fking

Stroke Survivor - male
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  1. fking
    A stroke survivor is that person who has lost the use of a hand, leg or one side of their bodies and in many cases are unable to communicate depending on what part of the brain was affected by the stroke... So here we are living with that disability in a two handed world we grew up knowing how to do so many things from childhood to adulthood and suddenly we don't have the other hand to rely on holding and doing things with two hands any longer...
     
    We learn in time to do things one handed for ourselves like fastening a bra, buttoning a shirt, or zipper up a jacket and for some guys even tie our shoes... Where would we be without a Reacher, I use a long one and a short one at home and in my car so now I would be lost without one near me...
     
    We still have to eat and feed ourselves in many cases so we learn to do that with ease most of the times with one hand... So living in a two handed world while using one hand is not all bad when we put our minds to it... I have learned to dress and undress myself in the last eleven years with ease... Now I do have my pinky finger that want to curl up and my index finger that sticks straight out and I can still use both of them pretty easily...
     
    Just the left arm is hard to use so I exercise it all day and every night before I go to sleep... Then in the morning I ride my exercise bike which gives my arms, hands, and lower body exercise which is needed when I'm driving my vehicle...
     
    I feel I have come a long way in my recovery from the stroke then lately a knee operation to tie the tendons back to the muscles in my right knee and thigh all the while my left side remains paralyzed... As I think about that and I'm home alone most of the day each week I feel pretty blessed to do all I do for myself...
     
    I have a lady for two hours each day except weekends to come in and help me do things I can't do one handed yet... Then I got my little dog right by my feet all day until her little owner comes in from school then she goes to be by her side even while she does her school home work.... You would think the dog understands everything because she lays right there looking in the book my grand daughter has open up...
     
    Then of course I have the TV, my computer, and my cell phone so never a dull moment here alone most of the day. I just wonder how many of you all that read this Blog handle your days????? Do we have anything in common for daily routines?? In case we do let me know your routine?? The dog and I get on my scooter and go across the street to get the mail and sometimes we ride to the end of our street to give her some exercise... At times we even go to the neighborhood corner store to buy a lottery ticket or two... They let me bring her inside the store but she stays on my scooter not running all over the store...
  2. fking
    I will bet some of you here will go see the super bowl game in Arizona and I wish I was going too but that is not possible in my physical condition... It's going to be a good Super bowl game just as both games were yesterday!!!
     
    I was surprised the Packers lost to the Seattle Seahawks with such a big lead but they did!!!!
  3. fking
    Well it's been a long time for me since the stroke and I must say until my wife and I took the trip to Vegas I was doing great using my scooter, walking, driving, and even worked at Walmart for three years, 06 to 09, as a greeter while my wife went back to work after staying at home with me my first two years after the stroke.
     
    I was thinking I could make up some of the money she lost by quitting her job to stay home attending to me which I need those first two years... I'm not quite that bad off now but I know not to get on a bus again... I think I will be up walking good in a few more weeks I just can't feel my left side which is my paralyzed side already but now feels just like I just had the stroke all over again but I didn't and I'm just now holding that arm down by my side again like I used to do...
     
    I got a lady coming in for two hours each morning to assist me getting things done but that will soon end by the first of February so hopefully I can do more for myself by that time... I'm driving again even taking my little grand daughter to school when my wife has to be at work by 7am that week then the next week she goes in at 10am... That's not a bad schedule for her we just figure out what week I need to make appointments where she can go with me without her having to take off her job...
     
    We try to make the best of our time and so far we got it down pretty good for her since I could go any day but she likes to go with me to my appointments.... I still have a bit of trouble getting my scooter out the vehicle and putting the seat on it with one hand while I try to stay standing up without falling...
     
    I will be so glad when I'm back to where I was before all this bus riding happened... I never thought I would have to use my quad cane ever again but I'm having to use it now eleven years later... I'm not crying this is short term but unexpected for sure... It's like a minor setback except I can still drive my car, but I'm home now more than before, me and the little dog, she is great company for me....
     
    I've come a long way since my stroke and I have learned so much about strokes and recovery since I been on this site so time is what each survivor needs to get better... I'm having therapy at home too learning how to walk all over again so I miss going to church and not walking like I should be doing but it's coming along again with a little more time....
     
    Where would any of us be without a care giver by our side?? I am so glad I got married again back in 1998 which makes my fourth time and the best time of my married life so now I'm looking forward to healing up and maybe going back to work again on my scooter just to get out this house on a regular basis.... Life is Good as a Survivor after a stroke and 22 years of Army life and 10 in the Postal Service...
  4. fking
    Here we are as a group of stroke survivors and care givers, family and friends alike being very thankful to have come this far in our recovery, caring for our loved ones, knowing that one day we shall be much better physically than we are this day!!!!
     
    All of us can rejoice in that we saw another Christmas day in our very long battle to get better in every way God intended for our well being... Our prayers and the prayers of many others has helped all of us overcome what we faced years ago without knowing where we would be this Christmas 2014...
     
    It takes a village to raise a kid I'm told and the same village here at Stroke Net has made our daily being a member here so pleasant and enjoyable while we get better day by day, month by month, and year by year in the name of God!!!!!
     
