Music, art, photography, gardens, family and friends

In today's NY Times there is an article by Oliver Sachs, the neurologist who wrote the book on which the movie Awakenings with Robbin Williams was based. Sacks died in 2015 but his work lives on, as do you and I. (I'm pretty sure that I'm still here. You?)

Musicophelia is another work by Sachs and which discusses how music affects people with Parkinson's disease. If you have Parkinson's disease, chances are you have grown a stronger appreciation and maybe even some skills in music, art,  writing or some other artistic pursuit. I've covered my experience with photography in this blog and I assure you this continues as an obsession that is now the heart of my daily existence. But I digress...

The  Times article describes Dr. Sachs' experience with his Parkinson's patients and their visits to gardens. Just taking a walk in a garden or garden environment has enabled Parkinson patients to overcome their symptoms while there. Music has had that affect on me at times. It's like the puzzle of my body is solved by the beat of the music. Coincidently, I live in a garden community that is more like a park than a New York City neighborhood, which it is. I love being outdoors this time of year. I'm going to test Dr. Sachs' findings. Could where you live affect how well you manage PD symptoms? 

Beyond the documented benefits explored by Dr. Sachs, I have an additional dimension that I continue to experience as having a positive affect on my life with this fucking disease. (Please allow me to express exactly how I feel.) And that is the affect some people have on my life. Family is part of it, but it goes beyond. And I am so very fortunate to have this benefit.

Photo  is a late morning fog lifting at Hudson Yards. 

It works for me

I know that I am winning my battle with Parkinson's when, in any given day, I forget that I have this annoying little fucker hanging around and trying to get my attention. That's where I have been for a few days now. If I forget that I have it, then how bad can it be? But I think that the reason I can do this is that I have something stronger, more compelling, that is distracting me a lot more than the disease is capable of doing. Try it. For this to work, the key is to find something to absorb your being, your reason to exist, and then let yourself get lost in it. I now have several things that absorb me to this extent. In case you haven't noticed, one of these is physical fitness. Some people might think that physical fitness for someone with PD is an oxymoron. I don't mind (what I mean is I don't give a shit). I am obsessed with my fitness with unreasonable goals that any sane person will realize are unattainable. I appreciate those family and friends who allow me the space to obsess. Thank you.

Another totally consuming endeavor is photography. I have spent a lot of time trying to explain how this has been a life-long obsession. Given the right conditions, I can actually become a camera lens with the only thing I am aware of is taking the perfect picture. Ask my wife whose phone calls have gotten me out of my camera lens trance while wandering around the city more than once.

I have other things I disappear into and I am always looking for new things in which to bury myself. I am working on a music project now with a couple of people that is consuming and fun. You don't have to have Parkinson's to use a distraction as a way to beat a disease. And it might not work for everyone. Hell, it might not work for anyone. But it works for me.

I shot this photo in lower Manhattan while wandering around totally absorbed with the amazing images surrounding me.