fking

Stroke Survivor - male
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  1. fking
    Well you all I don't get around much any more, my walking has gone away from what it was when I first got out the hospital 12 years ago... So I know without having another stroke my physical abilities has changed every since our trip to to Vegas back earlier this year when I mentioned my falls on the shuttle buss.... Then I had my right knee operated on to put the tendons back to the muscles..
     
    My left side has been paralyzed from the stroke so I can't depend on it very much to help me walk or get about... So I don't get out very much and when I do it's on the scooter I use to get around that I keep in the car for that purpose.... It makes me think back to when I was able to work at Walmart as a greeter on the door for three years before I decided to stop and stay home when my wife returned to work...
     
    I miss being able to do more things around the house but the little things like standing up from the bed is a task now and I can't stoop down to pick up anything from the floor I must use a reacher.... Putting food in the dog's bowl and water bowl is a task I can't do now.... Even trying to use my left hand to help me hold things I can't do anymore... So the paralyses is still present on my left side that makes me realize I can do the things I once could do easily at one time...
     
    I got a lot to overcome in my healing process over the next few years after having my 74th birthday last week.... I will continue to try improving in what I can do but I do feel bad for what I can no longer do now... I don't even get on the computer like I used to do months ago... It's hard to get up out the computer chair too....
     
    I don't eat much anymore either because going to the toilet is another problem getting myself back on my feet and I use the raised seat to make it higher and it's still hard to do.... Oh well I'm alive and that's a plus in my life after 12 years of this stroke plus arthritis in both knees and paralyses on my left side head to toe..... That's how my physical condition has changed in the past 12 years..... Maybe more will come that I can do later on I pray....
  2. fking
    It's now been 12 years since the stroke and I'm still paralyzed on my left side and one handed, leg too, for that matter but I'm alive and kicking just not very high :roflmao: at all.... Recovery for a stroke depends on so many factors mental and physical so from that standpoint I'm doing pretty good I think....
     
    My walking is a lot slower and my strength is about the same on my right side with no feeling on my left side to speak of but I'm OK with my progress at this point in my life.... I had a knee operation to put the tendons back to the muscles in my right knee that was torn loose when I tried to ride a shuttle bus in Vegas back in July.... :Tantrum: . So my walking took a hit but overall I'm OK....
     
    I been in so many therapy sessions learning how to walk and move around again but it didn't help a whole lot in my opinion.... I just keep myself moving about every day with a little walking outside then using my scooter walking my grand daughter's little Shih Tzu dog every day since she loves to go outside with me.... So life is good....
     
    We had the little dog mated on the 8th Of this month at three years old now so we expect some puppies around the first or second week of September as we were told it takes about 63 days for her to deliver about 3 pups at her size and age.....
     
    I'm still driving my old 2003 Ford Explorer with 200 thousand 400 miles on the engine which has lasted real good I think... I haven't had a car note in many years but a few repair bills and a few tires I have had to buy otherwise the vehicle has outlasted me hauling my scooter every where I have to go.... I hate now I didn't drive it to Vegas but my wife wanted to fly to save a couple days of her vacation time from the bank with more time to hit the casinos day and night...
     
    The big thing for me is I'm still married to the same woman all these years 17 of them to be exact and that's a record.for me on my fourth try as I got it right then here came the stroke.... I'm not about to complain about my health as she quit her job at the bank to stay home and care for me two years until I was able to be left alone and do for myself....
     
    In fact I got better and went to work at Walmart as a greeter at the door in the garden center for three years using my new scooter at that time..... Through all my ups and downs I can't complain about my current physical condition or state of mind God has been good to me....
     
    In my opinion any person man or woman who survives a stroke just has to take time to heal and get better in what they can do with what they have left after the stroke or strokes in some cases..... I'm OK with where I am at this point, sure I would love to walk without a cane, go back to church sit in the pews and can get up by myself but right now I just can't accomplish that feat...
     
    I'm telling myself now that one day soon I'll be back on my feet and able to do more things for myself as time goes on and I get a bit better than I am at the moment.... :Doh:
  3. fking
    I read Asha's Blog, low and behold, she is so right her first time around being married..... I learned why I'm married now for the fourth time and it's been 17 years already..... My longest marriage ever because God put us together in His own time.... I am so blessed to have this wife in my life especially after surviving a stroke 12 years ago now....
     
    I met her at the bank when I went in to get a money order from a teller.... She was the supervisor and overheard my conversation with the teller about me not having to pay the money order fee because of my account I had there.... Long story short I gave her my business card thanking her for the help she provided the teller.... Well it took her a week before she called me up.... We talked, exchanged information, and found out we were both single and she had came to the city from New Orleans a year ago....
     
    I said to myself, "God let this be the wife for me this time around for keeps." God answered my prayers to Him.... Six years later the stroke came calling my name and I'm so, so glad I have her in my life as my wife in my condition... God works miracles in the lives of His people I do believe.... She joined my church, we got married, she is in the choir and on the praise dance adult team.....
     
