Not a new Jane Austen novel, but my last week.

Last Tuesday I headed to Dallas for meetings on Wednesday.  When I got to Jason's house Tuesday evening, my back was really sore from sitting through the afternoon and my left hip was tender.  Overnight my hip was so painful I had great difficulty sleeping. 

My meetings at the cathedral on Wednesday went very well.  On Thursday I worked on the church newsletter, our stewardship campaign, and spent the afternoon with Jo Ferguson.

By Thursday evening the pain was increasing.

Friday I spent the day at Royal Lane, having breakfast with Lonnie and lunch with Harry and Kevin Sinclair.  By the time Michael and a big group of our friends arrived on Friday evening, I was in incredible pain and my left side was slightly swollen.  Michael got angry at me and insisted that we go to the ER either Friday night or Saturday morning.  I wanted to go out on Friday night, so we went to the ER on Saturday morning.

They ran a bunch of tests, but couldn't find anything.  They concluded that it was probably a pinched nerve and sent me home with prescriptions for a muscle relaxer and a painkiller.

The rest of Saturday we shopped, then went swimming at Saul and Todd's hotel.  That was followed by dinner, Bud Jones' birthday party, and then a night of dancing at S4.  The whole weekend we ran into numerous other OKC friends who were all in town for Dallas Pride.

Sunday morning, Michael, Danny Hites, and I left early so I could get back home in time for our church council meeting at 3:15.  I slept most of the way, doped up on my medicine.

We had a great evening at church.  Leslie Penrose was preaching, which was providential, since I was in no state to.  Leslie coordinates the UCC's partnership with ministries in Nicaragua.  She preached a great sermon.

Last night Michael and I finished season 3 of Six Feet Under.  I was start to feel a little sickly.  My body felt the way it does when it is combatting poison ivy.  I had first noticed some red bumps on Saturday night, but had more last night and many more this morning. 

Since the pain had started, I wondered if it was shingles.  I had been around two friends with shingles last week.  Today I'm pretty confident that that is what I have.  I can't get in to see my physician until Wednesday (he's still in Dallas today). 

I slept a lot this morning and have been lying here on the couch most of the day.