Two weeks ago, I took my first vacation since Jeff passed away in May. Decided to leave the country. Traveled to Costa Rica prompted by a friend who had lost her husband 4 years ago last week. It was a bit weird; I wasn’t quite sure how to feel. There was guilt, loneliness, sadness, joy… relief!! An entire gimmish of emotions. So many folks asked “Are you traveling alone?”

My plan was to arrive home Tuesday to allow a day of recovery prior to my busy clinic on Thursday. Unfortunately I ended up spending Wednesday reviewing references for a book chapter. Completely exhausted on Thursday evening, I decided to celebrate Jeff’s birthday by heading to the Superbowl to support our team -- GoPats! The drive there was intense and laborious; traffic at most major cities on the way down to ATL from Winston Salem. The vendors would not sell me a single ticket – they needed to sell 2 or more to keep seats together. But finally someone said they were interested in a single and we paired.