A Day In My Life With Parkinson's Disease : Another Year Above Ground: John’s Extremely Dull Holiday Letter

Dear Friends and Family:

Introduction:

Well things have gone this year. Another year has almost passed by without me seeing my friends or family very much. I think that I contributed to a published article and was interviewed by an online magazine or two. Of course, all these mediocre accomplishments were related to the fact that I still have Parkinson’s disease. Medical science is moving forward and this year, two new drugs designed to slow or stop the progression of the disease failed and will never make it to market. Keeping my fingers crossed that 2022 will provide several opportunities for many new drugs to fail.

Career Achievements:

I have been working in the same position for about 3 years now without much hope of advancement or any real increase in pay. I am still in the “middle management” category of higher education. In August, I started working on campus 3 days a week. Since then, two students stopped by my office to complain about stuff, and I attended four in-person meetings and a retirement gathering. Due to my involvement in a clinical study, I may be able to achieve my ultimate career goal of working another 5 years and then retiring!

The Day-to-Day Stuff:

I managed to save a bunch of money on dry cleaning and our pre-owned Honda Civic is still running. I went to the dentist twice and I am considering having an orthodontist give me an estimate on getting my teeth straightened.


With April @ Green-Wood Cemetery

Cindy's Holiday Card

Exciting News About Friends and Family:

I was happy to receive Cindy’s holiday card, which was only mildly offensive this year, so my family allowed me to hang it up. (This is an inside joke. Each and everyone of Cindy’s holiday cards have been displayed in our home. If you ever received a holiday card from Cindy, you would understand.) I went to Point Pleasant NJ three times to see my parents and siblings. I am grateful to report that none of us were hospitalized this year, other than my older brother’s "cardiac event". Word to the wise; eating nothing but hotdogs is not a diet recommended by the American Medical Association. I ran into Sara Jane Sloves when taking my son to Ample Hills and we spoke for about 5 minutes. Recently, while taking a walk in Green-Wood Cemetery, I bumped into April Palmieri. Neither of us were there to attend a burial. A friend of hers, whose name I will never remember, took some pictures and I posted one here. I also managed to eat lunch with Sam Sloves twice and have photographic evidence of one of those occasions!