    She came to the hospital every night to check on me and I was there six months wondering if I would ever go home again... She is still working at another bank after my stroke because she quit working for awhile to care for me at home after I got out the hospital.....
     
    I am so proud of her in my life and in my almost helpless condition of today.... Just to think I worked at Walmart three years on my scooter after she went back to work at the bank but I was in much better condition than I am now.... She desires to work until she is 70 before retiring....
     
    If you read my blog pray for us I'm sorta down at this time physically from the stroke and barely walking but I trust God will lift me up again soon... In Jesus name!!!!
  4. fking
    Well it's time for me to get out the water hose today and start watering my lawn front and back as I have St. Augustine grass which needs plenty water when it gets hot in the summer plus my yard man cut it a little low this week.... I don't want to buy any more plats of grass from Home Depot it has really gone up over the years....
     
    I try to water it front and back early in the mornings and very late in the evenings and this year I pray the mosquitoes are not too bad... I don't need to be bitten and get West Nile from them....
     
    The builders put grass down in the front yard but I had to pay for grass from the front corner of my house all the way to my back fence when we first bought the house back in 2000... I get compliments on my yard when people walk by all the time...
     
    I'm usually out front sitting on my scooter under the tree the builders also planted that was the size of my finger at that time now 15 years later it is a big shade tree and we like that for shade in the evenings since my front faces west and the sun is still bright....
     
    My grand daughter's little dog loves to be outside with me playing in the grass as she waits for us to go around the block riding on the scooter..... She will walk some if the sidewalk is not too hot to her feet or she will walk in the grass until she see another dog then she hops back on the scooter...
     
    We installed black screens to keep the house cooler and save on the electric bill each month in a two story home... Texas has a very high electric rate no matter who you choose for your provider.....
  5. fking
    As young kids growing up in big families you never know what life holds for you being successful in life... Many times you say to yourself "I don't want to suffer like my parents did and have all those kids to raise up." Well, I got married to my childhood sweetheart, we had two kids, a boy and a girl.... I joined the Army went to Germany and a daughter was born... We returned to Texas had a son two years later but discovered my wife had a terrible blood disorder and we couldn't have any more children or she would probably not survive...
     
    Moving fast forward I'm married now for the fourth time (and last) but my first wife did pass in 1998 from that disorder with her blood, same year I married my now wife Through it all I retired from the Army with 22 years service and 10 years with the postal service as a clerk and mail sorter...
     
    I started my own business running a bowling pro shop inside a bowling center... Then the stroke came along and I had to sell out I couldn't operate a shop with one hand and a paralyzed side.... Through the years God has been good to me in that we paid for our home in 2013 that we purchased in 2000...
     
    Growing up as I did I learned so much about living and having a family and what I needed to do to live the life I always wanted to live... I never thought one time about a stroke since I was in good physical condition but have learned that has nothing to do with having or not having a disabling stroke that can make life very hard and you need a care giver in your life to ease the pains and do things you can't do for yourself...
     
    Now I know how life goes.......But I'm managing as best I know how and I hope all of you here are too!!!!!!
  6. fking
    What can I say,the rain is upon us here in central Texas and the wind is a little strong at times, but no storms so far.... I just don't understand how some parents can let little kids play outside unattended and get swept away while playing in the streets that is flooded to get washed away down stream near their homes and drown in the deeper waters so deep into the runoffs and valleys that leads to the streams and rivers....
     
    I know schools are out for summer breaks but I drive up and down the neighborhood streets where kids of all ages are playing in the water that is flowing very fast... There has been deaths and I would think it would be only one for parents to get the message....
     
    My walking is not too steady so I am staying inside and even the boat ramps close to my house are closed, the waters are just to high..... I will go out in my back yard to fight the ants after the rain stops, I can see new mounds forming from looking out my patio window into the back yard as the ants try to find higher ground for their homes...
     
    Land developers bought this land from ranchers and turned it into a sub division so ants were already here in full force where the cows had their droppings for them to live.... So now it's been 15 years I have been using ant powders to kill their mounds in my yard....
     
    Our home is paid off now so I'm not moving no time soon at my age....... I guess I'm a pretty good ant fighter I don't have any in my house....But I notice pest control trucks in my neighborhood almost daily at the houses where children live and the parents working late hours and seldom home.... That was one of the families that lost a child playing in the street when the water was very high....
     
    Many of the families on my street are retired military with daughters and sons still living at home with their own children that perhaps their mothers are suppose to be watching them...
  7. fking
    My physical condition now is getting very hard to handle as I am not as mobile as I once was when I first had the stroke 12 years ago.. My ability to walk with a cane is very, very tough and it wears me down.. It's my left leg and side which is very paralyzed yet I must depend on that leg in order for me to even stand up to get moving...
     
    I don't know what happened but it was not another stroke and the MRI's suggested it has a lot to do with my back and the nerves where I got shot in Vietnam and was operated on to remove the bullet... So I go to the pain clinic next week to see what can be done to make me walk better somehow...
     
