Roger Zee Memoirs

"Life and Times of a Pandemic Musician"

2016 Rebuild 01/28/21

Home at last after open heart surgery at Bronx Montefiore-Einstein on 11/04/16. Now time to rebuild both body and spirit. So glad I'm alive but can't figure out why! Quite the challenge. Need to change virtually everything including the way I eat and exercise to keep "Stayin' Alive." Got to "Pick Up the Pieces," glue them back together, lift up and fly away! Welcome to another excerpt from my memoirs, "Life and Times of a Pandemic Musician." B-|

First order of business, lose the Percosets. Need them for pain. But my prescription's about to run out and they won't let my local primary care physician renew them. Claim I need to get a hold of the original doctor/resident who prescribed them. This phone challenge proves too hard for me so I try "Extra Strength Ibuprofen." And it works just fine! On taking a walk with my buddy Rudy Feinauer, he reveals I can sound pretty loopy and random on the Percosets. How embarrassing, LOL! Do I really need yet another bad habit? ;-)

Next on the agenda -- eating habits. What, how much, and how many times a day? After my sister Liz goes back to her Vermont family and Jeanne Cashman tapers off preparing my meals, I come up with a plan -- one big, healthy takeout meal a day. I live on Lake Street in White Plains with plenty of small restaurants just down my block. And walking down to pick up my meal's an additional health benefit! For exercise, I make it my business to peramble up and down Lake Street and/or around Turnure Park at least twice a day. =^_^=

While in the hospital, I sub out playing bass at the Thursday Victors Jam in Hawthorne to bassist/vocalist extraordinaire Thomas Sprock. My surgeon, the renowned Dr. Robert Michler, tells me I shouldn't lift anything more than ten pounds for the next month so I don't tear or stretch my stitches. This rules out playing for a while. Also, can't drive for that period because if I stop short, the steering wheel might very well crush the ribs they just sewed back together! For now, I can only sit in the back seat seat of a car holding a heart-shaped cushion (see above picture) in front of me. Thankfully, Sprock agrees to continue subbing for me while I continue to book the weekly "Special Guest" and promote. Got to keep drummer Rudy Feinauer working! :-)

Since I can't drive for a while, Rudy graciously agrees to take me to my cardiologist and surgeon followups. First up, cardiologist Dr. Daniel Lorch in Yonkers, NY. He's very happy with the surgery results but thinks I should partake in a month long rehab program at the renowned Burke Rehabilitation Center in White Plains, NY. I feel it's kind of unnecessary. But he books it anyway. Next up, Rudy and I head down to my surgeon, Dr. Michler, in the Bronx -- actually down the block from where I used to teach math and computers at Mercy College. He's also very pleased with his work. I bring my bass and put it on the scale to see if it's under the acceptable limit for me to play. YES! Then I tell him about Dr. Lorch signing me up for Burke. He says, "What do you need that for? I already fixed you. You're fine!" So I go ahead and cancel the rehab. I don't feel right ripping off the insurance companies for this unnecessary work. ;-)

Finally, I need to deal with one more unnecessary visit that my hospital social worker conned me into. A nurse stops by my apartment to evaluate its safety while I recover from the surgery. She makes one suggestion. Put rubber mats in the bathtub/shower. Also a foot stool to help get in and out. I do neither. After all, am I not the "King of Denial?" LOL! She tries to schedule a follow-up but I politely decline. All these visits come with a hefty deductible from my health insurance plan. :^)

The bills start flooding in, complete with due dates, penalties, and threats of legal action. Seems like the entire hospital staff wanted a piece of this mark. I ultimately end up shelling out about twenty grand! And then out of the blue, a miracle occurs. I get a call from the publicity department of White Plains Hospital. They're looking to feature a patient the back cover of White Plains Hospital Quarterly Magazine. Would I consider it? Of course there's no pay, LOL! But I do feel very lucky and grateful every day I wake up above ground. So I graciously agree and thank her for the offer. She explains that they're narrowing down the candidates and will get back to me soon. Little did I know what lies in store for me... :-}

Today, as Joe Biden writes Executive Action after Executive Action trying to right the sinking US ship, I sling my bass on and pay tribute to my White Plains neighborhood of twenty years and groove to Mongo Santamaria's "Greatest Hits." One <3

YouTube - Afro Blue - Mongo Santamaria