Test Subject Monitors

Day 8, and life continues to be good.

It's starting to hit me that I can't go outside, or choose what I'm going to eat, or how much I'll eat, or when I go to bed, or when I get up, or when I feel like being tested, or that I am never really alone. The bathrooms have no cameras in them, but just outside the door are dozens of people who want to know if you've gone #1 or #2. It's so strange!

Have I explained to you about the monitors? The "test subject monitors" are great folks. Their job is to watch me and write down what I'm doing at all times. I am the focus of a whole binder worth of sheets including lines such as "6:45 Subject brushes teeth. 6:47 Subject changes clothes. 6:50 Subject checks e-mail. 6:56 Nurse X takes vitals of subject."

On and on and on the list grows. It's a constant update. If I go to the common room and watch a movie or a b-ball game, they'll update it about once every 15 minutes, but it's not as if they can leave or get distracted and trust me to keep watching. And when I'm up and around, they're scribbling away furiously. It's kinda fun to mess with them like that, walking from place to place, starting one activity and then moving on to another. (he he he)

Each monitor can watch one or two subjects. Since there are only 4 of us right now, it's pretty quiet, but they say that it gets pretty crazy when the beds begin to fill.

The hard part is, when we are sitting in our rooms they sit in the hallway or in the nurses station with the camera monitor, just watching. Some of them do word searches or sudoku puzzles, but they can't do anything distracting, like reading a magazine or book themselves. They're stuck there, watching us.

So I'm purposely out in the common room a lot, or chatting it up with them. I realize that they signed up to do the job, no matter how boring, but it seems to make it better for everyone if they're enjoying themselves, too. We've played games, joked around, and watched tv/movies together.

If I can keep them on my side, I've got a good feeling about making it through. Mess with the monitors, though, and I'm done for! (In jest, we've already discussed cattle prods, super soaker water guns, and scare tactics.)

So, this one's dedicated to the hard working, note taking, super observant crew of test subject monitors. Thanks for keeping an eye, or 20, on me!

P.S. Both the Bears and Lady Bears won last night! I didn't watch the Lady Bears game until this morning, so I was jumping up and down with excitement 9 hours after they won! Go Baylor!

P.P.S. The correct answer to yesterday's contest was bbq beef, macaroni, squash, broccoli, green beans, white roll, and fig newtons! Good guesses, those of you who didn't get it! Good detective work to those who did! Post cards are on their way!