The Outsiders

Not much new to report on Jerry, but here are some general observations from my most recent visit to Houston:

There are three different types of guests at the Residence Inn by Marriott Houston Medical Center/Reliant Park. There are the Insiders, the Newcomers, and the Outsiders. The Insiders and the Newcomers are all there for the same reason. They're sick and they're there to get better. As the hotel name suggests, it is very handy to the Houston Medical Center, and the hotel operates its own shuttle, which I like to call the Cancer Van. I suppose you don't actually have to have cancer to ride in the Cancer Van, but the odds are that you, or someone you know, have something, if you're on it.

The Insiders are old pros and know all the ins and outs of getting around. For example, they know that the Mays Clinic, on the M. D. Anderson campus, has only been called the Mays Clinic for a few months. It was previously known as the ACB building, and is also sometimes referred to as Entry Number Seven. This information is important to know when you call the Cancer Van to come pick you up, because some of the Cancer Van Captains still call the Mays Clinic the ACB building.

It's alot like the pubs in Wexford, Ireland. Let's say that Flannigan owned a pub for many years and called it Flannigan's, then sold his pub to O'Leary. Well, of course, the first thing O'Leary does is change the name to O'Leary's, which includes putting up a brand new shiny sign. Twenty-five years later, the locals all still call it Flannigan's, which is fine, because I still call Foley's Sanger-Harris, even though it's Macy's now.

It is also similar to the Cat Room at Nolie and Jerry's house. Cats have not lived at Nolie and Jerry's house for quite some time, but there is still a room called the Cat Room. A more accurate name for the room would be the Junk Room, or the Gift Wrapping Room, or even sometimes Lomamma's Room (my grandmother), but it's still called the Cat Room because that's the room where Mama Cat had her kittens when I was in the ninth grade. Today, in the Cat Room, while looking for wrapping paper, I discovered yet another sphygmomanometer bringing the grand total of sphygmomanometers owned by Nolie and Jerry to four.

Newcomers quickly graduate to Insiders, as Nolie and Jerry have. You can tell that you've graduated when you learn that you need to call for the Cancer Van while you're still up on the eighth floor, not once you've come down to the valet parking stand; the hotel employees recognize you by name; and you no longer need to print directions to get from the Diagnostic Center to the Genitourology Center. Also, if you know all the other dog guests by name, that's a big clue.

There are not always Outsiders around. The Outsiders come and go in groups. The most recent group of Outsiders were the Kansas State fans. Gobs of purple sticking out at breakfast and happy hour amongst the mask wearing Cancer People. The Purple Outsiders shove up to the front of the line, cause bottlenecks at the waffle station, and pile up more food on their plates than they can possibly eat, leaving much to waste. Portion control people, don't they still practice that in the residence halls? They are loud, boisterous, and up all hours of the night with way more people in each room than local occupancy laws allow. Hey, I was a punk college kid once. I get it. I'm just not one anymore.

Jerry's next big day is Thursday, when he will have more bloodwork done to make sure he's OK for another round of chemo. to begin on Friday.