What A Whirlwind Week It Was

Adrenaline does amazing things. It can give you a sense of superhuman strength. It can push you to accomplish things you can only dream of. It can keep you awake and alert until the job is done.

How long can an adrenaline rush last?

That’s a tricky question. The length depends on what triggers the initial rush. It might be 10-15 minutes. It might be an hour or two. It might be a day.

And what happens when you experience a series of adrenaline rushes?

OK, I’m going to stop right there. I’m not a doctor and an “Adrenaline Rush” clearly has medical implications I am less than qualified to comment on.

On the other hand, I am a writer. That allows me to use the concept of an adrenaline rush as a metaphor of sorts. It’s that rush of excitement you feel when you’re on the cusp of doing something you have really looked forward to doing. Nothing will get in the way between you and your destination. Your body does whatever it needs to do to make sure you arrive at the appointed time.

Such were the events of last week. It was a non-stop whirlwind of activity. And at quite an unusual time of year for such winds to whirl.

As I write this, I am reminded of something the digital archives curator told me as I donated a digitized version of our weekly college newsletter “This Week In Davenport” (a.k.a., “TWID”). He expressed his delight in receiving these “a-day-in-the-life” materials from the early 80s because the library was thin on student life from that period of time.

That memory, in turn, reminded me of the historical research I’ve done with old newspapers. In those days, local newspapers (comparable to the SENTINEL today) would regularly report on the “day-in-the-life” activities of its readers.

It’s sort of like what people post about their personal lives on social media today. Except, back then, given the delay in printing schedules, chances were you’d already be back home by the time news of your travels appeared in the paper. This is why thieves prefer today’s real-time social media platforms to old-fashioned newspapers.

So, what is my “day-in-the-life” story from last week? Well, to be honest, it’s a whole series of days, not just one. And they flashed by with the non-stop intensity of a whirling dervish.

It wasn’t supposed to be like that. In fact, it began with a pleasant plan. You see, Karen Mireau scheduled an author’s party for Thursday, October 19^th for her new book The Cottage Hotel. Karen invited my Connecticut-based college roommate Tom Midney, a big fan of The Cottage, whom she quoted in the book.

“I’m coming,” Tom told me last summer.

Then the Bills schedule came out. They were playing the Giants on Sunday night, October 15^th. Tom is a life-long Giants fan.

“Can you get me a ticket?” asked Tom. “I’ll come early and we can go to the game.”

He wasn’t done. He wanted to go see a band in downtown Rochester on Monday, October 16^th, but I told him I had a meeting that night. So, he searched whatever one searches on the internet to find an alternative for Tuesday night.

Much to his delight, he discovered the Greg Koch Marshall Trio was playing Tuesday, October 17^th. Much to my delight, they were playing at Fanatics in Lima. So, he made arrangements and got a buddy and his friend to join us.

It seemed simple. Three events in five days. For Tom. But five events in five days for me, including two on the same day at the same time.

Honestly, I didn’t think that sounded tough.

That’s what I get for thinking.

It started Saturday night, October 14^th, in the rain. It was the SENTINEL’s broadcast of the HF-L football game. Tom arrived early enough in the afternoon to help. He held the umbrella to keep me and the camera dry.

The next night it was the Bills game. We planned to leave early to get a chance to rest. We thought it would be a blowout.

That’s what we get for thinking.

Tom got Monday to recover, but for me it was deadline day followed by that meeting I had at night. I promised Tom my Tuesday would be free so we could do whatever he wanted to do before going to Fanatics.

Well, it turns out Tom’s buddy who’d be joining us at Fanatics was Jeremy Tuke, a trustee at the Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad museum. He told Tom he’d be at the museum all day on Tuesday and we should visit.

So, we did.

Except Jeremy left early, so we missed him. But Otto Vondrak and the boys were perfect hosts and showed us around. I got back just in time to give the paper the final proof.

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday starts my regular broadcast schedule, so there’s that. Tom was kind enough to take the family to dinner Wednesday night.

Then came Thursday. After the noon-time broadcast, we got ready for the 3:00pm event at The Cottage. Betsy, Tom & I went there and had fun talking to all the people. Tim & Deb Smith were also in attendance. Karen was very grateful for our help. Hilary was her usual smiling self, happy to have so many people at the event.

Then I left it for that dinner/meeting. I got back to The Cottage at 9:30pm as the band was packing up. Tom was the life of the party. He was in his element, friends with everyone. The event he had been waiting for had finally come to pass. He had accomplished his mission.

That evening, a 48-hour cold bug caught up with him. I explained the whole thing about the adrenaline rush and how it keeps you going until you’re done. That’s when your body is most vulnerable. That’s when you get sick.

As for me, my mission wouldn’t be accomplished until later Friday, after a morning meeting and the afternoon broadcast. More precisely, my appointed rounds would not be completed until Betsy, Wally, and I arrived at my father-in-law’s house in Jamestown.

We got there in time to go out to dinner. It was a good dinner. And then we went back to Betsy’s father’s house.

And that’s when I got that 48-hour cold bug.