I stayed home from church today, my preaching responsibility over at Buena Vista Community Church I had someone else do as well as my two leadership classes that I teach. Occasionally I have a Parkinson’s flare-up for no apparent reason. My muscles get very rigid, like concrete setting up and when I move it hurts and the pain makes me nauseous, and I usually get a severe headache. I take some extra medication, sit in my hot tub for thirty minutes, and then ride my stationary bike for thirty minutes and then back to the hot tub and back to the bike until I am better. Last night it took so long to get the thing under control that I was totally exhausted this morning from no sleep and all that bike riding. Now that I am feeling better having slept in I think I should have gone to church; I could have toughed it out. I must be getting wimpier in my old age.

I leave on a 1,200-mile bicycle ride in June, and I am a long way from being in good shape for the trip so these kinds of forced extra riding are probably a good thing.