    In my opinion now when age and conditions meet your body gets weaker day by day... I was walking good from when the stroke first happened and I have had therapy every year at the clinics and at home but now it is very hard for me to walk even to my vehicle to go anywhere with me driving or my wife driving...
     
    All the assessments are coming back from doctors that there isn't much more they can do to make me walk better... I'm very thankful for my scooter but on the other hand life now is very tiring for me energy wise... I can imagine my condition is not the only one so I got to learn to deal with it daily... I never saw this condition coming and I don't want to be home bound I want to get out and about under my own power...
     
    Right now my Ford Escape SUV is a 2003 model without the push button up and down of the tail gate door where I have to haul my scooter... That makes it difficult for me alone to load and unload my scooter and get the door closed with one hand I can use... The lift is automatic that puts it in and out on the ground but I have trouble with the seat taking it off and back on by myself because it will not fit with the seat left on, it has to come off and lay on the scooter to get the scooter loaded in the vehicle...
     
    I don't want to buy a new vehicle at my age now and may not be driving very much longer plus these new vehicles cost around 39,000 dollars, that is way above my price to pay... I only paid 13,000 for this one 12 years ago so a new vehicle is out the question...
     
    Hopefully my physical condition can be fixed soon and I can walk much better than I do now... Our up coming trip would be better if I could just walk, climb stairs, and stay up rite better...
  8. fking
    Why am I thinking go on a trip???? Well to start with it will be a change of scenery then mixing with other people on vacations and enjoying being with the whole family and relatives too when we get to their locations... Sitting at home day after day can get old real quick and make you feel like you are missing something... Getting out and about gives you more challenges in your ability to get about and be among other people and activities of your choice...
     
    Since I use a scooter as does many people these days, especially disabled veterans, I think I will feel good where ever we travel and perhaps New Orleans will be our first among family members... A casino will be in the forecast as well and of course some shopping by my wife in many stores she loves to go shopping to see what's new she may have missed...
     
    I just don't see myself as a stay at home person day after day doing the same ole routines so getting out enjoying the summer is a great idea to me and it's free for the most part... I don't plan on going to any baseball games or doing any tailgating at functions... With the rain and rivers, streams, and neighborhoods flooding I don't plan on visiting any low lying areas either... Well for that matter I don't plan on any mountain areas either nor wildlife areas to get attacked by animals...
     
    Me going on a trip with family means they will go see different places and do different things they all enjoy so I will probably be sitting around watching the basketball final games and more baseball on the TV... Speaking of baseball, a lady got hit with a broken bat and is in critical condition with a life threatening injury...
     
    Therefore, I'm just in the thinking stage of a planned trip to really let my wife enjoy time away from her job at the bank... She needs a break I'm thinking probably more than me.... With all my in home services coming to a halt soon I just want to get out and about among people again doing things I can't do at home....
     
    Before my stroke we used to have Poker nights at each others house, taking turns, and that was interesting and many times I WON a few dollars.... I remember so well the stroke found me and that changed life for me for good the next day at noon.... Let's all enjoy life while we can!!!
  9. fking
    Time seems to be moving fast, the kids are out or getting out of school, in most cities across the country and my wife is ready to make it to the casino again but this time just her and I.... I'm thinking she wants to make the trip back home to New Orleans so she can visit her sisters and brothers there while having a big casino to hang out and do some gambling, her favorite past time...
     
    Well the trip will be by car not like going to Vegas by air and using those shuttle buses to get around town like we did that one time ... It's time for her to visit family again because my Christmas time they all come to see us in Texas for a couple of weeks.... A change of scenery and weather conditions will do us good and get her out the bank for a few days too... Our little grand daughter has been out of school for a week already so she keeps me and her little dog company all day long....
     
    I'm hoping the gas doesn't get much higher than it is now but it probably will with so many people traveling all across the country by car... Well this vacation will be good for me to start back using my left side again which is hard to do with it being paralyzed too... I'm glad I got my scooter and can drive anywhere so I don't have to wait on people taking me certain places...
     
    I should be finished with all my therapy and the lady coming to my house for sessions by this time next month... It gets tiring after a while to me because some mornings I want to stay in bed and get my rest... The days are longer in the summer time to me and I hate getting up real early in the mornings anyway...
     
    All the best to the members here and I'm sure many of you will be getting out of town and going different places while the kids are on summer break from school....
  10. fking
    For now we got clear skies all around and no rain... We have had many drownings in many cities in Texas especially Houston... There are many waterways all over Texas and many of the people just don't pay attention and still try to drive through the water and get swept away down stream... Many of the deaths and drownings came from the people trying to force the issue of crossing low and high water crossings instead of turning around and don't drown...
     
    Maybe I'll get to go outside for a change later this week... My back yard is full of tall grass and the yard man says he will get it cut down today and haul it away.... Then I can go out back and inspect for ant nest and piles of ant trying to make new homes in my yard... Ants are really smart but I try to stay one step ahead of them using the best in ant repellent to their new homes... So far I been winning the battle on where they choose to live...
     