    "We must all continue to believe we can get better and do whatever we can to achieve that goal." Peace and more recovery for every member here this day after CHRISTMAS is our way to one day walk again!!!
  5. fking
    I'm getting better in a sense and back to a decent stage of health after this knee operation to tie the tendons back together with the muscles that controls my leg movements up and down!! The doctor was pleased somewhat but I couldn't straighten my leg completely straight out for him... I told him I had been driving my car operating the brake and gas pedals real good so he just said OK...
     
    My wife went there with me, she drove in the driving rain, we got wet getting out the car and me getting on my scooter but that's my luck... We were all dry by the time we went in his office for the early appointment!!
     
    Now, one more appointment with him in March next year and I should be cleared to do anything I need to do by myself especially driving my car!!! I thought he would say something about me not being able to straighten the leg completely out like him having to operate on that knee/leg again... But he didn't say!!
     
    My left side is still my weak side but I'm able to use it in standing up from a chair, the bed, and from my scooter, to me that is a blessing at my age now!!! So I suppose using a power scooter will be with me for a long time to come and I won't need to use it in the house just out and about in malls shopping and the casinos...
     
    I had been driving my grand daughter to school when my wife has to be at her job early mornings to open the bank that week!!! Her mom has to be at work at 630am but she picks her up from school in the evenings so that saves me an evening trip to the school...
     
    My wife has two kids, I got two also and her daughter is still at home with us with her 10 year old daughter I take to school... My daughter is incarcerated serving 5 years in state due to be released in 2016 and she is 50 years old and knew better than to do what she did!!! I never hear from my son anymore and her son is aide to our pastor. He is married to a beautiful lady and they got their own home...
     
    My wife and I get along so well for this being her second marriage and my fourth and last one to her... We got our home paid off last year and plots in the Veterans Cemetery already paid up... That was a great deal to get out the way at our ages now!!!
     
    My wife wants to be still at the bank until she is 70 years of age, she loves banking and was in it since high school and all through college... I guess it's in her blood?!! Maybe one day we'll have some money she can sit at home and count but she loves serving people at the bank windows and I figure I'll never have enough for her to count being retired after the stroke 10 years ago and on Social Security!!!
     
    So life hasn't been too bad for me it was just the wives I had until now with the third one tried to eliminate me with one shot but I survived and here I am after the stroke a very happy husband for this wife!!! God is good and He is keeping me here with her... I'm very thankful for her being by my side...
     
    Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, A Very Happy New Year To All Of You and great health.........See Ya!
  6. fking
    I'm trying to recover from my knee/thigh operation and learn to walk again without falling.. I feel at times I had another stroke on the left side but probably did not. It's just hard for me to get used to this new feeling on my left side... It feels like I got a ways to go to get back to my normal feelings on my feet... My driving is OK just my walking is not where I want it to be...
     
    Had I not gotten the right knee fixed I couldn't press the brake or gas pedal to drive my car and I'm having to take my grand daughter to school early mornings when my wife has to be at the bank by 7am... Then the next week she goes in at ten am...
     
    So I got to get well or better real soon to keep helping her get the grand child to school since her mom goes to work at 6am... But that's life and I'm making the best of helping out where I can even a little cooking so there is something here for them to eat when they get home from a day on the job... It's too expensive to pick up food from these restaurants daily for a family of four...
     
    ""Wishing all of you a joyous Christmas and a very Happy New Year 2015 and great health!!!""
  7. fking
    Well care givers many of us survivors will be sitting in front of the Big TV watching football for hours or maybe sleep for hours in the recliners!! Then you will hear a weak voice calling out "Dear, honey, baby, can you bring me another ****@@@@ soon as you get time??"
     
    I suppose the shopping days are gone but it seems at least the gas prices are dropping a bit where I live and if it is where you are too, then make sure you take time to fill up the gas tank...
     
    The thing about football this time of year is the college Championship games that your college kids want you to see even if they are not playing and the pro games leading up to championships in the divisions and the fight to see what two teams will be playing in the Super Bowl....
     
    Well for me it will not be costly because I don't go to the stadium games anymore at today's prices!! Heck, I couldn't even buy the food they sell at these stadiums, it's very pricy these days!!
     
    So I'll just stay at home out of the weather in front of my TV and enjoy all the games just the same!! I hope your favorite teams win...
     
    Merry Christmas to each of you and your families hoping Santa is good to you this year... You just got 12 days left to Christmas.....From today!!
  8. fking
    Here I am in the month of December 2014!!! Many of you know I have had some setbacks to keep me off the board for quite some time now. I'm finally healed up enough to sit here and express myself without being in total pain since the operation on my knee and thigh.It's been a long road to recovery but I made it by the grace of my God and my wife.
     
    I was always posting and greeting new members as they joined strokenet with many questions they needed answers to for their long journey to a good recovery from the stroke they suffered and for the most part knew nothing about strokes! The effects of any stroke can set you back for a long time while you are trying to recover and can hardly walk or you have to use a walker, wheelchair, or a scooter to get about after the stroke!
     
