Bunk’s Status

Hello everyone, it’s Beverly Wurth (Derek’s wife, Erica and Bunk’s sister-in-law). Tonight I’ll be pinch-hitting for Erica since she’s traveling back home to SF from the Wurth home in Orange. I just got off the phone with Sally and she said Bunk had a restful night until 3:30am this morning when upper body spasms kicked in and didn’t relent until hours later. While Bunk watched the Argentina and Germany World Cup match, Bill Morrison showed up to visit and Bunk got a kick out of Bill wearing Argentine colors. Bill also brought Bunk breakfast (quesadillas from Del Taco) which you know he appreciated. Bill accompanied Bunk and Sally to the 11am Occupational Therapy session which entailed the Swedish Aide and shoulder shrug exercises. Since there was no TV, Bill provided World Cup play-by-play via his PDA. After saying good-bye to Bill, Bunk and Sally returned to the room for lunch.Physical Therapy at 1pm was next on the schedule. Bunk was transferred from his chair to the standing table via the side board. Utilizing the standing table, the therapists gradually raise Bunk to a standing position, the process took 25 minutes and the last 5 minutes had Bunk standing straight up. Previous attempts got Bunk to ¾ standing so today was quite an accomplishment. He did very well but began to get dizzy so they slowly lowered him down. Keep in mind Bunk hasn’t been completely upright for 4 months. Speech Therapy came next at 2pm with lots of Guppy Breathing. Despite being tired and a bit chilled, Bunk was able to maintain his oxygen levels both on and off the ventilator while guppy breathing. The therapist recommended practicing the guppy breathing throughout the weekend. Rehab Engineering was next at 3pm. Red joined Bunk and Sally for this session since it is very much a “guy’s shop.” The engineer they worked with is a paraplegic with a construction background who delights in creating adaptive pieces that allow patients more freedom. He rigged Bunk’s wheelchair with a rear-view mirror and also custom made a Plexiglas and aluminum tray. The tray attaches to Bunk’s chair and will allow him to read on his own, tomorrow’s newspaper will be the first trial. Back in Bunk’s room he had a routine lower body x-ray at 4pm followed by a visit from good friend Owen Gonder and dinner: chicken and 2 pieces of pie (for you bakers out there: one piece banana cream, the other chocolate cream). He did a great job drinking fluids all day today. He had wonderful phone calls with cousins Adam, Ray and Nate and good friends John and Roger. He eased into the evening and was asleep by 9:30pm. Red was settling in as Sally left them to sleep. Sally asked me to extend a very heartfelt thank you to everyone for their prayers and well wishes. I ask that you include Red and Sally in your prayers, as I’m sure many of you have and keep a continued focus on Bunk’s breathing.

After speaking with Mom on the phone tonight about Bunk, his day, and how they were all doing, by all accounts it really seemed to be a nondescript day in the life of a quadriplegic at Craig: restless sleeping, chills throughout the day, therapy sessions, appointments with doctors, and so on. However, the one exception to this routine was the respiratory therapist stopping in unannounced early this morning to do another FVC test on Bunk. Barely awake, yet managing to be cooperative, Bunk pulled down 200 cc’s this morning, which is absolutely incredible news! The fact that he managed this three days in a row can only be seen as greatly positive news. The cc levels are bound to vacillate, but as long as he can keep it going, it seemsimpossible to avoid reaching for the stars. The bulk oftheir day was concerned with the family meeting with all the therapists and doctors to discuss Bunk’s current situation and his imminent discharge from Craig. It remains to be seen if Bunk will stay at Craig, or transfer tothe rehabhospital we have chosen that is much closer to home. By far, the largest concern is making certain the small capabilities he has sustained will remain intact. Amidst all the fussing over facilities and their respective protocols,without hesitation, Bunksaid he wantedto return to Southern California to the new rehab hospital because, as he told his doctors at the meeting, ” I want to go home andbe near my friends and family.” The realization of the importance of this to Bunk made Mom and Dad both cry, hopefully undetected, at today’s meeting. Dr. Balazy, Bunk’s lead doctor at Craig, commented at the meeting today that surely Bunk’s unique personality has been a great force in helping him deal with his injury and subsequent situation; and that he is incredibly resilient and positive. I think Bunk felt quite pleased with himself upon hearing this from his lead doctor - I would hazard a guess that Dr. Balazy, too, didn’t think Bunk would ever progress! The family meeting sent the entire schedule of therapies packing; Bunk did meet with the occupational therapist to finesse the fittings of the green machine just a bit more, and she also completeda set ofrange of motion exercises on his neck and arms. The intense chills Bunk has been experiencing are often helped by going out of doors to soak up the warm sunshine; he and Mom did just that, enjoying their time together in the garden as Bunk warmed up. A meeting with Dr. Gerber followed, in which he continued some of the neuro psychological testing he had begun earlier in the week. Bunk was helped back into bed for his 5:30 acupuncture appointment, and for the massage therapy which immediately followed. He was helped out of bed again and into his wheelchair with the sling in order to have a shower. Bunk’s visitors tonight were great conversation for him, and Andy Behr and his two daughters Veronica and Madeline stopped by to spend some time with him. Jason Rieger, president of quad rugby, and AJ Nagle (former patient at Craig) and his wife also stopped in for a great visit. For a fifth day running, it is safe to report another good day for Bunk! Tomorrow is a big day with another FVC test. Please remember Bunk in your prayers tomorrow at 12:30 in a moment of silence. Thanks to all of you for sharing a large piece of your heart with Bunk, and for keeping him in the crosshairs of your daily prayers and thoughts. Our gratefulness abounds!

