Memorial Day

Do you have any special plans for Memorial Day?  It has always been the kick off of Summer for most everyone I know.  Until the last decade or so I only gave the day a passing notice of what it truly represented much to my chagrin.  While our family had it's share of veterans we never lost anyone to war and this goes back as far as the Texas Revolution in 1836.  I have participated in several Memorial sevices at a cemetery here.  I would get my period uniform and proceed to give due respect with a company of like-minded history buffs to those that died in an earlier war.  This included musket and cannon salutes and a bagpiper and plenty of speechifying.  And very HOT.

My Mom and Dad had a place up on the Medina River outside Bandera and we all would gather there to kick off the summer.  It was great.  I have missed it ever since they sold it back in the early 80's.  There had been a devastating flood one year and it changed everything along the river so much it disheartened them, so they got rid of it sadly.  They could not see the future and how the landscape would come back.  It isn't the same today as it was almost 40+ years ago but it is still pretty nice.  'K' and I were talking about how much we missed it and all the things we did.  Fishing for me was the big thing even though most everything I caught went back in the river.  There was tubing the river and it had some really great rapids that added excitement and then all the food Mom and my Grandmother and 'K' would make.  Just being with family.  Good Times.  

We will not do anything like any of that and haven't since those days.  No cookouts, no get togethers either, sadly.  I will break out my copy of Band of Brothers and sit inside where it's cool while 'K' wrangles the 5 year old Granddaughter.  I will also say a prayer for those that have sacrificed so much for our country along with their families.  

If you have lost someone to war, I pray for you and your sacrifice.

Mother's Day

I know this is later than my usual posts but I was just not feeling up to much.  Had a fairly busy week that made me not feel so well.  A church friend passed unexpectedly.  He passed out at work and hit his head.  Rushed to the ER and they found a blood clot in his lung and was rushed to surgery.  During the surgery he developed a brain bleed that didn't show up on any scans they did.  He didn't make it.  'K' was heavily involved in preps and setup for a reception after a memorial service.  After 6 hours of being on my feet or in very uncomfortable chairs along with 3 hours on duty at church the next day I was toast.  So please forgive my being a slacker.  I can't say it won't happen again.

Number 2 Son's wife was involved in a vehicle accident that totaled their most reliable car.  She had to go to the ER to get checked out since she is 6+ months pregnant.  Evidently there are a lot of little things that could go wrong being jostled around like that, like the placenta detaching.  We were blessed that she and the baby are both ok thankfully.  I don't know if I mentioned it but the baby is a boy.  They have a name already but they won't tell anyone.  It seems to be a touchy subject which I don't understand.  We were having some fun coming up with a bunch of goofy names and some good ones but they weren't well recieved.  Shrug. In the meantime everyone is calling him jelly bean due to him loooking like one on the sonar thing.

I grilled a couple ribeyes for 'K' for Mother's Day.  She seemed to enjoy her day despite my lack of energy.  I veged out on the couch after that.  A couple hours later we drug ourselves over to see my Mom.  She seems happy and she says she is but then complains about some things but it goes with the territory of not being able to remember small details.  But the visit went as well as it can get.  We lasted about 2 hours and headed home.  And with that I will say...

Happy Trails and Happy belated Mother's Day.

Another Short Update

It's been warm and wet here this past week.  Temps near or in the 80's with 90% humidity.  Ugh.  That has ended any planned outdoor activity like my daily walk with the pups or the much needed cutting of the lawn.  At least this will allow my ribs more rest-they still bug me and the weedeater will have to wait even longer.  April and May are very humid and so is much of June.  But it also can be a great time of year.  Perspective.

I had a follow up with the pain management doc.  We are both in agreement that things are not perfect but much better than they were.  I am certainly sleeping better.  He seems confident another ablation will work much better but we must wait at least until June, or longer if we can.  So that is how we are approaching this, just try to go as long as I can without more treatment.  He did bring up surgery but also said the surgeons he would send me to take the same approach.  That's great, I will do all I can to avoid any surgery on my spine.  

That's about all I have.  

Happy Trails

Quick Updates

Just a few quick updates.  Saw the pain doc and he injected me with some more pain meds and it seemed to help.  Although this past weekend there was a return of some pain.  I am almost resigned to the fact this will be pretty muuch permanent at this point.  I will meet with the cardiologist tomorrow morning to hear the results of my echo cardiogram.  He has said he doesn't think there is anything to worry about.  I'll be gald to get that behind me.  On the doctor front that will be all until July thankfully.

Fiesta is over and we only had three deaths in the rat hole to the South of me.  It doesn't happen every year but it's not unheard of.  There is a big festival down at Market Square.  A lot of folks show up down there but it includes a lot of gang presence and alcohol.  It's in the middle of their territories.  So it isn't unual to have fights at least that will turn into gunfire.  Which it did the last weekend of Fiesta.  Idiots.  No idea why anyone would go there that isn't looking for trouble.  

I guess I will cut the lawn today.  I won't try the weedeater again yet.  The ribs are still actiing up which is getting very tiresome.  It hinders me from doing things I need to do and things I want to do.  I may try to meet my Mom for lunch.  'K' plans to spend most of the day with her.  I haven't seen her since Easter.  I need to do better but it seems to work better for both of us.  She is doing very well health wise and she seems happy (she says she is) thankfully.

