Blair update 7/1/2011
We are back in Denver, but we visited Blair and Jean in Marathon on the way north from Terlingua. Blair displays the symptoms that you would associate with a severe stroke. As he bounced around inside his truck during the accident, his brain rattled around inside his skull. Random internal injuries were done to his brain. In addition, internal bleeding compounded the insults. His awareness and memories come and go, sometimes quite quickly. He will seem disconnected one moment, and then he will be quite aware the next. He has lost weight and looks pretty good. He is on oxygen and uses a wheel chair and a walker for assistance, as his balance will unexpectedly fail him. His C-2 is badly shattered (not just fractured) and will probably never completely heal. There remains real concern of an additional injury if he falls. Blair's progress is slow, but he steadily improves. Jean has acquired good skilled support and reports that he has successfully shaved himself since we saw him and continues to take better control of his actions. Additionally, his memories are gradually returning. Visits from old friends assist him in doing that, so I urge anyone in the vicinity to stop and spend a few hours with him. Bring some old photos or other memorabilia to leave with him. Contact Jean in advance - Jean Hardy-Pittman: j...@fsbooks.com You can call her through the store in Alpine: Alpine Store (Front Street Books) 432-837-3360 Dwight