Bunk’s day today seemed quite uneventful in relation to yesterday’s. It was typical in that the schedule was largely the same as most Wednesdays, atypical in that he felt good for his fourth straight day. I almost chose not to mention for fear of ending the 4 day streak! Both Mom and Dad stayed with Bunk last night, and although Bunk didn’t really sleep much, he said he did get some rest. His 10:00 physical therapy appointment focused on using e-stim on his right shoulder in order to strengthen the muscle; Bunk and Mom had been requesting the e-stim for his shoulders (not just his neck muscles) for some time now. The therapist did range of motion exercises with his legs, and he felt it was a good therapy session. As it seems to have become part of the daily routine, Bunk came down with a bad case of the chills and asked to be taken outside between therapy classes. Mom took Bunk outside to the garden to warm him up in the sunshine for a little over ½ hour. The great thing about this particular outing to the garden was that Bunk suggested it first, and continued to ask until someone took him outside! It’s wonderful to see him initiating activities and ideas, as it is more typical of Bunk’s personality. They returned to his room at 12:30, and during his lunch he was visited by Charlie Butler, of course, and also A.J. Noble, who is a former patient at Craig. Occupational therapy was to have been at 1:00, except the transport team arrived to take him to a phantom appointment with a doctor at Swedish Hospital next door. It took Bunk and Mom quite by surprise, as neither knew anything about the appointment, and they didn’t want to miss his occupational therapy session. By the time they realized their mistake and corrected it, Bunk had already spent over an hour cruising Swedish Hospital, and missed out on his hour long OT class. Bunk was helped back into bed at 7:00 tonight in order to get some rest for a bid day tomorrow with another scheduled Forced Vital Capacity test. He ate a great dinner, drank lots of fluids today, and even took his nutritional supplements. Please pray as hard as ever for Bunk and his ability to breathe. Still, Bunk will need to prove time and again that he does indeed have some movement in his diaphragm and is worthy of the weaning process. Bunk, Dad and Mom all will be attending a “˜team’ meeting tomorrow with the group of Bunk’s doctors and therapists to (ostensibly) discuss departure from Craig. We’ll know better tomorrow afternoon if his capturing of 300 cc’s might want to have them keep him at Craig for purposes of weaning or not. Thank you for your continuing prayers in this regard, and for his healing and recovery in general. Thank you to everyone also for staying in such close contact with Bunk, eitherin person, via the blackberry, or via guest book messages. He always loves to hear from each of you!