    Well I had to use the scooter after my stroke 10 years ago and just recently with the operation on my knee I was unable to walk and just now getting able to walk a little with the help of a therapist coming to my house twice each week!!! So I'm still healing and learning to do the things again that I could do without even thinking about it....
     
    I thought I would be discharged by my doctor on the 15th but I got out today as he said my knee and my ability to get around walking was great. So here I am back on the message board meeting and greeting new members while making comments I think will help all members along their road to recovery from a stroke based in part on the things I have experienced with my own stroke from 10 years ago!!!
     
    I still must use my scooter to get around for long distances or even in the casinos, the stores and the shopping malls!! Now that it is shopping times for buying gifts I guess I will have to make plenty trips out to my car to store the things I purchase since I still can only use one hand.... So thanks for all the well wishes, prayers, and comments many of you left for my get well times the last couple of months...
     
    I just have to relearn how to make it into chat and do a few other things here on the message board. It will all come back to me after awhile. Many thanks again everyone for not forgetting about me while I was out healing up from the operation... It feels great to be sitting at the computer again!!! More next time!!!
  9. fking

    I'm Getting Therapy Now!

    By fking,

    I got therapy twice a week but my walking is not good at all. My left leg is still paralyzed making it very hard for me to move my left foot and leg. I'm doing the best I can and hopefully in due time I will be walking much better. They stopped the OT until I can walk better then I will work on that for my left arm and hand.
     
    I can still drive my car and I have a lady that comes in from 9am to 11am to help me with hygiene stuff and my feet I can't reach right now. So hopefully before too long I will be back on the board again!
     
    Thanks for your comments everyone on my last blog and glad you all are doing OK!
  10. fking
    Well you all that know or remember me, I'm Fred King, and I just want to log in and tell you all that My operation went well and I'm into therapy both OT and regular PT with two different guys. I'm trying to learn to stand up and walk again which is the hardest thing I tried to do lately.
     
    My knee is healed up from the cut they had to make to tie the tendons back to my controlling muscles to make my foot work. I got to learn how to use that right leg more each day so I can drive again. That's a must to push the gas pedal and the brake pedal down. I'm getting there slowly. Know I know what those football players go through when they tear the ACL in their knees and at my age it is tough to overcome that kind of injury for sure.
     
    Thanks for your prayers and thinking of me letting me know I'm still in the strokenet family. I really missed being on board and posting like I used to do daily. Life has many twists and turns for any of us so I hope I can make a comeback soon in my physical being and get better in time. That is my biggest concern and I know there must be many more new members now than it was just a few months ago.
     
    We all know strokes can happen any time to anyone and we need a place to come and learn more about them from others and to exchange ideas on therapies and what we know about strokes and having to live with them as best we can. I probably can't post very much for now because I go downstairs early each morning to wait for the lady who helps me clean up, shave and get my shoes on my feet. Then the noon hour the therapy guys start to show up and I'm busy trying to learn to walk and move my feet again without falling.
     
    This has been a real lesson for me in trying to recover with what I got left. My legs are very weak and standing up from sitting is a real task. My wife is still working but does what she can for me as she has time to do. I know I have missed a lot by not being here but I will try to read much as I can in time ahead.
     
    So hello to all of you new members and I hope to read some of your post as time goes by. Thanks again for your many prayers and thoughts along the way for those of you that knew me so well. I just got to learn the site all over again I'm sure!!
  12. fking

    Still Recovering Slowly

    By fking,

    I'm not back to full health yet from the operation on my right knee to tie the tendons back together so I can use the knee again. Now I have a health care lady for two hours a day for four days each week until I can walk without being scared of falling and I can't get myself up from the floor.
     
    I sat in a recliner chair with that leg straighten out for it to heal properly. The cut is from about three inches below the knee cap to eight inches above the knee and very sore but it's healing up pretty good the doctor said on Thursday when I went in for him to look at how it was healing up.
     
    So my guess is I will still need some more time before I can walk and I got a PT lady starting on next Tuesday to start me walking again outside on the sidewalk and in the garage until I can walk much better than I do now while it is healing up. The hard part for me is trying to stand up the strength is just not there yet.
     
    So in due time I shall be up and walking pretty soon hopefully!!!
  13. fking
    Well tomorrow 9/12/14 is operation day for me on my right knee, I will be so glad to get this operation over with so I can try to walk again and stand up on my own!! These last two weeks has been a pain in the butt for me not being able to even stand up or walk on my own!! I sat on my bed all day and must wait for my wife to come home and help me walk to the bathroom on her lunch hour.
     
    I been drinking ensure so I don't have to go poop daily and I bet I have lost 15 pounds.. Anyway with my left side already paralyzed it makes it very hard for me to stand up or walk on my own or very hard to pick my left foot up to walk knowing my right knee will give out and down I go to the floor..
     
    I just hope the knee will get well soon but it's a big operation in a critical place, the knee!! My wife had just taken her vacation two weeks prior so she couldn't take more time off!! I must call the doctor's office between 3 and 5 to get the time I'm due in to start my operation unless they call me later today to tell me the time to be there tomorrow for my procedure!!
     
