Yesterday, my wife and I drove to Seattle for a scheduled neurology appointment. I find myself miss-identifying common sounds and unable to discern their origin. Other times, I’m surprised by an unfamiliar noise coming either from my imagination or beyond. I told my neurologist about these mild aural hallucinations and learned it was a common symptom of advancing Parkinson’s.
Not a big deal,” I said, looking at the neurologist. She nodded in agreement.
The appointment went quickly. I enjoy speaking with my neurologist; it’s refreshing to talk about Parkinson’s absent sentimentality or misguided pity. We have a few laughs and don’t get mired down with maudlin future talk.
Soon after getting home, a loud “rat-a-tat-tat” made me shoot to my feet. It sounded like someone was on the roof with a pneumatic hammer; this was not what I had in mind when I cavalierly dismissed the importance of noise hallucinations.
I sheepishly yelled to Laurie in the other room, “Did you hear that?” It was becoming an all-too-common question of mine.
“No. You must be hallucinating.” Laurie replied.
Another violent staccato reverberated throughout the house. “Wow! I heard that!” Laurie yelled.
I ran outside just in time to see a woodpecker fly off our roof. I started laughing, raising my fist to the sky in mock fury, finding it incredibly funny that nature should pick this particular moment to f#&! with me.
The world is a curious place of untold beauty and mystery, waiting for our tacit approval to come out to play in nature’s wonderland. Now I have to wait another three months until my next neurology appointment to find out if bird harassment is typical of Parkinson’s.
Your time will come, woodpecker, your time will come…
Mr. Hunt, your story about the woodpecker reminded me of some of my father’s experiences when he battled Parkinson’s Disease.
I just found your blog and you are a fantastic writer. A friend of mine grew up on Long Island where he fell in love with wreck diving. He let me borrow “Setting the Hook” and a couple of other books on shipwrecks. He has a plate that he recovered from the Andrea Doria. I absolutely love the book, which reads like a thriller. I look for to reading your blog and your other books.
Take care and God bless.
Hi Janet, thanks for the kind words, it is great to have you in the blog readership! Welcome! Peter