Last night, I began by asking for your renewed prayers for Bunk and his breathing because the physician’s assistant to Bunk’s pulmonologist came by his room to discuss the results of the latest set of his chest x-rays. She found what looked to her like some kind of movement in his diaphragm, since one side was lower than the other, which she had never seen in his x-rays before. They wanted to test his forced vital capacity last night, but Bunk said he would prefer to wait and be tested today. After this morning’s urological procedure, he went in for a fluoroscopy test - a test used to indicate movement of the diaphragm. Unfortunately, they were unable to detect any movement in Bunk’s diaphragm during the rather short visit with the x-ray machine. Everyone was slightly frustrated and dejected, but Bunk picked up the pieces and carried on. Fast forward to later this afternoon and the second test of the two the physician’s assistant ordered - the forced vital capacity test. In today’s Huge News, one of Bunk’s favorite respiratory therapists dropped by his room just as his acupuncture was about to begin; he and Bunk decided it would be a good time to do the FVC test. He asked Bunk to try to breathe in and breathe out as he turned off the vent; Bunk, Mom and Dad tried not to get their hopes up too much after this mornings failed fluoroscopy, so Mom and Dad kept busy in the “˜living room’. That is, until they heard the respiratory therapist exclaim, “Dude, you did it!”and raced over to Bunk to find a huge grin and a tear rolling down his cheek. The therapist was crying, the nurse was crying, Mom and Dad, too - all united in the unspoken awareness of the massive significance the 300 cc’s that Bunk had managed. Gratefulness, relief, joy: I’m not certain how I can describe how we, and especially Bunk, all felt upon hearing the news. Certainly, we all feel incredibly blessed by God to be the fortunate recipients of your devotion - and of your powerful, true prayers. The day leading up to this huge moment was a good one, but everything seems to pale in comparison. He woke up at 8:00 for a 9:00 urological procedure, returning to his room to watch the World Cup prior to his fluoroscopy test. At 1:00 he had his manual therapy appointment which has been very successful in managing the pain in his jaw, face, neck and head. Lunch was taken during his speech therapy session where the e-stim was employed again; Bunk’s swallowing continues to get stronger. If not for the incredible news about Bunk’s 300 cc capacity, the day’s biggest news would have been his success at very nearly standing up in the “˜standing chair’ during his combined occupational / physical therapy session. Bunk was very tired leading up to the appointment, but he really had his heart set on giving the standing chair his best shot. He did phenomenally well for a first attempt - no dizziness, fainting or shortness of breath, and he made it ¾ of the way upright; apparently ¾ upright is almost unheard of for a first pass at “˜standing’ after sitting and being horizontal for so long.
Bunk had his shower early tonight in order to get back to bed in time for his acupuncture and massage therapies - and of course the FVC test! Bunk and our family are secure in the knowledge that your prayers, love, and support, and God’s great grace are essential determinants in Bunk’s healing and recovery. Godspeed, Bunk! We are so proud of you and the unstoppable force of your positive will, all displayed with complete grace, composure, and wisdom.

Mom and Dad requested that I begin tonight’s update with a renewed request for very focused and intense prayers in relation to Bunk’s breathing capabilities and movement of his diaphragm. Over the next few days Bunk will be undergoing further testing of his diaphragm and forced vital capacity. If there ever was a time to focus these prayers on this particularly crucial need, it would be now. Having said that, today was a great day for Bunk: in both therapy and in disposition. He slept well last night, woke up early to watch the World Cup, was up in his chair again today without the need of any blood pressure meds or his abdominal binding, and required little to no airway suctioning today. Speech Therapy began at 1:00 with the e-stim procedure again; it was used while he ate his lunch. During ST, Dave Denniston and his mother stopped in for a visit from California. Dave, a former patient at Craig who now attends Project Walk in Carlsbad, California, came by to offer support and great company for Bunk and our parents. The visit wasn’t long, and he managed to finish all of his lunch, including - Uncle Ron will be happy to hear this - buckets of water! Everyone’s encouragement is much appreciated and, as evidenced, very useful. It seems he has been taken to drinking water between each bite of food, per the instructions of his speech therapist, and this alone has kept his fluid intake at all time high levels. Physical therapy began at 1:00 in the gym; the therapist worked on his shoulder and neck muscles, and Bunk rode the moto med for 25 minutes straight. His 2:00 occupational therapy session took Bunk out of doors in his wheelchair on a lovely day for about a ½ hour; his foray included navigating crosswalks, signals, and sidewalks. He did very well and went over the mechanics of the chair a bit more with the therapist. Since his blood pressure has been improving, they will be looking into getting the staff to approve Bunk’s use of the “˜standing table’ so he can experience, at least once prior to leaving Craig Hospital, what it feels like to stand again. Dr. Gerber came in at 3:00 to conduct some neuro psychological tests and talk with Bunk. Bunk commented to Dr. Gerber that he felt he was becoming “˜mentally lazy’ and that he needs to begin working on that, too. In order to further this perceived mental laziness, be proceeded to spend the remainder of the afternoon watching the championship College World Series game between OSU and UNC. He was helped back into bed around 8:00 and he and Dad ended the evening watching “˜Open Range’. Thank you for your love and prayers tonight and always.