    I know the knee is hard to heal up and getting the tendons back together is a big task so I will be sore and not wanting to move that knee very much at all but I have to consider how much better I will be when this operation and healing is completed..
     
    "I ask your prayers" and that God can guide the doctor's hand and give me more nerves to get this big operation done and start the long healing process of a delicate place on my body with limited moving ability!!
     
    Thank you all this day at this time!! I will let you all know when I'm back home and sitting up on my own... Take care of yourselves!
  14. fking
    Most of you may remember my last blog about going to Vegas well this may be my last blog for quite some time...See I now must get operated on my right knee I think on the 12th next Friday. I hurt my knee trying to ride the shuttle busses. My right knee has separated at the joint and has to be rejoined with surgery!! I will be out of commission for many months after they sew my knee up to heal then learn to walk without help as I am walking with help only not on my own or even with a cane. I have to be held up to make a step but no steps on my own!!
     
    I AM VERY HURT AND IT WILL BE A LONG TIME BEFORE I CAN WALK AGAIN... I'm IN BED can't even go to the bathroom by myself so it's a hard life right now but I thought I would let all of you know what happened to me!!
     
    Pray for my recovery and with God's blessings I will be up again one day in the future!!!!!
  15. fking
    Hello gang, I'm back home for a day or three of needed rest, man this trip tired me plum out physically trying to ride those buses that picks you up from the Airport to take you to your hotel!!! I tell you now the steps to get in are to tall if you got one side of your body paralyzed like I do!!! My good knee gave out and I couldn't support my other leg to help me climb up to get in the bus...
     
    So on the return trip me did the taxi cab thing from the hotel to the airport and again from the airport when we landed back to the hotel where we left the car instead of at the airport parking lot!!! The hotel was cheaper since we stayed there Saturday night because we had an early flight to Vegas and didn't want to leave home that early the next morning... That worked out great for us but trying to take the shuttle buses are no good for me with one good leg...
     
    I got to visit the VA for them to look at my knees real soon.. I got a bone sticking up from my knee in my good leg and it hurts like hell.. I can see it and feel it and it hurts to walk with my cane. We rented a scooter upon arrival at the hotel Circus-Circus on the strip across from the other big hotels and casinos... Low and behold there was a Ross department store just down the street within walking distance for my wife and me on the scooter...
     
    Now the good news... I won on the quarter machine where there were three in one row, I started in the middle and worked my way to both end machines... My first hit was 150 on the left machine then I moved to the right end and hit 9 times the amount showing which equal out to just over 700 dollars!! At first I thought I had hit the three bonus stars which pays 2500 dollars... I played 20 dollars back then moved back to the middle machine where I started and hit for 245 dollars!!! At that point I was finished playing the machines for the day... Two days later I played the dollar machine and lost 60 dollars so I quit!!
     
    The next days was shopping for the wife getting gifts for her two kids and her grand daughter too!!! After taking a money count we had spent 166 dollars so back to the machines I went.. By this day more people had come to the hotel where we stayed until I could hardly ride my scooter... There was a district Pool Tournament with colleges from California and UNLV plus a couple more schools I didn't know!! So it was a bit crowded in every place we went to eat early mornings, noon or evening meal times... I think the pool play was at one of the colleges and two of the casinos, the Rivera across the street from the Circus-Circus hotel and casino where we stayed!!! Every player had their own pool sticks and gear in a case on their shoulder everywhere they went!!!
     
    There must have been a thousand penny machines all over the casino where my wife and her family members played most of the times!!! They all departed on Thursday back to New Orleans so we left on Friday and was back home Friday night around 7pm!!! We just had cameras installed two day before we left by our security company, low and behold they broke into my vehicle which was all on camera so our daughter had it all when the police came to investigate... The police knew exactly who they were after looking at the pictures on the cameras and made an arrest quickly!!! Nothing was taken that was in my vehicle but they went through the glove box looking for money, credit cards, gas cards and check books and garage openers left over the visor!!! They didn't even bother the CD's in the door pockets... Guess that wasn't their kind of music..
     
    Lucky for me I had taken my scooter out and put it in the house to charge up while we were gone... I will go to the police station on Monday to file the report on any losses I had for anything taken from the vehicle... I imagine they were looking for dope and things to pawn for money plus what I mentioned earlier...
     
    Overall, we had a great vacation with my wife's family members coming in from New Orleans... Our church goes to New Orleans in a couple of weeks!! So now it's back to my old routines taking my grand daughter to school and picking her up in the evening about 3pm from school!!! Hanging with her little dog all day, she loves to follow me any where I go so I'm glad I can take her every where I go no questions asked I just have to show my papers stating I'm a 100 percent disable with PTSD... That authorize me to have the dog with me and no questions asked about her being a service dog... That's a good thing about being in a military town with so many wounder soldiers...
     
    I will blog again after I read around the site and get the new changes Steve has done for all of us while I was gone on vacation!!! See you!
  16. fking

    Time Go By Fast!!

    By fking,

    It's been some weeks since I last posted!! It is almost time for us to go on vacation in a few more days but we had to wait for my wife's sister to change her vacation time and we are all going together now so I will wait and blog when we return! That way I can tell you all about our trip and winnings I hope?
     
