouth, all my answers from my eye gaze are perfectly delivered. You can’t imagine how hard it is to write in “smart assness.” The timing is always off 😂🤣. After Christmas the box with the foot bath was put away.

Last weekend I was watching tv with Laura and Chantelle when Gabi entered the room with her thick Nicaraguan accent, saying, “Surprise! Are you ready for your spa day?” “Why of course,” I said, not knowing what a spa day really meant. Sure I have had a pedicure and different foot massages before, but I wasn’t sure I was ready for this.

Years ago, while visiting family in California, my sister-in-law Celia took Laura and I to get a $20 foot massage. I expected a simple foot massage that might be 15 minutes and done for $20 since it was a walk-in and we were in Cali, but since Celia was raving about it, I thought, “why not?" So off we went. We arrived to find a storefront with a small reception area, and a large, blue theater-like curtain separated the rest of the space. In the back were five chairs in a row about five feet apart with footbaths in front of them. The lights were low and meditation music playing in the background. The chairs themselves were red pleather, which could unfold into a massage table. Once we sat down, the foot massage began. Twenty minutes later, our feet were washed, lotioned, and massaged, and I was content with that being the end. But then the chairs turned into massage tables and for the next 40 minutes, we got a full body massage. I say it was not what I expected, but it was certainly WELL worth the $20.

Another time I was in Portugal with Laura and our daughter Dominique when I saw a store where you can get a $20 foot massage /pedicure by fish. The store was brightly lit with nothing blocking the view from others. There were a row of chairs up on a stage about two feet apart from each other. Each chair had a fish tank in front of them full of fish that looked like minnows. Once the attendant washed off my feet, he put them into the tank for the fish to get to work. The fish started nibbling all around my feet and between my toes. It tickled and really didn’t do anything, but my feet were hot and sore from walking all day so the cool water felt good. For what it was it was WELL worth the money.

So with my vast personal experience of massage and pedicures, I was fully ready and expecting my “Spa Day” with Gabi to be WELL worth the money.

Since we don’t have theatre curtains or a store full of foot nibbling fish, everything was done in my wheelchair in the living room.  Gabi started with breaking out the foot bath that had been put away weeks ago. She filled it with hot water and bubbly stuff that made my feet tingle. Although, the tingling could have been the result of blood rushing to my feet, because they turn purple every time they aren't braced up. Clippy-clippy and a scrubady-scrub, and my feet were ready for a rub. My toes curl so bad from ALS that they look like they belong on a 300 pound male ballerina. So when Gabi massaged my feet for over 10 minutes, it felt fantastic.

In the meantime, Chantelle broke out the facial mud. Like the $20 foot massage, I was not expecting anything more than my feet treatment, so when she started cutting a cucumber with a knife I was a little scared 🤣😂. After she placed the slices of cucumber over my eyes like silver dollar coins on a dead man in a western, I had to Google what she was doing.

“People put cucumber slices on their eyes primarily to reduce puffiness and dark circles under the eyes due to the cooling and hydrating properties of the cucumber, which can soothe the delicate skin around the eye area and create a refreshed appearance; this practice is often associated with relaxation and self-care routines.”

Ten minutes later, Chantelle cleaned off my face, popped the slices of cucumbers in her mouth, and I looked 10 years younger. “So fresh and so clean-clean.”

Next we were on to the manicure and hand massage. The girls rotated so when one was on the nails, the other was focused on my hands and arms. Since I take daily vitamins and mineral supplements, my nails and hair grow much faster than before. Cutting my nails is essential to prevent scratches.  Meow! The massage helps with the swelling and as much as the mani helps me keep my hands soft and supple to caress Laura’s hair, it’s also beneficial for me. Think about it ladies, how many times has your hair been pulled from a man with rough hands.

Finally, if all that was not enough, Gabi spent the next 45 minutes massaging and scratching my head, and told me that I will get this luxurious experience every month. The total package from head to toe took over two hours, but I didn't think about ALS the entire time. This was priceless and WELL worth the money. 

Sick or not, we all need to take time to focus on ourselves.

Love and Blessings 

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