Bunk was up well into the night talking with Eric, finally getting to sleep around 2:00 in the morning. It was another morning of getting up into his chair without the need for blood pressure medicine or his abdominal binding, which makes the entire transfer process less difficult. When Mom returned from Mass, she found Bunk chatting with his second surprise visitors of the weekend, his friend Al Amato (Servite ‘88) and his wife Stephanie. Mom was able to bring communion back to Bunk from church, and they blessed him with some holy water. Bunk’s request for del Taco was honored, with Al and Stephanie going to get lunch for everyone. While they were away, another Servite classmate, Bill Morrison and his wife arrived for a visit, too; as a landscape architect, Bill has been very helpful in planning the landscaping and access to the house and property for Bunk. Al, Bunk and Bill spent the afternoon reminiscing about Servite coaches, sports, teachers and the mayhem of youth in general. Bill and his wife will be stopping by to visit again prior to Bunk much anticipated return home. There is some slight anxiety for Bunk regarding his return home: the flight, getting accustomed to a new hospital, nurses and doctors - all while on a ventilator. Please remember Bunk and our parents as they gear up for the transfer, and as they begin to live through it. Al and Stephanie; Bill and his wife left around 4:00, all followed by a visit from Andy Behr and his two daughters Veronica and Madeline. Bunk enjoyed his hour long visit with them just before heading off for his shower; he felt better and more awake after his shower, but unfortunately his battle with the chills that had been going on all day was getting worse. Mom and Dad bundled him in five blankets and a stocking, and he eventually warmed up a bit. Bunk spasms have been increasing as of late since they reduced his anti-spasm drug by half earlier this week. He’s dealing with them well, but will be speaking with his doctor about how to reduce them just enough so he can get through his therapies and day. Earlier in the day, Bunk did promise Mom and Dad that he had done his shoulder blade squeezes while in bed since they wouldn’t be going to the gym today. A small, quick dinner before Dad and Bunk decided to watch a DVD together for old time’s sake. Bunk had an intense social calendar at Craig the past few days, and what could easily be called a very good weekend! The surprise and scheduled visits from everyone helped to keep his spirits up and his sights on returning home. We had another busy but productive day here at Mom and Dad’s, very nearly finishing up with all the moving, which couldn’t have been done without the help of the usual suspects in our family, with the addition today of Bunk’s good friend from rugby and Servite Greg Schirmer, and of course Rob and Lora Easley and their children. Thanks again to all of you for all that hard work and sweat today! Please continue those incredible prayers for Bunk’s breathing abilities and general well being and recovery.

After the surprise visit from Eric Fischer at midnight on Friday night, Bunk managed a good night’s rest and was allowed to sleep in until 11:00. Bunk accomplished this for the second day straight without any blood pressure medicine or the use of abdominal binders. Mom specifically asked me to mention that this is fantastic - a really great improvement for Bunk. Uncle George and his wife Nancy arrived today around noon; they brought two very nice Polo shirts for Bunk, and for Dad - a bottle of Scotch! They all enjoyed lunch together out in the garden in the pleasantly warm weather, which always helps Bunk deal with his chills a little better, which began much earlier, and continued throughout the day. Just before a thunderstorm struck, they all returned to Bunk’s room to catch some World Cup action, while Eric (FishPie) remained loyally by Bunk’s side for the entirety of his visit, just chatting and being comfortably present, as old friends are wont to do. Mom and Dad both commented that Eric’s visit was such a blessing, coming at absolutely the perfect time to lift Bunk’s spirits. Showing off a bit for his Uncle George, Nancy and Eric, Bunk did his shoulder exercises, and he and Mom and Dad felt that his shoulder blade squeezes were the strongest to date! We are always happy when Bunk does his shoulder exercises, because of their proximity to that all important diaphragm! The big discussion today was about Bunk’s personal workout plan, outside of the rehab and therapy plans; it includes shoulder exercises, neck and jaw exercises, and a routine on the moto med for both arms and legs. He was eager to have his own plan that can be done on his own time, without the constraints of therapists and appointments. Eric read the guestbook entries to Bunk, before he nodded off for a short nap. While Bunk slept, Eric offered to stay with Bunk so Mom and Dad could go out for dinner and drinks with Uncle George and Nancy, which proved to be a really