    I'm really ready to hit the road and do other things for a week... I doubt if I get any rest but hope I can be a big winner for a change at the casinos!!! Just to get-a-way will mean so much for me and my wife too!! I will catch all of you in the next blog for sure so stay cool and make the most of this great warm weather unless you are in Australia where it's winter time for now!!
     
    I can't even remember what day she said we are going but I won't let her leave me at home this time!!!!
     
    Take care you all!!!
  17. fking

    My wife's Birthday

    By fking,

    Yesterday, July 9th, was my wife's 62nd birthday which she enjoyed very well. She came home from work at 6 pm and wanted to eat out at Applebee's restaurant so we took our grand daughter too and she ate good and enjoyed being out to eat for a change!! Normally I go pick up food for all of us when my wife get home or having it here when she get home!!
     
    Today she has Praise dance practice at church so she will stop after her practice and get her a bite to eat I'm sure!! We'll find something or I will go pick up something for all of us to eat because she doesn't get home from practice until around 9 pm!! My grand daughter has piano practice on Thursdays so I will figure out something as I usually do on these days!!
     
    Right now we are thinking to make the planned trip to Vegas later this month or even next month now since some other things has changed! I didn't realize her baby sister in New Orleans and her hubby were making the trip too with us!! I had no idea and hadn't asked so all things will have to be moved back so all of us can get there at the same time!! That could be a good thing since July is a well traveled month for going to Vegas and to Reno Nevada too! I know from the past times it will be very hot at that time in Vegas!!
     
    I think bowling tournaments will be taking place at that time too if I remember correctly from my past times when I was bowling everywhere!!! We never go see shows at the casinos I hat to sit still that long plus the shows are pretty expensive!!! I think we, my wife and I, love to walk the strip and shop then visit the casinos and the dinning rooms where the meals are reasonable as I remember from years gone by!!
  18. fking
    Well every true worker needs to take a vacation every year and see things and places they haven't seen in a long while! Of course the worker is my wife so I'm going to help her bring back the money she plans on bringing back from the casinos there! I usually leave all my quarters I bring with me plus a few I didn't plan on leaving with them.. But that's my luck and it's the fun of hitting a few jackpots on the quarter machines I love to play! By me being on my scooter I tend to get around to all of them and soon know which ones to play that gives me the greatest chance to pocket some cash!
     
    My wife plays the penny machines and usually does pretty good in a days run but with so many casinos on the strip and in the downtown areas sooner or later it's your time to win a little money!! Another thing I do a lot of is wait while a person plays a machine for a long time then when they leave I go to that machine and usually hit a big payout if not a jackpot payout!!
     
    That reminds me of a joke I read about the mouse in heaven being on wheels! The big cats were glad to see them passing by on a skateboard so they called them "meals on wheels." So the Fat Cats ate good in heaven all day and night too!! So I let the fat cats put the dollars in the machine then I go behind them and usually will get out much more than I put in the quarter machines! It seems to me after awhile you can get a feel for which machine is about ready to pay out!! On the other hand perhaps it's just my luck!!
     
    This year we will fly instead of driving that far with gas prices like they are now and will go higher later this month!! I'm looking forward to a great vacation this year to celebrate our 16 years of blissful marriage plus both of our birthdays in July!! We got married in Reno Nevada on the 9th of June 16 years ago but we drove there to bowl and back to Kansas to bowl in a bowling tournament before coming back home to my Pro Shop business!!!
     
    My bowling days are long gone now so it will be all casinos this time around as we are not much on seeing the shows on the strip, but we love to eat in some of the big places with big, big dinning rooms!! Then we are ready to walk the strip when the sun is down and look in the shop windows and see things we would love to have but not at their prices they are showing!! This time around we will rent a scooter for me which is the going thing to do now with all the wounded veterans on vacations everywhere!!
     
    So we are both expecting to enjoy ourselves and have a great vacation for the first time in a very long time!! Otherwise all of our prior travel by car has been to New Orleans to visit her family members. Her baby sister and her husband is suppose to meet us there in Vegas. I think we all arrive about the same time and staying at the same hotel on the strip far as I know! I'm sure we will grab a taxi at times to see other places if they decide to change venues!!
     
    I can't even tell you when we are leaving and she told me a thousand time already but I do think it's sometimes this month of July!!! My little brain just doesn't hold dates and that much information anymore. Probably why she doesn't want me driving that far since she hates driving herself so I got no help with all those miles!!
     
    Plus in the evening while I'm driving she stars yawning when we pass a motel. Then if we stop to get some rest for the night she turn the TV on and stay up watching the TV instead of going to sleep!! I can't sleep because the TV is blasting!!! Then she wants to get an early start the next morning at sunrise!!! So I'm glad we are flying this time around and renting a scooter for me when we get there. I think the scooter will be rented at our hotel for my use!! Hope I have a bit of luck this time around on the machines!!
     