    I can't let the little dog get off my scooter because she doesn't know about the ant and their nest along the sidewalks... I leave her in the garage when I sprinkle the ant powder on the nests... I imagine it will take a few more dusting's to kill all the piles in my yard front back and sides...
     
    This area was grazing land for cattle before it was sold to create a sub division for new home building some 15 years ago... More and more soldiers are retiring in this area after their tours in Afghanistan and Iraq are completed... Many more of them stayed here after their tours in Vietnam back in the 70's... I think my grand son and his family will return here once he is ready to leave Japan... We have all the shopping, schools and military hospitals and facilities retirees need to stretch their dollars...
     
    This is the largest military base in the US....
  11. fking
    Yesterday was my last day with receiving PT from an agency as they did all that could be done for me in helping my walking get better... I had my MRI Friday to evaluate my left side as I am paralyzed on that side since the stroke nearly 12 years ago... Now I will continue to ride my exercise bike at home to keep improving every little bit I can while the lady still comes in home for one hour each day provided by the VA...
     
    I think it will be a week before I get the results of the MRI from the doctors... I'm not ever giving up and hope to get stronger in my legs and walking abilities in due time... I drive my SUV and haul my scooter too so I should be alright while I get better in my walking abilities... Being a stroke survivor long as I have been has made me ready for anything now so I should be up and about not having to depend on my wife having to go places with me when I can go by myself...
     
    I'm not sure at this point how much longer the lady will be coming in to help me for that one hour each day... I get up early mornings anyway so by the time she gets here I have fed myself and starting on my bike exercising already so I think I am ready to see if I can make it on my own... I just want to see how my left leg is coming along once I get the word hopefully this week from the doctor...
     
    I feel and think it's time I face the world on my own once again so I got to get outside and do things as I know how to do them and did for some years already... Maybe I can go back to work on my scooter being a greeter at Walmart again soon, who knows, I got to start someplace earning my income as my health get better each week...
     
    I see they are hiring veterans again and that's a good thing in this town of many retirees both men and women who need to work to earn incomes again...
  12. fking
    Well you all I don't get on here as, often as I once did almost daily, because I got a lady that comes in 5 days each week from 9 to 11 am helping me recover some more from what ever it was that caused me to be almost helpless... It wasn't another stroke but I can't do what I could do just months ago, IE, walking, stooping, reaching down to get something off the floor etc... Now I have to use a reacher to pick up things down low or on the floor, and even get bottles of water from the refrigerator in my room because I can't stoop down that far without falling...
     
    I been on the floor several times (falling) softly where I can't get my feet back under me and pull myself up on something to get up and back on my feet... I really hate having to call my wife at work just to come home and help me get to my feet when it's not her lunch time or her get off time.... Some way some how I even managed to fall out of my computer chair one day.... My little dog stayed right by me until my wife got home to help me get up again...
     
    So the situations I manage to get myself into is when I'm at home alone like I was in 2004 when the stroke came calling my name but my wife had a dental appointment that day and came home a couple hours after I had the stroke... Had she been at work she wouldn't have gotten home until around 5 or 6 pm... By that time from 12 noon when the stroke hit me I would have surely died the doctors told my wife at the hospital when I was admitted...
     
    So I feel blessed, lucky, and good I am still here on the board meeting new people daily, I'm just not on as often as I used to be as I stated above... Life is still good just, I don't have the moving about abilities I once had months ago... I still got my scooter in the SUV and one or two at home I use for going across the street to the cluster box to get the mail for the day or a block down the street to the neighborhood convenient store...
     
    Yea I still play the lottery and now it's so many different ones I really feel my time is coming to hit it BIG here in Texas... I gotta have a bit of good luck because I sure have had my share of not so good luck lately.... But that's life we all face daily and hey, I'm still here without much pains to make me feel bad...
     
    My wife and a couple of her choir members plan on going to the casino by the end of this month... I told her that was my Mothers Day present to her for looking after me here daily... So life is still good for me and her, God loves us...
  13. fking
    The seasons have changed and one sport is ending and another one starting up all the while golf is being played in several states by the best players in the country... There is always sports on the TV to entertain us that stay home most days while our wives or husbands are working...
     
    Hope you all had a good Spring Break week with the kids at home, I did, and enjoyed my grand daughter being at home with me and her little dog... We rode around in the neighborhood on my scooter while she rode her scooter or used her skates on the sidewalks... We made our snacks and ate real good what we fixed for snacks in no time...The sun was shining bright but most days the wind was really blowing hard...
     
    We finally had tornado's in our area yesterday and last night but not much damage in my area but other areas were not so lucky... Many mobile home parks were hit hard as I could see on the news... Well I got a few more appointments at the VA and the dentist plus going back to the doctor for my knee and if I have to get the other knee operated on any time soon...
     
    I hope not at all since it's paralyzed... I had a slight fall yesterday while trying to get my scooter out of my SUV not watching where I placed my left leg... I thought it was under me and it wasn't... I fell onto my back bumper while holding on to my scooter I had almost on the ground but still hooked to the lift... Thank God for me holding onto the lift while operating the controller to get the scooter on the ground... A few people came running to help me get back on my feet...
     