enjoyable time for the four of them. They brought dinner back for the boys, returning to find them chatting, watching T.V., and using the computer together. When Mom left Bunk, Dad and Eric at 11:00 to return to the Marriot the guys were all enjoying a movie together. Eric took his leave around midnight, saying his goodbyes since he will be leaving early in the morning for a business trip. At the end of the day, it proved to be a good one for Bunk, despite his battle with the chills, which lasted for most of the day. Our day on Saturday in Orange was choc full of dirty, tiring work that went late into the evening. It was a hugely productive day that will continue on Sunday. None of this work could have been done without the tireless efforts and truly unconditional love of our family: our cousins Mike and Lori Killeen and their sons Jimmy and Michael; cousin Jimmy Killeen and his son Nick; cousin Cathy Killeen and her son Scotty; cousins Stephanie and James Bermudez and their son Adam; cousin Julianne Merys; Aunt Mary Catherine Merys; and Aunt Roselind and Uncle Phil Killeen, and cousins . We were joined later in the day by Beverly, Derek, Jack and Katie, who had been celebrating Jack’s birthday. Happy 8th Birthday, Jack! Also arriving in the afternoon were my great friends Rob and Lora Easley and their children Will and Ella, who drove all the way from the San Francisco Bay Area to stay the week and help me out with getting Mom and Dad’s house ready for the onslaught of both the construction and the triumphal return home of Bunk, Mom and Dad! Tom and Sarah Brandt and their three children (I apologize for not remember all the names!) came by in a great show of support with homemade cookies and brownies and a little muscle, too! The support, hard work, prayers and love in action of each of you is absolutely amazing, and our family is so grateful for your presence in our lives.
Thank you all for your prayers, and for remember the 12:30 prayer observance in Bunk’s honor - sorry I forgot to remind you on the update!

Sorry again for the tardy posting of Bunk’s status update. It won’t become a usual occurrence, I am down at Mom and Dad’s and we are beginning the laborious process of getting everything ready for the construction and Bunk’s return to Orange Co. Bunk slept well on Thursday night, most likely somewhat related to the surprise midnight visit from his good friend Eric Fischer, whom most of you would recognize as “FishPie’. Eric opened the hospital room door, walking right in with his suitcases in hand, coming directly from the airport, sure in his knowledge that visiting Bunk at any time would be great! And, naturally, it was. Bunk was awake, and Eric’s arrival made his day, and he still managed to fall asleep. When the morning and Mom arrived, the first thing Bunk said to Mom was, “Guess who came to see me last night?!” He was up by 9:00 for his 10:00 physical therapy appointment, where they worked on transferring Bunk on a slide board as opposed to the sling / lift. Bunk had been anxious to get going with the slide board transfers quite some time ago, so he was happy to finally be getting it under way. The transfer “˜experiments’ with the slide board went well, and will take some training for all family, caregivers and friends involved, but will definitely be worth the effort for Bunk. He returned to his room, met with a few doctors and ate a fairly decent lunch. At 1:00, Bunk, Eric and Mom went to his occupational therapy session in the gym, and Eric made sure to take detailed notes of everything discussed regarding the mechanics of Bunk’s new “˜Green Machine’ wheelchair. They returned to Bunk’s room, and both Bunk and Eric decided an afternoon nap was in the cards, so Bunk dozed in his chair, Eric on the sofa - Mom paid the bills. Upon waking up, Bunk was coming down with the chills just as Joanna called on their way back to Denver to see if they might bring dinner for everyone. Joanna, Ted, Vivienne, and Ava arrived around 7:00 with some delicious Italian food, which prompted Bunk to eat very well! They all had a wonderful visit, with Vivienne and Ava insisting that the favorite thing about their summer vacation was spending time with Uncle Bunk. The girls brought Bunk all sorts of little items that they collected on their stay in Telluride: rocks, pieces of tin, leaves, etc. He loved them all! Special thanks to the Luthin family for making last weekend and this weekend very special for Bunk, Mom and Dad. At 9:00 Bunk took a shower, which always seems to wake him up and make him feel slightly more chipper. Charlie Butler arrived while he was in the shower, and Charlie, Eric and Bunk, who all attended Servite together, had a wonderful time together. Although Mom felt is was bedtime, (she always feels that it’s bedtime) she and Dad happily obliged when Bunk asked that they bring some chairs up to his bedside so Eric and Charlie could sit next to him and visit for a while longer. In Friday’s mail Bunk received a package from Amy