That's pretty much my whole world these days

HappyTrails

FIESTA!

Fiesta starts this Thursday in San Antonio.  I don't do Fiesta anymore.  It gets way too crowded and parking is impossible to find, but if you do luck out and find a place in a lot, be ready to shell out big $$.  I haven't been in over 20 years.  The last time I did that was when I marched in the vangaurd as a Confederate Soldier.  That was back when it wasn't politically incorrect to portray one.  I was part of a group that did living history and we were tasked with being in the Fiesta Flambeau parade.  If your not familiar with the Flambeau it is the huge night parade that signifies the end of Fiesta.  I couldn't pass that up plus it was good exposure for our small group.  Back then, they said it drew over 300,000 people downtown to watch it.  Talk about your parking nightmare.  I'm sure the numbers are much higher now.  When I was a kid you could just drive down there and walk to a spot along the route and set up your lawn chairs and watch a great parade.  Not anymore.  If you want to watch it live, you have to pay for a seat well in advance.  It was pretty warm that evening I marched.  Had some major trouble with the heat and was stumbling by the time we got to the end.  Those wool uniforms were very good at causing you to overheat.

Met with the Pain doc and he wants to shoot me with another steroid shot.  I will take him up on that.  He thinks there is a possibility that my fall that broke all those ribs might have affected the work he did prior.  He says the next abalation will work better and hopefully longer but he can't perform it until we are six months out.  I am a leaning toward another try with that then.

We have been trying to catch up on some of the yard work.  Both of us are not getting much done due to our various ailments.  But it's getting done.  WE are just too much DIYer's to give up yet.

Happy Trails

Monday Updates

My new crown was installed fairly easily.  Although removing the temporary crown felt like they were going to uproot what was left.  Not comfortable at all but I am glad to have it done and it seems to be fine, although I am experiencing some major sensitivity to hot/cold.  I assume it has to do with making the crown fit and has made the other teeth move some and expose whatever is reacting.  Sensodine has not worked yet.  But I am truly thankful for this dentist.  I never knew that my previous was as bad as we have learned.

I am still struggling with stamina although I can get through my walk fairly well now.  I still need to increase the number of days I walk.  I got 4 in this last week and hope to get to 5/6 this week.  I did get the front and back yards cut but I really need to weed eat.  That part is out of control but is a real chore right now.

I sent a message to the Pain Doc through the portal about the ablation seeming to have failed.  He wants me to come in to talk about it. So I have an appointment early Friday moring.  When that part acts up it is somewhat worse than before but not as often.  In the past, it was mostly when I was in bed that it bothered me.  Now it's anytime and I can't determine what it is that sets it off.  And the only time it bothers me in bed is when it was acting up before hand.  I'm not sure I can tell him what set if off like I did before because those things haven't been in play.  I an curious what he will tell me.

Sorry about all the 'woe is me' posts that seem to have been going on forever.  I hope I can get over this hump so it is not so prominent in my mind.   But I guess pain does that to you.  And I know it gets old for people to listen to an old man talk about his health issues.  I remember from my younger days.  I don't generally talk about it with anyone else unless they ask.   

And some good news?

I have a big milepost coming up this July.  It will be 10 years (actually 9 and a half) the way the doctor numbers it, since my prostate cancer surgery.  Lord willing if the blood test results are consistent with all the previous tests they will release me and I won't be having to see him anymore.  Although he did advise me to get a PSA test whenever I have a physical just to be sure there is no return.  That's pretty easy to do.

Happy Trails

Easter Weekend

I hope everyone had a great Easter.  Ours went well.  Glad it's over.  Doing all that cooking and getting ready was a chore this time.  Too many aches and pains and all that work tends to aggravate it.  We need to find an easier solution.  I'm afraid the solution would be to not have it here, which I don't like at all.  I think we should turn it into a pot luck deal.  I'm just afraid we would wind up with no meats or pasta lol.  The baby back ribs turned out pretty well it seems.  Everyone said they liked them.  IMO they were just OK.  They were a little dry to me but much meatier.  To little fat, I think, to keep them as moist as they should have been.  I am my harshest critic in what I turn out from my BBQ pit.  I can't seem to just enjoy it, I am always evaluating what went wrong and what I could do better. 

Mom did come to our Easter lunch.  We picked her up on our way from church.  She lost track of time and when I called to tell her we would be there in 20 minutes she freaked out lol.  But she somehow managed to get almost ready by the time we got there.  She had a pretty good grasp of her faculties and we had a good visit.

I will be heading out to get my crown installed this morning.  Yes, they are making me King.  Then the day is free if I ignore all the things I need to do out in the yard.  I am so far behind due to being inoperative from my ribs it has become daunting.  But I am determined to get it done myself and not have to hire someone.  Along with my low stamina and the ribs letting me know they don't like what I am doing, and my neck abaltion has apparently failed it has becomemuch more challenging.  That is very disappointing.  It was supposed to last one to two years and it's not quite three months.  But it is certain I won't go through that again with such a short time of relief.

I'm off to cook breakfast.

Happy Trails