    I was taking my little dog in for her oatmeal bath and a hair trim up so today it's just us at home,,, The lady that comes in to help me only stay for one hour now since the VA took away one hour because I didn't let her bathe me because my wife does that at night...
     
    Get out and enjoy the Spring time you all and do a little walking if you can so you can get better sooner...
  14. fking

    Spring Is In Full Swing

    By fking,

    I have spent some time outside in the yard trying to get my St Augustine grass growing and green again and the tree in my front yard too is green again... So as I stand and look at that I feel pretty good that I accomplished something even in my condition and using a scooter to get around and do all I do with very little help...
     
    Surprising enough I get all this done daily with the little dog on a leash and watching me work... She waits for me to finish so I can take her for a walk around the block... When the school kids see me as they pass my house my little dog wants to bark at them I guess to let them know she is my protector... I have to say she is my protector because if/when I fall she will not leave my side until I'm up on my feet again... She only weighs 11 pounds and not tall being a Shitz Su, a Chinese lap dog I'm told...
     
    When my grand daughter get home from school the dog goes to her and they are outside for an hour or so before I see her again... She loves to ride on my scooter and run in the back yard where she runs along the fence line playing with my neighbors dog... I guess she want all to know she is my protector when the kids come close to me she starts barking as if to say stay away from my master...
     
    Some of the kids look so small or short I can't believe they are in middle school... They look like elementary school kids to me... My yard man finally got all the fallen leaves cleared from my yard front and back so I was able to put the fertilizer down to make the grass greener...
     
    Now I got the pigeons wanting to rest on my roof top in the back near the fire place chimney and make all that noise like they are in heat... I don't have a tree in my back yard but there are several next door and that was their play ground before those people moved out two weeks ago... I think they thought I was feeding them when I put the fertilizer down for the grass to grow more since we haven't had much rain lately and I turn on the sprinklers...
     
    I got to redo the patio area pretty soon and put down more home defense spray to keep the little gray bugs from littering the whole patio area... I got to spray my BBQ shack floor for those red ants that has build homes under the rock floor and around the door area looking for food... BBQ time is coming around pretty soon for me and that will get me out the house in early evening plus have food for my wife to eat when she comes home from work...
     
    I don't have as much "get up and go spirit" as I had last Spring but I'm still recovering from that knee operation and trying not to over do myself outside... Probably, I'll try to walk outside a little more because my walking balance is way down from what it should be in my opinion... I'm very thankful I can drive and I got my scooter I haul everywhere I go to use shopping in the stores or on doctor visits I have plenty appointments to make each week it seems like so I don't have to bother my wife to take me or even go along with me anymore...
     
    Well I'm wishing all the members here a happy Spring time and Summer too unless you live in Australia then it's the other way around... You hear me Sue?? I didn't forget about you and others living there!!!...
     
    We all know our own Lenny will be watching all the baseball games he can so I have to talk with him to know which teams to lean toward for championships by season's end... Have a great weekend everybody!!!! **hi**
  16. fking

    Easter Is Almost Here

    By fking,

    I think of watching the little kids with their big Easter baskets on the Easter egg hunts usually held at the different church grounds just for them to find the eggs themselves without mom, dad, or brothers or sisters help... I spoke with people I know that work at Walmart stocking who told me they put out many baskets and they sold out...
     
    So to all the members here I hope you get to be involved with your kids, grand kids, friends and families to make this Easter special as an outing... I'm going to try and make it to church if my paralyzed leg holds up and if not I'll just have to get my scooter out my car and get on it like I been today...
     
    Kids always comes first in my mind for having fun on days they are not in school and just being kids playing and having fun in groups with adults around...
     
    Here is hoping all of you feel well enough to get outside for a little while and enjoy the weather since Spring has arrived for the most part but understanding there are a few places snow may still be on the ground... That would make hiding and finding Easter egg a bit hard to do...
     
    Well sports fans I'm still waiting to see which team in college basketball is the best in the country and get out of the final four unbeaten...
  17. fking
    Well I have been glued to my TV watching college basketball both men and women games since our local college (Baylor) women is still in it playing real good so far and made it to the final 16.... I didn't make or enter any brackets I just watch the games... There are way too many teams and regions to keep up with that many games, my little brain won't allow me to do that....
     
    Then it's just about time for the Pros to get into their playoffs and of course Baseball is right around the curve I know our own Lenny will be following those games until the world Series starts... He is a baseball guy from way back.... So we all know the summer is coming soon and it will be time to put a hook in the water and catch some big catfish here in Texas where there are big fish and bigger fishermen with big boats.....
     
    I hope they all look out for each other on the open waters and no boat wrecks this year....They have a bad habit of trying to make it back to the docks just before it gets too dark and run into each other causing plenty boat and motor damage to their equipment...
     
