Shannon B. Chenoweth

So, today marked the day of my first epidural steroid shot for my herniated lumbar disk. In all honesty, I was nervous as heck. I could barely get down my lunch and dinner yesterday I had been thinking about it so much. Deep down, I knew I was more than likely over thinking the situation and that it wouldn’t be as bad as I had mentally worked it up to be.

Arriving at the surgery center with my mom (you can’t drive for at least 8 hours after the procedure), we were greeted by a very friendly front desk receptionist who checked me in and took all of my paperwork. A few minutes later, my name was being called and a nurse was leading us back into the procedure room. The nurse was very informative and nice. She took my vitals and asked me some initial questions. The doctor who would be doing the procedure then entered and introduced himself. He told me how the procedure would work and told me my fears were understandable.

I was then told to get on the nearby bed, lying flat on my belly. The procedure would be done with the assistance of an x-ray machines. My lower back was cleaned and prepped and then the doctor began. Initially, I felt the pinching of the numbing medicine he was putting into my back and spine. Then, the steroids were injected. This was uncomfortable and very odd at certain times. Not exactly a fun experience in the slightest. A few minutes later, it was over. I couldn’t have been happier.

The rest of the day has been okay. I’ve experienced some discomfort and pain in my lower back, but believe this will go down by tomorrow. Each shot apparently takes about 48 hours to start to have a noticeable effect and can take up to a week or ten days for the most relief. My second of the three shots is scheduled for next week. While I’m not looking forward to the experience again, I’m doing my best to think of how good I will be feeling in the coming weeks.

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On Friday, July 16th, I departed in my little Mazda bound for my favorite mountain town. There were 602 miles of road ahead of me. The drive out of Florida was fairly uneventful which was to be expected. I-95 isn’t exactly an exciting interstate. You have trees to your left and trees to your right. Driving on 95 is about as exciting as watching a pot of water boil on the stove.

As I was on this driving trip solo, I entertained myself with the completion of an audio book I had been listening to, as well as some podcasts and random music selections on my iPod. For the most part, I enjoy a good podcast. Done well, they can really be fun and educational. Sometimes though, you just need some good tunes to keep you going on the long journey.

Crossing the state line into Georgia, for the first time in a couple of hours, I let out a yell of excitement. Yes, I was out of the heat hole known as Florida! I’m not a fan of my current home state, not even a slight bit. I was born on Long Island, New York and my parents relocated the family here when I was a toddler. Having grown up here, I find the place anything but exciting. I would have no qualms about never coming back. I do have family and friends still in Florida, so they are the only bright specks of the Sunshine State for me.

The trek through the peachy state of Georgia ended being about as eventful. I do find the billboards boosting about fresh fruits and touristy crap interesting though. On one hand, the colorful signs are an eye soar on the interstate. On the other hand, they make a trip less boring. By the time I hit the state line for South Carolina, a smile crossed my face. A little over two hours to go of course, but I was oh so close to mountain land!

Before I knew it, I spotted signs indicating that the Paris of the South, aka Asheville was inching closer. Fairly tired of the driving, and with my back begging for a rest, I was extremely happy that I had almost reached my destination. Roughly ten hours after departing from Central Florida, I pulled into my friend Jess’ driveway in Asheville, North Carolina. It’s most certainly not an exciting road trip to make, but the end result, the sight of those beautiful mountains make it all truly worthwhile.

**more blog posts on my Asheville trip coming this week**

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There’s just nothing like having your life turned upside down by an injury. Oh yes, I totally recommend it to everyone. Of course, I’m being sarcastic. It is a horrible experience to have to endure. I was doing well, finally getting back into my workouts (not at such a high intensity, but still, back out there), and now I’ve taken two steps back.

The last six or so days, I’ve gradually had more and more pain and discomfort in my back. Seems to have started last Wednesday evening or thereabouts. The only thing I can guess is that the 5k the previous Saturday and then the gym workout last Monday, then followed by a rough session of physical therapy did me in. Was it too much too soon? Honestly, I don’t know. Neither does my doctor.

Yesterday, I went to work like any other day. I was not feeling well in the slightest. I did my best to drudge through the morning and was just so uncomfortable and in pain that I knew I had to do something. So, I got an appointment with my sports medicine doctor. After working a little less than half my scheduled shift, I left work to hopefully get some answers and more importantly, to get medication or something to help me feel better. The doctor didn’t tell me much that I didn’t already know, sadly. He did let me know that my back was a bit inflammed which was more than likely why I was in pain. He gave me some pain meds I could take without passing out in a sleepy stupor and some anti-inflammatory.