Striebel, a friend of Chris O’Donnell’s, who has some sort of connection with Neil Diamond. Amy managed to get Neil to address a picture personally to Bunk, with kind words and positive wishes being sent his way. Naturally, Bunk was thrilled - being the huge Neil Diamond fan that he is. Bunk eventually fell asleep, after a good day in which he admitted to Dr. Gerber that he felt better, wished he could sleep more, but that anything was better than earlier this week. Everyone is looking forward to a potentially great weekend for Bunk, with Eric’s continued presence and a visit from our Uncle George and his wife Nancy. Many special thanks tonight to our cousin Mike Killeen for organizing the entire work day at Mom and Dad’s to clear the north side of the house. Also many thinks to cousin Jimmy Killeen for getting the tractor and driver all together by calling in a valuable favor owed to you by a colleague, to our good friend Billy Seitz, and of course, Derek. All four guys did an outstanding job today in spite of the backbreaking labor that doing any type of project on our parent’s house requires. Things are looking great, and as Mike said: “It’s great just to get things started!” Thanks as always for those strong, hopeful prayers. Please pray for continued improvements, the ability to breathe, and for a serious all encompassing recovery for Bunk.

Sorry for the delay in getting yesterday’s update posted - I was in the process of getting down to Mom and last night for this coming work week-end / week and have only now arrived, ready to begin writing the post. Bunk met up with his old mattress Wednesday night, which allowed for more comfort, but only slightly more sleep than the night before; he also required more airway suctioning than usual last night. The World Cup match of US vs. Ghana was basically the focus of his morning - in the end, he was disappointed - but he made sure he was up and ready for his 10:00 physical therapy appointment. Today they focused primarily on range of motion exercises, and when time was up, Bunk and Mom made their way to the Moto-med so Bunk could exercise his legs, this time for 16 minutes. It has been some time since Bunk has had the energy, stamina and drive to apply himself physically at the therapy sessions, but today he was definitely feeling a bit better and was able to do so. The therapeutic Manual Therapy session began at 11:00, and the therapist worked his neck, face and jaw joints and muscles. Bunk said after this appointment that it is finally beginning to soothe the discomfort in his jaw. We are hoping to arrange for a manual therapist - either at Craig, or his new destination - to visit him three times per week instead of two, in an effort to treat the source of the pain, rather than just the symptoms. Back in his room between appointments, he managed to get a little rest, despite the steady stream of doctors coming and going from his room to check on him. He’s found a polite and simple way out of talking with the doctor’s: sleep. The modified barium swallow test had been rescheduled for Thursday afternoon, as requested by the pulmonologist, and while it was somewhat dicey in that he had to swallow twice each time to get the food or liquid to go down, he did pass the test. In any case, Bunk had no intention of changing his eating and drinking habits at this point, but was happy that the formality of the test put the worries to bed. Since there is room for improvement with regard to his swallowing, the speech therapist recommended that he resume the e-stim therapy on his neck muscles, which will begin Friday. Bunk, Mom, Dad and the therapist all agreed it was a good idea. His 3:00 occupational therapy appointment centered on Bunk driving around in his new wheelchair, which apparently is set at a higher speed default. Mom reported that this was the cause of a few small mishaps and that they will set the speed at something more comfortable for Bunk - and for the rest of the people using the corridors. Following OT, Bunk returned to bed early in preparation for his usual acupuncture and massage therapies on Tuesday and Thursday nights. The massage therapy in particular helped Bunk to feel better than he has in some time. Today was a good day in that it was better than yesterday: Bunk clearly looked and felt better, and his spirits were much improved as evidenced in his more typical banter with the staff and all those around him. Mom and Dad had to move out of the apartments Thursday morning, and moved as much as they could fit into the car, and then headed over to the Marriott where almost everyone who has visited Bunk has stayed. The prayers everyone has been saying for a better day for Bunk have been a large part of the simple success of his day. Thank you as always for your enduring support and dedication to Bunk and his healing. Dad and Bunk were resting around 9:00, watching the History Channel special on the seven wonders of the natural world, both ready for a good night’s sleep after a peaceful day.

