Standing Sixes

It is late at night. I am sixteen and with my friend who is the same age. We are basically good boys but, it is dark; we are bored and looking for trouble. We are about to steal a transistor radio from a car. This goes against my upbringing and my morals. I try not to look nervous, but I am and I do. My friend notices my hands shaking and he offers to do the deed while I stand in the shadows and look out for anyone coming. My voice quivers and my chin trembles as I mumble a soft "OK".

It all goes well until the meatheads (military police) show up. I yell to my friend who has opened the car door and is reaching inside. "Meatheads," I sputter. "RUN".

My fiend drops his booty and takes off in one direction while I head out at full speed into the dark prairie. I run until my chest hurts. Finally, I stop and look back. Nothing. I start walking home but my foot sinks into a gopher hole and twists. The pain arrives as my right leg goes into spasm and I wake up.

It was only a dream! A fantasy! But, the pain is real. My leg has spasmed again. It seems to be happening more frequenty this past month and let me tell you, on a pain scale (where ten is that exquisite pain that I have only suffered through once in my life, while waiting for surgery for a spinal stenosis), the pain in my leg is right up there at the 7 - 8 spot in the catalogue of human woes.

There is only one good thing about the leg pain. When I stand for a couple of minutes the pain goes away, leaving only a mild throbbing that can last a day or more. So, all I need is a warning system, some omen or signal, (something standing sixes as I had done in my dream), and can tell me to get up and get to attention before the muscle has a chance to contract, or whatever it is doing to cause me grief for those few minutes of excruciating pain.

Oh, and I would prefer if it didn't happen at 3:30 in the morning.