When I was at diabetes camp as a kid, we played all sort of games around our diabetes. That was one of the best things about camp - the fact that diabetes was just another something that my camp friends and I had in common. We all brought sleeping bags to camp, we all wanted to go swimming on hot days, we all had diabetes.

One of our games was guessing what our bloodsugar levels were before the counselor told us the results. I loved this particular challenge, mostly because I often won. In the first years after my diagnosis, I could guess my bloodsugar within 10 mg/dl 9 out of 10 times. At camp, we'd all make our guesses, and I'd win. That's how it went... Among my many prizes, diets sodas from the camp Trading Post and lots of velamints.

There was a strategy to my guess-making. I'd stand very still and close my eyes, not making a sound and letting myself feel whatever was going on inside of my body. Was I thirsty at all? Did I feel disconnected at all? Was my thinking perfectly straight? Then I'd make my guess. Meter? I never needed no stinkin' meter.

Times they've changed, though. These days I'm lucky if I guess the correct bloodsugar 3 out of 10 times. Often, I'll think I'm 180 or 200 and I'm 80 or 100. I'll think I'm 80 or 100 and I'm 60. I'll think I'm 60 and I'm 190. I'm not sure what exactly has changed, but I'm comfortable attributing my inability to make accurate guesses about bloodsugar to changes caused by age. Maybe at ten years old or twelve years old I was more aware of my body, maybe the recency of my diagnosis made me more able to sense changes in bloodsugar, maybe I was simply less distracted, less consumed by the day to day grind. Whatever it is, my ability to guess bloodsugar - and to win cool prizes like diet soda and velamints - seems to have disappeared.

Ah, well. Perhaps there was a time when I could go without a testing device, but it would appear for the rest of my diabetic life, I'm going to need a stinkin' meter.