    It would really be nice if I could put a dollar in one of those special machines and hit a fortune like I read about sometimes!! In fact a guy did that recently at the airport when he arrived in Vegas!!! I'll have to give it a try, it just may be my time to win really, really big money!!!
  19. fking
    Well for starters I have a one pm appointment with the arthritis doctor to see about my knees and whether a replacement at my age is the thing to do NOW!! I have told myself for many years now that I never wanted to get my knees done I'll just go without that added pain!! Then if they work or not for me? I saw so many people, both men and women, when I was in the hospital as a stroke survivor,,, They were complaining both day and night for having it done so I decided then I would never have that done since one side of me is paralyzed anyway!!
     
    Speaking of age, I turn 73, on the 22nd of this month and my wife turns 62 a week or two ahead of me.. Guess I robbed the cradle in this marriage but it has been, and is no doubt, the best time of my entire life bar none!!! This marriage is the longest one of four which as of June 9th was 16 years of total happiness. I just wish my mom could have met her and to think this wife came to me, I think she was God sent to me and I thank Him daily!!
     
    She was the one to come home from a dental apt. to find me passed out on the floor still bleeding in the brain from the stroke!! With that I feel she was meant for me!! Perhaps I'm doing what I do all because of her pushing me to do more and get better daily so I thank her for being my wife!! I'm so happy with her and she feels the same way... The big success is we both been in church for 16 years too while she sings in the choir and is a member of our praise dance team along with the Pastor's wife and other faithful members!! She still found time to come visit me in the hospital every night for the five months I was there before coming home in a wheelchair unable to walk!!
     
    I give all my success in my recovery to her caring for me like she does! Well that's life in the slow lane I just got to learn to walk without a cane then I can get off my scooter too!!!!! My key is: Don't Ever Give Up Or Stop Trying To Do More!!
  20. fking
    That time has come again to see my arthritis doctor for my knees and man do they hurt now!! I have been getting injections in both knees for several years but the last time I did it didn't last very long at all!! So this time I will discuss with him about any other measures to stop the pains short of getting knee replacements for both knees!!
     
    I've always said to myself "I don't want knee replacements," "I'll just go to my grave with the knees I was born with." Lately as I have gotten a bit older I think the arthritis has increased in both knees making the pains more severe to deal with on a daily basis!! As my family history goes for both my parents they suffered badly with arthritis most of their adult lives. I think my mom suffered the most... I remember her saying how much her knees hurt so bad daily but she could walk two blocks to church with no problems... Maybe she was walking and praying to God?
     
    Then sometimes while I'm sitting at home I'm thinking because I'm the last child perhaps I caught all the ailments my parents had doing their lives?? It sure does seem that way at times!! However at other times I know it's the age that's catching up with me every year I get older!! When I joined the Army after high school I had a clean bill of health and could still run for miles and not get tired. I was on the track team and ran the mile run where no one ever beat my time or me!!! I even ran the 1/2 mile, 880 yards, and was only beaten once in three years in high school!!!
     
    When I sit and think back on those days I feel now it has to be my age catching up with me finally!! After the stroke and five month stay in hospital I came home unable to walk for quite some time, meanwhile my wife had to push me around to my appointments and therapies for a few more months!! That's when the veteran administration decided I would be better off using a scooter for ever how long it was needed!!!
     
    Ten years now and the scooter is my best friend for all I try to do and for the places I go on a daily basis!!! I like that instead of a WC so I can get off and still walk with a cane... I remember I'm left side weak or paralyzed so I may never be able to walk everywhere I need to go!!! I'm thankful every day I was 62 when the stroke hit me instead of much older!! It took away my ability to still bowl or run my Bowling Pro Shop with one side paralyzed!! I couldn't drill the holes in balls on the machine with one hand nor stand up long on one good leg!!!
     
    I thought the monthly injections from my arthritis doctor would do the trick and it did until now so I'm concerned what's next for me short of knee replacements?? Anyway, perhaps some of those answers will surface in this next appointment on July 1st.... Looking ahead I'm hoping I don't get to the point of not being able to walk at all!!!
     
    I'm not a sit at home person and my wife still working too! Heck, I would have to go back working at Walmart on my scooter again!! The manager has asked me "Do I want to come back??" at times when I go there shopping and run into him in the store isles!!! There is a Veteran hiring drive on now in most states for all Walmart stores everywhere so getting a job there should be pretty easy since I'm a disable Veteran!!
     
    Well all those answers will come in due time so I shall know a bit more after this coming appointment in July!!! I just don't want knee replacements if I can help it because I hear so many complaints from those who had it done and most of them saying if they had to do it again they wouldn't!!!! Until next time you all, be good!!!!
  21. fking

    Time To Blog Again

    By fking,

    I don't have anything to Blog about but since my last blog about Fathers Day I thought I need to write again!! Since summer is going to be here on Sunday officially I know it was time to blog again!! There has been tornadoes and hurricanes in some states lately even as late as yesterday with some twisters happening in South Dakota yesterday as well.
     
    I thought about Dan and Nancy being in North Dakota and having just moved into a different home lately how they are doing. These twisters can happen so fast and do so much damage. I think it was just last year they hit here in Texas and in Alabama causing lots of damage... I can say we have been lucky so far that none has been in our little town for a couple of years now. We just never know when they will strike!!
     