    If you happen to be near the docks when they rush to get out the water they will give you many of the fish they caught plus you get a chance to see other fish you may not have ever seen before... Most of the guys just go out for the fun of it and they don't eat the fish they catch.... Many of them tells me they have a Bass fish fry sometimes but very few of them eat catfish and I love to eat them just could never catch any big ones myself fishing from the bank...
  18. fking
    I can't remember the last time or any time in the past 10 years that we had Spring Time arrive and there was still lots of Snow on the ground... If any of you remember please share that time and year with me!!! And it look like the snow may still be coming to certain areas and States in the US???
     
    Many of us here on Strokenet can't get outside in our conditions when the ground is covered with snow... Then to tune in to the Golf channels to watch golf and you see the snow on the ground lets you know the tournament officials didn't know the snow would still be on the ground... In fact here in central Texas we haven't seen the sun shinning very much so far these first few days of Spring either... Of course we hope to see the sun out real soon then we can get outside and really enjoy the outdoors...
     
    There hasn't been much rain here in our town and all the water ways, lakes, rivers and streams are very low... I saw a couple of boat operators putting gas in their boats yesterday at Walmart gas pumps and they told me the water was just to low in many of their favorite fishing spots to take a chance on running into tree stumps and ruining their motors or the boat... I remembered those days in Georgia trying to fish in unknown areas and tear your boat up or ruin the motor running into things you didn't see until it was too late... In some areas like that you can opt to use your trolling motor to move your boat about...
     
    I hope all of you that want to get outside can enjoy this weather now just take it easy and be extra careful because it feels so good to be outdoors!!!!
     
    One of the local colleges had a Fun Run and Bicycle ride event for the handicapped persons that was able to run or ride about two miles then visit the concession stand set up at the finish line to raise funds for the handicap people to purchase things they needed like braces, knee pads, shoes, shorts and gloves for riding or use at home working in their gardens... I was there but not in the run, just looking, then the rain came and I got back in my car to stay dry... I would have loved to use my scooter but it was powered by a battery and that wasn't allowed...
     
    I got to find me something to do outdoors where I can take the little dog on her leash with me to give her some time outside for a change... I used to take her with me to the school to pick up my grand daughter but this school now don't allow animals on the grounds even in the cars... I think a young kid went up to a car to pet a dog and was bitten... You know how some kids are when they think no one is looking...
     
    It only takes one incident to stop things from being allowed!!! So hopefully I can get out more since the weather has changed for the better and it's much warmer too... Get outside if you can enjoy the Spring and the Sun!!!!
  19. fking
    Well, we don't have much longer before the first day of Spring is upon us... I will be one happy camper for sure then I can try to walk outside with the lady that comes to care for me for two hours a day, five days a week.... Next week the kids are out of school for Spring Break so I won't have to take my grand daughter to school, I can sleep another hour before the lady come at 9 am to help me do things.....
     
    Just to see sunshine each day instead of snow and rain with very high winds will be a big change for our weather here... I be scared to try walking since I hurt myself on that trip to Vegas... My paralyzed left side just don't want to carry me along the way any more... But I have to get outside to keep my walking ability going...
     
    I can imagine how any person feels that suffers a second or third stroke, that really would slow me down... As it is I have to use my scooter with my left side being paralyzed I can't operate a walker with one hand!!!! In fact I went back to using my quad cane for walking from the garage out to my car, it feels safer than my single point cane because at times I have to turn it a loose so I would be dropping it at times if it didn't stand by itself...
     
    I hope the rest of this year passes pretty fast and my healing up doesn't slow down, I'm so tired of being in this situation having a lady to come in to attend to me and fixing breakfast at 9 am... But what else can you do when you need help doing things??
     
    I doubt if we are going on any more trips soon because the closest casino we like is about 5 hours away in Shreveport but there are others just across the state line of Texas in Louisiana.... I know my wife loves to play the penny machines and she can play at any casino I'm sure... I play the quarter machines mostly but at times I will play the dollar machines just not very long... Seems like putting 2 dollars in the machine at one time makes me lose my money too fast....
     
    So with the quarter machines I only lose 50 cent putting in 2 quarters at a time... Most of the machines now you can play quarter, 50 cent or a dollar but you drive yourself crazy wondering which denomination to play... Just when you should have played a dollar or two you play a quarter but sooner or later you will get a jackpot payout if you play long enough...
     
    So hopefully I can spring into action pretty soon on a weekend get away to the casino I just wish I had better luck playing the machines than I do now... I go primarily for my wife to play since she works every week and every other Saturday at the bank as a supervisor of the tellers!!!
     
    Then I guess before too long we will be taking that long trip to her hometown of New Orleans to visit her family members...
  20. fking
    We have turned the page on our calendars so March is here along with daylight Saving Time next week on the 8th... We set our clocks ahead in many of the states so our kiddos will have more daylight while going out to catch the school busses... Then we will be ready for St. Patrick's Day on the 17th and the first day of Spring on the 20th... It's hard to see this much snow piled so high this month and some cars still covered up in their parking spaces....
     
    It's still hard to look outside and see this much snow on the ground at this time which broke all kinds of records for snow fall this year in many states and it's not over yet... The auto body shops shouldn't have any complaints for all the work they will be doing in most states across America to get the wrecked up cars repaired and back on the road... If you are in the marked for a used car make sure you check real close for prior damage...
     