This experience has been beyond frustrating for me. It’s such a big hurdle in my longing to be fit and active now. I lost weight and planned on being active the rest of my life. It seems as though that the moment I found a sport I loved (running) that I hit the rock in the road. It continually feels as though it is impassable. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not even remotely giving up, but damn is this hard. I’ve been listening to my physical therapist and the doctor in regards to getting gradually back into my fitness regime, but even that seems to be difficult. My back just seems to want to win this “battle.” I refuse to go back to the old me and not be fit. So, the fact that I’m told not to workout at all for a week (like my dr told me yesterday) is a tough pill to swallow. Of course I’m going to listen, I don’t want to make my problem worse, but when do I get to take back my active life again?

Anyone out there going through or have you gone through something that you can relate to my current experience? If so, I’d love to hear your story. Post here in the comments or drop me an email.

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I meant to write and post this over the weekend, but just didn’t get to it time-wise with Mother’s Day and all. Overall, I had a great time at the race. Was nice to get back out there and do a 5k, even if I had to walk it due to my injury.

The race itself started at 7:30am at Pointe Orlando on International Drive. I got there about 10-15 minutes prior to race time due to traffic backups. I quickly checked in at registration and did the obligatory restroom stop. The registration packet at this race was in a big plastic bag and I quickly realized that I could not walk the event carrying it. So, I made a quick dash to my car to store it. Unfortunately, in doing so, I missed the official start of the 5k. Since I wasn’t running it, this didn’t bother me too much. I noted that I was beginning about five minutes behind the clock time and got to walking.

Due to my late start, I walked pretty much solo for most of the first mile before meeting up with other racers. This actually got my adrenaline really pumping, as honestly, I did want to catch up to some other people. I had to remind myself though to take it easy with my injury. I had to force myself to take it a bit easier than normal. I completed the first mile at just under 18 minutes which wasn’t too bad considering (note: this was 18 minutes my watch time, not actual clock time). Then, about one and a half miles in, I started to “run” into fellow racers. I passed a few people, ensuring I waved and said hello to each one. Since I wasn’t going for a PR due to not being able to run, I wanted to greet and offer support to whomever I could. I applaud anyone getting out there and doing them, no matter whether they are a runner or walker.

By the time I hit mile two, I started to see a lot of people. I saw firefighters walking the race in full gear which amazed me. Not only is that quite a challenge weight-wise, but in the Florida heat? The dedication and motivation those guys had was just awesome. Also, I saw Gary, a man who had a disability who was walking the race. Talk about an inspiration! As I passed him, and smiled, he was just as supportive of my endeavors. He offered his kind words right back at me in response to mine to him. That was such a nice moment.

I didn’t complete the race until almost one hour in. My time, it was just over 52 minutes from the race start. Official clock time was 57 minutes and change. Sure, I would have loved to have done the race in 45 minutes or thereabouts, but in the end, I was proud of myself. Just over a month ago, I was down and out for the count, and here I was back out there walking a 5k race again. A lot of people seemed to be surprised that I was back out as soon as I was. Bottom line is, I’m not willing to give up on my new found love for fitness and running. Even if it takes me longer to get fully back to where I was with running, I’m going to be out there walking races. It’s just what I love doing now, it’s a part of the new me.

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Some of you may or may not be aware that I have been working on a novel based upon a true murder that took place in Asheville, North Carolina in July 1936. The crime in question is that of the brutal killing of Battery Park Hotel guest, Helen Clevenger. Clevenger was a college student from New York in town visiting her Uncle. As the story goes, Helen was shot and beaten in her hotel room by a hotel bellboy, Martin Moore who later confused, saying that the murder was a robbery gone array.

I did quite a lot of research on the crime and the case during late 2008 and throughout 2009. I quickly came to the conclusion that there were far more questions than answers in the murder. Further, I’m not convinced that it was Moore who killed Miss. Clevenger. With these thoughts in mind, I contacted the Bumcombe County Court in hopes of getting hold of any court documents and/or police reports that have not been published. After a few phone calls, my aspirations of writing a true crime story on the event were crushed. The court records and accompanying police reports have long been destroyed.

