me and my kidney

Last night, as I was getting out of bed to pee yet again, Jon asked if I noticed any difference with just one kidney.

Nope.

Not that I expected to feel an empty spot by my back left ribs, but I wondered if Ida (Sidney's remaining partner), would be up to the task of dealing with the huge amounts of liquid I consume.

Now that it's summer, homemade slushies are just about an every day drink. If you haven't pureed watermelon and then added ice to the mix, you're missing out on something extraordinary. I also go through tons of milk, organic chocolate powder and ice—your basic frozen chocolate milk. Cold soups (the fresh pea and mint at Pret) are seasonal faves. And then, there's water. I drink a lot of water. Seriously, a lot of water. Not iced. I'm a fan of room temperature.

One thing I learned during my transplant odyssey is that my remaining kidney, much like the Grinch's heart, would grow. 50 percent larger in fact. Perhaps that's part of post donation fatigue—the fact that one of my organs is actually increasing in size. And Ida is working around the clock. Literally. I generally get up more than once during the night to pee.

8 weeks post surgery and I'm peeing up a storm. I'm amazed at what my body can do. I am grateful that my brother got one kick ass kidney. And I'm delighted with the one that's left.