    Even the 18 Wheelers had many wrecks this year and will require repairs to their trucks and probably trying to sell many of them before they get new ones for their fleets... Maybe by Easter time next month we will be ready to hide Easter eggs for the kiddos to hunt...
     
    All in all we can't complain much about the weather because it sure did spread out in each state with very cold temperatures everywhere... As a stroke survivor myself when I'm outside my paralyzed side just doesn't work when it gets real cold and I certainly can not stay outside very long...
     
    I'm over ready for warmer weather now and I'm in central Texas but it's still cold here to me and I see people out daily in the stores with flip flops on their feet and short pants or shorts on like it's summer time already... We will not forget this much snow for a while!!!
  21. fking

    Time Waits For No One

    By fking,

    Can you believe the month of February is almost gone???? Two days left in the month as of today and we see weather conditions all across the US and everywhere to let us know it's still winter time!!!! Getting outside now is not so great with the wind, the snow, and it's outright cold every day in every state in the US...
     
    Looking back just a little it seems as though Christmas was just over and the Christmas trees were still standing while we had snow falling in record amounts... Now the busiest people and shops in many towns and cities will be the auto body shops.... You can't imagine the number of cars, and 18 Wheelers that were involved in highway accidents and fender benders all across the US so far and the weather hasn't let up yet... It's still bad weather in the south just as much as it is in New York and other big cities... The train systems had their fair share of accidents as well... This has to be a record numbers of accidents this year and the amount of snowfall too...
     
    By and large we know it still could have been much worse and thankful it was not... I didn't get out as much as I wanted to but I felt much safer being at home watching TV and all the news everywhere... Even the playoffs and the Superbowl was interesting but we will never know who or how eleven of the twelve footballs were deflated when New England played the the Colts... Makes us wonder if that will ever happen again???
     
    Then domestic violence among the football players and their families were at an all time high which we probably will not see again no time soon... So as we settle back and prepare for another season of baseball while the basketball season comes to a close we will all have our old teams to cheer for their winning season again this coming year!!!!
     
    Time waits for no one and the weather didn't either this year... I hope all of us are feeling better and doing more with our bodies than we were a few months ago... I'm back on my bicycle exercising like I used to do on a regular basis with my new health care lady helping me get back in a daily routine... I feel good just hope I can keep it up since it's too cold to be outside for a while yet....
  22. fking

    One Week At A Time!!

    By fking,

    Well to all my fellow members here, I'm just getting by one day at a time, as I still don't really know what caused my latest in ability to do what I had been doing for the past 11 years!!! My walking is terrible even with my quad cane everywhere I go... I got my scooter in the SUV and one in the house downstairs... My knee has healed up from the operation but my left side seems to have gotten worse and of course it's still paralyzed but seems like even more now than ever before...
     
    I'm sure now age is a factor but I keep on moving every day and going to appointments when I need to go. That's one reason I haven't been posting on here the last few days... Then real soon I got to start on my Taxes or 15 April will be here before I know it... I have been doing my taxes now for many years... With my house being paid off I hope to get some money back for a change this year...
     
    My wife plans on working for at least ten more years since she knows I can handle things for myself and here at home these days... She don't have to go to any appointments with me since I can drive but she still does to get a few hours off from work... Therefore, my time and life is pretty much "One week at a Time" Nothing to hurry up and do or get done...
     
    Now to the weather, man this has been a big change all across the US for sure, coast to coast and it's not finished yet... I'm so glad I got a health care provider for two hours, five days each week, to help me get the little things done that I can't seem to manage with one hand and one good leg...
     
    I'm still here with many, many disabled veterans like myself, but many of them have prosthetic limbs and small kids at home... So we meet on the Army base at different eating establishments for lunch on some days when the wives keep the small kids at home... So retired life with disabilities are not so bad when we put our minds to work on feeling better and getting out doing things... You have to keep your mind busy or you'll go crazy I think trying to figure out what all you can't do for yourself!!!! There is so much we can do weather providing of course...
  23. fking
    We all experience many different things with strokes and as I think back to 2004, my left side was paralyzed but I was walking pretty good and going any place I needed to go mostly by myself... Well now I feel displaced with the stroke in that I can hardly walk without thinking of falling while I use my quad cane all over again... Obviously at some point soon I hope to be better, get better, with my walking and getting around on my feet too where I'm not afraid to go places anymore...
     
    All your lively hood goes away when you are not feeling very safe while at home or out of your home because of the possibility of falling down and can't get yourself up off the floor... In my case it all seemed to have started when I tried to walk out the garage onto the driveway to get in my vehicle while taking my grand daughter to school one morning... My wife had to be at work early that morning... I guess I just can't get my big feet to step down an inch from one surface to the next part of my driveway...
     
    Long story short, this is what I mean by saying, I never had this problem before but I had my right knee operated on to get the tendons back together with the muscles that controls them for my walking and pressing down on the brake and gas pedals... Then the muscle group of my left arm and leg (thigh) area is hard so my doctor gave me a muscle relaxer and it is working pretty good I think...
     