Where does a writer go from here? After becoming quite invested in this story, I knew I couldn’t just stop and close up shop there. So, I embarked on writing a fiction tale based upon some of the events of that time. That was the book I worked diligently on during NaNoWriMo 2009 and continue to work on to this day. Not many a day goes by that I don’t think about my novel or the Clevenger case. When I was living in Western North Carolina, I found myself very drawn to the Battery Park Apartments (the hotel is now apartments for retirees). Even upon a brief return last May to pick up my remaining belongings from a friend from my move back to Florida, I had to see and photograph the Battery. The allure of the former hotel is felt in the Paris of the South, and I only hope my work of fiction can depict that feeling to the reader.

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About five months ago, I blogged about basically closing up my comic book writing projects and instead directing my focus onto novels and short stories. Well, I am happy to say that I have changed my mind on this front. My comic book ventures are now heading back onward into the light of day. There have just been too many opportunities and ideas that have come up in 2010 that I can’t dismiss. That’s the simplest way to explain it.

THE LINE. My cop book is already back in full swing. Eric will have issue #4 done by year’s end. I can’t give a more detailed time table than that right now. I am already seeking a new artist for issue #5 and beyond, as issue #4 will be Eric’s last book of The Line. Also, I am seeking a studio and/or publisher for the book.

HYPERSONIC. As I stated previously, Hypersonic was always going to be completed regardless of where I decided to venture creatively. So, I’m writing and revamping issues #2-4 presently. Stay tuned for updates here as well as on my co-creator and artist, Chris McCarver.

Those are the two books I’m putting my heart into this summer comic-wise. I will also be working on my novels and short stories. I have wanted to do a web comic with an artist for a few years now, so am inching along on that idea as well. Sadly, there are only so many hours in the day, so the web comic is further down on my “to-do” list these days.

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From the Associated Press:
A SkyWest Airlines flight from Helena, Mont., to Salt Lake City was diverted to Idaho Falls after a passenger began banging on the cockpit door, saying he was a space alien and wanted to fly the plane.

This is the greatest true news story I’ve heard in awhile. Makes you want to call up the FBI and page Agent Mulder to get on the case right away. How mentally ill does someone have to be to really believe that number one, they are not human and instead are an alien. Two, that they would not have garnered some sort of attention earlier on by people in the airport like security at the airport itself? I suppose that the guy might have had some sort of reaction to the elevation levels or something once the plane was flying. That or his medication wore off mid-flight. But, just to consider all sides or what have you of this story, what if this Las Vegas man truly *is* an alien? What if there really are aliens living here amongst us? As Agent Mulder would say, “Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?”

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In keeping with this month’s theme of “look up,” I couldn’t help but blog about Superman. No matter whether you are a comic book geek or simply a movie fan, the fictional superhero is known by all.

I myself am a comic book fan as well as a writer/creator, and Superman has always been and will always be a favorite of mine. Then there’s Supes’ alter-ego, Clark Kent. I definitely adore both the dorky side and the heroic side of the man.

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This month’s theme for NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) is “Look up.” I haven’t been a daily blogger for the last couple of months, but I’m going to give May a go on that front.

Look up makes me think of positivity. Keeping a good frame of mind on life, a good outlook on what might lie ahead. What does “look up” mean to you? What is the first thing that comes to mind? I will explore the theme more in future blog posts.

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Thirty days ago, I was suffering from horrible back pain. On April 1st, I went into my doctor only to discover I had injured my back. That brought on three weeks of no work and rest. Definitely not the April I had planned to have. It was anything but.

Thirty days later, I was back in the gym. Granted, I’m still recovering from my herniated disk injury (which will never truly be healed), but I am in a much better place than I was. It felt so good to get back into my fitness routine again. I won’t be running for at least another month, but in the meanwhile, I can hit up the treadmill, bike, weight machines and do pilates workouts at home. My current plan is to strengthen my back and legs so that once I am able to get back into running, it will come much easier. Today’s workout was a bit easier than past workouts, as I have to ease back in per the physical therapist. I spent some time on the treadmill, a brief time on the elliptical, cycled a couple of miles on the stationary bike and did some strength training.

Next Saturday, I will be getting back into the 5k race game with the I-Drive 5k in Orlando. I won’t be able to run the race of course, but nonetheless, I can’t wait to get back out there and walk it. It’s going to feel good to get back into the swing of things, so to speak.

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