Momentous Vomit Episode

I was just thinking about my friend LouAnn and how she has made me laugh in spite of everything going on. Back in June, she met me at Evergreen Hospital for my daily radiation treatment. We caught up over lunch afterward since I hadn't seen her for almost a year. After a describing the side-effects of treatment to her, she responded in her typically irreverent, but lovable sense of humor, "Oh, you mean you have torch-butt." Yeah, something like that, and we laughed and laughed over it even as my insides ached.

Last Monday night, I had dinner with LouAnn and my friend David at Divine on Roosevelt. We had planned this dinner for some time, but on the appointed day I suddenly felt nauseated and extremely tired, and didn't know whether I should cancel on them. Not wanting to disappoint them or myself, I drove to Seattle anyway and made my apologies for not feeling well. After feeble efforts to be lively and stay in the conversation, I got up abruptly from the table and excused myself to go to the bathroom. Once there, I promptly threw up. Evidently, it was something bad I ate earlier in the day but I hadn't made the connection until that moment. Once it was all over, I really did feel so much better and was able to re-join my friends at the dinner table. David and LouAnn were a little distressed on my account, but I was determined to salvage our dinner date. I didn't eat much after that, but at least I felt well enough at that point to enjoy their company and not make waste of such a fine evening.

When I called LouAnn later in the week to thank her for dinner and to apologize again for my momentous vomit episode, she again irreverently replied, "We'll have to get you a T-shirt that says, 'Throw up before you show up!'" More uncontrollable laughter at her craziness. That's classic LouAnn, and I wouldn't change her for the world. She reminds me that we have to find laughter even in the darkest and most dreadful aspects of life so that we can illuminate the moments that are good instead.