    That brings me to my age factor, I'm 73 and will be 74, my next birthday come July, that's not too far away!!!! What I still got going for me is my scooter I use and keep in my vehicle every where I go... Then of course I got one downstairs I use all around my home and in the yard, going to the mailbox across the street and around the block with my little dog... She loves riding on the scooter with her leash intact
     
    She is my grand daughter's dog my wife got for her making the A/B Honor Roll three years ago and she is still on it in the sixth grade attending a Catholic school... The little puppy was only two weeks old when we got her from my wife's nephew in New Orleans... You can imagine the dollars I have put out in upkeep, training pads, meds, puppy training classes, and food for the little dog in three years time...
     
    I really feel it was money well spent for the little dogie and she stays right by my feet while we are home and by ourselves all day.... I get a lot of enjoyment having the dog with me all the time until her owner gets home from school; each day...
     
    So if my walking gets better soon I will feel normal again but in the meantime I get to keep the lady that helps me walk in the house and stays with me 5 days each week for two hours each day plus she is there to go places with me in the car aside from fixing breakfast for me each morning since my wife goes to work early some weeks....
  24. fking
    That time has come forth again for my wife to visit the casino in Shreveport Louisiana but this time around a couple of her choir members are going there for company and perhaps the winning too if they get lucky or play the right machines... The whole stay is just about free for the time they will be staying in the casino hotel... I just don't feel I'm healed enough to go there with them so I hope they win and enjoy their short stay, I wish them well and lots of luck...
     
    I'm staying home this time around to allow my broken down body to have more time to get well a bit more... I can sure use it now... Yea she is off from the bank Friday and Saturday so will probably return Sunday evening... It's her time to win some money so here is hoping she does this time around the last trip we both made to Vegas I did the winning...
     
    Maybe the gas prices won't go much higher but I see they are slowly rising again... I still got a bit more healing my body to do so I can feel pretty good again real soon so time will probably pass pretty slow for those three days.... Hopefully they will have good weather this weekend near 75 or higher according to the weather people on many of the stations on TV...
     
    The big picture is when will the snow stop falling on the East coast and on the West coast??? Right now it is not too cold here but that could change in a heart beat!!!!
  25. fking
    Hello to all of my fellow members, survivors, care givers, and all associates here on stroke net board!!! My oh my how time flies by especially when you are a little down and there are times when your body just doesn't let you do all the things you know how to do for yourself...
     
    I'm getting better with more time to heal my body... My doctor gave me more Baclofin yesterday to heal my muscles on my left side in my arm and my leg...The same side I'm aralyzed on and have trouble using... My arm muscle was very hard like I had been lifting weights...
     
    I sure didn't know baclofin was a muscle relaxer for the body and I used it for years during my nearly six month stay in the hospital when I first had my stroke before I came home and long after that time too... I'm still trying to heal and get well from my operation on my right knee and thigh... It feels much better now too... I will still say a stroke is no joke and is a life changing experience for anyone that has ever had one...
     
    When you are sitting home alone trying to heal your body while taking your medications it feels like life is passing you by every minute of the day or night... You can feel so all alone but yet you have cares and concerns you can't explain... It's a real weird feeling for sure...
     
    In my case I start to think of all the times I came so close to death in my life time while in the military and since I been retired too plus the four marriages I have had in my life now... Plenty of things to think about for sure when you think about your life and how things are going health wise... I just can't imagine my life living alone in a big ole house by myself..
     
    .I often think about Sue in Australia since her husband passed and how things could be difficult for her now... When you are used to another person being in your life even an animal or pet is is difficult to do without them once they are no longer there with you... It makes you wonder how they will feel once you are gone from their lives...
     
    I'm here in a military town with many military families retired and some still on active duty but severly handicapped with missing limbs and using equipment to get around with just like I have to do... I never looked this far ahead to imagine me in this situation but we never know what lies ahead of us in our lives... So, that is why I said I am getting better with more time in my life...
     
    I never imagined myself at my age now (73 years old, 74 come July) using a scooter and seeing this many young soldiers still om active duty waiting to be retired with their disabilities being a factor in their lives cutting their military time so short... I had time to speak with many of them yesterday in the military pharmacy while waiting to get my prescription filled... To see so many women soldiers to being handicapped with missing limbs or a hand missing with prostetic limbs was a site I never thought I would ever see in my life time...
     
    We never know what life has in store for any of us as we live in this world today... Just this morning I saw on the news a commuter train in New York hit a vehicle stopped on the tracks and killed the lady driver while many of the the train riders were injured too...Then another airplane in China falling from the sky clipping a bridge on the highway before landing in the water and probably had persons injured or killed as well... I will learn more on the evening news today...
     
    Then the usual news of killings, shootings and the reasons are unknown... If you read about me in Texas being shot you know I didn't shoot myself I don't even own a gun after being on the All Army Pistol Team for 14 years!!!!!