It’s always so difficult to write about Bunk on his more difficult days, and today was just that - slow, exhausting and difficult. Bunk, and therefore Dad, didn’t sleep much at all last night, in large part due to the new self turning mattress. Today he insisted on getting his old mattress back in his possession in order to get some sleep tonight. Bunk does get irked when he hasn’t had his sleep, and there has been no evident change in this regard! Although he did manage to get out of bed and into his chair around 9:30 for his 10:00 “fitting clinic”, Bunk was thoroughly exhausted and practically slept through the entire fitting of his wheelchair. The therapists spent two hours fitting the wheelchair to suit Bunk, stopping to administer oxygen because he was feeling so short of breath. When they finished he was able to return to his room for rest - he dozed while watching the World Cup, of course. The speech therapist cancelled the barium swallow test that was scheduled for today because Bunk couldn’t wake up, and there is always the chance that he wouldn’t do well on the test if he were too tired to even make an effort. The entire crew of doctors stopped by to check in on Bunk this afternoon: infectious disease, oral surgeon, pulmonologist, neuropsychiatrist, general doc., etc. They are becoming increasingly worried by what they are calling an “infiltration” in his right lung. They have started Bunk on antibiotics, as I mentioned the other night, but things remain somewhat unidentified since he hasn’t had a fever, and doesn’t have an elevated white blood count. The oral surgeon said he would like to remove the two upper wisdom teeth and the decayed tooth, but his pulmonary status would have to improve first. He reassured Bunk that he really felt the problems with his teeth were not contributing to the pain in his jaw. The two lower wisdom teeth will need to be extracted, too - but this is a more difficult procedure, requiring more recovery time, and the surgeon felt Bunk should wait until he returns home before having that done. After the parade of doctors, Bunk decided on an early shower, which we all agree was about time: he hadn’t showered in 4 days! He even let Mom shave him; Mom said he looked great after his shower, and felt better, too. Bed beckoned earlier than usual tonight, and once back in bed, Bunk commented how much more comfortable he felt (on his old mattress.) Food wasn’t a priority for Bunk today, but he did manage to eat a bit for dinner tonight, and, in spite of his increased secretions throughout the day, said he felt a little better. Bunk was eager to hear his guestbook entries tonight, so Mom went up to the 3rd floor family room computer to print them out. She found Bunk fast asleep when she returned, which was just before 9:00 pm. Mom did make the comment that, in the end, it was a very peaceful day, and a great thing that he fell asleep earlier than usual. Mom and I were talking today about the need to always be quietly and gently positive and happy for Bunk, especially on his tougher days. The stress and anxiety his condition causes Mom, Dad, and everyone who is involved with Bunk is recognizable to him and causes him great grief, which leads him to be anxious and worried about us. Anyone who knows Bunk, knows that he is sensitive to the comfort and happiness of all those around him; we owe it to him to be happy and confident in the given moment. Earlier in the evening, Mom was outside on her way back to the apartment and she ran into another patient (a paraplegic) who is also living in the apartments. As they were talking, Mom verbalized her worries about Bunk being so fragile, unwell and on a ventilator. This gentleman, who has seen and spoken with Bunk only on a few occasions, gently but immediately reminded Mom that “yes, but your son is a fighter.” Bunk, Mom and Dad are again, truly humbled by the evidence of your loving prayers. We can’t imagine where his life would be right now without those prayers - we ask every night for your prayers, and everyday you offer them. Please pray tonight for even a slightly better day tomorrow, his breathing, - and for the proliferation of healing and hope. Thanks also to all the incredibly moving offers of help for the construction on Mom and Dad’s house. We will be in touch with each of you personally! In the meantime, this Saturday and Sunday we will be working to clear out the entire Tipsy (2nd floor of the garage), ½ of Dad’s shop in the garage, the attic, and the basement of the house in order to prepare for the construction. The majority of the items will go into a storage “˜pod’ for the Junk for Bunk sale, and some will be tossed: all will be removed so we can begin work as soon as possible. If you know my parents and have seen their “collections” you would understand that this is no easy task! If there are any volunteers to help with somewhat heavy moving and lifting for both days, or even just one day this weekend, please let us know! We are forever grateful to each of you for everything you do to help Bunk and in turn our family. You each help to improve his life in untold and humble ways.