    Being from Houston Texas I know they can form up and hit in a matter of minutes with much damage to homes and buildings... Being a stroke survivor myself it's not much I could do to be safe when one comes our way!! I just hope we get as much warning as possible then I still don't know if that would help very much!! Now that summer is here on Sunday I just hope for the best. We know to go to the first floor and get in a closet. That was one reason I didn't want to live in a two story home but my wife wanted one.. She has said if we had it to do all over again now that I had this stroke she would have a single story home here in Texas.
     
    We only got one tree in the front yard that the builders planted when they constructed the home in 2000!! We have had some windy days since that time that affected the roof shingles but no real major damage to the house!! In Texas we never know what year will be a big disaster in storms!!
     
    I guess that is better than being in a zone where wild fires are raging all the time like in California. I don't want to live that far off in the woods among the wild animals like bears looking for food around your home!! I would lose my mind walking out my door and looking a big bear in the eyes... On the other hand people will build homes high up on these hills and mountain ridges where animals are all the time, that's not for me!! I know I don't want to be that close to creeks and rivers either where your home could flood if it rains a lot... That water has to flow someplace other than my house!!! Then the snakes are sure to be close around!!!
     
    Guess I'm just not a guy looking to be among nature like deer in your yard and on your porch eating your flowers you just bought from Walmart... When you live in areas like that someone is always out hunting for game and may shoot through your window!! I'd rather live in the city so when I hear gun shots I know they are not after me and I can call the police who responds pretty fast most of the time...
     
    I'm trying to recover from this stroke but it feels like I have really slowed down since I'm in my tenth year...Then again at my age now arthritis has really set in my knees and I have had it for many years now so it will only get worse in years to come...I may never be able to walk very far with my care so I'm glad I can drive plus I got my scooter for shopping in the stores!! Many of them are big stores now so there is no way I could walk around in them shopping in the years ahead!!!
     
    Well, that's my blog and perhaps next time I will have a subject to discuss!!!
  22. fking
    Well it's that time of the year again, that is, to Wish all fathers a happy fathers day, so my wish to all of you is to get many gifts, kisses, summer clothes, shoes, and what ever else your wife, kids, and any others that want to surprise you with on your special day this year!!!
     
    Notice I didn't mention money that's the last thing on wives minds but a lot of honey would be very nice since they seem to put us on a every now and then schedule saying she don't want to hurt my back any worse than what it already is!!!!!! :growl: Heck we only had a stroke a little moving ain't going to kill us!!!!
     
     
    "'SO HAPPY FATHERS DAY TO ALL YOU FATHERS"" :roflmao: Get on down with it
  23. fking
    It's that time of the year here in central Texas, the sun shines daily where wearing flip flops, shorts, and nothing more, is the norm!! Many stores have put up signs on the doors or in the windows saying "no shirt, no shoes, No service." Some stores don't allow swim suits either for men, women or kids!! Walmart is one of them and a couple of the grocery stores too!!
     
    For me it's a time to get out and about and see how the city is growing with homes and businesses being built in the neighborhoods and in our downtown areas!!! Otherwise the township is small, always have been, from the time it got started centuries ago in the 1800 hundreds...They are repaving the streets and fresh paint is everywhere to spruce up the look of the older buildings among the new ones!!! Even the Police department got new vehicles and a relocated Police Department building with morden equipment inside!!
     
    We have had a few officers killed along with many soldiers returning from duty overseas.... I think it's drug related in most cases where lives are lost and domestic cases where men are at the wrong house when the husband comes home!!!! I guess cheating will always be a death sentence for some men and women who refuse to stop bad habits!!! I suppose in military town and communities that is always a big problem and when the police is called to the disturbance lives are lost!!
     
    On the other hand money is flowing by soldiers getting killed in the war and husbands or wives collecting big payouts for their deaths!!! New expensive cars are being bought and new homes bought too... I feel good driving my 10 year old car and living on my retirement from years ago!!!
     
    The best part of summer is coming for me as my wife and I will celebrate birthdays in July as we did out anniversary of 16 years being married to each other on the 9th of June!!! Had my mom been still alive she would have celebrated her 116th birthday on 11 June by her being born in 1898!!! I tell people and they just can't believe my mom had 18 kids and I'm number 18 born when she was 43 years old!!! Of course she had one set of twin girls, one still living!!! They were number 16 and 17 born five years before me!!!
     
    I'm sure she is up there with God and praying daily for me and my sister. I think that's how I'm still surviving on this earth with her prayers and mine!!! I just hate she didn't get to see my now wife whom I feel is the one meant for me and she was God sent!!!
     
    So I hope all of you have a wonderful Summer doing things you always wanted to do and of course those of you in Australia, the land down under, who are having Winter time now!!! God is so good to all of us all the time keeping us strong as we recover from strokes and care giving for loved ones!!! Then those of you in other parts of the world I wish you well too!!!
     
    Hopefully we can bring ALL the troops home from Afghanistan soon and not send anymore troops to Iraq where war is resuming among them once again...
     
