Day 49: The Pain Is Real 😭

There are many ailments that can affect you but not keep you off the bike, unless you let them. A sprained ankle. Tennis elbow. Sinus congestion. The list goes on. But one of the worst for me is an ear infection.

At 02:00 this morning, while I was all snugged down on a brand new mattress, my head exploded with Technicolor pain. Apparently, the sinus pressure I was ignoring the past few days is actually an ear infection.

What adult gets an ear infection?! I asked myself this same question in 2019 when exactly the same thing happened to me while I was traveling in New Zealand. So apparently am that adult 🤦.

The pain is real. A cough sends me to my knees. A sneeze blows my eyeball out of its socket. Just swallowing is difficult. Eating? I ate some grapes this morning, but couldn't force the cheese down. The. Pain. Is. Real.

After riding about 200 miles despite almost no hearing in my left ear, I am now at an urgent care clinic in Corpus Christi to get as many meds as they will give me. This is horrible.

So long [for now]...

P.S.: It's not whining when the pain is real 🤣. Have I told you the pain is real? 😉Read more