    I wish all of you a happy summer ahead and much recovery for all survivors and care givers alike because you have the toughest job around caring for a survivor!!! May our God bless all of us daily!!!
  24. fking
    I'm in the happiest and longest marriage of my adult life and today marks 16 years being with a lady I feel was God sent to be in my life forever more!! Considering my first three (3) marriages I can't help but feel this one was approved by God because I would have not gotten it right on my own!! So I'm celebrating 54 years total married life and this one makes the cake taste soooo sweet!!
     
    Looking back I remember marrying my high school sweetheart in 1960 and producing two kids four and six years later after tours in Germany twice and thinking I was "All That" doing those years!! Nevertheless the marriage lasted 12 years, the second one just 6 years, and the third one 13 years and nearly cost me my life!! She came to where I was living and pulled the trigger but I survived by the Grace Of God!!! So you can see or imagine why I treasure these 16 years being married for the fourth time with no storms or hurricanes to upset the home and our lives together!!!
     
    It was a coincidence that my first wife died in 1998 and I married my present wife that same year!! My daughter from that marriage, my first child, born in Munich Germany is now serving time in the Texas prison system. She was given 5 years but could have gotten much more for her crime had it not been for my plea to the Judge in her case!!! My son has retired from the military, married for the second time and residing somewhere in Virginia to my knowledge!!!
     
    You can see why I cherish these last 16 years with my wife and figure she was God sent, delivered by the devil that drove the car, whom she thought she was suppose to remain with but that was God insuring she got to me!! We have been faithful members in our church all this time too and she is in the choir and on the praise dance team with the senior ladies which includes the pastor's wife!!! They perform about twice a month and when our church is invited to other churches that church request they perform!!!!
     
    I discovered early on with us getting to really know each other that she was a minister while raising her two kids, nephews, and nieces in New Orleans!!! Many times men and people in general look at me and ask if I'm a preacher!!! I guess I have that look and it never crossed my mind plus you have to be called by God to minister. Of course some just go but should wait until they are called in the Baptist churches to my knowledge...
     
    When this stroke came calling my name in 2004 while home alone, I was glad I had my wife in my life and it so happened she was on a dental appointment that day or I would not have survived the brain bleed I had!!! I have so much to be thankful about in my life these days and being married for 16 years is just the beginning and continuing our church membership is the other!!!! I really feel we are blessed by God in our lives and we can continue to be a happy couple in Love and Marriage.......
  25. fking
    Well, my little dog and close friend got a little tired but at my age I got a whole lot tired stopping and looking at so much old Texas items I found at various places!! We did not run into any problems at any of the stops we made to view or see things close up!! My little Princess had a good time hoping out the car and onto my scooter which she loves to ride anyway!! If it moves she is on it sitting down ready to ride and go where ever I go!!
     
    Any trip like that takes stamina and at my age I don't have it like I once did years ago!! Surprisingly, I met a lot of veterans along the way by stopping at these small places and Flee Markets that veterans owned and running the shops to make a little money and get rid of things they no longer wanted or have room to store them... I guess I could have a yard or garage sale soon to unload some things I should have gotten rid of many years ago...Somehow most people have a way of holding on to things and soon run out of space to keep them...
     
    You know, we often wonder why we have veterans living under bridges or on the streets or in areas you wouldn't expect a veteran to be living...Many of them didn't retire with a retirement pension for years of service!! Some or perhaps many of them took a lump sum payment when they were discharged and didn't use the money wisely to secure for the future!!! Many of them are single now, no wife or parents around to help them with money and life decisions!!! Some knew nothing about going to a Veteran Medical Facility for treatments!!
     
    A couple of them admitted to me they had money when they got out the service but made bad choices and it was gone in a flash...Some of the military items a couple of them were selling had to be stolen items because you just don't see these items on a table for sale on the street!!! I can't say a lot about items left behind in a divorce because I left some behind too and only God knows what happened to those items...When you move you loose and that's how I was able to collect a few items that were left behind and no one wanted them...
     
    I remember my mom saying when my dad came home and said we were packing up and moving tonight that is what they did.. All she didn't gather up was left behind... That happened several times as they were migrant farm workers growing crops as they got a share of what was planted and harvested... I'm sure that was a hard life but somebody had to do it. I was her last born child in 1941 so I didn't experience any of that in my life... We were just poor people with very little when I was growing up!!
     
    I had long conversations with a few of the vets I met who came back to live on their parents property they owned rather than sell out!!! Oh, I stopped by the cemetery where my mom and dad are buried which is on a portion of the land they owned that was awarded to them years and years ago!!!
     
    Overall the trip was a great adventure with a little dog along for company... We made one stop where they had live pet rabbits for sale and it was my dog's first time seeing a rabbit I think she thought was a little puppy at first!!! I told the guy she had plenty stuffed animals at home she plays with daily so she was not afraid!!! She even try to catch squirrels and birds when we are on the sidewalk but they are faster than her!!! It's great exercise for her little short legs!!!
     
    Today is D Day remembering the landing on Normandy beach 70 years ago during world war II by American forces... It's hard to think I was almost three years old at that time and had a brother in the same war!!!! Being tired today put me right in the mix with the way some of them that are still living probably feel now-a-day at their ages!!!
     
    The good part about going through wars, strokes, and other life threatening adventures is the fact we survived to see another day or more years with our families!!! I thank God daily for that survival...